The Elephant in the Room - Gemma Wellings
Authors Note: This piece was written for an assignment in my first year of university. It needed to be 1,500 words and had to be in the form of a short story. I was influenced to write about elephants in the wild to not only express my love for them, but also to make people aware of the amount of poachers and the devastating affect they have on wildlife. An estimated 100 African elephants are killed each day by poachers seeking ivory, meat and body parts (World Elephant Day, 2018). I hope you enjoy the read.
The morning sun beamed through the gap in the cream curtains, which woke Arabella up. She felt the delicate breeze from the open window and woke up to the enchanting sight of the Zimbabwean horizon. On her doorstep laid the view of a number of broad, grey elephants surrounded by long, wispy grass and Marula trees. In the distance, she could faintly see the sight of gazelles dancing in the lake. She knew this is where she longed to be.
She walked downstairs and sat at a long wooden table in an antique room, fitted with long transparent windows, which enabled Arabella and the fellow volunteers of the elephant conservation to admire the view. As it was everybody’s first morning together, it was only natural to share their personal backgrounds and interests with one another, whilst munching on their breakfast.
A middle-aged woman with straight black hair stood up and soft wrinkles surrounded her eyes as she smiled. She introduced herself. “I’m Harper. I’m from New Zealand and am married with two children. I’m proud to say that I’m volunteering here to inspire my children to care for animals and for nature. Animals have always had a place in my heart, but I hope I won’t get too homesick being away from my family.”
It soon became Arabella’s turn to speak. She took a deep breath and reluctantly stood up. “My name is Arabella, I come from London and have recently graduated from university. I am here to travel and to fulfil my passion of saving animals. I grew up travelling around different countries during each of my summer holidays which is where my love for elephants really began. They have always mesmerized me.” She quickly sat back down, nervously twiddling her curly, brown hair around her fingers.
One by one the group continued to share their personal stories until the conservation leader entered. He shook their hands and greeted the volunteers with a huge smile which lit up the room.
‘For those who don’t know me already, I am Tawanda.’
He thanked the volunteers for coming to help the conservation and informed them of the ongoing crisis.
“I’m sure you are all aware that poaching is a huge and continuous crime in Africa and this country suffers the most. Our job is to keep these animals safe and to rehabilitate them until they are ready to be released back into the wild. I hope that you will enjoy your time here and will return in the near future.”
Tawanda continued and directed the volunteers to meet the elephants up close.
Excitement grew with each step Arabella took towards the elephants. Her heart melted as she saw the grandest elephant, Nandi, intertwine her trunk with a young calf. Nandi continued wrapping herself around him, offering a sense of love and protection. Arabella slowly walked up to the pair and gently put her hand out to stroke their tough, wrinkly skin. The elephants were hesitant at first. Nandi kept the calf far away whilst she investigated Arabella. After a couple of minutes sniffing, Nandi reached her trunk out to Arabella, who then picked up some bananas and fed them one at a time.
The sun radiated on Arabella’s back which comforted her as she was bathing the youngest calf named Thato. He was full of energy, running and rolling around and constantly spraying water over her. She couldn’t help but laugh hysterically. She had never experienced such joy from an animal.
“You are such a troublemaker!”, she laughed.
Thato responded by play fighting with his trunk and nudging her whilst trumpeting. He called for Nandi to join in the fun in which she instantly ran over. He would run through her tall, chunky legs and hide beneath her, leaving Nandi to search for him using her long trunk.
They continued to play until the clear, blue sky transformed into a yellow and orange gradient forming across the horizon.
As night came, the volunteers reassembled in the basic dining room for dinner and mingled a bit more. New friendships began to form. Arabella started talking to two young girls named Alice and Emily who were also in their early twenties but were from different parts of the world.
“I can’t believe how great today has been, I don’t want it to end. I don’t even want to leave here!”, Alice exclaimed.
Emily agreed and thought of a way they can make the most of their time.
“How about we explore the towns of Zimbabwe and see what there is to do tonight?”
The three girls all agreed with excitement. They put on their make-up, styled their hair and chose their nicest outfit to wear then headed off to the country’s capital, Harare.
Getting out of the taxi, they hear the buzzing atmosphere of the nightlife, smell the local markets and head towards the sky scrapers.
“Should we find a bar to get some drinks?”, Emily asked.
They all nodded.
On their journey, they found a local jazz bar and ordered some exotic cocktails.
“To Zimbabwe!” Arabella announced.
