[2016] Rubbing Stones

by Nancy Burkey

  “Sleeping.” Thabani grabbed a bag of supplies and set them on the steps of the lodge.

  Changa turned his watch to catch the light.

  “I thought…not that it matters.” He continued to unload the truck.

  “How are things going?” Thabani asked.

  “On schedule.”

  “Any news about Tafadzwa?”

  “Who?” Changa set the last bag down and started to walk toward Zuka’s hut.

  Thabani got in front of him. “My cousin, Tafadzwa. What’s happening with him?”

  Changa shook his head. “Never heard of him. A local guy?”

  Just then Zuka came down his stairs. “You early?” He turned to Thabani. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

  “He doesn’t know Tafadzwa.”

  “No worries, man. That’s stage two.” He smiled at Thabani. “First we get their attention, then we negotiate for prisoners.”

  “Prisoners?” Thabani said. “We’re not here for prisoners, we’re here for Tafadzwa. One innocent guy that you got involved—”

  “It’s bigger than that now.” He turned to Changa. “On task?”

  Changa nodded and climbed back into the cab. Zuka waved him on.

  Jane wanted to stop him, to give him the list Thabani had in his pocket before he left. But Thabani was pacing now, agitated. She tried to put herself in his line of sight, closer to Zuka. There was still time to give Changa the list. Thabani glanced over at her—he looked right through her.

  “Sorry, Zuka, this is a family issue. We’ll solve it within the family.” He turned to walk toward Japera’s hut, but Zuka stood in front of him.

  “A family issue? Really, Thabani?” Zuka smiled. “Is that what you’ve led Japera to think?”

  For the first time Jane thought Thabani seemed confident. Thabani was watching Zuka closely, not faltering.

  “This is my country.” Zuka raised his voice. “And it was yours too before you and your family ran out on it. We can’t let the world sit by and watch while some madman destroys everything it stands for.”

  Thabani just stared at him. He seemed deep in thought. Contemplating his options? Zuka took a step toward him.

  “It’s just a river for you, isn’t it? A place to make money and if that dries up you’ll move to another.”

  “We never should’ve gotten you involved,” Thabani said.

  “Bit late for that.” Zuka blocked Thabani from getting around him. “I am involved now. And I’m sure as hell not taking orders from a rafting guide.”

  “Sorry, Zuka.” Thabani adjusted the rifle that hung from his shoulder, made it more accessible. “You’re not going to bully your way with us any more. You screwed up, not us, and now we have to figure a way out of this mess.”

  Zuka laughed and took a few more steps forward. Thabani moved sideways, pulling Zuka further away from where Jane stood, his hands on his rifle.

  “I screwed up, is that how you see it?” Zuka said. “Aren’t you rewriting history a bit?”

  “What are you talking about? You killed those two men. One a native of your beloved country and the other our only real bargaining chip. Brilliant move, Zuka.”

  “No, Thabani, you killed them. You didn’t make sure they stayed where they were supposed to like I told you to. You gave me no choice. The blood’s on your hands. Two more innocent people die on your watch.”

  Jane saw Thabani’s face and wanted to interrupt, to intervene somehow. Maybe if the widow spoke, said something clarifying—

  Zuka slapped Thabani across the face. Thabani fell back, losing his balance momentarily.

  “You really think you can get out of this that easily? These people are just going to forget who you and Japera are after being held hostage for five days?” He snorted, an ugly sound. “I have a mission here and it isn’t over, it’s just beginning.” He started to turn away.

  “No, Zuka, it’s not—”

  “We’re done talking about this. You’re not ruining the plan.” Zuka turned toward the stove, grabbed his rifle, and headed for the coffee.

  “Zuka.” Thabani was standing up straight again. “You don’t get it. It’s over.”

  Zuka stopped in his tracks. He turned back slowly, calmly, rifle in hand. “I don’t get it?” He raised the rifle.

