Nganakati

"Interesting?"

Her eyes lit up. "These things are incredible! The thing with using cameras with animals is that they are wary of anything that they don't know. They avoid it and will even abandon nests, dens and waterholes because of an alien thing. With these new cameras we can almost slip into their nests without them blinking an eye. I love it!"

I bit the bullet. "Okay. And us?"

Her face fell and she avoided my eyes for a while. I could see her struggling with herself and leaned over to take her hand. It trembled just that little bit.

"Spill it," I said softly and smiled at her. It took her a while and many breaths taken in an abortive attempt at saying what was on her mind but at last she looked straight at me. There was a pleading look in those eyes I had dreamed about so many times.

"There is someone.... else Kevin," she stuttered and I saw her eyes tear up. "I hate this but...."

I felt the bottom drop out of my happiness but I simply gripped her hand that little bit tighter. It was painful but I chuckled. "I would have been very surprised if there had not been someone else. You are a beautiful woman and you are not someone who just left school, so it stands to reason that you are involved with someone else."

"You're not angry?"

I frowned deeply. "How can I be angry? We met. The sky fell on my head. Does that mean I am supposed to be that single person on the planet who thinks you were born and raised for me alone? It doesn't compute."

"We have been together for two years now," she said softly and I could see genuine sadness on her face.

"There is an oldie, sung by some lady in which she laments having two lovers. Familiar with it?"

Cathy stared at me for long seconds and then she smiled a smile that was so sad my heart nearly broke. "Torn between two lovers, sung by Mary MacGregor"

"That's it!"

Tears ran down her cheeks and I got out of my chair. I dropped to my knees next to her and held her head to my chest. I felt the sob and her hands going around me. I also felt her fingers curl into me and I almost winced as her nails cut into me. She sobbed only a few times but she sniffed a lot and shuddered more than I wanted to count.

"I've been listening to that song for weeks now," she sighed into my chest. "Every time it hurts more and it leaves me even more confused than before. Every time I swear not to listen to it again and every time I find myself looking for it and listening to it once again. I hate myself for it. I hate you for being what you are. I hate Gustav for what he is."

I waited for her to calm down and pushed her from me so that I could look into those eyes that never failed to captivate me. "Given the chance, will you be able to love me?" I asked with as much of a brave smile as I could muster.

I thought she was going to break into small pieces as she looked up at me. "Please Kevin. Don't ask me that. Please."

I nodded. "Am I in for a fight?"

Her mouth fell open in surprise. "What?"

"If I was willing to fight for you, is there a chance I may win?"

Once again she started crying and I held her to me softly. As she calmed down she pulled back just a little bit and tapped on my chest with her fists. "You fight dirty."

"All's fair in love and war," I chuckled. "Where is he?"

"Do you want to go and pick a fight with him?" she almost giggled.

I shrugged. "Just academic. If I put up a banner over the gate to the Kruger asking you out on a date I don't want this guy to come and knock my teeth out."

"Will you do it?" she giggled with a sob and I laughed.

"Probably not but just in case I need to do something drastic."

She sat back and stared out at the darkening sky visible through the bird watching slits. I could almost hear those gears mashing in her head. "He lives in Pretoria. Professor in Ornithology at the University of Pretoria."

"Ah, I see the connection. Damn, that makes it difficult. Does he come to these parts often?"

"No. I do his beck and call."

Lights flashed in my head. I may have been mistaken but there was just that minute tweak of her lips when she said that. I may have found a crack....

I got upright for the simple reason that my knees were yelling at me. A wooden floor is softer to fall on than concrete but small sand grains between your kneecaps and wood or cement comes to the same thing. It hurts!

She remained seated and I moved to the lookout slits, watching for something to stir up some excitement or similar to break this tension. There was none so I simply sighed and turned around. She had moved closer to me and I did what I wanted to do. I grabbed at her and pulled her to me. It was hesitant at first but she slid her arms around my chest and I leaned down to kiss her on her head."

"I'm sorry Kevin," she said softly and I chuckled.

"This means war."

She pulled away from me and looked at me with a strange expression in those orbs of magic. "You're not angry?"

"Should I be?"

"Upset?"

I had to give this one a little thought. "Upset no, but less happy than I expected to be tonight."

