Endangered

by Linda Chaikin

  Sable thought she knew, and the galelike winds beginning to blow against her were indeed troubling. She recalled what Kash had said about international poachers with Far Eastern connections. She glanced in the direction of the carved ivory elephant—mysteriously found in a crate in the Dunsmoor shipping warehouse. She thought she knew now why Kash had brought it here.

  He must think Vince is involved, she thought. The idea set her on edge. And if Kash did think this badly of Dr. Adler, naturally he could convince himself that he also had something to do with the death of Seth. But what gave Kash the notion he would be involved? His reputation for animal conservation and interest in the tribes was impeccable.

  “So Kash wants to buy me out, does he?” she murmured.

  “I’m certain it’s because of your possible engagement to Vince. Kash wouldn’t want a partnership with him.”

  “Because of his dislike for him. There’s no other reason for it, Gran. Vince isn’t guilty.”

  “I’m not so sure Kash’s ambitions are as simple as that. There’s also the matter about you. The two of you were in love once.”

  Sable shook her head. “He never was. He never wanted to commit. He was a friend, is all.”

  “A friend,” said Zenobia with mild disbelief.

  “On his part that’s all it was. On my part—well, I made a dreadful mistake chasing after him. I’m ashamed to think of it now. I was deceived into believing the liberal talk of how it’s proper for a girl to tell a man of her interest before he’s taken the initiative. I don’t believe that anymore. Anyway, I certainly made him nervous, didn’t I?” she said with a laugh at herself.

  “Oh, I don’t know. Kash isn’t the nervous sort. And from what I remember, he was doing a good deal of chasing after you.”

  “Yes, but looking back…I think he became a bit cautious.” She stood, embarrassed when she remembered how she rarely prayed and left things with God, but moved in to “make” them happen. “It’s over between Kash and me. I want it that way, even if I don’t marry Vince. At the moment, I want nothing more than to work with Father in Samburu. I’m going to tell Vince I think it best the engagement be postponed.”

  Zenobia’s eyes were suddenly bright. “Are you? I think that’s wise considering the innuendoes afloat. After all, if love is genuine and he’s the one the Lord has for you, you needn’t worry about it all slipping through your fingers by waiting and testing the waters. No one ever lost by waiting on the Lord, but much has been lost by rushing into romance and marriage.”

  A thousand swirling thoughts left Sable feeling overwhelmed and confused. I’ll keep them both at arm’s length, she decided. To make a decision now would be foolish.

  “So what do you think?” Her grandmother’s question interrupted her thoughts. “Do you wish to sell your share of the company to Kash?”

  Her first response was negative. Even if Hallet gold had been used years ago, the Dunsmoors had built the company. She didn’t like to surrender anything that was old and historic, even if there was debt. It was goading to think Kash wanted her out, whether his motive was dislike for Vince or not.

  “I’ll need to think about it first, Gran. I’m not anxious to give up the past if there’s a way to keep it. I may owe so much to Kash that I’ve nothing to sell. In which case, he could end up getting the company by absorbing the debt.”

  Zenobia pushed herself up. “Kash isn’t the sort of man to do that. He’s still interested in you, dear. I could see it in his concerns.”

  Sable took a last sip of her coffee. “I also want to hear first what Vince has to say about these Far Eastern businessmen Kash is so against.”

  “A good idea, but you know Kash,” she warned. “He’s persistent when he decides what he wants, and he has plans.”

  “He’ll need to be patient,” said Sable airily. “I won’t be rushed into selling just because he doesn’t approve of Dr. Adler. What does Father say about all this?”

  “I’m sorry to say he doesn’t know yet. I haven’t had opportunity to talk to him since Mr. Hendricks informed me of the Hallets’ share in the company. He wouldn’t know any more than I did.” She sighed and walked with Sable from the shop.

  “If only he would come to the conference next week. Actually, your father is the main reason I wanted you to come home. I’m concerned about him, Sable, and from some of the things Vince tells me, we have good cause to worry. He’s been disappearing from the Samburu camp for weeks at a time.”

  “Father knows the wilderness; there’s no reason to worry.”

