Chapter One
A single gunshot rang out, shattering the quiet tranquility of the remote African watering hole. The ground beneath the vehicle where Josslyn Benoit was standing began to shake violently when the small herd of elephants she and her team were observing stampeded back into the bush. Hundreds of birds rose up from the savanna, forming a dark cloud overhead, the frenzy of their wings nearly deafening.
Their sound wasn’t loud enough to drown out the second gunshot, however.
From her perch in an open-air Land Rover, concealed behind a grove of elephant grass and two towering river bush willow trees, Josslyn peered through her binoculars as a cow stumbled. Blood trickled down the female elephant’s chest. A third shot cracked through the air, hitting the wounded animal in the hind end. Josslyn grabbed hold of the seatback as the earth shook again when the elephant stumbled before finally falling to the sand. A young calf circled wildly behind the fatally wounded elephant, its anguished wails resonating throughout the bush.
“I thought you said there wasn’t any hunting permitted here?” Josslyn hissed at their guide.
“Them be poachers, miss.” He shrugged, clearly unfazed by the illegal actions of his countrymen.
“Poachers?” Trevor Kearn, the representative from Global Wildlife Conservation who was traveling with them, sounded almost giddy. “Hugh, keep that camera rolling. If we can get this on film, it will go a long way to strengthen our argument that legalized hunting has done absolutely nothing to stem the poaching trade here in Zimbabwe.”
The big Scottish cameraman grunted in exasperation. Still, he combat-crawled to the edge of the tall grass to get a better shot.
The pitiful cries of the baby elephant cut through the thick afternoon air like a machete, the sound making Josslyn’s stomach roll. As a scientist, she understood the circle of life. But that didn’t mean she had to like it. Or the role her fellow humans played in it.
A band of ragtag tribesmen emerged from the bush on the opposite side of the watering hole. Josslyn was relieved to see that only one of them was armed. He was carrying a high-powered military-grade rifle with a telescopic sight, perfect for shooting accurately over long distances. She abhorred poachers and hunters, but she despised guns and everything related to them more. Still, she reasoned with herself, in this situation, a single gun was preferable to the men poisoning the entire herd in order to steal the elephants’ tusks.
“They don’t look very friendly,” Alyssa whispered.
Josslyn was instantly regretting putting the biology grad student in harm’s way.
“They’re poor and they’re desperate to feed their families,” Josslyn explained quietly, not bothering to hide her disgust at the situation. “Their government is charging hunters exorbitant fees to come here to track big game, but none of that money ever reaches the hands of these tribesmen. That leaves poaching as their only option for survival.”
“I need a shot of them hacking out the ivory tusks with the machete,” Trevor whispered to Hugh. “The more gruesome it is, the better we can make our case that this has to be stopped.”
An Australian surfer turned animal rights’ activist, Trevor lived for these types of confrontations. At one point in her life, so had Josslyn. But as the shine wore off her relationship with Trevor, so too had her desire to constantly embarrass her family by doing something radical and dangerous.
One of the tribesmen withdrew a lethal-looking blade from his side. Alyssa sucked in a sharp breath next to Josslyn. The baby calf kept its distance from the poachers but continued its frantic pacing and wailing. Another of the tribesmen gestured at the calf. Josslyn’s heart began to beat faster. The locals poached the elephants as a last resort to feed their families. They wouldn’t kill for no reason. Especially a calf that had the potential to grow tusks in the future.
“Just take the damn tusks and leave the baby alone,” Josslyn muttered through her clenched jaw.
These particular men had other intentions, however. The one with the rifle aimed it at the despondent calf.
Alyssa gasped.
Trevor swore.
“No!” Josslyn shouted just as the gun discharged.
Five pairs of eyes turned their way, including those belonging to the man holding the gun.
“Now you’ve done it, lass,” Hugh exclaimed as he jumped back into the Land Rover.
Their guide was furiously trying to get the engine to turn over. Hugh pushed Alyssa down to the floor of the vehicle. Trevor was bouncing up and down still swearing at the men.
“You bastards,” he yelled. “We’ve got all that on film. We’re going to find out who’s behind this ring and when we do you’ll be hit with so many sanctions, you won’t be able to wipe your asses much less buy bullets to hunt a defenseless animal!”
“Get down, you two,” Hugh ordered, yanking Josslyn behind one of the padded seats.
The Land Rover jerked to life just as another shot from the rifle echoed over the water. Trevor continued to rail at the poachers before suddenly clutching his chest and sinking to his knees. A dark stain was already spreading across his T-shirt by the time Josslyn reached him.
“Trevor!” she shouted over the crunch of the tires and the rush of the wind.
The Australian grimaced at her touch. “The asshole shot me!”
“Well no surprise there,” Hugh muttered as he pulled the first aid kit from under the passenger seat. “You practically dared him to do it.”
“He killed that baby elephant for no reason!” Trevor let out a low moan when the Land Rover practically went airborne over a ridge in the unpaved road. “Listen, Hugh. Don’t let my death be in vain. Tell me you got images of what those brutes did?”
Hugh exchanged a look with Josslyn before rolling up a sweatshirt to put beneath Trevor’s head.
“You’re not going to die,” the Scotsman gruffly reassured him.
Josslyn tried to summon up the same amount of confidence as their cameraman. The fact was there were fifty miles of rough, unpaved road between them and competent medical help. A wave of guilt had her rocking back on her heels. If only she hadn’t yelled out like that, the poachers would have never known she and her team were watching, much less filming. Trevor would still be smiling the cocky smile that made smart women stupid.
Growing up, her father frequently warned her about keeping her emotions in check. Easy for him to say. He’d been a stoic surgeon. She, on the other hand, had a natural talent of not thinking before speaking. Making matters worse, lately there always seemed to be a hot microphone nearby when her tongue went rogue. Still, she never let her emotions get in the way of her staunch defense of the little guy. Even if in this case the little guy was a three-thousand-pound wild animal.
Alyssa tore at Trevor’s T-shirt, frantically applying pressure with gauze she’d pulled from the first aid kit. “The bullet hit his shoulder,” she said with remarkable calm considering their circumstances. “We just need to keep him from going into shock. Or losing too much blood.” Her face was determined when her eyes glanced up to meet Josslyn’s. “I spent two summers shadowing interns in an ER. He’s not going to die.”
Trevor moaned when they hit another bump in the road. His face was pale and drawn. “Thank God they were on foot and couldn’t follow us,” he choked out.