The Four Horsemen 3 - Famine Read Online Free

noise. Whether the guards were still there or not, there could have been other people around. He didn’t want to take the risk of being found by anyone else either. He didn’t have enough strength left to fend someone off if they chose to rob him.
    When his coughing fit ended, Ekundayo pushed himself to his feet, and staggered down from the rocks on to the trail. He dragged his feet on the ground as he stumbled in the opposite direction to the mine guards. He would try to make it to the border, and see how his situation looked when he got there.
    At what point had he become a thief? He shook his head, hoping the spinning would stop as he walked. When had he given up his integrity and turned into the very type of person he’d usually be disgusted by? His knees buckled and he fell, hitting the hard-packed dirt with a crack. He barely managed to catch himself with his hands before smacking his face on the ground.
    He’d become one of those men because of the gnawing hunger in his belly and the burning thirst in his throat. He’d chosen to take something that wasn’t his because of all the things he would never be able to afford. Mostly, he’d stolen because of the empty hopeless eyes of the children in his village whose stomachs were bloated without enough food to eat.
    Foolish and ambitious were words his grandmother had often used to describe Ekundayo. He would own up to being foolish, but he’d never really considered himself ambitious. He simply wanted something better than what he had, though he’d never have thought he’d steal for it.
    Forcing himself back on his feet, Ekundayo shoved his hand in his pocket to reassure himself the diamond was still there. It hadn’t fallen out when he’d gone down. He glanced up at the blazing sun, and licked his cracked lips. He really didn’t have a clear map in his head of where he was going. He’d never been outside of his village for any reason.
    Ekundayo didn’t know how long he’d been walking, but slowly the chill of night began to cause him to shiver. The heat of the savannah disappeared and he shuddered, wrapping his arms around his waist. He should go and find shelter, yet if he did he would sleep. He knew he could do a lot of travelling during the night when it was cooler, and those searching for him would be less likely to be out. Of course, more dangerous creatures hunted in the night.
    Lions and hyenas stalked their prey during the night, and he had nothing to defend himself with. Finding shelter until morning seemed like a wiser decision. Ekundayo wandered off the trail and through the brush, searching for a place where he would be safe for the night.
    After finding a tree with several large branches creating a platform high off the ground, Ekundayo climbed up and curled up the best he could. His hands and feet were scraped and raw. He wished he had some water or food, yet knew there wouldn’t be any around for him.
    In the morning, he would see if he could find something to drink. It had been almost a full day since he’d had water, and he swore his skin was drying from the inside out. All his muscles ached. He checked the diamond one more time, and allowed his eyes to drift shut. Hopefully, tomorrow would be easier.
* * * *
    The cries of the zebras woke Ekundayo the next morning. He gathered his thoughts around him before he stretched, remembering where he’d fallen asleep the night before. He held on to the tree trunk and stood, staring around him to see if he could spot any water.
    In the distance, the early morning sunlight glinted off the clear glass-like surface of a watering hole. Zebras, gazelles, and antelope gathered around it, and it was the herds’ calls he heard. He placed the direction of the watering hole in his mind before carefully climbing down from the tree.
    As he made his way to his destination, he kept a sharp look out for Cape buffalo, elephants, and other creatures that called the savannah their home. On foot he was vulnerable