by T. M. Clark
‘There was a big ZW sticker on his tailgate,’ Xo added.
‘So, the hunter is from Zimbabwe. We have one more lead that the SAP don’t,’ Nick said.
They turned their horses and started walking towards the road where Khululani and Julio were running towards them still.
Julio was clapping and doing a dance in the sand. ‘You showed him, he’ll never come back here. Even if you didn’t kill him, you shot up his bakkie and he will think twice before coming hunting here again. Our people are safer thanks to you all.’
Chloe just shook her head.
Khululani walked up to Nick. ‘Did you see his face close up? Was I right about it being the man we saw at the pan when we were fixing the pump?’
‘Yes. He looked right at me. I think he recognised me, too,’ Nick said.
Enoch looked from Khululani to Nick. ‘You two know the hunter?’
‘We’ve run into him in the Kruger. Up in the north part, close to where the park finishes, and the start of Coutada 16,’ Nick said.
‘It is at one of the last watering pans before you exit the park, right up in the Mopani shrub veld,’ Khululani added.
‘It was barely six o’clock, and we wondered how he could’ve got to the pan as early as he had from any visitor’s camp. The only reason we were in the area was because we’d slept in the bush not far from where we saw him. We reported him for suspicion of being in the park overnight and moving around outside of park hours. But there aren’t as many staff policing the visitors in the north of the park as there are in the south. It’s a lot less crowded. We learned later in the day that no one had him on their sign-in sheet either. So we had him listed as a suspected poacher, a vehicle of interest at all the gates of the park.’
‘He is an arrogant tsotsi,’ Khululani said.
Nick smiled. ‘When we arrived at the pan, he stood next to his vehicle, as if waiting for us to approach and reprimand him for being there. We had a lot to do that day, and if an idiot wanted to tempt fate and get eaten, then they were welcome to parade around in front of the lions in the park, it’s their choice. When we simply ignored him and began to fit the new pump, he got in his bakkie with his passenger, another white male with a beard. He came around our side of the pan and drove close to us, staring at us the whole time, before tipping his hat and driving slowly north. He’s with someone different this time, a woman; she’s the one who fired back at us with a shotgun.’
‘You think it’s a coincidence that you see him here, in the middle of Mozambique?’ Chloe asked.
‘Absolutely. A bloody big one. But he clearly knows my face as well as I know his,’ Nick said.
Enoch looked backwards. ‘We should put some distance between them and us, in case they decide to regroup and retaliate.’
Xo reached down for Julio and pulled him up back onto Sirocco.
Khululani used Nick’s foot and then stirrup to help him mount onto the back of Marin, as well as Nick pulling him up. He didn’t manage to be half as elegant as Xo and Julio, and Sirocco was a fair bit shorter than Marin, too.
Chloe put her .303 away into its holster.
Enoch said, ‘I think I will keep mine out. You never know …’
They cantered back five abreast until they came to the tree and the warthog burrow, then they moved back into single-file formation to avoid a landmine area that they had apparently run through once already, according to a talkative Julio. Only when they were on the other side of the kopje did they slow to a walk.
* * *
They were with the chief and the medicine man when they found the corpse alongside a small campfire. He hadn’t stood a chance. His empty cup was lying next to him, his morning tea had long soaked into the thirsty earth, and ants were making short work of his stick of biltong. As expected, he’d been shot in the head, his skull cracked open like a melon with a rock, to enable the Caçador Escuro to retrieve the bullet.
There were two sets of tracks.
‘This hunter has big feet, size eleven,’ Khululani said. ‘The smaller boot prints look like a female tread to me, they are size six. Goes with what Nick said about the passenger being a woman.’
They dug a deep grave and buried what was left of the man, covering him with rocks so that the jackals and hyenas couldn’t get to his body. The chief had fashioned a cross and placed it on top of the stones. And Curandeiros Cassamo performed a quick ceremony, to allow the man’s spirit to fly free from the binding that kept him in his body because of his violent death so that he could once again rejoin his family and assume his responsibilities.
