by Chris Ryan
'Like giraffes,' said Li. She gave Paulo a pointed look before taking the binoculars and lifting them to her eyes.
'It's amazing what you can see when you're a giraffe,' replied Paulo with a twinkling smile. 'I can't wait for that film to be developed.' He gasped. 'Hey, look.'
Li was about to tell him sternly not to change the subject, but when she lowered the binoculars all such thoughts vanished from her head. Five cubs, overcome with curiosity, had sauntered over to investigate the Range Rover. They sniffed the tyres and bumpers, licking them and pulling faces. Two of them stood on their hind legs and tried to look into the vehicle. When they got down they left big paw prints in the dust on the bodywork. The other three started playing tag around the wheels.
'Wow,' breathed Paulo.
As the sun came up, the pride moved away from their meal to find a shady spot and stretched out for a sleep. Vultures immediately swooped on the remains and the carcass disappeared under their scrawny, feathered bodies.
'We can go down now,' said Patrick. 'They're far enough away.' He clambered out of the tree house.
'I'll go first,' said Li to Paulo, 'in case you've got another hidden camera.' She turned to step backwards off the platform. The rung had condensation on it from the morning dew and her foot slipped.
Paulo was having a last look through the binoculars. When he lowered them and turned round, he expected to see Li disappearing down the ladder. But she was still in the doorway, rooted to the spot. Her fingers clung to the wooden door-surround and her sleeveless top showed the muscles in her shoulders, rigid like ropes under tension. She had one foot still on the sill of the entrance, the other on the top rung.
'Li?' he said. 'Is there another lion down there?'
She shook her head. She couldn't speak.
Then Paulo remembered her reaction on the cliff face. Li had frozen then too. He hadn't thought any more about it until now; there were many odd, once-in-a-lifetime things that had happened because the team were exhausted. Like falling asleep while riding a bicycle. But for Li to freeze here and now was different.
Paulo moved cautiously towards her.
Her eyes widened, warning him not to come near. 'Don't,' she said. Her voice was harsh. Her pupils dilated so far they made her eyes look like hollow black circles.
Paulo's mind raced. What was going on? 'Li,' he asked gently, 'what do you want me to do? Shall I help you down?'
Her expression said Keep away, but a tear rolled out of one eye. She nodded.
'Can you give me your hand? I'll come and lie on the floor and hold onto you as you get onto the ladder. I won't let go until you're safely climbing down.' He walked carefully to the doorway, kneeled down in front of her and held out his hand.
She grabbed it as though she was grabbing a lifeline. Her grip was crushing. Bracing herself on the door frame, she lowered her foot carefully to the second rung. Her nails dug into Paulo's hand.
'It's OK, Li, I've got you,' he said. 'I'll keep holding until you say. And I promise there are no giraffes with cameras.'
She smiled, but it looked like a rictus of fear; it didn't make her relax. She stepped down onto the next rung. Paulo could feel her shaking. Something had transformed Li, the bravest, most talented climber he knew, into this nervous wreck. What had happened and when? Was it the abseil event?
Bit by bit, he lowered her down until she had both hands and feet on the ladder. She suddenly climbed down very fast, her face tight with concentration, until her feet touched firm ground – then he saw the tension drain out of her face. But it was replaced by anger. Again, Paulo remembered the cliff face. She had climbed down quickly and was furious afterwards, as if punishing herself.
He pattered quickly down the ladder. Should he say something?
Patrick was already in the Range Rover, the engine running.
Li touched Paulo on the arm. 'Don't say anything to the others,' she said. Her eyes were pleading. 'Promise?'
Paulo nodded gravely. 'I promise.'
8
INTRUDERS
Joe Chandler drove through the bush with Hex, Alex and Amber. It was dawn; the sky was turning grey and would soon be light.
'We check at least one of the watering holes every morning at about this time,' he said. 'It's the best way to find out if any new elephants have come into the area. They're always on the move; the ones we've tagged wander off to other areas of the park, onto the patch of another reserve, and elephants from other reserves wander into our area. But there are always some who haven't been tagged at all, so that's what we're looking for now.'
