Daddy Long Legs (41 page)

‘What are you saying, Devlin?’

‘I can do one of two things. I can tell him the brand is in great hands and that Thabo has been managing the greater part of the creative for the last year, in any case. I can tell him that, although I am leaving the industry, I will still be working as an active consultant on the brand, attending all meetings, involved with all creative work and so on and so on.’ Kyle took a drag of the Camel and flicked it away. ‘On the other hand, I can tell him that the brand is a chaotic mess. That a certain client service person called Pam Shelby leaked some very sensitive material to a competitor brand.’ Charles gasped. Pam Shelby (a highly placed Client Service Manager) had recently been fired when it was discovered she had been leaking confidential information to a competitor. Although she had been nowhere near Bella Food and Beverages, both Charles and Kyle knew the right rumours whispered in the right ears would be disastrous. ‘And as a personal friend, I could suggest to Mr Crankshaw that the needs of his multi-national would best be served at another ad agency.’

‘You wouldn’t do that.’ Charles Baker’s words were a fierce whisper across the phone line.

‘Really? Is that your response? You want to take that chance, Baker?’ Silence. ‘So here’s the deal. You’re going to pay me the remainder of the year’s salary. You got that, Charlie? Plus you’re going to pay me my full bonus, based upon the agency’s annual billings.’

‘You dirty motherfucker.’

‘Now, now Charlie. That kind of language hardly befits the MD of South Africa’s second biggest agency. Or should that be ... the
third
biggest agency?’ Although he said nothing, Kyle knew that Charles Baker was fuming on the other end. He looked at his watch. ‘I’m giving you until twelve, Charlie. Within the hour I am expecting a call from the Human Resource Manager, confirming that my request has been granted.’  And then Kyle ended the call.

About forty minutes later, as Kyle was booking a hotel room for the night, Greg Coetzee, Human Resource Manager of Corke Davis, called Kyle. Offering sincere regrets that Kyle was leaving the Corke, he arranged to have documents faxed to him.

For the remainder of the day, Kyle took the time to enjoy the sights of Kimberley. The famous mining city, once upon a time the centre of the global diamond industry, and erstwhile home to such diamond luminaries as Cecil John Rhodes and Barny Barnato. It was also birthplace of the famous – or should that be infamous – De Beers. Kyle even took some time to see the famous ‘Big Hole of Kimberley’ – the famous open-pit mine in the centre of Kimberley, purported to be the world’s deepest and largest hole excavated by hand.

The next day, Kyle departed for Bloemfontein, stopping at a Shell convenience store to buy a bouquet of flowers.

About an hour later he was walking along a cool, climate-controlled hallway. Solemnly, he walked towards the morgue entrance. Then took a left.

At the reception desk he flirted with the two nurses on duty. And promised them that the next time the bouquet of flowers would be for them. They directed him to the room of the patient he had enquired about. They had no problem identifying the room. After all,
everybody
at the Medi-Clinic hospital knew about the famous detective that had cracked the case of the decade.

‘Hide the stash! It’s the
poh-poh
,’ Kyle shouted as he entered the room of detective Wayne Human. The bandaged policeman looked up and chuckled painfully.

‘Mr Devlin.’

Kyle walked over and stood by Human’s hospital bed, grinning from ear to ear. ‘I bought you some flowers, honey bun.’

Human chuckled again. Then grabbed his bandaged head, wincing with pain. ‘The doctor strongly advised me against laughter.’

‘Sorry, man,’ Kyle said, placing the bouquet on a bedside table, already cluttered with several other bouquets and gift baskets. ‘Unforgiveable,’ he said, smiling.’

Human nodded. ‘Good to see you. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?’ He spoke slowly, careful not to agitate his wounds.

‘Hell yeah, it feels like a year ago doesn’t it?’

Human nodded. ‘So, how are you doing?’

Kyle took a seat. ‘Me?’ He rubbed his chin with exaggerated deliberation. ‘I’m just fine and dandy,
suh
.’ He smiled at Human. Then assumed a more earnest expression. ‘No, but seriously, I’m good man. Really. Better than I’ve been in a long time. And guess what. I’ve resigned. I’m finished with advertising.’

‘Big move.’

