Ch 20 - The Corollary

Monotony would be common when returning

home. One already knew everything there was to know

in the region — all the estates, all the back roads, and all

the meadows. Nonetheless, our way back would not be

dull in the least. With the discoveries we had made, we

were determined to put an end to Baruti Elya's plans, as

well as wipe out his illicit business. Keene was driving

maniacally once again, keeping his foot firmly on the

gas, but this no longer bothered us. The wind that ruffled

our hair also increased our determination. Our driver no

longer depended on the map or our explanations to reach

Hluleka, making the turn smoothly when we reached the

junction. Following the road that would lead to the

reserve, he kept his sunglasses focused on the hot

asphalt, which would soon give way to dirt. We arrived

back at the village where we had stopped before, but

passed through it like a bullet, since he already knew that

our destination lay beyond the village.

280

— What's the plan, Doctor? — Lucy asked

seriously.

— The plan? Ah, er... don't worry, the plan is

foolproof.

The uncertainty in his voice contrasted with what

the sentence said. Lucy discreetly looked at me and

made a gesture of confirmation — I interpreted the

gesture as an indication that she was the one who already

had a plan and it would be put into effect immediately

when we got there. Now we felt the violent bump of the

car, which was shaking as we climbed the banks of the

Sazinge. The forest to our left vibrated with life as our

vehicle passed alongside it; birds of all colors taking

flight with the sudden movement. And then, there it was

again — the condo.

— Stay in the car, children, — Keene ordered. —

I'm going to confront this creep face to face.

— Confront him? — I questioned sharply. — Dr.

Keene, is this your plan? This man is a violent criminal

who has a gun for a reason, don't you think?

— Don't worry, son, we have the law on our side.

— No, we don't! You didn't want to report what

we discovered to the authorities. — Strangely, Lucy

remained silent about all this.

— You said yourself that they would never

believe your evidence.

— Exactly, doctor, we don't have the law with us!

How do you expect to face a criminal alone?

281

— Well, don't you know that any good citizen

has the right to arrest a scoundrel? — Saying this, he

pressed his sunglasses even tighter against his face and

opened the vehicle door, immediately getting out and

walking as if in a march toward the condominium.

Relatively stunned, I looked up into Lucy's eyes for

guidance. Returning the gesture, she waited until Jacob

was relatively away from the car and commanded:

— Come with me. Keep down.

Silently, we left the rental car in the clearing,

without closing its doors, and snuck behind the

buildings.

In the meantime, Jacob Keene approached

Elya. The dealer was standing right on the riverbank,

holding in his hands a long fishing line with countless

hooks that were spread out along its length at regular

intervals — a longline. As night slowly fell, the moon

rose over the unfolding scene. With a certain amount of

fumbling, Elya pierced pieces of fish on the hooks of the

line, hurting himself constantly, not being used to

dealing with such menial matter. Announcing his

presence, Keene called out:

— Freeze! — The man paused his movements

upon hearing the command. Turning to face Keene, he

still held in his wounded hands the longline and the next

bait that would be pierced by the hook.

— You thought no one would find out about your

dirty little scheme, huh? — Keene continued. — Well,

282

we went to Bluewater Bay and found out the truth. You

want this place to be finished, not so that you can take

the money to your family, if you even have one. It's only

important so that you can continue to use the place to

store drugs and then take them to other cities without the

authorities getting suspicious. — Keene's voice sounded

disgusted, and his expression was one of contempt for

the man who was the target of his accusations. He

resumed:

— When they heard about the project that would

be established here, they offered for you to transport the

cargo and the deal pleased you, didn't it? And then, when

these innocent animals showed up, you called us. Your

bosses were concerned that an endangered species

appearing in the condominium would lead not only to a

government ban for threatening wildlife, but also to fear

from wealthy customers who would not want to have a

prehistoric creature on their doorstep. And then you

called us. Of course, our team has an international

reputation for remarkable incompetence and would not

be able to find out, much less prove anything. Well,

Elya, we did find out, and your plan ends here!

Calmly, the engineer dropped the bait he was

holding in one hand, and from his pocket, he pulled out

the pistol we had found on his boat earlier.

— No. Your plan ends here, — he said in a

threatening tone.

283

At that moment we finished going around the

back of the condo and reached the other side. As soon as

we did, we stopped our step. In front of us was Baruti

Elya with a gun pointed at Keene. His lower lip trembled

as he tried to say something.

— Are you going to kill me? — he struggled to

sound defiant. — Are you...going to add another crime

to the list? — His eyes remained fixed on the barrel

approaching his face. — Lucy and Kevin know that I

would be coming here and...if I don't return...they have

orders to present the crate of drugs addressed to Hluleka

to the police and have them come and get you.

