BLOOD FOR PROFIT
[Jacob Harnett]
(10/23/2005)
The sun glistened off the snow covered mountain tops as the road winded deeper into the many valleys of the Alps. I straightened my Safari hat as I ruffled my handle bar mustache. I had been driving in this limo for longer then an hour, I was sure of it. I decided that I should probably find out how much longer I would be stuck in here. “Hey driver,” I called, but with the window divider up I knew it was useless. Lord Otto loved to have his private conversations and with the business he deals with who could really blame him. I gazed around the limo trying to find something in this futuristic machine. There were more buttons in the car than a NASA space station. But who was I, I was a man of simpler tastes and desired a simple life. In fact, my life has always been like this, always constantly on the move. In fact, that is how I got my nickname, “the nomad”. I was never partial to it. It did often get people to buy me a drink and hear about all my adventures.
“Ah ha,” I cried seeing what I had been looking for sitting behind bottles of fine cognac and brandy. I picked up the grey phone and began to punch numbers into it. A funny sound came through the other end, which contained a loud series of beeping. I pulled the phone away in shock, “damn it!” The phone fell with a clatter as I stared down at the HP 2072 Fax Machine. “Fax machine,” I repeated almost a little confused by it. I continued to stare around the limo when I finally found the phone. It pulled right from the wall. I heard the driver’s voice on the other end, “yes Mr. Harnett?” “Yes, how much longer is it? Lefu and I don’t have all day. We have to be on a plane tonight. I do have a job to do!” The driver gave a polite, “You will be canceling your flight, I guarantee you Lord Otto has much better work for you.” “Yeah well I just hope he pays more, because I am in high demand at the moment.” For some reason I didn’t get the feeling that the driver cared very much, “Very good sir.” I smiled mocking him, “very good sir!” I held up my finger as I turned to the pile of fur lying on the other stretch of leather seats. “Sir,” I said in a sarcastic voice, “did you hear that Lefu?” Lefu raised her sleepy head “he called me sir, I feel so much better!” The dog yawned wildly and lowered her head back to the seat. “OH, I am so sorry Lefu…did….did I disturb you?” Lefu did not seem to find me entertaining in the slightest. She had been with me for as long as I wanted to remember.
Having an endangered African Wild Dog for a pet was a constant hassle. Flights had to be private not because I was fancy, but Lefu always came with me…always. I knew that I could always count on her to have my back. The loyalty of a dog, especially an African Wild Dog was a rarity that nobody wanted to test. Many had tried to take her from me, but when that golden hair on her back stood up, and her teeth are bared. It made me shutter at the thought of it. I always called her my little surprise, delivering death wherever we went. Her checkered fur of gold and black always fascinated me. Her all black face always made me laugh even in the darkest of times. All we had was each other, two loners in the world whose parents where killed by outside forces. Lefu, which in South African translated to “death,” was always the focal talking point of everywhere we went.
(10/05/1996)
I was in a little bar in Mbabane when the bartender walked by me dropping every glass he carried. “OH MY GOD,” he screamed as the glasses smashed all over the floor. Lefu was sleeping by my stool and woke leaping to all fours. The man backed away “Everybody needs to get out…” I turned in the stool, “relax buddy!” My hand reached down for Lefu, “Mister, don’t there is a….” I smiled “don’t worry this is just Lefu…she is with me.” “With you,” the man repeated still unsure if this was real or not. “I have never seen one this close before,” Lefu sat and watched the man with hunger in her eyes. “Don’t worry Lefu is only one but well trained,” “TRAINED” screamed the bartender. “Look don’t worry about it, can I get another drink and Lefu, you thirsty?” Lefu looked up at me her black eyes watery, “drink,” I repeated touching my lips with two fingers. Lefu gave a polite lick of my hand, “yeah and I need some water for Lefu.”
The bartender was motionless. His wide eyes stared at her and then back at me, “you must be joking?” “She is fine really, hey look at me,” I yelled as the man still looked at Lefu with distrust in his eyes. “When I get worried you should be worried and do I look worried?” I held up an empty glass of whiskey. “The only thing I am worried about is not getting another drink alright?” The man still looked nervous, but I just repeated, “Alright?” “Yeah, yeah sure,” the man sidled past Lefu who continued to watch him warily. “Lefu,” I commanded, “lay down again.” Lefu licked her lips and curled up on the dirty floor. I tossed her a peanut which she took regretfully. “That will keep her busy for a while,” the bartender did not see the humor in it as I had. After all Lefu and I had a bond that was stronger than your normal master/servant role. He poured me another glass as I began to pull out my money he said, “I’ll tell you what I’ll let you drink for free if you tell me how you got an African Wild Dog that trained. “Well what am I supposed to do with him while we’re out in the wilderness together?” The bartender just continued to look shocked as I drained the glass. “You can’t really train them…they are wild and ferocious!” I handed him the glass “I know, believe me, but I raised Lefu from the moment she was born.” “How did you get her,” the bartender poured another “now that mister is the real story,” I toasted the glass and drained it in one gulp.