  “That’s not necessary,” Thabani said. “Look, we need to—”

  The shot was loud, echoing through the canyon for what seemed like minutes, hours, days. She watched Thabani fall to the ground, the blood trickle slowly over his lips, his eyes stared blindly ahead. His right arm jerked once, maybe twice, then relaxed. Was that the way to describe a dead body? Relaxed? Behind her she heard the muffled sound of a child crying. Was it one of hers? She didn’t move, couldn’t turn. She just stared at Thabani, the blood now pooling under his mouth.

  CHAPTER 20

  “He wants to talk to you.” Jake spoke softly as they walked back and forth across the grounds.

  “What’s he want?” Michael picked up the pace. He’d been avoiding Paul since his attempt to grab Thabani’s gun. He didn’t trust him. Paul was impulsive or, worse, sloppy.

  “He says he has a plan,” Jake said.

  “And?”

  “I don’t know. All I know is, he wants to talk to you.” They rounded the corner of the main lodge and completed their second lap. “What else are we going to do? Now?”

  Michael looked at his brother, who didn’t elaborate. “Scared?” Silly question—who wouldn’t be? Michael kicked a rock on the path, sending it into the bushes. “Mom’s going to be okay.”

  “I know.” Jake answered too quickly.

  “I just need time to think, figure out our next move. I just don’t think Paul’s going to be much help.”

  “Right.” Jake looked down at the ground, his breathing heavy. Jake had been spending more time with Tommy lately, been around Paul. He’d know Paul was a loose cannon. “But—”

  “You don’t think I can handle this.” After all that’s happened, why should he? Still, it was disappointing. They’d always stuck by each other. “You’re just like dad,” he said. He regretted it immediately.

  Jake stopped in his tracks. “Michael, this isn’t a race.” He waited until Michael stopped too. “What’s your problem? Dad’s not even here. Paul’s got some plan he wants to talk to you about and it won’t hurt you to listen. That’s all I’m saying. You got something better?”

  Michael looked around. They’d stopped far enough away from the huts so that no one could hear them.

  “Why don’t you just tell me his plan?” Michael had been busy over the last two days taking care of their mother and had been glad Jake wasn’t around, but now he wasn’t so sure. “What’s he saying about Mom anyway? What’d you tell him?”

  “Nothing and nothing. Just hear him out, will you? It can’t hurt.”

  His little brother could be incredibly stubborn—he wasn’t likely to get any more out of him. Michael scanned the empty horizon. He’d made a habit of searching for movement, anything to signal that someone might be out there. The brothers watched a large crane pass overhead on its way toward the river.

  “And you’re totally wrong about Dad,” Jake said. “That’s not why he left you there.”

  Michael studied Jake’s face. They’d never talked about this. “But he said—”

  “I know what he said—to you.” He glanced up at Michael and shrugged. “He didn’t leave you in juvie to make you tough, he left you there because he knew you could handle it. He thinks you’re strong—stronger than any of us. He just didn’t want Mom bailing you out again and giving you the idea you were soft.”

  “Again?” Michael raised his voice.

  Jake shrugged.

  “His words?”

  “Yeah.”

  Michael bit his lip and looked away. He watched a second crane follow the same route toward the river. He wished he had his younger brother’s calm—the calm that comes from not feeling primarily responsible for what happ
ens.

  “Really? Dad said strong?” It was risky to ask for reassurance from Jake, but he couldn’t stop himself. “He used that word?”

  “Hey, it’s not what I think. I think you’re a wuss.”

  Michael laughed and punched Jake in the arm.

  “Let’s just see what Paul wants. It can’t hurt.”

  Michael continued to circle the grounds with his brother at his side. They walked behind the lodge, unused except for food storage. It was the coolest building in the resort. They turned around and headed back before they reached Shelly’s hut, didn’t want anything they did to be misinterpreted.

  “Well?” Jake said.

  Paul wasn’t someone Michael wanted to join up with—still, it wasn’t like Jake to nag.

  “I suppose it’s just a consultation, just information.” He smiled at Jake, an inside joke—it was a line their mom used when she was trying to get them to consider something they didn’t want to do. It doesn’t necessarily require agreement or action, she’d say, just an ear.

  Michael started walking toward Paul’s hut. But that hadn’t been his experience—somehow these consultations had a way of taking over.

