Stephen cut the Land Rover’s engine and helped Charlize’s out who was still weeping and not fully realizing Jakobus’ death. Kwanele, supporting her hand and elbow, walked her up the steps to the front door when he noticed the dent on the lock rail. Before he could utter a word, the massive door flung open and two men armed with machetes dragged them inside the house.
Charlize let out a cry, “Hey, who are you? What are you doing?”
Stephen tried to fight back and got hit behind the head with a machete’s handle. He crumpled down on the floor instantly.
Charlize was still struggling with the man when her eyes fell on the tableau before her and froze.
Besides her attackers, four other men were inside the house. One of them was stretched comfortably in the Louis XIV chair, his feet on the lucite coffee table while the others stood at guard around. On the main Victorian sofa sat Mbali, Ma Gugu, Maggie and Amina, all looking at her with hopeful stares. Ahead, by the French console table, lay Hennie on his stomach, his hands tied behind him. Kwanele was lying on the floor on her left below the fixed arch window, his hands too tied behind his back.
Charlize straightened herself up and walked to the man in the Louis XIV chair.
– “What is this? Who are you? If it’s money that you want then you have my words I’ll give you everything that I have in this house but leave these people alone. Let them go.”
Tsotsi smiled.
– “Yeah, you’re right Mevrou. I want your money—”
– “Then let them go and I’ll give you all the I cash I have.”
– “Mevrou, you didn’t let me finish. I said I want your money but I also want something else.”
Charlize looked down at him, outraged.
– “What else do you want?”
Tsotsi remained in the same position, his feet still up.
– “I want you to sell your farm at a price—let’s say, a price that someone like me from Soweto could afford.”
Charlize could no longer control her anger. “Oh, my God. This is what it is about? That’s why you killed Jakobus? That’s why you broke into my house and terrified and beat innocent people?”
Tsotsi remained silent.
– “Now, you listen to me. What makes you think that—”
– “Lizzie!” It was Amina who called out. Charlize stopped and turned to her.
– “Lizzie, I saw what these men are capable of. Please, he will kill us all. Lizzie, for the love of God, do what he say.” Amina said.
Charlize looked at Amina completely stunned.
Tsotsi laughed. “Ah, Mevrou. Listen to your pretty Indian girlfriend. She’s the reasonable one.”
– “Amina, I appreciate your import but let me deal with—”
– “Lizzie, can I talk to you a minute? Just one minute, please. For the sake of us all.”
Charlize had still that look of surprise on her face when Hennie spoke up.
– “Liz, I beg you to listen to Amina, please. Just listen to her.”
Charlize looked around her. She could not understand why Amina and Hennie seemed eager to help those criminals and murderers. Tsotsi was nodding his head with satisfaction.
– “All right, Amina. One minute.”
Charlize walked over to Amina who whispered in her ear. Tsotsi watched curiously as Charlize kept nodding her head.
When Amina was finished, Charlize returned to where she was and looked straight at Tsotsi in the eyes.
– “So, did your pretty Indian girlfriend convince you that I’m not one to take on lightly and that I will do whatever is necessary to get what I wanted?”
– “She did—and I want to play you for it.”
Tsotsi uncrossed his feet. “Play me for what? What do you mean?”
– “Heads or tails. A toss of a coin. If I lose, I’ll sell you the farm at whatever price you tell me.”
Tsotsi looked at her, uneasy. “And if you win?”
– “If I win, I’ll sign the farm’s deed over to you with no compensation but on one condition. You’ll promise that you’ll let all of us go unharmed.”
Tsotsi burst into laughters. “Mevrou, what makes you think I won’t kill you all either way? What makes you think I can’t force you to do what I want without playing at that silly game of yours?”
– “Because as a gang’s leader, I think you would be man enough to play a transaction in front of your men.”
Tsotsi jumped out from his chair and pointed his finger at Charlize.
– “Careful Mevrou, if I were you I wouldn’t push my luck too far.”
– “Heads or tails. You chose the side. You toss the coin. What do you got to lose? A promise that you may or may not keep, that’s up to you. But at least, you would have showed your men that you have accepted a challenge from a white woman.”
– “Alright, Mevrou. I’ll play you at your silly game. Zhakele, give me a damn coin!”
– “No need. There’s one right there on the coffee table.” Charlize said, hoping with all heart that Amina was right. What she told her was utterly impossible but that was their only option. What was the harm in trying? They were at the complete mercy of sadistic killers.
Tsotsi looked down at the coin with surprise. “What is this? You have a biased coin?”
Charlize forced herself to show a laugh. “Please, I’m sure every kids in Soweto knows that you can load a die but you can’t bias a coin.”
Tsotsi looked at his men who nodded.
– “Haw, fuck it. Heads!” he called, and picked up the one cent coin, flipped it in the air and cupped it on its way down with his hand. He stared at Charlize defiantly for a long moment before placing his hand under her chin and slowly opening his fingers one at a time. The one cent coin showed heads.
A grin of satisfaction spread on his face and he snarled, “It’s heads, Mevrou. What do you say about that?”
