The Flames of Time (Flames of Time Series Book 1)

by Peter Knyte

  I took the opportunity to have a quiet word with Mkize while we were stopped, to let him know I was concerned about being followed, and therefore to keep an eye out for any sign that might indicate others coming this way. But he did better than that and also informed Nbutu, who nodded his understanding also, and indicated he would go and look while we waited for the elephant to move on.

  I tried to watch him as he moved effortlessly over to some higher ground, with that long efficient stride of the Maasai, but in no time he’d blended into the bush and disappeared.

  A few minutes later, as the elephant finally decided to move on, we rode forward again, as best we could until Nbutu came back to guide. We were all keeping an eye out for his reappearance, but he still managed to pop-up practically beside us before we’d realised. I’d no idea where he’d come from, but without a moment’s hesitation he was directing us off to the side toward a more open area of land a short way off.

  Nbutu made no attempt to tell us what was going on, but it was clear he was leading as quickly as he could. I couldn’t see where he was taking us until suddenly a few hundred yards further on we crested the edge of small wadi or depression, into which Nbutu now lead us and then stopped, indicating we should all dismount, and then get our horses to kneel down.

  I’d seen the Maasai do some amazing things with their cattle, which they had an almost mystic control over, but I couldn’t have been more surprised when, after seeing us struggle for a few minutes, this tall Maasai stepped forward and with no effort at all made each of our horses kneel down in turn.

  We'd gone along with all this so far, guessing and trusting that there was an explanation. Now as we waited, crouched in this hollow in the middle of the bush, we listened via Mkize as Nbutu explained that we were pursued by a motor vehicle.

  I'd been dreading this news, it could only be Selene and her friends, and here we were still out in the open on horseback. They must have gone for the quicker option of a car to get to the lodge, and then had no choice but to try and catch us before the ground got too rough for them to follow.

  We heard them a long time before we saw them, the petrol engine of the small truck they were using sounding so completely alien in the bush. It was a good ten minutes before they finally came into sight. It looked like something they’d hired from a local farmer or business delivery service, as it was by far a poor relation to the two shining saloons they'd had at their disposal in Corinth. But it was obviously a more rugged vehicle, with what looked like Selene and Luke in the cab with a driver, while the servants we’d seen them with in Corinth, rode open topped on the flatbed of the truck with Miriam and Thea. They were all alert, perpetually scanning the horizon with binoculars as the truck jolted along.

  We were as good as trapped now. They came out into the clear open area where we were hidden, and then stopped, too far away for us to hear what was being said. But it was clear from the way the people in the back were searching with their binoculars that they were taking the opportunity provided by the more open terrain to do a more comprehensive scan of the area.

  We couldn’t move. The wadi was too shallow for us to even think about trying to get the horses back on their feet, but if Selene and her friends decided to drive further into the open, then they’d have to come our way, and there was no way they could miss us.

  To the west, the direction in which we wanted to travel, the ground dropped slightly to form a large verdant basin, before rising again, and becoming a little more rugged, as the terrain climbed into the hills beyond. This basin could easily take us several hours to travel through, and there was no way we could pass through unseen as long as they were behind us.

  After taking a long time to satisfy themselves that we weren’t in sight, they eventually started to move off to the west, and not toward us. I was just beginning to relax when suddenly the truck drew to a halt, and a moment later both Thea and Miriam were firing large calibre rifles from the back of the truck over the cab at a target I hadn’t seen.

  It took me a second to take in the scene, and then to comprehend what I saw.

  As the truck had started to move off they’d crossed the path of a young Rhino which unusually, had attempted to charge their vehicle. Now a Rhino is a formidable creature at the best of times, but they’re so short sighted that on horseback one can just stop and wait for them to move on their way, just as it was with a great many of the larger game animals, when one wasn’t deliberately hunting them.

  But this animal had obviously strayed close to their vehicle while the engine was quiet, and had then perhaps become alarmed at the noise when the truck started up again causing it to attack. But it was the speed and accuracy of those two young women on the back of the truck that was the truly shocking thing. The servants in the back of the vehicle barely managed to get a shot off in the time it took Thea and Miriam to down the animal. Now that was an impressive feat, period. Even a large calibre round won’t stop a Rhino unless you hit it in the right place. But for two young women to show that kind of proficiency, and with such powerful and difficult to manage weapons, why that was unheard of.

  It had all caused a bit of a stir, with our own horses becoming restless for a moment before they were calmed again by Nbutu. Over at the body of the Rhino, our pursuers stopped again to examine the unfortunate creature, before unceremoniously moving on.

  I could tell my friends had spotted the efficiency with which they’d wielded their weapons too, and as their vehicle moved away into the distance, I could see from the expressions of their faces they were thinking over what we’d seen. We had no option now but to wait, and it was another twenty minutes before Nbutu checked the coast was clear. Only then could we carefully raise our animals and head off in the same direction.

  The horses might have gotten a bit nervous if we’d taken them too close to the dead Rhino, so we took them around, and left them with Nbutu, Mkize and the other guides, before walking back to take a look at the animal.

