Hunted (8 page)

Then she flicked her trunk at them and walked away, her youngsters trotting behind her.

Patrick spoke in a low voice as he put the Jeep in gear. 'That's Boudicca. She's been on the reserve for forty years. She just likes to warn us away from her family.'

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6
TEAK LODGE

A man came down the steps, his hands tucked into the pockets of his dusty jeans. From the way he walked purposefully towards them, smiling in welcome, they guessed he must be Joe Chandler. He was older than any of Alpha Force had expected, well into his fifties, with a liberal sprinkling of grey through his thick head of hair. But he still had a powerful frame and moved with assurance, like an old cowboy.

Patrick halted the Jeep and cut the engine as Joe enthusiastically shook everyone's hand and introductions were made. 'Welcome to Teak Lodge,' he said. 'Make yourselves at home. Let me help with your luggage.'

Teak Lodge was a long, low wooden building lying along the crest of a hill. A veranda ran along its whole length, and two white pillars marked the entrance. The ground sloped gently away into a valley, mottled with grasses that varied in colour from grey-green to golden. Further away, clusters of animals moved slowly across the plains - the substantial dark blobs of buffalo, the stripy confusion of a herd of zebra.

'Say,' said Amber as she dragged her suitcase out of the back of the Jeep, 'you've got more visitors.'

A pair of giraffes stalked towards the far end of the building, their necks rocking gently with each leisurely stride.

'They come here all the time,' said Patrick.

Hex was amazed. The combination of wild animals and the smart, modern-looking house made his head spin. 'Don't you mind giraffes wandering around the garden?' he said.

'There isn't a garden,' said Joe, 'and the animals don't understand boundaries. We have the checkpoints but they're to keep
people
in and out. The animals go where they want. Speaking of which, I'll show you to your rooms. Tessa's resting but she'll be down later.'

Li was also fascinated by the giraffes. 'They're so weirdly built but so graceful,' she said. 'Look at the way they move.' The animals continued their sedate promenade and went round the corner of the building.

'They're like aliens,' said Hex. 'They look like they're in low gravity.'

Amber dug him in the ribs. 'Poor Hex. Didn't you pack Safari Simulator for Nerds?'

Amber and Li were given a room together in the upstairs extension. As they were unpacking there was a knock at the door, then Alex popped his head round. 'Anyone coming for a swim? We can christen the new pool.'

'Wow, definitely!' Amber's face lit up. 'It'll do my ankle good. I must start using it now that it's more or less healed.'

Li looked sceptical. 'But isn't it starting to rain?'

'What, worried you'll get wet?' teased Alex.

'Anyway, swimming in the rain's fantastic,' said Amber.

'OK, we'll be down in five,' said Li.

Alex left them to get changed.

Li and Amber wasted no time in digging out swimwear. As they stripped off, Li noticed something silhouetted against the window.

She giggled. 'Amber, we've got a peeping torn - look.' She was looking behind Amber, out of the window.

Amber turned and saw a giraffe's head, silhouetted in three-quarter profile against the sky. The tips of its horns almost reached the top of the window. 'My God, how tall are those things?' She giggled as she shook out her dark red bikini bottoms. 'I hope it's female.'

The giraffe swayed out of view. Li stepped into her blue tie-dyed costume as Amber put on her bikini briefs and rummaged in her case for the top half.

'It's back - look!' squealed Li.

Amber looked round. The giraffe head glided back past the window again.

'It must like that bikini,' said Li.

Amber wriggled into her bikini top - a tight-fitting vest with crossover straps. Halfway, she got stuck. 'Li, can you give me a hand with this? It seems to have been designed for a contortionist.'

Li pulled up the straps of her swimsuit and went to help Amber.

The giraffe returned a third time, its head floating into view serenely. A voice boomed, 'Say cheese!' There was a flash like a camera going off. The giraffe capsized out of view like a tree falling.

Li and Amber shrieked and ran to the window. Hex and Paulo were below, staggering under a tall pole like a broom handle. On the end of it, they saw now, was a wooden cut-out head of a giraffe. Lashed to the pole was a length of plastic tube that ended just below the neck of the giraffe. The two boys were convulsed with laughter, which rather interfered with their efforts to make a clean getaway.

'I see you, Hex,' yelled Amber. 'You boys are so dead.'

