Teardrops of the waning moon

by Steve Reeder

  The corporate-looking guy in the three-piece suit who sank heavily onto the seat opposite him was an old school friend.

  “Charlie Cole! Fancy seeing you here. The army finally threw you out, did they?”

  Cole shook his proffered hand and grinned back at him. “Yeah, they finally had enough of me.”

  “So what are you doing now? Got a job yet?” He waved at a passing waiter and indicated two beers.

  “No, I’m still looking around for something that interests me.”

  “I can get you an appointment with our HR lady, if you like?”

  “Maybe; What do you do anyway?” Cole asked, handing the waiter enough money to cover the beers.

  “I’m with BP, doing retail sales. I call on the service stations and so on. Easy job and comes with a car and an expense account.”

  “Nice for some,” Cole replied sardonically. “I’ll think about it.”

  “Yes, well.” Cameron hesitated but then said, “You might be good at that yourself, and we do need to fill a couple of positions.”

  Before Cole could reply to that, his attention was distracted by a familiar figure walking onto the terrace from the parking: It was Sean Reece.

  Reece strolled casually over to the nurses, smiled broadly and offered a comment. The reaction from the girls mystified Cole. They were all smiles and gushing laughter. Reece leaned over and whispered into one delicate ear and the girl turned bright-red and collapsed into a fit of giggles. Reece smiled at the others and casually stroked his fingers through the hair of the honey-blonde who had rebuffed Cole an hour ago. She practically purred.

  “Jammy bastard isn’t he,” Cameron commented.

  “Yes. And I know him,” Cole said. “Last saw him up on the border a couple of months ago.”

  Reece looked around and spotted Cole. His smile broadened and he started over, leaving five disappointed young women behind him.

  “Be nice to be able to pick up and dismiss girls so easily,” muttered Cameron.

  Cole nodded his agreement and stood up to greet Reece. Cameron was introduced and the waiter appeared again without being called. Reece asked about Cole’s return to civilian life again and laughed at the look of distaste on Cole’s face.

  “I tell you what, Sean,” Cole said, “I spent the last six months of the army dreaming of this,” he waved his hand around indicating the terrace, “and now I miss life on the border.”

  “Yeah, well it’s been pretty boring being back in Ruacana. Frankly, I could do with another trip into Angola, although perhaps not so much like the last one!”

  “Where?” asked Cameron.

  Sean turned to Cameron. “Ruacana. It’s an army base on the Angolan border, where my unit is based.” He took a pull at the beer. “Have you been up there?”

  Cameron shook his head. “I’ve never been in the army.” And then he added defensively, “I have a heart condition apparently.”

  Reece nodded and turned back to Cole. “So what are you doing with yourself now, Charlie, and how’s the leg?”

  “Nothing. Cameron here wants me to join BP and rep for them but other than that I’m not sure what I’m going to do, and the leg is fine; I’m back to jogging again.”

  “And your girlfriend? Any marriage plans yet?”

  Cole shrugged. “I’m not sure, Sean. I’ve been thinking about moving to the UK and joining the British army.”

  “Bit drastic, that. What if they end up having another go at Argentina? Bloody cold part of the world, down there,” Reece told him with a grin. “Watch my beer for a second, will you, I need a piss.”

  Reece strolled towards the hotel entrance taking a roundabout route past the nurses. He stopped and chatted with them for a moment while he made his selection. He lowered his head and whispered in the girl’s ear, his hand caressing her neck. Finally he straightened up and started for the hotel again. A moment later the blonde girl stood up and followed him.

  Cole cursed softly.

  Charlie Cole was on the point of leaving when Reece arrived back thirty minutes later. Cameron had left just moments before.

  “You’re not leaving are you, Charlie?” Reece asked with a grin as he sat down.

  “I was about to.” Cole glanced across at the nurses table and saw the blonde sit again to a chorus of excited questions from the others. She looked up to see Cole watching her and turned bright red.

