Free Jackal's Dance by Beverley Harper Page B

brutally honest.’
    â€˜Clinically callous even. Take my word.’ Thea laughed. ‘You may never recover.’
    Somehow Sean doubted it. She was too considerate. ‘I’ll get it to you in a day or so.’ He needed time to find the courage. His main female character was based on Thea and, although he’d taken painsto create a corresponding male hero who bore no resemblance to himself, Sean couldn’t help but identify with the character. What if she made the connection?
    The lodge’s generator and battery bank were housed in a separate section of the block-built workshop. Thea wanted Sean to show her what to do but he shook his head, saying, ‘No job for a woman.’ He laughed. ‘Sorry. That wasn’t meant to be sexist. I’m afraid our generator came out of the ark. Modern ones are much more user-friendly. This old girl’s an obstinate bitch. You just stand over there and look gorgeous.’
    She knew he was teasing her. Thea didn’t mind. From the moment she and Billy arrived in Etosha Sean’s company had been special. At twenty-six, only two years older than her, he displayed a quiet self-confidence that she somehow found reassuring in the strangeness of new surroundings. Thea instinctively liked and trusted him. She learned that Sean had graduated from university with a major in resource management. He’d been working for Nature Conservation for four years, two of them at Logans Island Lodge. There was no doubting the young ranger’s love for, and commitment to, the African bush. It shone from his hazel eyes whenever he talked about it.
    She watched as Sean’s strong, muscled arms worked the manual pump screwed into a two-hundred litre drum of diesel. He checked the oil. Low. The generator had become a greedy consumer of lubrication which probably meant it was aboutto pack up. Sean added more. Billy should have been doing this but said he didn’t have time.
    At the thought of her husband, Thea’s stomach churned with fear.
What would he say? How would he react? How could I have been so stupid?
Perhaps if she told Sean? Yes, she’d tell Sean. She needed to tell someone, get it out in the open.
    â€˜There you go,’ he said as the generator belched smoke and settled to a steady beat.
    â€˜Thank you.’ The throaty thump, thump, thump was a welcome relief. Caitlin would be returning from her game drive in about an hour with hungry tourists eager for a cooked breakfast. The British actress Gayle Gaynor and her companion would be flying in from Windhoek shortly. They’d probably need food as well. With the generator back on, Thea could stop worrying about power. ‘I . . . have you got a minute?’
    â€˜Sure.’ Sean smiled at her as he wiped his hands on a greasy rag. ‘What’s on your mind?’
    â€˜You must promise not to say a word to anyone.’
    Sean liked her voice. Her British accent had the clipped tone of the middle-to-upper class. ‘I promise.’
    â€˜I’m only telling you because . . . because I need to tell someone.’ Thea’s eyes were troubled.
    Sean had never seen her like this. ‘What is it? What’s wrong?’
    She took a deep, steadying breath.
    â€˜Can’t be that bad.’
    Her voice was small. ‘It is.’
    â€˜Billy?’ Sean queried.
    Thea shook her head.
    To Sean’s surprise, unshed tears glimmered in her beautiful blue eyes. ‘Hey! What’s the matter?’
    â€˜I’m pregnant.’
    Sean put down the rag and moved closer, placing his hands on her upper arms. ‘Thea, that’s wonderful news. Congratulations. How does Billy feel?’ The information sat, like hot lead, in the pit of his stomach.
    She was looking down, speaking quietly. ‘He doesn’t know. He’ll be furious.’ She did not look up at him.
    He wanted her in his arms, to hold her. Instead, Sean eased her away.