by James Michell
The sweltering heat enveloped everything, strangling it. Withering trees grew in clumps along the side of the path, with the discordant melody of camel hooves trotting over it. A drowsy aura hung over the road, the harsh camel trainer whipping them at the slightest toe out of line. Each of the camels carried supplies that would be greatly needed on the long trek to go.
Exhausted by the miserable heat, two siblings watched as the sun was replaced by the horizon. Azure blue and baby pink collided in a display of colour, a refreshing sight, but it still did nothing to cure the children of the unforgiving heat. Thoughts of giving up entered their minds, but all despairing options were momentarily distracted as they heard the thumping of the camels trekking. The youngest one, Cameron, with his eyes widened in abnormally large fear, looked up at his sister Charlotte for instructions.
“Run!” she yelled, thoughts of being captured urging her to sprint. Even though they had stolen money for survival, it didn’t change the cruel punishment of a death sentence.
Cameron started sobbing as he struggled desperately to catch up to his sister, so without hesitating, she scooped him up in her arms and flung him over her shoulder. Petrified, he clung on to Charlotte like a boa constrictor.
‘Ow!’ she yelped, so he reduced his grip, although it was still quite firm.
Gritting her teeth, Charlotte continued up the path, with the sound of the camels and the trainer following her, until the sky became black. The siblings nestled together, and they prepared themselves for a stifling night.
*
Charlotte was already awake by the time Cameron woke. When he was going to ask her why, she swiftly put her finger to her lips in an unmistakable shushing gesture. Charlotte pointed at the obvious camp of the camels. The beige fowls were sprawled on the undergrowth. Suddenly, a bright idea popped into Cameron’s head.
“What if we abduct a camel, and then ride somewhere where nobody knows what we look like!” he shared, excitedly.
Charlotte shook her head. She knew that stealing a camel in front of a camel trainer would certainly result in an injury, or worse. She looked at where Cameron was, to confirm with him that they weren’t going to do it, but he had vanished from their makeshift campsite! Charlotte sighed. She knew where Cameron had gone. Crossing her arms and hoping that that everything would turn out okay, she carefully snuck towards the camels and gulped when she saw the camel trainer advancing on Cameron.
Panicking, she snatched a hefty stick off the undergrowth and lobbed it at the trainer. He whipped his head to look at her and that was enough time for Cameron to untie a camel and jump onto it. He swerved the camel towards Charlotte, and without hesitating she hopped onto it. And then brother and sister, sibling and sibling, they rode away into a bright, bright future.