In the passenger seat, Hex carried a radio receiver with an antenna. In the back, Alex and Amber peered over his shoulder at the display. A red light winked, showing that tagged elephants were nearby. Hex tried pointing it in a different direction to see if the beeps came any faster, but they didn't. It didn't seem to be very sensitive. In his head he was already making modifications.
'When you get very close to an elephant we've tagged,' said Joe Chandler, 'the needle goes into the red.'
'Ah, I see,' said Hex. A simple ammeter. Does each elephant have its own code?'
Joe nodded. 'Yes, the machine automatically logs the one we've seen. Then we download it into the computer back at the lodge.'
Colour began to blush into the sky with the dawn. The grey shapes of trees around them started to look green. A flock of guinea-fowl rose as the Jeep passed them, making a plaintive noise. Shapes started to move through the grasses: gazelle, puku and waterbuck.
'Elephant ahoy,' said Amber.
Hex looked at the dial. 'No there isn't.'
'Not on your Gameboy,' said Amber. 'In real life.'
In the clearing, about thirty metres away, a small family of three elephants was walking out of the forest, heading for a river.
'Good,' said Joe. 'These must be ones that haven't been tagged.' He lowered his voice to a whisper even though the animals were still some way off.
'Which one's the matriarch?' said Amber.
'That one at the front. Look, she's checking for danger.'
The large female elephant lifted her trunk above her head and swivelled it like a periscope, one foot raised in mid stride.
Joe stopped the Jeep and cut the engine, then got out. 'I've got my darting gun so we can tag them now—'
He got no further. The matriarch swung her huge bulk round. The other elephants turned with her and hurried back into the wood, flapping their ears wildly.
Joe hadn't even got the tranquillizer gun out of the back of the Jeep. He shrugged and walked back to the driver's door.
'Did we scare them off?' said Amber.
Joe pulled the door open. 'Yes and no. The poachers have made some of them so scared of people, they won't even go to the water for a drink. We'll have to come back later and track them from here. They'll be less nervy in the heat of the day.'
'Oh my God,' said Alex quietly. 'I don't think it was us. Look.' His mouth was tight with shock.
'Get out with your hands up.' The voice was deep. Its African accent carried a note of menace.
Three figures stood beside the Jeep with AK-47 assault rifles. Ammo belts criss-crossed their chests and glinted in the morning sun. One of the men was black; he had a scar on his cheek, as though a piece of the flesh had been gouged out with a chisel. The other two were white – one with a dirty yellow bandanna; the other with an animal tooth set in silver on a chain around his neck.
The man in the bandanna talked to the two others. The words sounded urgent and harsh. Amber recognized it as similar to French; but they were speaking too fast for her to make out the words.
Amber glanced at Joe's face. It was set and grim. When she saw that, she didn't need vocabulary: the intention behind the words was clear. They were probably discussing how to kill them.
The scarred man spoke in English again and jerked the end of his weapon. 'Out.'
Joe Chandler put his hands up in the international gesture of submission and st
epped away from the Jeep. Hex followed his lead. He put the tracking device down on the floor and stepped carefully out. Alex, in the back, put his leg over the side of the Jeep and slid to the ground. He raised his hands carefully.
And her,' said the man with the animal tooth. A hyena's. It wouldn't have looked out of place in his narrow, snout-like mouth, thought Amber.
Alex glanced at Amber. She was climbing carefully out of the Jeep, lying on her front and swivelling herself round awkwardly. Her ankle must still be quite sore, thought Alex. 'Give her a moment,' he said to the poachers. 'She's injured.'
The scarred man and the man in the yellow bandanna stepped forwards, intending to grab Amber and hurry her along. Amber whirled round. In her hand was the Jeep's spare petrol can. She hurled its contents at the poachers. Petrol splashed all over them.
Scarface and Yellow Bandanna leaped back, but dark stains were spreading over their green fatigues. The fumes caught the back of Amber's throat – a rich smell of pure danger. Yellow Bandanna shot off a barrage of angry words, but in his eyes she could see his fear.