Once it was done, Enoch, along with Nick, Khululani and Filipe, tracked them back to where the hunters’ camp had been. They searched the area, looking for anything that could serve as evidence to help them identify who’d been there, but found nothing except a fire which had been extinguished a few hours before. The Caçador Escuro knew how to clean up after himself.
And that more than anything niggled at Enoch’s mind.
* * *
They had the horses loaded and ready to go by lunchtime, and the villagers had all come out to wave them on their way. Deciding to press on hadn’t been difficult for any of them. They wanted to put as much distance between the hunter and them as they could. The horses were more docile. After they had been for a cooling swim in the river and had a good rub-down, they seemed happier when being loaded.
The only thing remaining was to say their goodbyes to the chief, and then they could depart.
‘At least we know that if we come across someone in a white—now beaten-up—bakkie in the bush, we must give them a wide berth,’ Enoch said to the chief.
The chief nodded.
‘We’ll also be extra alert,’ Nick said, ‘ensuring that we check for him all the time in case he gives chase.’
‘We cannot help you further with this Caçador Escuro, but we will keep what we have seen here in our thoughts. Perhaps one day we will have a way to find this man. We need to push through into Zimbabwe, but we will never forget your warning. We hope we scared him enough that he never comes back to your homeland. You keep your people safe and keep them close,’ Enoch said as he shook the chief’s hand. ‘Sala kuhle, my friend.’
‘Hamba kahle,’ the chief said, as he and Julio shook their visitors’ hands.
When the chief shook Nick’s hand, he said, ‘Look after your missus and her horses. She’s the best special cargo my village has hosted for many, many years.’
CHAPTER
23
They headed north-west for two hours, bumping along the old dirt road, before Filipe spotted the RENAMO soldiers blocking the way. As had become the practice, he got out and approached them alone.
Enoch and Xo watched from the front of the truck. There was lots of head shaking going on, and no back slapping.
Enoch said into the radio, ‘It does not look like Filipe is winning this time.’
‘Agreed,’ Nick said, watching through the airholes in the top of the truck.
Khululani cocked his .303.
‘No, wait; hopefully, it won’t come to that,’ Nick said.
Ethel put her hand on Mike’s arm to reassure him, and Chloe smiled at her. Ethel had coped so wonderfully with the travelling, despite her years. Chloe thought maybe that Ethel had now found her calling, being a healing gypsy on safaris.
Filipe threw his hands in the air, then he walked back to the truck. He opened the passenger door and said into the radio, ‘There has been a message from General Vareya. The soldiers here need to take the truck. They said we can keep the contents. They have to head south-east immediately. He apologised for borrowing your truck, but he said that he needs it and he would not ask if it were not urgent. He said that as we are so close to Zimbabwe, the horses will be able to carry us from here. He guarantees that all the possessions you remove from the truck will be safe, and no one will take anything, and you can return with another vehicle from Zimbabwe and collect them once we get there. He also said that i
f he can ever return your truck, he will.’
‘What? And you?’ Enoch asked. ‘What are his new plans for you?’
‘I’m still your guide. I stay with you until the end, until you have come back and collected your belongings.’
Enoch climbed out of the truck and went to the back, opening the tailgate to let the others climb out. They all stood together, where the RENAMO soldiers couldn’t see them.
‘We are only a few more days’ ride from the Zimbabwe border if we leave the excess from the truck here,’ Enoch said. ‘Once we are in Zimbabwe, we can call Grace. She will bring Delaware’s cattle truck and collect us. We come back, fetch our belongings, and then go home.’
‘And Vareya helps himself to a second truck?’ Chloe said. ‘Him breaking one promise and taking my truck is bad enough.’
‘General Vareya would not do that,’ Filipe said. ‘He would not be taking this truck unless the need was very great. The debt he owed Khululani was very big.’
‘But not big enough that he won’t still take the truck?’ Chloe said.
