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Authors: Caitlin O'Connell
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in on the action. The young bulls then proceeded to engage in sparring matches up and down the river, mucking up the water for everyone else, but no one seemed to care. I enjoyed the sounds of drinking and the splashing of water escaping many thirsty trunks curling up to mouths in a row, looking like a giant sea monster in the night.
A blood-curdling scream emanated from the bank a little ways upstream. I tried to see between the elephant legs to the cause of the upset, when suddenly scores of elephants ran past me on either side, several of them looming over me through the windshield as they sidestepped the car in a hurried retreat, leaving a small group clustered in a panic on the far bank.
A few of the younger elephants in the group were running back and forth with their ears straight out, confused, reaching their trunks up in the air, as if searching for clues on the winds. Two larger females were trying to reach something in the river with their trunks. At first, I didn’t see anything in the water and couldn’t figure out what they were doing.
A small, black, snakelike object stuck up out of the water and went back under. The elephants were trying to grab it. There were splashes and more screams and bellows coming from the water. Then, I realized what was happening. A calf had fallen in and the bank was so steep that it wasn’t able to climb out.
Finally, the two females got down on their knees and were able to wrap their trunks around the backside of the baby and pulled it up onto the bank. The dripping wet baby stood silently, sucking its trunk as the others came over and touched it with their trunks as they rumbled and flapped their ears.
I was so engrossed in what was happening that I hadn’t realized how badly I was getting bitten by mosquitoes. The long pants and socks helped, but the effect of the DEET was wearing off my arms and neck. I needed to leave, but I waited until the elephants left before I packed up my things and made my way back to the barracks in the dark. It was too dark not to turn on my headlights, but I didn’t want to spoil the night, so I drove back using my night vision.
Through the night-vision screen, the bent grass I had driven on was lighter in color than that surrounding it, allowing me to follow my path exactly. I wanted to avoid driving into a warthog hole or over an acacia seedling, the thorns of which would have given me another flat tire. I wound through the tall grass and back to the main dirt road in the dark.
On the road, I could see fresh tire tracks going in the opposite direction, toward the Angolan border. I didn’t remember hearing a vehicle pass. The only thing up there was the border—and poachers.
Chapter 9
I stared at the tracks on the road. Was the ivory from the poached elephants I had seen during my flight being picked up and driven into Namibia at night? Or was another turf battle about to unfold between the Nigerians and the witch doctor? I turned north and followed the tracks, soothing myself with the idea that Gidean and the other rangers might just be out fishing.
Eli wouldn’t want me poking around in
any
of their business, whether fishing for food
or
for bad guys. But I didn’t think the others would mind me tagging along.
After three miles, the tracks suddenly veered off onto the floodplain, heading toward the river. I turned to follow them. Whoever it was, they couldn’t have been far. The river was only about two hundred yards away.
I pulled off, checked my holster, and got out, continuing on foot until I could see a vehicle parked next to the river. It was the ministry vehicle.
I walked over to the vehicle, holding my hand on the butt of my revolver. There were no lights on. No signs of life.
I looked into the empty cab of the truck. No guns, either.
I stepped to the muddy river’s edge to see fresh scrapes from the bottom of a boat. Must have been a ministry boat used for their patrols. I listened for the noise of a motorboat engine
A blood-curdling scream emanated from the bank a little ways upstream. I tried to see between the elephant legs to the cause of the upset, when suddenly scores of elephants ran past me on either side, several of them looming over me through the windshield as they sidestepped the car in a hurried retreat, leaving a small group clustered in a panic on the far bank.
A few of the younger elephants in the group were running back and forth with their ears straight out, confused, reaching their trunks up in the air, as if searching for clues on the winds. Two larger females were trying to reach something in the river with their trunks. At first, I didn’t see anything in the water and couldn’t figure out what they were doing.
A small, black, snakelike object stuck up out of the water and went back under. The elephants were trying to grab it. There were splashes and more screams and bellows coming from the water. Then, I realized what was happening. A calf had fallen in and the bank was so steep that it wasn’t able to climb out.
Finally, the two females got down on their knees and were able to wrap their trunks around the backside of the baby and pulled it up onto the bank. The dripping wet baby stood silently, sucking its trunk as the others came over and touched it with their trunks as they rumbled and flapped their ears.
I was so engrossed in what was happening that I hadn’t realized how badly I was getting bitten by mosquitoes. The long pants and socks helped, but the effect of the DEET was wearing off my arms and neck. I needed to leave, but I waited until the elephants left before I packed up my things and made my way back to the barracks in the dark. It was too dark not to turn on my headlights, but I didn’t want to spoil the night, so I drove back using my night vision.
Through the night-vision screen, the bent grass I had driven on was lighter in color than that surrounding it, allowing me to follow my path exactly. I wanted to avoid driving into a warthog hole or over an acacia seedling, the thorns of which would have given me another flat tire. I wound through the tall grass and back to the main dirt road in the dark.
On the road, I could see fresh tire tracks going in the opposite direction, toward the Angolan border. I didn’t remember hearing a vehicle pass. The only thing up there was the border—and poachers.
Chapter 9
I stared at the tracks on the road. Was the ivory from the poached elephants I had seen during my flight being picked up and driven into Namibia at night? Or was another turf battle about to unfold between the Nigerians and the witch doctor? I turned north and followed the tracks, soothing myself with the idea that Gidean and the other rangers might just be out fishing.
Eli wouldn’t want me poking around in
any
of their business, whether fishing for food
or
for bad guys. But I didn’t think the others would mind me tagging along.
After three miles, the tracks suddenly veered off onto the floodplain, heading toward the river. I turned to follow them. Whoever it was, they couldn’t have been far. The river was only about two hundred yards away.
I pulled off, checked my holster, and got out, continuing on foot until I could see a vehicle parked next to the river. It was the ministry vehicle.
I walked over to the vehicle, holding my hand on the butt of my revolver. There were no lights on. No signs of life.
I looked into the empty cab of the truck. No guns, either.
I stepped to the muddy river’s edge to see fresh scrapes from the bottom of a boat. Must have been a ministry boat used for their patrols. I listened for the noise of a motorboat engine
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