Lion of Soweto

Chapter 40

Molefi returns to his desk to initiate a ruthless sleuth into the background of a lady on account of whom his boss shoed him off like a rat. If at all he'd doubted Bandele's resolve to settle down, he now knows that the businessman is serious.

But the boss ought to know that some ladies are new in town. This castle isn't Department of Home-Affairs where people have to register on arrival. Besides, the lady in question doesn't live on Polemann Street, Bandele's stronghold. They'll need to snoop around to gather information about her and then verify.

While Bandele lay alone upstairs, sleep eludes Molefi downstairs. He keeps imagining what might be going through the boss's mind. Since he picked up this job, not once has he disappointed the man like today. Perhaps he'll get a query in the morning. But who'll write the query letter?

Well, the eccentric man may ask him to write his own query letter and sign it. What will Bandele not do? Fear of being fired sap quality sleep from Molefi.

"The boss is angry with us!" He tells Pono over the phone. The unusual midnight call makes the lads agree on the urgency of the matter at hand. They must double their efforts on this new target.

As early as 5 am, Saturday morning, Pono and his lieutenants make Princewill Street their base. They stalk around like NYPD agents seeking a terror suspect. These lads leave no stone unturned digging into Sheline's activities. In twenty-four hours her details lay on the CPL form.

LADIES CANDIDACY PROFILE (CPL FORM)

Name: Sheline Malvin

Language: English, Shona

Origin: Zimbabwe

Age: 20

Telephone: Unavailable

Marital Status: Married (4 Months)

Spouse Details: Unavailable

Status: Student (UJ)

Physical Details: 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Tall and Beautiful

Statistics: 36–26–39

Salon Visits: Rarely. Natural Hair. Afro.

Difficulty Level: 50%

Likelihood for Sleepover: 5%

Ratings: Intelligent and Humble

Religion: Christian. Presbyterian Church, Sunday: 9:00 a.m. till 12:00 p.m.

Outdoor Activity: Rare.

Educational: Attends UJ, Mon-Fri. 8:30 a.m. till 4:30 p.m.

Social: No clubbing. No bar. No restaurant. No smoking. No Drinking.

Other Activities: Evening Walks. Stay with Aunt. No car.

Remarks: New in South Africa. Yet to explore Mzansi. No friends. No foes. No Baggage.

Summary: Church Girl. Awaiting Jesus Christ.

Molefi prints the form and dashes upstairs, his legs wobbling on the treads, having earlier tried but failed to see Bandele. The snub made him ginger his boys to intensify work, the result of which he's about to present, hoping his sloppiness will be discounted.

Molefi knocks on the door several times but it stays locked. "We now have her details, sir," he announces, his mouth towards the keyhole." It occurs to him to slip the paper under the door, but he restrains himself from doing so – that might aggravate his offence.

Akida flings the door open. "The boss is busy with his property managers. Come back."

Akida closes the door before Molefi says anything further, a sign of the boss's lingering angst. No problem, he'll wait at the lobbyroom until Bandele wraps up his phone conference. But how does the man communicate with his Caucasian property managers? Well, that's not his business.