but was careful to never let the lioness get very far ahead. She was alone, she often stopped to rest, her gait was uneven, almost a limp, probably a result of the injuries to her near shoulder. She noted with ironic pleasure that they most likely were given to her by her own daughter, who as she was told, and she shuddered at the thought, was mating with that damned lion. It was close enough to when Elizabeth had said it should be done. The moon has full, which always favoured daytime hunting leopards. This was the time, but it wasn’t the place. She needed more cover, somewhere where the lioness would be disadvantaged, somewhere she would have surprise. She needed trees.

There was no way she was going to be able to lead the lioness. Indeed she had to stay hidden. All she could do was to follow and take whatever opportunity presented itself.

It was several hours later when, tired and about to give up, Fentayli saw Falana entering a loose grove of acacias. In day it would appear mainly open, but at night, it was cover enough, and familiar cover at that. She trotted on, entering the grove from the side. She was pleasantly surprised to see the lioness resting in the pools of moonlight at the centre of the grove. Fentayli sat for a moment and listened. Through the night’s cocktail of insects, calls and cries she could not hear any pad fall. The lioness licked distractedly at her wounds. Then she got up and started to walk off slowly.

The leopardess walked confidently out into the open. Stopped and turned to the receding lioness. The lioness froze mid-pace then also turned. She carried fairly fresh and evidently painful wounds to her shoulder and flank. She twitched as she put her weight on her off forepaw, rolling minutely to her nearside. The leopardess drew down her eyelids and stared hard at the lioness. She was old, injured and alone. A glimmer of a smile crept over the leopardess’ face.

Shaha heard pawfall behind her. She halted mid-step, holding her hind paw in the air before rolling it gently down to the ground. She turned carefully to her offside, drawing herself square to the leopardess, no more than five lengths away. Shaha didn’t wonder what the leopardess wanted. She already knew, and was expecting the encounter. Indeed she had planned for it to happen.

She had scented Fentayli soon after setting out at sunset. She took a leisurely wandering route around the southern lands, pausing more often than was necessary to check for scent marks she knew were not there.         Keeping in the open, she moved off when sure she was still being followed.

Always unhurried, always with a little more unevenness in her stride than normal; she had drawn Fentayli along after picking her up below her baobab lay-up. Shaha had even thrown in a few clearly audible mumbles about not being able to find Falana now that she was with Nengwalamwe. There was nothing that called more to Fentayli than what she considered to be weakness. For Shaha it had been a surprisingly enjoyable few hours. Now, though, the night got serious.

“And where do you think you’re going?”

The leopardess stepped back, fear rippling her shoulders and raising her whiskers in a snarl. “I’m heading home, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, but what if I do mind?”  Shaha pulled herself up to stand square and sound. “You’re way out of your territory... and a bit far to be hunting, and at this time of night. Don’t even try explaining.”

A shiver of fear shook through the leopardess as she realised she might have underestimated Shaha. “I’m only doing my duty. The Queen has a right to know what is going on in her lands.”

“You’re right, but the Queen is not that mangy flea-ridden cur you’re reporting to.”  Shaha advanced slowly, her eyes fired.  “And you enjoy it.”

The leopardess backed a pace and then stood her ground.  “I do what I have to,” she said with a certain dignity.

Shaha did not deign to reply, merely moving forward slowly, tail flick-flicking. “You’re alone, as always.” She crouched down, unmoving. “You don’t do friendship do you Fentayli?”

“What?”

“You know: teamwork, cooperation, working together, family. You don’t get it do you?”

“What’s there to get? I am stronger than you. I win.”

“And Elizabeth? Is she stronger than you?”

Shaha edged forward, sliding her belly over the ground. Even the leopardess knew she was stalking. She also saw the lioness was snatching looks to each side, probably in some vain hope that someone would rescue her. There was no chance, there was no one else. She was alone, and her failure to maintain eye contact with her was weakness. Weakness that Fentayli knew she could exploit. She stared hard. Her fear subsided. She had the lioness now, she was hers at last. Ever since the lioness had injured one of her cubs she had waited for this moment: this one shining moment in the moonlight.

