The Shudder Lingers

by David Vander

  Slowly she inched out of the driveway, and then stood motionless, as she realised that she actually had nowhere to go.

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  Stacey kept to the shadows as she made her way to a shopping mall and saw a takeaway restaurant. The sight of it got her stomach rumbling in anticipation. She waited outside until she felt it was safe, and hurriedly went in and placed an order. The waitress gave her a puzzled look, before taking her order. While waiting for her order, she used the bathroom, and was surprised when she looked into the mirror, seeing not only the dry blood from the thorn bush, but also a rather gaunt and tired face looking back at her. She realised that the last few weeks had taken their toll. She washed her face and was just in time to receive her order. She chose a secluded corner, and eagerly munched the food, and as soon as she was done, she slipped back out into the dark night, feeling lonely and very vulnerable.

  She noticed a community hall across the street, and realised that it could probably offer her a place to stay for the night. As she crossed the street, the haunting images from the community hall that she had visited with Gladys flashed before her eyes, and she stopped as she got to the pavement. It took a deep resolve to take the last few steps to the front door, where she was stopped by a very overweight old woman, “How can I help you?”

  Stacey timidly replied, “I was hoping I could have a place to stay tonight.”

  The old woman frowned deeply, but then replied, “It’s full, but I’m sure you can find a blanket somewhere. In return, I need your help in the kitchen, my volunteers have not arrived.” Stacey quickly nodded in agreement and was shown the way to the kitchen. Her stomach churned at the mess she encountered, but the thought of being out on the streets and being hunted down by Daniella’s henchmen, soon galvanised her into action. She set about washing the dishes, and soon saw three young black teenage girls standing in the doorway watching her, clearly amused at the sight of her washing dishes. She smiled, reached for some dishcloths and tossed them at the three girls. They did not react at first, but the smallest of the three stepped forward, and started drying the dishes, and soon the other two also jumped in, and forty-five minutes later, the kitchen had some semblance of order.

  The overweight woman showed her approval, by giving Stacey a big thump on the back. She opened the fridge and took out the meagre contents, handing them to Stacey and the girls to cook. By the time dinner was cooked, Stacey was feeling weary. She found an unused mattress and collapsed in exhaustion. Despite the excitement of the day and the flimsy mattress, she fell asleep in an instant.

  She awoke to sunlight streaming through a dirty window, and struggled to get up, as her body ached from having slept in an awkward position. She heard lots of chatter in the kitchen and headed in to see what all the commotion was about. She found the large overweight woman and two other women, chattering rather loudly. Stacey smiled, “Good morning, what’s all the chatter about?”

  One of the woman replied, “Big trouble.”

  Concern rapidly spread across Stacey’s face, “What do you mean big trouble?”

  She replied, “Gang wars. Something bad must have happened, because the gang wars flared up all across the Cape last night. Apparently at least ten gang members were killed in gunfights on the Cape Flats last night. I wonder what triggered it this time.”

  Stacey instantly knew the answer; someone was annoyed at the disappearance of a shipment of drugs. She prayed that no innocent people were killed as a consequence of her actions, so to take her mind off it, she busied herself by helping in the kitchen. It was going to be a long day in the cramped community hall, but she dared not venture outside. She spent the day cleaning what she could and eventually reading stories to some of the younger children. The day had crawled by agonisingly slowly, and Stacey was grateful when she was able to eventually lie down on her flimsy mattress. Sleep however eluded her, as she heard the occasional gunshot in the distance, and the police sirens that carried on until the early hours of the morning. After helping serve a basic porridge to hungry recipients, she thanked the overweight women and eased onto the streets, where a nervous tension was palpable. She found a taxi and headed into the city, to meet with Gerald as planned.

