The Ghost at Doringkloof

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The gully down which Lennie took them was much steeper than the one to Jacob's Slide and Ladder. It was also littered with loose stones which moved as soon as they were touched.

"We must be extra careful here," Pepper warned as they worked their way down. "This is all scree . . . if we set it rolling we'll start another rock slide and get caught in it ourselves."

"We thought it was a path," Lennie explained. "Thought it was the way to find you."

"You can't get down here," Pepper answered. "It's far too dangerous . . . and down there is just sheer cliff."

"Shouldn't we use the ropes now?" Pete asked.

"Good idea," said Pepper. He removed the coil from his shoulders and began to unwind it. Lwazi, who carried the second length, did likewise.

"I never came this far," Lennie explained. "Too scared. Jumbo went to the edge . . . then stepped on the rocks . . . caused the slide."

"Lwazi, help me," Pepper said, "I want to look . . . need a belay." He wished Rajit was there. He was the expert with ropes.

Lwazi found a suitable spot where he could sit and lodge his feet against a boulder. He wound the rope round his body while Pepper tied the other end to his waist.

"For heaven's sake, don't let me fall," Pepper warned.

No sooner had he started his careful descent towards the edge than the Jack Russell they had seen earlier suddenly made its appearance. She looked at Pepper expectantly, then peered over the lip, whimpering.

"It's all right, girl," Pepper comforted her. "We'll rescue him."

When he looked over the edge himself, however, he wasn't so sure. The stream was some twenty metres down, babbling loudly over its rocky bed. Anyone falling that distance would certainly be dead, he thought. Then he saw Jumbo.

"He's here!" he called. "There's a ledge . . . about ten metres down . . . narrow but with a tree growing on it. It seems to have stopped his fall."

Pepper turned to issue his instructions. "Pete," he shouted. "Go down to Jacob's Slide and Ladder . . . you know the route . . . make your way up the stream-bed from there."

"Aye, aye, Captain," Pete answered.

"And Lennie," Pepper continued, "you must go back to the top . . . wait for the ambulance . . . and for Rajit's dad . . . show them where we are . . . and the proper route to the bottom."

"And me?" asked Lwazi.

"I'm going to abseil down to Jumbo," said Pepper. "I need you to belay me."

He didn't want to admit that he was too scared to try abseiling without a safety rope. It was only a short distance but if he fell, and missed the ledge . . . and in any case, he would need belaying when he climbed out again.

Pepper looped the abseil rope round the same boulder Lwazi was using to support his feet. He then made his way back to the edge. He looked down. It wasn't far to Jumbo and shouldn't be difficult, he thought. It was the extra drop beyond the ledge that made the descent seem terrifying.

His legs were already shaking by the time he took his first hesitant step backwards into space. His breathing was shallow, his mouth dry. He forced himself not to look down . . . to concentrate. Yet his hands were clutching the rope so tightly he could hardly move. He slackened his fingers, began to descend in short jerks.

He reached the ledge almost before he knew it. He took a deep breath, relieved. He then looked at Jumbo, slumped at the base of the tree, his left arm hanging awkwardly. Broken? Dislocated? Pepper didn't know. Jumbo's face certainly looked battered. His nose and mouth were bleeding, his forehead masked in blood. Both knees were lacerated and caked with dirt.

At that moment, Jumbo groaned. He opened his eyes, looked at him, recognised him. "Pepper," he whispered, a brief smile touching his gashed lips.

"You hurt bad?" Pepper asked.

Jumbo nodded. "My shoulder," he whispered.

"Don't know anything about first aid," Pepper confessed. "Can't tell if you've got any broken bones."

"Don't think so," Jumbo murmured. "Just my shoulder."

Pepper despaired. How could he possibly get Jumbo back to the top? It wasn't far but it would be impossible to climb with such an injury.

"I wish Mr Chetty would hurry . . . he'd know what to do," he thought, then realised that he was actually thinking out loud.

"Thanks for taking such a risk . . . to climb down here," Jumbo responded. "Didn't think you would . . . us not being friends."

Pepper was embarrassed and changed the topic. "How'd you fall?" he asked.

"Thought we were on the path," Jumbo explained hesitantly and in great pain. "Looked over . . . turned to go . . . stepped on a loose stone . . . set the others rolling."

He licked his bloodied lip. "Fell onto the tree," he said, "then onto the ledge. Landed on my feet, I think . . . collapsed onto my hands and face. Rocks went over the top . . . didn't hit me."