  “I can’t say I blame Kash for not wanting you to come now. With the possibility of renewed tribal fighting and Seth’s mysterious death, it would have been better for you to stay in Toronto until things were cleared up. But I was selfish. I wanted you home—and preferably home to stay with me instead of going off with Kate.”

  Sable caught up her hand, smiling. “You weren’t selfish, Gran. I belong here with the rest of you. If there’s trouble, we can’t hide from it. I’m not a child anymore.”

  Zenobia looked more vulnerable than Sable remembered. Gone was her tough shield, the way she had carried her revolver in her belt and drove about alone in her Land Rover. The gray hair was thinning; the sharp blue eyes appeared less alert and even afraid. Sable held her hand tightly.

  “I must go to Samburu, but when my work there is done, I’ll come back to Kenyatta. Father and I both.”

  “It isn’t just Samburu that disturbs me, but the death of Seth.”

  Sable, too, was worried, but she wanted to hide it from Zenobia. “Because Kash blames Vince?”

  “Yes….”

  “Surely he gave some hint as to why he would think so. What possible connection could there be between Vince and Seth Hallet in Tanzania?”

  “Kash won’t say. He’s too polite. He thinks I’m old, and he wants to soften things for me. I’m afraid of serious trouble between them. And now that you’ve come, I don’t see a pleasant end to it. Kash wants to come between you and Vince, and his motive may be more than jealousy over the past.”

  They had come to the stairs that led to the upper floor.

  Zenobia stood searching Sable’s face thoughtfully. “You look weary. I’d best let you rest awhile before we have supper. Now that Vince and Kate won’t be here, we’ll dine alone. You need not get dressed up. Supper will be ready when you are.”

  Sable watched her grandmother walk across the dining commons to her office; then fingering the carved wooden banister and heading slowly up the stairs, she thought of the ivory carving. Moffet came to mind. She recalled her stay in Mombasa and arranging for the supplies to be delivered by truck to Kenyatta. She remembered seeing the stately Dunsmoor merchant ships in the harbor. She’d watched one such ship leave port with exports for Taiwan. She thought of the ivory elephant. Just who were these investors that Vince hoped to convince to buy into the company?

  Sable’s old familiar bedroom was large and comfortable, as she had left it years earlier. The windows had been cleaned for her arrival and looked out onto a wide strip of thirsty lawn where a blaze of drought-resistant flowers grew in the nearby garden. The best part was the view of the water hole. As a girl she had sat up in the late hours with Kate watching the big animals come to quench their thirst.

  Sable turned to stare thoughtfully at her reflection in the mirror: a remarkably pretty young woman who insisted she no longer loved the renegade Kash Hallet.

  “Yes, of course I’m going to stay in Kenya,” she murmured to herself. “I belong to the Lord and to Kenya and perhaps to Vince, as well. And as for Kash—it’s over, even if he thinks it isn’t.”

  She threw off her sandals as she went into the private bath adjoining her room to enjoy a soothing soak in the tub after her long and emotionally trying day. From Namanga to the lodge! And soon, all the way to Samburu to work with Father. How could Gran even think she would not go? Did it have anything to do with the trouble of finding a willing guide? Well, Vince and Mckibber
were bound to find someone. Those supplies must get through.

  Seven

  When Sable came down to dine alone with her grandmother, she was surprised to find other guests waiting in the large dining commons—Mckibber, Vince, and Kash.

  A rush of conflicting emotions sent her heart pounding. What was Kash doing here, and Vince? He couldn’t possibly have driven out to the camp where Kate waited and be back this soon. What had caused him to return? And more important, how would he and Kash get along now? Evidently, they were behaving in a restrained manner—at least Gran’s lamps were still all in one piece!

  Kash was standing at the open doors to the terrace, looking out at the lavender and green Kenyan sky. The small water hole was below, the one source of water for the wildlife that came each day in the cool of the evening to drink thirstily. When Sable entered, Kash turned around and their gaze met, then fell away by mutual consent.

  There followed a few tense moments of silence in the large room with its warm wood tones and casual furnishings. Dr. Vince Adler spoke first, his voice not betraying the intense conflict between the three of them earlier that afternoon on the road from Namanga.

