by Leon Mare
‘Pre-flight check completed, main rotor slightly loose, I think the Jesus nut is worn out, but everything else checks out OK. Stunning,’ he added in the same breath, taking Linda’s hand in both his. Still holding her hand, he looked at Sam. ‘I definitely disagree with you. I personally, don’t think she is overweight at all, and what’s more, her teeth are quite straight enough for me, thank you.’
Sam aimed a backhand at him. ‘Linda, you must please excuse the man. The Parks Board felt sorry for his wife and twelve kids after he got fired by the roads department for incompetence, so they offered him this job. He actually talked them into believing that he could fly one of these things. He’s been at it for years, and he still can’t fly it.’
Linda took an instant liking to the pilot, and looked at the machine apprehensively. ‘It’s my first time in a helicopter. Are you sure you can keep this thing in the air?’
‘Positive. As long as the main rotor doesn’t come unstuck, no problem.’
Lazarus, observing the activities from a distance, was frantic. Looking around to make sure he was not being observed himself, he held the radio close to his mouth. ‘Joao, she is not coming by road. They are all getting into a helicopter!’
Joao swore at the complication, and was silent for a while, thinking. ‘Is Jenkins also in the chopper’
‘Affirmative.’
‘OK, this is how we play it. You stay put in Satara. Have a meal or something, you’ll be less conspicuous that way. Keep the radio out of sight, but stay close to it. From the air, I am a sitting duck here. I’m moving deeper into the bush for better cover. If the chopper gets close enough to me I’m going to nail it. So if I shout, you better come and pick me up fast.’
The three terrorists were galvanised by Joao’s audacity. ‘Hell, the man is insane,’ one of them remarked.
‘Not necessarily,’ Lazarus said. ‘Downing an unsuspecting chopper with a RPG7 is a piece of cake. Can you imagine the uproar?’
As the helicopter lifted into the wind and turned, Lazarus was on the radio again. ‘Get under cover, they are heading your way.’
But Joao only heard the chopper, passing far to the north. ‘Shit,’ he said and put the launcher down again.
They were flying at five hundred feet, searching the bush for elephant. Once Linda got her eye in, she was amazed by the amount of game that could be seen from the air. She noticed Vick leaning forward every so often to scan the sky ahead and above them. She triggered the foot control of the mike suspended from her earphones. ‘Should we be looking for airborne elephants too?’ she wanted to know.
‘No, I’m just keeping an eye out for the big raptors. You always fly over or around them, never under. When they get a fright, most of them tend to go straight down, and if our tail rotor happens to be in the way, that’s it.’
Flying over a large pool in the Shikellengane, Vick took the helicopter down to show her a monster or a crocodile, suspended motionlessly in the clear water. ‘Big enough to grab a buffalo by the nose and drown it,’ he remarked.
She shivered as she watched it slowly sinking into the depths and disappearing as the helicopter came close.
Thirty minutes later they spotted a herd of elephant, and Vick radioed the location to the ground crew. They flew back along the fire break until they had a visual on the trucks, and Vick gently put the machine down in the road. He told Linda that the country was open enough to make the herding fairly easy, and she could remain in the front seat if she wished to watch the actual culling.
The right door was removed, and a member of the ground crew passed Sam the gun and the darts. The gun was a modified over and under 12-gauge shotgun, expertly adapted by the Parks Board’s instrument maker to fire the darts, propelled by .22 calibre blanks.
Linda was looking over her shoulder at the two trays of darts, and inquired about the different colours.
‘The yellow ones contain M99,’ Sam explained over the earphones. ‘It is a drug that puts the baby elephants to sleep. They are then measured, and if they are the right size, old enough to survive without their mothers, but still small enough to be manageable, they are crated and taken to a holding pen at Skukuza, to be sold later. The red darts contain something called Scoline. Have you ever had a general anaesthetic?’
‘Twice, but what has that got to do with this stuff?’
