Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

by Rhys Bowen

  The kudu steaks, grilled by Samuel over the fire, were delicious. Diddy had sent salad items and fruit to accompany them, along with fresh bread, and a couple of bottles of good wine to wash them down. After lunch we all slept in our tents. Toward evening Cyril took us out in the safari vehicle—I’m calling it that because I don’t know if there is a proper word for it—and we went on a search for lions. We came upon a pride lying in a sandy hollow: a big male with a dark mane, three females and three cubs. We stayed where we were, high up in the lorry, and they didn’t seem at all concerned about us. I was really glad that nobody suggested shooting them because they were quite magnificent.

  “I am glad I came after all,” I said to Darcy as we returned to camp.

  “Good,” he replied but he didn’t smile.

  For dinner Samuel had made a stew with the kudu meat, as well as potatoes, onions and peppers. It was really tasty and defense against the cold wind that had sprung up with the onset of darkness. The dishes were washed up in water brought up from the river and every scrap of food was buried. “We don’t want animals rooting around us in the dark,” Cyril said.

  As we sat around the campfire after dinner we heard a sound I had only heard before in the London Zoo. A lion was roaring. It sounded unnaturally loud and it was impossible to tell which direction it was coming from.

  “He’s probably found the remains of the kudu we killed,” Cyril said. “Lions aren’t above being scavengers when they choose. He’s probably driving off hyenas. But don’t worry, Samuel and Joseph and I will take turns on guard all night.”

  I knew we were safely in a group around a campfire and that both Samuel and Cyril had their rifles handy but I had seen the size of those lions earlier in the day and I felt pretty defenseless. We retired to our tents for the night, leaving Cyril, Samuel and Joseph with their sleeping bags around the campfire. We went to bed in our clothes, and I was glad to have Darcy to snuggle up against. In the middle of the night I awoke. Through the tent flap I could see a sky speckled with a million stars. There was a moon, rising over distant hills. I wondered what had woken me then I heard it again. It sounded like a throaty cough, right outside our tent. Then a shadow moved between us and the campfire. A large shadow, moving softly, making no sound. The lion was in our camp.

  I didn’t know what to do. If I woke Darcy and he made a noise or a sudden movement would that alert the lion to us? Should I pretend to play dead? But did I want to lie there and feel its breath on me? There is a guard, I told myself. One of them is on guard with a gun. They will scare it off. But it came closer. I could sense it right outside my tent now. An enormous head was looking in through the tent flap. I looked around for a potential weapon, anything I could throw at it, defend myself with. All I could come up with was my shoes. I fished around but couldn’t put my hands on them. Maybe the lion was just curious. Maybe it would move on. . . .

  Suddenly there was a shout, a snarl and then a horrible noise I can’t really put into words . . . a terrifying sound, more shouts and a gunshot. Then there was pandemonium outside.

  “What the devil?” Darcy sat up, tried to stand up and bumped his head as the tent was only about four feet tall.

  I grabbed him. “Darcy, don’t go out there. There’s a lion.”

  “I heard a shot.” He pulled back the tent flap. Silhouetted against the fire I could make out Cyril and Joseph and Samuel. They were standing over a dark mound.

  “Well done,” I heard Cyril say. He looked up at Darcy, who now emerged from the tent. “We had a rogue lion come into camp. Joseph speared it. I finished it off.”

  I tried to locate my shoes. As I crawled forward my hand touched something cold and squishy. I recoiled, crying out in alarm.

  “What is it?” Darcy was with me instantly.

  “I touched something . . . something dead and cold.”

  He squatted beside me and reached for what I had indicated. “It’s part of that antelope we ate for dinner,” he said. “Feels like a bone with meat on it.”

  “How did it get into our tent?” I asked. Darcy said nothing. Outside we could now hear that everyone was awake. Voices sounded anxious and alarmed.

  “Oh my God. It’s a lion!” The voice was Jocelyn’s, high as a girl’s and quite hysterical.

  “A lion? You allowed a lion to attack us, Prendergast?” That was Mr. Van Horn. “You claimed to be a professional? And you promised we should be safe? I should never have trusted you.”

