by Albert Wendt
Like the others, Daniel suddenly wants to be away from there. Mason comes to their rescue. ‘You may not need your shares, but we do,’ Mason says. It is a mixture of threat and plea. He looks round the room at everyone; they avoid his scrutiny. Ripeka turns quickly and starts heading for the door. Mason follows her.
Laura feels the others’ relief as Ripeka and Mason disappear through the doorway. She glances at Daniel and decides she doesn’t want to confront the decision they have to make – not yet – and hurries into the kitchen.
Shortly after, when the others have gone, leaving a threatening emptiness with Aaron still circling around it, Laura pours glasses of wine for Mere, Daniel and herself. Laura tries not to look at Daniel because she knows, from her life with him, that he is finding the thought of rejecting his share more and more difficult. When she’d first heard about the shares and Daniel being the will’s sole executor, she’d concluded that was why Aaron had appointed Daniel. Aaron used people so effectively because he could read them down to their most intimate weaknesses.
‘Finally, after all these years of denying Aaron’s “other side” and not denying the benefits we were getting from it,’ Laura says, ‘we can no longer escape the truth.’
‘Which is what?’ Daniel interjects, almost a whisper.
‘You want it plain and simple?’ she says, looking up at him. He nods once. ‘That Aaron was a criminal and the benefits we were enjoying came from that. That the shares he has willed to us are from those activities also. There. And he was not a petty criminal, was he, Mere?’ She wants Mere to take the load from her.
‘The size of his estate is not petty,’ Mere tries to joke. ‘He was even into the manufacturing and selling of drugs, which must have destroyed a lot of lives.’ She stops, and takes a large sip of her wine. ‘And I let him off while, as a judge, I sent a hell of a lot of others to jail.’
‘But we didn’t know,’ Daniel says. Laura can’t believe he’s said it.
‘Bullshit, Dan; we all knew,’ Mere says.
‘But if we all knew, why didn’t we do something about it?’ Daniel continues his futile denial.
‘Because of the benefits,’ Laura replies.
‘And we loved him,’ Mere says. ‘At least, that’s my defence. My aroha for him – and our Tribe – put him beyond the law I administer. For over forty years I have loved him beyond any law.’
‘And risked your career,’ Laura says.
‘Yes, but that’s no longer important to me,’ Mere says. ‘I can no longer accept any benefits from Aaron’s crimes. No, not even his aroha.’ Laura is not surprised. ‘I should have given him up years ago.’
‘But what about the others, and their needing their shares?’ Daniel says.
‘Do you need yours?’ Laura confronts him. Daniel squirms away. ‘Do you?’ He refuses to answer. ‘Aaron got away with it because he knew we all loved him and would never betray that.’
‘If you two give up your shares, it all goes to charity,’ he reminds them.
‘It would be the best use for it: to try and heal some of the damage our beloved Aaron did to others,’ Laura says. When she looks at Daniel, she knows what his reaction is going to be.
‘And what happens to our Tribe?’ he asks. And there it is: the final frightening choice.
‘That, for me, is no longer the important question,’ Mere says. ‘If our other members turn against me for rejecting my share, I don’t really care any more – because they would be choosing the money instead of me and the Tribe and the aroha we keep telling ourselves has kept us together all these years. Right?’
‘Right,’ Laura says. ‘I don’t want my share, either, Daniel. I want to be free of my guilty conscience, which I’ve had to live with all these years.’ At once, as she gazes at Daniel, she feels free and clean. And she yearns for him to choose her and Mere.
41
‘Dad, come and see this!’ Cheryl calls, with urgency, from the sitting room, where she is watching television. Carrying the bowl with the salad he’s been preparing in the kitchen for their evening meal, Daniel hurries into the sitting room and into a full-screen still photograph of Aaron, eyes and smile twinkling with his usual mischief.
