THIRTEEN
IT WAS NEARLY MIDDAY on Wednesday, and Kubu was contemplating lunch. Perhaps the café at Game City would have one of its specials—generous and cheap. This pleasant contemplation was interrupted by a knock on his door, and Samantha appeared in answer to his shout. Because of their previous meeting, Kubu’s reaction was mixed. Still, he waved her to a chair.
“How’s it going?” he asked. Samantha seemed excited. Was it possible that she was actually getting somewhere?
“Well, I’ve found a few leads. Can I tell you about them? See what you think?”
Kubu grunted, and she continued.
“First, I think Lesego was abducted for muti, not as a sex slave. She had something special that may have made her attractive to a witch doctor.” She gave Kubu a brief account of her interview with Van der Meer.
“So you think it was her name? She was killed for her name?” He was shocked. Samantha nodded. “Maybe. Then I went to see the family. There wasn’t much—nothing they hadn’t already told the police. But the girl’s sister had something. She’d found Lesego’s shopping list discarded at the bottom of the hill leading up to her house. She was sure that Lesego threw it there when she was abducted. If that’s so, then we know exactly where she was taken.”
“Why didn’t the sister take it to the police at once when she found it?”
“She did. They weren’t interested.”
Kubu grunted again and waited for her to continue.
“I decided to go to each house in the immediate area and tell them that we knew Lesego was abducted there that day—to see if I could get them to remember something.” She paused.
Kubu thought this over. Samantha shouldn’t have told potential witnesses that the police knew something that they did not. This was hardly police procedure by the book. But Kubu wasn’t exactly renowned for going by the book, either, as Mabaku was fond of pointing out. He let it go. “That’s a pretty long shot,” he said mildly.
“I know. But it paid off. One man I spoke to yesterday said he saw a red car stop at the bottom of the hill. He remembers because it was an odd place to stop—on the curve at the bottom of the hill—and he thought perhaps it had broken down. But when he went out to look, it started up again and headed up the hill.”
“Was he sure it was that day? It was four and a half months ago!”
Samantha hesitated. “He thought so. He has a very good memory and remembered other things from before Christmas. But no, he wasn’t sure.”
“Did he remember seeing the girl?” Samantha slowly shook her head. “Why didn’t he tell the police at the time?”
“Well, he didn’t see anything suspicious. Anyway, they didn’t ask him. The police didn’t do much at all. They should react at once when someone goes missing, especially a child. They don’t take these cases seriously.”
“Maybe so.” Kubu was beginning to agree with her sentiments.
“So, I think that she was abducted in a red car that evening. I’m trying to work out how to check up on red cars in Mochudi.”
“You realize, of course, that there could be hundreds of other explanations for the car and everything else?” Samantha started to object, but Kubu held up his hand. “Let me finish. Suppose that your whole theory is right. Let’s see where that takes us. So, if the abductor wanted her specially—for her name, as you suggest—then he must’ve known her and where she’d be that afternoon. Perhaps she knew him, too. That would explain why he found it so easy to get her into the car.”
“Yes, I also thought of that. That’s why I want to try to find red cars in Mochudi.”
“Good. But if I were going to abduct a child, I wouldn’t use my own car. I’d borrow one, or rent one, or—best of all—steal one. I suggest you take a look at cars reported stolen around that time that turned up a while later, probably undamaged.”
“That’s an excellent idea, Assistant Superintendent! I’ll start with cars reported stolen in Mochudi.”
Kubu shook his head. “Probably not there. I’d steal a car somewhere in Gaborone. Much less obvious. And it’s only half an hour drive to Mochudi anyway.”
Samantha was thinking ahead. “The trouble is the man wouldn’t have to know her. Maybe he’d heard about her. Maybe someone tipped him off.” She hated the idea of a gang earmarking suitable children for dismemberment, but it was a possibility.