  Having waited patiently for him, she looked at her watch and abandoned the rendezvous after fifteen minutes, knowing that something must have happened to him. She found a secluded park bench a few blocks away, and attempted to plan her next move, but she could not think of anything. As she sat there moping for a while, feeling very lonely, her thoughts went to Slade, longing for his presence and loving arms, somehow wishing that everything she was going through, was just a bad dream, and that she would wake up in her apartment, with Slade next to her. A barking dog snapped her back into reality.

  She slowly got up and started aimlessly walking around the city centre. It was mid-afternoon, and still unable to settle on any clear plan of action, she considered going to Gerald’s offices and seeking help from Magriet and the team. She realised that it was probably her only chance of survival, but she also knew that there was a strong chance that Gerald’s offices were being watched by Daniella’s henchmen. She walked the few blocks, but as she neared Gerald’s offices, she was in two minds. She stood frozen, undecided on whether to continue or not. An image of Daniella laughing flashed before her, and eventually she made up her mind to proceed.

  She was less than a block away, when out of nowhere, she was yanked brutally by the arm and dragged into an alley. She tried fighting, but whoever held her was strong, and he had her mouth covered. Panic set in, and she kicked back viciously, catching the assailant squarely on the shin with the heel of her shoe.

  “Ouch, that hurt!” he said

  She stopped fighting as she recognised Slade’s voice, “Slade, is it really you?”

  He loosened his grip and she spun around to face him, and then reached up to kiss him. They kissed and held onto each other for at least two minutes, before he pulled away, “We need to get out of here, it is not safe.” It was only then that she realised that he was also in disguise, and she giggled uncontrollably. He frowned, “Gerald’s office was raided two nights ago, and they have three heavily-armed gangsters outside. Let’s go, this way.” He pointed up the alley.

  Seconds later, they were in another street, and Slade opened the car doors of a small white car with a remote. He asked Stacey to get into the back seat and lie down. She did as she was told, and soon he was racing away. She could not contain herself and burst into tears. Slade glanced over his shoulder, “Are you OK?”

  Wiping away the tears of joy at seeing Slade, she said, “Yes I’m OK, but all the better for seeing you.”

  He replied, “Not as happy as I am. I honestly thought you had been killed by Daniella. No words can express my joy when I saw you approach earlier. In just a few minutes we will be safe, and then we can catch up, as I’m sure you have lots to tell me.”

  “More than you can imagine,” was all she could say.

  Slade said, “Keep your head down, almost there.” The car had stopped, and she heard the sound of large gates sliding on their rails. Slade had opened his window, and said to somebody outside, “Phoenix.” She kept her head down and heard the sound of loose gravel underneath the car. The car slowed again, and she heard the sound of an electric garage door open, and then close. He said, “OK, we are safe, you can sit up.”

  Slade helped her out of the car, and they followed a well-lit, narrow passage. She gasped when they entered a cavernous room, because standing in front of her was Lizzie, Gavin, Gerald, Elon, Magriet and Sipho. She burst into tears and hugged each one in turn, unable to express even a single word. She turned to Slade again, kissed him and clung onto him.

  Lizzie was the first to speak, “I’m sure you have lots to tell us, but by the looks of your appearance, it looks as if you could do with a shower and some clean clothes. Follow me, I’ll show you to the bathroom.”

  Eager to first catch up with everyone, she was a
bout to object, when she saw herself in a small wall mirror, “I suppose that is a good idea. Show me the way Lizzie.” She thanked her and headed straight for the shower. Even though it had only been three days, it felt as if she had weeks of grime to wash off, but almost symbolically, she felt as if she was washing away the grime of her stint undercover.

  Chapter Fifty-Eight

  Dinner was served around a large table, and the conversation was focused on celebrating that they were all alive and well. After having eaten modestly over the last few weeks, Stacey had an incessant appetite, and devoured everything that was placed before her. She savoured each sip of wine, swirling each mouthful, and noticing that everyone was staring at her, smiled, “It’s been a tough few weeks.”

