Robbie was shocked into silence. That was beginning to happen a little too often.

They sat together holding hands. In their minds they were thinking the same thing.

Whoever it was that was behind this was beginning to lose control. They both hoped that whoever it was would slip and get caught before he hurt anyone.

“I’d like to know where Larry has been.” Jackie commented, looking around at the pub where she had been reunited with her cousin not so long ago.

Robbie reached into his pocket and handed her his cell phone. “Call him. Find out.”

The phone rang for a while before the call was taken. The person on the other side was a woman not Larry.

“Can I talk to Larry?” She asked uncertainly.

“Who is this?” the woman demanded. Jackie now recognized the voice as Faridah Kaizah’s. What was she doing taking her son’s calls? Last she heard, Faridah was separated from Larry’s father and had returned to her parental home in Malindi.

“Jackie.”

“Oh.”

“Is he around? It’s really urgent that I talk to him.”

“I had no idea that you two were still friends. He hasn’t mentioned you in along while.”

“We have been in touch.”

“I’m sorry but you can’t talk to Larry right now. He’s been in hospital. He’s unconscious.”

“What?”

“They found him in his flat this morning. He was poisoned.”

“Oh God no!”

“You should go and see him, Jackie. He was really sick in the morning. He’s stabilized. But if you are friends he might like to have you beside him.”

***** 

Sunday 23rd October, Jackie arrived at the Nairobi Hospital at Seven O’clock. She’d thought about Larry all through the night and was anxious to see him.

 Talking about his poisoning with Robbie, Jackie had come to the conclusion that if it was connected to Angelie’s death and the will, then they possibly could have been wrong about Larry after all.

 With Dr. Shah’s death, Jackie had decided to be very careful with Larry. But now it seemed that he could not possibly have started the fire if he was in the city writhing in pain from poisoning. She wondered how it all had happened. She could only find out after talking to Larry, she decided making her way to the High Dependency Unit Larry’s mother had directed her to.

 Faridah was waiting for her when she got there. Jackie felt a little uncomfortable as the older woman kissed both her cheeks in familial tradition. She ignored her feelings and focused instead on Larry.

 ”He’s asleep right now. But he’ll be awake soon.” Faridah informed her guiding her to a seatee in the waiting area.

 ”What happened, do you know?” Jackie asked anxious to know as much as she could.

 ”I don’t really know. He hasn’t been able to say much. His girl friend says she found him out cold in the flat. The doctor thinks something was slipped in his drink last night. The doctors think that a few more hours and his whole system would have shut down. Tracy found him just on time.” Faridah looked worried and exhausted. This must have really shaken her.

 Jackie recalled vaguely meeting Tracy, Larry’s ‘girlfriend’. Last she’d seen them, Tracy and Larry weren’t so close. Larry definitely hadn’t mentioned her lately.

 It was a half past eight when Larry woke up. His mother was allowed in to see him right after the medical staff had finished with him. It was another half hour before Jackie could see him, by then the waiting area was filling up with relatives.

 Larry was groggy when she finally got to see him. The drug he’d ingested seemed to have turned him inside out. He was connected to tubes and electronic gadgets that reminded Jackie of her mother’s last days alive.

 ”Hey you.” She greeted drawing closer to her cousin. He reached out for her and she took his hand, “How’re you feeling now?” She asked squeezing his hand gently.

 He made a brave attempt at a smile, “Much better.”

 ”I freaked out when I heard you’d been poisoned. What happened, cousin?” she asked.

 ”I don’t know. I didn’t have much to drink at the club. I was driving. I dropped Tracy off at her hostel and I came home. I had a beer at the flat and that’s it.”

 ”Maybe the poison was in your food, then.” Jackie offered, trying to imagine how it could have happened.

 ”I don’t know. The police are investigating. I imagine they turned my flat upside down.”

“Why would anyone try to kill you?”

 ”I don’t know, Jackie. Things have been really crazy these last few weeks. I just don’t know.”

 Jackie discovered she wasn’t getting much information from Larry. So she didn’t stay long in his room.

  As she left, Jackie noticed that most of the relatives in the waiting area were nice and polite to her. But she did not miss the stabbing look in Owino Kaiza’s eyes. Owino Kaiza hated her. He did not bother to hide it. He would have been a whole lot happier with her non-existence.

*****

Sanjiv brought in the fireproof case on Monday morning. He indicated that it was possible that the information inside would be confidential but that he trusted Jackie to be discreet. He also wanted to inform her that the family had agreed on letting her run the Regen farm.