— You stuck-up Englishman, — Elya almost

whispered, imitating the contempt in his voice. — Do

you think the world would miss you if I turned you into

fish bait? You've annoyed me enough already. Now, I'm

going to give you ten seconds to run and enter any

house. From the second floor, you can watch my plan

work. I let you live, and you keep your mouth shut. How

about that, huh? Now, run. — Finishing this last word,

Elya aimed the pistol at Keene's feet and fired. The

bullet hit the ground a few centimeters away from Jacob,

who, in a panic, started to run towards the condominium.

From our hiding place in the shadows, we could only

watch and hope that Keene was still a good runner. On

the way to the buildings, another bullet grazed the

scientist before he could reach the door. Grabbing the

doorknob, he turned it with force. Locked? Another

284

bullet hit the porch. Still running, he reached the next

door, opened it, and in seconds climbed the spiral

staircase to reach the second floor. Gladly admiring his

prey's panicked expression, Elya smiled, staring at the

upstairs window.

— Oh, and Jacob? — he shouted for Keene to

hear, — Thank you for informing me that the animal had

been successfully captured using a longline. I found this

one tossed in the supply shed; I think one of my men left

it here.

Turning again to the river, he baited the last hook

and threw the longline into the water, allowing the light

current to spread the deadly hooks along its length.

— Do you really think he'll let Jacob go,

afterwards? — I whispered to Lucy.

— I don't know, but if we want him to believe

Keene's lie, we have to stay hidden. — She was right. If

Keene was to have a chance of survival, we needed to

stay where we were. Otherwise, Elya would kill all three

of us and get rid of the evidence. Our hands were thus

tied.

We could no longer hear Keene's voice, but we

were sure that he kept watching from the window

because this was his nature — he would look for a way

to protect the animals, even if this consisted of throwing

a flashlight at Elya's head. Baruti, by the way, kept an

irritatingly cheerful, almost sadistic expression as he

waited for a bite. We hoped that the animals would pay

285

no attention to the trap, but since this was part of their

behavior, the result was almost inevitable. Soon, a

movement appeared on the line, extending the longline

into the bandit's hands. Baruti pulled hard, contending

with the animal, squinting as he did so. The turbulence in

the line increased, and the animal now pulled it from

side to side, settling on the riverbed. The man interlaced

both hands between the hook-free spaces and, treading

the ground, began to bring the huge creature to the

surface. The Leptocleidus resisted, but not for long, and,

as was its nature, it came to the surface to breathe.

Trapped as it was, the plesiosaur was an easy target for

Elya. Pointing his gun to the water, he aimed at the

animal's back and fired twice in a row. In the dim

moonlight, you could see the water turning a darker

color — blood. The movement ceased suddenly, and the

animal began to sink once more. Still exerting force,

Elya dragged the large lifeless body out of the Sazinge,

firing again to express his hatred for the being. A tear

streamed from my eye at that moment, and I felt useless

for not being able to stop what was happening. Lucy was

holding my shoulder for support and also watched the

scene. With each shot, she squeezed my shoulder,

hurting me with the pressure, and her breathing paused. I

know that in that room Keene was also suffering and

crying. More movement on the line — the man had

captured another Leptocleidus. Coming to feed in the

pond, the animals were unaware of the peril. Pulling

286

again on the line, he caused the animal to expose itself.

The exhaling bubbles of the reptile were soon replaced

by the red that spilled out into the river before it was

brought ashore. The monster had already taken two lives.

Without even waiting for the blood to fully dilute, he had

already thrown the line a third time and was waiting.

Then a projectile flew at him, not a bullet, like the ones

he used, but a pocket flashlight. Hitting his back, the

small object soon fell to the ground. Enraged, Elya

turned to the window from which it had departed and

shot through the opening. Keene was already ducking to

avoid the criminal's wrath. With his eyes away from the

surface, Elya did not notice that the line was stretching

once more, now, without there being a force to stop it

from being pulled. The longline ran through Baruti

Elya's hand, without him being able to grab it in time.

The hooks then entered his flesh, knocking him to the

ground. His feet, hooked in the chock he had dug out,

were the only thing keeping him from being carried into

the river. Screaming with the unbearable pain he felt,

Elya cried out for help; the hooks now ripped deep into

his flesh. I shot from our hiding place, planning to pick

up the ax on the way and cut the line. While still

running, I looked at the stump where the firewood was

being cut, but it was no longer there. Still, I rushed to aid

him, thinking that I could perhaps pull the hooks out of

his arm. Before I could do so, though, Elya saw me one

last time. His expression of panic and pain was visible to

287

me for an instant. In the next, his feet came free from the

chock and he was dragged into the water. The plesiosaur

was still exerting its strength, swimming upstream. The

stream, also this time, turned red.