Unexpected Turn of Events

The last thing I saw before my private tour-guide's Chevy Traverse slid off the road was a herd of elephants tramping along with their calves. I awakened in the back seat with a bump on the head and blood dripping down my face. I called for Adisa, but he was slumped over the steering wheel unconscious. I reached over and felt for a pulse. He was still breathing. Lightheaded, I managed to dial my cell phone for help.

“Damn, no service.”

I flung the phone back on the seat, grabbed a bottle of water and opened the car door. The sun beamed down and the heat took its toll on my body. I leaned against the truck and gulped the water. We were somewhere south of the Sahara Desert. Someone would find us once we didn’t return by a certain time. Some vacation. So much for relaxation in Africa.

Several hours later after dozing off, Adisa was still out cold and the sun began to go down, but the heat remained unbearable. “Stupid Tom. Had to wear long pants,” I said out loud. I threw the empty water bottle across the desert and punched the truck. My knuckles bled, but I didn’t care. I needed to get out of that heat. Sometime during my freak out, I heard a roar. I looked ahead and it was a lion. In the dim sunlight the lion appeared grey in color and it had its eyes fixed on me. Its mouth opened wide showing off its sharp teeth. I remembered Adisa had a hunting rifle in his truck, if only I could get to it. Snarling, taunting me, the lion sidled closer. I slowly opened the door to the truck and the lion proceeded faster. I fumbled for the rifle, cursing and praying simultaneously.

“Where the hell are you?” I yelled out loud.

Unexpected Turn of Events

After what seemed like an eternity, I found the rifle under the back seat. I grabbed it and just as the lion charged towards me, I fired the shot. It moaned as it toppled to the ground. I fired another shot between its eyes and the lion lay silent. I dropped the gun to the ground and slumped next to the lion’s corpse. I don’t know why, but I felt the impulse to rub its mane. This was not my first lion kill and it would not be the last.