“Nigh me china! Nigh me ekse!” Shouted the naked man as he pointed at his rear end.
I couldn't help but laugh at this bizarre bit of street theatre that was playing out in front of me.
“Nigh me ekse! Nigh me china!” He repeated. I recalled the meaning of the slang from my youth, nigh meant ‘fuck’ and dop meant ‘drink’. ‘Ekse’ was slang for ‘I say’ from the Afrikaans. Still laughing I glanced back at the shop front. The door was open and Richard was still inside.
“Nigh me china! It’s our dop!” The naked man repeated before he staggered forward, tripped on his trousers and crashed into the pavement in a heap.
All this in full view in bright sunshine. As he tried to pull his trousers up, the man with the bottle let go of the pole and stumbled past mumbling to himself. Eventually the man on the pavement managed to get his trousers up and followed his companion up the pavement and away.
“Never a dull moment Green,” I said smiling to myself, “never a dull moment”.
I pulled my camera from my bag and took a few shots of the surf shop front and the two vehicles making a mental note of the time and address. After five minutes the two men walked out of the shop both carrying surfboards under their arms. They both checked their respective vehicles were locked and started walking towards my Mercedes. I quickly turned and faced forward watching them in my rear view mirror. They were steadily walking towards my car talking to each other. They were hitting the beach for a morning of surfing. They were now only three metres from my car and approaching rapidly. I pretended to be working on my laptop as the two passed within a metre of me. I was relieved that neither of them paid any attention to my presence as they passed. I quickly packed the computer and camera into my bag, locked the car, and followed them. They walked up a grassy mound of sand and down onto the beach before veering off to the left towards a family who were sunbathing on the sand. I couldn't hear anything that was said but it appeared they had asked the father if he would look after their belongings while they surfed.
Both men removed their sunglasses and shirts and dumped their bags near the family before jogging off towards the breakers. Richard’s ultra thin body was shockingly white compared to his companion. I sat at a safe distance and removed my shirt as well.
“What a pleasure,” I said to myself, as I lay back on my elbows and soaked up the warm sun. For the next hour and a half I watched the two men ride the huge waves. Richard was obviously a beginner and constantly fell off his board while his companion surfed like a pro.
My camera was by no means out of place and I took numerous photographs of the two. At around 12pm the two made their way back to the sunbathing family and sat down. Richard was obviously exhausted and lay flat on his back on a towel, his white chest rapidly rising and falling as he caught his breath. The two men then sat talking and staring out at the ocean for the next half hour before picking up their boards and belongings and making their way back up the beach towards the car park. Dutifully I did the same and followed from a distance. After crossing the road and reaching their vehicles, the two men placed the surfboards on the roof rack of Richard's Land Cruiser. Richard dug in his bag and brought out a bunch of stretch ropes with hooks and proceeded to secure the boards. Once this was done the two men shook hands and both got into their respective vehicles. I started the Mercedes and waited for Richard to reverse his car and exit the car park before I did the same. We made our way back through Muizenberg and up to the main road where Richard made a left and drove towards Kalk Bay. His companion was nowhere to be seen and must have turned off somewhere. This was of no concern to me. The grey Land Cruiser was three cars in front as we drove and as instructed, I only had eyes for that car and its driver.
“Where to next Richard?” I said to myself. He was obviously enjoying his holiday. As was I. Richard continued down the main road towards Kalk Bay. Just before the village he pulled into a small shopping complex to the left. It comprised of about ten small souvenir shops mainly geared for tourists and a well known take away franchise. I parked my car at the far end of the block and waited. Immediately he got out of the Land Cruiser and walked directly into the take away. He was obviously hungry from the exercise and so was I. Three minutes later he walked out carrying a bright red carton of takeaway food. He then got back into his vehicle, reversed and was off again. I paused wondering what to do. I was ravenous and decided to take a risk by getting a takeaway as well. Being aware of the high crime statistics I folded my laptop up, put it in my bag, locked the car and took the short walk to the takeaway. The place smelled of fried chips and greasy chicken. Perfect. I ordered a burger and a soft drink and headed back to the car to eat. As I sat I opened the laptop again to follow Richard's movements. As expected he was on Walker Road and about to park the car outside The Blueberry. As I ate, I watched the screen and wondered what Richard was actually doing in Cape Town. Surely no one flies all this way to get drunk in a pub and go surfing?