‘Last September, Mr Aaron Whairangi was found dead in Karangahape Road,’ the television says. It shows a head-and-shoulders photograph of Aaron.. ‘This afternoon the police emergency squad raided a house in Rotorua and arrested two men for the alleged killing of Mr Whairangi …’ The camera moves down a cordoned-off street, and pans in on the armed emergency squad in front of an old red and blue house surrounded by overgrown flax and sprawling trees. ‘Mr Whairangi was a highly successful businessman, and the two men arrested are believed to have been his business associates …’
‘They got the bastards, Dad!’ Cheryl shouts, jumping up. ‘I betcha it’s those crazy pricks Feau and Bonzy.’ Cheryl hugs Daniel, knocking the bowl out of his hands, and the green salad scatters across the carpet. Strangely, as Daniel watches the outward expanding flight of the leaves glittering with drops of salad dressing, it slows down as if it is going to stop, but he knows it won’t, and he is relieved by that. During the next few weeks, in his quest to maintain control of what takes place in his mind, he will continue viewing events in this way. ‘Dad, it’s Auntie Mere.’ Cheryl breaks into his thoughts and hands him her cell phone.
‘Are you watching the news?’ Mere asks. ‘I knew the police were going to arrest them, but I couldn’t tell anyone.’ The domino effect of this arrest has started, and the stark fear of his being unable to stop it is almost overwhelming. ‘Dan, did you hear me?’ In her voice is the same fear.
‘Yes. Don’t worry: as you’ve said, we just let the law take its course.’
‘That’s right, Dan. They’ll be found guilty, but as you know there’s no capital punishment any more so they won’t be executed…’
‘Mere, you have to stay out of it. Just leave it to us.’
Not long after Mere, Paul and then Keith ring. They are estatic about the news of the arrest and the likelihood that Feau and Bonzy will be found guilty and sentenced to long-term imprisonment, but he senses that they, like him, are profoundly fearful of events spinning out of their control. And even more afraid of what they have to do to fulfill Aaron’s final wish.
Instead of waiting for Laura to call, he borrows Cheryl’s car and drives to her house.
It’s as if she’s been waiting for him – the front door is opened as soon as he knocks. She kisses him on the cheek and he follows her into the sitting room. ‘Mere knew about the arrests beforehand,’ he tells her.
‘I’m sure the police have been keeping her informed about their investigation,’ she says.
‘I’ve told her to bloody well keep out of it.’
‘The media will be all over it if they get a sniff of her being involved in this,’ she says, ‘so I’ll talk to her too.’ She gets him a beer, and water for herself. ‘I’m relieved they got them finally, but like you I’m bloody scared of what’s going to happen. Have you told the others about Mere and me not accepting our shares?’
He shakes his head once. ‘Not yet – I need you to help me do that.’
‘No problem. I’ll be there when you tell them.’
‘How long will it take for the rest of the police investigation and the trial?’
She ponders for a moment and then replies, ‘At least six months. Why?’
‘I have to go back to Hawai‘i at the end of the month for another semester of teaching.’
Her gaze is searching. ‘And then what?’ she asks.
‘I’m coming back so I can be here for their sentencing – and …’ He can’t continue.
‘And?’ she asks quietly. He can’t admit it. ‘And has it been arranged?’
He nods once, emphatically. ‘I also have to be here to help you and Cheryl care for my mother.�
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‘What about your wonderful life in paradise?’ she asks. Her face is shining with amusement.
‘Hawai‘i can never be home for me; I’m not rooted in it. I have many friends there, but …’ He has to pause. ‘Besides, the spiritual source of my work is here and Samoa.’
‘Anything else here?’ she asks, with a gentle frankness.
Nodding, he says, ‘Yes, Cheryl … and … and Phillip and you.’ He gazes up at her when he feels the warm wrap of her hand around his wrist. ‘Yes, you, Laura.’ Her arms encircle his head and she draws him into her breasts and alofa and forgiveness.
‘Let’s give it another try,’ she whispers.