  ‘Four clean head shots,’ remarked Marlow, after examining the body. ‘One more straight into the horn, another into the neck.’

  Another couple of smaller calibre rounds had hit the animal in the leg and grazed its side.

  ‘I’d wager the head shots were from Thea and Miriam, and these others were from one of the servants grabbing the wrong weapon,’ Marlow speculated.

  It was a very business-like kill. Far too business-like for anyone who hadn’t spent the last few years hunting.

  We had to continue our journey for now, and try to make sure we didn’t run into them again, but I could tell we were all still wondering who these people could be, and where on earth they might have developed the kind of skill they’d just exhibited.

  Regardless, we got back to the horses and set off again at a good pace. Nbutu had watched our adversaries as they’d travelled into the bush ahead, and had noticed that while they scanned the terrain before them and to the sides with great alertness and care, they seemed to be paying little or no attention to what lay behind them. Their tracks were certainly easy enough to follow, and the din from their engine seemed to be driving most of the animals away before they got anywhere near. So, by following them as close as we dared, we were able to not only avoid them, but also much of the more dangerous game that might have otherwise slowed us down.

  It was tough going mind, and I was beginning to get concerned for Androus, as we were obliged to travel quicker and a little more recklessly than we would normally, just to try and stay up with them, all of which was obviously taking its toll on the already tired Armenian. They did gradually get ahead of us, even though we clearly heard them stop and presumably search the area ahead on several occasions. But by then they’d lead us across most of the lower plain, and we were getting close to the point where the terrain would hopefully become impassable for their vehicle.

  This was obviously the tricky stage, and Nbutu started to lead us through areas that afforded a little more cover as a consequence, just in case they
suddenly decided to double back and retrace their steps. We could hear the engine, but it was difficult to tell where exactly it was coming from, and now we had the added problem of having to avoid the animals that were being made nervous by the sound of the truck. We slowly managed to move forward, but then, just as we were starting to think we were making progress, Nbutu stopped us dead, and pointed out a rocky outcropping atop a Kopje or hillock three-quarters of a mile or so up ahead, from where he’d seen a flash.

  We were moving through a small stand of acacia trees at the time, but had been just about to move across an open area toward some tall grass, when Nbutu had raised the alert. Jean had his binoculars handy, and a moment later was scanning the outcropping for the source of the flash.

  ‘Ah but they are too clever,’ he half mused to himself, before describing what he could see. ‘There are two, no three of them. I cannot tell for sure but it looks like Thea and Miriam and one of their servants, all using their binoculars to scan the land around them.’

  ‘And the others,’ asked Marlow, ‘with the truck, are they anywhere to be seen?’

  We could hear the distant sound of the truck engine, which indicated it was being driven rather than parked, but it was too far away to be able to tell clearly where the sound was coming from.

  ‘I cannot see it,’ responded Jean after a moment of looking, ‘No wait, that could be it. Half a mile away from the outcropping to the north, something disturbs a flock of small birds, it could be the truck. Yes that’s it. There’s quite a bit over cover over there, but it looks like it’s beginning to circle round a bit now, back toward us and the direction in which they came.

  ‘They must suspect we’re going into hiding when we hear the sound of the truck drawing near, so they’re using it as a decoy while the others watch from the rocks.’

  It was a good idea, which could have easily caught us out if we hadn’t had Nbutu leading the way.

  So it became almost a game of cat and mouse. They knew we hadn’t had time to get past them yet, but we now knew where they were and how they were looking for us. If we could get past them and into the rougher terrain of the hills beyond they wouldn’t be able to follow. Whereas if they found us on the plain then they’d be able to cut us off and close in without difficulty. It made our journey much longer, having to stick to the cover of the trees, or banks and hollows in the ground, while at the same time trying to maintain an idea of where the truck was. Though now we knew it didn’t have as many people keeping look-out in it we didn’t have to worry about giving it quite such a wide a berth as we had earlier.

  It was slow going, but we’d managed to get most of the way round the hillock where the main watchers were based, while the truck had obviously gone off way over to the other side of the plain. Unfortunately we’d also attracted the attention of a group of hyena, that had shadowed our movements as we skirted round the outcropping. They didn’t normally bother with people, especially once they’d had a couple of warning shots put amongst them, but we just couldn’t risk making that much noise, so they’d started to get a bit curious.

  Slowly they began to get their nerve up after still not being sent off, drawing closer and fanning out around the rear of our line. We had to do something about it before they started to spook the animals, or worse to nip and bite at our heels.

  We knew the rifle shots were going to give our position away, so we tried to get to a location where we'd have some cover, and then if the gunshots echoed, it might still take our pursuers a while to home in on where we were... or had been.

  Hyena are an evil-looking bunch, especially when they spread, ready to start their nip and run type of hunting, trying to encourage their target to wheel this way and that, using their energy up, getting confused and tired. But we knew exactly what was coming, having seen it dozens of times before. While Androus stayed mounted the rest of us slid off our horses, and slowly moved to the back of the line, and then let the horses move off a bit. Hyena might be powerful beasts, but they’re also one of the smartest animals in the bush, and they won’t attack when they know you’ve seen them, they’ll just sit and wait for a while to see what you’re doing.