  “Jake will distract him,” Paul said. “He’ll wait until after Zuka’s made his rounds, when he’s back sitting on the picnic table. We take our places, then Jake comes toward him from the front. He starts yelling from a distance as he approaches, so Zuka doesn’t hear us coming. Jake falls down, captures his attention.”

  “And you think he’s just going to sit there while we jump him?”

  Paul took his time to answer. “He can’t shoot in three directions at once, Michael. We’ll have to be fast. As soon as Jake has his attention, we both move in together.”

  Michael looked down at his hands. He was picturing the scene. “Why’s Jake in front? Doesn’t that make him most likely to get shot?”

  “I don’t think so. It’s unlikely he’ll see Jake as a threat.”

  “Great, so he’ll turn and shoot which ever of us he hears first.”

  “As I said, we have to move together. And fast. We have to get to him before he has time to aim at either of us.”

  “Time to aim. You should have seen how fast he shot Thabani. I don’t think he even took aim at all.”

  Michael stared at the man in front of him, studied his face. Paul’s right eye twitched before he looked away. Michael’s heart was racing. He hated Paul at that moment, he wasn’t sure why.

  “Hey, if you don’t trust me…” Paul shook his head.

  Why should he? All Paul has to do is hang back for a few seconds. Michael gets shot while Paul wrests away the rifle and saves the day. Michael glanced over at Jake. Beware of anyone who demands trust without earning it—one of their father’s favorite sayings. Jake’s head jerked up and his eyes locked onto Michael’s. He nodded ever so slightly. Michael turned back to Paul.

  “And Tommy? What’s his job?” But Michael knew the answer. Paul had no problem putting him and Jake at risk, but his own boy would be kept inside while they tried to ambush Zuka.

  Paul just stared at him. Michael nodded, not breaking eye contact. He didn’t really expect a response.

  “So you’re just going to walk over to the stove, but I have to somehow get myself behind that tree without Zuka noticing? Why?”

  “He’s not going to let us surround him from three sides,” Paul said. “He’ll get up, move somewhere else so he has us all in view. You’re more agile than I am, we need you to do the trickier part. I think you can handle it.”

  Michael stiffened.

  Paul stretched his right leg, bent his knee, and rotated the ankle. It was a sharp contrast to the injured leg propped immobile under a blanket. His eyes darted around the hut.

  “Look, Michael, I’ve thought this all out, gone through all the different options and this is the best one. Now, are you up for it or not?”

  Michael hated this guy more than ever. The way he put it, if Michael thought this plan was ridiculous, he was a coward.

  “Maybe you think you can come up with something better.” Paul crossed his arms. “Let’s hear it.”

  “How about if I go over by the tree, but in plain sight. He knows I’m there but it’s for something, I don’t know, something that wouldn’t alarm him. Like I left my sweatshirt over there, or something. Then Jake screams, maybe he’s been bit by a snake—”

  “Ouch.” Jake grabbed his calf.

  Michael grinned. It was just like Jake to prefer a snakebite to falling down. “Then I’ll come running toward Zuka, which would make sense because he’s in between where I’m standing and Jake’s screaming. You surprise him from behind right when I’d be passing by, except I don’t. I turn and grab the gun while you grab him.” Michael raised his eyebrows to his younger brother, who nodded. It made a better scene for Jake.

  Paul shook his head. “Won’t work. You’d still have to get the sweatshirt there without him seeing it. And that brings you back to the same problem.”

  Michael saw the ends of Paul’s lips curl upwards. He was happy because he thought Michael’s idea wouldn’t work? He wanted to hit him.

  “No, listen.” Michael’s voice was getting louder. Paul was glaring at him. Not good. He needed to work with this guy, to come up with a plan, but Paul was really pissing him off. “Let’s say Jake goes over there, like he’s going to climb the tree, and drops my sweatshirt—”

  “No, you listen to me, young man. You’re making it too complicated. Zuka’s not going to let Jake climb the tree to get high enough that he might figure out how to get out of here.”

