Page 27 of Sheltering Instinct

“We're really experiencing the unusual weather here in Namibia.” Craig picked up his fork, laid it across his plate, and shoved the plate away from him, signaling the staff that he was done. “Our wet season wasn't as wet as it needed to be. There's no food for the wild animals. Then, the wild ones want to come and eat our domestic ones before we do. It’s getting prohibitively expensive to feed the domesticated ones.”

“Except for Betty.” Iris raised an emphatic brow. “Betty gets fed.”

“Despite the bounty of this meal—it’s delicious, thank you—there's certainly little food available for us humans.” Enrico loaded up his fork and let it hover in the air. “Without enough food in the stores or people’s gardens, the government had to release some of the emergency food supplies. We’ve burned through about seventy-five percent of the emergency storage.”

“When Gwen gets here, Enrico,” Iris said, “she’s taking the rest of the week for vacation. But after that, she can sit down and look at the models. I’ll bet she can come up with helpful insights for y’all over at Etosha.”

Craig turned to Reaper. “So WorldCares developed their models to steer their humanitarian efforts. What do Iniquus models say?”

Reaper’s gaze hardened. “To be honest, sir, in our lifetimes, we’re going to see increasing global instability. Weather extremes are changing the intensity of worsening water supplies and food supplies. In the United States right now, people are talking about how expensive the food is getting. But as you all know from Iris’s sister’s experience, we just had storms whip through Florida and up the East Coast. A lot of the groves were destroyed. That’s our citrus and peach supply. It’ll impact the price of food for years to come. Those financial pressures will be hardest on families with lower incomes, like our disabled communities.

Levi reached for the water carafe and poured himself a glass. “When I was over in Iraq, and some up in Syria, we saw the Syrian civil war had a lot to do with drought. The people from rural areas had to move to the cities. The cities’ infrastructures weren’t set up to support that many people.” He told Craig. “For sure, it’s not the only reason why there was conflict. I've justfound that when there are existing tensions, a spark can light a fire.”

And as he said that, Levi’s stomach lurched. He remembered clearly how Tess shivered against his body one night after waking up from one of her night terrors. She whispered her survival story that all started when a fight erupted over a Guinea hen.

The human suffering that followed was incomprehensible.

For Tess, it had been a wound that would probably never heal.

While he was away at war and saw the atrocities, he always thought about how Tess had to navigate that as an orphaned child, and his compassion was immense.

It reminded Levi that at any minute of any day, something as small as standing next to the wrong hen can change your life on a dime.

Chapter Nine

Levi

As the group finished their breakfasts, Enrico checked his watch. “I think it’s time we head out for the evolution.”

Levi felt anticipation bubble through his system. “Oh yeah! Let’s do this, brother.”

“Craig and Iris, are you coming with us?” Enrico asked as he pushed his chair under the table.

“Hell yeah, I am.” Craig scraped his chair back and stood. “Can’t wait to see what you’ve planned for today.”

Iris bustled toward the door. “Let me tell the staff where we’ll be and change into boots.”

Enrico scooped his hand in a follow-me gesture. “I brought my vehicle. The logos will get us into the training grounds without the high-dollar scrutiny you might get from your rental. It’s a ten-minute drive.”

Rounding the front of the building, Craig moved to the left side to sit shotgun. The Iniquus men climbed in, each taking a seat, leaving the one by the door free for Iris. Gripping the back of his chair, Craig pulled himself around to see the group. “You know I heard the Iniquus name for the first time a couple of weeks ago. Tidal Force is one of your tactical forces, isn’t it? That group was working over in Kenya a bit ago.”

“Yes,” Levi said. “I was attached with Tidal Force recently. We were providing security for an American corporation’s Kenyan retreat.”

Iris stepped into the van, and Goose leaned forward to slide the door shut while she reached for her seat belt.

“Yep.” Craig nodded. “I read all about it. Iris, I was saying that Iniquus made the newspaper when they saved that woman on safari from the lion attack.”

“Lion attack?” Iris asked. “Did you tell me about that?”

“Out of Kenya, Iris. It was a young woman, too. You know, they’re saying the lion attacked her because of where the woman was in her cycle. The lioness thought she was competition,” Craig said. “The young lady was pointing her camera toward some birds taking a photograph, and just out of nowhere, wham.”

“Our lions are pretty shy,” Enrico said, starting the engine. “They’re usually off in the tree line camouflaging. While the best times to see them are first light or last, it’s rare that a wildcat would be anywhere near where a person would come into contact. Even a tourist with binoculars in Etosha.” He put the van into drive and rounded back toward the road. “Our guides are amazing at finding any animal in Etosha. They can point them out, and a tourist with a zoom lens can possibly make out the shape of their head, the twitch of an ear. But their cameras can’t take a clear photo. To do that successfully, you’d have to have a massive lens or something military-grade. While it’s disappointing for tourists who’ve seen lions lying in the roadway, blocking traffic on social media feeds, I’ve never heard of that happening in Etosha. Honestly, it’s safer that way. Guides can bring open safari vehicles into the park, but no weapons are allowed. There’s no protection.”

“Good for jumping out if an elephant is stampeding,” Craig said.

“Rare.” Enrico reached up and adjusted his mirror.

“Craig, I’m just thinking about what you said, though.” Iris leaned closer to her husband. “From a biological point of view, I don’t know that I buy that about the woman’s cycle.”

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