Bonobo number one hesitantly climbed onto the concrete stanchion. Kevin
backed up until he was standing in the middle of the span. The bonobo
came out onto the bridge warily. He glanced frequently from side to
side.
Kevin then tried something they’d not tested on Arthur. Kevin strung
bonobo words together. He used ‘sta,’ from the episode when bonobo
number one tried to give the dead monkey to Candace. He used ‘zit,’
which bonobo number one had used to get them to go to the cave. And
finally he used ‘arak,’ which they were quite sure meant ‘away.’
‘Sta zit arak,’ Kevin said. He opened his fingers and swept his hand
away from his chest, the gesture that Candace had described in the
operating room. Kevin hoped his amalgamated sentence said: ‘You go
away.’
After repeating the phrase once again, Kevin pointed to the northeast in
the direction of the limitless rain forest.
Bonobo number one rose up on the balls of his feet and looked over
Kevin’s shoulder at the dark wall of mainland jungle. He then looked
back in the direction of the cages. Spreading his arms he vocalized a
series of sounds Kevin and Melanie had not heard, or at least not
associated with any specific activity.
‘What’s he doing?’ Kevin asked. At that point the animal was facing away
from him.
‘I could be wrong,’ Melanie said, ‘but I think he’s making reference to
his people.’
‘My god!’ Kevin said. ‘I think he might have understood my meaning.
Let’s let more of the animals out.’
Kevin walked forward. The bonobo sensed his movement and turned to face
him. Kevin hesitated. The bridge was about ten feet wide, and Kevin was
concerned about coming too close. He remembered all too well how easy it
had been for the bonobo to pick him up and throw him like a rag doll.
Kevin stared into the animal’s face to try to see any emotion, but he
couldn’t. All he got was a repeat of the uncanny sensation that he was
looking into an evolutionary mirror.
‘What’s the matter?’ Melanie asked.
‘He’s scary,’ Kevin admitted. ‘I don’t know whether to pass him or not.’
‘Please, not another Mexican standoff,’ Melanie said. ‘We don’t have
much time.’
‘Okay,’ Kevin said. He took a breath and inched around the animal while
teetering on the edge. The bonobo watched him but didn’t move.
‘This is so nerve wracking!’ Kevin complained when he climbed down from
the bridge.
‘Do we want him to stay here?’ Melanie asked.
Kevin scratched his head. ‘I don’t know. He might be a lure to get the
others over here, but then again, maybe he should come back with us.’
‘Why don’t we just start walking?’ Melanie said. ‘We’ll let him decide.’
Melanie and Kevin set out for the animal cages. They were pleased when
bonobo number one immediately climbed from the bridge and followed.
They walked quickly, conscious that Candace and the other people were
waiting. When they got to the cages they didn’t hesitate. Kevin opened
the door on the first cage while Melanie did the second.
The animals emerged quickly and immediately exchanged words with bonobo
number one. Kevin and Melanie went to the next two cages.
Within only a few minutes, there was a dozen animals milling about,
vocalizing and stretching.
‘It’s working,’ Kevin said. ‘I’m sure of it. If they were just going to
run off in the forest here on the island, they would have already done
so. I think they all know they have to leave.’
‘Maybe I should get Candace and our new friends,’ Melanie said. ‘They
should witness this, and they can help speed things up.’
‘Good idea,’ Kevin said. He looked at the long row of cages. He knew
there were over seventy.
Melanie ran off into the night while Kevin went to the next cage. He
noticed that bonobo number one stayed nearby to greet each newly freed
animal.
By the time Kevin had released a half dozen more animals, the humans
arrived. At first, they were intimidated by the creatures and didn’t
know how to act. The animals ignored them except for Warren whom they
gave a wide berth. Warren had brought the assault rifle, which Kevin