and certificates.
“Wow, WILD2SAVE has won a lot of stuff,” said Vusi. He pointed at one of the photographs. “Hey, this looks like …”
“It is,” said Jabu, peering through her glasses. “It’s the president shaking hands with Schalk and Bokkie.”
Schalk laughed. “Ja, that was a night and a half. We had just won one of the highest awards for conservation you can get.” He tapped his finger on one of the photographs. “Okay, here’s my helicopter. Bokkie snapped it as I was about to take off.”
Billy and Vusi examined the photo of Schalk, sitting in the pilot seat of a green-and-silver helicopter.
“That must be so cool,” said Vusi. “I really hope we get a chance to fly in it.”
“Ja, sure,” said Schalk. “But listen, time’s moving on. Piet and Thandi will be here any moment.”
“On the bus, Bokkie told us Thandi’s one of the rangers, but who is Piet?” asked Jabu.
“He’s a ranger too,” said Schalk as they trooped out of the study. “And you know Karel, who’s driving the bus. Well, they’re brothers. Karel used to be a ranger with SANParks but joined WILD2SAVE so he could educate the youth on protecting wildlife. We all grew up on farms in the area and have known each other forever. Bokkie’s got some last-minute stuff to organise, so she’ll come later in my vehicle, and Thandi will drive in the bus with you and get you settled in at Pretoriuskop.”
On the veranda, Surina was sitting with two sleeping cubs on her lap and chatting to Karel.
“So, did you like our picture gallery?” Bokkie asked.
“Impressive,” said Vusi.
Jabu was looking thoughtful. She took her glasses off and cleaned them on the edge of her T-shirt. “I was a bit surprised to see you had a kudu head mounted on the wall of your office,” she said. “You know. With conservation and everything.”
Billy smiled to himself. He could tell already that Jabu was someone who said what she thought.
Schalk looked at her. “Oh, that was there before we bought this place. A lot of farmers shoot for the pot …”
Bokkie interrupted. “You see, skat! I keep telling you to take it down. It’s just not right. I’ve always hated it. Seeing a poor dead animal on the wall like that.” She shuddered.
At that moment, a white bakkie came tearing down the long driveway in a cloud of dust.
“Someone’s in a hurry,” said Vusi.
Karel stood up. “It’s my boet dropping off Thandi.” The bakkie came to a halt next to the WILD2SAVE bus and Schalk’s large blue 4 x 4. He and Schalk walked towards the bakkie.
Billy watched as two rangers in SANParks uniforms got out of the bakkie. Karel’s brother, Piet, didn’t look much like him. He was thinner and taller. Thandi was also tall, with braids tied back in a ponytail. Billy thought she looked like someone who would be good at athletics.
Piet said something to Karel and Schalk, and by the expressions on their faces, Billy could see something was wrong. Deep in discussion, they started to walk towards the veranda.
Bokkie twitched her nose and called out, “What’s the problem?”
Schalk looked up. “It’s bad news. Another rhino. A cow close to Pretoriuskop.”
Bokkie put her hands over her mouth and gasped. “Oh no! That is terrible. I’m so sorry.” She hurried towards them and gave Thandi a quick hug.
Piet nodded towards Billy and the others. “Hi.” He pulled off his cap and wiped his forehead. “It’s the full moon. That’s the problem. The poacher’s moon, they call it. While it’s at its brightest, it makes it easier for them to track the rhinos.”
Karel put his hand on his brother’s shoulder, and Billy heard Schalk mutter, “Bliksems.”
Piet shook his head. “Well, I must be off. There’s an important anti-poaching meeting in Mbombela today, so I need to waai.”
Thandi slung a small backpack over her shoulder and turned to Piet. “Thanks for the lift. See you later.”
Piet started to walk towards the bakkie then stopped and turned around.
“We’re going to get them. This is one war we will win. It’s just a matter of time. No question about that.” He pulled his cap back on and climbed into the bakkie. As he tore off back down the driveway, Billy wondered if he really felt as confident as he sounded.
5
Billy gazed out of the bus window. Normally, he’d have enjoyed looking at the bushveld scenery and the many small villages they passed. But now, all he could think about was the dead rhino. And what Thandi had been telling them since they’d set off from the farm.
The mood in the bus had changed. Vusi had stopped his jokes and chatter, and Surina had put away her phone. It had been Vusi who had asked Thandi if she knew how many rhino had been poached in Kruger so far that year.
Thandi, who was sitting next to Jabu, sighed. “Yes, we do have statistics, and they’re pretty bad. In the first eight months of this year, poachers have already killed over six hundred rhinos. Who knows what the total will be by the end of the year.”
“That many!” Surina’s eyes had grown huge.
“And you heard Piet say it’s always worse when the moon is full. I’m willing to bet that last night, there were thirty or more groups of poachers, all heavily armed, in different areas of the park. And that tonight will be the same.” She paused. “Someone once described the Kruger Park as a huge supermarket for poachers.”
Surina asked, “But what makes them do it? It must be really dangerous coming into the reserve. Walking through it at night.”
Thandi nodded. “Extremely dangerous. Some poachers have been killed by lions and other animals. And they know they are constantly being tracked by our rangers. It’s all about money, of course. They say that for the people involved, the word ‘poaching’ means money and the word ‘rhino’ means nothing.”
“What kind of money are we talking about?” Billy asked.
“Well, let’s put it this way – horns sold on the black market are worth more per kilogramme than gold or platinum,” Thandi said.
Vusi whistled. “It’s mostly sold in the East – China, places like that, isn’t it? But what I don’t understand is how rhino horn can be so valuable. I mean, it’s just bone.”
“No,” said Jabu before Thandi had a chance to answer. “People think that it’s bone, but it’s not.” She picked up the wildlife magazine she’d had her nose in the entire trip. “It says here that horn’s made of a protein called keratin. Actually, that’s the same protein that makes up our hair and fingernails.”
Jabu tapped the magazine with her finger for emphasis and added, “It also says here that the horn smells so strongly that poachers have to try