"Disappointed?"

"In what?"

"Knowing there is someone else?"

I sighed loudly. "I guess it was in the back of my head all the time but to be honest, I convinced myself that there was none. A little daft but still...."

She nodded and a smile broke out over that lovely face barely visible in the dark but with some light coming from the Lodge's garden I could just make it out. "I had to know."

I chuckled. "And? Do you?"

"No."

"Good. That means I still have a chance."

She actually giggled. "You are a strange man Kevin."

From somewhere deep in me something bubbled forth. "When I broke apart I had no blueprint to put myself together again. Maybe I erred here and there but I am not unhappy with the guy who stares at me from a mirror."

She moved fast. Her arms slid around my neck and then I felt her lips on mine in a crushing kiss. The surprise made me hesitate for something like a millionth of a second but then I groaned and pulled her to me. At Wasubi Lodge we had kissed and it was magic but passion had no chance to ignite. This time was different. Our tongues danced in exploration of each other and I nearly went up in flames when she whimpered into my mouth, forcing her hips against mine. I pulled her to me and felt myself throb against her. She returned the favour by grinding against me and then suddenly she pushed me away with so much force I nearly fell over.

In the dark our ragged breaths must have been heard for miles. I reached for her again but she pushed against me to keep the distance.

"Please Kevin. I am not free," she wept softly. "God knows I want you but I cannot give myself to you until I know I can give you my everything." She stood there breathing hard and while I tried to figure out what I was to do she suddenly giggled. "Whatever happened at Wasubi has happened again. The sky fell...."

"We went to dinner after that," I chuckled and then we were laughing while we embraced, albeit with a lot more decorum.

"Shall we go?" she giggled and I nodded in the dark as I took her hand. The desire to pull her down and take her right there was difficult to fight.

I think we were still very flushed by the time we walked into the restaurant. I caught some knowing smiles from a few tables and even our waiter had a grin he had difficulty in hiding but he did take us to a rather dark corner and with a wink he left us alone for a while.

Cathy looked at me and suddenly giggled while pointing at me.

"What?"

She leaned forward and wiped at my mouth with a napkin. Her eyes sparkled as she turned it towards me to have a look. Once again our game was up. "Your face is covered in lipstick Kevin," she giggled and I felt myself burst when she blushed beet red. It took every grain of self control not to bail over that table and kiss her into oblivion.

I still had to drive back home on a road that may be very unforgiving so we stayed with water and some apple juice with our meal.

I left soon after dinner. We both knew we were teetering on the edge of doing something that may turn out to be a mistake so we limited the chances of ruining something by cutting our time together. As I got into my car she leaned in and gave me a soft kiss. I nearly jumped out again but instead I put my head against the steering wheel and sighed deeply.

"You are not kind to me Cathy," I complained with a grin.

She nodded sadly and stepped back as I started the car. As it fired up I suddenly remembered that I still did not have her telephone number. I leaned out the window. "Can we please exchange phone numbers Miss MacDonald?"

She simply smiled that heartbreakingly sad smile. "No Kevin. I don't know what is going to happen here. If I decide to walk away from you I want it to be a clean cut. I never want to be able to look at your number and wonder..." She took a shuddering breath and with a loud sob she turned away from me and stumbled away, holding her face between her hands. I sat there with the engine idling, hoping to see her walk out to me. It didn't happen and eventually I slowly drove home. I ached.

***

I went back to the Lodge the next day but she had left. No phone number either. The Lodge was very apologetic about it but phone numbers were not given out.

At work I was able to make believe that everything was okay with me but at night when I was alone I sometimes had a tough time of it. Memories of Maureen were still there. Now I sat with even more aching memories. Maureen had completed me. We were a perfect couple. Where I was weak she was the stronger one and vice versa. I loved her completely and never thought I would be able to love again. Ever. Cathy simply walked into me and fanned something to life. It was so different from my love for Maureen that I could sit and almost dissect the differences. I realised that I could love Cathy as completely and wholly as I did Maureen without having to give anything of her away. But how? How was I to fall in love with someone I never got to see for more than a few hours?