  “We could all have been eaten in our beds,” I heard Rowena saying. “Weren’t you supposed to post a guard?”

  “I was on guard,” Cyril said. “I heard a noise and it sounded as if something was trying to get into the lorry. So I left the fire for a second to go and see. I suppose it could have been a second lion, sniffing around where we’d stored food. Thank God that Joseph was awake and alert and had brought his spear.”

  I had now reached the group. The body of the lion lay there with a spear sticking out of its chest. Joseph retrieved it. “It is lucky that I brought it with me,” he said. “I almost didn’t but then when I lived among my people I was told that a moran never goes anywhere without his spear.”

  “Your aim was good,” Samuel said. “You speared him through the heart.”

  Samuel made coffee, Cyril put a generous splash of brandy into it and we all went back to bed.

  “What did you do with that meat?” I whispered to Darcy.

  “I threw it onto the fire,” Darcy whispered back. “I didn’t want to attract any more predators.”

  “Somebody put it in our tent deliberately, didn’t they?” I asked. “The same person who opened our shutters and put the steak on our bed.”

  “Someone really doesn’t like us,” Darcy agreed. “Wants us out of here one way or another.”

  “Dead or alive,” I muttered.

  I lay down beside him, feeling the comforting warmth of his arm around me, my head lying against his shoulder. But sleep would no longer come. Which of them could it be? I could rule out Samuel. He had only just met us and could have no grudge against us. Also Joseph. He had been nothing but pleasant. I couldn’t see what possible reason Rupert or Rowena could have for wanting to harm us, or how they would know to lure a lion close to the camp with a trail of meat. Then there was Jocelyn. I had heard his voice, absolutely terrified, when the lion was discovered. No, he’d never have the guts even if he had the expertise. That left just Mr. Van Horn and Cyril. And the latter . . . Well, he had no reason to want us out of the way. So my money was on Van Horn. I had seen the way he shot the antelope. A clean kill from quite a distance. It was quite obvious to me now that he was a trained German spy. We’d have to talk to Freddie and have him out of the country as soon as possible—at least back in Gilgil or Nairobi, safely far away from us. I shivered as I went through the incident again—that enormous head, that grunted growl. If the lion had come into the tent would it just have taken the meat? If I hadn’t moved, if Darcy had stayed asleep, would we have been left unharmed?

  When we woke in the morning the lion’s carcass was gone. We were told that Samuel had skinned it and we were bringing the skin home as a trophy.

  “Would you like me to cure it for you so that you can take it back to England?” Cyril asked me. “A belated wedding present?”

  I thought of that magnificent lion and wondered if I wanted to be reminded of this night, but Darcy said, “We’d be honored. I think this is a night to remember, don’t you?”

  “I won’t ever forget it,” I said, “but if you don’t mind, I’m going to stay in camp while you take the others game viewing. I have a terrible headache from last night’s excitement.”

  They were all really nice to me. Samuel made me tea and scrambled eggs and brought me a cold water compress from the river. “I think we’ll take the lorry and go farther afield this time,” Cyril said. “There are hippos where the river
is wider in the valley. And we may see elephants there too.”

  “Then I will stay with this memsabu.” Joseph moved over to stand beside me. “Just in case more lions come.”

  I hadn’t really considered being left behind with no real shelter and gave Joseph a grateful smile.

  “And I don’t think I feel like bumping around in that vehicle,” Rowena said. “I agree with Georgie. I also have a frightful headache. Actually I’ve had a headache since I got here. Altitude, I believe.”

  “Well, I better stay and keep an eye on Ro,” Rupert said. “I can’t leave my sister undefended.”

  “How about you, Mr. Van Horn?” Cyril asked. “Are you game for a game drive?”

  “Game for game? Ha-ha. That is very good.” Van Horn nodded appreciation. “But I think, considering what we have experienced, that we should make our way home. It is clear that most members of our party have no more interest in seeing animals at such close quarters.”

