“I wouldn’t say that,” chipped in Mike. “You love this place.”
“True but perhaps that is a bit like loving a person. The core of what brought us together doesn’t change but other things do and you need to adapt too otherwise you might lose what is most precious to you.”
Harry smiled, “That’s almost poetic but even as a young person I know how true that is.”
Jim looked awkward for a moment and then grinned back. “Perhaps I’m changing in more ways than I realised. Being serious though we need to be proactive, if we don’t this beautiful place will slowly die round us.”
“What part can I play?” asked Mike his expression earnest as ever. “You know how much Uwingoni means to me as well.”
“I’d like you to contact your old chum Mr Pang. Ask him whether he would like to come on safari with us again when he is next out but also see if you can get another invitation for Ana and Harry to visit Prosperity. I’m sure we will come up with a good reason.”
Mike fiddled uncomfortably with his hands, “I’m not very good at that sort of thing. I always feel a bit awkward.”
“I’m sure you’ll be fine.” The no nonsense tone was back in Jim’s voice. “You, Ana and I will have to have a serious chat. If we get access to the dam perhaps your new pal Michael will be useful. Go and brief her and the three of us can meet once Mike has set something up. Right, lots to do as usual. See you later.” Getting up and ignoring the pile of paperwork in which he had no interest, he was gone.
It’s strange thought Harry as he headed off to find Ana. This is something that he had been thinking about so much but now that there was a definite possibility of a return visit he felt a real stab of apprehension in the pit of his stomach.
It was one of those days where he seemed to have a host of small things to do, none of them that rewarding but all part of his varied job in the Reserve.
After an early supper he was deep in thought in his favourite canvas chair by the side of the dining area, wondering which way to broach the subject with Ana, uncertain of her reaction. He knew from experience how important it was to choose your moment when you need to talk about something important.
As it happened the decision was made for him. “What’s up with you Harry? I recognise that look on your face.”
He sighed deeply, “Look, unlikely though it seems Jim is keen for us to have a second look round Prosperity Dam.”
“Your uncle? You must be joking! This has gone round and round your head endlessly and you know my feelings.” He saw the obvious irritation in her face and the slight narrowing of the eyes which he knew to be a dangerous sign.
“You’re right of course but this is honestly Jim’s idea. He’s already got Mike on the case with Mr Pang but we might not even get an invite.”
“It doesn’t change my feeling.”
“I have made a firm promise to myself not to be stupid and put us in danger.”
Ana’s face softened, “I know you mean well and I really respect what you want to do but I’m honestly not sure I’m the person to go with you.”
Even as she spoke she could feel her thoughts drifting back to the previous visit, to the suspicion and the expressionless faces she couldn’t read and to the container she couldn’t enter. Then further back again to Syria, to another dark hole and girls and young women clinging on to their lives and sanity with their fingertips. It was a place she tried desperately not to revisit. There was a frayed curtain across her mind that gave her glimpses of those times. She made such an effort to confront them but there was still so much that she pushed down, right into the depths of her being where it festered and gnawed in the darkness.
Ever since Harry had mentioned the idea she had a bad feeling about it. There was nothing she could put her finger on but it was real and terrified her.
“Are you OK Ana?” She refocused and saw the concerned young face looking at her.
“Sorry Harry just letting my thoughts wander. Look I’ll give it serious consideration but I doubt Mr Pang will be sending an invite anyway. I’m weary so I’m going to turn in now. Sleep well.” She smiled without warmth and headed off to her tent, half of her mind praying for sleep the other half dreading the dreams that waited, clawing at the leash.
It was an unremarkable morning when she woke yet unusually the sky had a dull greyness to it and even the birdsong sounded subdued; foreboding in the air. She had slept in bursts and the nightmares hadn’t come. She had to get a grip. This was a beautiful place and she was surrounded by lovely people and more importantly she was safe.
Ana stared at herself in the mirror, almost as though she was trying to read her own thoughts. She tried that odd idea that one of the kind young doctors had suggested. “Look in the mirror every morning and say aloud, I love you. It’s not easy but in time you will come to feel much more positive about yourself.”
When he had asked on one of her future visits how she got on with that, she had lied convincingly about how it made her feel better but of course it didn’t. For every positive she found and she acknowledged that there were good things, she always managed to discover a negative to knock it off its perch. The smile in the glass was beaten into a frown and her eyes glazed over, she could have said anything but it wouldn’t have registered.
A cold shower proved the answer, for the moment anyway. The powerful needles of water almost seemed to burn. In the end everything else was forgotten, she was alive in that moment with no thoughts of the future or past.
Ana took herself off in Bluebird with binoculars, pencils and a sketchpad. She was beginning to learn where the smaller side tracks led to and despite the odd wrong call, rarely got lost by more than a single turning.
The morning was beginning to find its brightness, there was more blue in the sky and the warm fingers of sun seemed to massage the tightness in her shoulders. She stopped in a shady area beside the glinting waterhole and cut the engine. The approach of the vehicle would have frightened away any animals but it didn’t matter. Perhaps it was the mixture of solitude and beauty that brought her here, she wasn’t sure.
