The Greystoke Legacy (17 page)

Robbie was running out of options. Maybe Archie's grim theory was correct? He looked at Esmée and slouched, defeated.

“You don't believe I'm right, do you?”

“I don't think it's no poachers took her,” said Esmée shaking her head.

Robbie detected the unusual way she'd said that. “Who did then?”

Esmée smiled. She was an educated woman and knew Robbie would instantly scoff at any suggestion of the supernatural. However, Esmée was wise enough never to discount anything at face value. She believed there were many creatures out there still waiting to be discovered. Over the years she had witnessed many a scientific party find new plants, insects, fish, birds, lizards, and even mammals.

“Who did?” repeated Robbie impatiently.

Esmée sighed. “You gotta broaden your mind, Mister Canler. Open it to unusual possibilities.”

Robbie harrumphed and rubbed his eyes. He was still fatigued and in no mood to listen to superstitious theories. “Please, Esmée. You of all people? The ghost?”

Esmée's dark eyes studied him. “The White Ape. I seen it. Afore I come here. Saw it in the trees, watchin'. . .” There was a faraway look in her eyes as she recalled. “Didn't think it meant no harm.” She looked directly at Robbie and smiled. “I believe Jane is safe.”

Robbie quickly folded the map up and slipped it into his back pocket. He gave Esmée a disapproving look. “Well, I don't and I'm not going to stop looking for her.” He stomped toward the jeep, intent on fixing it before nightfall. He didn't know what he could do, but he was determined not to stop searching for Jane.

•••

As the sun climbed in the sky, Tarzan had had enough of the river and beckoned for Jane to follow him into the canopy. He easily caromed between a pair of trunks and shot up the tree. Jane tried to replicate his actions but ended up flat on her back, laughing hard.

She clambered up the tree, grasping at every handhold. It was slow going and Tarzan watched with an unimpressed yawn. After several minutes of scrambling, Tarzan grew bored and hoisted her up the branches with a single arm. On the relative safety of a wide branch he demonstrated leaping from slender limb to crooked branch. He made it look easy with his perfect sense of balance.

Jane silently girded herself, then skipped to a nearby branch as he had done. It was less than two feet away but she landed with flailing arms and felt herself toppling forward. Tarzan's reassuring hand grabbed her by the scruff of her shirt and set her upright.

“You think too much,” he said, tapping his head. Jane laughed, not quite following his meaning. “Trust movements. Be strong.”

He jumped to another branch without any effort and beckoned her to follow. Jane watched fearfully—it was a longer jump than last time. The ground was only twelve feet away, but it was enough to break a limb or kill her if she landed on her head. She licked her lips and tried to put the negative thoughts out of her mind. She focused on the jump, visualizing exactly where she would land. Then she ran for it.

Jane sprang over the gap and landed perfectly. The branch swayed violently from the impact. She crouched, gripping the wood tightly and the bucking limb came to a gentle stop. She slowly stood, arms stretched out like a tightrope walker, relieved that she'd actually done it.

Tarzan was keen to continue the lesson and for Jane it felt as if they were in the trees for hours, jumping from one trunk to another. Every time she lost her balance, Tarzan was there to help her. Little by little she was improving, as a confidence that she'd never known she possessed took control. Compared to Tarzan she was a lumbering infant, but her fear of falling was soon replaced by adrenalin as they climbed higher in the canopy.

She followed Tarzan to a branch that curled sharply up like a “U” and provided a secure place to sit, her bare feet dangling sixty feet above the ground. She prodded her soles. They were becoming calloused and hard as they adapted to the rigors of the jungle.

Tarzan peered from the tree, his brow furrowed against the sun. He didn't move, apart from his nostrils, which flared as he sniffed the air. Jane was thoughtful as she watched him.

“Does the name ‘Greystoke' mean anything to you?” Tarzan didn't respond. She wondered if it was a person, place, or a company. “What do you remember about coming to the jungle?”

Tarzan broke his gaze and looked at her for a long moment. “There was nothing before. Tarzan always here. Come.”

He started to move, then doubled back for Jane. He placed her arms around his neck and mimed she should hold tight.

