Journey to Freedom Read online

  Contents

  Cover

  About the Book

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Preface

  1 The Animals Go

  2 But Two Remain

  3 Lorna Alone

  4 Sisters Apart

  5 Supremacy

  6 Into Africa

  7 Hunter

  8 . . . And Hunted

  9 Injury

  10 A Friendly Act?

  11 Back to the Zoo

  12 Airlift

  13 Recovery

  14 Roots

  About the Author

  Also by Colin Dann

  Copyright

  About the Book

  Lingmere Zoo in the north of England is about to close. A home for the zoo’s twin lions, Lorna and Ellen, must be found – or else they will be put down. The newspapers take up the cause and a sanctuary in Africa is found that will care for the lions until they are able to fend for themselves. But on the way, Lorna bolts and Ellen is off to Africa on her own. Colin Dann’s tale follows the fate of both animals on either side of the world – Ellen’s loneliness and confusion in a new home, in a new country, without her beloved sister; and Lorna’s adventures as she gains in confidence and discovers her true nature roaming the English countryside.

  For Janet

  Preface

  It’s always sad when a zoo fails and has to close down. It’s sad for the owners who have such high hopes at the beginning. It’s sad for the staff who are left without a job. Most of all, it’s sad for the animals who suddenly lose their home and perhaps face the prospect of never having another one. Lingmere Zoo in the north of England was one such zoo. It had been staring closure in the face for a long time. It had never been very prosperous; it was too small, with too few exhibits to be of much interest to anyone. You could walk round it in under an hour and most people did. Lingmere relied too much on visits from holiday-makers so that, off season, it scarcely ticked over. As animals died off, they weren’t replaced. Despite that, it eventually cost more to feed and look after the remainder than the zoo earned from its visitors and so it had to close.

  The Animals Go

  The animals were aware that their little world was changing. To begin with, suddenly there were no visitors. They were used to little throngs of people moving around the grounds and frequently stopping to stare, and although most of them ignored the people anyway the animals somehow felt uneasy when there were no visitors at all. The zoo was strangely, eerily quiet. The animals themselves made less noise.

  In the lion enclosure there were just two lionesses, Lorna and Ellen. They were twins, and they had the best view of the rest of the zoo. During their habitual roaming around their paddock’s perimeter they could see most of the other enclosures and their occupants, and they noticed when the first cage became empty. Then, day by day, they watched the gradual disappearance of their fellow inmates. The lucky ones were transferred to other zoos and collections where homes had been found for them, but many were less lucky. Unwanted, unfit or old animals were removed from their cages and humanely destroyed. There were no homes for these poor creatures.

  Ellen was nervous. She looked across to the honey badger’s enclosure, the closest to her own on one side. He and the lionesses were friends; they had been neighbours since the sisters were cubs. ‘Are you still there?’ Ellen called. ‘Ratel, are you still there?’ She saw no movement, but she continued to call.

  ‘He’s probably asleep,’ Lorna grumbled. ‘You know he likes the night-time best.’

  ‘I’ll wake him up then,’ said Ellen. She put her face close to the perimeter fence, opened her jaws wide and roared twice.

  Lorna, who had been lying comfortably on her side, got up slowly and yawned. She watched for signs of the honey badger without much interest.

  Ellen cried, ‘There he is!’

  The little black and white animal had run to his fence. He had a stout stocky body and a large head, and when he stretched up to grasp the wire links with his powerful foreclaws his thick hide hung loose. ‘Call me?’ he barked.

  ‘Just to see you hadn’t gone like the others,’ Ellen explained.

  ‘Gone? Gone where? What others?’

  ‘The koalas, the civet, the owls and the otters . . . all disappeared. Their cages are empty,’ Ellen said.

  ‘We don’t know where they’ve gone,’ Lorna added, coming up alongside her sister.

  ‘Oh, yes – I’ve missed the owls’ cries,’ the honey badger said. ‘Are we all to go, then?’

  ‘Who’s to know?’ Lorna grunted.

  ‘And where are all the people?’ the badger asked, puzzled.