 ”We have some ideas that I’d like you to look into about the farm. It really needs to be made financially viable, otherwise, we might have to let it go.”

 For a moment, Jackie worried that she might not be as capable as Dr. Shah had thought she was. She, however, pushed that thought away reminding herself that if not for the impending auction of her land, she’d done a pretty good job raising her farm onto its feed.

 ”I’ll do my best. I have ideas of my own, too.” She informed Sanjiv.

 He smiled, “I’m sure you would. My father had a very good reason for offering you the job. Listen, the family will be meeting tomorrow at Fhaizal’s house. You should come and we could all discuss the issues.”

 ”Sure. But it will have to be later in the day. My cousin is still in hospital. I need to check on him.”

 ”Which cousin?”

 ”Larry. He was poisoned Saturday night.”

 ”That is strange. So soon after your other cousin died of an overdose?”

 ”Yes, it is strange. By the way, what have the cops said about your Daddy’s death?”

 ”It wasn’t arson. At least that’s how the police report reads. Daddy was smoking in bed. He had a heart attack according to the post mortem report. The cigarette started the fire.”

 ”I’ll miss him.”

 ”I know. So will I. Tell me, Jackie, are you thinking that your cousin’s death, your other cousin’s poisoning and the other issues about your Daddy’s property are connected?”

 Jackie was quiet for a while, wondering just what the truth was. She sighed, feeling exhausted, wishing it would all come to an end. A happy ending.

 ”For a while, I thought your Daddy’s death was connected too. Now, I just don’t know, Sanjiv.”

 ”Maybe you should let it go. Focus on building the future for yourself and the kids.”

 ”That’s what I feel like doing. But I don’t know if I can. There are so many things I don’t understand.”

 ”What if what has happened to your cousins happened because they know too much? It could mean that your investigation could put you at risk, too.”

 ”I know. I don’t want to take any risks or anything, I just want to know the truth.”

 ”I think I can understand. Anyway, I’ve been talking to Ajay and Fhaizal. Daddy was really fond of you. In his memory, we would like to pay for a few college courses for you-.”

 ”No. Don’t! You’ve done enough as it is.” She protested.

 Sanjiv wagged a finger at her affectionately, “Would you shut up and listen? This is a prospectus for a Distance-Learning University. You can choose any combination of courses to help you run the farm, and some that will count towards your journalism degree. We’ll pay the initial amount and about three or four installments you can take care of the rest as your financial situation stabilizes. I think that is fair. And remember, it is in Daddy’s memory.”

 Jackie decided not to argue. This was part of her heritage. Her father’s friendship with Dr. Shah children had offered her help.

 Jackie met Robbie in town in the mid-morning. They went together to the Attorney General’s offices. By mid-day they were through with the Registrar and had been informed that their marriage Certificate would be ready on the 22nd November 2004.

 ”It seems like an awful lot of time, doesn’t?” Robbie commented as they had lunch at a nice café he took her to after completing the procedures at the Registrar’s.

 ”Yes.” Looking across at her, Robbie thought she looked a little shy. They had always been close. But marriage would bring a new level of intimacy into their relationship. He knew she was thinking about that. And about the rest of their lives together.

 He reached out and covered her hand with his. It was long, slender and calloused from work. Her hand had always been strong, and calloused, he recalled. She had always been the girl who didn’t mind getting her nails broken. And he had always loved being able to share so much with his very best friend, the love of his life.

 ”So its all set, you are moving into the cottage, on Friday?” he asked needing to focus on something other than his feelings at the moment.

 ”Yes. It’s the end of the month anyway, so why don’t you move in, too?”

 ”I don’t think so. I still have deposit on my rent. I think I’ll stay until the 22nd.”

 ”Come on, we are practically married. Its-.”

 ”It’s not official, Jackie. Not yet, little girl. I need to know that I’ve done things right by you.”

 ”What’s the big deal, Robbie? No one seems to do things right anymore. Everyone-.”

 ”We are not everyone. We love each other. We have always loved each other. But we haven’t been messing around. Not because I haven’t needed you. And I know you are not immune to the tension either. But remember when we were kids and everyone around us was having sex? I said I had the strength to wait for the woman I would love right. And you said that above all else you wanted to offer your chastity to the man of your dreams on your wedding night. Everyone laughed at us, remember. They laughed at us. And you said you were stronger than peer pressure.”