Hyena-tooth, who had been out of range, grabbed Alex by the arm and pressed the muzzle of the gun into his belly. 'Stay where you are,' he said roughly.
'No, you stay where you are,' retorted Amber. In her hands was the flare pistol.
She brought it up and levelled it at the two petrol-soaked figures in front of her. 'If you don't let us go I'm going to fire, and you two are going up in flames. So you're going to stay nice and still while we all get back in our vehicle and go on our way. And don't even think of getting up to any funny business, like shooting at us as we leave. These guns have quite a range.'
Scarface barked something at the man holding Alex. Alex was released. He backed away.
Joe Chandler and Hex lowered their hands and stepped slowly back towards the Jeep. Joe's hand shook for a moment as he reached for the driver's door, but then he steadied it and got in. He was a tough guy but this had shocked him.
Hex climbed into the passenger seat. Amber hopped into the back, keeping her attention fixed on the poachers.
The man with the scar spat some words at her in his rough language. Amber gave him some back in plain English.
Joe gunned the engine and they sped away.
Amber leaned out of the back. Making a support out of her elbows, she kept the flare gun trained on the poachers. Just you try going for a weapon, her feral smile said, and I'll fire. They glowered at her, their faces tight with rage.
Joe hammered the Jeep at full speed. At last Amber decided they were far enough away to be out of range of their machine guns. She turned round and handed the flare gun back to Alex. 'Patrick was right. These do have all sorts of uses.'
Joe was looking at a far point on the horizon. 'I really thought we'd had it then. I've never got that close to them. Amber, you were brilliant.'
'I would have thought they'd stay out of sight,' said Hex. 'Surely they don't want to be caught.'
'Yes, they normally keep well away from us,' said Joe. 'That is, until recently. Lately they've been getting a lot more aggressive. They must have wanted us out of the way so they could pursue those elephants, and they weren't prepared to wait till we left of our own accord. We've got three guests coming this morning. I hope there's no trouble when we take them out.' He sighed; a long, drawn-out sound as though he was trying to bring his pounding heart back to normal. Then he looked at his three passengers. 'Now you've saved my life as well as Tessa's.'
9
FEAR
Something was really wrong with Li, decided Paulo. As they travelled back with Patrick, she talked about the lions, bombarding the ranger with questions. Paulo couldn't get a word in. But he didn't want to – he was too worried about Li. She was talking nineteen to the dozen, as if to stop anyone thinking about what had happened on the ladder. Patrick must have seen Paulo lower her down. Was she scared he might ask about it? Or was she more scared that he, Paulo, might?
Patrick drove the Range Rover up to the front door and braked. 'I'll drop you guys here. I've got to go and see to something in the workshop.'
Li jumped out. Paulo followed. 'Thanks, Patrick,' he said. 'The lions were great.'
'Yeah, thanks,' said Li. 'See you later.'
At one of the upstairs windows, a curtain twitched. 'Is that Tessa's room?' asked Li. 'She'll want to hear about it. Let's go and keep her company.' She strode into the lodge, energetic as always when she had a purpose.
Paulo's eyes narrowed. Was that purpose to run away from him? He caught up with her in the foyer. 'Li,' he said. His eyes were earnest. 'We've got to talk.'
Li stopped. When she replied she was biting her lip. 'Later. Maybe.' She started to move off again.
Paulo skipped in front of her, blocking her way. 'No, Li. It has to be now. What happened out there wasn't just a one-off; it happened in the race and I think it's happened before then, too.'
She looked away from him, as though she couldn't face his searching eyes.
Paulo had to choose his words very carefully. It would be so easy to put too much pressure on her and scare her into denying anything was wrong. But he couldn't let her go on bottling up a problem like this. He put a hand on her arm and squeezed it reassuringly. 'I don't mean to be harsh. But this isn't just your problem. What if my life depended on your skills? Or Alex's life, or Amber's, or Hex's?'
Li stared past him for a moment, then nodded.
She wanted to go somewhere utterly private. Amber was due back soon, so their room wouldn't do. The same went for the boys' room. So they made their way to the other guest wing and found an empty room that was open for airing.