The first thing she noticed as always is that the African bush is never quiet. Often it was the sound that led her to the bird. Straight away she heard the call of the glossy starlings as she spotted a small flock in the treetops. She grinned as their chirping always made her think of R2D2’s robotic voice from Star Wars. Their iridescent purply blue and bright yellow eyes made them stand out in the foliage. She was reminded, as she had been every day since arriving, that even the most ordinary of creatures in Kenya seemed so spectacular. Then she heard the giggling of a wood hoopoe, the latest bird that Kilifi had pointed out to her on a recent trip, and found herself smiling along with it.
There were no animals at the water’s edge although the large variety of prints in the soft mud showed that it was well used. Ana took out her pad and began to sketch, relishing her new free style, realising that she had started to draw the feel of the places she visited and the movement of the animals, and that was so much more powerful. It was life not a photographic image.
Time passed, although how much she wouldn’t have known, and then suddenly almost majestically, as though from nowhere came two giraffes. How could she not have seen the world’s tallest animal making its way through the bush and then again as she looked more closely and her pencil glided over the paper, she realised just how magical their camouflage was. The large brown splodges of colour separated from each other by lighter lines almost made their coats jig-saw puzzle like. Yet it was exactly this that helped them to blend in so well with their surroundings.
She stopped drawing and just sat and watched as they cautiously made their way down to the water. Slow graceful movements, yet underneath she could almost sense their urge to run for cover too. Splaying her front legs wide apart the larger animal gently lowered her mouth to the surface and barely making a ripple started to drink and the younger one, perhaps her daughter, moved to her side, mirroring her movem
ents. She glanced up, her deep, dark eyes surrounded by long eye lashes staring, almost knowingly in Ana’s direction.
The morning seemed to float by. Animals, individually or in their families came and went. She felt that though they were aware of her presence they felt secure. She drew when the mood took her but mostly just sat and watched, letting her mind wander.
She hadn’t even put a watch on and had no phone so if it hadn’t been for the sun directly overhead in a now perfect sky and the slight rumbling of her tummy she would have had no idea how long she had been there.
Neatly folding the morning’s drawings and with more purpose than she had felt for some time she started the engine. There was no doubt in her mind that the decision she had come to was the right one.
This was not just about the elephants; it was about so much more. None of these animals had a voice yet this was their home. When the poachers finally killed the last elephant she knew it wouldn’t end there, some other beautiful creature would be next on their list until there were none left and Uwingoni would become a barren wilderness.
She wasn’t great at remembering quotes but one that had jiggled about in her head since teenage years was her father’s favourite, “All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for the good person to do nothing.” Well she wasn’t going to be that person. Yes she knew that there would be events and people ahead that would fit comfortably into the evil bracket but she was determined not to be the one who looked the other way and hoped that somehow everything would be alright. She understood enough of the world to know that never happened.
There were just the four of them in Jim’s office the next morning.
“The good news is that Mr Pang seemed happy with another visit to the dam and has agreed to come and stay at Uwingoni on his next visit. Thanks to Mike for arranging that and for coming up with the idea that perhaps future guests here might visit the dam. Mr Pang seemed particularly keen on that. I imagine he likes the thought of showing off his engineering feats to wealthy tourists.”
“Oh it was nothing,” Mike smiled weakly. “He seems a good man and I am sure he has no knowledge of any wrongdoing there. He is based in China most of the time anyway.”
“The invitation is for tomorrow. Harry and Ana you need to chat things through. You are just trying to find anything that might be useful to Inspector Mwitu in his attempt to be allowed onto the site. Ana you are not as headstrong so I rely on you to make sure nothing daft happens up there.”
“Don’t worry Jim. I’ll keep Harry on his lead.”
“I’ll obviously be happy when you are back safe and sound. Good luck.”
The rest of the day was very full-on and there was little time for them to think ahead, which was an obvious plus. Harry knew only too well that he had one of those minds that was overly imaginative and created a whole range of things that could happen but in reality were highly unlikely to.
As they headed off to their tents after an early supper, Ana stopped before turning in. “Look Harry, I know you too well already and I can sense those cogs whirling round in your head. I’m not looking forward to tomorrow, that’s no secret but that doesn’t mean I’m not as determined as you. If we can play a part in stopping these people that would be wonderful but we’ll just take things as they come. Try to switch that brain of yours off, empty your head and get a good night’s sleep; that will be more use to us than anything. I’ll try to do the same.” She leant across and gently kissed his cheek, “Sweet dreams.” And with that she was gone, stepping inside and zipping up the flaps to keep the night out.
Harry lay in bed staring at the canvas roof and eventually drifted off, an image of Mara and Meru the last thing on his mind.
He didn’t feel much like breakfast, that apprehensive twinge in his stomach gnawing away at his early morning hunger. Nevertheless, he ate a fry-up without really being aware of the individual tastes. Ana settled for a yoghurt and black coffee and neither spoke much, other than rather meaningless pleasantries.
