hotel he had acted in a similar way: speedy withdrawal after rejection. It pointed to immaturity. Or was it the opposite – the actions of a driven, independent man, not one to dwell on setbacks, who just got on with his life?
Her determination not to be just another name on Chad Lindsay’s lengthy list of conquests was behind her refusal. It had taken guts. The easy thing would have been to surrender. But had she done so, how would she have felt about herself in the morning? Equally important, how would Chad have felt about her?
She now had real problems. Anna Grobler’s warning about Chad’s sexual code had proved absolutely correct. What had Kerry let herself in for? Had she just had a foretaste of what was to come?
Alone with him in the wilds of Africa, would she be forced to defend her honour night after night?
FOUR
The vulture dropped out of the clear sky. Effortlessly, in ever narrowing circles, it glided down to land first time on the long-dead tree.
Kerry lowered the binoculars and rubbed her eyes with thumb and forefinger. It was mid-morning but already perspiration ran freely in little beads down her brow and into her eyes, causing problems when she used the field-glasses.
“Dead tree’s full of vultures. What do you make of it?”
From the driver’s seat, Chad Lindsay reached a sun-bronzed arm across for the Zeiss 10x50s. For a full minute he silently studied the distant scene.
“Marabous and kites there too,” he said, his voice taking on an excited edge. “Chances are it’s a lion kill. And, with the birds staying in the trees, I’d say the lions are still there.”
Kerry’s heartbeat quickened. Few people visited Africa’s game parks without wishing to see lions – and she was no exception. For her, they would be an adequate substitute for the leopard they had so far failed to spot. Chad’s glance caught her clasping her hands together, her excitement apparent.
“Don’t count your chickens,” he warned. “There’s little chance of our seeing them.”
Kerry felt a surge of disappointment. “How come?”
“The tree’s a good half-mile from the road. Park regulations forbid visitors to leave their cars.”
“But . . .” Kerry cut short her protest. She needed to think. Compared to parks in East Africa – the ones seen so often on TV – this one differed in having more trees. The animals were there, but the cover made them more difficult to observe. They might not get another chance to see lions. She wasn’t going to give up without a fight.
“Can’t we find a road that passes closer to the dead tree?” she suggested.
Chad had already unfolded his park map. He rested it against the steering-wheel and studied it closely. His voice brightened.
“We passed one shortly before we spotted the vultures.”
“Well, let’s take a look.”
The Fiat raised a cloud of dust when Chad swung it about on the dirt road. In no time they found the turn-off. Chad brought the car to a stop. He groaned and muttered a curse.
The sign was small and half hidden in the tall yellow grass.
NO ENTRY
ROAD CLOSED
“Why?” Kerry cried out in exasperation. “The one road in the whole damn park we want to take.”
“Flood or rockslide damage, I expect.” Chad followed the closed road with his eyes. Kerry had already noticed that it swung in the direction they wanted.
Chad came to a decision. “No harm in going in for a quick look,” he announced boldly. “If we don’t, we’ll always wonder what brought the vultures down.”
Kerry felt like cheering. “We’ll go as close as possible to the dead tree, check the area with the binoculars and then leave.”
While Chad concentrated on following the best line over the rutted road surface, Kerry craned her head searching through the screen of Mopani bush for their objective, the dead tree. It was lost from sight now but she knew from the sun’s position that their direction was right.
Today was the third day
Her determination not to be just another name on Chad Lindsay’s lengthy list of conquests was behind her refusal. It had taken guts. The easy thing would have been to surrender. But had she done so, how would she have felt about herself in the morning? Equally important, how would Chad have felt about her?
She now had real problems. Anna Grobler’s warning about Chad’s sexual code had proved absolutely correct. What had Kerry let herself in for? Had she just had a foretaste of what was to come?
Alone with him in the wilds of Africa, would she be forced to defend her honour night after night?
FOUR
The vulture dropped out of the clear sky. Effortlessly, in ever narrowing circles, it glided down to land first time on the long-dead tree.
Kerry lowered the binoculars and rubbed her eyes with thumb and forefinger. It was mid-morning but already perspiration ran freely in little beads down her brow and into her eyes, causing problems when she used the field-glasses.
“Dead tree’s full of vultures. What do you make of it?”
From the driver’s seat, Chad Lindsay reached a sun-bronzed arm across for the Zeiss 10x50s. For a full minute he silently studied the distant scene.
“Marabous and kites there too,” he said, his voice taking on an excited edge. “Chances are it’s a lion kill. And, with the birds staying in the trees, I’d say the lions are still there.”
Kerry’s heartbeat quickened. Few people visited Africa’s game parks without wishing to see lions – and she was no exception. For her, they would be an adequate substitute for the leopard they had so far failed to spot. Chad’s glance caught her clasping her hands together, her excitement apparent.
“Don’t count your chickens,” he warned. “There’s little chance of our seeing them.”
Kerry felt a surge of disappointment. “How come?”
“The tree’s a good half-mile from the road. Park regulations forbid visitors to leave their cars.”
“But . . .” Kerry cut short her protest. She needed to think. Compared to parks in East Africa – the ones seen so often on TV – this one differed in having more trees. The animals were there, but the cover made them more difficult to observe. They might not get another chance to see lions. She wasn’t going to give up without a fight.
“Can’t we find a road that passes closer to the dead tree?” she suggested.
Chad had already unfolded his park map. He rested it against the steering-wheel and studied it closely. His voice brightened.
“We passed one shortly before we spotted the vultures.”
“Well, let’s take a look.”
The Fiat raised a cloud of dust when Chad swung it about on the dirt road. In no time they found the turn-off. Chad brought the car to a stop. He groaned and muttered a curse.
The sign was small and half hidden in the tall yellow grass.
NO ENTRY
ROAD CLOSED
“Why?” Kerry cried out in exasperation. “The one road in the whole damn park we want to take.”
“Flood or rockslide damage, I expect.” Chad followed the closed road with his eyes. Kerry had already noticed that it swung in the direction they wanted.
Chad came to a decision. “No harm in going in for a quick look,” he announced boldly. “If we don’t, we’ll always wonder what brought the vultures down.”
Kerry felt like cheering. “We’ll go as close as possible to the dead tree, check the area with the binoculars and then leave.”
While Chad concentrated on following the best line over the rutted road surface, Kerry craned her head searching through the screen of Mopani bush for their objective, the dead tree. It was lost from sight now but she knew from the sun’s position that their direction was right.
Today was the third day
Similar Books