  ‘Why should they come if there’s nothing to look at?’ Lorna said shrewdly.

  ‘Don’t they want to look at you any more? You lions were always the favourites.’ He wasn’t at all overawed by the two huge beasts, whom he remembered from their cub days. ‘The rest of us are small fry by comparison.’

  No one had any answers. The honey badger dropped back on all fours and the three animals pondered their uncertain future.

  ‘Whatever happens, I hope we won’t be separated,’ Ellen said earnestly to Lorna. She rubbed her head against her sister’s tawny shoulder. ‘We’d miss you too, Ratel, if we didn’t have you nearby.’

  The honey badger sighed. He had been alone in his cage since his mate died. ‘Always hungry, always lonely,’ he muttered.

  Lorna caught the first part. ‘Always hungry?’ she echoed with an irritable roar. ‘Don’t we know it? There’s never enough to eat. The koalas and the others must have died of starvation.’

  The next day there were more empty cages, and the day after that too. Lorna and Ellen lay on the grass in the shade of the one sickly tree in their enclosure, watching for a sign of their keeper, Joel. It was a hot day, and they had not been fed. Their stomachs rumbled repeatedly. Every so often one of them lurched to her feet and padded to a rather dirty little pond to drink, before returning to the tree and slumping down again. Joel failed to show up. Late in the afternoon they were woken from a doze by Ratel. He was in a fever of excitement.

  ‘Lions! Lions!’ he cried as he ran up and down in front of the link fence. ‘The animals are being killed! We’re all to be killed!’ He couldn’t keep still.

  Lorna and Ellen were quickly on their feet. ‘How do you know that? How do you know?’ they roared.

  ‘I saw the humans catching the animals in their cages,’ the badger cried, ‘and then – and then – pressing them down and stinging them until they were quite still and limp and – and – taking them away.’

  ‘My, you’re really jumpy,’ said Lorna as the honey badger continued to run and leap about.

  ‘We’ve got to get out, we’ve got to get out,’ he growled in reply. ‘We’re in a trap!’

  ‘Calm down, Ratel,’ said Lorna. She was the bolder of the two sisters and wasn’t easily alarmed. ‘You can’t be sure they were being killed. There’s no cause for panic yet. If the day comes when they stop feeding us altogether, then we’ll know we’re in danger.’ A mighty rumble from Ellen’s stomach gave emphasis to her sister’s words. ‘And then woe betide any creature who strays into our space,’ Lorna finished.

  The honey badger was quieter now. He moved away to a more secluded spot, and the lions lay down again. All three animals remained alert for the feeding cart. Just before dusk, it seemed almost as an afterthought, food was brought. As usual the badger kept out of sight until the keeper had gone on his way. Then he wolfed down his provisions and hid himself again as the man returned on his round.

  Joel was now the sole keeper retained at Lingmere. The zoo’s business was being wound up, but Joel was trying to persuade the owners to allow Lorna and Ellen
to stay until someone offered them another home. He had looked after the lionesses since they were babies and felt a strong attachment to them. Sometimes he supplemented their feed out of his own pocket. However, the chances of rehoming them were slim. Every zoo had its lion quotient and two extra lionesses were not wanted anywhere. So the sisters’ days were numbered unless a new home was found for them soon.

  The days flicked past and the last possible date for resettlement crept closer. All the other animals, except for the honey badger, had been disposed of. He had been promised a place elsewhere, but at the last minute there had been a change of heart. Now, regrettably, he would end his days at Lingmere. The zoo’s owners had no option but to put him in the hands of the vet.

  There was now almost total silence in the zoo grounds. Only the occasional roar of frustration as the lions waited for food punctured the quiet. It was evening when the vet arrived, the time of day when the badger was at his most active. He was not easily caught. Despite his size, he was a powerful animal and Joel and the vet had had a hard time blocking off the escape route to the animal’s underground burrow and cornering him against the fence. The badger resorted to a favourite means of defence, and produced an overpowering odour from a special gland near his tail. The men stepped back, rocked by the incredibly potent smell. The badger scuttled away and a second chase began around the cage.