“What the fuck are you doing here, Richard?” I said under my breath as I wiped my mouth with a paper serviette. I turned on the radio as I took a slow drive into Kalk Bay and up the hill to Walker Road.
The music lifted my spirits and imparted a holiday feel to the afternoon. My mind drifted as the car made its way up the hill in second gear. The warm sunshine glaring through the windscreen caused me to squint slightly behind my sunglasses. Stop worrying and enjoy yourself Green. After all you’re doing what was asked of you are you not? Would you prefer to be in London right now? I think not. No, you just carry on doing what you're doing and you can finish with a clear conscience. But what was in the bags that were exchanged in London? It had been a tense meeting with some dangerous looking people. There was no doubt Richard was up to something. How did he afford the Aston Martin? The flat? Don't get over involved Green. Stay impartial. I parked the Mercedes in the same spot I had in the morning and lit a cigarette. The surfboards were still attached to the roof rack of the Land Cruiser.
They glinted in the sun as did a billion specs of granite in the rocks of the mountain to my right. A group of black women walked past me from behind. They wore spotless white dresses with head scarves and were singing in perfect harmony. Being a Sunday, I knew that they had been to church. The rich voices brought back distant memories from my childhood. I turned the radio off and closed my eyes to listen as they passed. When the voices had finally faded into the distance I opened my eyes. I got a shock to see Richard Lewer-Allen standing behind the Land Cruiser. He was busy removing the stretch ropes from the roof rack. After he had finished he grabbed both surfboards and made his way back into the leafy, shaded garden of The Blueberry Guest House. I half expected Richard to come out pretty much immediately but there was no movement from the building except the trees swaying in the breeze. I sat there for a full hour, smoking the occasional cigarette and watching. Eventually I decided Richard was probably resting after his exertion in the morning. I decided I would go back to my digs to do a bit of the same. The drive took less than three minutes and I was back on the verandah of Binkie's bed and breakfast, unlocking the door to my room. I plugged the laptop in and opened it to the tracking page. I lay down on the bed staring up at the white pressed lead ceilings. There was a knock on the door. I jumped up and opened it. A smiling Binks was clutching two ice cold cans of beer.
“Hope it’s not too early for you?” He asked with an uncertain look on his face.
“Not at all. Cheers!” I replied as I pulled the tab off the top of the can.
We sat down on the verandah on the ancient easy chairs and stared out at the view.
“It’s a pity you’re leaving so soon, why such a rushed trip?” He asked between sips.
“You know, there would be nothing better for me than to stay here for another two weeks, but I’m on a business trip and I don't have any say in it.”
“What do you do?” He asked. I paused for a moment thinking about my response.
“I’m an insurance claims investigator
. I’ve come down here to check up on something and I'm off to Zanzibar in Tanzania tomorrow morning. It’s a pity I have to go, you’ve got an amazing place here.”
He sensed that it was wrong to ask any more questions about the job.
“How long have you been here? In this house.” I asked, changing the subject.
“Oh this house has been in my family for forty or fifty years,” he replied.
“Ok, so you decided to make it into a bed and breakfast?” I asked.
“Ya, I used to live in Zimbabwe but I had had enough up there so I came down here. I had nothing to do so I decided on the tourism idea.”
“Oh right,” I said, “I used to live in Zimbabwe too, a long long time ago”
“Really? I thought I could hear something in your accent. When did you leave?” He asked.
“In 1980,” I said.
“Were you in the war?” he said, glancing at me as I sipped my beer.
