CHAPTER 13
SABELO
“Nomvula, who is at the door?” I ask for the millionth time and all I am hearing from her breathing. I quickly log in to my security App and check the camera. “F#ck!” I curse under my breath. This wasn’t how I imagined this would go down. It’s her uncle and his hooligans at the door. Even if I drive there now, there’s nothing I can do. I’m outnumbered. ‘Think, Sabelo, think!’ I tap my head.
“They are breaking the door, the alarm is off—”
“I can see them. I’m going to open the door for them and you will do as they say—”
“W… what?”
“He won’t kill you, they need you alive. Give me two hours max, I will be there to rescue you. Do you trust me?”
“I don’t know,” she sniffs.
“I’m coming for you, just put your trust in me.”
I end the call and quickly bring my team on a conference call. They know shit has hit the fan when one of us calls beyond working hours and does a conference call. They are all here and waiting for me to speak.
“The uncle found her,” I break the news to them.
“How?” Astrid is confused. They all are because we thought the place was hidden and we thought my expertise in security will save us. But we forgot that there’s always a better genius out there.
“I guess we were not careful enough,” I sigh. A thousand thoughts are running through my mind and I don’t know why my heart is breaking already. I don’t think I can stand seeing a dead body, it’s too soon and somehow it already hurts imagining Nomvula as a body.
“Do you have a plan?” Austin asks.
“How quickly can you get to Sandton?” I ask him.
“Ten minutes, why?” he questions.
“His favourite daughter is in Nomvula’s apartment. I need you to visit her. Michael, can you get to Mamelodi in the next 20 minutes?”
“Yeah, sure. Who am I killing?” Michael jokes even when the situation is tense.
“You are having dinner with this bastard’s mother. I’m going to his house—”
“I don’t like this plan of yours, Sabelo. We can call the cops or something,” Astrid chirps in.
“That bastard probably has the hawks, SIU, SWAT and every police you can think of in his pocket. Let’s not waste our time trusting the law, we know it never favours the ordinary. The guy is everything disgusting but he loves his family. We will do a fair trade. His family for Nomvula and everything they owe her,” I reason with her.
“If this doesn’t work?” she asks.
“Tell our families that we love them,” Michael says.
“I have a baby on the way, take care of her should something happen to me,” Austin adds.
“Tell my sister to claim my insurance policies—”
“Stop it, you all! Stop it!” she wipes a stray tear. “I will brief our guy in the police, stay alive and come back. This is the last dangerous case we are taking. Please be safe.”
“Thank you,” we chorus.
This is not our first dangerous rodeo, we have been here before. Austin’s girlfriend was once kidnapped and the ransom was that we let go of the case we were busy with. To save her, we pretended to give up and the next court date we went in for the kill. The wife of the guy we exposed couldn’t take the embarrassment, she unalived herself and that’s when Astrid stopped taking dangerous cases. Astrid crashed out so bad that she was blaming herself for that woman’s death. I felt bad for the woman but more for the kids. They had lost one good parent and left with their useless father. It didn’t take long before the guy was found cold on the streets of Jozi. Lawfully, it was a win but morally, it did tag at the strings of our hearts. Their children were orphaned because of us. I don’t wish for the same thing to happen, but one thing about me, my father raised no coward.
******
NOMVULA
Fear evaporates through the pores of my skin and anger bubbles under my skin as I land my eyes on the man who stripped me of everything, including my dignity. Nostalgia takes over as his scent fills the room. For a moment, I can see my father, I can almost here him speak but his voice is a whisper. I blink and his picture disappears, and is replaced by his brother’s. I can’t believe these people have raided my father’s perfume bar. What happened to respecting the dead? He’s wearing my father’s perfume with no shame at all.
He strides in, his hooligans surrounding as if he is someone of importance when he’s just a useless dog.
“Nomvula, ngane yami,” my uncle says and I clench my fists. “Ayisakhulumisani? (Are we not talking to each other)?”
I have a lot to say to him. More than enough choice words to throw at him but I remain silent, rooted on the floor and counting down from ten. I taught myself this, I taught myself to stay calm and that is what I have to do now. My safety and life lie in my response to his presence.
“Bab’omncane,” I greet. I even force a smile.
“My child,” he opens his arms and I cautiously go in to them. I feel like kneeing his groin as my father’s perfume continues to force memories on to the surface of my mind. “How have you been?” he asks as he breaks the hug.
“I don’t know,” I shrug. I’m going to play this as ignorant as I am.
“What do you mean you don’t know?” he asks while scanning the house. “Why are you here? Whose house is this?”
“My friend’s,” that comes out of my mouth before I can think it through.
“Your friend? Your friend now undermines my authority? Why did you leave that place?”
