“Tell me about this Blue-Mountain-Farm!” Yuki suddenly urged us after Nin had come back from his second outing. She looked at all of us but I felt that it was Nin’s due. And, when he gazed over to me, I beckoned my head for him to oblige her. He cleared his throat and tilted his head with a smile.
“It isn’t really a farm, you know. It’s a place in the very western part of a National Park in Kenya. In fact, I think, it lies outside the perimeter of the park. Otherwise, I can’t imagine how Uncle Phil might have obtained the title deed for it, but title deeds he sure has for this place, he showed them to us all, remember Lia?”
I nodded and he continued.
“You can reach the place by car but it’s an excruciating journey from Nairobi and your car will be shaken so badly every bolt and screw will have to be tightened afterwards. Uncle Bill flies in and out of the place most of the times. And he has horses there which he uses for getting around for his geological expeditions. It’s really a bit the end of the world, you know. No other settlement or houses anywhere within the next 50 kilometres. Not even a camp of the park authorities or something the like. It must have cost him an arm and a leg to get the place. Because it’s actually quiet big, you know.”
He paused to find the right words to describe this hideout of our cunning Uncle.
“There are some waterholes, wells, actually. Water from the Mount Kilimanjaro which has been transported underground for many, many miles surfaces there. One can find several such places in that region. The water of those wells is generally of a superb quality because it has been filtered by the volcanic rock it passed through and many of those waterholes are teaming with wildlife. At Uncle Phil’s waterholes there are some really big old trees and he build two bungalow-style houses under these trees. From above you can hardly see them because their roofs are thatched with a kind of grass. In hindsight, I guess, it was his intention all along – that one should not see the buildings form above, I mean.”
“It’s not grass,” Alice interjected. “It’s called Makuti and made of palm leaves, you know Yuki. It’s a bit difficult to explain but you’ll see for yourself soon.”
Yes! Let it please be soon!
“Anyway,” Nin went on. “It’s really quite a clever setting, but that’s Uncle Phil for you. He has been planning this apparently for many, many years. I mean, this place as a safe-haven from whatever catastrophe might hit. But the really ingenious part lies a bit away. Maybe a kilometre as the crow flies; but on the ground it means following a small meandering path which leads to a nearby hill. Actually, the hill is called Blue Hill, because from afar it looks bluish, like all the hills do in this area. Anyway, Uncle Phil said he discovered the secret of his hill on one of his many geological expeditions there, before he actually acquired the land. He knew all along that the hill is a very ancient volcano that ceased being active millennia ago. From far, and actually also from up close unless you know it, it looks just like any other hill. But really it is shaped like a doughnut with a little piece eroded or maybe blown away. But the real secret about the hill, Uncle Phil found out, was that a narrow gorge leads into the interior of the hill. And there within lies a little valley, more just a green meadow, completely invisible from anywhere around the hill. It is a wonderful, enchanted place; and very difficult to find. Uncle Phil said that he’d found it by sheer damn luck and that even most of the locals were completely unaware of its existence, which is easy to believe once you’ve seen the place, believe me. Anyway, once he knew about this special hill, Uncle Phil decided to purchase the place. Him being a geologist, married to a Kenyan and having been to the country over and over again, they somehow managed, without raising too many questions. Then, over the course of several years and using the pretext of building the houses by the waterhole, Uncle Phil actually built houses into this extinct crater. Not on the meadow, but on the sides of the crater walls where erosion had created overhanging cliffs. It’s absolutely impossible to see the houses from above. And the only access is this very narrow and easily defendable gorge. And there is a well, too, inside the crater. It’s really quite an ingenious hiding place! And Uncle Phil says that no-one except our family and Aunt Kamene’s relatives know. And Daniel, the old man who guards the place. And Josh, of course, because he helped Uncle Phil build the place, didn’t he, Lia?”
“Yes, at least that’s what we have been told. I never talked with Josh about this.” I replied and added. “You know, Yuki, Uncle Phil and Dad always discouraged us to talk about this place to anyone. And it kind of became an ingrained habit. I haven’t mentioned the place, or even thought about it, for many years. Whenever we were in Kenya during the last few years we stayed elsewhere. I have actually been at the Blue-Mountain waterhole only about five times. And only once in the crater itself. Alice doesn’t even know the crater, just the houses by the waterhole. It was safer this way. But, of course, neither Dad nor Uncle Phil ever put it like this. Instead, we were made to believe that it had something to do with Uncle Phil’s work, his ominous search for rare earth minerals. Or some such thing. And that was the reason why we weren’t supposed to mention the place to anyone, let alone strangers. Only now do I understand, that he had planned this all along as a hide-out in case we would need it. Uncle Phil’s a very devious man, you know – very smart, scheming and devious. Thank God!”
“He sure is.” Nin chuckled in agreement.
Alice scowled at both of us now. “And why have I never been shown this crater place? It’s not fair! I am big enough to understand this and keep a secret!”
“It’s nothing to do with fair or unfair, Alice, little tiger.” I soothed her. “It’s more likely something to do with time not having been right yet. I am sure, had things played out differently, you would have been shown on our next trip to Kenya. Don’t you think, Nin?”
