Page 16 of Worlds Apart
“Alice—”
“Have fun!” She grabbed the empty cocktail glass from Sunny’s hand. “Don’t try to take pictures; you’re not a professional with the right lenses, they’ll probably all look muddy. Just experience the night.” She turned Sunny around and shoved her toward Martin. “Here you go, boss! Have fun.”
Sunny nearly fell into Martin’s chest. “Hi.”
He cocked out his elbow. “May I escort you to the truck, Miss Randolph?”
She couldn’t stop her smile or the automatic way her hand went to his angled elbow. “I’d be delighted, Mr. Karanja.”
They walked out to the truck and Mingati was already inside. He sent Sunny a head nod, then climbed into the cab. She stepped up and into the first row of the lifted Land Cruiser and took the spot between the driver and the spotter’s seat. It was just her, Martin, and Mingati.
They drove off into the night and the whoop of hyenas in the distance told Sunny this was going to be different than the game drives in the morning and afternoon.
Martin drove the truck up the river track and under the trees along the bank. The lights of the camp fell away, darkness enveloped them, and all she could hear was the sound of the engine and Mingati’s low voice directing Martin as he drove.
They stopped in an isolated spot clear of the trees. Sunny could hear the river rushing in the distance and heavy movement in the grass.
“What is that?” she whispered.
Martin turned and kept his voice low. “I’m going to flash the spotlight at the ground around the truck. Keep your eyes on the grass. We don’t shine the light directly at the animals, but you’ll still be able to see if I shine the light on the ground.”
Since the truck was stopped, she stood and stuck her upper body through the cut out in the roof, resting her forearms on the hood of the Land Cruiser.
Martin reached up and flipped on the light, pointing the soft glowing beam at the dusty road. As soon as the light turned on, Sunny looked into the grass and immediately spotted what had been making the noise in the grass.
A group of elephants was standing in the thick grass along the river, moving slowly as they grazed. Juvenile elephants were with them, three of what Martin had called “teenagers,” one smaller elephant that was dwarfed by the largest one, and two other large elephants.
“They’re so beautiful.” It wasn’t the first time she’d been treated to the sight of an elephant, but it was the first time she felt as if she reached out, she’d be able to run her hands along their thick, wrinkled skin.
“They’re not scared of us?”
Martin laughed a little. “That female is the biggest matriarch on the conservancy.”
As if she’d understood him, the large female turned and lifted her trunk at Martin.
“I see you, Kihari. I know it was you girls digging up our pipes again.”
Mingati laughed and said something in Maasai.
“I don’t think so.” Martin turned to Sunny. “The south pond where they usually get their water is dry right now. That’s why they’ve been digging up our pipes at the camp and grazing upriver at night.”
“They’re beautiful.”
“Kihari!” Martin shouted at the elephant again.
She raised her trunk and snorted toward the truck.
“Show Sunny your baby, old mother.”
“There’s a baby?” Sunny was going to die. The elephants she’d seen so far had mostly been young bulls that wandered around the conservancy on their own. This was the first family group she’d seen up close and she was thrilled to see teenage elephants, much less a baby.
As if the elephants understood Martin, they parted and Sunny caught a peek of a small trunk from underneath one of the smaller females.
“Ohhhh, it’s ababybaby.” She melted as the tiny elephant calf came into view.
Mingati chuckled.
“It’s not Kihari’s, it’s one of her daughter’s. Little girl was born earlier this season.”