“I didn’t leave, I just wanted a break and they granted me that. I have a form signed and stating exactly that. I was given a week break since I’m showing signs of getting better.”
“You are not getting better, Nomvula! You are out here with strangers who might be taking advantage of you. That is getting better?”
“I needed this, Bab’omncane. It’s been six years since you left me in that place. You didn’t even bother checking up on me!” I breathe. I’m getting angry and this wasn’t the plan. I need to stay calm and not give him a reason to harm me in any way. “I apologise for my tone, I get highly frustrated when I haven’t taken my medication. Can I go and get it?”
He stares at me, long and hard, as if trying to figure out where my mind is truly at. He might be a thug, but I have perfected holding it all in and look like all is well even when I’m threatening to explode from the inside.
“You can go. Don’t try anything funny,” he adds as a warning. I just nod and make my way to the stairs. I’m silently praying for him to not change his mind. “Wait, where is your phone?”
“P-phone? I don’t have one,” I attempt to lie.
“Please don’t push me.”
The confirmation of my parents’ peaceful rest that they are enjoying while I’m suffering comes through as a ringing phone. I was in denial, but now I know that no ancestor of mine is looking out for me. I look at the ringing phone and my heart pounds. Only one person has this contact number.
“Answer it,” my uncle orders.
“No, it’s fine. I will talk to her later—”
“I said answer it!” he roars and my body shakes. I shakily pick up the phone. Sabelo is video-calling me. “Answer it!”
I do as he says and my eyes almost pop out of their sockets when Sabelo comes to view. He is at my parents’ house—I know because the walls are still the same—and has a little girl on his lap.
“Sabelo?” my voice comes out as a whisper. My uncle snatches my phone and I see his forehead creasing as soon as his eyes land on the screen.
“Baba Mzolo,” the cocky Sabelo says on the other side.
“You son of a bitch!” my uncle is fuming. “Don’t you dare touch my kids! Move away from my daughter!”
“Calm down before you suffer hypertension. And before you call my mother a bitch, just know that your wife here can wear that crown with pride—”
“What are you talking about?” he’s confused.
“Ooops, sorry. I forgot that her bitching ways were a secret—”
“What are you talking about, kid? My wife is not a whore!”
“Oh, poor innocent you,” Sabelo laughs. “Those fantasies you chase in the clubs, your wife gladly offer them to your friends on a silver platter. You should see her riding skills—”
“Enough!” my uncle hisses. “What do you want?”
“What are you looking for in my house, Sir? Did you lose something and it miraculously landed in my house?”
“What?” he is confused. “Nomvula said her friend is a girl—”
“Stop acting dumb and bring your fat belly here. If you dare touch even a hair on her head, just know that you will watch your family burn to ashes. Not just your kids and wife, your first born daughter and your mother too—”
“You are lying!”
“Watch this,” Sabelo says and whatever it is, it is not good. Beads of sweat are forming on his forehead and his hand is shaking.
“Let’s go! Bring her along!”
*****
SABELO
If you are a man with something to lose, you shouldn’t go around pretending to be an immortal. A man with something to lose is the weakest man to ever walk on earth. I don’t know what this man was thinking. I’m sure he didn’t think someone who can challenge him is helping Nomvula. He was probably told that a woman came for her and he thought he would intimidate the woman and get his way.
He is here in less than 30 minutes, I commend him on the punctuality part. His wife has cried herself to hiccups. She doesn’t even react when he comes in.
“You son of a b!tch!” he charges towards me. I release the safety button and point the gun at his little girl. She has no idea what is going on because I came prepared. I brought noise cancelling headphones and a tablet for her. She’s so invested in Tom and Jerry right now. “You wouldn’t dare!”
“Ever heard a saying that no one is more dangerous than a man with nothing to lose? That’s me. I’m not even scared of dying right now. Wena, do you want to die?”
“She’s just a kid!” he shouts.
“Nomvula is someone’s kid too. Where is she?”
“She is safe. What do you want?”
“I’m glad you asked. You see, Nomvula is my client and my clients pay me big money. I’m Sabelo Mseleku, by the way. You can Google me when you are broke and back to your mother’s house in Mamelodi. What was I saying? Oh, yes. Nomvula is my client and my clients pay me big. The problem is that you are holding her inheritance hostage. I only have one request for you, give her what belongs to her so she can pay me and you will never see my face again.”
“I have the court’s order—”
“An order that you got fraudulently! You knew that she wasn’t sick, she was just grieving and you took advantage of that. Awunamahloni? What do you think your brother is saying right now? Your father? Do you think they are resting in peace?”
“This is a family matter.”
“If she was really family, you would have checked on her at least once. So, let’s not insult eachother’s intelligence and do what’s lawfully and morally right.”
“You have no proof of what you are saying!”
“I have their original wills,” I state. He opens his mouth and closes it again…
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