  Reece caught the eye of a passing waiter and ordered two more beers. Talk turned to more mundane matters as the night turned late. The girls left at midnight, all of them waving and blowing kisses at Reece. Cole fumed but said nothing.

  Finally, Reece turned serious. “I’ve got to ask you something, Charlie,” he said. “It’s about what happened up north.” He sat forward and placed his beer on the table. “You were in that building with the RSM when he died, and you said that, at the time, the colonel had been alive when the two of them first got there?”

  “Sure. The CO was in a bad way but he was alive for a while but was dead by the time I arrived. The RSM died when those guys burst in shooting.”

  “Right, so the question is this; did either of them say anything about why we were there? What it was all about?”

  Cole had not been to talk to anyone in Pretoria as Le Roux had asked him to and now he hesitated, unsure about several things including a plan that had been growing and maturing in his mind; a plan that he had not given any serious thought to until right that minute.

  “Diamonds, Sean,” he finally told Reece.

  “Diamonds?”

  “That’s why we were there, so that Fourie and Santos could nick some illegal, uncut diamonds from an Angolan government guy who was dealing them to a bunch of Americans.”

  “Wow,” Reece said, sitting back in amazement. “So those pricks got themselves killed staging a robbery? And the others got killed too for what we thought was an army operation?”

  “Yeah, fucking pricks, hey?”

  “How the hell did they even know that the stones were going to be there, let alone a bunch of Yanks? I’m guessing CIA? They are always causing shit.”

  But Cole shook his head. “According to Le Roux, who heard it from Fourie after they got themselves captured, it was the Mafia or some other American organized crime group, although he may have been wrong. Once a month the exchange takes place at that town. On the last day of the month, so they said. And as to how the Colonel knew about it; you remember the farmer? His name was Santos too, wasn’t it? The captain was ex-Angolan Army from when the Portuguese still ran the country, and his uncle had stayed after independence to keep his farm going. Santos senior found out about the diamonds and told his nephew the captain, who was by then with the South African army.

  “Jeez. I wonder what the army told the families of the guys that died.” He considered for a moment and added, “Fourie and Santos don’t deserve to have succeeded. We deserve the damn diamonds!”

  “That’s right, Sean,” Charlie Cole replied softly. “We do. And I think that we should go and get them.”

  Eleven

  Sean Reece woke just before noon. He was alone; this in its self was unusual. His mother had given up trying to keep girls from staying over before Sean had even left high-school; she had given up thinking about the number of times she’d had angry mothers phoning her demanding to know where their daughters were. More unusual was that he was quite happy to be alone as he had a lot to think about. He made himself a late breakfast and a cup of coffee, ate it at the kitchen table and then added the dirty plate and coffee mug to the growing mountain of dishes that needed washing. He tried to remember whether his mother would be back from London before his fourteen day pass was up. He may have to wash the stuff himself, he decided, and thought that maybe if he gave the neighbour’s daughter what she wanted then she could probably be persuaded to do the washing-up for him.

  The harsh ringing of the telephone interrupted his thoughts.

  “Sean speaking,” he said.

  “Hi
, Sean, it’s Charlie. Have you given it any more thought?”

  “I’ve done practically nothing else, mate.”

  “And?”

  “And I see a fuck-load of problems confronting us.”

  “True. So how do we overcome them?”

  “Well, Charlie, let’s start with some of those problems. Firstly, how do we get there, how do we get back, how do we not get caught by the South African army let alone the Angolans and how do sell the diamonds if we do succeed?”

  “Yes well, those are only some of the problems. Let’s just start with the assumption that we are going to need at least four or five more guys. It would be better if they were already on the Angolan border to start with, so maybe you know some good blokes?”

  “That won’t be a problem; Bomber, Smitty, Freeman, maybe Franz. They may just be insane enough to consider it.”

  “Are they also on pass?”

  “No, just Bomber and he’s down in Durban.”

  Cole was silent for a few seconds. “So let’s go see him.”

