CHAPTER 23

Marianne arrived home and standing in front of the mirror in her bedroom, stripped down to the buff. She examined herself critically and was relieved to find no bad bruises or marks except for the slight bruising of one knee! – the main damage had been to her ego – what a spectacle they had made… almost a replica of one of those erotic poses from a cheap sleaze-movie! – what would James or her family and friends have thought!  She felt herself colouring as she thought of the stranger in the coffee-shop – hell, he must have had an eyeful as they lay in the 69 position – how embarrassing! She tried to recall the face of the stranger – not at all clear…. though when she had first noticed him staring at her, she remembered thinking.. rather a nice face and not bad looking! – try as she could, the details eluded her – Ah well, what did it matter, she would probably never see him again – so with a slightly regretful sigh, she ran her bath water………

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James was inconsolable, his mind felt akin to a Nuclear-Bomb-blasted, stony, deserted battlefield, upon which an ethereal, cold, wailing wind was blowing  – even the stains of blood once shed there.… were wiped away - no life or awareness anywhere. He had tried to be more loving 
towards Marianne and pay more attention to her wants, but somehow no matter how tender the moment, Holly’s face would appear in his mind and wreck everything – he used the old excuse of ‘stress’ when asked what the problem was. He and Marianne were slowly but inexorably drifting further and further apart. They were both also drinking too much, and this seemed to add momentum to the barriers being built up between them. They had both lost weight  - on James the effect was to make him haggard-looking, bad-tempered and sullen. Marianne appeared almost waif-like and had an air of melancholy about her – an image that instilled in most men, the urge to comfort – not so, in James, - instead he started to actively avoid her and was glad that there were no children to worry about. He drifted from one affair to another, the latest being his bank-manageress, who was also married. She, to complicate matters further, was starting to take the affair seriously and was considering divorce, as her marriage was on the rocks anyway – not a comfortable circumstance for James to be in – indeed, it was time for him to withdraw gracefully…in more ways than one!

It had started with dinner at the Wanderers Club, where, after partaking of much French champagne and Irish Coffees -, he had mounted her, in a fit of randy ardour - in his car, parked in its usual spot, alongside the main entrance of the clubhouse – a crazy, risky thing to do – but alcohol tends to make the strangest of moves seem natural, and every deed heroic!.

In retrospect, women always seemed to get James into trouble, no matter how good his intentions were… even as a youngster. He recalled how, at the age of fifteen he had landed up almost appearing in court…

 In the small Orange Free State country town that he had grown up in, (Marianne had been a weekly boarder at the Convent there, as her parents lived in Johannesburg) - one of the local “in places” was the pavilion on the banks of the Valsch River. ”THE” Dance, was always held there on a Saturday night when there was a live “Orkes” (Band) playing – this was the social event of the week and was always well-patronised by the local townspeople and farmers and their wives from the surrounding districts. James and his pal, Joe, had attended although they felt that dancing was a bit sissy-ish and a waste of time.
 One of the prettiest girls dancing… had given James the eye, so he had asked her to dance – and while dancing, she had invited him to come to her house after the dance – she mentioned that she would be alone there as her father had remained on their farm for the week-end.

Joe, had the use of his mother’s Vauxhall, so he had driven James and the girl to her father’s house in one of the suburbs – They drove through the gate and Joe elected to wait in the parked car so that James and the girl could ‘get acquainted’…..

James was on top of the girl, thrusting and panting like a steam engine – the girl keening in ecstasy and passion, when the thwack of a ‘sjambok’ on his buttocks brought everything to a halt – the pain was incredible! At the same moment, an angry voice called out…’jou donderse Engelsman, wat maak jy in my huis en wat doen jy met my dogter?!……’ (..you damned Englishman, what are you doing in my house and what are you doing to my daughter?!)…James took off like a scalded cat, grabbing his bundle of clothes and shoes as another stinging blow landed on his backside!. He took a leap out of the bedroom window and landed squarely in a garden bed filled with cacti! ….he didn’t have time to register the pain from thorns, as he leaped into the hastily opened door of the car. The terrified Joe put his foot on the accelerator and turning to avoid a tree, missed the gate, panicked and drove straight through and demolished the light fencing, bordering the frontage of the property - leaving strips of chrome from the car behind!.

