The Purlieu Experiment, Book 1

by Linda L Rigsbee

  He took the lift down to the lobby. He needed some fresh air. He felt as though he was suffocating. He only made it a few steps out of the lift when his legs buckled. He sank to the floor on his knees and covered his face consumed with uncontrollable sobs. It didn’t matter that people were watching him. He couldn’t have stopped the tears if he wanted to. He didn’t want to. Right then the only thing he wanted to do was die. He had no right to live. He was an abomination.

  Suddenly a cool hand touched his temple and a calm voice was telling him to let it go. Rianne. How could he have forgotten Rianne? He didn’t want to die. He wanted to go away someplace with her. Some place where they could do the things they knew they should.

  He stood and pulled her into his arms. Resting his chin on the top of her head, he tried to wipe the tears from his face. Someone handed him a handkerchief and he put it to good use. Only then did he become fully aware of everyone watching him.

  Donica’s eyes were wide, her hand over her mouth. Saskia had her face buried in a handkerchief and Pieter…Pieter looked horrified. No doubt having his grandson’s weakness exposed to the colony was a blow to his ego. He was probably wishing he had selected someone else. He should have.

  “Come on, Donte.” Rianne said in a gentle voice. “Let’s go to our room and talk about this.”

  She put her arm around his waist and he put an arm around her shoulders. Without a word to the onlookers, they turned and walked to their room.

  Inside the privacy of their room, Rianne sat him down and talked to him.

  “He knew she was in bad condition when he sent you to Lochfowk. That was why he wanted you to complete the mission so quickly. He was afraid if he told you she was sick, that you would want to go there. He thought only you could convince the Lochfowk to send medical aid. He didn’t know she was going to die, Donte.”

  He stared at her. “You knew?”

  She shook her head. “Not until a few minutes ago. Saskia told me while Pieter was talking to you.”

  “He should have told me.”

  “Yes, he should have, but he didn’t. He made a mistake, Donte.”

  After hours of talking to Rianne and finally some uninterrupted sleep, he woke. The first thing he saw was the uniform hanging on the wall. The anger had dissipated, leaving his head clear enough to know what he wanted to do with that uniform.

  Rianne was sitting at the table writing something on a paper. He sat up and slid his legs over the bed. “Let’s go to Libertad this morning.”

  Rianne looked up. “And then what?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. I only know I don’t want to be here anymore.”

  “You’re hurting. Give yourself time to heal.”

  “Is this how you want to live?”

  Her expression was guarded. “I want to be wherever you are, Donte.”

  He took a deep breath and released a long sigh. “I don’t want this, Rianne. It isn’t like I thought it would be. Maybe I’m not up to the job. All I know is that I don’t want to live like this – doing things I think are wrong simply because they come from someone I admire and respect.

  She smiled. “It’s good to know you have forgiven him. He meant well, you know.”

  He nodded. “As much as he knew, but a man who will not listen to the hearts of others is bound to fail in his own eyes.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I killed her, not him.”

  Rianne pushed the paper aside and stood, walking over to the bed. She sat beside him on the bed and put an arm around his shoulders. “You didn’t kill her, Donte. She didn’t die because you left. She died because they didn’t have the medical knowledge to save her. She died the day you felt the fever leave her body. Your going to Nyumbani wouldn’t have saved her. You’re doing the only thing you can – uniting the colonies so that they can share.”

  She was right, of course. She was always right. He looked at her. “We.” He corrected. “No more me…it’s we from now on. It should have been we all along. We can do this together, Rianne.”

  She smiled. “We can, can’t we? I like that little word a lot…we.”

  He showered and put on clean clothes. Taking the uniform down from the hook, he folded it carefully – even reverently. The uniform wasn’t his problem. In fact, any failing was due to his shortcomings. Pieter was disappointed in his performance for a good reason. He wasn’t leadership material. Picking up the folded uniform, he turned to Rianne. “I’ll go take care of this. Do you think you could pack our things and be ready when I get back?