“Where are we going?”

“Down.”

Jane couldn't get her next question out before Tarzan jumped from the tree. She screamed. It felt like freefall as branches furiously whipped past them. Tarzan clutched at them for a second before they were torn from his hand, slowing them down until he could grip a sturdy bough. They swung around it in a complete circle before Tarzan let go and landed like a cat, using both arms and legs to cushion the fall. Jane ungraciously slipped from his back and splashed into soft mud.

“OW! What were you thinking?” she said, spitting mud from her mouth. She stood up and waggled a finger at Tarzan. “What was so urgent that you . . .” Her voice trailed off as she followed his gaze.

They stood on the banks of a river. She couldn't claim it was familiar because they all looked the same to her. The mound of earth Tarzan was looking at was obviously man-made. A bamboo cross lay flat on the ground. It had fallen when some animal had started digging the dirt away to get to the flesh beneath.

Tarzan approached without any signs of fear and Jane reluctantly followed. She caught a glimpse of the corpse and quickly looked away. But that glimpse had been enough to burn into her memory. The corpse's head and upper torso had been uncovered and half chewed by a jungle scavenger. Insects crawled over the body and Jane now fully understood Tarzan's ambiguous statement about the dead helping the living. She was also certain she recognized the semi-devoured face as one of the loggers.

An overwhelming sense of guilt struck her. She had been lost in a world of natural wonder, so driven to try to understand who Tarzan was and how he had ended up here that she'd lost sight of the fact that her father must be worried to death. People were searching for her and the dead man indicated some had even died because of it.

“You've got to take me back,” she suddenly said.

Tarzan made no effort to cover the dead man with dirt. A day ago, Jane would have thought that was because he possessed no human emotions. Now she understood it was because that's the way things were in the jungle—another forager would simply uncover the body again.

“Home?” said Tarzan.

Jane hesitated. From his tone, she understood he meant with his band of apes. While she no longer feared him, Jane was still unsure if he would allow her to leave.

“
My
home. The camp where I lived with my father.”

Tarzan snarled. “Murderers!”

“No!”

“Kill trees, kill jungle. Tarzan's jungle,” growled Tarzan with a wild look in his eyes.

Jane took a step toward him, determined not to show fear. Strength was a quality Tarzan respected and understood so she laid a firm hand on his arm.

“They don't mean to do that. They just don't understand. I can talk to them, I promise. My father's a good man. He doesn't mean you any harm.”

Tarzan looked at Jane for a long moment. He nodded and his exasperation was replaced by sadness.

“Jane leave. Jane not come back.”

“Of course I'll come back!” She would have said anything to see her father again, but as she spoke the words she was surprised to realize she meant them. In the space of two nights Jane's opinion of the jungle had changed. It was hostile, unforgiving, but it was also beautiful and amazing. She couldn't find the words to describe her mixed feelings.

“D'Arnot left. Not come back.”

“I'll come back to see you. I'm not going to die!” She regretted the clumsy comment the moment she said it, but Tarzan didn't react. “I need to know if my father's OK. He'll be missing me.”

Tarzan nodded in understanding and for a fleeting moment, Jane saw a vulnerable, handsome young man beneath his impossibly muscular body. He had endured hardships she couldn't imagine and now she was about to abandon him. Once again, Jane's feelings were in turmoil. She couldn't bear to see the sadness on Tarzan's face so she forced a smile and squeezed his arm. It was like clutching concrete.

“Tarzan . . . you've saved me a dozen times already. You're my friend.”

Tarzan smiled, gripping her shoulder hard enough to bruise. Jane bore the pain with a smile.

“You Tarzan's friend.”

“So you'll take me back?” asked Jane rubbing her shoulder.

Tarzan nodded then cupped his hands around his mouth and bellowed a long-drawn-out bass. The birds and monkeys ceased their chatter and the forest fell deathly silent. Tarzan cocked his head this way and that in search of a response. Then he roared again.

A deeper call reply echoed through the trees. Tarzan smiled and called again. He was answered almost immediately. Now Jane could hear the snapping of branches as something approached. Something big.