  “What, now? It’s past midday already.”

  “Are you doing anything, or anyone?”

  It was Reece’s turn to give it some thought and after a longer period of silence he agreed that there didn’t seem to be any reason why not.

  “Good, I’ll pick you up in a couple of hours. Do you have Bomber’s telephone number?” Cole asked.

  “No, but I do have his parents address somewhere. I’ll dig it out and also find that Durban map-book my dad left behind when he took off for Australia with his secretary.”

  “Sean?” called out a voice. It was the girl from next door. “Sean, are you home?”

  Reece came through from the lounge to find Avril standing inside the back door dressed in a short skirt and brief top with open toed sandals on her pretty feet. She had climbed over the wall like she had been doing since before it had become inappropriate for her panties to be showing every time that she did.

  “Hi, Sean,” she gushed. “You haven’t been to see me since you got back, and you said you would.”

  “Did I?”

  “Yes. You said that couldn’t wait to get back to see me.” She batted her eyes at him and giggled.

  “Did I really?” Reece asked, his face a picture of innocence and mild confusion.

  “Yes you did!” Avril giggled again, “You told me that you wouldn’t be able to stay away because you liked my hair and my tits.” She blushed deep red. “And they have grown since then too.” And with that she undid the last two buttons on her top.

  “They are coming on nicely, Avril. Beautiful.” He crossed the room to meet her. “And I would love to spend some time with you now, but, I’m afraid that I’m leaving for Durban for a couple of days.” She cocked her head and pouted at him as he continued, “The car hooter you hear outside is probably my mate wondering what’s keeping me.” He slid his hand beneath her open top and fondled her budding breasts. The young girl gasped and threw her arms around his neck.

  “Sean! We can be quick. Please?”

  Reece lowered his head and kissed her open mouth. “Your first time will not be a quickie, Avril. I promised you much more than that.”

  Avril groaned with frustration.

  “But, Avril, you can do me a big favour while I’m gone,” he told her as he reached down and caressed her buttocks.

  “Anything, Sean,” she gasped, reaching up and kissing him again, darting her tongue into his mouth. “I’ll do anything for you.”

  “I need you to clean up this kitchen for me, wash the dishes and so on. Will you do that for me?”

  Cole tapped the hooter again with impatience and glanced at his wrist-watch. It was already five-thirty and the drive to Durban would take them the better part of six hours even if they tested the speed limit all the way. He was about to give the hooter a more prolonged note when the front door opened and Sean Reece strode out. A pretty young redheaded girl came to the door and waved him goodbye while buttoning her top.

  “Fucking dog,” Cole muttered.

  Reece threw a sports bag onto the rear seat, waved briefly at the redhead and climbed into the passenger seat. “OK, let’s go.”

  Sean Reece took over the driving duties when they stopped for coffee at the only coffee-shop still open in Harrismith. The car’s clock showed that it was past eleven-thirty already. Cole put the passenger seat back and fell into an uneasy sleep while Sean fiddled with the car radio until he managed to pick up Radio Port Natal which made him think of Danny Evans and his girlfriend who were still waiting to have that fairy-tale wedding. Remembering Uys, Pretorius and Robbie de Kock saddened him. He hadn’t known them for as long as Charlie Cole had, but an hour on the battle-field can be a lifetime. He tried to recall who had first said that but perhaps he had never known.

  The hills of Natal rolled by until he saw the road sign indicating Nottingham Road; a small town just off the main road. Charlie stirred and sat up, pulling the seat upright and rubbing is eyes.

  “Nottingham Road,” he muttered when he saw the road sign. “Peitermaritsburg can’t be far, now. And Durban is what, a hundred from there?”

  “Yeah, we’ll be in Durban by four. I wonder if there are any clubs still open.”

  “On a Tuesday night? Doubt it, besides, I need somewhere decent to sleep for a few hours.”

  “You should have thought of that before dragging me away from a pleasant evening with Avril.”