  She kissed him. “I’ll be ready. Do what you must.”

  Donte carried the uniform to Pieter and placed it on his lap. “I don’t want this, he said. I don’t deserve it and the cost is too high.”

  Pieter looked up at him, not entirely shocked. “You speak out of pain and anger. When you think about it more, you will understand that I did this to make you a stronger leader.”

  Donte shook his head. “No Papaw. You’re the one who doesn’t understand. Love is not a weakness.”

  He turned to Donica and Saskia. “Rianne and I are leaving on the morning tram to Libertad. I don’t know where we will go from there.

  Donica began to cry. She hugged him. “Please don’t stay away forever.”

  He kissed her cheek. “I’ll come back as long as I am welcome.”

  Saskia hugged him. “You are always welcome. Surely you know that.”

  He nodded and turned back to Pieter. Pieter was staring at the uniform, tears running down his cheeks. Donte squatted beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. “I was angry and hurting and I was disrespectful toward you. I hope you will forgive me for that. I love you Papaw. I still think you were wrong, but I love you.” He stood. “I thought I wanted this, but never this way. I don’t know how I will help the colonies, but I know I can’t do it shackled to this uniform or doing everything from the perspective of Bergen.”

  Pieter looked up at him. “You are always welcome here.” His voice wavered and he turned away, wheeling his chair into his office.

  When the door shut, Donte turned to Donica and Saskia. Saskia looked at the closed door and shook her head.

  “Sometimes I think; and for this I gave up a leadership position.” She sighed, her attention turning back to Donte. “But you are right. Love is a strength. I didn’t give up my colony because I was weak.” She hugged Donte. “This is not your destiny, Donte. It is much greater than one little colony.”

  He didn’t know what his destiny was. Maybe he didn’t have one. Maybe people made their own destiny. All he knew was there were two things that he wanted more than anything else. One was Rianne. She was his greatest strength. The other was unity between the colonies. He wasn’t sure why that was so important, but he knew it was. The only colony leader who understood his drive was King Neirin. To all the others it was an abstract idea.

  Donte and Rianne arrived in Libertad without warning, but Quade expected them all the same. Rianne stood quietly beside him as he told his father what he had done.

  Quade shook his head. “I tried to tell him, but he wouldn’t listen.”

  Donte stared at him. “You knew too?”

  “He told me after he sent you to Lochfowk. It was already too late for anyone to do anything. Chiku died the day you exchanged vows. Your going there wouldn’t have helped her and it would have put you in danger.”

  “But why didn’t he discuss it with me? Didn’t he have any faith in me at all? Why did he talk to me like I was nobody?”

  Quade shook his head. “I don’t know, Donte. I’m sorry about all of it. I wish there was something that I could have done, but I honestly don’t know what it would have been.”

  Donte took a deep breath. “It isn’t your fault. I didn’t mean to unload this all on you.”

  “I’m your father, Donte. You can always come to me.”

  Donte nodded. “I know that.” He glanced at Rianne. “We need a place to stay until we decide what we’re going to do next.”

/>   “You can stay here.”

  Donte shook his head. “Thank you, but we’d rather have our own place.”

  Quade smiled. “I understand. Let me check around. You can stay here until we find something.”

  CHAPTER 32

  When the ship arrived from Libertad, Kafil was there to meet it. A few weeks before he would have been glad to see Donte step off it, but he was relived Donte wasn’t there. He had promised to take care of Donte’s children and now he only had one left. He’d like to say it wasn’t his fault, but at least in part, it was his fault. As it turned out, there was no reason to keep them locked in that cellar. In an attempt to save their lives, he had caused the death of Chiku.

  Halisi didn’t blame him. Incredibly, she blamed Donte. In fact, she had sent him to make sure Donte didn’t get off that ship. He wasn’t sure how he would have done that. He had enough men to enforce it, but he didn’t agree with Halisi. Donte had a right to visit his daughter’s grave. It occurred to him that Halisi was afraid of what Donte would say. He wouldn’t have blamed her. If he knew anything about Donte at all, it was that. Donte would blame himself.

