Windfall

'Go screw yourself,' said Gunnarsson.

Curtis turned his head as Hunt approached and slid down from the top of the ridge. He accepted the can of beer gratefully. 'Thanks. Just what the doctor ordered.'

'Hardin says he'll relieve you soon,' said Hunt.

'He needn't bother.'

Hunt regarded him curiously. 'Have you been with Max Stafford long?'

Curtis swallowed beer, his Adam's apple working vigorously. He sighed in appreciation. 'A couple of years.'

'Were you in the service together.'

Curtis nodded. 'In a way. A long time ago.'

Hunt decided that making conversation with Curtis was hard work. The Sergeant was polite and informative but brief as though words were rationed and not to be squandered. If brevity was the soul of wit Curtis was the wittiest man alive. But surprisingly Curtis came up with a question. 'Are hippos dangerous?"

'That depends, said Hunt. 'I wouldn't go too near in a boat and I certainly wouldn't choose them as swimming companions.'

'This one's ashore.' He pointed. 'Landed about an hour ago over there.'

Hunt looked to where Curtis pointed and saw nothing. 'They don't usually venture ashore in daylight. And, yes, they're bloody dangerous. They can move a lot faster than you'd think, certainly faster than a man can run, and those tusks can kill. The thing to remember is never to get between a hippo and the water.'

'I'll tell the Colonel,' said Curtis.

Hunt nodded. 'I'm going back to Ol Njorowa.'

Curtis eased himself to the top of the ridge and picked up the binoculars. Hunt was about to walk past him when Curtis held up his hand.'Wait!'

Hunt stopped. 'What's the matter?'

'Get down off the ridge – off the skyline.' Curtis was intently watching something below as Hunt dropped beside him. He said, 'A boat coming. Five men; three white, two black.' He paused. 'One is Dirk Hendriks. I don't know the others.' He passed the binoculars to Hunt.

Hunt focused and the approaching boat suddenly jumped towards him. 'Brice and Patterson,' he said. 'And Joe Baiya -he's a sort of handyman around Ol Njorowa – with Luke Maiyani. He's usually behind the desk in the Admin Block.'

Curtis's voice was even. 'You'd better tell the Colonel. I'll stay here.'

Hunt plunged down the hill towards the camp site.

Chapter 30

Stafford's first reaction was to turn to Nair. 'Is this island big enough to play hide-and-seek?'

'Hide from five men?' Nair shook his head decisively. 'And what about him?' He pointed to Gunnarsson who was stubbornly resisting Hardin's questioning.

'Damn!' said Stafford. Gunnarsson was a real stumbling block; if he was left manacled Brice was sure to find him, but if he was freed he might run straight to Brice and blab all he knew, and he knew too much for comfort. Stafford damned the men in Nairobi who were talking instead of acting.

He strode over to Gunnarsson and dropped to his knees. 'Do you want to live?' he asked abruptly.

Gunnarsson's eyes widened. 'That's a hell of a question.'

'Look, I'm not interested in your tricks with Corliss," said Stafford. 'That's small time stuff compared with what Brice is doing.'

'Yeah', said Hardin. 'You were ripping off a lousy six million bucks. Brice was going for broke – maybe a hundred million.'

'He's coming here now,' said Stafford, and heard Hardin make a muffled exclamation. 'And he's bringing his troops. A few lives are nothing compared to what he has at stake.'

'He wouldn't risk murder," said Hardin. 'Shots could be heard from the mainland."

Stafford thought of the man he had killed in Tanzania. 'Who said anything about shooting? There are other ways of killing and the evidence can be buried in the belly of a crocodile,' he said brutally, and Gunnarsson flinched. 'As you are now you wouldn't stand a chance so I'm going to release you, but just remember who is doing you the favour.'

'Sure,' said Gunnarsson eagerly. 'Just let me run.'

Stafford signalled to Nair who shrugged and produced the key of the handcuffs. When Gunnarsson was free he stood up and massaged his wrist. 'This true?' he asked Hardin. He jerked his head at Stafford. 'This guy was talking about something else before.' ., 'It's true,' said Hardin. 'We've run against South African intelligence and those guys don't play patty-cake. You ought to know that. We've got in the way of one of their big operations.'

'Then I'm fading,' Gunnarsson announced.

'You'll do as you're bloody well told,' snapped Stafford. He was looking at Curtis up on the ridge. 'You said five men? That all?'

'All I saw,' said Hunt. 'There could be another boat coming along behind.'

'Curtis hasn't signalled anything about that,' commented Stafford. 'What do you think, Ben? The odds are better than even if Gunnarsson comes in. Six to five.'