“I was. I was actually in the Scouts.” I said quietly.
There was a long pause as he looked at me, thinking of what to say.
“Phew, that must have been pretty hectic.” It was more of a statement than a question.
“Yup.” I said, “it was.”
He sensed my reluctance to talk about my time in the army and changed the subject immediately.
“So are you going down to The Bell tonight?” he asked.
“I'm not sure buddy, I’m waiting for either a call or an email but I will if I can. Are you going down there?”
“Ya I’m down there most nights.”
“Ok, well might see you there, will see what happens later.”
We sat for the next two hours chatting about London and Cape Town and Zimbabwe. I made my usual frequent trips to the room to check up on the Land Cruiser. It was good to talk to someone who understood my roots. We had a lot of common ground and I enjoyed his laid back attitude to life. At 5pm after three beers I told him I needed to bath and change. I had a feeling that Richard would be doing something on his last night in Cape Town. Binks suggested we should meet me in half an hour on the verandah for sundowner. I agreed wholeheartedly and headed into the room. I bathed, shaved and dressed for the evening. There was still no movement from the Land Cruiser and as promised Binks was waiting when I made my way out into the early evening. The fishing boats were making their way into the harbour for the night.
I could hear a faint repetitive drumming sound in the distance.
“What’s that noise Binks?” I asked as I sat down.
“Ah that's the locals. Every Sunday night they have this impromptu party down at the harbour. They bring drums and horns and make a racket. It’s quite a spectacle. If you can get down there it’s worth going to have a look at. There’s also a great restaurant and club down there. They have an excellent band down there on Sunday nights. I might walk down there later too.” He said.
“Oh right,” I said thoughtfully. “I might see you later.”
We sipped our beers slowly, watching the sun go down for the next hour. There was a cool sea breeze coming off the ocean.
I got up to use the toilet in my room and saw immediately that the Land Cruiser was well on its way down the hill towards the main road. Instantly I folded up the computer, bagged it and headed out.
“Sorry buddy, I've just received that email I was telling you about. I have to go. Hopefully I'll see you later. Thanks for the beers.”
I made my way around the wooden verandah to the parked Mercedes. I hated being left behind and I revved the car as I reversed out onto the street. As I turned left to make my way down the hill I saw on the screen to my left that Richard had made a right turn at the main road. He was going somewhere new. The anxiety of possibly losing him came back to me as I drove at speed down the mountain road. At least I had bathed and changed when I had. There was more than the usual traffic on the main road when I got there. Enough to delay my right turn for a good forty seconds. I tapped the steering wheel impatiently craning my neck looking for a gap in the traffic. It was almost totally dark now and the street lights were on. It was then I noticed that the Land Cruiser had stopped to the left of the main road. The map on the screen showed Richard was parking directly outside Kalk Bay harbour. This was no more than half a kilometre down the road. With a sigh of relief I eventually made the turn and followed. Binks had not been wrong when he had described the party atmosphere at the harbour. It took me a few minutes to find a parking in amongst the hundred or so cars.
I was greeted by the raucous sound of the drumming and horns I had heard from above. There were hundreds of coloured people dancing around the concrete fish tables of the harbour. A long concrete pier stretched out for 300m into the ocean. Along the left were the fishing boats moored for the night. Some of them still had crew who were cleaning and polishing. All around were lights and activity. On the other side of the pier the waves were crashing violently into the rocks and concrete wall sending huge plumes of spray into the air. There was a carnival atmosphere. I looked around for the tall figure of Richard. He was nowhere to be seen. To my right was a large building with a sign that read The Harbour Grill. Like the Brass Bell, it was raised and hung over the waves to the right of the pier. It was busy with a queue of people at the door. I had seen the parked Land Cruiser on the way in so I knew Richard was in the area, I just didn't know where. I decided to take a walk down the pier. Every twenty metres, there was a lamp post. As I walked onto the pier, I noticed a group of children clamouring around the wall to my left. They were shouting excitedly and pointing to the swelling sea below. All I could see was a moored fishing vessel so I moved closer to the wall to see what all the fuss was about. It was then I saw the seal in the water below.