"You were lucky," said Pepper.

"I was lucky," Jumbo agreed. "How are we going to get up?"

"Dunno," said Pepper. "Can you climb?"

"Don't think so," Jumbo answered. "Shoulder hurts bad."

He tried to move his arm but winced in pain. It was clear to Pepper that they could never get Jumbo out that way, unless they tied him to the rope and hauled him up. . . but he looked so heavy.

Then he had an idea. "Might be easier to go down," he suggested. "Lower you to the stream bed."

Jumbo nodded. "Could try," he said. "Can't stay here. I'm getting cold."

Pepper hadn't noticed the drop in temperature but Jumbo was right. It was becoming colder as the afternoon advanced. And wasn't there also something they called shock?

"Lwazi!" Pepper called. "Lwazi! Can you hear me?"

There was a muted reply from the top. Within a minute Lwazi appeared at the lip of the cliff above and looked over, questioningly.

"Do you think you can come down?" Pepper repeated. "You'll have to abseil . . . without a belay."

"Think so," Lwazi said. Almost without hesitation, he turned and began reversing down the cliff, his dark arms working busily as his body slipped down the ropes. Within seconds he was beside Pepper.

"We'll lower Jumbo to the bottom," Pepper explained. "We'll use both ropes to belay him . . . just in case."

He looked down and saw Pete come into view, hopping from boulder to boulder along the stream bed. "Pete will be there to collect you when you reach the bottom," he told Jumbo. "He'll untie you and help you."

He removed his shirt, strapped Jumbo's arm, making it immobile. At the same time Lwazi secured the first rope around Jumbo's waist, testing the knot. He did the same with the second.

"You're going to have to trust us," Pepper said. "It'll be scary but there'll be two ropes, so you won't fall. You must use your good hand and your feet if you can . . . to keep yourself upright."

"It would be easier with a stretcher," Lwazi commented. "Wish the ambulance people would arrive."

"I'll do it," said Jumbo bravely. "Just don't let me fall."

He struggled to his feet, looked over. The stream babbled some ten metres below. He looked up the way he had fallen, saw the lip of the cliff far above them.

"I fell half the distance and lived," he said confidently. "I'm sure that going the rest of the way on a rope won't be so bad!"

Pepper and Lwazi secured the ropes around their bodies and over their shoulders. Each planted his feet against the tree trunk and leaned back against the cliff.

"Ready," Pepper said.

Jumbo stepped uncertainly to the edge, using his feet and his right hand to keep his balance. He looked down again. Below was a straight drop to the stream bed.

"I'm scared," he said.

"We've got you," Pepper assured him. "You can't get hurt. Just lower yourself till you feel the ropes holding, then let go."

"It's the only way," Lwazi added. "And it's getting late. We can't stay here forever." He smiled at Jumbo. "Hamba kakuhle, umhlobo wam," he said. "We'll see you at the bottom."

Jumbo began to whimper with fright but did what they suggested. Both ropes went taut, taking his immense weight. He closed his eyes, let go.

He found himself suspended in mid-air. Suddenly it was almost exciting, except for the pain. Then, with controlled movements, Pepper and Lwazi lowered him slowly but steadily towards Pete and safety.

"You've done it!" Pete exclaimed, putting his arm around Jumbo, helping him to a flat rock where he could sit. "You're safe!"

"Thanks," said Jumbo. "But what about them?"

"They'll be all right," Pete assured him, untying both knots. "We all know how to climb . . . do this sort of thing often."

Already Pepper and Lwazi were hauling in the ropes, pondering their next move. It was clear they couldn't climb to the top, now that there was no-one to belay them. Their only passage therefore was to abseil to the bottom.

"You go first," Pepper offered. "I'll belay you this time."

"And you?" asked Lwazi.

"I'll manage," Pepper assured him, sounding much braver than he felt.

Lwazi looped the rope around the tree trunk, dropped the ends over the edge. He made sure both strands reached the bottom, as Mr Chetty had taught them, then tied the belay round his waist. With a wink to Pepper, he began the descent.

Within minutes he was on the stream bed beside Jumbo and Pete. Almost immediately Pepper set off, slithering effortlessly down the rope as though he practised abseiling daily.

Midway down, he paused to look back. Beyond the ledge, high up at the very top, stood Rajit and Mr Chetty, their dark faces silhouetted against the sky. They were watching him. He glanced down the kloof and saw Lennie, and beyond him were two ambulance men, making their stumbling journey over the rocks to collect Jumbo.