It was almost as though Bluebird knew the way and everything had a sense of déjà vu about it. When they pulled up at the yellow barrier there was even the same humourless guard. Knowing the drill they parked and waited for the some internal transport to pick them up.
They had barely stretched their legs when the jeep appeared dragging a dust cloud behind it and there at the wheel was Michael Cheng. He bounded across to them and despite that slightly stiff Chinese formality greeted them like long lost friends.
“It’s so good to see you both again. My uncle tells me you have ideas to bring some tourists up here to see the fantastic dam project. He thinks that would be marvellous and has asked me to work out some plan with you as to the best way to do this.
They headed up the main track towards the dam itself. “He didn’t think you needed to see Mr Zhang Wei. His main focus is the dam itself. Indeed he would probably not be happy with tourists looking round. He’s rather old fashioned in that way.”
The jeep halted on the high ground above the gorge. There seemed more workers than ever toiling away below and Harry was reminded of the harshness of their conditions. There wasn’t a tree or an area of shade to be seen anywhere. It was still early in the day; he could only imagine what it must be like when the sun was at its highest point.
“I had thought we could have a viewing platform up here, perhaps serving cool drinks and some tasty bites to nibble. What do you think Ana?”
She was somewhat startled by the question as her mind had been dwelling on what hell it must be to work here and yet with few other jobs around, what choice did these men have if they wanted to feed their families. “Oh, good idea Michael. It’s certainly a great spot to see how amazing the whole project is.”
He smiled politely, pleased with her response. They toured round the site for the next hour stopping every now and then while Michael chatted about ideas he had.
Harry was beginning to find the whole experience extremely frustrating. They hadn’t seen anything of interest that might help them on their quest; he was almost beginning to wish they had never come.
He was trying to get his bearings when they passed a familiar barrier and he realised that was where Mr Hu’s base was. This is a bit more promising he thought. They were never going to learn anything of value round the dam itself.
Michael chatted on pleasantly and they continued to make small talk. Ana, as always, sensitive to peoples’ moods had been surprised by Michael from the start. This wasn’t the same person they had met before. He was chatty and pleasant but there seemed none of the previous uncertainty in him. It had been replaced by an underlying decisiveness. She couldn’t put her finger on it but questions kept nibbling away in her mind.
Michael swung the jeep up a right fork. “This is where we kept the geological rock samples but we have expanded and developed it so I thought it would be nice to stop for coffee and wash the dust out of our throats.”
The hut had been replaced by some much more sophisticated buildings and the line of containers certainly seemed longer than on their first visit.
Ana already felt apprehensive. She hadn’t liked this place before but now that sense seemed stronger than ever. She told herself not to be silly. Was she going to feel like this every time she saw another container? She had to get a grip of herself.
“We can get some refreshments in that larger building on the right. If you need the restroom it is round the back.”
“You go in with Michael. I’m just going to use the boys’ room. I’ll have a white coffee with no sugar thanks.”
With his usual courtesy Michael opened the door for Ana and ushered her down an almost sterile corridor with a shiny, tiled floor and pristine white walls. Even though it was a bright morning outside, strip lights hummed overhead. The room at the far end was open and as they entered the two men inside turned towards them and smiled.
Ana felt her mouth go dry. She hadn’t seen either of them before but she knew instantly that they were bot
h Somalis and that alone rang terrible alarm bells. There could be very few reasons for two Somalis dressed in army fatigue uniforms to be sitting in an air-conditioned room at Prosperity Dam.
The larger man’s face was expressionless and brutish. She had met his kind in other parts of the world; men to whom violence was simply a part of their everyday life. The other man’s dark eyes swam with a mixture of hate and delight and as he moved towards her, his right foot dragged slightly across the tiles.
“It’s good to meet you at last,” he said with undisguised glee. As he took her hand she could smell the staleness of his breath and inadvertently flinched back. His lips parted showing the rotting teeth stained by years of chewing khat, a drug so loved by Somali men. “Look what the Prophet has sent us Abdul, so thoughtful don’t you think?”
His grip tightened viciously on her hand, “Sit down there you Western slut and don’t even think of opening your mouth.”
Ana could feel the outward silence closing in on her yet at the same time the yelling inside her head leapt up like flames fanned by a biting wind. Despite that she heard the door open and shut in the corridor and footsteps that could only be Harry’s walking easily and unsuspecting towards the room.
“Harry run, get out it’s…” the force of the slap knocked her clean off the chair and with a clatter it fell across her as she tried to get up.
“Ana what’s up?” She could hear him running, but towards her rather than away. She tried to raise herself to shout another warning.
For a big man Abdul moved remarkably fast and as Harry stepped through the doorway he had one arm round his neck and the other pressing his left arm up behind his back in an instant.
Harry’s face was a mixture of fear and confusion and then he saw the Somali grinning broadly in front of him. He struggled but Abdul’s strength was such that he felt if his arm moved any further up it would break. The punch jerked his head violently to the side and as sucked in a breath it came again, even harder. A third blow and he felt a mist swishing across his vision.
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