  “Sable—welcome home!”

  No one else appeared to notice that he’d taken charge, welcoming Sable to her own home as though he were the greeting patriarch. Vince, wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and casual slacks, his lean, tanned body energetic as he walked across the polished wood floor, held out his hands and took hers, smiling at her, but his eyes were serious, imploring her to react as though this were their first meeting of the day.

  Zenobia knew better, of course, but Vince didn’t realize this. Sable cooperated smoothly, since trouble of any kind was the last thing she wanted, and she said lightly, “Why, hello, Vince. I thought you’d gone out to the Maasai camp.”

  “Yes, I was going to, but then I thought it best that we go together, so I came back. We’ll go first thing in the morning.”

  She drew her hands free from his and turned to Zenobia. “Hope I’ve not kept you all from supper, Gran.”

  “We wouldn’t think of going on without you, dear. Anyway, you’re not more than a minute late…um, you’ve said hello to Kash, haven’t you? Goodness! How long’s it been now? Several years at least since we’ve been together as a family.”

  “More like a few hours,” said Sable breezily, casting a too-friendly smile in Kash’s direction yet managing to avoid a locking gaze.

  “We’ve met already today, Zenobia,” he said, striding across the floor from the open terrace door.

  Zenobia knew this already, but she feigned surprise, glancing from Sable to Vince to Kash. “Well…how nice we’re all together again.”

  Kash seemed to ignore Dr. Adler, walking right past him to stand before Zenobia. “Unfortunately I won’t be staying. I was just running the truck in this direction and stopped by for a moment.”

  “Utter nonsense, dear boy, you must stay and have supper with us now you’re here. Isn’t that right, Sable? There’s plenty of food and more than enough chairs at the table—” She turned brightly and called, “Oh, Jomo? Do set another place for Kash!”

  Sable, aware of Vince standing close beside her and of the tension passing between the two men, looked at Kash, her expression casual, but as their eyes met, her cheeks warmed. She touched her hair self-consciously, where it was still damp from her bath and drawn back simply from her face. “Yes, of course. Do stay, Kash.”

  Restrained amusement flickered in his brief smile, as though he knew how his presence made her relationship with Vince awkward, and that she hoped he wouldn’t stay.

  “Thanks, but I’d best be going.”

  She made no reply at first. “You’re feeling better? The migraine?”

  Zenobia looked concerned. “Oh dear, that again?”

  “It’s nothing. I actually came to borrow Mckib for a few days.” He looked at Sable. “And to return your jeep. I hauled it out of the mud.”

  “Oh. That was thoughtful.” She wondered why he wanted Mckib.

  He showed a slight, wry smile. “Think nothing of it. I also have the photographs of you—if you’re interested.”

  The photographs of her in the mud! Her eyes implored his as Vince spoke for the first time, his tone curious and blunt. “What photographs?”

  Sable turned to him quickly. “It’s nothing, Vince. You wouldn’t be interested. They’re merely photos of…Lake Amboseli.”

  She waited, half expecting Kash to contradict, but he did not, and a quick glance his way confirmed a smile.

  “I do wish you’d stay, Kash,” said Zenobia, but he’d caught up his hat from a chair and was now the essence of congeniality.

  “Another time, Zenobia. If you don’t mind, though, I’ll borrow Mckib, and we’ll be on our way.”

  “Oh well,” she sighed, “if you insist.” Coming up beside him and looping her arm through his, they walked from the dining commons toward the front door. “Do bring your uncle back as soon as you can, dear, and I insist you must stay for luncheon next time. I’ll have Jomo fix your favorite. The way he always used to when you came as a youngster to see Sable.”

  “We have a date, then,” said Kash, smiling down at her. Sable wondered fleetingly if he was actually thinking of her, not Gran.

  Sable was aware of the heartbreaking charm he could exercise when he took the trouble. That he had already won her grandmother’s affection long ago was no surprise. Whereas Vince sometimes seemed pretentious, superior, and a bit hard to get close to emotionally, Kash was warm and lovable—at least around Gran. With younger women, however, he remained exasperatingly aloof.