I grew up in 1948 during the Apartheid in South Africa. In 1980 when the citizens began to riot and protest against the segregation things began to grow worse. My father had always believed that the European system would stay in power, “there is nothing to fear just a minor uproar.” But that uproar was anything but minor, my mother feared for our safety. I was fresh out of college willing to start a new life with a degree in Zoology in 1970. But when the “minor uproar,” turned into a full blown riot I knew that South Africa was no longer safe for the white folks. My mother would cry telling my father, “we need to leave! They are burning down villages and soon could come this way!” My father was a pompous man and believed that chivalry would always win against savagery. But my father was a blind man, who couldn’t see the problems that seemed to grow everyday. The people that had become homeless, our fellow white people were now leaving the country, “a migration of whites” my mother called it. My father however did not believe in the savagery that the country had begun to sink into. He even ignored me when I told him that many of my friends were moving back to England. One friend told me that “paradise has been lost.” Paradise…ha, I only wish I could consider this place a paradise. More like a nightmare and one final night my world had changed, replaced by nightmares and a life of survival.
In January of 1981, the protesters marched to the capital and burned down the president’s mansion. My father finally admitted that it was unsafe for us. I watched as he would stare out the front window and say “how could it come to this, the elite beaten by a bunch of farmers, savages, and second class citizens?” I remember my heart sinking to the bottom of my stomach were it has remained since. I imagine it sits there beating, slightly disintegrating with every passing second it sits in the pool of my stomach acid. It has sat there since that night the capital was burned and when the people surrounded my family’s house.
They screamed as their torches were raised high in the air. My father had only one gun and not enough bullets for them all. They broke down the door and smashed through the open windows. I watched as the intruders overpowered my father, who screamed at my mother “get out of here...protect your mother Jacob!” People continued to pour into our house. I knew the whole country was marching in our neighborhood ransacking every house they could find. Gunshots rang through the house as my mother grabbed my shoulder, “Jackie,” she yelled, her little nickname for me. It would be the last time that name would ever be said. My mother dragged me into our small bathroom and locked the door. The mob began to slam against the door, “leave us alone!” My mother was crying hard as she clenched me tightly. I on the other hand was always the more resourceful type. I guess it was because growing up in South Africa was like nothing compared to the rest of the civilized world. “Mom,” I shouted as I pointed to the bathroom window. She nodded as she pulled the window open, “Go Jacob!” She helped me to hoist myself up as the door began to crack. I never saw so much terror in my mother’s face. She hoisted me through as a large section of the door came flying off. I crawled through the window, “run Jacob, I’m right behind you!”
The mob broke through the door as I grabbed my mother’s hand, “Mom come on! Leave her alone!” But my screams were in vain, the men seized my screaming mother as she continued to yell, “run Jacob!” I watched them drag her off and I knew she was gone. As much as I hated to say it my parents were gone now and I could either stay and end up like them, or I could run and survive. I began to run into the brush, into the dark savannah and out there was where I would be reborn. I survived by living off the land, hunting what I could, selling whatever I had. I realized that I could get more money for certain animals and later on I learned why. My hunting became the stuff of legends, a true nomad of the land.
(09/01/1995)
The night I met Lefu I was out hunting a great lion. A lion so big that it was terrorizing workers that were building a rail line to connect Dodoma with another rail line. The lion had supposedly killed twenty five of the workers. T he company Rosenberg Diamonds paid me thirty thousand dollars too find this lion and kill it. I tracked it for days and couldn’t find it. I knew it was out there because I found its footprints several times. From my original calculations I put the lion at about six hundred some pounds. This would make him the largest lion I had ever seen or killed. But the trail went cold when I reached a river bank. I figured it would return for water, so I decided to set up camp. Now the very fi rst thing you do when your trapped out in the Serengeti is to light a fire, but I didn’t want to keep anything away. I wanted it to come to me.