With that, Laura feels her every cell releasing the mix of stress, betrayal, anger and the desire for revenge that had invaded her ever since they separated. Her sense of freedom is all encompassing, like at that moment when she was informed by her grandmother her mother had died. She isn’t naïve enough to believe the old unfaithful Daniel was dead – but she doesn’t care any more about that. Only that they are at a new beginning – or should she say, they are giving themselves another chance.
‘Yes, let’s,’ he whispers back.
42
He is getting out of the car in Cheryl’s garage when his cell phone rings. He knows who it is – he’s been expecting this call with tense anticipation. ‘Things are working out as we planned,’ Tahu says, formally, confirming Daniel’s suspicion that Tahu and Fletch Whangarua had something to do with Feau’s and Bonzy’s arrest. ‘Mr Whangarua would like to see you.’ He can see Tahu’s tattooed face smiling and almost hear him chortling. Quickly they arrange the time and place for the meeting. ‘And don’t worry about Fletch – I will continue to keep an eye on him.’
It is almost one, and the pale sun is free in the thin haze that stretches across the sky’s zenith, when he parks in front of the Zoo, locks the car and heads across the crowded parking area into the southern entrance of Western Springs Park. A few pūkeko and chickens are foraging in the grass. He knows the Park well, because he and Laura used to jog regularly from their home into it, and then three times around the lake. Sometimes they would stop and rest under the trees; sometimes they took leftover bread and fed the birds and eels with it.
After his meeting with Laura the previous day, Daniel feels that she is with him again as he walks over the main path, which is stained with bird excrement, avoiding the ducks and swans and other birds that pester him for food. Her presence and love soothe his fears.
He weaves his way carefully through the crowded playground, where noisy children are being supervised by their parents and other guardians. He goes down a slight slope and arrives beside the lake, over which a strong breeze is pushing small waves and bringing with it the sharp smell of mud and bird droppings and decaying weeds. A few people are sitting on the benches under the willows at the lake’s edge; some are having picnic lunches, and tossing out scraps for the birds.
Away from the main path, he finds the heavy wooden table under a towering stand of gum trees, and sits down on the bench facing the small inlet that is being cruised by shags and swans. Behind him, the lushly green lawns stretch up and back into the trees and other vegetation. A short while later, he hears two people approaching from there, their footsteps crunching in the thick grass. He doesn’t turn, pretending he is preoccupied with watching the lake.
‘Talofa, Dan!’ Fletch greets him. Dan turns, and they shake hands. Tahu smiles but doesn’t sit down. Fletch takes the bench opposite Daniel and, with a handful of grass, starts wiping the bird shit off his left sports shoe. ‘God, this whole bloody park is full of shit!’ Fletch laughs and waits for the others to get his joke.
‘Good one, mate,’ Daniel plays along. Tahu stands, arms folded, gazing down at the lake. As usual Fletch is dressed expensively: this time in a dark blue sweat suit and sports shoes.
‘So what do ya think?’ Fletch asks. Daniel glances at him, pretending ignorance. ‘Ya know? About those bastids getting arrested?’ His eyes are wide with triumphant joy.
‘Fucking good; fucking good, mate!’ Daniel pretends.
Spreading his arms wide and gazing at Tahu, Fletch says, ‘I don’t think the bastids knew what hit them, eh, Tahu?’
Tahu gazes down at Daniel, smiling. ‘Naw, the bastids certainly didn’t,’ he says.
Elbows on his knees, his legs spread widely, his hands grasped together, Fletch says, ‘Poor Feau and Bonzy never knew the cops were onta them until they were onta them, eh, Tahu?’
‘Certainly didn’t, poor bastids!’ Tahu encourages his boss to story on.
‘They thought they were home and hosed, Dan.’ Fletch’s laughter starts stretching down into the lake. ‘Home and bloody hosed!’
‘But we fixed them, eh, boss?’ Tahu continues his chorus.