 ”I remember, Robbie. I always have.”

 ”So have I. I don’t know how suited I am to be the man of your dreams. And I sure can’t offer you a fancy wedding, at least not now. But I intend to keep my promise. The 22nd will be our wedding night. That will be one thing I can do right for us.”

 ***** 

 She looked though the files and documents inside the fireproof case with Robbie’s help.

 Most of the documents were dated between the year Christopher came home from studying medicine in the USA, and the year he moved on to set up his own clinic in the affluent Nairobi neighborhood in the Karen area. Most of them were reflections of Dr. Shah’s clinic’s financial standing, his personal finances and charitable donations to the community.

 Jackie had almost given up on finding anything of use in the late doctor’s records, when she came across a sheaf of papers bound together. She almost threw them aside but stopped when her eye caught sight of her father’s name.

 ”What is this?” She asked in a low-voice, brining the papers close to the kerosene lamp lighting the room. Robbie came up beside her, “What is it?”

 ”Bank statements. My daddy’s bank statements. What would Dr. Shah be doing with them?” she asked curiously.

 Robbie looked over her shoulder and his curiosity was piqued, too, “That’s a whole lot of money.”

 ”Yes. And it was coming in and going out pretty fast, too. “Jackie observed, pointing to the dates of deposit and withdrawal.

 ”Yes. Maybe it had something to do with the clinic.”

 ”Yeah? Why would they use my daddy’s personal account for the clinic’s finances?”

 ”Maybe not. Hey, isn’t that the same bank that loan was taken out of?”

“Yeah. Okay, I need to figure this out. It just keeps getting complicated!” She exclaimed in frustration.

Robbie agreed. They hadn’t come any close to finding the truth. In any case, they were getting even more confused.

Tuesday morning, Jackie visited Larry. He seemed much stronger than when she saw him on Sunday. They chatted for a while about general issues, before she asked him about his case.

“The cops found a beer can in my flat that had traces of ……”he informed.

“So then it wasn’t something you ate out of your place?” She asked, trying to think how Larry’s poisoning could fit in the whole picture.

“No. They are questioning everyone who has access to my flat. Even Tracy was questioned.”

“Have you any idea why anyone would try to kill you, Larry?”

Larry was silent for nearly a minute. Then he indicated to her to help him raise the bed to a sitting position. When he was comfortable, she settled down waiting for his answer.

He seemed to struggle with himself for a while, then he sighed as if in surrender, “I didn’t want to involve you in this, cousin. But I guess I have to tell you.” he swallowed hard then reached out to take her hand, “My father wasn’t the only one who grabbed your father’s property. My father took the property most of the family knew about. A few days before Angelie died, she called me and told me about some stocks and shares that had moved from your father’s name into someone else’s less than a week after your father died. The change of ownership seemed shady to her. She was sure your father had not initiated it?”

“Angelie told you that?”

“Yes. Apparently she learnt about this when looking into some of her father’s documents.”

“So then Angelie’s father is involved?”

“He’s not the only one. I started looking into it after Angelie was found dead. I didn’t want to tell you. I thought it was too dangerous.”

Jackie couldn’t help thinking about what Larry had told her. Even during her meeting with the Shah family, her mind kept drifting to the information he had fed her.

According to Larry, Angelie had called him the day before she was found dead. She had told him about what she had found in her father’s records. Apparently, she had provided him with proof of her claims; share certificates, bank statements and correspondence.

Larry said that he had looked into the information Angelie had provided. He had confirmed the transfers as well as the influx of income into Gerald Shinali’s accounts.

 However, there was correspondence between Gerald Shinali and Christopher Otieno regarding the shares and stocks dated in the months before Christopher fell ill and died. It all seemed legitimate, Larry said, except for the claims Angelie allegedly made; that her father had admitted to her that the correspondence had been faked and that the transfers had been made shadily.

 If what Larry was saying was at all true, Jackie thought, then Angelie might have been murdered to stop her from telling the truth. Larry believed that his own family had done the murdering and had attempted to kill him, too. He had warned her to be careful around the Shinalis and their accomplices, Robert Kajwang and Stephen Opondo. He claimed that what they had taken was more than double what his father had publicly grabbed.

 She wasn’t sure whether to believe him or not. Larry could be telling the truth. In which case, everything she had suspected him of, would not be possible. But he could also be lying or twisting truths, in which case everything or at least part of what she suspected he had done or was doing, would be very possible.