As I sat in the darkness of the Serengeti, the creatures of the night began their midnight prowl for food. I watched as the creatures snuck to the river bed and took their nightly drinks. I waited for hours, and they dragged like a boring chess game. My rifle clenched tightly in my hands with a shotgun next to me, a pistol in my holster, and my large Bowie knife nicknamed the “Beast Killer” for a last stand. It was 9 inches long and five inches wide and sure to bring down a large cat like this. I waited until all the stars twinkled like small diamonds in the sky. I always liked this time at night, but my thoughts were distracted by a soft rustling. I raised my rifle probably just another zebra or something but instinctively I still reacted to it. There was a soft breeze in the air and the grass seemed to wave lightly at me. The very night seemed to grow quiet, almost too quiet. I knew this kind of quiet and it was something that only a person like me would know. A person that lived in the Serengeti would know. It was when the entire world had gone quiet when the animals feared what lie within the darkness.
I raised my head up a fraction and saw the top of the grass slowly parting. I could feel something watching me, stalking me…hunting me. I began to lower my rifle as I picked up my shotgun. Whatever it was out there I couldn’t take any chances. After all, there was a literal man eating lion out there. All the years I had spent out in the brush, this was one of the moments that I knew I would always remember. I had never been more scared in my life. I stood all the way up with the shotgun clenched in my hands. I stared in the grass looking for something…anything that would help me see the creature. The wind came to halt and the world had gone dead. “Come on you son of…” Crack! A loud roar pierced the dead silence. I turned to see a lion bigger than I could have ever imagined. I was frozen with fear and I actually thought that the shotgun wouldn’t be any good. I barely dodged the creature as it lunged right at me. Its left paw brushed the shotgun sending the shot to pop in the air like a roman candle. Its right paw slashed across my face as it leapt past me. The shotgun fell into the dirt as the blood poured over my eyes. I had to ignore the pain. I had to fight for my survival with four large gashes in my face.
I watched the lion roar loudly as it advanced towards me in the moonlight. Teeth bared and my death seemed imminent. I withdrew the small pistol that I had but the lion was smart and too quick. He lunged forward again and thankfully through the blood I was able to see the creature’s death jump. The pistol was swiped from my hand as the lion danced around me. I pulled out the “Beast Killer” from my side. I could feel the blood pouring down my neck as I raised the knife high. “Come on you son of a bitch, what are you waiting for?”
The lion snarled at me as he looked to weigh around seven hundred pounds. Its teeth were larger than I had ever seen on a lion. His eyes stared into mine as his mane of fur was covered in dried blood. “I ain’t got all night motherfucker,” the lion dug into the ground and leapt at me again. I swiped with the knife landing it into its thick tuft of fur. I didn’t even know if I had pierced the lion’s skin. The lion swiped wildly as its claws scratched the side of my body. The lion began to reach out its paw with claws extended. It furiously made attempts to knock the knife out of my hand. An experienced killer that had taken so many lives. It had become a perfect killer of man. The “Beast Killer” connected with the lion’s side sinking inches into its thick meat. The lion roared in pain and backed away, I was using my last defensive weapon. The one that I withdrew only in an emergency. It was a knife my father had given me when he took me camping in the Serengeti once. It was an unusually thick Bowie knife and the lion’s eyes never left it. One stab and it could make anything or anybody remember you, a real killer. A knife that could bring down any sized beast, a real “Beast Killer”.
“I am not going to go so easily,” the lion bared its teeth and lunged at me again. Its paws landed on my shoulders as the knife thrusted into its stomach. The lion’s mouth reached for my face but with a quick reaction we landed in the dirt. I was able to kick the lion off of me as it stumbled on its feet. That was it, I had no more weapons and the lion was still standing. My rifle was lying behind it and there was no way I was going to make that. My father’s knife was stuck deep in the lion as it seemed to grow weaker every second.
I stepped away from the lion but it approached me. It must have sensed my helplessness because it did not pounce as it had previously done. It inched closer as I yelled, “I promise I’ll make you choke on me you son of bitch!” The lion’s mouth opened wide as he lunged towards me. My back had landed against a large pile of dirt. His teeth was inches from my blood stained clothing. We were both growing weaker, but something else could be heard in the distance. It was a softer growl and another howl. The lion froze and raised his head as two dark canine like animals begin to tear at the lion. The lion began to swing the two African Wild Dogs wildly in the air. One had its teeth deep into the lion’s mane and the other was attacking the side of its face. It tossed the dogs around more as I took the opportunity to make my way around the beast. I heard a loud whine and a whimper of pain, one of the dogs was dead. My hand gripped the rifle as I pulled back the chamber. I could feel the terror overcoming my body, and I turned to see the other dog slam to the ground split in half. The dog’s blood covered the lion’s face as it roared loudly into the night. Its paws dug into the dirt as it lunged high into the air. I took a wild shot and watched the light leave the eyes of the great beast. It skidded on the ground and stirred no more. The bullet had connected with the lion’s eye.
