perception.
'That takes care of the left flank.' Sean looked up from the list. He
had been so engrossed in reading that he had not sensed the air of
tension and expectancy which had fallen over his audience. A single
horseman had crossed the drift and walked His magnificent thoroughbred
into the camp. He had dismounted quietly and servants had led his
horse away. Now, carrying a shotgun, he was walking towards Sean's
wagon.
Sean looked up and saw him. He stared in surprise, while slowly
elation mounted within him until it reached his face in a wide grin.
'Garry, glad you could make it!' he cowled out spontaneously, but
Garry's face remained without expression. He nodded a curt greeting.
At least he's come, exulted Sean. This is the first overture.
Now it's up to me.
'You can take the first position on my right, Garry.'
'Thank you. ' Now Garry smiled, but it was a curiously cold grimace
and he turned away to talk with the nearest man , A small shiver of
disappointment moved the crowd. They had expected something
spectacular to happen. All of them knew the feud between the Courtney
brothers and the mystery that surrounded it. But now, with a feeling
of anti, climax they turned their attention back to Sean's reading.
Sean finished and jumpe( down from the wagon, and immediately the crowd
moved away Sean sought Garrick and saw him far ahead near the head of
the.
long file of men that was strung out along the footpath that led to
Elands' Kloof.
The file moved fast as the hunters stepped out eagerly. Unless he ran,
Sean knew he would not be able to pass the men ahead of him and catch
up with Garry. I'll wait until we reach the beat, he decided.
My God, what a wonderful ending to this week. I have Ruth, now if only
I can get back my brother and with him, Michael!
From the shoulder of the gorge Sean looked down across Elands' Kloof. A
deep slot of a valley, two miles long and five hundred yards wide at
this end, but it tapered slowly upwardly until it lost its identity in
the high ground. The full length of it was clogged solid with dark
green bush, a seemingly impenetrable mass above which a few tall trees
reared up in a desperate attempt to reach the sunlight.
Like the tentacles of a giant squid, creepers and vines lifted from the
dark bush to overpower then and drag them down. Here on the shoulder
the air was dry and wholesome, down there it would stink of damp earth
and rot ting vegetable matter.
Lingering as though suddenly reluctant to go down into the humid
discomfort of the Kloof, the hunters gathered on the shoulder.
Shading eyes against the glare, they peered up toward, the head of the
gorge where the beaters were a line of dari specks against the green
spring grass.
'There go the kids,' someone pointed. Dirk was leading his band along
the high ground above the Kloof.
Sean moved across to his twin brother.