Kubu nodded. “Of course that might be the case. But someone knew her or knew of her, so that makes a personal connection. Did she have a lot of friends? Maybe she had a weekend job? Check if anyone was asking about her at the school—who she was, where she lived, and so on.” Samantha was making notes, obviously excited. Kubu realized she was very likely to be disappointed. All this was speculation and would probably lead nowhere.
“Any luck with unidentified bodies?”
Samantha shook her head. “Nothing that fits a girl of that age.”
Kubu hesitated. “That suggests that she was abducted to be sold. A witch doctor would have to get rid of the body once he had taken the body parts he wanted for muti. So maybe the name is just a coincidence after all.”
Samantha bit her lip but didn’t argue.
Kubu checked his watch. “Well, it’s lunchtime.”
Samantha was already on her feet. “No time now. I’ll get something later. I want to check up on any car thefts and then start a list of Lesego’s friends and acquaintances. I’ll need to go back to Mochudi. Thanks, Assistant Superintendent.”
Kubu watched her go and heard her hurried progress up the corridor. He’d tried to be encouraging, but her theory was based on a set of flimsy connections. Well, he thought, at least she’s keen.
He decided to walk to Game City. The exercise was good for him, and he’d work up an appetite. Not that that had ever been a problem. He chuckled as he locked his door.
IT WAS FRIDAY AFTERNOON, and Kubu had his feet up on his desk. Although he had eaten a paltry lunch of salads, lovingly provided by Joy, he had managed to invite several of his colleagues for tea in his office. This, of course, enabled him to delve into his tin of mixed cookies without guilt. His eyes were closed, and he was contemplating with pleasure a weekend with his family—time alone with his wonderful wife, and playtime with the always effervescent Tumi. Even Nono was slowly coming out of her shell and was joining the games with some enthusiasm.
As a smile spread across his face, there was a banging on his door. Kubu hurriedly put his feet on the floor and opened a folder on his desk.
“Come in!” he shouted.
Samantha rushed in, obviously upset.
“Assistant Superintendent, it’s completely unacceptable!”
“Detective, please sit down. Let me get you a cup of tea. I was just going for one myself. Problems have a habit of shrinking over a cup of good tea and a cookie.”
Kubu walked out of his office and returned a few minutes later with two cups of strong tea.
“Here, have a cookie.” Samantha took two from the offered tin, and Kubu matched her.
“So, tell me what’s happened.”
Samantha took a deep breath. “When I started on the Lesego case, I sent a memo to all police stations to let me know whenever someone young went missing. Well, someone from the Broadhurst police station phoned yesterday and told me that a girl had disappeared on the thirteenth. That’s nearly two weeks ago!” She took a deep breath. “How will we ever stop these terrible crimes if the police do nothing?”
“Calm down, Samantha. Just because they only phoned yesterday doesn’t mean they’ve been doing nothing. When people go missing, and this is particularly true for kids, they’ve often just forgotten to tell someone.”
“Well, why didn’t I hear of it sooner?”
“You should’ve been told right away, but the reality is that everyone is busy, things fall between the cracks. Maybe they don’t like the CID interfering in their missing-persons case. Who knows? Overall the police do the best they can, but like everyone else, they’re not perfect.”
“Aren’t you just condoning incompetence?”
“Calm down, Samantha. So, what do you want to do about this new case?”
Samantha leaned back in her chair, and Kubu noticed her shoulders relax a bit.
“Well, I want to interview the family. I’d like to get to it right away. I’ll go and see if they are home tomorrow or Sunday. It’s not far from here, so it should be quite easy. I don’t mind working on the weekend.”
“Good. Following up soon will improve the chances of making some progress. Please keep me informed.” Kubu wriggled in his chair to find a more comfortable position.
Samantha checked her watch and rose to leave. “I must go and vote. I live in the Gaborone North constituency, and I think the Freedom Party might actually win this by-election. Maybe Rra Marumo will help make things change.”
Kubu grunted. He wasn’t convinced.