After some three kilometres, they came out on to another jungle track which headed due south.
'How are you making out?' Garry asked, as he quickened his pace, catching hold of Gaye's hand and pulling her along with him.
'I'm all right, but I wish we knew how far we have to go.'
'I don't think it's too far . . . around twenty kilometres before we get off the estate. I studied that wall map. This is the nearest exit to Kahlenberg's boundary.'
Plodding along behind, Fennel was being handicapped by the weight of his tool bag.
'I'll carry it for a bit,' Ken said, seeing Fennel was tiring. Fennel stopped and regarded the bag angrily.
'No, you won't! I've had enough of this bloody thing. We'll never get anywhere if we go on carrying it. So okay, it cost me money, but if we get out of here I can buy a new kit. If we don't get out, then I won't need one. To hell with it.' He heaved the tool bag far into the jungle.
'I would have carried it,' Ken said.
Fennel grinned crookedly at him.
'I know and thanks. I'm glad to be rid of it.'
They stepped out and soon caught up with the other two. Then suddenly the track petered out into a large puddle of oozing mud.
'This is where the swamp starts,' Ken said. 'With the rain we've had, it could be bad.'
They left the track and moved into the jungle. The ground felt soft under their feet, but they pushed on. Later, the ground began to squelch under their weight and the going became harder.
By now the sun was up and they could feel the steamy heat. Garry kept checking the compass. When the ground got too sodden, they had to find a way around it and then get back on the compass bearing. The smell of rotting humus, the steamy heat that steadily increased as the sun climbed above the trees, the slippery boggy ground made progress slow and unpleasant.
They kept moving, their eyes searching the ground for snakes.
Ken said suddenly, 'They're on their way.'
Garry looked at his watch. The time was exactly 07.00 hrs. They all increased their pace with a feeling of slight panic, but the increase didn't last long: the going was too hard.
Ken said suddenly, 'I can smell water. The river's not far off.'
Ten minutes later, they came out of the shade of the trees to a broad, slippery bank leading down to a brownish stream, not more than twenty metres wide.
'That's our direction if we can get across,' Garry said. 'Think it's deep?'
'Could be.' Ken joined him and surveyed the water. 'It's no distance . . . just the curse of getting wet in that foul water. I'll see.' He took off his shoes and shirt, padded across the oozing mud and grabbing hold of a branch of a tree, he lowered himself into the stagnant water while he groped to find bottom with his foot.
'It's deep. We'll have to swim.' He let himself go, then started across the stream to the other side of the bank with a strong, overarm stroke.
It happened so quickly none of the other three watching him believed what they were seeing. There was a sudden rush from the thick jungle grass on the opposite bank. Something that looked like a green and brown tree trunk flashed into the water near Ken. An evil looking scaly snout revealed itself for a brief moment. Ken screamed and threw up his arms.
Then he and the crocodile vanished under the water which became agitated and rapidly turned into a foaming vortex of stinking brown water, horribly tinged with red.
Chapter Nine
At midday it rained. For the past two hours, swollen, black clouds had slowly built up, darkening the sky and blotting out the burning sun. The heat, by the placidly flowing stream, had become more and more oppressive. Then abruptly the rain came as if the sky had opened, releasing a deluge of warm water that soaked the three to the skin in seconds. So heavy was the rain, they were blinded by the water smashing down on them and were enveloped in steaming mist.
Catching hold of Gaye's hand, Garry ran into the jungle and paused under the cover of a vast baobab tree, its thick foliage offering a leaky shelter.
Cursing and muttering, Fennel joined them. They squatted down, their backs against the tree and stared at the now raging river in silence.