I laid there for hours, I wasn’t even sure if the beast was dead. I had survived a battle that I knew in a previous life I had lost. I conquered the biggest predator this country could throw at me and barely survived. My thoughts were interrupted by a soft whining. It was a sound that I had never heard before. It sounded like a baby pup. I rose from my spot and headed toward the noise. A small cub was scurrying out of its hole. It couldn’t have been more then six weeks old. It was like an oversized black and gold hacky sack. I picked it up and watched it struggle to open its eyes. I could get a fortune for something like this on the black market. Its little paw touched my thumb as I stared down at both the mother and father. They had saved my life, whether it was to save me or to protect their pup didn’t matter they had saved my life. I couldn’t sell it. I held the pup over to them and gave a respectful bow, “blood for blood, a life for a life.” I gazed down at the pup and said, “I shall call you…Lefu.”
(Present)
The bartender disappeared, the lonely bar disappeared from my memory, and the lion faded when a burst of sunlight pierced the dark car. God I hated tinted windows, I would almost swear Lord Otto sent the car more as an annoyance than a convenience. The driver opened the door saying, “Lord Otto is waiting for you upstairs, and I shall prepare your vehicle for your trip.” “Trip,” I said startled, “look I just came here because he said he wished to acquire my services again. I already have previous engagements…” The driver held up a wrinkled hand, “you’re going to want to cancel them I can assure you.” Lefu stepped out and gazed at her surroundings. She was like me distrustfully of anything new, but Lord Otto was nothing new. Her eyes raised and she stared up at me. She looked as if she knew the place or at least recognized it. The large five story mansion was nestled in the valley of large green trees and a small secluded lake. I almost wished I could apologize to Lefu, if she would even understand my dislike for Lord Otto. But it was because of Lord Otto that I was able to live this life and to be able to live free, to be truly free.
I walked into his unnecessarily large mansion which I could never find comfortable. Lefu and I were happy with our tent and the brilliant night sky above us. I climbed up several flights of stairs and the more I climbed the more anger began to build up in me. It seemed like forever since I had taken care of that lion. My life had dramatically changed since then. Lord Otto and Rosenberg began to push my name more and as much as I hated them, if they praise you people would defiantly listen. I knocked on a pair of large wooden doors when a small giggle came from behind them. I felt my fingers clench in hatred and Lefu escorted me into the room. I hated his smugness and his arrogance. Knowing Lord Otto the assignment would be just as deadly as the lion. A lion for the diamond king Rosenberg and a young unknown creature caught in the Ukrainian Territory in 1994 for Lord Otto. After I delivered the creature to Lord Otto, I had never seen it again and was paid handsomely to never mention a word of it. Both assignments nearly cost me my life, however I hoped that this new assignment would not cost me the ultimate price.
The large room was surrounded with the heads of many animals from around the world. Lord Otto sat with slicked back gray hair and was sipping on a tea cup. His eyes widened at the sight of me, “Mr. Harnett, my man of the bush!” I gave a fake smile rolling my eyes when his eyes grew with fake surprise. I expected it and no matter how hard I tried to prepare it never was enough. His eyes were wide with terror, “My dear god man,” “here it comes” I said to myself. “Did you cut yourself shaving?” I gave a false laugh that felt so unnatural. It was the joke that never got old even the last hundred times Lord Otto told it. I hated that joke and as Lord Otto gripped his chest he gave his superior little giggle. I wish I could have killed him. I wish I could have gripped my “Beast Killer” knife and skinned him.
“And I see you brought your little friend Fido,” I shook my head “it’s Lefu.” Lord Otto giggled “Oh Mr. Harnett you’re always an interesting fellow?” “So, why did you drag me here Lord Otto?” “You don’t know why I find you interesting?” I shrugged “I would rather get to business…” However, my words did not seem to interest him. “You kill endangered animals and hunt sometimes the most dangerous of all animals, yet you keep the company of not women…but the very thing you get paid to kill.” “I know Lord Otto you told me before can you please just tell me why you have summoned me here?”