  He had been concerned about what Halisi would say when she discovered he had made a decision to contact Pieter and Quade without her direction, but she praised his initiative instead. She even gave the ship commander authority to discuss terms with them. After all, it would only delay assistance if they had to send a boat back and forth relaying information. Kafil would have gone, but she wanted him to stay close because Chiku was so sick.

  The day Chiku died he had sent a ship to Playa with a message for Donte. As it turned out, the second ship was needed to bring back livestock that had been donated by three different colonies.

  It wasn’t until the second ship arrived from Libertad that he discovered the aid included a medical team to set up a hospital and teach the Nyumbani basic medical skills. They would only be there a short time, so they had to make the most of it. Since he knew nothing of the medical team, he had made no preparations.

  He was shocked to see that one of the team members was the captive Lochfowk woman. Why would someone agree to help people who had treated her so badly? It made no sense to him, yet she was there, helping. He welcomed her with the others, as if nothing had happened.

  When Halisi learned of the deal, she immediately ordered a large building to be surrendered for the hospital. Their empty warehouse was filled with food that was to be distributed to those in need. Halisi was so organized that he felt underfoot. To make matters worse, the mascot Kwasi was constantly with her, translating and advising.

  It would have been much easier for him, though less productive for Nyumbani, if he didn’t like Kwasi, but that wasn’t the case. Kwasi was one of the most likeable and competent men Kafil had ever met. Halisi was taken with him from the beginning – and therein was the problem. The situation in Nyumbani was far too critical to let personal feelings interfere with his patriotism.

  It seemed that Kwasi was everywhere. The people instantly warmed to him, always following his instruction without question. He instructed a few in the use of the farm equipment and they in turn instructed others. They had a plan. Plant the seeds that were delivered and grow enough crops to trade with other colonies. They had a year-round growing season and with the equipment, they would be able to clear fields in a fraction of the time it would take to do it by hand. The bovines and caprines they received would be used for breeding stock. They were going to try crossbreeding with the wild bovines.

  Inside of a few weeks, the colonists were looking and feeling much better. They were more productive and positive about their future. They had Donte and Kwasi to thank for all of it. Yet when he brought that to the attention of Halisi, she immediately corrected him.

  “They have you to thank. You were the one who asked for help. If it had been left to me, I would have been too concerned about Donte getting involved.”

  He stared at her, speechless.

  She gave him one of her rare smiles. “It is you that I love, Kafil. Kwasi is a wonder, but you have no reason to feel inferior.”

  He took her in his arms and held her for a moment, trying to find the courage to ask her. Finally he took her hands and looked into her eyes. “Will you exchange vows with me, Halisi?”

  She hugged him. “I wonder if it is too soon. Things are going so well right now. I don’t want to mess it up by doing something that would make the colonists uncomfortable.” She drew back and looked up at him. “Yes, I want to exchange vows with you, but we should wait a while – until the colony becomes productive.”

  He smiled down at her. “We have waited this long. We can wait a little longer. For now it is enough that you have agreed to exchange vows with me.”

  ****

  When the boat docked in Nyumbani, Akira’s stomach was twisted with anxiety. She had no reason to fear the Nyumbani. They had asked for help. Donte wouldn’t have let the medical team go if he thought they would be in danger - other than the primitive environment. All the same, it troubled her that he had not come with them. He wanted to, but Pieter demanded that he return. Was Pieter afraid Donte would be harmed? Of course, Pieter knew little about the colony of Nyumbani. Rianne had hinted that there was some discord there. Was it over Nyumbani?

