The Zambezi Code: A Phoebe McCabe Mystery Thriller (An Agency of the Ancient Lost & Found Mystery Thriller Book 7) by Jane Thornley

Author:Jane Thornley [Thornley, Jane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: RiverFlow Press
Published: 2023-04-08T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 15

The next morning was a long but exhilarating drive by Rover to our lodge, and after we had left the highway behind, most of it was through bushland that wove toward the river and back again.

By then we had picked up another guide, Akatendeka, “Deek” for short, who arrived with a rifle, a rucksack, and a grin. I learned along the way that Deek worked with Jarvis when the Zambezi Expedition Lodge swelled with guests and that he’d be on hand to help us enjoy our adventure excursion.

Since it was technically not high season in Zimbabwe being their winter, the lodge was not filled to capacity. I had asked Evan days before whether we had commandeered the entire lodge and he had told me no, but since there were so few bookings at that time of year, we should have the place more or less to ourselves. Besides, he had added, booking an entire luxury lodge for a handful of people would attract too much attention unless one was a millionaire or an oligarch. There would be the two trained operatives he had mentioned, one of whom he was certain Peaches would approve. That piqued my curiosity but I had little time to question him further.

Apparently, we would be experiencing game rides and guided walks, river rafting and canoe trips, among other adventure delights. Privately, of course, our intent was something quite different and far more dangerous.

At one point, we climbed outside of the cab to take a seat on the Rover’s top viewing bench so that we might glimpse game en route, but unfortunately glimpsed nothing wild and dangerous. Deek explained that the best times for game sightings were mornings and evenings and since this was midafternoon, not to expect to see much. Harold, however, always peering everywhere with his binoculars, spotted the top of a giraffe far in the distance at which point Julie let out a squeal of delight. Otherwise, we bumped and jostled along a dirt track for many miles, until I thought my teeth might loosen.

Finally, we arrived on the banks of the Zambezi by late afternoon. I strolled to the end of the wooden dock, which was high enough off the water’s surface to feel reasonably safe. Across the river straight ahead I could see a pod of hippos basking in the shallows. By now, I’d been cued to look for danger everywhere.

Shielding my eyes with my hand, I searched up and down the river for our new home but could see nothing but a fringe of pampas grass along the banks.

“We take boat,” Deek told me, bringing along our luggage and lowering them over the edge. The boat moored to the post was smaller than the diner cruise variety but large enough to carry at least ten people. We all piled in for the next leg of our journey.

The Zambezi Expedition Lodge was on a string of islands in the middle of the river rather than on its edge, I was told.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.