5.
Jane Clayton learned to
ride ever since she was ten in years of age. She had followed her father to the
continent soon after her mother’s death. They were three of them; her father,
Jane and the last was the younger sister by two years, Meriam Porter. Unlike
Jane, Meriam grew up very much like the mother; elegant and caring with her
time on the school teaching young kids. She stayed most times at Nairobi while
Jane then twelve, travelled with the father on his expeditions. Jane was the
typecast of the father; adventurous but unlike her father, she had her mother’s
beauty. She learned to shoot at the age of thirteen with the Winchester 70
rifle, almost breaking her right shoulder from the recoil. She shot her first
prey; the baboon who was taunting her then with the red rear. She shot her
first lion at nineteen and then fell in love with the hunter who assisted her
in the kill with the second shot. She was caught by her sister when she was
having her chesty kissed at the barn and stopped her sister from telling with
curses and promises that even King Solomon will not dare to offer. Sadly, Eric
the hunter died in a mishap during an expedition. Jane was devastated with the
loss of her love but was glad that he took her virginity to his after-life. She
had no lovers since then, but she had many admirers that came a calling to the
house. It was then the Professor had to decide for her; to leave her there and
marry one of those fools or take her more often to the jungle risking her life
or end up as a Chieftain wife.
Jane did not become a
Chieftain wife but ended up as the Mamie of the Waziri Clan at the age of
thirty-one. Since then, she had learned how to swing on the vines, swam with
the crocodiles, boating with the hippos and wrestle with the nearest imitation
to an ape.
“Meriam, is it a wise
choice to leave for the interior?” The man held the school teacher’s right hand
while they sat by the river banks where the flow was to the sea. The Nairobi
River which flows by there serene compared to the busy rail depot that was the
centre of focus of the dwellers there. The township founded by the British East
Africa grew to a sizable town replacing Machakos as the capital of Kenya
recently.
“Yes, I must go. My
father is dead.” Meriam got the news from the British East Africa two weeks
back and it devastated her. She knew that the moment will come when that letter
will come but her concern then was her sister, Jane Porter. She regretted
sending the mail to Jane stating the obvious; Sheena was the killer. She knew
it was a mistake soon after. Jane was unlike her; the sister of her’ may take
drastic actions.
“Benjamin William
Buchanan, we have to postpone our marriage. I have to bring Jane back here to
…. see our wedding. She is all I got.” Benjamin William ‘Billy’ Buchanan
nodded. He was tall tough man like his uncle John Buchanan. He had arrived at
Nairobi looking for his uncle but ended up staying there for two years courting
the older teacher. He was three years younger than her but she was too hard to
resist.
“Meriam, let me come with
you. I have an uncle there, Buchanan. He might know your sister too.” Young
Buchanan placed forward his request. “I can shoot.”
Shooting was his better
qualities; he claimed that in the States, most men wore guns, and they could
draw very fast. He was no exceptional, himself with the double holsters that he
could draw on the pair of Colts. He had a few notches marked there on his skill
and the last one caused him to leave town in a hurry. You don’t shoot the
cattle baron’s son and live to tell the tale. His mother sent him off to London
but he took the wrong ship and ended up in Nairobi.
“I guess you better do
so. If not, I know Sue Ann is begging for you to get her pants wet.”
“Meriam Lynn Porter, how
could you say such thing? You are a school teacher and …”
“And who cares when I got
mine wet. All I needed then was repeated lessons to be taught onto me.” Meriam
Porter laughed. “After all it was you who taught me that.”
“Yes, teacher. I am your
best student.” The young lovers sealed their evening event with a loving kiss.
That was a week ago and travelling by the airship was faster than a coal
steamer.
It was not the same for
Jane Porter. She had to rid of the hyena urine that reeked on her body. She had
dunked herself beneath the small waterfall in the pond of water just before
dusk, stripped of her clothes and letting the waves of water drenched out the
smell. She stood there with her arms scrubbing her hair clean and then to
cradle her face. She was soon sobbing into the hands with her tears flowing
with the water. She was in pain then.
