ground. Over a length of a mile the fence was flattened, and the wire
mesh lay across the firebreak.
Each elephant had used his broken pole like a tightrope, to avoid
treading on the sharp points of the barbed wire. Then once across the
fence they had streamed in a tight bunch down to the pools to spend a
night in feasting, an elephantine gorge on the yellow berries, which
ended at dawn when they had bunched up into close order and dashed back
across the ruined fence into the safety of the Park, perhaps pursued by
guilt and remorse and hoping that Conrad Berg would lay the blame on
some other herd.
However, the downed fence provided ready access for many others who had
long hankered after the sweet untouched grazing and deep water holes.
Ugly little blue wildebeest with monstrous heads, absurdly warlike manes
and curved horns in imitation of the mighty buffalo. Clowns of the
bush, they capered with glee and chased each other in circles. Their
companions the zebra were more dignified, ignoring their antics, and
trotted in businesslike fashion down to the pools. Their rumps were
striped and glossy and plump, their heads up and ears pricked.
Conrad Berg met David at the remains of his fence, climbing out of his
own truck and picking his way carefully over the wire. Sam, the African
ranger, followed him.
Conrad shook his head as he surveyed the destruction, chuckling
ruefully.
It's old Mahommed and his pal One-Eye, I'd know that spoor anywhere.
They just couldn't help themselves, the bastards - He glanced quickly at
Debra in the Land-Rover.
That's perfectly all right, Mr. Berg, she forestalled his apology.
Sam had been casting back and forth along the soft break road and now he
came to where they stood.
Hello, Sam, David greeted him. It had taken a lot of persuasion to get
Sam to accept that this terribly disfigured face belonged to the young
nkosi David who he had taught to track, and shoot and rob a wild beehive
without destroying the bees.
Sam saluted David with a flourish. He took his uniform very seriously
and conducted himself like a guardsman now. It was difficult to tell
his age, for he had the broad smooth moonface of the Nguni, the
aristocratic warrior tribes of Africa, but there was a frosting of
purest white on the close-curled hair of his temples under the slouch
hat, and David knew he had worked at Jabulani for forty years before
leaving. The man must be approaching sixty years of age.
Quickly he made his report to Conrad, describing the animals and the
numbers which had crossed into Jabulani.
There is also a herd of buffalo, forty-three of them, Sam spoke in
simple Zulu that David could still follow. They are the ones who drank
before Ripape Dam near Hlangulene. That will bring Akkers running, the
sirloin of a young buffalo makes the finest biltong there is, Conrad
observed dryly.
How long will it be before he knows the fence is down? David asked, and
Conrad fell into a long rapidfire discussion with Sam that lost David
after the first few sentences. However, Conrad translated at the end.
Sam says he knows already, all your servants and their wives buy at his
store and he pays them for that sort of information. It turns out that
there is bad blood between Sam and Akkers. Sam suspects him of
arranging to have him beaten, on a lonely road on a dark night.
Sam was in hospital three months, he also accused Akkers of having his
hut fired to drive him off Jabulani. 'It adds up, doesn't it? David
agreed.
Old Sam is dead keen to help us grab Akkers, and he has a plan of action
all worked out. Let's hear it. Well, as long as you are in residence
at Jabulani Akkers is going to restrict his activities to night poaching
with a killing lamp. He knows every trick there is and we will never
get him. So? You must tell your servants that you are leaving for two
weeks, going to Cape Town on business. Akkers will know as soon as you
leave and he will believe he has the whole of jabulam to himself, For an
hour more they discussed the details of the plan, then they shook hands
and parted.
As they drove back to the homestead they emerged from the open forest
into one of the glades of tall grass, and David saw the brilliant white
egrets floating like snow flakes over the swaying tops of golden grass.
Something in there, he said and cut the engine. They waited quietly
until David saw the movement in the grass, the opening and closing at
the passage of heavy bodies. Then three egrets, sitting in row, moved
slowly towards him, home on the back of a concealed beast as it grazed
steadily forward.
Ah, the buffalo! David exclaimed as the first of them appeared, a great
black bovine shape. It stopped as it saw the Land-Rover on the edge of
the trees and it regarded them intently from beneath the wide spread of
its horns, with its muzzle lifted high. It showed no alarm for these
were Park animals, almost as tame as domestic cattle.
Gradually the rest of the herd emerged from the tall grass. Each in
turn scrutinized the vehicle and then resumed feeding once more. There
were forty-three of them, as Sam had predicted, and amongst them were
some fine old bulls standing five and a half feet tall at the shoulder
and weighing little less than 2000 lb. Their horns were massively
bossed, meeting in the centre of the head and curving downwards and up
to blunt points, with a rugged surface that became polished black at the
tips.
Crawling over their heavy trunks and thick short legs were numbers of
ox-peckers, dull-plumaged birds with scarlet beaks and bright beady
eyes. Sometimes head down they scavenged for the ticks and other
blood-sucking body vermin in the folds of skin between the limbs.
Occasionally one of the huge beasts would snort and leap, shaking and
swishing its tail, as a sharp beak pried into a delicate portion of its
anatomy, under the tail or around the heavy dangling black scrotum. The
birds fluttered up with hissing cries, waited for the buffalo to calm
down and then settled again to their scurrying and searching.
David photographed the herd until the light failed, and they drove home
in the dark.
Before dinner David opened a bottle of wine and they drank it together
on the stoop, sitting close and listening to the night sounds of the
bush, the cries of the night birds, the tap of flying insects against
the wire screen and the other secret scurrying and rustling of small
animals.
Do you remember once I told you that you were spoiled, and not very good
marriage material? Debra asked softly, nestling her dark head against
his shoulder.
I'll never forget it. I'd like to withdraw that remark ron-nally, she
went on, and he moved her gently away so that he could study her face.
Sensing his eyes upon her she smiled, that shy little smile of hers. I
fell in love with a little boy, a spoiled little boy, who thought only
of fast cars and the nearest skirt, she said, but now I have a man, a
grown man, she smiled again, and I like it better this way He drew her
back to him and kissed her, their lips melded in a lingering embrace
before she sighed happily and laid her head back upon his shoulder. They
were silent for a while before Debra spoke again.
These wild animals, that mean so much to you Yes?" he encouraged her.
I am beginning to understand. Although I have never seen them, they are
becoming important to me also I'm glad. David, this place of ours, it's