‘Yeah.’ He nodded wistfully. ‘But hey, enough about me. How are you doing? You do know that you’re the luckiest cop like ... south of the Mississippi, man.’

‘Yes. That I am. Lucky. Bit of an understatement, really.’

Lucky was indeed an understatement. The bullet from Ryan’s revolver had entered Human’s open mouth; exited the floor of his mouth; entered his neck and missed the left jugular by less than an inch. In a strange twist of fate, Human’s wound was in almost the same place as that of Ryan. Whereas Human survived, the knife that had ended Ryan Devlin’s life had managed to sever the jugular.

‘Damn right.’ For a moment, neither said anything. ‘Man, what a crazy world,’ Kyle said eventually, staring solemnly at the hospital floor. He looked up. ‘So you’re getting good care here?’

‘The best. Besides saving my life, they’ve been taking really good care of me.’

In the frenzied moments following the confrontation in the Devlin house, a medevac helicopter had been summoned from the Tempe military base in Bloemfontein. Within an hour, he had been rushed into an operating room at the Medi-Clinic private hospital in Bloemfontein. Although the Free State capitol was a relatively small city, it housed some of the best doctors in the world. Doctors who were regularly recruited by developed countries like Canada and the UK. With lesser skills, Human may never have survived. And they both knew it.

‘That’s great man. You deserve the best,’ Kyle said, catching a name on one of the gift baskets. ‘Oh wow, I see detective uh ... Maratheng ... has been visiting you?’

‘Mathafeng.’

‘Yeah, Mathafeng.’ Kyle winked obscenely at Human. ‘So, uh, how’s that been going, huh, detective?’

Human smiled. ‘She’s been at my bedside, night and day, basically. She left earlier this morning for Pretoria. Homicide’s a dirty business, but someone’s got to do it.’

‘Uh-huh, sounds like advertising.’ Kyle looked over at the bouquets. ‘Looks like you’ve got a horde of fans, by the looks of it.’

Human strained painfully to look at the crowded table. ‘Yes.

Amongst the profusion of gifts, bouquets and cards, Kyle noticed a glaring absence. ‘And ... uh, what about ... uh ...?’ He left the sentence unfinished.

Human looked down at the sheet that covered his body, a sombre expression on his face. ‘Magda hasn’t been able to come down yet. She’s a bit ... under the weather.’

‘I see. Okay. Yeah, I mean ... it’s difficult.’ He tried to appear cheerful, in order to lessen the awkwardness of the moment.

‘She’s flying down tomorrow.’ Human paused, looking grave. ‘I guess then would be as good a time as any to tell her of my plans. And my intentions.’ He paused, looking pained. ‘Whatever the case, I cannot allow anything to happen between ... Detective Mathafengand myself until all of that is resolved. It wouldn’t be right.’

Kyle leaned forward. ‘You know what, dude. I remember what you told me in the pub that night.’ Human looked at Kyle with an odd expression. ‘No, no, no ...’ Kyle chuckled to himself. ‘I mean, about detective Matateng.’ This time Human didn’t correct him, but instead listened attentively. ‘I remember what you said about, you know, your feelings, man. I remember. And let me tell you this, Wayne, you deserve happiness. Believe me, man, more than most people I know. You deserve to be happy. And to experience love.’

Human looked at him intently. ‘Thank you, Kyle. I appreciate that.’

‘No problem, five-oh.’ Kyle nodded at the crowded bedside table. ‘And from what I can see, you’ve got a tonne of fans who will tell you the same thing.’

Human nodded, smiling. ‘Premier Joemat came to see me yesterday. With a full entourage.’

‘Oh, hell yeah, I was meaning to ask you. How’s the little boy doing?’

Human sighed. ‘Not well, unfortunately. He’s struggling. The usual symptoms of PTSD.’ He noticed Kyle’s puzzled expression. ‘Post traumatic stress disorder,’ he said, clarifying. ‘Panic attacks, nightmares. That sort of thing. It’s going to be a long journey, but with the right care ... and the right support, he should be alright. I hope. I know Benny Joemat will be a far more attentive father from now on. If there’s one good thing that has come out of this, then that must be it.’

