45

Connor sensed the danger too. He felt eyes upon them. Watchful and waiting. Drawing his father’s knife, he scanned the thick undergrowth but saw nothing. Zuzu was as still as a startled deer, using all her senses to pinpoint the threat. Amber held her brother close, fearful of what new peril they faced.

A whisper of movement in the bush caused them to turn. From behind a tree emerged the Wolf.

The hunter had his bolt-action rifle shouldered and aimed at them.

“Are you lost, children?” he said quietly. “You’re a long way from the lodge and heading in the wrong direction.”

Connor felt deeply uneasy at the hunter’s tone. He gripped his knife tighter, sensing he might have need of it. “No, we have a guide, thank you,” he replied.

“That I see.” The Wolf glanced at Zuzu, and then his pale eyes flicked to Amber and Henri. “I thought you said your brother was dead.”

“We rescued him,” replied Amber curtly.

“Ah! Like I rescued you,” said the Wolf, a pencil-thin smile on his lips. “And how did you repay me?” His expression hardened, the smile vanishing. “By sticking your nose into my business and injuring one of my men.”

He swung the barrel of his rifle, aiming at Amber.

“You do realize there’s a full-on battle raging up in that valley?” said Connor, hoping to divert his attention from her.

The Wolf nodded. “Your concern for my well-being is touching,” he replied in a sarcastic tone. “But I have little problem avoiding the government troops, and Abel is smuggling the ivory out as we speak. You need to be more concerned about your future.”

The Wolf kept his weapon trained on Amber.

“What are you going to do then? Shoot us all?” she challenged, her patience wearing thin.

A snarl of a grin spread across the Wolf’s bearded face. “When a hunter has his prey in his sights, there’s only one thing to do.”

He curled his finger around the trigger. “Which of you wants to join my collection first?”

Connor instinctively stepped in front of Amber, shielding her with his body.

“Ahh! We have a volunteer,” said the Wolf, closing one eye and lining up his sights.

Connor judged the distance too great for him to tackle the hunter before the gun went off. But he thought he might be able to distract or even injure the man by throwing his father’s knife.

As he went to sling the blade, a dark shadow dropped silently from the bough above them.

The leopard landed full on the shoulders of the Wolf, knocking him to the ground. The rifle went off, tearing a hole in a nearby tree trunk. But the ambushing leopard wasn’t frightened off by the blast. Instead the creature gave a ferocious growl and sank its fangs into the hunter’s neck. The Wolf let out a strangled scream. He tried to fight off the beast, but the animal was too powerful for him.

As the leopard slowly suffocated the hunter, its green eyes glared at Connor and the others, daring them to approach. Connor, knife in hand, considered attempting a rescue but the leopard, pinning its victim beneath its razor claws, hissed a warning at his first tentative step. Then the animal bit down hard again and the Wolf fell still. As Connor cautiously backed away, the leopard dragged the limp, lifeless body of the hunter up into the tree.