"For reasons that I have already explained to you, I require independent and reliable witnesses to any arrest that we might be fortunate enough to make. I want both of you to be there. So I would be obliged if you could hold yourselves ready to move at very short notice, and if you could inform Captain Nbebi where you may be contacted at all times over the next two or three weeks." As they rose to leave, Craig asked suddenly, "What is the maximum penalty for poaching?" and Peter Fungabera looked up from the papers he was rearranging on his desk.
"As the law stands now, it is a maximum of eighteen months" hard labour for any one of a dozen or so of fences under the act-"
"That's not enough." Craig had a vivid mental image of the violated and rotting carcasses of his animals.
"No," Peter agreed. "It's not enough. Two days ago in the House I introduced an amendment to the bill, as a private member's motion. It will be read for the third time on Thursday, and I assure you it has the full support of the party. It will become law on that day."
"And," Sally'Arme asked, "what are the new penalties to be?"
"For unauthorized dealing in the trophies of certain scheduled wild game, as opposed to mere poaching or hunting, for buying and reselling and exporting, the' maximum penalty will be twelve years at hard labour and a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand dollars." They thought about that for a moment, and then Craig nodded.
"Twelve years yes, that is enough." eter Fungabera's summons came in the early morning, when Craig and Hans Groenewald, his overseer, had just returned to the homestead from the dawn patrol of the pastures. Craig was in the middle of one of Joseph's gargantuan breakfasts when the telephone rang, and he was still savouring the homemade beef sausage as he answered it.
"Mr. Mellow, this is Captain Nbebi. The General wants you to meet him as soon as possible at his operationalheadquarters, the house at Macillwane. We are expecting our man to move tonight. How soon can you be here?"
"It's a six-hour drive," Craig pointed out.
"Miss Jay is already on her way to the airport. She should be at King's Lynn within the next two hours to pick you up." Sally-Anne arrived within the two hours, and Craig was waiting on the airstrip. They flew directly to Harare airport and Sally-Anne drove them out to the house in the Macillwane hills.
As they drove through the gates, they were immediately aware of the unusual activity in the grounds. On the front lawn stood a Super Frelon helicopter. The pilot and his engineer were leaning against the frise lage smoking and chatting to each other. They looked up expectantly as Sally-Anne and Craig came up the driveway, and then dismissed them as unimportant. There were four sand, coloured army trucks dra A Wn up in a line behind the house, with Third Brigade. 4oopers in full battle, kit grouped around them. Craig could sense their excitement, like hounds being whipped in for the hunt.
Peter Fungabera's office had been turned into operational headquarters. Two camp tables had been set up facing the huge relief map on the wall.
At the first table were seated three junior officers.
There was a radio apparatus on the second table, and Timon Nbebi was leaning over the operator's shoulder, speaking into the microphone in low rippling Shana that Craig could not follow, breaking off abruptly to give an order to the black sergeant at the map, who immediately moved one of the coloured markers to a new position.
Peter Fungabera greeted Craig and Sally-Anne perfunctorily and waved them to stools, then went on speaking into the telephone. When he hung up he explained quickly, "We know the location of three of the dumps one is at a shamba in the Chimanimani mountains, it's mostly leopard, skins and some ivory. The second is at a trading, post near Chiredzi in the south that's mostly ivory. And the third is coming from the north. We think that it's being held at Tuti Mission Station.
It's the biggest and most valuable shipment, ivory and rhino horn." He broke off as Captain Nbebi handed him a note, read it swiftly and said, "Good, move two platoons up the north road as far as Karoi," and then turned back to Craig.
The operation is code-named "Bada", that is Shana for "leopard". Our suspect will be referred to as Bada during the entire operation." Craig nodded. "We have just heard that Bada has left Harare. He is in his official Mercedes with a driver and two bodyguards all three of them Matabele, of course."
"Which way?" Sally-Anne asked quickly.
"At this stage, he seems to be heading north, but it's still too early to be sure."
"To meet the big shipment-" there was the light of battle in Sally-Anne's eyes, and Craig could feel his own excitement tickling the hairs at the back of his neck.
"We must believe that is so," Peter agreed. "Now let me explain our disposition if Bada moves north. The shipments from Chimanimani and Chiredzi will be allowed through unhindered as far as the airport. They will be seized as soon as they arrive, and the drivers, together with the reception committee, arrested, to be used as witnesses later.
Of course, their progress will be under surveillance at all times from the moment the trucks are loaded. The owners of the two warehouses will be arrested as soon as the trucks leave and are clear of the area.) Both Craig and Sally-Anne were listening intently, as Peter went on, "If Bada moves either east or south, we will switch the focus of the operation to that sector. However, we had anticipated that as the most valuable shipment was in the north, that's where he will go if, of course, he goes at all. It looks as though we were right. As soon as we are certain, then we can move ourselves."