Tarzan looked at the trees expectantly and Jane hated herself for cowering slightly behind him.

“What is it?” she whispered.

Louder cracks as wood was torn underfoot. Jane watched with wide eyes as the trees shook, leaves cascading from their boughs. The ground trembled and Tarzan grinned.

“Tantor!”

A huge elephant trotted from the jungle, trees parting around it. On seeing Tarzan it let out a huge trumpet and reared on to its hind legs before splashing down in the shallow waters of the river's edge. Tarzan ran to Tantor and stroked its trunk as the animal thrust it into the water to drink.

Jane could hear Tarzan making soothing sounds as he scratched the mighty forest elephant's rounded ear. The elephant's jaw was long and narrow, with a pair of short tusks pointing down. Tantor didn't seem worried when Jane approached and ran a hand over his flank. It felt like tough leather with fine hairs dispersed across it.

“Hello Tantor,” she said. The elephant was huge, much larger than forest elephants usually grew. Now she understood how Tarzan had managed to steal a freshly hewn tree in the dead of night.

“Tantor will take you home,” said Tarzan patting the beast's flank. He barked a guttural command and the elephant crooked his knee. Tarzan used that to hoist Jane onto Tantor's back, then jumped up and sat behind her. He belched another nonsensical command, and the great pachyderm began marching along the riverbank.

Once Jane had got used to the unusual swaying sensation, she started to enjoy the ride. There was no need for Tarzan to guide the animal, as he was familiar with every path through the jungle. Tantor left the riverbank and pushed along trails in the undergrowth that Jane would have thought were too narrow for such bulk, but Tantor took each step with care. Many times Tarzan and Jane were forced to duck as they passed under low-hanging branches.

The sun cruised across the sky and Tantor often stopped to pick some delicacy from the forest floor or trees as they passed, using his prehensile trunk to pluck the morsels. During those times, Tarzan would reach out and pull fruits from the trees. Jane began to wonder just how long her stomach could stand a fruit diet.

After a while she felt her eyes begin to close as Tantor's gentle motion lulled her to sleep. A few times she woke to find she was leaning against Tarzan, but she felt secure enough to doze almost instantly as fatigue gripped her.

Jane had no idea how long had passed when she was awoken as Tantor splashed across the river. The water came to the bottom of Jane's feet, but they were soon across.

They continued on as the sun sank below the horizon and cast its last golden hue over the land. She turned to speak to Tarzan but was surprised to discover he wasn't there. She looked around in confusion. Had he fallen? Tantor didn't seem to have noticed as he plowed through the undergrowth and emerged in a wide clearing. Dozens of people stared at her in disbelief as the elephant came to a stop. It was now too dark to make out any faces.

“Jane?”

Jane recognized Robbie's voice as he pushed through the awed loggers. His face was lit with a broad smile.

“JANE'S BACK!” he yelled.

Archie bolted from his shack and stared at his daughter astride the elephant with momentary shock before he raced forward.

Tantor raised his knee, allowing Jane to step down and she ran into the crushing embrace of her father. He didn't say a word, instead he cried with relief.

Robbie ruffled her hair and treated her to a sheepish grin. “We missed ya.”

Clark squeezed her arm. “Welcome back, kiddo.”

Jane was overwhelmed with emotions from the reunion and welcomed her father's embrace for several long minutes.

Robbie looked her up and down. “Are you OK? What happened?”

Jane playfully punched his arm. “Of course I'm all right. Thanks. You won't believe where I've been!”

She turned to introduce Tantor—but the elephant had silently vanished back into the jungle. Jane turned to follow, hoping to see Tarzan standing at the tree line, but now the jungle once again looked dark and foreboding.

Her gaze swept the trees as arms wrapped around her and she was guided to the bar, numerous voices asking questions.

She couldn't spot Tarzan and wondered if that was the last she would see of her mysterious savior.

T
wo days had passed since Jane's return and the camp had settled back to normality. Jane's story about being saved by the strange man who lived with gorillas was greeted with polite nods and smiles. She couldn't help but notice the skeptical looks that passed between her listeners. It didn't take long for her to realize she wasn't being taken seriously.