– “Oh, I can answer that for her easily.” It was Hennie who had just spoken, a big smile on his face despite his uncomfortable position and injuries.
Tsotsi turned his head abruptly. “Who asks for your blery opinion?”
He turned back to Charlize.
– “Mevrou, now that you’ve just lost at your own silly game what do you say you and me, we go upstairs and take care of that deed and while we’re up there, I’ll also show you that I’m really a man, what do you say?”
Charlize looked at Amina with frightened eyes.
– “Lizzie, I know I’m right. I have to. It has to be.” Amina was weeping.
– “Liz, I cannot tell you why but I’m with Amina. I’m sure we’re right!” shouted Hennie from his position.
Tsotsi grabbed Charlize by her arm and pulled her in. “What the fuck are they talking about? What the hell is going here?”
He turned to his men. “Zhakele, make him shut up!’
Zhakele made a movement but stopped dead in an absurd position, his eyes wide in shock. His left leg was stretched out behind him and positioned in such a way that he had almost lost his balance. His arms were stretching out like a funambulist walking a tightrope.
Tsotsi stared at his man. “Zhakele, what the fuck are you doing?”
Zhakele seemed lost, helpless. An horror look in his eyes now. He made another movement and his right leg crossed over to his left side. He bent his torso side to side, back and forth, arms balancing furiously as if he was on a very thin wire.
– “Tsotsi… help man… Tsotsi… What… What happened to me?”
– “What are you talking about? And why are standing in that stupid position?”
– “Tsotsi… I don’t know… When I tried to move my right leg forward… it’s… it’s my left leg that moves backward… I… I don’t understand.”
Zhakele did not know what had just happened to him. His brain did not work right. Whenever he tried to lean to his right and his brain sent the right order, his muscles and his body would lean to the left instead.
Tsotsi shouted at the man standing by Zhakele. “Sidima, help him instead of standing there like an idiot!”
Sidima made a movement and got stuck in the same ridiculous position as Zhakele but in another configuration. The two of them now looked like two tightrope walkers.
Everyone looked at the scene in complete silence. Ma Gugu and Mbali turned to each other with raised eyebrows. Maggie was holding on to Amina tighter. Kwanele and Stephen raised their heads up to take a better look. Only Hennie had a reaction to the situation. He kept saying, “Amina, we were right. My God, how’s that possible? I can’t still believe this. It’s happening right in fron of my eyes and I still can’t belive this.”
Charlize knew from what Amina had told her what Hennie was talking but she too, could not believe what she was seeing.
Sidima was screaming at the other end, “Tsotsi, what the fuck? What happened to me, man? What happened to me?”
Hennie said softly in a sarcastic tone. “Tsotsi, my dear. Do you want to know what happened to your friends? Their brains have been rewired. They have been rewired not to just send opposite commands to the muscles, but a reverse-opposite command. Try to imagine what it would feel like if, whenever you try to to grab something in front of you with your right hand, it is instead your left hand that shoots up behind you.”
One of the men suddenly thrust his left hand out behind him like a robot and let out a cry of horror. “Aaaw, Tsotsi, he’s right! He’s right! I can’t control my arm!”
All his men now wore terrified looks on their faces.
Tsotsi, still holding Charlize by her arm, pulled out his gun but was seized by an extremely violent vertigo that sent him spinning around the room trying to grab on whatever he could. His surroundings were spinning and whirling and at incredible speed while he had the sensation of free falling. He felt nauseated but something inside him kept pushing back his vomit. Tsotsi choked and fell crashing down on the floor, drying-heaving like a man on his final throes.
Charlize picked up the handgun.
– “Amina, untied Hennie and Kwanele. Stephen, are you alright?”
He stood up, rubbed behind his head and nodded.
– “Get Kwanele’s rifle. Hennie, Kwanele, tie these men behind their backs.” she said.
The five men did not resist. Three of them were still standing in their absurd positions as if they were playing Tag. They let Hennie and Kwanele tied their hands, speechless, staring at their leader trying to grab on to some invisible anchors in the air.
Ma Gugu slowly stood up from the sofa. She walked to the intruders and without a warning, slapped Zhakele hard. The man spun around and not being to control his movements, dove head first on the floor.
Charlize put the handgun away and kneeled down. “Maggie, come here sweetie.”
Maggie ran into her arms.
– “Are you alright, honey?”
Maggie nodded.
Charlize looked around. “Everybody’s alright? Would you like me to call Dr. Geldenhuis so he could look at your injuries?” Dr. Geldenhuis was the family’s doctor. All shook their heads with big smiles on their faces.
– “Mbali, call the police will you?”
– “Liz,” said Hennie, “that’s not gonna help. These men are beyond any human justice. They need an asylum. They can no longer function in our society. They are medical cases now. Just look at them.”
The five men were still stuck in their robot positions without power.
– “What about him?” Amina said pointing at Tsotsi.
Hennie shrugged.
– “How’s that—” said Amina.
– “Where’s Clark?” Maggie asked.
– “That’s how.” Hennie said.
Charlize turned to Stephen and Kwanele. “Let’s get these men to the hospital.”