“Exactly! You see, Alice, it wasn’t for us, Mum, Nate or anyone else to show you. It would have been done by Uncle Phil! And remember, the last time we were there he had to leave rather urgently for Afghanistan . Some kind of prospection job where they needed his expertise.”
“Okay, but I still think that is isn’t really fair, you know!” Alice grumbled; at which we all had to laugh, she was so cute when she was in a scowl.
“But why is it called “farm” if it really isn’t one?” Yuki asked a bit bewildered.
“No idea!” I replied and Nin agreed. “We’ll have to ask Uncle Phil or Aunt Kamene. From all I know the place has never been populated before Uncle Phil came along. So he must have named it. And, knowing Uncle Phil, there must have been a reason why he named it like that of all names.”
“And how will we get there? I mean, once we are in Kenya?” Yuki wanted to know.
“Frankly,” I replied. “I haven’t thought about this yet. First priorities first, you know. To me, this entire Kenya-safe-haven-scheme is still very much a thing of the future; certainly nothing that I am thinking about very much right now. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I do think about meeting our family there and I look very much forward to it. But I haven’t as of yet had time to contemplate how we will cover this last stretch and actually get out to the Blue-Mountain-Farm. But maybe you did, Nin?”
“Nah, not really. For me it’s been just like for you, Lia. Plus, I am counting on Josh to come up with an idea. He knows the place like his backyard, has been on many expeditions there with Uncle Phil and helped him build it in the first place. But I guess we’ll go there by car. Unless, of course, we could get an airplane somewhere. A small one. That would be super.”
“And when will Josh come?” Alice continued her questions.
I didn’t want to answer this. Actually, I didn’t want to talk about this at all. It felt too close to home. Deep inside, I was still so afraid that Josh and his friends might not make it. That something had happened to them by now and we would never know.
Another three weeks and we would have reached the date Josh had given as a plausible time for them to arrive.
But
what if it would pass without him and his friends showing up? How long would we wait until we would have to set out without them?
I couldn’t bear to think about all of this! But, in a way, I was also curious to hear what Nin and Yuki thought about it all.
Nin shot me a quick, almost apologetic glance before replying.
“I don’t know, Alice, we all don’t. But Josh said to expect him toward end of May. So I think it’s a fair guess to think that he may be here within the next two to three weeks.”
“I think so too,” Yuki enthusiastically agreed. “After all, they must have set out long time ago and should be here within just some few more days.”
And then everybody looked at me, I swallowed hard and just nodded, unable to say something.
Two to three weeks; some few days – oh please, let it be true! I don’t know what to do otherwise! Please!
This talking about Uncle Phil’s place which Josh knew so well had been like a wonderful interlude, a dream. It had actually felt a little as if he were already here.
Reality now felt too cruel. And I was torn between hope and not allowing myself to hope too much. Because how would I, could I, face a world without Josh?
Sure, we hadn’t had time to get to know each other well or even have anything like a real relationship. Yet, he felt so much part of me now that the idea that I might never see him again was simply unthinkable. We had to be granted time to be together. I knew that life didn’t deal in categories such as fair or unfair, but still, there had to be space for us, Josh and me, especially now that we were alone, in this new world. It just had to be possible! Anything else would be utterly unfair. So, please!
Keeping up appearances was getting hard, too. As long as I had been outside alone or when we were on some kind of expedition which made me focus on the immediate task of staying alive and safe, I hadn’t had time to think about Josh too much. But now – the longer it took – I couldn’t help feeling despair rising within. It took all my self-discipline to remain seemingly calm on the outside.
I had never been one for showing my feelings to everyone. But to Nin, Mum, and later Yuki I had always been honest and upfront. Now, however, I felt like not wanting to talk about this with any of them. Nin never pushed the issue and Yuki was wise enough to follow suit, even though she sometimes, like now, shot me glances that spoke volumes of her sympathy. She was just waiting to talk to me. But she understood, or at least respected my hesitation and refrained from discussing the matter.
That she, on the other hand, was more than willing to discuss her advancing pregnancy and her fears about it, was something I valued highly, because I knew very well that it wasn’t self-evident. She needed to talk, sure, but that wasn’t the whole story. She trusted me to reveal her innermost feelings to me while I fended her off like an immature teeny. Yet, she never wavered or reproached me for my reticent behaviour, but stood by my side like the true friend she was!
“Daydreaming, Lia?” Yuki lightly touched my arm, smiling gently down at me.
I had completely forgotten time and the others. And I felt embarrassed now. But everyone was just smiling at me.
“Just thinking about how wonderful it is to have friends like you, Yuki!”
Now it was her time to blush and feel embarrassed.
I gave her a quick hug and we all proceeded to discuss dinner and the plans for the next day.
Chapter 20 – waiting
until 17th May 2072
The next few days we still stayed inside; except for Nin or me going outside to check the situation or very short outings around the house.
We didn’t feel like exploring our surroundings or the wider area anymore. The killings had shown us all too clearly that we were still in grave danger of being found out. And, that our previous nonchalance and trips far and wide had been not until stupid but, frankly, hare-brained and very risky. To think what might have happened! In retrospect it gave me the creeps.
