[2016] Rubbing Stones

by Nancy Burkey

  Suddenly Jane heard the tailgate shut. Time’s up.

  “Don’t,” Shelly said, “don’t make me stay here alone. You have no idea how awful it is.”

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She looked directly into Shelly’s eyes. “Trust me, I’ll be back.”

  Shelly nodded. She scooted back on her cot and spread her arms.

  Jane grabbed the rope and began tying Shelly back up. “Tell me everything you know about Thabani. Quickly.”

  Jane rounded the back corner of her hut and climbed up the stairs to the porch. She stopped at the sound of her sons arguing inside.

  “What’s your problem, anyway?”

  She stood still in the silence, waiting.

  “Come on, out with it, Jake. You might as well tell me what the problem is.” Michael’s voice had softened to a coaxing tone.

  “You know.”

  “No, say it.”

  “It’s just…” Jane heard the crack in Jake’s voice. “If we weren’t here—”

  “You’re blaming me for getting us captured?”

  “No! I just wish we didn’t have to come to Africa.”

  “You wanted to come as much as—”

  There was a thud, something had been thrown down on the floor.

  “You think it’s my fault we came?” Michael’s voice was getting louder.

  “If Mom hadn’t been so worried about—”

  “That’s right, Jake, it’s my fault. And I fired Zuka’s gun for him too, right?” Michael lowered his voice when he mentioned Zuka’s name.

  “I’m just saying, if Caitlin hadn’t been such a jerk, that whole thing wouldn’t have happened.”

  As far as she knew, it was the first time Michael’s girlfriend had been mentioned in relation to his arrest. Jane had always suspected Caitlin was involved. She took a few steps closer to the door.

  “Caitlin didn’t hit that guy or buy the beer—”

  “Dylan bought the beer. You didn’t have to take the rap for everything, Michael. Not to mention making Mom think you’re on your way to a life of crime.”

  “At least you got a trip to Africa out of it. I guess that’s why you never told her yourself.” They were quiet for a minute.

  “It’s your story to tell,” Jake said. There it was—the brother’s code, in place since they were young, a byproduct of the divorce.

  Michael walked out the door. He glanced at Jane, then brushed by her.

  She let the screen close softly. Jake was shuffling through his bag. He found his paperback and plopped onto his cot. Through the screened window she saw Michael walk over to Japera and sit across from him on a picnic bench.

  “He’s seems quite sure of himself.”

  “Not really.” Jake spoke into his book and turned a page.

  She looked again out the window. She couldn’t make out what they were saying, but they looked, for all the world, like friends talking. Japera had been on guard for several hours and probably was glad to have company.

  After Rick was shot, Michael would stand by her bed or next to her chair fidgeting, trying to come up with words to soothe her. She’d let him comfort her, but only for his sake, unable to truly allow his empathy to touch her. The role reversal made her uncomfortable. After all, he was only fifteen—too young to be comforting his mother. Widowed mother? Widow. A lonely word labeled what she was now. She put her head in her hands.

  When Thabani came out of the hut he shared with his cousin, he went right to the stove and stirred the fire under the pot. Jane had hoped Zuka would take the shift after Japera and she could get some rest. But with Zuka asleep, this was the moment to make her move. She turned back to Jake, deep in an Orson Scott Card book, probably his second reading.

  “Stay in here,” she said and turned to leave.

  “Mom?” He put his book aside and looked at her.

  She sighed and sat back down next to him. “Listen carefully.”

  Jane made a noisy approach as she walked to where Thabani was stirring the leftovers. She knew better than to surprise him. He looked up at her, then over at the other two. Everyone should have been asleep for his shift.

  “I just wasn’t hungry earlier,” she said. “Is there enough for me to have a small portion?”

  “Yeah.”

  She glanced back and saw that Japera was focused on Michael, as planned.

  There was something about these two cousins that struck her, a side of them that was in contrast to their current situation. At meals Japera always served her first and made sure the boys had enough. When they walked through the jungle, Thabani accompanied her into a secluded area if she had to go to the bathroom. He kept his distance and turned away. Good breeding, her mother would have said.

  “Whoa, that’s plenty.” Thabani had dished up more than half of the leftover stew. She sat down at the far end of the table.

  Michael and Japera got up to go to their respective huts.

  “I’ll be done in a few minutes,” she called to Michael. He nodded and headed in.

  Suddenly Paul’s door swung open. The noise he made descending the porch stairs seemed absurdly loud. Tommy had found a thick sturdy branch for his father to use as a walking cane.

  “Heard some voices out here, thought I might join the party,” Paul said.

  They all stared at him. Jane wasn’t sure what it was—his manner? His tone? Whatever it was, the tension was palpable. It would be just like him to spoil this opportunity.

  “What’s the matter?” Paul glanced at Thabani. “Am I interrupting something?” An accusing tone, and directed at her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Japera in the shadows.

  “No party, Paul,” Thabani said. “You should go back inside and get some sleep.”

  Paul approached them slowly, leaning heavily on the stick. “I’m glad I’m not intruding, I’ve got some questions and thought you might be of some help.”

