Fever (31 page)

A smile tugged at the corners of Zak’s mouth. “Yes, ma’am.”

*

Zak opened her eyes and squinted in the dull morning light filtering through the sides of the woven enclosure. She tried to move, but her spine felt fused and her midsection ached with every breath. A lion. The confrontation flashed through her mind but not much after that, beyond an occasional glimpse of Sara standing nearby offering water and soft words of encouragement. She raised her head to look around and a dull ache throbbed behind her eyes. “Jesus.”

Sara was immediately at her side. “Zak, lie still. You shouldn’t move so quickly.”

“How long have I been out?”

“Two days, more or less.”

“I have to get up.” She slowly rose and propped herself up on her elbows.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“Things to do. Get Ben.”

“I’m here.” Ben stepped inside the tent, followed by Imani. “You should rest, Ebony.”

“It’s been too long. The trail may already be covered. We have to find out if the lion was purposely led to our campsite.”

“You’re the most stubborn, single-minded woman I’ve ever known,” Sara said. “In case your memory has been affected, you’re injured and shouldn’t go anywhere for a few more days. Tell her, Imani.”

Placing a hand on Zak’s chest, Imani eased her back down on the makeshift bed. “Let me look at you.” She checked her pupils, vision, and reflexes, then helped her sit up. “Do you feel sick? How bad is your headache?”

“No, I don’t feel sick and the headache is bearable. My sides hurt like a bitch but I can move. Please, I need to go back out there. It’s important.”

Sara moved closer and stroked the side of her face with a lingering touch. “Nothing is more important than your life. Please don’t do this.”

Imani gave Sara a look of resignation that Zak recognized from years of experience and turned back to her. “If you can walk without head pain, I will not stop you. But you must promise only short treks, no day-long hunts.”

Sara turned away from them. “If the injuries don’t kill you, this country certainly will.” She walked out shaking her head.

“Sara, wait,” Zak called, but she closed the flap behind her. With Ben and Imani’s help, Zak rose from the bench and walked a few steps, the pain in her sides reminding her to move slowly. Her head ached mildly but the stabbing jolts of the past two days were absent. “I’ll be fine,” she said to Imani. Then she turned to Ben. “Can we leave now before it gets too hot?”

Imani said, “Sara has been at your side for days. She would not sleep or eat until she knew you would live. If you must do this thing, promise to use great care and come back soon. If you do not, Sara and I will come for you.”

“Agreed.” Zak stepped outside. Sara was by the river staring off into the desert like she might find a more agreeable solution there. She approached Sara and touched her arm. “Thank you for taking care of me.” They stood in silence for several minutes before Zak found the courage to speak again. “I have to do this, but I’ll be careful.”

Sara turned and looked at her, and the pain in her deep brown eyes was almost too much to bear. “I almost lost you, Zak. It made me realize that nothing else really matters. Your job, whatever it is, will never keep me from you, if you want me. I’ve made my decision. You need to make yours.”

“Sara, I—”

“Just go. Do whatever it is you have to, but get back here safely.”

Zak hugged Sara gingerly, inhaling the freshly washed fragrance of her hair and skin. Sara’s love, in spite of the uncertainty surrounding her profession, touched her deeply. She wanted to tell Sara how much it meant to her, how much she cared, but something stopped her. “Thank you.” She released her and walked toward Ben, who waited at the edge of the camp.

Soon she and Ben picked up the trail of the wounded lion. Bloody remnants of butchered game led them in a circuitous path from their site toward the reserve. A dark patch of earth beside a badly mangled guinea fowl marked the spot where the lion had been injured. His blood trail led back to the starting point just outside their barricade. It appeared as if someone had deliberately baited a track directly to them. Ben confirmed her suspicions.

“No animal hunts in a pattern and leaves its prey. Only man kills for no purpose.”

“There was a reason, Ben. Someone wanted to lead the lion to our camp. And they injured him to make sure he was angry when he found us.”

“Who would do such a thing?”

“Someone who wants to scare us off.”

By the time they reached the edge of the game reserve, Zak’s sides ached with each step. Heat waves bounced off the savannah like spear-toting warriors, and her stomach churned from the pain, temperature, and lack of food. She kept her head soaked with water so the pounding was minor, but she was ready to be horizontal again. They’d seen no signs of the injured lion so she suggested they head back to camp.

As they walked, Zak considered her suspects for this latest scare tactic. Wachira, as usual, topped the list. He’d even referred to it in his clandestine meeting with the minister of education. Their plot to reclaim the school property and build a new resort was certainly motivation enough. She had audio and photographic evidence of that scheme, and now was the time to put it to use. Even if her mother’s reports were accurate, all they showed was that Wachira wasn’t a cold-blooded killer. Her facts proved he was still a lying, corrupt cop who disgraced his uniform and his people.

Her hatred for Wachira still burned in her chest, but it had begun to seem more manageable. It no longer required a piece of her soul to be quenched. She didn’t have to abandon her values by killing him and try to justify it for the rest of her life. Making him pay for his crimes was a simple matter of presenting the evidence to the right person: President Kibaki. At the least, Wachira would be disgraced and kicked out of public service. The best-case scenario, he would be imprisoned for malfeasance. She took a deep breath that shot stabbing pains through her injured sides while simultaneously relieving a huge weight that had rested in her chest for years.

Her thoughts shifted to Sara and their conversation before she left camp. Sara had once again professed her love for Zak, exposed her heart, and let her walk away. And Zak had once again been a coward. She wanted to talk to her, to say out loud what she’d known for days—that she loved Sara. Instead, she’d chosen to track an injured lion rather than admit the feelings that could potentially change her life.