‘Yeah, it’s tough,’ Kyle said softly, not willing to voice the tacit understanding between the two men. That it was his brother that had been responsible for the little boy’s torment. ‘By the way,’ he said, eager to change the topic, ‘I heard something interesting about the reward money.’

Human smiled wryly. ‘Yes. Rather. Tony Mohale has announced that the reward is mine.’

‘Yeah, that’s what I heard.’ Kyle beamed at Human.

‘Of course, as a policeman I am not allowed to accept gifts or rewards of any kind.’

‘And now?’

‘Well, Mr Mohale has generously deposited the money into a trust, that’s to be set up under my name. The moment I leave the force, the money will be mine.’

‘Holy schmoly, son, you’re looking at a sweet retirement, man.’

Human became silent. He nodded mutely. ‘Ja. I guess.’

Kyle looked at the policeman with concern. ‘What’s up?’

Human swallowed hard. ‘I don’t know. I’ve been a detective for so many years. I’ve seen so much. But what happened with your brother and everything, I don’t know, Kyle. I don’t know how much longer I can continue doing this. I came into the police service wanting to do something good and worthwhile. And yet, I just feel like I’m being sucked deeper and deeper into a bottomless pit of darkness. I just don’t know anymore.’ He looked at Kyle. ‘I’ve got some leave coming up. My superiors insist I take it.  Maybe I’m going to do some ... soul searching, I guess. And think about my future.’ He paused. ‘Especially now that everything has changed so much.’

‘You know what, man, I think that’s a very good idea. There seems to be an awful lot of soul searching going on around here.’ Human chuckled painfully. ‘Yeah, good idea.’

‘So how long are you going to be in town?’

‘I don’t know. Probably only tonight. And tomorrow. I actually only came to see you. No other reason.’

‘I feel honoured. Thank you.’

‘No problem, my friend. No problem at all.’

A nurse entered. She stood by Human’s bed and cradled his hand in hers. ‘How are we doing today, detective?’ She asked in Afrikaans.

‘I’m well, thank you, sister.’

‘Good. You ready for your bath?’

Human sighed. And looked at Kyle. ‘Sponge bath. The highlight of my day.’

Kyle stood up. ‘Well, I think this would be a good time for me to make my exit.’ He looked at the nurse and winked at her. ‘You do any ... private sponge baths, after hours, sister?’ The young nurse smiled, blushing profusely. ‘Okay,’ Kyle said, patting Human’s hand. ‘I’ll drop by later tonight ... and tomorrow. Just before I leave. But listen, you have my number, I have yours. We’re going to stay in touch, aren’t we?’

Human nodded, smiling sincerely. ‘Absolutely.’

The following morning, after one last hospital visit, Kyle pulled into the emergency lane of the main thoroughfare. Before him, metres away, were two slipways, leading onto the great highway, the N1. One would take him to the north, back to Johannesburg. The other would lead him (eventually and circuitously) to the sub-tropical shores of Kwazulu-Natal.

He sat motionless behind the wheel. The sun was shining. The morning was fresh. And vivid. And his soul felt as large as the African continent. The world was full of possibility. And it was his for the taking.

What to do? Where to go?

For once, Kyle didn’t stress about the future. For once he was content to let fate take its course. He took a brand new shiny five rand coin from his wallet. And studied it carefully. ‘It’s just you and me now, bro. What’s it going to be?’ He flicked the coin into the air and slapped it down on his hand. ‘Tails, Johannesburg. Heads, KZN.’ He took a deep breath. And looked at the shape of his future. And smiled.

Hadn’t he always said he wanted to go and live in Kwazulu-Natal?

He programmed the new co-ordinates into his GPS. And slowly pulled away as his American girlfriend began giving directions. ‘That’s right baby, you take us there.’

Cruising along the highway, Kyle opened the window and allowed the wind to wash over his face. And then. He had a bright beautiful vision.

A retired adman, running a trendy coffee shop in a small KZN coastal town. Married to a beautiful and deep woman. A woman who wanted nothing more than to have her love returned. And he saw a retired cop, a very wealthy retired cop, dropping in from time to time with his new wife. Happy and fulfilled.

It was beautiful.

But was it real?

Ah hell, who cared? Right now there was only the open road. And the vast possibilities of a new life. And a clean slate.