‘This happens to be exactly the same stuff that is used daily in hospitals all over the world when people have to undergo surgery.’
‘And yet you use it for killing grown elephants? Good grief!’
Sam smiled. ‘We use an overdose on the elephants, and in theatre you are in a controlled environment. Scoline depolarises all your muscles, in other words, it exhausts the muscles very quickly to a point where complete paralysis sets in. At this point the animal collapses and breathing stops. In theatre, the patient is kept alive through this short stage by means of artificial ventilation. Enzymes in the body break down the Scoline within minutes, and the patient can breathe on his own again. That is one of the main reasons we use the stuff. It is quick, efficient and painless and, as the chemical is destroyed totally by the enzymes, nothing remains that can spoil the meat.’
‘I say, Kosie, if you see your way clear to continue the boring lecture in the air, maybe we can get this operation off the ground, as it were. And I think you’re getting carried away. It would have been good manners to inquire about the lady’s interest in pre-school biochemistry before starting your lecture.’
‘Listen, flyboy, you can be glad you are holding the controls in your sweaty little hands, otherwise I would have laid on a practical demonstration of the effects of Scoline on an over-weight, middle-aged old fart. Stop yapping and get going before I give in to temptation.’
‘Linda, I honestly think you should consider dropping this uncouth barbarian in favour of a more sophisticated, educated gentleman like myself. We could be very happy together.’
‘And what about the wife and twelve kids,’ Linda wanted to know with a giggle.
‘Malicious rumours! And anyway, I was brought up in the Zulu tradition. I am allowed to have as many wives as I wish.’
‘And can afford, you twit,’ Sam interjected. ‘You were lucky to get one wife, and let me tell you, the moment she finds out you are not really in line to inherit millions, she’ll be off in a flash.’
‘Ah, my uneducated friend, you are greatly underestimating the impact my formidable personality has on the opposite gender. On many occasions in my life I actually had to fight them off my person physically. Not to mention their craving for my body,’ Vick drawled as he started angling the chopper sideways towards the herd.
‘They are most probably after your body because your mind is useless.’ Sam didn’t expound further, his attention now focused entirely on the herd, fleeing in alarm. He was sitting sideways in the open doorway, his feet resting on the landing skid. Only his harness prevented him from joining the herd on the ground.
‘Ready?’ inquired Vick.
‘Ready.’
No trace remained of the cheerful mood of a moment ago. This was serious, dangerous work, and they were professionals.
Linda clenched her fists as the machine swept down to the herd in a gut-wrenching dive.
From the outset it was clear that these two both knew exactly what they were doing. Both the helicopter and the gun were zeroed in on the leading matriarch, the purpose being to take the leaders out first. As the chopper passed within ten feet of the big cow, Sam placed two darts in her back in rapid succession. She trumpeted her fury and confusion, and swung around nimbly, barely missing the craft with her thick trunk. The next moment the helicopter was out of reach and not a direct threat any more, as it hovered a few feet off the ground, directly in her path of flight. She turned away at right angles and fled, the rest following, while Sam reloaded.
This procedure was repeated several times, interrupted occasionally by one of the younger adults attempting to break away from the herd.
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In the process of keeping the herd together in order to facilitate the gutting and loading, Vick also had to make sure that the animals did not end up in a spot that was inaccessible to heavy vehicles.
During the aerobatics that ensued, the main rotors were taxed to their utmost, their regular whirring changing to an aggressive whapping as gravity was fought with a vengeance.
Fortunately, today’s area posed no such problems as streams and riverbeds. It was plain sailing compared to some of the other operations.
As the first elephants started going down, the rest were herded towards their fallen comrades. The last elephant stood swaying on its feet, when Sam noticed that one of the young animals, earmarked for capture, had gone down on its knees, and hadn’t toppled over on its side. He pointed this out to Vick, who immediately patched the radio through to the ground crew.
‘Get in fast, Dan, next to the baobab there is a calf that went down on its brisket! One young bull is still on his feet fifty yards away, but he is bound to go down in seconds.’