A few weeks later I sat under a camel thorn tree on a game farm I was doing a minor job for. A small fire crackled and kept me company in my lonely thoughts. Once again I tried to think of a way to find Cathy. Why not surprise her? Damn it! I said I was prepared to fight for her but she took the battle away from me by disappearing again!

My phone rang and I glanced at the number on the display. It was not in my contacts and I let it go to voicemail. I disliked phone calls at night and rarely answered. A blocked drain will kill nobody. I heard the ping of a voice message come through and with a sigh I called it up.

"Please call me Kevin," I heard a voice that I had feared I may not hear again. My fingers trembled as I searched in the missed call directory and as I heard the ring tone start I noticed that I had a nerve jumping in my temple.

"Hi," came that husky voice and I felt goose bumps roll down my back.

"Hi yourself. Are you okay?"

She was silent for a while and I heard her take a deep breath. "Meet me at Wasubi this weekend please Kevin?"

"Can I leave now?" I chuckled happily.

"You may. I will be there."

"You had my number?" I asked with more than just a tad of accusation.

I heard her giggle. "That is a story I need to tell you about Mister Faull. See you there." She broke the connection.

I sat there looking at a silent telephone and tapped at it to call her again. It went to voicemail.

"This is bitterly unfair Miss MacDonald," I laughed into the mike and broke the connection. Seconds later a message came through and I eagerly swiped at the screen.

"All is fair in love and war. Your words Kevin."

"You took the battle away from me. All that is left is love," I typed laughing happily.

"Watchit!"

"You expect me to sleep after this?" I typed and smiled as I received a long row of z's. After that my messages remained unread and I dejectedly put the phone away.

I actually slept like a log that night. Early next morning I sent her a picture of a beautiful sunrise and got a heart emoji in return. My day was a solid rainbow. The job took a turn for the worse and it was obvious that it would never be finished by the weekend. I had obligations....

Steven was not quite happy to come and help me and tried every trick in the book to squirm out of it so I had to play my trump card.

"Cathy wants us to meet at Wasubi," I said with so much pleading in my voice that I felt sorry for myself. The silence at the other end was almost tangible and when Steven spoke I could hear genuine concern in his voice.

"She going to ruffle your feathers and run off again?"

"I want that woman Steve. Please, I need this chance. There were things you guys didn't know."

"She dumped the other guy?"

I was stunned. "How did you know there was another guy?"

He laughed so loudly that I had to take the phone from my ear. "Come on Kevin! That is one stunning woman. Apart from being beautiful she has this aura around her. My god man! Only a total fool would have thought that she was not tied up with someone. She crept into the heart of every one of us at Wasubi. It took her one single evening to have all of us at her feet. Nganakati the guys called her and still do. She is our princess!"

"Will you do it?"

He chuckled. I'll have to move a few jobs and pull some guys off the Langstone project but we'll be there. My biggest problem will be to stop them all from going. Take this message to her."

"Yes?"

"Mike said she will return to you. A few days ago he came up to me and told me that Nganakati was coming. He knew. If she disappears again it will put a lie to that man's powers to see into the future."

"Will chains do?" I laughed happily.

"Chains between two souls will do."

"Thanks."

He laughed and whistled. "Go boy! Fetch!"

Late that same afternoon I nearly fell off a ladder when one of our small buses came trundling into the yard followed by Mike in his pickup and even at that distance I could see his teeth in stark contrast to his dark skin. He was smiling and he punched the air as he got out.

"Nkulumba! The chosen one has returned," he called and a roar of joy rose from the teams, some still clambering from the bus. I loved these guys....

"Gary okay with you coming to help me? This is pure plumbing and not a single electrical wire in sight," I grinned and had to laugh when Mike turned to his pickup and took down a small generator with coils of wire.

"The men will need to see at night."

"You planning on working at night?"

Mike shrugged. "There is much work. This needs to be finished."

"We have a few days...."

Mike simply grinned at me. "Nganakati must not wait and you should not have to be concerned about this job when you go to her."

We did work into the night. I sent a couple of hearts to Cathy with z's following it. I was done! She answered but I was asleep by the time it came through.