 ”What do you think, Jackie?”

 She had only partially heard what Fhaizal had asked her. For a second, she fumbled for words, but Sanjiv came to her rescue.

 ”I think Jackie can handle it. In any case, I will personally supervise her for the first few days of the project.”

 Jackie nodded, feeling slightly stupid. The Shahs spared her and the meeting broke up. She excused herself as the family moved to the garden for coffee and Indian delights that she was sure she couldn’t appreciate in her current state of mind.

 Sanjiv followed her to the front room. “Sit down for a moment, Jackie.” He pointed her to a chair and asked a house girl to serve them coffee.

 ”I’m not sure I can handle anything. Just excuse me.” She quickly excused herself.

 ”Are you sure?” he enquired, obviously concerned.

 She nodded, “I’m fine, thank you.”

 ”You’ve been saying that, Jackie. But I think that you are not as fine as you try to make out to be.”

 She smiled. Sanjiv was as astute as his father had been. Jackie guessed that he was as persistent, too.

 ”How are you doing, little girl?”

 She laughed softly, “Your Daddy used to call me that.”

 ”He used to consider himself some sort of godfather for you. He adored you, Jackie.”

 ”I loved him. I can’t believe he’s gone. Just like that. I would have thought -”she cut herself off quickly, recalling that she was talking to the late Dr. Shah’s son.

 ”That he would be more careful. I’ve thought it, too, Jackie. It’s okay to feel a little angry.”

 ”The people I love tend to be careless. It bothers me a little bit.”

 ”We all tend to be careless, Jackie. Some of us die because of it. Others die because it is time.”

 She watched as Sanjiv received his coffee and took a sip. Then as he placed the cup and saucer onto the coffee table, she took her chance. “Do you really believe it was your daddy’s fault he died?”

 Sanjiv was quiet for a moment, and then he looked up, fixing Jackie with a very solemn stare.

 ”I remember when you were a little girl, twelve maybe thirteen. You used to come to Daddy’s surgery with your father, when he was helping out on busy weekends and holidays. You’d always bring your Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys novels. Then you graduated to Agatha Christie. Remember?”

 ”Are you saying that I’m making a mystery out of no mystery? Sanjiv, so maybe there is no mystery in your Daddy’s death. So maybe Angelie killed herself. That still doesn’t explain why my father refused to marry my mother, why he didn’t write a will, or for instance, whey Larry was poisoned.”

 ”So focus on that, Jackie. Don’t get confused trying to connect things that are not really related. And don’t forget you have other responsibilities besides your quest for truth.”

 ”I haven’t.”

 ”Good. So can we talk about those things the family discussed that you didn’t hear?”

 ****** 

 Simon Ngunjiri’s e-mail was a whole lot more expressive this time. Obviously, the doctor was warming up to the memories of the hey-days.

 Hey Jackie,

 You know it’s really great that you are interested in your father’s life. You can’t really know where you are going unless you know where you come from.

 Like I already said, your father was a great guy. He was fun to be with, serious with his work, but a very wonderful friend to know. He was a very smart person. Not just clever in class but also intelligent in planning his life.

 Where the rest of us were partying at the local hangouts, without a care in the world, he was partying with us, while planning for his future. Your father was making investments as early as our first year of medical school.

 Most of us in medical school back then came from the same social class. But your father stood a head above all the rest of us. That is what contributed a lot to his success in his career and finances. He knew how to take what he was born with and build it up to higher heights.

 In 1977, I was still struggling to find my place in the world of medicine. It was the same for a lot of us who graduated in the same year as your father. But that is the year your father left for the USA to pursue a two-year Masters program.

 We envied his ability to take his future in he own hands. I trust and hope that in spite of the loss of your parents you will have the same strength your father had, Jackie.

 When your father returned in 1980, he immediately started work at the Nairobi Hospital and with Dr. Shah. He was recovering from a traumatic romantic relationship in the states. In spite of his shaken emotional status at the time, your father did not hesitate to do good things.

 Not only was he a good doctor, he was also a good friend. I am not the only one he helped to find direction. I can assure you though, that without your father’s help, I would not be where I am today. I believe your father’s unselfishness also blessed him.

 He was reacquainted with your mom in late 1981. I don’t know if you knew, but your father first met your mom in 1975. He was a resident doctor at the Kiambu District. She was visiting her father who was hospitalized for months at the hospital.

