South Meets South

Chapter 6

Liam snuck up on me when I was near the restaurant. Or at the very least he tried because the gravel gave him away.

"If you try sneak up on someone, rather do so by walking on the grass!" I jokingly said as I turned around to face Liam who was just behind me.

"Dang it, and here I thought I could pull it off! There's always next time!" He joked and walked the last distance towards me.

"How was the morning with the bird?" He asked as we continued the rest of the way.

"Bird? Oh! You mean the ostriches I saw?" I played dumb whilst fully knowing he was referring to Anna.

"Ostriches? No! Bud come on, I'm talking about Anna. Wait, hang on. Ostriches? Where did you see those? I didn't think there were any in the reserve!"

I laughed and shook my head. Liam was like an overgrown kid some moments. "This morning with Anna. They have some ostriches we passed," I said.

"Back to Anna, how was the morning? Enjoyable?" He asked with a smirk. Rolling my eyes, I shrugged with a smirk on my face but I didn't comment.

"Come on, don't be like that!"

Our conversation stopped once we reached the stairs leading to the restaurant's deck, not wanting to discuss my morning in front of the other guests. I saw my father and some of the others sitting around tables, under umbrellas. The number of guests have gone up quite a bit, an indication that the other chalets must have been filled up by buyers and breeders.

We walked over to my father's table where the Brazilian couple who went riding with us the other morning just vacated their seats.

"Ah! You're back! Good. I just had my lunch but I'll wait for you two to finish up before we get our things for the meeting this afternoon," my father said. We sat down and placed our orders with the waiter.

"Anything interesting happen this morning whilst I've been out?" I asked. I picked up my drink the waiter brought over and thanked him.

"I met one of the other breeders. He came up to buy some of the animals. Farms near the border with Botswana. Nice guy," my father said.

Liam nodded, "I met him as well. He brought his young son with him. He's one of the big breeders for the breed. He'll be talking with us a bit this afternoon at the meeting alongside the breed director."

I nodded and looked over the other guests. Gregory was talking to a countryman of Liam's as well as a man I have yet to meet. Others were eating their lunch and enjoying the weather outside.

We enjoyed the rest of our lunch before we set out to our chalets to get everything we needed for the meeting. Liam breaking away to go to his chalet whilst my father and I went to ours.

"They are sending some vehicles to pick us up, others will be catching a lift with others. The meeting is taking place where the auction is going to take place," my father said as we walked into our chalet. I nodded and picked up my backpack, checking that I had everything I could possibly need.

"Listen, James. I know you need the time away from everything that's going on back home. But, I'm here if you need to talk or if you need some advice," my father said. I only nodded to show I heard him. After which he placed his hand on my shoulder and went into his room to fetch his hat and other things.

I looked at the cell phone in my hand. Seven missed calls from back home, one of which is from my mother, one from my brother and the rest were from the law firm which was handling the case. I sent texts to both my mother and my brother before calling the firm to hear what was going on with the case.

When we arrived at the auction site, we were welcomed by Mr. Vermeulen and some one of their workers. They showed us into a building where the auction ring and stands were.

An older man we have yet to meet was standing inside the auction ring with Anna next to him, holding some papers in her hands. She must have cleaned up after this morning after she had dropped me off. We made eye contact and she smiled at me before turning back to the older man.

"That must be the breed director," my father said as he noticed where I was looking. We made our way towards the stands and took our seats. I could faintly make out the auctioneers group talking outside to their workers who were busy setting up the last of the camps for the auction.

People around us were talking comfortably to each other whilst I fetched some water bottles out of a cooler near us. I kept an eye on Anna who was asking a kid to distribute the papers she held in her hands. The kid nodded his head eagerly and started giving out the papers. By the time he reached us, I was already waiting for him.

"Thanks kid," I said to him. The smile on his face broadened and his green eyes shined.

"Pleasure Oom!"

I tilted my head to the side and watched the kid go with a smile on my face. Such pure innocence.

A few minutes later, Mr. Vermeulen made the introductions and then asked one of the other breeders who was present to open the meeting with prayer. After which the meeting started.

An hour and a half later, we left the building with questions and quite a few answers. Questions on how to improve, breeding and numerous other topics. The general consensus was that there was always room for improvement and if you didn't keep on improving, sooner or later you will be left behind.

"I find it somewhat refreshing that someone can give such blunt and honest answers and information," my father said once we made it back to our chalet. We placed our bags on the chairs and I made us some coffee.

"It is quite different than those who always just want to tell you what you want to hear," I nodded. The meeting might have been a wake-up call to many but it was positive. We had gotten a history lesson on the breed from someone who has been involved with the breed from the start in the form of the breed director as well as some input on general cattle breeding that we could all implement on some level.

"Indeed. So, what's going on with you and the lovely Miss Anna?" My father took a seat at the island and looked at me where I was leaning against the kitchen cabinet.

"What do you mean?"

"I noticed the two of you looking at each other this afternoon and you haven't said a word about this morning other than it was enjoyable. So?" My father enquired.

I sighed. "I feel a connection with her. And yes I know I will be going back home on another continent soon, but there's this connection with her since that first moment that has me more than just curious. I really want to know her better," I said. I placed my mug onto the cabinet behind me and ran my hands over my face.

"I think I am going to hit the shower before we head to dinner tonight. Tomorrow will be a busy day and the day after will most likely be filled with paperwork," I said. My father nodded.

"Sure, go on ahead. I'm going to Skype your mother. She's awake now. If you hurry you might get the chance to talk to her," he said.

Sometime later I found myself dressed in clean jeans and a t-shirt standing on the deck, staring out into the darkening reserve. The sun was moving lower behind the mountains and the last red glow of the sun was casting it's light on the majestic mountains.

"Lord, please guide me because I am lost without Your guidance..."