The next day started before dawn when a mug with coffee and rusks were dropped at the entrance to my room and I was up and going before the sun showed itself. The Lodge supplied meals and we were treated to scrumptious meals taken outside under trees, eating with dirty hands. It was ironic to think that there were those inside who had the same fare and paid prices that made my eyes water. The cost of fine tables and air conditioning....

That night we worked closer to the main building and there was a danger of disturbing the paying guests. It was frustrating to have to down tools while knowing that time was running out but we simply shrugged and took an early night. I was sitting at our own little fire in the boma when Mike hurried over to me.

"You must leave tomorrow Nkulumba. She will need you." I looked at him trying to fathom what he meant but his face was unreadable. I started to make some useless objection but he pointed in the direction of the gate with a no-nonsense attitude. "You will leave at sunrise. Go to her."

It was still dark when Mike knocked on my door. In his hands were the keys to his pickup. "We took everything from it last night so it will be faster than that truck of yours. And anyway, there are things on yours we may need. Go! Now!"

I left. Mike's strange behaviour was getting to me and slowly my mood turned. It went from happy to concerned and eventually to fear. I had turned to Wasubi directly from where I was. I had my suitcase with me anyway. There was no need for the three hour detour to go past my house. By the time I was close to Wasubi I was going really fast and I shook my head in disbelief at what I was doing on a whim.

I entered Wasubi's gate and kept to the required speed limit although some devil was goading me on to drive at speed. Rounding a corner I saw Cathy's Landy parked in the road. I stopped behind it and walked to the cab. It was empty. Looking around I saw boot tracks in the sand of the road going into the veld at an angle. Circling vultures gave me a direction to move to and I followed a faint trail of trampled grass.

I was about to call out when I thought I heard a yell and I stopped. A second later I heard Cathy scream and in two bounds I was running flat out through the thorny bush. I came around a thicket and before me I saw Cathy desperately struggling with a man holding a panga aloft, seemingly trying to chop at her but she was fighting too hard for him to get a proper swing at her. I was close and without even trying to lose speed I rammed into the man and we crashed onto the ground. The panga went flying and I heard it clatter onto the ground somewhere close while I frantically grappled with the man.

I heard Cathy scream again and then there was a thud that almost had the sound of a smack. The man grunted and for seconds he lost energy. It gave me the time needed to pull his hands from my throat and with every ounce of strength I had, I kicked him from me. He fell backward and struggled upright just as I rolled to my feet. I started at him again but he suddenly dropped on his back, rolled like a cat and then he was running like hell.

I roared as I started after him again, saw him glance over his shoulder and he gained some more speed. For a short distance I gave chase and then turned around to look for Cathy. She saw me coming and ran to me, clutching me in an embrace filled with fear while she sobbed, still holding a piece of a dry branch.

"Did you hit him with this?" I asked and she nodded.

"I almost missed."

"It gave me a moment of respite. Thanks."

A shadow moved past us and I pushed her away from me with so much force that she fell down, her face contorted in fear as I turned, looking for the new danger but it was a vulture that had flown past us, going for a landing just to the right of us. We both chuckled nervously.

Cathy sprang to her feet and I reached for her but she turned away from me towards a gaggle of vultures a short distance away. Screaming she ran at them, desperately trying to shoo away the birds that were smaller than her but ten times as dangerous and intent on getting to eat whatever had brought them down from the sky. I knew vultures. Cathy was in grave danger of being hurt.

I ran past her and into the gaggle of birds that were forced into a reasonably small area because of a thorn thicket. They scattered and flew up. Some simply ran off a little and immediately started coming forward again. These birds were used to facing down lions and hyenas so my threat was a mite thin. I had no idea why Cathy was behaving the way she was but if she wanted the birds away from their meal she must have had a good reason so I waded into them kicking and roaring while flapping my arms like a demented scarecrow.

"Kevin!" I heard her call and turned to see her holding out a hefty branch she had broken off. Her hands were bleeding from cuts given to her by sharp thorns. I felt them biting into me and I swore as I tried to change my grip. Vultures approaching denied me the chance and I swung at them with gusto. They gave way and I heard Cathy yell something and as I turned I saw her running away towards where the vehicles were, gesturing at me to wait. For seconds I considered going with her, knowing her attacker may still be around but then I ignored it. He had run in the opposite direction and likely found himself far from here.