In the past several days with Sara, Zak had learned a very important fact about herself. She wanted to love and be loved by someone. Her job offered only limited satisfaction and no opportunity to share her frustrations or successes. Shutting down her feelings for the sake of work suddenly seemed too high a price to pay. And it had taken Sara to bring her to that realization. Sara’s willingness to be intimate and emotionally available had initially been a source of irritation, a constant reminder of what Zak had given up. As they spent more time together, Zak craved their connection and the revitalization of emotions buried under a façade of distance and bravado. She wanted Sara more than she’d ever wanted anything or anyone. But would she be able to let go of life as she knew it for love? The question tormented Zak, as did each step she took back to camp.

“Ebony, look.” Ben pointed to the circling vultures ahead of them.

As they got closer, Zak saw the carcass of the injured lion. His throat had been slit so he would bleed out and attract the scavengers more quickly. “Compliments of the most evolved species,” she muttered under her breath. Titus Wachira would pay for his crimes. It was time to put her plan into motion.

“Ben, if anything happens to me, promise you’ll deliver the items I gave you last night to the president. No one but him.”

“President Kibaki?”

“I know it’ll be hard to get to him, but you must do it. Trust no one else.”

Ben nodded. “I will do this. Now you rest. You do not look good.”

Zak was starting to feel weak and unstable. She could see the tents ahead and tried to walk faster but stumbled. Sara and Imani ran toward her, draping her arms around their shoulders and practically carrying her back to the improvised hospital bed in the mess tent. “You are too pale,” Imani said. “Bring water,” she instructed Sara.

Zak drank and poured the remainder over her head and face. “I have more to do.”

“No.” The volume and force of Sara’s tone drew everyone’s attention. “You are not going anywhere else, at least until you rest for a while.”

Ben and Imani voiced their agreement and Zak finally acquiesced. “I’ll rest for now.” Imani checked her stitches and replaced the dressings that were soiled from the leakage caused by so much activity. When Imani and Ben left, Zak took Sara’s hand and pulled her nearer the bed. “We need to talk, or I guess I need to talk. There are things I have to say to you.”

“It can wait.” Sara kissed her with a tenderness that promised more, and Zak drifted into restful sleep full of images of their future together.

The sun was setting when Zak opened her eyes again. Sara sat beside her reading a book, and Ben and Imani whispered outside as they prepared the evening meal. She started to get up and Sara rushed to her. Together they swung her legs off the side of the bed and Zak stood. She felt stronger than she had in days and hungry for the first time. She inhaled the aroma of meat and vegetables, and a loud growl sounded from her stomach.

As they stepped outside, Imani was filling bowls with stew. “You look much better. It is my excellent nursing skills. Come and eat.”

Zak said to Sara, “I forgot to tell you that Imani is not only a highly sought-after nurse in the district but a licensed teacher as well.”

“Impressive,” Sara replied. “And thank you for being here. I’m not sure what would have happened if you hadn’t come.”

“That’s behind us now.” Zak wanted to change the subject and erase the concern in Sara’s eyes. “Let’s talk about something more productive.”

They sat by the fire and discussed the next week and plans for continuing the school construction. Ben would be responsible for contacting Joey and the other men and informing them that the lion was no longer a threat. Imani would stay until the end of the week to make sure Zak’s injuries didn’t become infected, to administer antibiotics, and to periodically change the bandages. Sara was to revisit the Land Development Office and check on the status of her original permits.

“And I need to run an errand tonight.” Zak finished her second bowl of stew and started toward the truck. “I have to talk with Wachira.” The looks on the faces of her friends made it clear they didn’t think this was a good idea, tonight or any other time. Sara seemed to be the only one willing to voice her concerns.

“Can’t it wait until you’re feeling stronger, or at least until tomorrow?”

“I really want to get it over with. I’ve put it off for too long. He has questions to answer.”

Sara moved closer and lowered her voice. “Please, don’t do this. He’s not worth it.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t do anything stupid. I have too much to live for now.”

“At least let Ben go with you.” Sara kept trying for compromise.

“This is my fight. I need to do it alone.”

As Zak drove away, she regretted not having the talk with Sara that she had promised her. And she wondered if going after Wachira was even more dangerous than tracking the lion.

*

Titus Wachira’s men searched her, poking her bandages in a few strategic places, before they allowed her to enter his inner sanctum. He sat behind a huge mahogany desk inside the otherwise sparse police-headquarters building. The desk dwarfed the man and made him seem physically insignificant. A heavy odor of stale cigar smoke clung to the room and made Zak’s visit more unpleasant.

“Ah, Madame Chambers, come in and have a seat.” He dismissed his men for the evening and ordered his driver home, assuring them that she would be no threat to his safety. “I have long waited for this visit. You have read your FBI’s reports?”

Zak stood in front of Wachira’s desk, maintaining the advantage. “Yes.”

“And have you come to kill me still or to apologize?”

The thought of either filled Zak with revulsion. “Neither. I have come to end your campaign against the Ambrosini Foundation’s school. Release the property and allow the facility to be completed, for the children. Surely you won’t deny them a proper education.”

“Why do you think I can do this? I am a mere policeman, not a politician.”

“But you’re working with one, a very powerful one. And if you persist, I’ll have no choice but to expose your moneymaking alliance.”

“You know nothing which can hurt me.”

“I know you were responsible for Roger Kamau being sent to replace me. I know you paid someone to damage our water system, to plant a gun in Joey’s truck and have him and Sara Ambrosini arrested. I also know that someone under your orders lured a lion from the game reserve toward our camp with the intent of scaring us away from the land.”

“You have proof of these things?”

“I have your confession, in your own words. Is that good enough?” If a black man’s face could pale, Wachira blanched. His lips quivered slightly and perspiration popped out on his forehead. “Now I know you are bluffing. Leave my office.”