  It really wasn't very sporting when we finally opened fire. A dozen of them just sat there watching us, but we wanted to try and keep our shots down to a minimum to give our pursuers less to go. So, at a signal from Peter we all took aim and then fired once at a different animal each, a bit of an overkill just to deter them, but we didn’t want to have to repeat ourselves in ten minutes time.

  Sure enough they scattered at that, leaving their dead or dying companions where they were, but we didn’t have time to stop and look. Now we had to try and put as much distance as possible between us and this spot. The chase was on.

  We moved quickly but carefully for twenty minutes or so, sticking to the cover and checking the outcropping every now and again to see if the watchers were still in place. We could hear the truck getting closer, but we knew it would have to stop off to pick the others up on the way before it could come for us, at which point we’d have a few minutes to try and put some real distance between us and the place they thought we’d be. Then we heard the lull in the engine noise from the truck, and when we checked the rocky Kopje where the watchers had been it was now clear.

  I wasn’t sure quite how far we’d have to go before the truck wouldn’t be able to follow us, but it would be close. If we could just stay out of their way for bit longer we might be in the clear. We were moving as quickly as we could, but unlike our pursuers we still had to watch out for any game that might cross our path, if we didn’t want to go signalling our location with rifle shots every few minutes. We were relying upon Nbutu to find a route for us around all the obstacles and delays while still giving us some cover. He seemed to have an idea of what to do and started to lead us a bit further toward the south-west, where we crossed first a steep-sided dry river bed, then through a patch of more dense trees, before turning more westerly back toward the hills.

  We could hear the engine getting closer again now, quarter of a mile at the most, when suddenly it roared and went silent. The ground was beginning to rise a little more steeply into the low hills where we hoped to gain refuge, but it wasn’t so steep or rough that they’d have to abandon their vehicle. So why would they have stopped? We couldn’t risk stopping to find out, so we continued going, expecting the engine to roar back into life again at any moment. But after another ten minutes or so, with still no sound of the truck pursuing us, it seemed that something must have happened. We all knew Selene and her companions were here to catch us, and probably weren’t going to be too fussed about what they might have to do to stop us. But at the same time, an accident in the bush was no way to die, which meant we should at least try and make sure they weren’t in need of help.

  Still, we didn’t want to compromise our own goals in the event of it being a trap, so decided that Marlow and Peter should go with Nbutu to try and find out what had happened, while the rest of us continued on our journey, just to make sure it wasn’t another clever trick. Nbutu was as impassive as ever as we explained to him what we wanted to do, before dutifully leading Marlow and Peter off toward where we’d last heard the truck.

  We continued to move further up into the hills, balancing the direction we needed to head in, against the need to stay out of sight from below. With every step it seemed the terrain was became more rugged making it less and less likely that the truck would be able to follow us. But it had been an exhausting day, with few stops or opportunities for rest since we’d set out, and as the threat from our pursuers seemed to recede I could feel myself getting tired. The afternoon was beginning to get on a bit by this time, and even though we could’ve gone on a little further, when we stumbled upon a good campsite, with the remains of a thorn fence still intact around it, we decided to stop and make camp.

  It didn’t take us long to get the camp set up, though without any fresh meat for a meal we didn’t have to worry about cooking
, instead just relying on the cold provisions we’d brought with us from the lodge. Androus was attempting to put a brave face on things, but it was clear he was done in. His normally jovial and expansive humour had all but disappeared now, replaced by a slightly ashen tinge to his features and a deathly tiredness in his eyes.

  I suggested he get some sleep as soon as the camp was set up, on the pretence that we might need him to take a turn keeping watch later on, but it was really just to give him the excuse to get his head down for a bit.

  We’d done our best to hide the fire with a couple of make-shift blanket screens, but I was hoping it was a precaution we wouldn’t need.

  Two hours after we’d set up the camp Marlow, Peter and Nbutu walked out of the growing gloom to join us, and while you’d never have guessed it from Nbutu, the smiles and friendly chatter between Marlow and Peter were a clear indication that something had gone our way.

  ‘I tell you,’ started Peter, smiling warmly and gratefully accepting a cup of hot coffee, ‘Nbutu is a genius, he anticipated Selene and her friends perfectly. When we found them, they were all fine, but they’d driven their truck over the edge of that dried up riverbed we crossed. It was a little bit deeper at the point where they’d hit it, which would probably have made it more difficult to get out of than in. But they also managed to pick a spot where there were a number of large rocks, one of which seemed to have completely destroyed their front right wheel.

  ‘They were having a terrible time trying to move the truck onto level ground so they could change the wheel I can tell you. Better yet, the spare they had was almost useless, it had obviously been punctured at some point in the past and never been fixed, so it was looking like they were going to have to stop every few miles on their way back to re-inflate the thing! Anyway we stayed to watch them, just to make sure they were able to get moving again, without them even suspecting we were within earshot...’