 Getting involved with your mom in 1981 was the best thing that happened to your father. In no time, he was recovered from whatever it was that had happened in the U.S.A. The next year, you were born and your father’s joy seemed complete. I always envied your parents, Jackie. They were great together. It was a match made in heaven.

 Believe me, Jackie, you should be proud of your parents. Your father made a mark in the world of medicine and in his community work. Your mother, from what I’m told about you, made a good job raising you. Things don’t always go right in this world, but never forget the things that do go right.

 I hope I have helped you know what you need to know about your father. Please make sure that when you finish writing that biography, I will get an autographed copy of it. Just write if you need any more information.

 All the best.

 Sincerely Yours,

 Simon Ngunjiri.

 ***** 

“Something happened to my father in the States.” Jackie told Robbie, filling him in on the day’s discoveries as usual.

 ”And you think it has what to do with the current events?” he asked. Of late, he had been feeling flustered by Jackie’s thought.

 ”I know you think I’m going in circles. I just feel that everything I’ve learnt is part of a jigsaw puzzle. I just need to know which piece goes where so I can see the big picture.”

 ”It is a really big picture.” Robbie commented softly, extending his hand to reach the bank statements they had discovered the night before, “What about these, Jackie?”

 ”I need to know whether it is possible to tell where the money came from and where it went.” She shrugged, “That way we can know if those statements are at all related to what is going on.”

 ”Banks keep records. But we can’t access them. Not unless there is a police investigation and the police have a warrant. Otherwise it is very confidential.”

 ”There is absolutely no way to get access?”

 ”Well, I know a CID officer. It won’t be in his official capacity but he might know how to get around things.”

 ”How do you get to know so many people, Robbie?

 ”Hmm, let’s see…. I was born with a silver spoon.” He let out a low laugh that Jackie echoed, “So was I. Look where I’m at.”

  Jackie spent Wednesday and Thursday at the Shahs Regen farm sorting things out and preparing the cottage for inhabitance. Friday, Robbie took the day off to help Jackie move into the cottage. Jackie worried about his taking so much time off work.

 In the afternoon, Robbie went to see his CID friend. Jackie had a meeting with Sanjiv and a financier in town. She still got a bad feeling at the mention of the word ‘loan’.

 In the late afternoon, Jackie passed by her farm to make sure the farm help and his new colleague, both who would now be living in the house she had moved out of, were settling and doing their jobs.

 The Shah family had allowed her to use a pick-up truck for both personal and official use. So the driver had instructions to pick the kids up from their schools and drive them to their new home. Sanjiv had also insisted that she get house help, so for once, Jackie was not rushing home to get dinner ready before the kids got home.

 She arrived about twenty minutes before the kids did. Rose Mweni, the nice middle-aged woman Sanjiv had brought to the cottage, already had the tea, milk and biscuits ready for the kids.

 Jackie felt a wave of nostalgia as the sight of the milk and biscuits reminded her of coming home to find her mother waiting in a nice home. She had been carefree. Life had taught her so much in four years.

 The kids loved the new home. It was not theirs to keep, but it would be home for a while and they loved it. Jackie wasn’t sure the excitement would die down, but eventually, Danielle and Brandon fell asleep, and the older kids settled to finish their homework.

 Alex and Jessie had just finished their homework when a knock sounded at the door. Alex went to see who it was, with all the manliness he could muster after seeing the intruder in their other home not so long ago

 ”Robbie.” He assured them after peeking through the window. Alex loved Robbie. Jessie adored him. It was a while before Robbie and Jackie could be alone. Finally though he did send them off to bed.

 ”I thought you’d be staying at your place.” She said softly joining him on the couch.

 ”I am. I’ll have to spend the night here tonight though. But I’ll sleep on the couch.”

 ”I wont argue with you. So why did you have to come all the way to sleep on the couch?”

 ”My friend found something. I couldn’t sleep on it. I think it might be important.”

 ”I’m listening.”

 Robbie paused for a second, then he reached to her and took her hand in his, “Jackie, before I tell you, there’s something I need you to know.” he raised her hand to his lips and placed a tender kiss on her wrist,” I love you and I’ll be here for you no matter what.”

 Jackie swallowed hard, struggled with a burst of tears then took a deep breath, “Okay, how bad will this be?”

 ”Pretty bad, Jackie. Nothing you expect.”

 ”About my father?”

 ”Yes. Come here.” he curled his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, “Jackie, your father may have been involved in organized crime.”

© Juliet Maruru 2009 www.jmaruru.wordpress.com