Due to narrow escapes in the past, the helicopter wasn’t allowed to land before receiving the all clear from the ground crew.
They circled, watching the ground crew pull the errant calf onto its side, measuring and shooting the rest. Linda was aghast. She had been prepared, but like anyone experiencing this for the first time, it was overwhelming. It was akin to visiting one of the hundreds of abattoirs throughout the country – the killing was something that had to be done, but preferably by somebody else. It could turn one into a vegetarian in the blink of an eye.
‘Why did they have to pull the calf over on its side?’
Sam was faster on the foot control. ‘Going down on its haunches is a completely unnatural position for an elephant. The intestines press up against the diaphragm, and the elephant suffocates. Live calves are worth a hell of a lot more than dead adults in monetary terms. About humane terms I would rather not voice an option.’
For the first time during their short acquaintance Linda heard a serious tone in Vick’s voice. ‘And so say all of us,’ very solemnly.
They got the all clear eventually, and Vick put the machine down in a clearing close to the vehicles. Linda was keen to get out immediately, but Vick put his hand on her arm, restraining her. ‘We don’t want you running into our tail rotor in all the excitement, love. Give me a minute or two to cool the turbo fans, then we can stop the engine and all get out. Just hang in there, and I will personally organise you a little something cool to slake the thirst.’
Sam occupied himself with picking up spent .22 cases while they were waiting for the turbo temperature to come down from 700˚Centigrade, prior to switching off the engines.
When they disembarked, Linda immediately rushed to the scene of the crating of the calves. She was absolutely fascinated by the arrogant, and at the same time terrified, attitude of the newly captured calves. Tears were streaming down her face when Sam put his arm around her.
‘This is one of those things you have to try and comprehend with your head and not with your heart, my love. The first time is always traumatic, I know. My heart still tends to rebel against it.’
She turned around and buried her face in his neck, sobbing inconsolably. ‘Well, this is what makes Africa so totally different from any other place in the world. It is so cruel and harsh, and yet so beautiful, and it squanders the life it has so much of easily.’ On their way back, they passed within five hundred yards of Joao, who had the helicopter squarely in his sights. He was hesitant, and did not launch his deadly weapon for fear of missing. He knew full well that, should he not destroy the helicopter with the first go, all hell would break loose, and his chances of making it out of the country were practically non-existent.
Joao triggered the radio twice and waited.
The others had brought food, and were sitting at a picnic table in Satara, trying to make the meal last all afternoon. As the carrier wave backlashed twice over the tiny speaker, Lazarus grabbed the radio from where it was lying concealed under a paper bag. ‘Got them?’
‘No, they are on their way back. I am moving back towards the road, so keep me informed of their progress once they take to the road. And for God’s sake be right behind them when I hit them. I don’t want to be sitting in the road with two smouldering wrecks, waiting to be picked up.’
The game ranger stationed at Satara, whose house was right next to the helipad, was waiting for them when they landed. As the noise of the whipping blades started abating, introductions were made.
Linda was still a bit overwhelmed by the day’s events but could manage a smile for Andy Waring. ‘Please to meet you.’
‘Sam,’ Andy said, ‘I’ve got the fire going, and the beer is cold. Join us for a braai.’
Sam looked at Linda, who was frowning ever so slightly. ‘I really don’t think so, Andy, we are really pooped. But we will definitely take you up on that cold beer.’
‘Good enough. Get the vehicles out of the camp before the gates close, and we’ll meet you at the house.’
Their movements were once again relayed to Joao, who cursed bitterly once more. ‘All right,’ he said, ‘pick me up. We will ambush them when they get home. That’s closer to the border.’
It was a just after dark when Sam and Linda eventually got into their vehicles. As they left, Andy gave Sam a small Styrofoam box designed to keep six beers cold, which he placed on the seat next to him. ‘A little something for the road, Sam. Twenty-two kilos is about a sixpack far, so you should make it.’ Andy leaned into the cab and whispered confidentially, ‘She’s a bloody marvel, my friend. Get your backside in gear and don’t let this one get away too.’
