watched the funeral. Storm was now completely reconciled to her loss
and so thoroughly enjoyed the ceremony that she insisted Sean exhume
the body and start again.
In all the doll was buried four times and Ada's garden looked as though
a swarm of locusts had descended upon it.
Christmas Day started early for Sean. He and Michael supervised the
slaughter of ten large oxen for the Zulu labour force, then distributed
pay and gifts. 'for each man a khaki shirt and short pants, and for
each of their wives a double handful of coloured beads. There was much
singing and laughter. Mbejane, risen from his sickbed for the
occasion, made a speech of high dramatic content. Unable to prance on
his freshly healed legs, yet he shook his spears, postured and roared
his questions at them.
'Has he beaten you?'
'Ai-bho! ' They hurled the negative back at him.
'Has he fed you?'
'Yhe-bho!' explosive accent.
'Is there gold in your pockets?'
Yhe-bho!
'Is he our father?'
'He is our father!'
All to be construed not too literally, Sean grinned. Then he stepped
forward to accept the large earthen pot of millet beer that Mbejane's
senior wife presented to him. It was a matter of honour that this be
emptied without removing it from the lips, a feat which Sean and then
Michael both accomplished. Then they climbed up into the waiting
buggy, Mbejane took the reins and with Dirk on the seat beside him
drove them down to Ladyburg.
After the first flurry of greeting and good wishes, Ruth led Sean into
the back yard followed by everyone else. There stood a large object
covered by a unmulin which Win ceremoniously removed and Sean gaped at
what Ruth had given him.
Its paintwork burnished to a high gloss, metal parts and polished
leather upholstery sparkling in the sun-stood a motor vehicle. U
Stamped in the huge metal wheel hubs, and below the mascot on the
radiator were the words
'Rolls-Royce. ' Sean had seen these fiendishly beautiful machines in
Johannesburg, and now he was overcome by the feeling of unease they had
given him then.
'My dear Ruth, I haven't the words to thank you. ' He kissed her
heartily to delay the moment when he must approach the monster.
'Do you really like it?'
'Like it? It's the most magnificent thing I have ever seen.'
Over her shoulder Sean noticed with relief that Michael had taken over.
As the only engineer present, he was seated behind the wheel and
speaking authoritatively to the crowd about him.
'Get in! ' Ruth ordered
'Let me look at it first. ' With Ruth on his arm, Sean circled the
Rolls, never approaching closer than half a dozen paces. The great
headlights glared at him malevolently and Sean averted his eyes. His