It cavorted through the water swimming under the boat and back look up at the shouting children. It barked for scraps of food as it twisted and dived through the water. All the while the drums and the horns played their tuneless but hypnotic rhythm.
I carried on down the pier. There was no sign of Richard. Further down there was a group of young men with huge fishing rods. They were cast out to the right in the heavy seas. One of them had a fish on at the time and was shouting furiously at the others to reel in their lines so as not to get tangled with his. I felt the urge to stay and watch him bring in his catch but had to force myself to carry on walking past. I had to assume Richard was either in the restaurant or in the club below that Binks had told me about. I made an about turn and walked back through the crowds.
I passed the young fishermen as I walked and saw that they had caught a young shark. It was about two feet long and thrashed about on the floor of the pier. Its black skin shone in the light of the lamp above. Eventually I made it back onto dry land and decided to have a look in the restaurant. I walked up the stairs to the entrance and paused at the door to have a look inside. Through the huge windows I saw the expanse of the place, it was very plush. In the centre was a large table covered in a great mound of ice and sea food of all descriptions. On all sides of that were Roman style loungers and sumptuous chairs for the waiting diners. The floor stretched out over the rocks and waves to my left. My eyes darted from table to table until I saw him.
He was sitting on the far side of the sea food table sipping a glass of wine. As far as I could see he was alone but my vision was obscured by the doorway and the many people walking around. I had to get in. I walked through the door to the reception area where I was met by a young white man in uniform. He was in his twenties. His hair was full of gel and he wore a goatee beard.
“Good evening sir, do you have a booking?” He said politely.
“Actually I don't. I was hoping to get a table for two. Can you manage that?” I asked hopefully.
“I'm very sorry sir, as you can see we are fully booked tonight” he said, motioning with his hand to the bustling scene to his right. “I'm really sorry.”
“Ok, no problem, thanks.” I said and walked back out onto the landing above the stairs. I paused a
nd glanced back in at Richard who was still seated where he had been before. He was dressed smartly in blue jeans, boots and a summery cotton shirt with long sleeves. He was clean shaven and his wavy hair was gelled back to make it tidier. I paused wondering what to do. The words ‘watch him like a hawk’ came to my mind and I realised I had to get into the establishment. I pulled my wallet out of my bag and withdrew R1000 in cash. I folded it neatly and hid it in my right fist as I walked back into the restaurant. The youngster who I had met at reception saw me coming back and raised his eyebrows with a worried look on his face. I smiled at him and leant forward over the reception table.
“Listen buddy. In my right hand down here is a thousand Rand. I really need to get a table for two. Can you help?”
His eyes looked down and saw my fist below the table. Then they came up and glanced around the room briefly. I felt his hand touch mine and I handed over the cash. It disappeared immediately into his pocket and he stood up.
“I'm sure I can find something for you, sir” he said.
He pointed towards the area to the centre of the room with the mound of ice and seafood.
“Please make your way to the lounge area, have a drink and wait to be seated. I can have you a table within half an hour?”
“That will be great. Thank you very much,” I said.
“Thank you sir,” came his grateful reply.
It was the equivalent of a hundred US Dollars and probably what he earned in a week. I walked slowly through the crowds and tables towards the massive centre piece knowing that Richard was sitting opposite. I was happy that I had been able to get in and I was feeling hungry as well. I would kill two birds with one stone tonight. I chose a table with two small chairs which was positioned about seven metres from where Richard was sitting. There were four parties of waiting diners between us. They leant towards each other, drank wine, and talked. It seemed Richard and myself were the only people who were sitting alone. A waiter came and I ordered a beer. It arrived within a minute and I sat back, relaxed, and did my job. Richard was a picture of relaxed cool.
The Jason Green series Box Set Page 11