  Thabani moved a few steps toward his rifle, by the stove.

  Michael was instantly at Paul’s side. He put an arm around his shoulder.

  “Why don’t you save those for the morning? Everyone’s tired here, and—”

  “Don’t patronize me, Michael.” Paul pulled away with too much force and lost his balance for a moment. He grabbed onto the branch with both hands and steadied himself, his face distorted into a grimace, then turned to face Thabani.

  “I want to know exactly what it is that you’re trying to get out of this.” He shook his head, closed his eyes. He took in several labored breaths and put his hand over his right thigh. “I’m getting off on the wrong foot.”

  He snorted at his own joke.

  “The thing is, maybe if I understood what was happening here, what it is you want, I might be able to help. There might be a better way.” Paul glanced down at Thabani’s rifle, still leaning against the stove.

  “You need to get back inside, Paul,” Thabani said. They were both several feet away from the gun.

  “I just thought that maybe—” Paul leapt toward the gun. But his injured leg didn’t allow for the kind of swift movement he was attempting. Thabani got there first.

  Twenty feet away they heard a rifle cock. Paul froze.

  “You’ve been asked twice to go back into your tent.” Japera’s voice boomed across the yard. “This is the last time. Go back into your tent.”

  “Dad!” Tommy called from the doorway in a shaky voice. “I need some help with my sleeping bag. The zipper’s stuck.” Paul hesitated, then limped back up the stairs.

  Jane began to eat her stew, determined not to look up.

  “Good night, Mom,” Michael called on his way back to their hut.

  Thabani turned to his cousin. “Get some sleep, I’ve got it.”

  As soon as Paul was inside, Japera disappeared into his own hut. Thabani ate his soup sitting across from Jane.

  She’d read somewhere about a group of people—the Vietnamese, or were they somewhere in the Middle East? The guards weren’t allowed to ea
t with the prisoners—eating meals together broke down barriers, formed unconscious bonds.

  “It’s such a different sky,” she said after a long but not uncomfortable silence. The moon had disappeared over the canyon’s edge, now the thousands of stars were all the more brilliant. “It’s like there’s too many stars to tell which ones are constellations.”

  Thabani picked at the food in his bowl. He wasn’t watching her directly, but she could tell he was aware of her movements.

  “They blend together in one big mass of light. I can’t see how you tell—”

  “It’s over there,” he said, pointing to a small cluster of stars. “The Southern Cross? It’s what everyone from the north wants to see.”

  She pointed her index finger in the general direction he showed her, but there were a lot of groups.

  “I can’t quite—”

  “See that really bright star? That’s Acrux, the bottom of the cross.”

  “Got it,” she said. “Thanks.” She held her finger on the star, attempted to follow it to form the entire cross.

  Thabani came around the table and sat next to her. She held her breath.

  He grabbed her finger.

  She froze.

  “No, that’s Alpha Centauri, the brightest star in the southern hemisphere, part of Centaurus. Move over just a little to the right, to that other bright one.” He guided her finger, his head close to hers, and followed her line of sight. Jane remembered what Shelly had said. Before the incident, he was known as an excellent guide who enjoyed the outdoors and pampered his guests.

  “Now I’ve got it,” she said. “But it’s so…”

  “Small,” he said and laughed. “Guides expect that. Everyone wants to see it, then they’re disappointed when it doesn’t span half the sky.”

  He let go of her hand and scooted away. It must be painful to remember.

  She stood up and gathered the plates. “I’ll get some rest. Hope your night’s not too dull.” She turned back to him. “Actually, I hope it is.”

  CHAPTER 15

  “Coffee?” Katura asked.

  She laid her book on the table and got up from the couch. She’d spent the whole morning trying to act casual about having this guy essentially glued to her side. She made a big breakfast and chatted with him, staying away from any topics that might show concern about her brothers. He seemed relaxed, but now it was show time.

  “I’ll make a fresh pot before I take off.” She started filling the pot with water.

  “Katura, you know I can’t let you go out by yourself.”

  “Have it your way, but I have a scrimmage and it’s likely to last for two hours. Hey, you want to go? Should be a good game.” She stuck her head around the corner and raised her eyebrows.

  He looked at his watch. “That’s not going to work. I need some things from the market, you’ll have to go with me.”

  “But I promised I’d be there.” She gave it her best rendition of a teenage whine.

  “I’m sure they’ll manage without you.” He picked up the newspaper and began reading the front page.

  “I’m sure they can.” She banged pots around the kitchen. He read his paper without looking up. She took the pot off the burner and poured the boiling water over the coffee in the filter.

  “I’m actually not that much of an asset, it’s just that…well, you know, I think one of the boys kind of likes me.”

  Changa grunted and turned the page of the paper.

  “He’ll probably come over to find out why I’m not there —”

  Changa jerked the newspaper down to stare at her. “You told them where you live?”

  She poured the coffee slowly into a fresh cup. “You can see the top of the house from the field, and some of the kids asked about me. They don’t seem to get a lot of newcomers.”

  “Who are these guys?”

  “Don’t worry. I’m not interested in him, not really. Milk or sugar? Oh, right, you take it black.”