  When Kafil welcomed them, he had been surprised to see her. She could hardly blame him for that. Until she arrived in Nyumbani and saw the “humans,” as Donte referred to them, she was doing a little wondering as well. Donte was right. They were good hard working people. They worked until they were exhausted getting the hospital ready. Kwasi was ever present, translating and assisting – always a smile on his face. He was happy to be free and with his people, no doubt. He was taller than most of the Nyumbani men and good looking. Everyone appeared to like him. Kwasi was an inspiration. As bitter as she had been about her capture and treatment, it had only lasted a few days. Kwasi had spent thirty years as a captive and he still had a positive outlook.

  When Kwasi wasn’t with the medical team, he was with the colonists, teaching them farming skills. In addition to the food, they had received live domestic caprines, fowl and other livestock in a second shipment from Libertad. The little news she received was that Donte and Rianne were coordinating the efforts of Bosvrouwen, Bergen, Vlaktes, Libertad and Anialwch. That must have been quite an undertaking for the two of them.

  They spent a month in Nyumbani and in that time they learned enough of the Nyumbani language to communicate. When it was time to leave, they picked the most promising students to go back to Lochfowk for training. Those people would, in turn, train the others.

  Of all the things she heard and saw, the most shocking was the death of Donte’s daughter. What a blow it must have been to him. If Donte had been there, he almost certainly could have saved her. From what she understood, it sounded like pneumonia. Donte would never have allowed them to put her in a cellar for days on end. Hopefully they had learned enough in a month to prevent that kind of thing from happening again. Now they had the medicines they needed and the knowledge of how to use them. They had done all they could do for the present. The rest could be done from Lochfowk.

  The Nyumbani vessel arrived at the dock in Playa only a few days after leaving Nyumbani. The medical team members and their students took the tram to Cuna the next morning. Kenyon was supposed to meet them and escort them to Lochfowk. She was surprised that Donte didn’t go, but apparently he was otherwise occupied.

  Akira had given a lot of thought to Quade’s invitation to work at the hospital. If the position was still open, she was going to accept it. She sent him a message that she wanted to talk to him. He immediately replied that he would meet her at the station.

  At the station, Quade took her arm and led her to a covered buggy. “I was delighted to get your message. I hope this means you have reconsidered my offer of a job at the hospital here in Libertad. We could certainly use your skills in training people.”

  She gripped the back of the sea
t as the buggy jerked into motion. “After a month in Nyumbani, it sounded like heaven.”

  He studied her face, his soft brown eyes as kind as she remembered. “Was it bad there?”

  “It wasn’t good, but we had it better than the Nyumbani people. I had no idea how bad it was for them. Donte tried to tell me… by the way, how did Donte take the news about his daughter?”

  Quade grimaced. “I’ll talk to you about that later. He and Rianne are staying at my place temporarily.”

  She put a hand to her mouth. “Oh no. I was afraid Pieter was pushing him too hard.”

  They said no more about it until after the evening meal when Quade invited her to his office. He briefly explained what had transpired between Donte and Pieter.

  “I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that pushing Donte doesn’t work. I learned very early that setting him down and talking to him worked when punishment did not. Donte wants to do the right thing. When he’s convinced it is the right thing, there is little you can do but offer reasoning that might change his mind. It makes him a poor subordinate, but coupled with other skills, it will make him a superb leader – better than Pieter, I think. I would have handled the request for the captives completely different than Donte did. He knew what he was doing. In spite of all the obstructions that Pieter threw in his path, he succeeded. Still, I can appreciate how Pieter felt. I wasn’t convinced that he knew what he was doing either.”

  “I thought you were going to tell Sima to turn them over to him.”

  Quade grunted. “I thought about it.” He shrugged. “Pieter sees the potential for a great leader in Donte, but he wants him to blindly obey. Donte will never blindly obey, but he is loyal.”

  “To a fault.” Akira agreed.

  “Possibly. Donte felt responsible for Chiku’s death. He felt he betrayed her – not only in leaving, but in not going back when she needed him. Pieter’s response probably led him to believe Pieter felt betrayed as well. Pieter saw Donte’s response as insubordination, so he pushed him harder. I tried to tell him that approach wouldn’t work, but he told me I had spoiled him and what Donte needed was a firm hand.”