For a long time, the only sound was the fire spitting at the damp wood. Wilson’s gaze drifted to the calabash in Elijah’s hands. The same hands that had never trembled pulling the trigger on antelope, on lions, elephants or rhinos, on creatures whose only crime was their existence now curled around a gourd like a lost child.

Wilson straightened slowly, his back brushing the low rafters. “You need help, Elijah,” he said, voice steady but edged. “More help than I can give you. You brought this man to our doorstep, so now we do it the right way. Maybe Bette can help. She still works with the rangers.”

Elijah stiffened. “Bette?” His frown deepened, and for a moment, his guilt sharpened into something else; stubbornness, old and familiar. “She’s part of the reason that man is in my van. Her kind only see the world one way…  fences and rules. She’d rather see me locked away than help.”

Wilson let out a dry, humourless sound that wasn’t quite a laugh. “And whose fault is that? She fights for the land, for the animals you’ve spent your life hunting down for money. You think the world doesn’t notice the difference?” He shook his head, the weight of it all pressing into his voice. “She might not trust you. Hell, I don’t blame her. But she might be the only one who can stop this from turning into more blood.”

Elijah stared into the fire, jaw working as if trying to chew the bitter truth. He swallowed hard. “If you think it’s the only way then I’ll go to her.”

Wilson’s eyes narrowed, sharp and unyielding. “No,” he said firmly. “Not if. You will go to her. And you’ll go as a man ready to own his mistakes, not one looking for an easy way out.”

He stepped closer, looming over Elijah. “You keep saying you want to change, but I’ve seen what your words are worth. You want to fix this? Prove it. Start acting like the man you claim you want to be or stop wasting my time.”

***

After Nyah’s visit, Bette spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening moving between the orphaned baby elephants, her hands steady even as her mind churned with unease. The sun was now hanging low and heavy in the sky, casting its long golden rays all around, but their lingering warmth did little to settle the cold knot twisting deep in her chest.