Filipe put his hand on his head. ‘I tried to argue, I told them everything that I could, even that the Caçador Escuro was after us because we shot at him. But they are still taking the truck. We have to unpack. There is nothing more I can do,’ Filipe said.
‘Oh, you didn’t fail. No, Filipe, like all of us, you answer to a higher man up the tree that just yanked the branch out from under you, that’s it. It sucks. I’m angry at him, not at you,’ Chloe explained.
‘Yebo. It is sad that he is borrowing the truck,’ Khululani said. ‘But I know this man, he would only be in my debt again if his need was urgent. We are far along the track, and Zimbabwe is close. I agree with Enoch that we can make it from here inside a week.’
Chloe put her hand on Khululani’s arm. ‘I’m sorry. I really am, it was just all going so well. I thought we’d be home, and this would be over by now.’
Khululani put his hand on top of hers. ‘We are all still alive, and that is more important than having a truck.’
He took his hand away and Chloe’s eyes filled with tears.
Xo hugged Chloe. ‘I know this is hard for you, but Khululani’s right. Let’s just get going.’
Chloe wiped her nose on the back of her hand. ‘I don’t even have a tissue!’
Nick passed her one that had been neatly folded, and she blew into it. ‘Thank you.’
‘Come on, it’ll be alright, Chloe,’ Nick said. ‘The journey’s almost over, and then the adventure really begins.’
Chloe put her hands on her hips and looked at Nick. ‘Seriously, you’re going to try feeding me shit like that. We’re in spitting distance of home, and we lose our wheels. We’re not safe from the SAP and SADF until we get home, and now we have to add an insane hunter who shoots people to the list. Excuse me while I’m a little angry about this! That truck’s been our income for the last few years; it’s brought in a steady flow of cash for us. Excuse me while I object to having it driven off into the bush to be used in a war and left burnt out on the side of a road somewhere, shot to shit. It’s been a faithful truck.’
Nick looked down. ‘It’s crap that they are taking the truck, but we’ve been really lucky to have it for as long as we have. It’s beyond our control. We have to face the facts and adjust our plans, Chloe.’
Tears welled in her eyes. ‘But we’re so close.’
‘We’ll make it all the way to Delaware,’ Xo said as he drew her into a hug and held her close.
Nick walked up to Chloe and put his hand on her shoulder. ‘Sorry you’re losing your truck. I understand now how much it means to you.’
She took a few deep breaths, straightened her shoulders, sniffed and looked at Enoch. ‘Okay, so there’s nothing we can do about the truck. It’s going. Where are we going to be crossing if we ride from here?’
‘Just south of Gonarezhou is the Sengwe Communal Land, but it is a large hunting area, so we will need to be vigilant on the horses. There should be camps there that will have telephones or at least a vehicle to get us to a town where a phone can be found,’ Enoch said.
‘Perhaps we need to leave someone with the luggage that we can’t take with us,’ Xo said. ‘I’ll stay and guard it.’
‘No,’ Nick said. ‘No one stays. We all go. We stay together. The threat of the Caçador Escuro is too great a risk.’
‘I agree with Nick—it’s just luggage,’ Chloe said. ‘We take the money and anything valuable that we can carry, but keep things as light as we can.’
‘Once we are home, I will come back with Filipe, and we will collect the rest of the luggage in a bakkie. The feed, which is taking up most of the room, can be dumped. The animals in this area will be happy for it, or the mice will have a cosy home,’ Enoch said.
Chloe looked at the truck, and then at everyone around. ‘I’m not happy donating our truck to General Vareya’s cause. But I’m also thankful that we’ve got this far, so let’s get moving and put some distance between those men taking our truck and us. And I’m seriously happy that he gave us Filipe because I know that we wouldn’t have made it this far without your help.’
‘There are eight of us and five horses,’ Xo pointed out.
‘And two of those horses are old,’ Enoch said. ‘Mike will need to ride most of the time. The rest of us, we will have to take turns walking. We were never going to be able to gallop home anyway. Slow and steady, we will get there,’ Enoch said.