“Why, Mr. Harnett every time I see you or bump into you it’s straight to business, if you keep this way with me…” He took a sip of his tea and gave a little giggle. I could feel my teeth grit in anger, “one would think that you didn’t like spending time with me.” He scrunched his face into another superior giggle as he drained the rest of his tea. Lefu sat by my side and seemed entranced by all the heads mounted around the room. The fire next to Lord Otto crackled silently, “Rosenberg and I like you Mr. Harnett always a man of business. You remind me of my Uncle the great Lord Reagan Van…” “Yes Lord Otto if you please I have to get going soon. I have to capture a chimp for a Russian pharmaceutical company.”
Lord Otto sat his cup onto a small wooden table as he folded his hands, “alright I shall be frank.” He snapped his fingers at a coffee table and I noticed a large brown envelope. I opened it to see stacks of money and a picture of “what the hell is this?” Lord Otto smiled as he saw the confusion in my eyes. “I have recently acquired thousands of acres of farmland in Ukraine and many of my workers are reported missing. We have no idea what was causing it until one of the workers snapped that picture, what do you think it is?” I took the picture and examined it closely. “Well it is definitely a mammal…it almost looks dog like. I would say a wolf, but it’s much too big.” I examined the picture harder as I stared at the snarling face, “It’s almost like a bear but its elongated face… hang on a second this looks the creature you made me capture before?” Lord Otto nodded, “it has escaped from its holding cell and we need it eliminated. I told my partners that I would put my best man on it.”
I lowered the picture, “this, this is what you called me here for? I almost died trying to capture that creature when it was young and look at it now it’s reached maturity! How could you let it escape?” Giggling a little he said, “My dear, dear Mr. Harnett I wish to require your services again. This time we don’t want it alive, we want it eliminated. As for its size we believe the radiation of its habitat is directly affecting the creature. Mr. Harnett I am offering you a job.” “I was already going on a job!” Lord Otto waved his hand, “oh my dear boy don’t worry about that I have smoothed everything over with your other client…lord knows it’s hard enough to f ind those chimpanzees.” “Crafty devils,” I said “indeed…and this creature is like the wind I assure you. It has only grown into a more efficient killer.”
“Well how much are you offering,” Lord Otto smiled and thought as he sat with a superior smugness, “20,000 plus expenses.” I shook my head, “the usual is not going to be able to cut it this time. The Russian’s were offering me 30, plus that thing was young before and it almost killed me…now, well look at it! Its got to be over 900 hundred pounds maybe more!” Lord Otto rubbed his forehead, “please Mr. Harnett not this again.” “Since you have taken it upon yourself to cancel my current job and seek me out to fly me all the way out here,” Lord Otto looked bored but my voice was growing stronger. “I think that this is a pretty serious matter and you’re willing to pay any price.” Lord Otto giggled loudly, “oh Mr. Harnett I love all the reasons you give me when asking for more money.” “A hundred thousand plus expenses,” Lord Otto’s giggle had died as he clenched his chest. “My word a hundred thousand… my boy you aren’t the only poacher I can find!” I smiled, “no, but Lefu and I are the best at what we do.” “A hundred thousand,” I repeated, “plus, plus expenses dear boy?” “Yeah, you can afford it. After all you’re always flaunting your money, but you pucker your asshole when you’re spending it!” “HOW DARE YOU TALK TO ME LIKE THAT!” I smiled loving the expression he gave. I knew that I was getting to him and my suspicions had been right. He did need me and I could see it in his wrinkled old face. “It’s a fair offer for Lefu and me, but it’s the only offer on the table,” his hands clenched his leather seat as he sat thumbing through it in his head.
I turned and began to walk away, “it was good seeing you Lord Otto call me when you can afford me.” That had done it and it was a very risky move on my part. One of the men that kept my business going was the man I was disrespecting. “Wait,” I heard Lord Otto yell, I froze not moving or saying anything. The moment seemed to hang like the last drop of water from a leaf. “Very well, very well, very well Mr. Harnett a hundred thousand” I smiled “I want half now and half when the job is done. I think that is fair.” I heard him squirm in his seat, “very well Mr. Harnett, very well!” His voice was stern and I knew that there was no superior giggle coming. “I’ll provide you with weaponry but you must leave now! My driver will take you to the airport,” his head tilted as he waved his arm to a silver tray. “Would you care for some coffee or tea before your trip?” I shook my head, “no thanks I think I should be going.” Lord Otto rose from his chair, “come, come Mr. Harnett just one cup of tea while my servant gathers your money and the plane is being prepared. I groaned with a, “very well, I’ll take a cup of tea with lemon… Lefu too,” “very good Mr. Harnett, very good.”