Two days after the event…James was visited by a trembling Joe, his highly irate mother and a policeman, who held a strip of chrome in one hand. The upshot was that the girl’s father, agreed to withdraw criminal charges against the duo, conditional to their repairing the fence. Both boys had pocket-money docked to pay for the damage to Joe’s mother’s  car!…….needless to say, James never saw the girl again. Somehow, things always ended up with James in the hot seat whenever a girl featured in the equation.

Marianne Collett was another story altogether. They had always noticed one another at functions and parties, and had even chatted once or twice…Then Marianne and his sister had become friendly, especially
when they both moved up to Senior School at the local Convent, where Marianne was a weekly boarder – her parents lived in Johannesburg. Soon Marianne became a familiar visitor at the Kane home, as the two girls’ friendship flourished.

The End of Final Year Dance at the Convent of Notre Dame, saw James being invited as Marianne’s escort for the evening. From then on, they were regarded as a twosome. James had even re-located to Johannesburg to be near to Marianne after she completed her schooling at the Convent. The romance flourished happily and inevitably led to marriage – not however without setting-up problems….the main problem being Marianne’s grandmother. She had disliked James from the start and had done everything within her power to discourage the romance – her father was quite the opposite and it was through his diplomatic ministrations, that the reluctant grandmother had finally acquiesced. Actually, it seemed that the grandmother disliked all ‘would-be’ suitors. She had continued her interference and meddling after the marriage – and was forever telling Marianne how bad and useless the male of the species was, and how they could never be trusted – her son being the exception of course! She definitely had a phobia about men!……

Marianne, however, never let her grandmother’s carping and prying get her down and continued to cheerfully build up her marriage. She had such an easy-going and spontaneous nature that she could always deploy her grandmother’s efforts to hurt or annoy James – and their marriage flourished happily……

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Marianne was feeling terribly dejected and cast-off. Lately James behaved as if she did not exist and spent virtually all of his time at the studio, even eating most of his meals away from home – some nights he never even came home, saying that the pressure of work was so great that he would sleep at the studio. If she dared question him, he would turn on her in fury and she would be reduced to tears….so she just let him be. Her mind tormented her, bringing in the thought of another woman or women – something had changed James drastically -  most of the time he ignored her, and when they did talk, he could hardly keep
the disinterest from his features – what had she done to warrant such treatment?.

 It was a Sunday morning, and as usual lately, she was alone at home – James having rushed off to the studio after breakfast. She picked up the “Sunday Times” and turned to the “What’s on in Jo’burg Today” page…nothing much of interest to her, except…”Artists in the Park” – an outdoor Art exhibition held every second or third week of the month at Zoo Lake. Having found some excellent art works there in the past, she decided that Art was exactly what she needed to bolster her spirits and disperse her gloomy frame of mind. She dressed in jeans and a colourful shirt, donned a pair of Adidas walking shoes and set out for Zoo Lake….

She bent forward for a closer look at the signature that appeared on the oil painting – a still life of a Delft vase, a Martini glass and a brass candlestick-holder – yes, it was undoubtedly a Denzil Herring – one of her favourite painters! She straightened-up and stepped back, her eyes still intent on the painting, and bumped into someone who grunted with surprise!

They stared at one another – it was as though time stood still, freezing the tableau….It was him, the man from the coffee shop…she could hardly believe her eyes!…..she thought that she would never see him again,…and here he was, face colouring as before!. He had such a comical look on his face that she could not restrain herself from bursting into laughter. He flushed even more and then hesitantly, also joined in, laughing softly. When the merriment had abated, he deferentially held out his hand and introduced himself….’Andrei Berezovsky…..at your service Madame!…’ –

‘Marianne Collett-Kane, and very pleased to finally meet you ..Andrei Berezovsky!!…’ she replied.  