‘Let’s get the horses out, then we can decide what stays and what we carry,’ Nick said. ‘If we unload everything and then give them the truck, and make sure they leave, we can sort things without them knowing what’s being left behind. Hopefully, reduce the chance of them being more interested in the luggage than in their general’s orders.’
‘No one says we have to ride this morning. It is almost teatime, and this is a good place to sort and store everything. We can start travelling again tomorrow morning. There is enough thornbush around here for a good boma,’ Enoch said.
They unloaded the horses and secured them to a rope that they strung between two trees. There was green grass for them to nibble on, so they would be content to wait there while the truck was unloaded.
Filipe walked back up the road to the RENAMO soldiers to tell them what they were doing, and that they would get their truck soon enough. He came back to find that they had almost finished unloading. ‘They want to know how much diesel you have left.’
Enoch said, ‘We refilled the fuel tanks last night from the drums, so they have what is there, and about half a 44-gallon drum. We only had enough to get us into Zimbabwe, not trek all over Mozambique. There is water up on the roof, too, but we will be taking at least five of the jerry cans with us.’
Filipe nodded. ‘They’ll get to the next place they need to fill up on a full tank, and they’ll be grateful for the water.’
‘Good for them,’ Chloe said sarcastically.
Filipe looked downwards, seeming embarrassed by what his general had done to them.
* * *
They watched the RENAMO soldiers drive away, and finally turned their backs on them. Except Filipe, who’d climbed a tree to watch the truck through binoculars to ensure it didn’t come back towards them, or stop and wait for them to leave before returning to take all their belongings.
Khululani said, ‘I am going to take a walk around and see if there is a cave in those rocks, or if there is a big baobab tree we can put everything in.’
‘Good idea, I’ll come with,’ Nick said. ‘Bring your .303. I don’t think it’s a good idea to be walking around here without them.’
Enoch nodded. ‘While you two do that, Chloe and I will get things organised here. Chloe, get the backpacks. Each of us can carry one, and we can pack the guns, ammo, food, sleeping bags and personal items that cannot stay here. Let us keep one very light for Ethel. If we load most of the weight onto the horses, and we walk with them and travel light, I think we should be near c
ivilisation within three days.’
‘I can carry my share,’ Ethel said.
Enoch touched her shoulder. ‘I know you can, but I think we let the horse carry it for you, so you can watch over Mike. I know that we would all feel better knowing that you are there for him, and not tired.’
She nodded, and Chloe and Xo started to sort through the belongings piled next to where the truck had stood.
* * *
When Nick and Khululani returned, Nick was almost jumping with excitement. ‘There’s a cave not too far from here. It’s covered in bushman paintings. I can’t believe that they’ve survived as long as they have and not been damaged or vandalised. They’ve hunting pictures of spears and dead animals, and cattle, and herds of eland, and people. It’s a true treasure. It doesn’t look like the soldiers knew it was there—there doesn’t seem to have been a fire inside it for a good few years. The entrance was hidden behind some thick bushes, but Khululani still managed to find it. It should work as a store for the stuff we can’t take with us.’
‘Finally, some good news,’ Chloe said.
Enoch smiled. ‘I will stay here with the horses, you two go have a look.’ He motioned with his hands to Xo and Chloe. Then he yelled, ‘Filipe. They gone yet?’
‘Just a dusty dot on the horizon. But there are elephants coming our way,’ Filipe shouted back. ‘A big herd, moving slowly though. About an hour or so and they will get here.’
Enoch said, ‘The cave will have to wait.’
‘The cave is big enough to put the horses in. Let’s let their introduction to the wildlife be a little less traumatic than having elephants walk through their camp on the first day out,’ Nick said.
‘Okay. Filipe, get down here and help move everything breakable into the cave. We can only hope your timing of them is right,’ Enoch said.
They worked quickly, and soon, their belongings that mattered were in the cave. The first horse Chloe tried to coax into the cave was Pampero. However, she baulked at the confines of the entrance. ‘Come on, girl, one last try.’
But the horse pulled back on her reins.