by Susan Harper
She joined Pauline by some of the group that were attempting to converse with the silly old woman who had come across their village by mistake. And Lil decided to enjoy every moment they would spend at the village, hardly allowing herself to think about having to get to the embassy at all.
7
Kendell awoke early the following morning after a very restless night. She woke up thinking about Lil and Pauline, and even about little Dot. She was worried. Did they even make it off Giraffe Manor property, or did they get caught by the incoming police? She decided to get dressed before heading downstairs to the breakfast nook where the other patrons were already gathered. They all looked beyond frustrated.
“Where’s Pauline?” Abella, Mr. Duffey’s daughter, asked politely. Kendell was certain the girl was just hoping to see Dot that morning.
“She still isn’t feeling that well,” Kendell said. “So, she’s resting upstairs.”
“Oh,” Victor, Abella’s twin, groaned.
“Did they find Lil?” Kendell asked, sitting at the table across from the Ashleys. She was surprised that she was the last one down to breakfast that morning. It seemed that no one else had gotten much sleep either.
“No, your friend is still missing,” Mr. Ashley said. “I can’t believe she stayed out in that forest all night. I mean, it’s just a giraffe preserve, so it’s not like there are a lot of wild animals out there, but still… I’d be afraid of getting trampled by one of those things.”
“Weird,” Kendell said under her breath, and she saw Abella shoot her a look like she was sensing something the adults were not. Abella just grinned and went back to feeding a giraffe now sticking its head through one of the open archways.
Kendell thanked Jina as she placed a plate in front of her. She helped herself to some breakfast, keeping mostly to herself while the group talked about their plans for the day. Just as the Duffey children were excitedly talking about going to see the train museum that the Ashleys had recommended, the two officers from the night before walked in. Kendell remained quiet, worried they might question her because Lil had arrived with her at the manor. But, instead, the officers spoke briskly to Jahi and to Jina and then remained with their arms crossed, staring down each of the patrons.
“What did they say?” Kendell asked, noting that Landon and Rider were both shaking their heads, already frustrated.
“The officers must insist that everyone remain on the property,” Jahi said. “They will conduct interrogations here as they continue searching for Miss Lil.”
“What!” Mr. Ashley exclaimed. “We have places to be. I have a business meeting an hour from here this afternoon. I can’t stay around waiting on you to find your escaped prisoner!”
Jahi kindly did not translate, but the officers spoke angrily, with an extreme sense of command. “They say you can either stay here while they do their investigation, or you can go to the local prison and speak to them there. They suggest you take up their first offer.”
Mr. Ashley quieted down, but he still looked incredibly frustrated. The officers glared in Kendell’s direction, and she did her best to pretend not to notice. She wanted to appear as innocent as possible, not wanting to make Lil appear any guiltier than she already did. One of the officers again spoke, and this time, Landon reacted before Jahi could translate. “What do you mean she’s gone?” Landon asked.
“What did he say?” Mrs. Ashley asked.
“They believe that Lil has managed to get off of Giraffe Manor property and has escaped into the city,” Landon said, fiddling nervously with his camera. “But, until they are sure, we are not allowed to leave. A Giraffe Manor jeep has gone missing, and they believe someone must have helped Lil escape.” Landon looked suspiciously at Kendell.
Kendell played innocent. “I was in my room all night,” she assured. “Don’t give me that look.”
“Well, you were the one who came here with her,” Rider said in Landon’s defense.
“Yeah, well, just because I came here with her doesn’t mean I was going to defend her running from authorities,” Kendell said, but truthfully, she had been quite in favor of that decision. She felt Abella and Victor looking her way with these little smirks on their faces. Do they know something?
The officers spouted off another warning in Swahili before leaving the room, and Jahi merely repeated the officers’ words about remaining at the manor. Kendell decided to excuse herself from breakfast despite the risk of making herself look even more suspicious. She felt the need to talk to someone about what was going on, so she pulled up her tablet and attempted to video chat with her boyfriend back home in New York. A few rings, and he answered. She smiled to see him; it had been over a week, which wasn’t too untypical for them with their usually heaving working schedules, but being so far from home made it seem like it had been a lot longer.
“Jack!” Kendell said happily.
“What’s up, girl!” he yelped, excited to see her face as much as she was to see his. “How is Kenya?”
“It’s amazing,” Kendell said. “I got woken up by a giraffe the other day sticking its head into my window.”
“Wait, where are you staying?” he asked, looking confused.
“Giraffe Manor!” Kendell exclaimed. “It’s beautiful. It’s this old mansion they’ve renovated into a hotel on a giraffe sanctuary.”
“That’s…cool…” he said uncertainly. “Um…how are you paying for all of this, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“I’m not,” Kendell said. “I met this woman, and I have sort of become her traveling companion. Her name is Pauline, and she’s been paying for a lot of stuff for me because, well, really she just wants the company. I’m having a lot of fun, but today, things have gotten kind of crazy because—”
“When are you coming back?” Jack interrupted.