  “Why does he need Mckibber?” mused Vince, looking after Zenobia and Kash as they disappeared into the outer entranceway.

  “I don’t know,” Sable said, turning curiously to Mckib as he walked toward them from the dining commons to follow Kash. He, too, appeared to deliberately ignore Vince as he stopped and looked at Sable.

  “Kash brought you something you’ll be happy to see” was all he said, and he gave a wink before striding after his nephew.

  Sable looked after him, wondering, then as the front door opened, she heard a sound that caused her heart to leap. A whimsical smile broke out on her face, and without a word to Vince, she turned and walked quickly to follow.

  The others were already outside when she came out the front door and walked across the large rambling front porch to the steps, grasping one of the posts as she looked ahead into the deepening African twilight. Gran came up beside her as Sable noticed the trailer truck parked in the driveway. Kash was giving orders in Swahili to two African zoo workers, and Mckibber was calling several of Gran’s workers on Kenyatta to come and help.

  Sable’s eyes glistened with delight as the baby elephant, the calf of Moffet, was lowered from the bed of the truck to the dusty ground. Patches was safely inside the barred cage, her little trunk uplifted to smell the breeze and her gray ears flapping.

  “What’s this?” Zenobia asked as Sable smiled toward Kash and started down the steps in his direction.

  “Moffet’s baby,” Sable called over her shoulder and walked across the warm earth toward Kash.

  He had finished giving orders to the zoo workers and had opened the big cab door of the truck to swing himself up behind the wheel.

  “Wait, Kash.”

  He looked down at her, one boot on the truck step, his hand on the wheel. In the twilight he was every inch the handsome and masculine young man she had always wanted, always loved, and her eyes softened as they met his. Sable restrained her emotions, refusing to let them spiral out of control.

  “Thank you,” she said quietly.

  Kash made no audible reply at first, but his eyes said enough to cause a rise in her heart rate. “I wouldn’t want anyone else to have Moffet’s calf. If it belongs anywhere, it’s here on Kenyatta.”

  Sable watched him climb behind the wheel of the truck, then turning away, she walked to where the Kenyatta w
orkers were carefully handling the cage. They would bring Patches to the “pet area” of the sanctuary, where Zenobia housed a number of injured or orphaned animals: everything from a pink flamingo named Sam to an old lion unable to hunt for himself and rejected by the Kenyatta pride. Now Moffet’s orphaned calf would join the compound to be handfed until old enough to reintroduce to the wilds.

  The truck’s engine rumbled to life, and Mckibber climbed up into the passenger side. Sable watched them until the truck disappeared, then slowly turned to walk back to the lodge. She looked up to see Vince walking across the yard toward her.

  “An elephant?”

  “Yes,” she said. “The calf of Moffet—an elephant Kash and I saved years ago. I found her dead today…on my drive home from Namanga.”

  His eyes reflected dark and luminous in the twilight. “I’m sorry you had to be the one to find her,” he said sympathetically. “I should have met you and driven you home to avoid all this. I suppose bringing you the calf soothes Hallet’s conscience,” he said wearily, looking on as the workers maneuvered the cage onto a flatbed to bring it out to animal recovery.

  “What happened on the road today—between you and Kash—I won’t permit it to occur again,” she said defensively.

  “I wasn’t speaking of what happened this afternoon but of poaching. Hallet’s involved up to his ears, or should I say all the way to the bank?” Vince shoved his hands in his trouser pockets and stood looking at the elephant with a frown on his lean, suntanned face. “It’s one thing to bring you a calf to win your sympathy. It’s quite another matter to be running Smith and Browning.”

  “You’re not suggesting he’s involved in Moffet’s death?” Sable asked, although only hours ago she’d been the first one to think so. Somehow, now she didn’t want to believe it. Kash had denied involvement. Why shouldn’t she believe him? But in truth, he hadn’t denied poaching. He had only said that he hadn’t killed Moffet. And what of the money he had? Had he really earned it legally? Or, as Vince seemed convinced, through black-market dealings in ivory and skins?