‘Get lost,’ Sam grinned.
The two vehicles pulled out, Sam taking the lead. Once they were on the Nwanetzi road, Sam waved her past.
They were about halfway home, when he flashed his bright lights. They switched off their engines, and enjoyed the absolute silence, leaning against the Porsche, their elbows just touching. ‘Beer?’
‘No more for me, thanks.’
He walked back to the truck and fetched himself one. She was standing with her back against the low car, and he pressed his body against her, arms loosely around her neck. Her hands were on his hips, and she looked up at him. ‘Thank you for taking me along today. I think this day has somehow given me a lot to think about. Seeing so much death in one day makes a person see life in a totally different perspective.’
‘I know,’ he said, brushing her forehead with his lips. ‘Life and death, so close to each other, they are nearly the same thing.’
She hugged him, and then put a hand on his chest. ‘Please let’s go home, there is so much I have to tell you this weekend.’ He was slightly baffled by the tears he saw in her eyes, and he walked back to the Toyota in deep thought.
Lazarus was in the process of trying to fit the second anti-tank mine into a hole in the road when Joao spotted the approaching headlights.
Sam’s thoughts were still with Linda as he absently twisted the steering wheel to miss a hole on the approach to his gate. Strange-looking hole. About twenty centimetres deep and thirty across. Sheer sides, ground piled neatly to one side. That was not the work of an animal.
Christ! He started screaming as he exploded into action. He stood on the brake and flashed his lights, nearly pressing the horn into the steering column.
In the same instant the left rear wheel of the Porsche triggered a tiny mechanism of Russian origin, buried under a few centimetres of loose soil. In front of Sam’s horrified eyes a blinding light erupted from the ground beneath the Porsche. The explosion threw the small white car twenty feet into the air, trailing fiery debris all the way up. The blast threw the Toyota back, and Sam dived for the passenger door instinctively, his training taking over the functions of conscious thought. He slammed his hand into the door handle and rolled to the ground on the far side of the truck.
His night vision temporarily destroyed by the flash, Joao
did not see Sam leave the vehicle. The RPG7 rocket left the tube with a roar, and punched through the door on the driver’s side, exploding inside the cab. The whole front half of the Toyota exploded. On the other side of the truck, the blast of hot air picked Sam up like a leaf, and threw him fifteen yards through the air into a thicket.
Debris were still raining down all over the bush and the echoes were still reverberating off the nearby hills, when shouts started drifting up from the direction of the compound.
Even Joao was awed by the havoc he had created. The wrecks were smouldering through a dense pall of dust and smoke that hung over the entire area.
‘Come on!’ He started running in the direction of the BMW, hidden a kilometre away in the bush.
Sam opened his eyes and stared at the light above him in confusion for a few moments. He was flat on his back on the carpet in the lounge, and Aaron was wiping his face with a wet towel. ‘I have radioed Skukuza, nkosi. I am so sorry.’
Sam’s eyes went slightly out of focus as he once more saw the Porsche somersaulting into the air, suspended on a growing ball of fire. ‘No!’ he screamed hoarsely, sweeping Aaron aside and running out towards the gate. ‘Nooooo!’
When the first people arrived from Satara twenty minutes later they found him on his knees next to the still smouldering wreck of the Porsche, weeping forlornly and cradling something pathetically small in his arms.
Chapter Eleven
The BMW was found early in the morning, and a team of recces went over the wire in a follow-up operation, just to be thwarted by vehicle tracks on the other side. The matter was then immediately taken over by the politicians, who had a field day. Indignant speeches were made, warnings by the ANC were issued, and every politician and his brother got as much mileage out of the incident as possible. The few powerful enough to manage exposure on TV stirred up a National Sense of Outrage. The general public demanded strong action.