Ma Gugu was uneasy. She had expected to see a poor abandoned girl but not one with a sick white man. They were sitting around the large wooden kitchen table in the servants’ quarters while Stephen took the man to one of the rooms. Earlier, Mbali, a younger maid, had already served a stew to their visitors and had also given the man a change of old clothes and a pair of worn-out sandals to replace the dusty ones he was wearing. If someone had noticed his strange clothes, no one talked about it. But that wasn’t what made Ma Gugu uneasy. It was something else she could not define. The man was too handsome to be just anybody was her first thought. She had never seen a man with such perfect features be he black, white, colored or Indian. Then there were a few strange facts. The man had not said a word since his arrival and did not seem to understand English, not even a simple yes or no. He was also always staring at everything with a curious expression. And finally, there was that sad resignation look in his eyes of someone having accepted a cruel fate.
Ma Gugu and Mbali listened to Lindiwe's explanations about how she found the stranger, omitting the part with the column of air and their encounter with the skollies. They were speaking Zulu.
– “I hope he’s not a thief or a criminal.” said Ma Gugu.
– “Oh no, Ma. I know he’s a good man. I can feel it.” said Lindiwe.
Ma Gugu seemed to reflect upon that and nodded to herself, “Lindiwe my child. Tomorrow morning, I shall take you to the Janssenses. You will be working for them and will have your own room. They are good people. Everything have been arranged. Mbali will show you your room for tonight.”
Lindiwe stood up, took Ma Gugu’s hands and thanked her in earnest when Stephen walked in.
– “Mbali, I hope you don’t mind, I just gave your old books to the white man.”
Ma Gugu turned to the old man, a questionning look on her face.
Stephen chewed on his pipe and shrugged. “The man found that book with the tapes, you know, the one you use to teach English to new domestics. So he made signs at me and I reckon he wanted me to show him how to use it, right? So I did. Then he made more signs at me and this time, I reckon he was asking me if I have more books. So I said I didn’t but then I remembered that Mbali stored hers in the shed. So I went out and brought him back the whole case.”
– “What kind of books are they?” said Ma Gugu.
Stephen sucked on his pipe. “I don’t know, Ma. You know I can’t read too good.”
– “Not you, fool. I was asking Mbali.”
– “Oh, just language stuff mostly.” said the young maid, “English grammar, Afrikaans and Zulu phrase books, dictionaries. Stuff that Miss Lizzie gave me a long time ago.”
Ma Gugu looked back at Stephen. “What did he want with the books if he doesn’t speak English?”
Stephen shrugged.
Ma Gugu stood up. “Anyway, I'd better let Miss Lizzie know that we have an uninvited guest.”