  Nobody disagreed with this. We started to dismantle the tents. That was when I realized that Jocelyn was not among us. I was about to sound the alarm when there was a muffled shout and Jocelyn’s tousled head appeared from the collapsing tent. He had apparently slept all the way through breakfast.

  I went over to Joseph as we loaded gear onto the lorry. “Thank you for saving our lives last night,” I said. “It was about to come into our tent.”

  He nodded, solemnly. “I don’t know what brought it into our camp and then wanting to enter your tent. It must have been a man-eater, although how a lion develops a taste for human flesh so far from the nearest settlement is a mystery. And it did not appear to be old or injured, which is when a big cat will usually take to preying upon humans.” He turned away, staring out toward the vastness of the savanna. “I know I had to protect you and I had to do the deed, but I am sorry I had to kill a lion. I killed my one lion during my year of training for manhood. It is not good luck to kill more than one.”

  “Well, I’m very glad you did, or I wouldn’t be here this morning,” I said. He gave me a gentle smile.

  We drove back slowly, stopping to look at various animals, including a pair of rhinos who trotted right past us, apparently not aware that there were humans in the lorry, stopped for a picnic lunch beside a small lake, where we saw flamingos, storks and even a crocodile, and arrived back at Diddy’s in midafternoon. She was surprised to see us so early.

  “You should have stayed out longer,” she said. “We’ve had another visit from that awful inspector. He’s been badgering Angel and wanted to talk to Lord Cheriton’s children. He was most put out to find they were far away on safari. He thinks they are hiding from him.”

  Perhaps they were, I thought. They had never wanted to visit their father before. They had stayed well away from him, and once he had inherited the title they turn up instantly. An idea struck me. What if Rupert had hidden in the back or the boot of the motorcar? If Rowena had made the telephone call luring him home and Rupert had struck as Bwana drove? The only thing against that was that there was no hint of blood or disarray in the car. Could Rupert have arranged for him to stop and get out for any reason? It was an intriguing thought and I couldn’t wait to share it with Darcy.

  Diddy also informed us that Freddie had paid a visit. She told us that Lord Cheriton’s funeral would be held on Saturday and that Lord Delamere and the Prince of Wales would attend. Apparently Lord Delamere was concerned about me, since we had discovered the body and were staying so close to the Cheriton estate. He was upset that our honeymoon would be spoiled and suggested that we come to stay with him right away.

  “Freddie will be stopping by tomorrow, I expect,” Diddy said. “Do you want to go and stay with Lord D?”

  A debate waged inside my head. Which would be worse: a person who was constantly trying to kill us or a stay with Mrs. Simpson? Reason won out but Darcy answered before I could. “I think that might be a lovely idea, Diddy, if you don’t mind our deserting you. That way we could see the countryside down by Lake Elmenteita and we’ll be closer to Freddie in Gilgil in case there are more questions to be answered or a coroner’s court to attend.”

  “I’ll be sorry to see you go,” Diddy said, “but I have to say that I agree. It’s not pleasant to have your honeymoon interrupted by murder and the police. So go with my blessing, children. We’ll have a farewell dinner tonight.”

  I felt a huge weight leave my shoulders as Darcy and I walked back to our bedroom.

  “Thank you for saying that,” I whispered to him. “I really wanted to leave but I didn’t know whether you’d think we were being ungrateful to Diddy.”

  “My darling, this is one time when gratitude has to give way to common sense,” Darcy said. “If someone is trying to kill us up here, then I want you to be safe and far away.”

  “Now we just have to get through tonight,” I said and gave him a nervous grin.

  Chapter 33

  SATURDAY, AUGUST 17

  AT LORD DELAMERE’S ESTATE

  We’ve just had three blissful days with no murders, no police and even Mrs. Simpson being quite pleasant for once. We’ve been out riding, we’ve been out in a boat and saw hippos and flamingos and we’ve had lots of jolly good food and wine. Today is Lord Cheriton’s funeral. I wonder if the police are any closer to solving the case.

