To Mom for a lifetime of encouragement, Jason, Dylan and Tanny for their care, and for my wonderful grandsons Ethan and Brogan, Gavin, Mandy, The Chosen One, Jackie, and Laurie and Wilkie from Cambodia. Terrie, Paul, Cameron, and Graham for his insight and skill. The Malby family. Hilary and Grant. Jonno and Stan for fun friendships, and refusing to agree on anything, ever. Nkosi Nkanyiso Biyela for his wisdom, Ben and the Ngubane family for their wonderful friendship, Nkosi Phiwayinkosi Chakide Biyela for his foresight and leadership. Barbara, Yvette and all the Earth Org staff for taking up the challenge. Ian Raper for his leadership. Mehdy and the Zarrabeni family, Dave Cooper the game rangers game ranger. Bella. Elmien. Marion Garai. The Bruwer boys. Mabona, Vusi, Ngwenya, Bheki, Bonisiwe, Biyela, Zelda, Brigitte and all the incredible Thula Thula staff. David and Brendan for being there and doing it, and to Peter Joseph, Ingrid Connell, and Lisa Hagan for their confidence and support.
In the distance, the percussive shot of a rifle sounded like a giant stick of firewood cracking.
I jumped out of my chair, listening. It was a sound wired into a game rangers psyche. Then came a burst crack-crack-crack. Flocks of squawking birds scrambled, silhouetted in the crimson sunset.
Poachers. On the west boundary.
David, my ranger, was already sprinting for the trusty old Land Rover. I grabbed a shotgun and followed, leaping into the drivers seat. Max, my brindle Staffordshire bull terrier, scrambled onto the seat between us. With all the excitement buzzing he was not going to be left behind.
As I twisted the ignition key and floored the accelerator, David grabbed the two-way radio.
Ndonga! he bellowed. Ndonga, are you receiving? Over!
Ndonga was the head of my Ovambo guards and a good man to have on your side in a gunfight, having served in the military. I would have felt better knowing him and his team were on their way but only static greeted Davids attempts to contact him. We powered on alone.
Poachers had been the scourge of our lives since my fiance Franoise and I bought Thula Thula, a magnificent game reserve in central Zululand. They had been targeting us for almost a year now. I couldnt work out who theywere or where they were coming from. I had talked often with the izinduna headmen of the surrounding rural Zulu tribes and they were adamant that their people were not involved. I believed them. Our employees were mainly local and exceptionally loyal. These thugs had to be from somewhere else.
Twilight was darkening fast and I slowed as we approached the western fence and killed the headlights. Pulling over behind a large anthill, David was first out as we eased through a cluster of acacia trees, nerves on edge, trigger fingers tense, watching and listening. Tightly choked pump-action scatterguns with heavy pellets were our weapons of choice against poachers, for in the dark, in the bush, things are about as close and personal as you can get. As any game ranger in Africa knows, professional poachers will shoot first and shoot to kill.
The fence was just fifty yards away. Poachers like to keep their escape route open and I made a circling motion with my arm to David. He nodded, knowing exactly what I meant. He would keep watch while I crawled to the fence to cut off the retreat if a firefight erupted.
An acrid whiff of cordite spiced the evening air. It hung like a shroud in the silence. In Africa the bush is never willingly mute; the cicadas never cease. Except after gunshots.
After a few minutes of absolute stillness, I knew we had been set up. I switched on my halogen torch, sweeping its beam up and down the fence. There were no gaps revealing where a poacher could have cut his way in. David flicked on his torch as well, searching for tracks or blood spoor indicating if an animal had been killed and dragged off.
Nothing. Just an eerie silence.
With no tracks inside the reserve I realized the shots must have been fired from just outside the fence.
Damn, its a decoy.
As I said that, we heard more shots muffled but distinctive crumps on the far side of the reserve, at least forty-five minutes drive on dirt tracks that often are little more than quagmires in the spring rains.
We jumped back into the Land Rover and sped off, but I knew it was hopeless. We had been taken for suckers. We would never catch them. They would be off the reserve with a couple of slain nyala one of Africas most beautiful antelopes before we got near.
I cursed my foolhardiness. If I had only sent some rangers to the far side instead of charging off blindly, we could have caught them red-handed.
But this proved one thing. I now knew for certain the izindunas who had been claiming my problems were internal someone operating within the reserve were spot on. This was not the local communitys work. It was not a few hungry tribesmen and scrawny dogs hunting for the pot. This was a well-organized criminal operation led by someone who followed our every move. How else could they have timed everything so perfectly?
It was pitch-dark when we arrived at the eastern perimeter of the reserve and we traced the scene with our torches. The tracks told the story. Two nyala had been taken with high-velocity hunting rifles. We could see the flattened bloodstained grass from where their carcasses were dragged to a hole in the fence, which had been crudely hacked with bolt cutters. About ten yards outside the fence were the studded muddy tracks of a 4x4 bush vehicle that by now would be several miles away. The animals would be sold to local butchers who would use them for biltong, a dried meat jerky that is much prized throughout Africa.
The light of my torch picked up a bloody tuft of charcoal-grey fur fluttering on the cut fence wire. At least one of the dead bucks was a male the female nyala is light brown with thin white stripes on her back.
I shivered, feeling old and weary. Thula Thula had been a hunting ranch before I had bought it and I had vowed that would end. No animal would be needlessly killed again on my watch. I didnt realize how difficult that vow would be to keep.
Despondently we drove back to the lodge. Franoise greeted us with mugs of dark, rich coffee. Just what I needed.
I glanced at her and smiled my thanks. Tall, graceful and very French, she was just as beautiful as the day I had first met her catching a taxi on a freezing London morning twelve years ago.
What happened? she asked.
A set-up. There were two groups. One fired some shots on the far boundary, then watched our Land Rover lights. As soon as we got there, the others bagged two buck on the eastern side.
I took a gulp of coffee and sat down. These guys are organized; someones going to get killed if were not careful.
Franoise nodded. Three days ago the poachers had been so close it felt as if their bullets were whistling a fraction above our heads.
Better report it to the cops tomorrow, she said.
I didnt reply. To expect the police to pay much attention to two murdered antelope was pushing it a little.
Ndonga was furious the next morning when I told him that more animals had been shot. He admonished me for not calling him. I said we had tried but failed to get a response.
Oh sorry, Mr Anthony. I went out for a few drinks last night. Not feeling too good today, he said, grinning sheepishly.