Andrei suggested that they have a cup of coffee together – in their coffee-shop at his hotel, so after Marianne had bought and paid for the oil painting she followed Andrei to his car. As they were driving along Marianne’s mind was in a bit of a quandary – perhaps she had acted too spontaneously in accepting his offer – she knew nothing about the man, perhaps he would think that she was flighty! - or tarty!..

She need not have worried, for Andrei treated her with the greatest of respect, running around to open the car door for her, standing back to let her through the doorway first… waiting for her to be seated first etc….he was the soul of decorum!……he was also entranced……..

They spent some hours chatting and getting to know one another, drinking endless cups of coffee – the time passed quickly until they became aware that the sun had already set. Andrei suggested that they have an early supper – Marianne opened her cell-phone and discovered that James had sent an SMS to say that he was not going to be at home till very late and would grab a burger from the take-away service in his office building, so she should not keep a meal for him. For once, she was not annoyed at being left on her own – she was enjoying the attention lavished upon her…..also, it was great to be with someone who obviously liked her and who was entertaining to boot!.

He took her to a cosy Italian-type restaurant he had “discovered”, that had the reputation for absolutely “divine” fillet steaks. This was the “Piatto Restaurant” and was situated in the “Westgate Shopping Centre” on the West Rand – unpretentious….laid-back atmosphere…delightful background music provided by Roger Harris – a well-known “muso” of the old school… good service and good food….the Yorkshire owner, Trevor Borwick was known to be a most hospitable “mein host” and to run a tight, well-controlled ship!

 They finished their Irish Coffees and headed back to the North. Marianne was feeling great – an enjoyable meal, wonderful company and……? She glanced surreptitiously at Andrei who was concentrating on the road ahead. She wondered if he would try to move in on her……..actually she wouldn’t even mind if he did!. The car stopped in front of her house and Andrei switched off the engine and turned towards her –

 ‘…Marianne, dear lady… thank you so much for your company today…I haven’t enjoyed myself so much for a long, long time….’, he leaned towards her, and she felt her heart starting to beat rapidly….He took her hand in his and pressed it to his lips, kissing it fervently!….not quite what Marianne had expected – she was rather taken aback and not a little disappointed.

 Disengaging her hand, she placed it alongside his face and leaned forward and kissed him fully on his mouth, feeling his quick intake of breath – he quickly put an arm around her, pulling her closer to himself                   and the kiss lingered on and on. She was starting to get really turned on, when, with a muttered exclamation, he pulled away!……”..Oh my dear girl….I do apologise…I don’t know what came over me……please forgive me!….I’ve behaved dishonourably….and towards a married lady!…I’m so sorry!…I must leave immediately!..”.  So saying, he bounded from the car and opened the passenger side door for her. She stumbled dazedly from the car, her mouth slightly agape – this guy was unbelievable – she had never ever met someone who behaved in such an old-fashioned, foppish way!  – she waved distractedly as the car fled the scene, tyres screeching!……..

Marianne poured herself a glass of Chardonnay and reviewed the day – what a peculiar fellow this Andrei was. Most men would not have let the chance for a bit of “nookie” go to waste. Could he perhaps be a “closet queen”? – no, not really… after all he had been married and had mentioned one or two affairs – perhaps he had become impotent – except for the fact that when he was kissing her – so deliciously! – she had felt his member stirring! – mmmm – perhaps “ejaculatio praecox”?! No matter, the bastard had got her horny and then run away!. Her grandmother’s words came back to her – “men are deceitful and untrustworthy – they’ll use you, abuse you and then discard you…..you’ll find out soon enough my girl – always remember what I’ve told you!….”. It seemed that the men that she was interested in, were letting her down… first James and now Andrei…. her grandmother was right!…..men were shallow and not to be trusted!. She poured herself another glass of Chardonnay……damn James and damn Andrei!…perhaps it was all for the best, after all…. she had never been unfaithful to James before – she had just felt so lonely, resentful and rejected ….and Andrei was so darn attractive, even though he had behaved like a nerd!…oh well!…time to listen to Puccini’s “Turandot” once more!……

                                              CHAPTER 24

 Chen had been following James around for over a week and had come to the conclusion that his comings and goings were far too erratic for a timetable to be worked out. There was no way that he would be able to get James on his own at any one time.