Emily and Alice joined in and excitedly tapped their glasses together.
From a distance, a mysterious man was staring at Arabella. He brushed through his blonde hair and made his way over to speak to her.
“Have we met? You look familiar”, the strange man asked with a deep Australian accent.
“I don’t believe we have”
“Did you want to join us for a drink?” Alice blurted.
“Thank you, that’s very kind.”
The man took off his black suit-jacket, revealing a white, long-sleeved shirt with the top two buttons undone.
“I am Ryan, you girls don’t look like you’re from around here? Are you on holiday?”, he continued.
“Something like that”, Arabella replied, still weary of who this man was.
“What about you?” Alice eagerly responded
“I do business out here.”
Time flew whilst they were drinking their excitement in cocktails and eventually Ryan charmed Arabella enough to exchanged numbers.
The next morning was more beautiful than the last. The sun seemed brighter, the earth felt warmer, but nothing beat watching Nandi and Thato lay and cuddle together. Wherever Nandi went, Thato would follow, grabbing Nandi’s tail to help him keep up. Their relationship was like no other. Arabella could have watch them all day and she did.
Tawanda noticed Arabella’s engagement in these animals and walked up next to her.
“Thato’s mother was killed by poachers when he was just a few weeks old, so we had to take him in. Nandi took him under her wing ever since and has filled the void of his mother. Now they are inseparable”
Her heart started to sink for Thato but still remained silent.
After saying goodnight to Thato and Nandi, Arabella retired to her room. She had been texting Ryan telling him about the elephants and how much she loves being there.
“They sound lovely. I would love to hear more about this conservation! Would you like to meet tonight?”. He texted back.
Arabella agreed and met him back in Harare but this time by herself.
After talking for hours, laughing and giggling about their past and the things they have in common, the topic moves on to Ryan.
“So why did you decide to become a businessman in Zimbabwe rather than Australia?” Arabella asked.
“I love the area and the culture, but the business and money I earn here is a lot greater than anywhere else in the world. There is more of a demand here.” he replied.
“What area of business are you in, if you don't mind me asking?”
Ryan hesitated. His eye sight was beginning to blur from the alcohol in his bloodstream.
“Listen, it's a huge secret. I trust you and see something in you."
He reached to Arabella's face and tucked her curls behind her ears. He leaned in and whispered to her.
"You are a smart woman, so you will understand. I'm in the animal business.”
Arabella flirtatiously giggled and looked into his eyes with confusion.
"Tell me more about this animal business, I'm intrigued..."
"Well, let's just say I'm a resourcer"
Arabella slowly sips her drink and lightens up
"Oh okay! So how does that link to animals?"
Ryan downs the remainder of his drink in one gulp and slams it on the table.
"Well darling, I take parts from animals and sell it. The valuable parts what we need. If you think about it, without me people wouldn't be able to live in luxury. They wouldn't be able to have fancy ivory piano keys. It's a great paying job. It really turned my life around."
Arabella froze in shock. Disgusted with not only him but herself that she spent her time with this murderer.
“Come on, grow up they’re just animals. I need to earn a living”
She remains breathless over what she is hearing.
He watches her face transform from pale white which descends to fiery red. Too angry to talk, she throws the remainder of her drink over him and storms out.
Laying in her bed, watching the sun come out from under the earth, across the horizon just reminds Arabella that she didn’t catch any sleep that night. The thought didn’t leave her mind.
She just sat there watching Nandi and Thato play, thinking about Thato’s poor mother. Arabella kept this to herself and spent the day avoiding Alice and Emily. They just carried on with their duties.
Nandi and Thato ran as far as their legs can take them. They ran towards the lake to play in the mud and behind the moon started to arise.
Towanda wrapped a blanket around Arabella and sits down next to her. He noticed that she was gazing at the pair.
“They’re beautiful aren’t they” he said.
Arabella doesn’t reply still sickened with guilt and betrayal.
“It’s getting cold now, I think it’s time for supper”.
He offered his hand to help her up and together they joined the rest of the team at the table.
The mood lightened over dinner. Laughs and mutters filled the room. Everyone had huge appetites after another eventful day of helping the elephants.
Suddenly the scorching sound of an elephant’s immense trumpet was heard.
The room turned into silence,
“That isn’t just any trumpet” she thought.
It is Nandi.
She runs out to the elephants and see’s Nandi laying on the floor and Thato whelping next to her.
Behind the elephant’s is a silhouette of a man with a gun.
It is Ryan.