“Father….” Jane Maureen
Porter after so many days of silence on her father’s fatality have then
released it under the cascading water. She was always the tough lady with scant
display of her sad emotions to anyone and including John. She was not one to
scream when the wood splinter was removed from her soles or the fall from the
horse on her rump. She had not cried for sometime since the ‘tall men’ took her
baby. She felt the loss then and cried on John’s shoulder. He was ever caring
and gave her the best attention with the doctors at London before they moved
back the jungle. She wanted to go back then, for in her own estate with the Waziri,
she was once more the Mamie. She did not have the stares and back gossip on her
loss; she was the Mamie of the Waziri.
John gave her time to
recover but she wanted their child. It was forceful on her side but she did not
feel the love in it. She felt vengeance instead of relief. Then the letter
came. It tore her apart but she held it back from John. He was hurt by their
loss and she did not want him to feel anymore. It was her decision. And it was
also her decision to hunt and kill Sheena.
Sheena was known to her
by reputation. They never met but she knew John had met here. If she was … Jane
shook that thought from her mind. John was her’ and only her’.
There is only John and
Jane Clayton.
Africa is a huge
continent but not all shared that thought.
Hans Pieter stood there
at the same veranda to wave his associates a safe journey. He did a noticed
that the German was not in the departure party. He looked back and saw the last
guest was approaching him.
“Doctor Schmidt, you will
miss the train.” Hans looked to the man who was taking his way to the doorway.
He looked back and saw the others were already on the road.
“Are they gone?” Doctor
Schmidt looked at the dust setting on the road in front of him. He shrugged his
shoulders and then motioned to the staff to serve more ice tea. He then took
his seat there and waited for his host.
“If you are a lady, I
would be more pleased but you are a man. That made the difference which my
preference also gets turn off.”
“Hans, I am not keen on
your sexual preference. I am here on an issue which relates to the Lady Sheena.
She is a panache to our development here. She had terminated or assumed with
conviction, the last expedition.” Hans heard of the fifteen English mercenaries
that was in the jungle monitored by the Queen. The last contacts spoke of the
expedition having rescued another Englishman who professed to be a Professor.
The assumed Professor was injured but was able to move. The next call a few
hours later was of the need for assistance. It ended with the words; ‘the Queen
is here’. The expedition had not communicated since then.
“I detest them. All of
them. I know they are our partners but they are defeatist.” Doctor Schmidt
sighed. “I am however not willing to accede to defeat.”
“I hear you, Doctor. I will
direct the other two expeditions to convene a search.”
“No search. I want a hunt
which is why we are in Africa. I want them to hunt the Queen. I am flying in on
the airship to the location. Get them to meet there. And give me a new
expedition team. I want Ahmad Bedouin the Tracker. He will be my aide there. I
want my safari to be done with satisfaction. Only the best to follow me.”
6.
Sheena climbed down the
tree and made her way to the nearby stream at the break of dawn. There she
stood knee deep in the cold water and looked at the grazing herds. They were
growing in numbers ever since she chased away the hunters. The only hunters
were the natural preys and the local warriors. They only kill for food and not
for trophies. She looked to the direction where the smoke was last seen. It was
not there anymore. She was tempted to explore but it was near or after the
boundary set by her. She then shed the leopard skin and immersed into the
water. With her seated down, the water reached just below her bosom, but she
felt the relieved in her body. It was a ritual she learned from her caretaker.
“Child, its cleaner this
way. Your release will feed the other animals as they will feed on you when you
die. It’s the way of the jungle. Nothing is wasted.”
Later Sheena took to her
trail away from the boundary. She was headed for her village nearby. She heard
the call for her from the rear. It was a local warrior from one of the villages
inside the boundary.
“Sheena, Queen of the
Jungle. We sought your help for our village. The mercenaries came there and
killed most of our elders.” The warrior from the village told Sheena. “We can’t
fight them alone. They carry this sign.”
It was the black, white
and red striped that was the German Empire flag.
Later Sheena saw the
village carnage when she reached the perimeter. She saw the three huts that was
burnt to the ground. She saw the heap of burnt bodies and the wailing family
members. She knew some of them by name. Then she saw the dead mercenary.