Paulo gave up dismantling the creature and put his mouth to the plastic tube. His voice boomed out of the other end: 'Remember, girls, to keep your curtains closed in future.'

'Have you taken a picture of us?' shouted Li.

Paulo took his mouth away from the tube. 'Who knows?' He gave them his most enigmatic smile. 'Hex rigged that up.'

'Right,' said Li. 'This means war. At the swimming pool.' She ducked back into the room, snatched up a towel, crossed to the door, and was out in the corridor in a flash.

'Ow,' said Amber, hobbling after her. 'I can't run.'

Amber went slowly down the stairs, using the banisters as a crutch. But when she got to the bottom, Li was already outside, pursuing the boys into the pool. Amber heard big splashes and shrieks of delight. She cursed her ankle yet again. 'When I'm better,' she muttered, 'there'll be no stopping me.'

Someone was coming in from the pool, a slight figure lurching on a walking stick. She was visible only in silhouette, the pool an inviting bright rectangle of turquoise behind her. One of the girl's legs was slim, the other was enormous - twice the size. She walked painfully and slowly towards Amber.

'You must be the elusive Amber. I'm Tessa.' She held out her hand. 'It's irritating, this rain, isn't it? Now I've got to sit indoors because of my bandage; I'm not supposed to get it wet.'

Amber looked down and saw that the thicker leg was heavily bandaged, all the way down to the toes. Above the dressings it looked swollen, and yellowed with bruising. Amber shook Tessa's hand. 'I heard all about you from the others,' she said. 'That was some gruesome accident.'

'And I hear that you're lame too,' said Tessa, looking down at Amber's ankle. It looked almost back to normal, but Amber was still favouring it. Tessa let out a sigh and tucked a blonde curl behind her ear. 'Frustrating, isn't it?'

'Absolutely,' agreed Amber. 'I had to sit out the whole race. I didn't know what to do with myself.'

'All I can do is sit,' said Tessa, her face screwed up. 'I've never sat still in my life. The last few years, I've been training the whole time. Whatever the weather, I train. Now I have to stay in if there's a drop of rain.' She paused. 'Sorry, that was a bit of a rant. You were on your way to swim. You don't want to listen to me.'

'Believe me, I know how you feel.' Amber laughed good naturedly. Tessa's frustration brought back her own all too clearly. 'I did sit-ups and press-ups while the others were racing.'

Tessa's face broke out in a big smile. 'Oh, it's so long since I had a good conversation about working out. I want to hear all about what you guys do to train. I've got withdrawal symptoms.' Her expression suddenly changed. She was tanned but her skin was pale and clammy. She looked as though she might pass out.

Amber caught her arm. 'Are you OK?'

Tessa nodded and tried to pull away, but another wave of giddiness came over her. 'I think I just need to lie down,' she said. She spoke through clamped teeth as though she was fighting the urge to be sick.

'Can I do anything?' said Amber. 'Should I get your father or call a doctor?'

Tessa shook her head. 'It's the antibiotics. You should see how many I'm taking - enough for an elephant.'

'At least let me see you to your room,' said Amber.

'Oh, I'll be OK in the lounge,' said Tessa. 'Besides, I've got to put that away before my dad sees it.' She nodded towards the reception area. Lying along the counter was a long pole with a giraffe's head attached to it.

Amber went over and picked it up. It had originally been painted with a lifelike portrait of a giraffe, but the paint was peeling and old. It was funny to think how convincing it had looked in silhouette. Amber turned it over and had a quick look for signs of the promised camera, but of course there was nothing.

'It's hideous, isn't it?' said Tessa. 'I used to have it in my room when I was little. It was the old sign in the bar - it used to be called the Rubbernecks Bar when we first came here. There's a load of old stuff lying around that belonged to the previous owners. Some of it was really gross - like leopard skins and stuffed heads. In those days people used to come here to actually shoot animals.'

Amber put the sign back down on the counter. 'The boys had this earlier. How on earth did they get hold of it?'

Tessa grinned. 'I left it propped up outside their room as a giggle. It was in the window. I listened outside the door. It took them a good few minutes to work out it wasn't a real giraffe standing there - they were so funny.'

Amber smiled to herself. Outside, she could hear shrieks and shouts as Li dispensed wet justice to the boys. She picked up the sign again. 'Where do you want this?'