  On Saturday morning we rose early and dressed for the funeral. Of course I had brought no black outfits with me (well, one doesn’t expect to attend the occasional funeral on one’s honeymoon, does one?). Darcy had no black suit, apart from his dinner jacket. Luckily Lady Delamere lent me a dress and Lord D lent Darcy a jacket so we were at least presentable, even though Lady D was a little broader in the hips than I. She also managed to find a black pillbox hat with a veil for me, which made me look like a character from The Merry Widow and made Darcy laugh.

  Everyone was in good form at breakfast except for Mrs. Simpson (who was no longer Mrs. Simpson, one gathered—the divorce had come through; I just prayed she didn’t expect to be called Her Royal Highness Princess Wallis anytime soon!).

  “I don’t know why we have to waste good time attending this man’s funeral,” she complained to my cousin. “We didn’t even know the guy. And we only have two more days before you have to go back to your damned royal duties and I have to fly home like a good little girl.”

  “I’m sorry, Wallis.” David was always apologizing to her. “But that’s just the way it is. Royal duties are my job. I have to do what is expected of me, you know that.”

  “Your father works you too hard. Why isn’t he doing this tour?” She served herself half a slice of toast, while the rest of us were working our way through the kedgeree and eggs.

  “You know he hasn’t been well. And he wants me to get to know my Commonwealth people before I take over the firm, so to speak.”

  Wallis sniffed and took a bite of her toast. “It won’t go on all day, will it?”

  “There is a luncheon afterward, but we’ll have time in the afternoon,” David said.

  “But no polo tomorrow because the community is in mourning,” she said sweetly. “What a shame. I know you were looking forward to that.”

  But she wasn’t, I thought. I was awfully glad there was not to be a repeat of the polo match. I’m not sure how I managed to survive the first one and didn’t want to trust my luck a second time.

  We were just getting ready to leave for the church when Freddie arrived.

  “I thought I’d drive you two in my old boneshaker,” he said. “Lord D can drive the prince.”

  I pictured my black dress after an exposure to the dirt roads and the boneshaker but Darcy accepted right away. As we walked to the car Freddie drew near to Darcy. “I came to pick you up because there are some developments I wanted to share with you,” he said. He had lowered his voice and I suspected I was not supposed to listen, but I listened anyway.

>   “We intercepted a cable that Van Horn sent to Berlin,” Freddie said. “It was coded, but easy to break.”

  “Well?” Darcy said impatiently.

  “It said, ‘2 unstable. Abandon for now.’”

  “‘Too unstable’?”

  “The number two, not ‘too.’”

  “The number two?”

  Freddie nodded. “Precisely.”

  “What do you think that means?”

  “I’d like to believe it meant a second-in-command, someone who would be a right-hand man and presumably take over the operation on Cheriton’s death,” Freddie replied.

  “And any thoughts on who that might be?”

  “Cyril,” I interjected, making them both turn to look at me.

  “Cyril? Cyril Prendergast?” Freddie sounded amazed.

  They hadn’t realized I’d been eavesdropping and I blushed. “It makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it? Cyril pretends to loathe Lord Cheriton, but they are secretly working together. That’s why he stays with Diddy, next door. He pretends to be the languid man-about-town, the sort of man nobody would suspect, but he goes to Nairobi to write his newspaper column and can stir up things behind the scenes.”

  When they said nothing I went on. “Why else would he agree to have that long chat with Mr. Van Horn at the polo match and then invite him on safari? He doesn’t strike me as the sort of person who does acts of charity. It was so he and Van Horn could have some good strategy sessions with nobody listening.”

  “Then why invite us on safari with them?” Darcy asked.

  I wagged a finger excitedly as everything became clear. “They had just been tipped off as to who you were and why you were here. The safari was a perfect way to get rid of you.”

  “What’s this?” Freddie asked. “‘Get rid of you’?”

  Darcy told him about the monkey, the meat and the lion.

  “Good God,” Freddie said. “Cyril put meat in your bedroom and opened the window? And then in your tent? The chap was taking a big risk luring a lion into camp. It might have gone for any one of you, including him.”