The dead mercenary was a
white man.
“Another one.” Sheena
spat the phlegm from her mouth. “How many must I kill before they stop coming?”
“Not enough, Queen.” The
warrior who walked up to her was one of the local. He was named Mutale. He was
one of their Chieftains. He was an elder. He was tall and dark in his
complexion, dressed in the lion wrapped around his hips with the tribal oblong
shield and spear which was half in length by the iron blade. On the spear was
the tail end mane of the lion.
“You are one and they are
…. Fewer by the numbers you have killed but they have many to replace those who
died.” Mutale spoke the honest words to the Queen. “We have to stop the flow of
the river at its source.”
“Well said, Chief.”
Sheena crouched down to look at the dead mercenary and saw the wound. “How did
he die?”
“He returned soon after
they left. The villagers were recovering when we returned. It was a poor hunt
for us and he provided us the last kill.” Mutale displayed the spear end which
he had used to stab the mercenary. “He died like a hyena; he made us all
laughed.”
“The hyena hunts in a
pack.” Sheena reminded the Chieftain. “We need to …. evacuate.”
“I think that is …
already work on. I have send the children and women to Italu Village.” Mutale
replied. “I have stayed back to fight the hyenas. I am asking if you will do
so.”
“Like the last ones I
assisted, I may have to do it again.” Sheena recalled the last battle. She had
fought them to the last one and then discovered the wounded one. He was not of
their group. He was elderly and was wounded by a wild bull. The gore wound was
fatal. She left him for the predators. It was the law of the jungle.
She sent him to his
death. She did ask for his name and later sent a message to the family with a
parting gift; the ring he wore on his finger. She was not sure why she did it
but she felt better soon after.
“They are here.” Sheena
heard the warning. “They are a strength of twelve.
”
The last group was also
twelve excluding the old man with the wound.
“Chief, I will need a
shield and spear.” Sheena made the request.
“You will be given them,
and one warrior to fight with you.” Mutale made the offer. “The Queen shall not
fight alone.”
“The Queen will fight then
with the brave warriors.”
So was the other one
named Mamie Porter. She sat on the high branch and looked to the east. She was
looking at the airship above her. It had the emblem of the African Free States
on the side. She had travelled these before but of late then the journeys were
with painful memories. She saw the lone young panther below her on the ground. It
must had just learned to hunt alone. Jane had climbed without her rifles but
kept the Webley and dagger. She had fashioned a short spear with the jagged
stone for the end.
She needed stealth.
Jane dropped onto the
panther with the spear in both hands. She plunged the spear into the panther rear
of the head between the shoulder blades before she was thrown off the wounded
predator. She crouched up to see the panther had charged at her with the spear
in the back. It was said to kill and never injured the predator for their fury
was worse then.
Jane rolled to the left
and drew her Webley with her left hand. She had no intention to fire it but
used it to block the panther next move. The predator had turned and leaped at
her with its jaws opened to snap the lady in the neck. She thrust the Webley
into the panther’s jaws, while the dagger in her right hand plunged into the
soft flesh below the jaws. She felt the Webley had blocked the crunching jaws
but the front paws of the predator had torn into her shoulders. She held onto
her pain and pulled the dagger out before she turned her body to move her right
hand onto the predator’s neck. The dagger went in deep there and the predator
backed away.
Jane was bleeding from
both her shoulders. She was in intense pain but the Webley was jammed in the
panther’s jaws. It was trying to free it and the lady roared her battle cry to
rush at the wounded predator. The panther reacted but by then Jane had jumped
onto it back and to plunge the spear further into the panther’s neck. The
panther roared but by then Jane had retrieved the dagger to pushed it in right
eye into the soft brain tissue. She ignored the writhing predator trying to
throw her off. The predator broke free and then rushed to the side with the
dagger embedded inside its eye. It was in pain and was dying.
The panther then dropped
dead.
So was Jane but with
wounds on the shoulders and arms, she was all bloodied on her body. She walked
up to the dead panther and retrieved her Webley. She then picked up the other
guns and walked on towards the village nearby. She was in need of help.
And she knew with their
help, they will find Sheena for her.
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