  Cole gave him a sour look. “What time do you think Bomber will be up?”

  “Bomber will be sleeping late given half the chance, but his mom and dad will have to get up fairly early I would have thought. His dad must go to work.”

  “So slow down and we’ll get into Durban by five, crash out in the car for two hours and then go knock of his door.”

  Reece shrugged and agreed. It would take him a bit of time to find the address anyway. Durban North was actually east of the city centre and along the coast, but he didn’t know the area at all.

  Getting his directions right meant driving into the city centre and then taking the coast road out again for three or more kilometres. They had gone no more than a kilometre or two when Cole pointed to a large parking-lot almost on the beach. There were already three old VW vans with bright colours and rusty patches parked in the lot. Reece pulled in and killed the engine.

  “The surfer dudes are already out looking for that magic wave,” Cole commented.

  “Bit early I would have thought, but then again I know eff-all about surfing,” Reece replied, rubbing his face tiredly. A couple of hours sleep would be welcome.

  “Let’s have a look at that map,” Cole demanded, reaching into the cubby-hole. “It can’t be far from here.”

  “Well, let me know if you find it. I’m going to go kip on the beach. Maybe a hot surfer-chick-cum-beach-bunny will wake me up with hot coffee and a snog.”

  “Fucking optimist,” Cole muttered as Reece closed the door behind him.

  Sean Reece became aware of the sun on his face at the same time that he registered the insisted tapping on his arm. He opened his eyes and sat up; Sand cascaded from his right side and off his back. A young surfer squatted beside him, his long blond hair still dripping seawater.

  “Hey, man. Hope you don’t mind me waking you up, hey, but if you stay much longer the police will be wondering what’s up,” the kid said with a toothy grin.

  “Yes, err, thanks. What time is it?”

  “Time for me get moving, dude. I’m late for school already.”

  “Do you always come to surf before school?”

  “No, not always, but the foamies were just so giff this morning.”

  “I take it a foamy is a wave, but what the hell does giff mean?”

  “Oh, man, you’re from Jo’burg, right?” the kid asked. Reece nodded. “Giff means nice, or groovy, as my dad would have said.”

  “Right, got you. What time is it, did you say?”

  The kid held out his arm so t
hat Reece could see the salt-encrusted water-proof watch.

  “Bloody hell - eight-thirty!”

  “Yeah, any longer and you’d be over-doing the tan on your right side. Not so cool, man.”

  “Right, thanks. Go to school.”

  The kid laughed and left Reece brushing off more sand and wondered how he had managed to get the stuff inside his jeans.

  Back on the parking lot Cole’s Ford Cortina now stood alone. The window was open on the driver’s side and Charlie Cole was snoring gently in the driver’s seat. Reece spotted three mosquitoes on Cole’s face. He brushed them away and woke his companion up at the same time. “Time is fleeting, my good fellow. Time we were too. Did you find the address on the map?”

  Cole rubbed the sleep from his eyes, scratched at his itching cheek and squinted at the map that was still open on his lap. He pointed a finger at the page. “We’re here and we want to be there; just four streets away and maybe a half a kilometre further up the road. You see?” Reece nodded. “All right then,” Cole continued. “Get your arse in the car and let’s go surprise your buddy.”

  There was a knock on the front door. Mr Harris looked up at his wife. “Are we expecting anyone, dear?”

  “I hope not, I don’t want us to be late. You go see who it is and I’ll put those clean cups away,” she told him.

  The knocking came again as he reached the front door. “All right, all right, I’m coming.” He slid the bolt back and the turned the key. As he opened the door his wife arrived at his side. “Hello,” he said, his face creased in surprise at the sight that greeted him.

  “Hello, Mr and Mrs Harris. I’m Tanya.”

  Mr Harris stared at the attractive young lady standing in the doorway. “Well of course you are,” he boomed, “We’ve heard so many good things about you from Bomber. It’s nice to see that he wasn’t exaggerating about how beautiful you are!”