  After dinner, Stacey recounted her few weeks undercover, sharing the moments that stood out for her, notably seeing first-hand the impact of drugs on the community when she visited the Cape Flats with Gladys. She also shared how she felt during several scary moments, including the gangs on the Cape Flats, Gerald approaching her on the pier, driving away with the drug shipment, having the safe house compromised and finally Slade pulling her into the alley. She said, “Anyway, that’s enough of my story; please fill me in on what has happened with you all.”

  Gerald replied, “OK, I’ll start. You know most of what happened to me, as we met up frequently. The scariest for me was being seized in the park a few days ago, as I honestly thought I was going to be murdered that day. That scary moment became priceless later on when I told them Daniella would have them killed if anything happened to me. The fear on their faces was a sight to behold. More importantly, I realised just how powerful Daniella had become, and that she ruled by fear. I must say, what impressed me the most was how Stacey had the courage to steal the drug shipment. That Stacey, was a gutsy move, and it shows that you have greater powers on your side.” Stacey smiled, and nodded in agreement.

  Magriet chipped in, “I think our collective strategy of divide and conquer, by creating doubt proved to be a stroke of genius. I was also pleasantly surprised that most of the cops are actually good guys, as I had been left with the impression that they were all corrupt. As it turns out, it is only a small handful of corrupt individuals that creates a rotten core. Thanks to Slade, who used his data science skills, we were quickly able to connect the various data points, which ultimately led to the letters and verbal messages, that has started the de-stabilisation of the gangs and sown doubt amongst Daniella’s trusted lieutenants.” Stacey looked at Slade and smiled, unaware that he had been involved in the background.

  Sipho added, “Stacey your idea around a social media campaign was ingenious. Gavin and I struggled with how we could execute on the plan, but that’s when Lizzie came to the party, and she guided us through how we could make the most of the campaign. Once she gave us the idea, Gavin and I quickly ensured that it would prove difficult to trace it back to us.”

  Gavin chipped in, “The upside is that we chatted with Elon about using a similar social media campaign to stem the demand for rhino horn across Asia. Indirectly it is an exciting outcome for the rhino project.”

  Stacey jumped in at this point, “Tell me Lizzie, something that bothered me was that I had told Daniella you were kidnapped. I was stressed that when you came out of the rehabilitation centre, that she would see it as a stunt, and know that I was behind it.”

  Lizzie chuckled, “I will take some credit for that. When Elon and I saw her at a restaurant about a week after I came out, she confronted me about having been kidnapped. I put on my most serious tone and indicated that during those dark few days I had become delusional and blamed the staff at the rehab centre for kidnapping me. She also asked how I got into the rehab centre. I lied and told her I fell in the middle of a road and was taken by a good Samaritan to the rehab centre. She faked a response indicating that she was happy, but her face told a different story.”

  Gerald chimed in again, “I suppose the last missing link in the story is how the criminals latched onto the safe house and staking out my offices. We suspected that one of the new team members we signed on was a mole. We were still not sure which one it was, as none of them truly knew the whole story. Yesterday morning, we asked them all to take a few days off, as we needed things to cool off. Only one of them objected, and Magriet and I knew we had our mole. Elon then offered us this rented house as a temporary base.

  Slade wrapped up, “After you disrupted the drug shipment and the safe house was compromised, Gerald called me, asking me to return, as they needed extra hands to protect you, Stacey. We were not sure where you would go, but we knew that if Daniella got hold of you, then you would be murdered instantly. I was allocated the offices, and thankfully you approached the offices from where I was keeping watch. By the way, my shin is still bruised from that kick you gave me.” Stacey gave him an apologetic smile.

  Stacey asked, “Out of curiosity, where has Cheung been through all of this?”

  Slade replied, “Oddly, he has been very quiet. We know that he and Daniella were lovers, but it seems as if the relationship has gone sour. I have hardly even seen him at the office of late.”

  Gerald jumped in, “It seems as if he got spooked by something, as I am told he caught an outbound international flight last night. My team tells me it was a one-way ticket.”