  “But it’s also too risky for me to be sneaking around the other side of camp for no good reason in front of Mr. Trigger-Happy sitting there with a loaded gun.” He was nearly yelling now. “We need a better plan.” He stopped and glanced outside again. Japera was rounding the lodge toward the center of camp. He needed to keep his voice down.

  Michael closed his eyes and rubbed his head. He needed to work this out. Maybe Paul was right, maybe the only way to turn things around was to get the gun away from Zuka, and the only way to do that was a mass effort.

  “I’ve got an idea.”

  “Oh, this should be good.”

  Michael’s jaw tightened. He stood and walked to the far end of the hut before he continued.

  “Tommy and Jake will be playing around, like they usually do. I’ll come out of my hut just as Tommy tags Jake and runs toward the tree. I’ll take off after Tommy, but suddenly, just as we reach the tree, Jake screams that he’s been bit. I run toward Jake, or it’ll look that way, but when I reach Zuka, you jump him and I grab the gun.”

  “Tommy’s not going out there.”

  “Dad, I can—”

  “All he has to do is stay at the tree, he won’t be involved in the action.”

  “I said, he’s not going out there.” Paul kept his eyes on Michael, ignoring Tommy. And now, for some reason, he was smiling. “How’s your mom feeling?”

  “Fine,” Michael said quickly. “She’ll be fine. Why?”

  His mom had barely moved since he’d carried her to their hut when she collapsed on the ground right after Thabani’s murder two days ago. He’d even thought for a moment that she too had been hit, but there was no wound. Michael brought her water, which she sipped, but she wasn’t talking or eating.

  “Just haven’t seen her out for meals and wondered…Tommy,” Paul nodded his head toward the back of their hut, “hand me two of those new pills.”

  “New ones?” When had supplies come into the camp?

  Jake brushed by him and glanced out behind the side curtain. “We might not have a lot of time, we don’t know how long Japera’s shift is.” He turned to Michael. “Maybe we should figure out if there’s even a way to get to your spot without being seen, a trial run.”

  Michael glanced down at him. Jake shrugged.

  “We could at least see if it’s even possible.”

  Paul took a sip of water and cleare
d his throat. “I’ll be standing by the stove on the left—warming my hands, making coffee, something like that.”

  Michael looked out the window. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, his breath shallow. He scanned the camp. Finally he looked back and forth between the tree, the huts, and the stove. He was trying to figure out the angles.

  “Zuka will keep his eye on me until Jake distracts him,” Paul said.

  “If not, talk to him, get him to look in your direction.”

  “No, I’ve tested this. He doesn’t trust me, he keeps his eye on me when I’m silent, but if I talk he goes back to scanning the area, he knows where I am if I speak.”

  Michael raised his eyebrows at Jake. Paul had this worked out better than he’d thought.

  “Anyway, you need to get behind him and to the right, behind the big tree that shades the picnic area during the day. You know the one?”

  Michael nodded. It was on the far side of his hut. Still, he’d have to go twenty yards in open view without being seen. “If it’s impossible, we’re going with my plan.”

  “If he’s facing either my direction or straight ahead toward the huts, you can get there without being noticed—won’t be easy, but you can do it. The moon will have dropped toward the horizon by then, so you’ll be in the shadows. You’ll have to sneak around behind both huts to get there. Make sure he doesn’t hear you. When Jake comes out, he’ll turn this way. Soon as Jake has his attention, he’ll twist his ankle and start screaming. Or pretend he’s been bitten, whatever. It’ll be our signal that it’s time to move in. Move fast and don’t stop until you have your hands on his gun.”

  Michael swallowed hard. He tried to picture himself wrestling the rifle out of Zuka’s hands.

  “Our goal is to separate him from the weapon. I’m bulkier than you, so I’ll pin him down. If I’m struggling, hand the gun off to Jake and help me. Or better yet, shoot him.”

  Michael turned away. He pictured the two men fighting, rolling on the ground, trying to distinguish the two in the scope.

  “Just keep shooting, Michael.”

  He looked out the window over Jake’s shoulder. Japera sat where Zuka would be in a less than an hour.