“I don’t know,” Kendell said. “Pauline has a few more legs on her trip, and I’m thinking about tagging along for now since work said I could take the days off and—”
“Oh my gosh, so you’re just going to keep bouncing around from country to country with this complete stranger? Seriously, Kendell, when are you coming home?” Jack asked, and he sounded sincerely bothered.
“Are you at this again?” she asked. “Why do you keep giving me such a hard time about this? You are the one who told me that I needed to take some time to myself, and that I work too much.”
“Yeah, but—”
“No, Jack,” Kendell said. “No buts. You are the one who told me to take time to myself.”
“Yeah, as in a weekend trip! You’re being selfish!” he snapped.
“You know what? I called you because I wanted to talk to you about something, but you can forget it. I’ll talk to you when you simmer down,” Kendell said, closing the video chat.
She felt adrenaline rushing through her veins from the sudden, brief confrontation. They had been dating for years, and he had never acted so controlling. But he had not been a fan about this little impromptu trip of hers since the moment she told him. Now, full of energy, she felt a need to get to work. She was going to investigate. She pulled out her phone and sat down at the suite’s desk. She decided to do a little research on some of the guests staying at the manor. Knowing that the Ashleys had fully admitted to knowing Zachariah before coming to the manor, she decided she would start by finding out more about them.
After typing ‘Richard Ashley’ into a search engine, she didn’t find much. Richard was a common name, and Ashley was a common surname. So, she refined her search a bit and included Zachariah’s name. “Bingo,” she said. The Ashleys had not been honest about how well they knew Zachariah. Richard and Zachariah had been business partners from the get-go. Their tech startup had started in Los Angeles. The company had flourished in its first few years and they had opened up a second location in Detroit. However, Zachariah had attempted a hostile takeover, trying to push Richard out. From what the articles were saying, Zachariah had been pretty dirty, but Richard had hired a
good team of lawyers. They split into two separate companies—Zachariah taking the location in LA and Richard the location in Detroit.
“They definitely knew one another well,” Kendell said to herself. “And they definitely weren’t friends…” She then refined her search even further, realizing that the two former business owners were probably not both in Nairobi by chance. She typed Richard Ashley + Zachariah Lot + Nairobi, and she hit the jackpot. “Well, well, well,” she said, skimming the article.
As it turned out, there was a large piece of land for sale in Nairobi, but not just any piece of land. The land was home to a single business building, another tech startup similar to the company that Richard Ashley and Zachariah Lot had started. The two former business partners had been competing for a business merger. “Mr. Ashley,” Kendell said under her breath. “This looks awfully suspicious.”
Kendell left the suite, heading downstairs where the Giraffe Manor patrons had gone off in different directions. She ran into Mrs. Ashley in the kitchen. The woman was making a pot of coffee with a new coffee pot Jahi had pulled out of storage. “So,” Kendell said to her, cornering the woman slightly in the kitchen. “What was that argument your husband had with Zachariah at the train museum about?”
“Nothing, really,” Mrs. Ashley said. “Zachariah just confronted Richard and was just being incredibly rude—”
Kendell cut her off. “So, it had nothing to do with the business merger in Nairobi? That’s why you’re here in Nairobi, right? To try to make a deal with the tech company that’s going out of business, am I right?”
Mrs. Ashley stiffened slightly. “What? No, of course not. Why would Zachariah and Richard get into it over that?”
“Um, because they both have cards on the table for the merger,” Kendell said. “And, as former business partners, I imagine a competition like that could probably get a little heated. Especially after the way Zachariah had tried to push Richard out of his own startup.”
Mrs. Ashley crossed her arms and glared at Kendell. “Well, congratulations. You know how to work a search engine. You better keep your mouth shut about this.”
“Why?” Kendell nodded toward the coffee pot. “You and your husband going to do me in too?”
“What!” the woman exclaimed. “Oh, you are out of your mind! We had nothing to do with what happened to Zachariah!”
“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But you sure were quiet about your previous engagement with him. You know that it was my friend who has been arrested. I hope you understand that I certainly don’t intend to lay down and let her take the fall for something I know she didn’t do. That’s not really my style. I’m not saying you or Richard did it, but you have got to admit that you two look pretty suspicious. I have my eye on you.”
“Whatever you say,” Mrs. Ashley said, pouring herself a cup of coffee. “We didn’t do a thing.”
“You say ‘we,’ but can you account for where your husband was when Zachariah was murdered?”
“In bed asleep with me!” she declared and turned around. “Stop poking your nose into my husband’s business. He is not a killer.”
“Maybe,” Kendell said. “But neither is Lil.”
“Yeah, but she’s the one who found the body,” Mrs. Ashley said, waving her finger accusingly as she started to walk off. “But you better watch your back. If you think I’m going to just sit down and take it while you throw accusations around, then you’re insane. I’m a Detroit native, and we Detroit girls know how to go a few rounds.”
Kendell laughed. “Are you threatening to fight me?”
“Maybe,” she said. “Just stay away from my husband, and don’t you dare start blabbing your mouth about whatever crap you found on Google.”
Kendell shook her head as she watched Mrs. Ashley storm out the door and onto the manor’s front patio to enjoy some morning coffee with her new husband.
