Eddy was tired. The last few weeks have been exhausting on the reserve. They are all baffled by the sudden surge in poachers. There were always one or two a month, but now it happens almost daily.
He takes off his sweaty shirt as he gets near his home. A small structure made of wooden poles, insulated with mud and grass, with a grass roof. Just outside the door he stops and pumps the water pump a few times until water starts running into the bucket on the ground. He grabs a bar of soap from the windowsill and briefly washes himself with the ice cold water. It is refreshing in the humid heat. It hasn't rained at all this year, even though every night's humidity threatens to unleash a storm.
Still wet, he enters his meager dwelling. It's not much, but it's home. He has a bed, a small fireplace for cooking and a wooden bench next to a small bookshelf. The bed was a gift when he arrived 10 years ago. The rest he built over time.
He starts a small fire in the enclosed fireplace, Then he takes the only pot he has and fills it outside at the water pump. When he gets back inside, he hangs the pot over the flames to boil the water.
Once it boils, he pours some out in a mug for tea. He takes a can of soup from the bookshelf and plops it into the pot to warm up.
With his tea in one hand he sits down on his bed and stares at the flames whilst waiting for the soup. This is his favorite time of day. It's just getting dark. Most animals will find a place to sleep now, but others will wake up to start their nightly hunt. He can hear them in the distance, and by now he can identify all them by sound. He hears hyenas, jackals and a far off flock of nightjars.
Just before the soup is ready, he gets up to make sure his door is locked and the windows are closed tightly. With a spoon and fork he manages to pour the soup into a bowl without touching the hot can. He sits on the bed to eat, but doesn't even make it halfway before the sleep overtakes him. He puts the bowl on the floor next to his bed and is asleep as soon as he lies down.
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Written in the stars
AdventureA TwoSetViolin Fanfic set in an alternate universe where Eddy is a game warden and Brett is a veterinarian. Together they need to solve some mysteries surrounded by greed and local local superstitions. This is a work of fiction.