Shaha inched forward along the ground. She actually seemed to foolishly believe she was in cover and that she could hide under it! Fentayli stood tall, looking down in all ways at the pathetic lioness.

The moon shone down on them in piercing shafts from the canopy. Fentayli was waiting for the lioness’ head to move in to one, a couple of lengths ahead. She gathered herself for the spring:  a jumping pounce to land hard on the lioness’ back, claws out and digging in deep. If she was lucky she would break her in one, her belly was hard to the ground, her legs under her. The lioness, the crazed fool, wouldn’t have time to pull her legs out. Fentayli stared, and smiled.

Shaha’s yellow eyes caught the light, casting it to Fentayli. The lioness looked aside as she entered the pool of moonlight. With sudden explosive fury, the leopardess sprang forward; closing her jaws upon Shaha’s near shoulder then ripping back violently, re-opening recently healed wounds. The lioness cried out and snapped, but the leopardess, lighter and lithe, had already darted away. Her jaws glistened with dark blood in the moonlight. “Not so smug now are we? Careful or you’ll lose more than just fur.” 

Shaha’s eyes widened in fury, and she darted forward with frightening speed, a paw whipping out to smash the leopardess’ cheek, sending her reeling.

“What was that for? Falana’s cubs?”

“No, Mtundu’s brother.” Gasping, the lioness moved in again. The leopardess flicked over onto her back, paws flailing wildly. She rent the flesh on Shaha’s chest, tattering the fur and tearing an agonised growl from the lioness.  Twisting lithely up, using her smaller frame to advantage, Fentayli attempted to seize Shaha’s throat, teeth closing barely fur length from her neck. The lioness staggered back desperately, blood running freely from her wounds.

“Who’s in trouble now, hmm? I’ve not quite figured out yet why those other two keep you around, you old flea-bag.”  The leopardess stood up, eyes glinting as Shaha stumbled backwards, fighting her wounded shoulder.  “You’re too slow, too stiff, too weak and too old. You should have stuck to lying in the sun and let others do the fighting.” 

The muscles in the leopardess’ hindquarters tensed as she prepared to spring. Fentayli was so totally focussed on Shaha, so locked eye upon eye, so engrossed in her own success, that she had failed to notice Falana who had stalked to a few short lengths of her near hindquarter.

The leopardess leant forward to pounce but instantly felt herself falling backwards. Little pain, just numbness. When she tried to hold herself up she just kept on falling, twisting, collapsing on to the ground.

As she stared up in confusion and disbelief, Shaha fell on the nape of her neck and bit, spine crushingly hard. “Please!  I-I-I was just doing what I was told!  I have cubs to feed,” the leopardess gurgled, scrabbling at the ground with her forepaws, eyes dulling as they stared up at the uncaring moon.

Shaha hung on until the leopardess’ body slumped down. Falana, breathing hard, withdrew her foreclaws from deep in the ridge of the leopardess’ spotted back and slipped to the ground. Fentayli’s end was swift: a mercy she had afforded few of her victims.

“That’s the end of it then.”

Shaha drew back, holding her near forepaw off the ground awkwardly. “No Falana, it’s just the beginning. I said I’d meet Nengwalamwe at Silent Rocks mid-morning.”

“So?”

“So something’s going on I know it.” Shaha’s shoulder bled freely.             “Yes, Elizabeth doesn’t even pee without a plan. Mother - are you hurt badly?”

Shaha tried to put some weight on her forepaw. Pain surged through her shoulder. She lifted her paw. “I need to rest. Not here, she’s still looking at me.”

The dead leopardess looked almost as though she would wake, get up, stretch and walk off in search of a kill, but this time she was the kill. With Falana’s help she limped away to the edge of the trees. Falana returned with a tuft of fur from a lion’s mane. She dropped it alongside the sleek, delicately smooth-haired leopardess’ twisted neck. “Goodbye Fentayli, may the stars shine on all your hunts.”

A new sound cut through the din of the night - a hyena’s cackle. “Yeah, so the old dear’s got what’s comin’ to