8
Pauline and Lil were less than a block away from the US Embassy. They had stayed overnight at the small Kenyan village, and frankly, Lil had truly enjoyed herself—definitely not the way she thought she would feel about being on the run from a foreign authority. Pauline was quite a unique, astounding individual who knew how to enjoy herself in even the darkest situations. She had forced Lil out of her shell, and the two of them had truly had a wonderful time experiencing some of the local culture and cuisine.
Pauline checked her phone and huffed slightly. “My phone is about out of juice. I wonder if once we get to the embassy, one of those fellows in suits would have a charger for me to borrow?”
Lil laughed. “Maybe. I’m just ready to get there. I’m not really sure how this whole embassy thing works. Will they be able to get me an American lawyer or something?”
“Not exactly,” Pauline said. “They will probably set you up with what’s called a consular officer. Their job is basically to make sure the local authorities are treating you fairly and humanely during any sort of trials. They’ll set you up with a local lawyer who knows the country’s laws, who will have your best interest at heart and will try to move quickly to get the case dismissed if they can.”
“I’m going to get fired,” Lil moaned. “I mean, the airline has been making cuts lately. The flight attendant who can’t even stay out of trouble on a weekend getaway… That won’t look good when they start looking at our department for layoffs. If I’m stuck in Nairobi for a month dealing with court issues, I won’t be able to work either. I don’t have five years’ worth of unused vacation days saved up like Kendell. I actually use my leave time.”
“You don’t need to worry about that right now,” Pauline said. “Right now, let’s just get you to the embassy. Besides, I’m sure that your employers will understand that this was hardly your fault. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. And, when you’re cleared, they can hardly use this as a reason to let you go.”
“I guess,” Lil moaned. She then smiled at Pauline. “Pauline, as crazy as it sounds, this has been one of the most amazing trips I’ve ever been on. I’ve always wanted to take a trip to somewhere in Africa. You know, I tried tracing my ancestry once…and as you can probably guess, I could only go back so far.”
Pauline frowned. “I’m assuming you mean your ancestors did not come to the states voluntarily?”
“No,” Lil said. “I was able to trace us back to Virginia, but that’s when the records stop. I don’t know what my heritage is outside of guessing which plantation we came from. I always hated back in school when they would do this stupid Heritage Day thing. I went to a mostly white prep school, so some of the teachers there just didn’t get it. I didn’t know my heritage. My option was to either talk about black culture in America or to talk about slavery, and frankly, I didn’t like drawing attention to myself, so I always just talked about black culture. But I would get kind of jealous. All these other kids had to do was to do a search of themselves, maybe log into an ancestry website, and then they would be introduced to all this cool stuff about themselves. Kids would dress up in costumes. But, I never really got to enjoy that. Knowing where my family is really from, you know? Based on what little I was able to find back in the day when I still thought I could figure it out, I pretty much could just assume that I was from a certain continent. That was about it. I always wanted to visit here, Africa. Didn’t really matter which country. Just wanted to experience some culture. And you know what? I’m really glad I got to do it with you. There is no way I would have wound up in an actual native village if it wasn’t for you. Thank you, Pauline.”
Pauline smiled and straightened herself up. “Well, Lil, I am glad you shared that with me. I wanted you to enjoy this trip. Almost getting arrested for murder certainly put a damper on things, I’m sure. But, hey, I didn’t plan a visit to a native village. That only happened because you got caught bashing a man over the head with a coffee pot.”
“Whoa!” Lil shrieked. “I didn’t do it, Pauline!”
Pauline laughed. “Oh, I know, I just wanted to
make sure you were listening.” Pauline froze, gripping Lil’s arm. “We’ve got company. Looks like some local authorities are watching the embassy’s main entrance.”
“Crud,” Lil said.
They looked down the street. The embassy was only a short distance away, but the street was full of at least half a dozen officers all scanning the crowds. Pauline grinned. “I bet they’re not watching every side of the gated fence.”
“Oh, yeah, good idea. Let’s you and me jump an eight-foot-tall fence onto US Government property. I’m sure that will go over well. I’m coming here for help, not to make more enemies,” Lil said. “Plus, I’m overweight, and no offense, Pauline, but you look pretty brittle.”
“Fine,” Pauline griped. “How then do you expect us to get into the embassy without being noticed by the patrol of Nairobi officers?”
Lil frowned. “I have no idea.”
“Then hiking the fence it is,” Pauline said. “And it’s not like I’m the one who has to get over the fence. They’re not looking for me. Ooh! I know. I’ll go in the front entrance, cause a little bit of a scene to draw the officer’s attention. That will give you time to get up and over the fence on the side without getting busted.”
“Great,” Lil moaned. “I’m not really looking forward to this.”
“Go team!” Pauline said, patting Lil on the back as the two women separated. Pauline headed toward the main entrance. From the corner of her eye, she could see Lil making her way around the side of the building. There was a large tree planted along the sidewalk, with a thick branch reaching toward the gate. She supposed it was probably easier to climb the tree than to scale the bottom half of the gate.