  ‘He should know you by now,’ the vet panted. ‘Can’t you do something with him?’

  ‘He’s a tricky creature,’ Joel replied. ‘To tell you the truth I find the lions easier than this one.’ He made a dive and got the badger pinned down, but holding him was another matter. The animal was surprisingly strong and Joel needed all his protective clothing to avoid injury from the huge claws and teeth. The vet rushed forward with his hypodermic needle, ready for a hasty injection, but the badger’s skin was so tough that the needle fractured. The vet swore.

  ‘We’ll have to try and get him to the lab,’ he said. ‘I’ll need another needle.’

  The two men thought they had got a firm hold on the difficult animal. They reached the path outside the cage and set off for the main building. The badger squirmed desperately. All at once he made his body twist violently inside his very loose skin and wrenched himself free from the men’s grip. He dropped to the ground and ran off into some bushes inside the grounds. Dusk enveloped him and the men knew they were beaten.

  ‘He may not go far,’ said Joel. ‘We can’t do anything until the morning.’

  The vet sighed and shrugged his shoulders. ‘Is it a dangerous animal?’

  ‘No; at least, not to people.’

  ‘What news of the lions?’

  ‘No one’s come forward. I’ve written to some newspapers to see if any of the tabloids might take up the cudgels for them.’

  ‘Good idea,’ said the vet. ‘Did you tell them the lions are at risk?’

  ‘You bet,’ said Joel. ‘I told them Lingmere Zoo wanted the lions to be taken to a wildlife sanctuary in Africa – perhaps eventually released into the wild – rather than see two young and healthy animals destroyed, but that there were no funds available for that kind of project.’

  ‘That should hook one of them,’ the vet commented. ‘Well done, Joel. If I were you, I’d follow up those letters with some phone calls. Stir up their consciences. Tell them Lorna and Ellen have only days to live!’

  But Two Remain

  Away from his enclosure with its concrete-filled trench and chicken-wire shield, the honey badger was able to tunnel his way to freedom during the night. The surrounding countryside, which was well wooded, swallowed him up. No search was mounted. The chances of finding the animal were considered to be minimal and the badger was officially regarded as lost. The lionesses called for him in vain.

  ‘Whatever will happen to us?’ Ellen asked her sister morosely. ‘We’re on our own here now.’

  Lorna slumped against the base of the tree and stared out across the empty zoo. ‘I have a feeling,’ she said, ‘we’re going to find out very soon.’

  Two days later the uneasy silence at Lingmere was abruptly broken. Joel’s strategy had worked and a journalist and photographer from a national newspaper arrived to interview the keeper and the zoo owners. The lionesses were photographed looking forlorn and abandoned and their story was published the next day. It told of the plight of the lonely lions, condemned to an early death because no other zoo would offer them refuge. There was tremendous public interest. Television crews visited Lingmere and Ellen and Lorna were filmed for the evening news bulletins. The sisters were unsettled by the sudden appearance of these eager people after so long a period of quiet. They roared nervously and their distress was there for all to see and hear on the TV screen. They became a national concern and the newspaper grabbed the opportunity and rode to their rescue, promising to undertake the transfer of the lionesses to a suitable sanctuary in Africa. No expense would be spared and, effectively, Ellen and Lorna were adopted by the paper. Joel would be retained to oversee their welfare during their journey and resettlement. It was hoped that eventually the lionesses could be prepared to fend for themselves. The ultimate goal was to release them into one of the great African game parks where they could roam free. Meanwhile their diet improved. The newspaper wanted them to look in the peak of condition whilst they were in its care.

  Joel was delighted with the turn of events. He knew he couldn’t have planned things better: he had saved the Lingmere lions and he was rightly proud of himself. He spent more time with Ellen and Lorna, talking to them about their future as he watched them eating or resting.

  The lionesses noticed their keeper’s brighter mood and they appreciated the extra rations. They felt more confident themselves.