Paulo sat on the bare mattress. Li sat in an armchair, but perched tensely on the edge, her head in her hands.
'It was just before we all came out to do the race. You know my folks are in England at the moment?' She spoke in a low voice, as though she was afraid that even this far away from anyone else, she might be overheard. 'We were in Derbyshire and there's a lot of climbing around there. It's all rugged peaks and rocky outcrops. I fancied the idea of getting some practice so I called Dina, my old climbing instructor. She'd got a summer job at a teaching centre. Anyway, we'd climbed a thirty-foot slab – you know, that's jargon for a sheer cliff – and were going to ab back down.'
'Ab?' repeated Paulo.
Abseil. Anyway, Dina went first. I gave her a bit of time to get down. Then I heard a scream.
'I thought at first she was messing about. I was actually about to tell her to can it. But I looked over the edge instead. She was at the bottom of the cliff. There was a great jagged rock and she had fallen across it. Her back literally snapped over it; it looked like an upside-down V
Paulo was shocked, but he kept it to himself. It was hard enough for Li to tell him this. If he interrupted it might distract her.
Li's voice sank to a whisper. 'That wasn't the worst thing. She was still conscious. I shouted to her not to move, but she sort of wriggled. When she did, she screamed in agony. I've not been able to forget it – I don't think I ever will. It was like nothing I've ever heard before. When she fell off the rock and screamed it was sort of unreal, you know? Almost ethereal. But this .. . I've heard it again and again in my head. Find some way of plugging my brain into a tape recorder and you'll know what I mean.'
Li let out a ragged sigh and continued. 'She screamed for ages. Gradually the sounds got weaker and weaker. Finally the medics arrived and gave her an injection. She passed out immediately. I was still at the top of the slab, in my harness. I wanted to go to her but I couldn't move. I felt sick. I tried to check my gear. But all the knots and clips looked like spaghetti. I knew I should look for a prussik knot – never mind what that is, it's just a knot – but it was like my brain had crashed and refused to reboot. It was like being asked a question in an exam, and having no idea what it even means.
'I waited there for ages. Finally one of the rangers got me down. That was really embarrassing. They though
t I was some silly girl who'd bitten off more than I could chew.
'There was an inquiry. All Dina's equipment was fine, correctly put together. Of course it was – she's a pro. But the rope had snapped. She did everything right but now she's quadriplegic. I used to just think, Hey, accidents happen, that's part of climbing. If you're careful you'll be OK. But Dina was careful. She just had a bit of bad luck. And I was borrowing her equipment, so it was luck that gave her the bad rope and not me.'
Li ran her fingers through her silky hair and dug them into her scalp. 'But I don't know why I keep thinking like that. With Alpha Force I've seen so many things. I've seen people injured horribly, I've escaped death more times than I can count. Do you remember when you got me out of that minefield?'
Paulo nodded.
'I didn't go to pieces after that. But I saw Dina fall off a rock face, doing something that ordinary members of the public do, and I'm a nervous wreck.'
Paulo doubted that most ordinary members of the public climbed the kind of peaks Li did, but he kept that to himself. He said gently, 'She's a friend; no wonder you're affected by it. And perhaps all these other things are catching up with you.'
'They're not catching up with me,' Li retorted hotly. 'I've barely got started yet. I'll do anything you like – walk into another minefield to get my friends out of danger. I haven't lost my nerve.'
'Li, you don't have to prove anything. Just take your time. You'll be all right. Your confidence will return.'
Li snorted. 'How? I climb a tree and I need the fire brigade to help me down! What earthly use am I to Alpha Force like that?'
Paulo gave her a wry grin. 'I'll rescue you. I always wanted to be a fireman.' But his brain was reeling from the horrible story Li had told him. He became serious. 'Listen, Li, you'll get through this. We're all going to get bad patches from time to time. It's a tough life we've chosen. But remember the race? We helped each other through. Alpha Force is about teamwork.'
Li was silent. Then she said, 'You can't tell the others. Not yet. Promise you won't.'