  Stacey paused, and made eye contact with each of them in turn, “Thank you everyone. It seems as if great teamwork has made a truly significant impact. Given the progress we have made, what are our next steps?”

  Gerald outlined a few thoughts, and suggested, “Lets sleep on it, and tomorrow we can firm up on exact plans to implement the final sting.” They all nodded in agreement and headed off for a good night’s sleep.

  Stacey and Slade headed off to the small bedroom allocated to them. Sleep was the last thing on their mind, as they made love and then chatted for a while. Stacey was tucked into Slade’s arms, “Good night Mrs Kent.” The only response he got was gentle breathing, as she was already in dreamland. He held her tightly, promising himself to never let her go.

  Chapter Fifty-Nine

  It was mid-morning before Stacey surfaced, feeling rejuvenated after a good night’s sleep and being reunited with Slade. She took her time in the shower before heading into the lounge, from where she could hear voices. She greeted everyone and helped herself to a croissant from the kitchen counter. Slade passed her a coffee, which she gratefully accepted. She listened to the conversation for a while, “By the way, where is Sipho?”

  They all stared at each other in silence, before Gerald said, “Damn! Where is he?” He stormed out and went to the bedroom where Sipho had been sleeping. He was soon back in the lounge, “He’s gone, and it does not look as if he slept here last night.”

  Gavin chimed in, “I’ll find him quickly.”

  Sarcastically Gerald asked, “How are you going to find him quickly? I just told you he is gone.”

  As he took out his mobile phone, Gavin gave a wry smile, “I learnt a lesson from Stacey, and attached RFID tags to the rest of your team Gerald, either onto jackets, laptop bags or handbags. In Sipho’s case, I also attached one inside his cell phone cover. I then connected them all to the app that Stacey previously used. Until now, I had not bothered to check it out.”

  Slade slapped him on the back, “Sheer genius Gavin, sheer genius.”

  Everyone was huddled over his shoulder as they tracked the RFID tag for Sipho, when Stacey exclaimed, “He is at the harbour now, where was he this morning?”

  Gavin fiddled with the app, and then went to Google maps, before announcing, “It looks as if he spent some time around the harbour this morning, and then about an hour ago he went to a dive-shop. Why would he be going to a dive shop?”

  Gerald gave an anguished howl, “Of course! He is after the drug shipment. He has hired dive equipment to recover the drugs. I thought I could trust him, but clearly I could not.”

  Magriet reacted, “I am shattered, as I had such high
hopes for him. It just shows how greed can corrupt someone in an instant.”

  Gerald was quick to mobilise them, “Magriet, I want you to get down to the harbour to stop him. I will send a few extra resources as backup. We cannot let Sipho mess up our overall strategy. Stacey, you and I will wrap up our final disruption activities immediately. We need to bring our final sting operation forward to tonight. Everyone, make sure you are disguised as usual. Lizzie and Gavin, I need you to up the ante on the social media campaign. Elon, I would like you to go to WKJD’s offices, and see what information you can gather. Slade, I want you to post something on social media, offering a reward for Stacey’s safe return.”

  Stacey added, “Elon, you might try Emily, she is very observant,” and with a cheeky smile, “Slade, I hope the reward reflects what I’m worth.” He winked in acknowledgement.

  They immediately jumped into action, eager to put the do or die operation into motion.

  Magriet called in about an hour later, “We have captured Sipho, and will take him to a safe place, where he cannot spill the beans on the drug shipment. He confessed to seeing the drug shipment as a temptation he just could not resist. However, he could not find any trace of the stainless steel boxes.”

  Gerald thanked her, “Good work Magriet. I agree, he needs to be isolated, with zero contact to the outside world.”

  Gerald then excused himself, “I’ll be back in an hour. I have some maintenance to attend to.” He received some puzzled stares, “Trust me, my little errand will provide good entertainment later.”