  ‘I don’t think we have anything more to worry about,’ Lorna said as she watched Joel cautiously clearing up bones and other debris from their enclosure. ‘We may be alone here but we’ve never fed better.’

  Ellen licked a paw and rubbed it over her face and whiskers. Lorna’s words had reminded her of the honey badger’s disappearance. ‘I do wonder what happened to Ratel,’ she said. ‘I miss him.’

  ‘So do I,’ said Lorna. ‘He was a chirpy little creature and always ready to chat.’

  ‘Do you think we’ll ever see him again?’

  ‘How can we?’ Lorna returned. ‘He’s gone for good but we’re not going anywhere.’

  She couldn’t have been more wrong, of course. Arrangements were in hand with carriers for the collection of the lions and their flight to the African continent. A sanctuary for orphaned and injured game in East Africa had given its support to the scheme. Its staff were well qualified to care for big cats and had the necessary experience for the difficult task of training them to catch and kill their own prey. The place was called Kamenza. A countdown to the day of departure began in the newspaper.

  Lorna and Ellen continued innocently to enjoy the new regime. Joel, always kindly and calm, had earned their trust. He understood the sisters: how close they were, how they relied on each other’s company, showing affection in so many small ways. He loved to see them lying together in the sun, one often with a paw draped over the other’s back for reassurance. He really cared about their welfare and he was keen for their transfer to be carried out smoothly.

  The all-important day dawned. A truck arrived containing two large crates. The lionesses first had to be immobilised with darts bearing a muscle relaxant. Then they would be tranquillised and loaded into the crates. The operation was simple enough and Joel was confident there would be no hitch. He advised the specialist vet that Ellen should be darted first as she was the more likely of the two to fret if she saw her sister disabled. The man took aim and scored a direct hit at once. Ellen yelped and leapt away, but the drug soon took effect and she fell on her side. Lorna was immediately suspicious and roared defiance. The vet reloaded his air rifle, and Lorna bounded off. The vet tried to keep her in his sights.

  ‘Quickly,’ Joel called to the
carriers’ men. ‘While she’s over there we can get Ellen outside.’ With great care the limp body of Ellen was lifted and carried out of the enclosure, and she was soon safely inside one of the crates.

  Lorna became frantic. With her sister removed, she was terrified of being left entirely alone. Roaring continually, she leapt around the paddock. The vet tried another shot but it was wasted. There was now a real problem, for the noise of the gun had frightened her further, and she was now in such a panic that she would be extremely difficult to hit. She leapt blindly for the branches of the single tree, which seemed to her dazed mind to be a sort of escape route, and climbed upwards.

  Joel held his head in his hands. ‘It won’t bear her weight!’ he shouted anxiously.

  The vet tried desperately to load a third dart and take aim. His hands shook slightly. The branches of the tree bowed beneath Lorna’s heavy body. She nearly lost her grip and tried to scramble higher still. The vet fired again and missed. The branches cracked.

  ‘She’s falling!’ Joel bellowed. The men jumped clear.

  From her high point, Lorna lost her balance and made one final leap to save herself as the tree’s topmost branches bent and shattered. She crashed to the ground beyond the enclosure fence, landing like a domestic cat on all fours. She raced away at once, instinctively heading for the open gate of the zoo compound where the truck had entered.

  For a moment or two Joel, the vet and the other men stood still, frozen to the spot by the horror of the situation. The vet broke the silence. ‘Come on, Joel. The Land-Rover! We’ve got to get after her before it’s too late! We may be able to get close enough for one last shot.’ They dashed for the vehicle, while the other men milled about uncertainly.

  Lorna headed for cover, still frightened and running at full stretch. She saw a clump of trees which marked the edge of the forest. To reach them she had to cross the access road, and then a field, bordered by a low fence, in which sheep were grazing placidly in the sunshine. Lorna crossed the empty road and vaulted the fence with ease. The sheep scattered to all corners of the field as the huge beast plunged through their midst. The Land-Rover entered the field through a gate and hurtled after her. The vet leant out of one side of the vehicle, his rifle poised.