The police barricades had been established and all of the tourists, other than the East Indian and his wife, were long gone. Now the helicopters were circling above me (most of them media) as I held my hostages close, the couple’s eyes wide with impending horror.

Sergeant Williams was the cop who I was negotiating with from behind the studio barricades, his army of police and SWAT teams moving closer as I continued to negotiate my deal of seeing some old friends. I simply told them that I needed to talk to them IMMEDIATELY or else my hostages would end up dead on the Jurassic Park ride with a bullet between their eyes.

The cackle of the bullhorn over the hovering helicopters above suddenly responded with a comforting voice. It was Drew. “Steve, please simply put down the gun, and let the couple go. You want to turn this around, I know you do.”

I peered through the palm trees of the amusement ride and saw Drew passing the bullhorn to Eric. “Steve, it’s Eric. C’mon, you’re friends are here. Stop this.”

The anger rose inside me, my gun clinching the trigger and pointing it directly at the East Indian man’s forehead. I could here him praying in a silent whisper as his wife screamed loudly.

“I want ALL of my friends here within 30 minutes or else these people are toast, do you understand!?” I screamed, the sweat accumulating beneath my shirt.

I could hear the mumble of Sergeant Williams directing his minions in orders that clearly meant more trouble for me. But I didn’t care. I had crossed the line and there was no going back now.

Twenty minutes later, much to my amazement, I could see Fran and Greg talking to the Sergeant. They had come through for me. But I also knew there were more SWAT lurking in the buildings above me, itching to end this standoff with a single bullet into my brain. I was carefully maneuvering my hostages around me, like a wall of flesh to protect my beating heart.

Fran got on the bullhorn, saying they couldn’t locate Mike. It seems he left the country or else he would be here. She pleaded with me to release my hostages and give up.

“HERE’S THE DEAL!” I yelled. “I’ll give you these hostages, but for my friends. I want you for these two.” I pushed the petrified Indians in front of me.

Immediately I saw the Sergeant shake his head no.

And then I saw Drew talking to the rest of the group, Eric nodding no but Fran and Greg clearly agreeing with my request. I knew in that moment I had to do something to make them understand I was serious.

I took the gun and fired a single shot into the air. People SCREAMED and I placed the gun nozzle to the East Indian woman’s temple. “If I don’t have a deal by the time I count to three, she dies, he dies, and then I die. ONE…” I could hear the fast whispers of the Sergeant, clearly going into a panicked executive decision as Fran spoke loudly to him.

“…TWO…” I cocked the trigger and woman shut her eyes, preparing to die. I wondered if she saw her life flash in front of her eyes?

“…THREE…” I shoved the gun closer when suddenly I heard Greg. “NO, STEVE! We’re going to do it!”

I was breathing heavy, unsure what I had just agreed to but knew I was nearing the end of my quest for revenge. I gave specifics, “I want all of you to handcuff yourself together in a line and then come over here.” To my astonishment, they agreed and before I knew it, the concerned faces of the Mocha Daze crew were walking towards me in a line, huddled together, Fran leading and looking like a stoic dyke.

I released my East Indian hostages who flew towards the police; the wife erupting in a wail of relief as a medical unit took them out of sight.

“Hello, everyone,” I said.

I made them get into the ride’s large boat with me in the middle and through a few negotiations, I told Sergeant Williams I wanted the ride to start. Suddenly, a nervous looking teenage attendant and his boss moved to the control booth on the other side of the waterway, when after a few moments, the ride slowly lurched to life. Before I knew it we were moving forward on our Jurassic Park adventure.

“You’re one sick man,” mumbled Greg.

“Really?” I yelled.

“Is this why you wanted us here? To go on an amusement park ride with you because you’re scared of the dark?”

We soon found ourselves on a calm stretch of water, surrounded by plastic looking dinosaurs in and out of the water. On the buildings around the ride, I could see the huddled figures of sharpshooters waiting to take me out but because of my barricade of human flesh; there was no single good shot.

Soon, we entered a large building and were being pulled upwards by a chain, moving towards darkness and the looming sound effects of the T-Rex somewhere in front of us. We must have climbed four stories. I could hear walkie-talkies inside the building, filled with police waiting to take their shot.

I was clearly surprised I had made it this far, and I could hear the waterfall sounds approaching as we etched closer to our final drop.

I knew I had to end this, once and for all.

I took the gun and pointed it at Eric, FIRING it as the bullet hit him in the torso. Drew screamed and suddenly Greg was on top of me, his arm attached to the other group of people but his free arm punching me in the face as police moved towards the boat.

But they were too late. We had already crested over the hump of the waterfall and started our descent in the darkness of the flume.

I could feel the sharpshooter bullets hitting me as the wind and water sprayed across me, Greg and the line of Drew, Eric, and Fran holding on as we moved closer to the bottom of the ride.

I wasn’t sure if I had killed Eric or who else would die, but I started to open fire my gun as a giant wall of water sprayed across us, more bullets hitting my body and ripping apart the boat as we slowed down, soaked in water, a wall of policemen moving towards us.