We had been real idiots! Assuming that we were alone, despite Josh telling us to be careful, that there would be sweeps! We had been criminally and grossly negligent and it could have ended really badly, indeed!
I wasn’t the only one to be shocked into this realization. Nin was clearly shaken to the core, too. He wouldn’t allow Yuki or Alice to step outside for three entire days! Thereafter max up to the road, over to the barn or down to the river. And, he insisted that we went everywhere heavily armed, even if it just was to go and check the solar panels.
Alice was happy that we stayed indoors and close to our home. She didn’t care anymore for going out. Yes, she wanted to see the sun every now and then, feel the spring weather getting warmer and warmer. But she didn’t want to venture far any more. We sometimes walked over to the farm house and sat there in the sun. Once or twice we went down to the river. But even then she’d already shown signs of stress. So we cut these outings short and brought her back to the safety of the sub-basement.
Yuki was a different case. She would have liked to get outside more. She looked pale and the strain of the advancing pregnancy certainly took a toll on her. But she, too, had been seriously rocked by the killing we’d witnessed. She suffered from nightmares for several days thereafter. And she’d fallen ill. A slight cold, only. But it had weakened her to the point where she had not much energy left other than for our restricted daily routine.
It frightened Nin and me very much.
Because she seemed to suffer from a general lack of motivation, even after she recuperated from her cold.
Yes, she taught Alice her lessons. Yes, she helped with the daily chores of our life. But all without her former enthusiasm. She was withdrawn, didn’t say much – neither to Nin nor to me or Alice.
It scared us.
She seemed to have withdrawn in a cocoon of her own; had shut us all out.
Oh yes, she answered our questions and she participated in our activities. But she never volunteered anything on her own any more. Not her opinion, not her feelings, not her troubles – nothing.
For Nin it was hell.
Especially when she started to physically withdraw and sleep by herself on the sofa.
He suffered but tried his best not to let her see it.
I, frankly, thought that this was stupid. Because, I reasoned, if only she could be brought to see how much her behaviour affected Nin, whom she loved dearly, after all, she might snap out of her bubble. But it was not – or, not yet – for me to interfere. I gave them breathing space as much as I could, by taking Alice for short strolls outside, or teaching her about cooking, washing and such things, so that the two could be together in the bedroom or so.
But it didn’t help much. Whenever we came back, Nin looked hurt, helpless and totally exhausted, while Yuki was polite, friendly, but nothing more. I hadn’t seen them kissing or hugging like they’d used to before for several days.
The symptoms were clear. She had suffered a very nasty shock and was now in denial mode.
How to get her out of this, however, I had no idea. and Mum’s medical book didn’t suggest anything. Part of it was certainly also her pregnancy. She was approaching the end of the fourth months. The anxiety for herself and the baby must have increased tenfold by the killings. And this all didn’t help.
Even Alice, sweet little Alice, didn’t manage to coax her out of her shell. And she tried everything she could think of: from making Yuki invent new stories about Malinda, to teaching her Swahili, to being super attentive during their lessons and, generally, trying to do whatever she could to make life easy for Yuki.
Which, I had an inkling, was just the wrong approach. But the few times I tried to be harsh with her, just got me furious glares from Nin and a curt request to leave Yuki be.
After one week I was itching to shake some sense into Yuki.
Wasn’t she seeing how Nin suffered? Didn’t she realize that she had to be brave now? For her sake, the baby’s sake and also for Nin. Didn’t she see that she must master her fears?
> We had no option, after all. If we were to survive and to travel safely to Kenya we must not only be fully prepared, but awake, vigilant, interacting with our surroundings.
Her present attitude of let-me-be and I-care-for-nothing would not only be very unhelpful, but potentially also dangerous.
I was at a loss of what to do.
Nin did the trick himself, in the end, and quite unwillingly.
About ten days after the killing Nin declared one afternoon, that he’d go out a bit, just to have a look around, he wouldn’t go far. Yuki took this as if it didn’t concern her and I cringed internally at the hurt in Nin’s eyes. He took his gun and abruptly left the big room where we were all sitting.
It worried me, the look of him. He was desperate, that much was clear.
I accompanied him to the tunnel entrance to lock the door behind him.
“Be careful, Nin, please.” I gently squeezed his arm.
He turned around to me, a look of total despair in his eyes, and opened his mouth as if to say something, but thought better of it. With a short “Of course, always am” he turned and left.
I stood there, staring after him and absentmindedly tapping my fingers on the door for several minutes. Anger rising within. Should I, or should I not? After some deliberation I returned to the common room without having reached a decision.
A writing lesson was under way, so I didn’t interfere, but busied myself in the kitchen with the wash; then with dinner.
Then I returned to the central room and tried to read a book, but I couldn’t concentrate.
It was now three hours since Nin had left and I began to feel nervous.
Yuki and Alice were by now busy with a book, too. They didn’t seem to be concerned.
“Nin should have come back long ago. He’s late!” I said as I walked in on them.
Yuki looked up with a start and checked her watch. “When did he leave? I kind of didn’t pay attention.”
Lia's files 1_Presumed extinct Page 36