  “I don’t want anyone over here.”

  “I’m sure they’ll just go away if I’m not home. It’s not like they’d break in. I mean, I don’t really know these guys, but they don’t seem like criminals or anything.” She handed him the coffee and went back into the kitchen. It was several minutes before he said anything.

  “No, you’ll play in that game. We’ll go to the market afterwards.”

  “It’s really not that important.”

  “I said, you’ll play.”

  “Suit yourself, but then we’ll have to go to the market tomorrow. It closes at four and there won’t be time.” She opened a cupboard. “Looks like we have enough here to wait another day—”

  “No.”

  Changa stood and walked to the back window. He stared in the direction of the school. Katura held her breath.

  “I’ll drop you off, but you better be there when I come back at five.”

  He sat in the van a good ten minutes before he started the engine back up. She heard it loud and clear but restrained herself from looking. Just play the game. Dribble, pass, run into open space, call for the ball.

  Out of the corner of her eye she saw the van turn the far corner. She waited. Sure enough, he circled the block, disappeared for a few minutes, then came back around. The third interval was longer, but finally, she was sure he was gone.

  CHAPTER 16

  “Thabani!”

  Jane heard Japera call out from the picnic table where he was looking over Michael’s shoulder. The kids were up early, couldn’t sleep once the sun rose. Jake had found his small travel chess set in the bottom of his backpack. He set it up to play his brother before breakfast.

  “Thabani, Changa’s here.”

  Zuka came barreling out of the hut. “I’ll take care of it. Let Thabani sleep.”

  Japera turned around. “He specifically said—”

  “I can handle it.”

  “Of course.” Japera walked toward Thabani’s hut. “But I promised him I’d get him, so I’ll just—”

  “I said, let him sleep.”

  Japera stared at the hand gripping his arm.

  Zuka released him.

  Japera walked up to the door of Thabani’s hut and opened it slowly. He stood for a few minutes before he closed it.

  Zuka was already in the van.

  Jane stood up and stirred the kindling on the fire. “It’s still a bit chilly this morning, don’t you think, Jake?”

  “I’m fine.” Jake looked up at Michael. “It’s your move.”

  Michael stared at him without blinking, then moved his eyes toward his mother without turning his head.

  Jake looked at his mom. “Actually, Mom,” he said, “I’m kind of cold. Need help getting wood?”

  “No, you two keep playing, I’ve got it.” She picked up the small pieces of wood near the open fire pit, then moved toward Zuka and the driver. They were sitting on the back of the van, the open doors blocking their view of her.

  “You know how to play this game?” Michael asked Japera and picked up his pawn. She knew he’d keep Japera distracted from her movements.

  “It shouldn’t change things,” she heard Zuka say. “No one needs to know he’s dead.”

  “Unless the body turns up downriver,” Changa said. “Then we’ve got trouble.” He threw a rock into a bush twenty yards away. A flock of small birds burst into the air.

  “We still have the family,” Zuka said.

  “They’ll assume they’re dead too. Or they’ll say they’re dead to justify not doing anything. If we had the senator—”

  “We don’t.” The van rocked.

  Jane froze.

  “The plan stays as it is, no changes,” Zuka said.

  Her shoulders relaxed. One of the men must have just changed position.

  “Yeah, well, I’ve got to get back before the girl wakes up—”

  “And if the body shows up I’ll go public with one of his kids, the youngest one,” Zuka said. “We’ll do a picture with me
, the kid, and that day’s paper. Whatever it takes, we’ll eventually get their attention.”

  Jane held her breath. Jake? She took a step back. Her foot slipped, crunching small sticks on the ground. The van door swung closed and Zuka stood staring at her. He raised his arm, but Japera grabbed her and pulled her back in time to avoid a blow.

  “My fault, Zuka. I’ve got her.”

  Jane picked up a few sticks off the ground. “I was just getting—”

  “Right.” Japera led her over to the bench where Michael and Jake played chess. She heard the van doors slam and watched the two men walk further away from camp.

  Jake moved his knight. “Checkmate.”

  “What?” Michael said.

  “Looks like he’s got you.” Japera put his hand on Michael’s shoulder.

  Michael turned to face him. “I bet you beat your older brother all the time. You were rooting for Jake the whole game, weren’t you? Sit down, I’ll take you on.”

  Jane got up and stirred the fire. She felt Japera’s eyes on her.

  “I’m going back to the hut,” she said. He glanced over at the men walking in the opposite direction and nodded to her. Now she could get some sleep before Thabani awoke again. Whatever alliance her boys were forming with this young man, it was more likely to happen without her around.

  “It’s time, Mom.” Michael shook her shoulder.

  “Already?” She got up and grabbed her sweatshirt. It was her third shift with Thabani. “Is he alone?”

  “Has been for about a half-hour. I waited to make sure the others weren’t coming back.”

  “Any news on your end?” But she knew if there were, he’d have woken her up right away.

  “Zuka was with Japera the whole time—I couldn’t even get close. Then when Thabani came out they both decided to get some sleep. Zuka’s going to take over in about four hours.”

  “Why so soon?”