  The alternative was that he abducted James’ wife and used her for bait to catch James – it meant that he would then have two people to dispose of, but that was no problem – the sea had plenty of room!. He would have to formulate a plan very quickly now as Hu Lyang wanted to finalise the disposal of the “oilfield” – the Chinese were ready to make their final payment and would be wanting the agreement with the “SA Government” to be made public by the Minister.

Wei Chen drove unobtrusively behind Marianne’s car as she drove homewards after having her hair done. He parked on  the street outside her house when she drove into her garage. She closed the garage door and started to walk to the main entrance of the house when she became aware of an Asian man hurrying towards her calling her name. She turned to him saying..’…Yes, I’m Mrs. Kane, what can I do for you?..’

‘Mrs Kane, there’s been a terrible accident, your husband has been badly hurt and the doctor has sent me to bring you to him…..please hurry it’s very serious!’

Marianne didn’t hesitate, she jumped into the Hyundai sedan’s passenger seat and slammed the door noting curiously, that all the windows were dark – that was the last thing she remembered as Wei Chen emptied the contents of a syringe into her arm…..Chen then drove into the Kane driveway and parked outside Marianne’s garage.

James was involved in a particularly difficult piece of editing and was not exactly pleased when his cell-phone interrupted – ‘Is that James Kane?...right, listen very carefully to me – no! – don’t interrupt!…I have your wife, and if you value her life, you’ll do just as I say! I am in your wife’s bedroom and she is sleeping peacefully and safely for the moment!…..You get into your car and come home immediately without talking about this to anyone – if you talk to the police and I am threatened in any way, she will die from an overdose of a particularly strong anaesthetic that I have in my hand – so, no guns or any sort of
trick and come alone or else!…get moving!…..come straight up to the bedroom…’

As James reached his house, he noticed the Hyundai parked outside his wife’s garage – the street was deserted, except for a Volvo parked on the left-side street corner – also not a familiar car. He drove into the garage and as soon as the automatic gate closed, rushed up the stairs to the bedroom. Opening the bedroom door, James saw that Marianne was indeed fast asleep on her bed and poised alongside the bed was an Asian man holding a syringe close to her throat.! He slammed to an abrupt halt.

‘…Careful Mr. Kane, be very careful! Now take two steps towards me if you please…that’s it…very good!’ – and without any warning, Wei kicked James in the crutch with considerable force – the pain was so extreme that he passed out cold.

‘……aah, you’re back with us James – I feel I can call you by your first name now that we have been properly introduced, don’t you?…..now you know the rules – any untoward movements and you will be punished or your wife may even die!’ Wei then tossed a bundle of clothing towards James, saying – ‘….you will strip off your outer clothing and put this overall on……now!’.  James, in considerable pain, managed to crawl along the floor, dragging the overalls behind him, to an easy chair and with great difficulty clambered aboard and started undressing. Wei tossed a pair of miner’s safety boots towards him….’…and put these on as well….hurry up!’

When James had finally finished dressing and struggled into the boots, Wei tossed another overall and boots onto the foot of the bed in which Marianne was sleeping – ‘…now, undress your wife! – don’t look so shocked – you may leave her underclothing on!….do it!…’

With some difficulty and gritting his teeth with pain, James eventually had Marianne dressed in the overalls and booted as well. Wei then instructed him to place Marianne’s left arm around his neck and lift and support her from the bed onto her feet, - James complied grunting and groaning from the exertion.

