‘Ach, Sarah!’ Piet spoke softly, as though he was afraid the great creatures he was looking at would hear him, and go away. ‘I don’t believe anyone has ever photographed that extraordinary ceremony before. There has to be someone who will publish these.’

‘You’ll be famous for pictures like these one day,’ Anthony said. ‘I guarantee that.’

Piet had picked up the set of photographs taken on their September safari and had begun to go through them slowly. Sarah watched him covertly. It would be revealing to see his reaction to the luminosity that Camilla had, that every camera loved. There were several photographs of her with Anthony, deep in discussion. He was explaining something to her, his hands gesturing, his whole body full of a boyish excitement. Camilla leaned towards him with an expression of such absorption in her eyes that the viewer could feel the jolt of her longing. One hand was stretched out towards him, as if she had wanted to draw the essence of him from the air. They were framed in the tracery of overhead branches, and in the foreground the flames from the campfire danced in the evening light, sending wisps of smoke and sparks into the atmosphere around them. It was clear from the picture that they were unaware of anything but each other. Piet stared down at it for a long time, then he put it down and shook his head slightly.

‘What?’ Sarah asked, unable to remain silent.

‘You see too much through your magic eye,’ he said. ‘Sometimes it leaves the subject too exposed, too raw. So you can see the lines.’

‘What lines?’ Sarah was puzzled.

‘The invisible lines that bring people together. Body language some call it. The way a head turns or an arm reaches out. Like that.’ He pointed to the picture of Anthony and Camilla. ‘Or the line between a predator and its prey, as it’s hunted down. Like in this cheetah picture here.’

‘I’m not sure I’m ready for that kind of exposure,’ Anthony was hastily shuffling the pictures. ‘But here’s a picture of Hannah that shows all her strength and courage, and leaves you knowing that there is a brimming sweetness there too. That she’s vulnerable and must be loved and protected.’

Hannah turned away, her expression unreadable. Anthony cleared his throat, realising he had touched a raw nerve. He disappeared into the kitchen to promote more coffee.

‘We should all be filmed by a genius from time to time,’ Piet said with new understanding. ‘It would teach us to face up to many truths about ourselves that we try to avoid. And there’s one thing I’m sure of. My girl will have an audience for her photographs, and she will become a big name. Bigger behind the camera than Camilla ever was in front of it.’

‘I’d like her to be here for our wedding,’ Sarah said.