Reaching over and grasping Daniel’s shoulder, Fletch says, ‘We certainly did. Ya wanta know how we did it, Dan?’ Daniel nods. ‘Simple, Dan, simple. We simply laid clues for the cops to find tying Feau and his missus Bonzy to the crime, and then got some mates to lead the cops to sulphur-stinking Rotorua – and the prize.’ His small body shakes with a wheezing laughter, his spittle spraying over the table.
‘Yeah, Boss, the cops certainly got the prize,’ Tahu choruses. Daniel glances up at Tahu, who shrugs his shoulders, and Daniel realises that he is in the middle of a badly scripted gangster movie being directed by Tahu, and he suppresses his mirth by lowering his head and focusing on his hands. Unexpectedly the realisation that the gangster movie is in fact extremely dangerous for all its actors clogs his thoughts, and again the panic slides into his breath. For he and the Tribe to be safe, he doesn’t need to know the information that Fletch and Tahu are feeding him.
‘I don’t need to know any more, do I?’ he hears himself asking, instructing.
‘No, no, mate, but we thought ya might enjoy knowing how we helped,’ Fletch replies, with no trace of humour any more. ‘Nothing more fucking sweet and satisfactory than utu, eh, Dan?’
‘And utu that Aaron himself planned,’ Tahu reminds them.
Daniel smiles in agreement. He has to terminate the flow of information. Looking directly at Fletch, who looks away, he declares, ‘So all that is left is their trial, their imprisonment for life, and their death in jail at the hands of some of your mates, right?’
‘Yeah, mate, yeah!’ Fletch sighs in profound satisfaction.
In Tahu’s sparkling eyes Daniel captures the confirmation of what Fletch has just said and an unbreakable sealing of Feau’s and Bonzy’s fate. ‘For that service, Aaron has left in his will a payment that is as sweet and satisfactory as your utu,’ Daniel says. Before Fletch can reply, Daniel stands up and extends his hand to Fletch who, brimming with gratitude, grips and shakes it, firmly. ‘You will be informed about how that payment is to be made, and into what account,’ he tells Fletch. ‘Fifty percent now and the rest after the final stage of the utu is completed.’
‘Thank you, sir,’ Fletch declares. ‘I’m sure our mate Aaron is looking down on us right now and laughing his head off in victory.’ Squinting, he gazes up into the heavens, and raises his right arm in salutation.
For the first time, Tahu comes over and, embracing Daniel, leans in to hongi him. ‘Don’t worry,’ Tahu whispers, ‘about Fletch wanting more.’
As Daniel walks slowly away from Tahu and Fletch – and he dares not look back – memories of their Tribe’s holiday at Waioha years before dance unexpectedly but with joy-generating lucidity into his mind: of the overwhelming love and desire he and Laura had experienced for the first real time and of how they had believed it would last forever; of the happiest he had ever seen his father, who, in full control of his life for once, had taught the city-raised teenagers how to fish and dive and appreciate the exquisite sea taste and succulence of the mussels and crayfish they’d caught; of the street-savvy Tahu and Aleki helping t
hem with the shopping and cooking; of Mere and Kepa trying to forge and establish a lasting relationship; of their Tribe brimming with youthful optimism, bound with unwavering loyalty and aroha and trust they believed would last until the end of the future; of the fearless Aaron, who, cursed with his enormous gifts, was in easy command of every one and everything, even death.
As Daniel’s faltering footsteps take him towards the main path around the lake shore, some of the poem he’d composed at Waioha so, so long ago returns to him:
So it must have been when Tagaloaalagi created
the first dawn and invented the alphabet of omens
We brought good omens to Waioha where the atua once fished
for souls but netted only the bones of dead dolphins
the escaping footprints of crabs and the fear
of white ships breaking through the sky …
He realises tears are filling his eyes and obliterating his view of the lake and its surroundings, and the golden radiance emanating from them.