 Wei joined them and placed Marianne’s right arm around his neck and helped support her weight. ‘…now you and I carry her downstairs to the kitchen….move!…’

They struggled down the stairs with their unconscious burden and eventually laid her on the kitchen floor alongside one of the kitchen chairs, on which Wei settled himself comfortably.

‘..right, you will now prepare some sandwiches and coffee for our “trip”’ – get on with it!….and remember, no funny business, or I stamp on her breastbone!..’

James limped painfully around the kitchen putting together the ingredients for some cheese and tomato sandwiches and switched the kettle on for the coffee. He reached into the cutlery drawer for a knife to cut and butter the sliced bread pieces, and hesitated as he spotted the extremely sharp meat-carver…..he reached forward, and received a stinging slap to the back of his head, the momentum of the blow knocking him further forward, closing the drawer painfully on his right hand! – ‘…don’t even think about it James – now be a good boy and finish your chores and pack the sandwiches and coffee into a basket…..let this be your final warning!……’

As the sun had by now set for quite some time, James’ hope that there would be people around outside his neighbour’s house were dashed, as they carried Marianne to the Hyundai and made her as comfortable as was possible sitting up on the right side back seat. James was told to sit next to her and his bruised right hand was secured to Marianne’s left, with a plastic tie of the type now used by the police instead of the traditional metal hand-cuffs…..very effective and virtually impossible to remove without cutting. With a sigh of satisfaction Wei closed and locked the back door of the car and climbed into the driver’s seat – these actions all being observed by the occupant of the Volvo parked on the street corner!.

Wei said…’Lady and Gentleman! – welcome to the “Oil Complex Travel Tour” compiled by your friendly Guide, Wei Chen!…”, he paused, then added…’..this informative Tour will follow the N1 South Highway giving you spectacular views of the new South Africa from Johannesburg down to the luxurious “Woodlands Sun Hotel” between Plett. And Cape St. Francis … (I should ask the Minister of Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk for a subsidy!) and then on to a fantastic boat voyage!…I think that you have already visited that stretch of water recently, haven’t you Mr. Kane? – this time your trip will be unwittingly paid for by the South African Government – so relax and enjoy!…..but
remember to behave and not upset your friendly Guide, who, like the weather, can change drastically!…..oh and by the way, the child-proof locks on the two back-doors have been activated – so the doors can only be opened from the outside – wouldn’t want my two “tourists” to fall out would I!?’ – and laughing uproariously at his own witticism Wei started the car……..                     

As the Hyundai drove towards the N1 South Highway, the Volvo followed and stayed at a discreet distance behind……

                                              CHAPTER 25

Andrei Berezovsky, could not get Marianne out of his mind – he realised that he was completely enamoured and obsessed with her, and after much soul-searching came to the decision that he would watch her and wait for the opportunity to talk to her seriously and perhaps declare his feelings for her!. She had responded to him, so it was obvious that she no longer cared for her husband, who was never at home anyway!.  With this decision taken, Andrei started “shadowing” Marianne, making notes of her comings and goings and trying to work out her routine everyday movements and when it would be a good time to approach her.

So it was that Andrei had followed Marianne home and seen Wei Chen accost her and let her get into the Hyundai and a few minutes later carry an obviously unconscious Marianne into her house. He was torn between rushing into her house – which was not actually a good idea as he had no weapon, or contacting the police, but how would he explain the so-fortuitous presence of himself on the scene? –  he sat in the car trying to make up his mind, when James arrived on the scene,- this really flummoxed him and he remained grappling with his thoughts in the car. A while later using his binoculars, he observed James and Wei settling a still, unconscious Marianne in the back of the Hyundai and saw Wei tying James’ right hand to Marianne’s left constraining them very effectively. When the Hyundai started-up, Andrei giving them a head-start, followed……

After their driving for about an hour, Marianne groggily came to. She was very disoriented and started sobbing. James managed to comfort and pacify her and explained everything that had happened to her since she
stepped into Wei’s car. ‘…but why James?… what does he want with us, - he doesn’t even know us?’….