Day 9

I was now on the run.

It is a little complicated to explain why. In fiction everything normally fits in so neatly but real life is a little more complicated than that. Things sometimes don’t make sense at all.

I will attempt to explain the various factors and emotions involved.

The nosy African police officer helped tip the scales a little for me. He telephoned and mentioned something about giving false information to the police being a serious criminal offence. He had nothing on me but the same old bullying cop tactics that they use everywhere in the world I guess. I had never really liked cops and even this one gave me the creeps. Not that I was guilty. I had done nothing wrong but stick to the terms of a contract I signed in LA. But the problem was the contract did not allow me to talk about it.

This was not really the way Teresa and I had planned for things to go. It seemed that all our careful planning had come to nothing.

As I disappeared into the African bush, there was no real fear in my heart. I only hoped that I would find Teresa. That was probably the main reason why I was doing this crazy thing in the first place. The harmless police officer was probably just an excuse. Love made you do all sorts of crazy things.

I longed to find Teresa and to somehow talk her out of her intensions.

Yeah, I can’t avoid it anymore. It looks like I have to reveal a few things to you now.

Strictly between you and I, the fact is that although I had no idea where Teresa was at the moment, I knew exactly where I had left her, and it wasn’t at the camp.

Remember how we we hugged each other and all during the game drive? Did it not sound just a little strange to you? Like people saying goodbye to each other?

Well it was. Part of the terms of my contract was that I was not to reveal any of this to any living soul or I would… Sorry I can’t tell you that part right now.

But what I can tell you is that as we went for the game drive, I knew that I would not be going back with Teresa. The idea was for her to slip away quietly into the bush… to die. I’m sorry I can’t tell you anymore than that right now.

It was agreed that she’d do it during the game drive and I was supposed to pretend that she was still in the tourist van. That’s not a very difficult thing to do on a game drive when everybody’s eyes are out there looking out for some wild animal.

The blood in my room was all part of the elaborate plan (it was actually my blood). It was meant to look like she had been dragged away by some lion. We figured that even if they didn’t believe it, there would be enough room for doubt and the matter would just be left hanging there.

I must admit that when she took me through all these details in LA, it had sounded a little unreal and far away. And I guess my feelings for her were not what they were now.

God, I really loved this woman and longed to be with her. I had never made love to her. The day when we went past what I called the point of no return, something happened to break the moment. We were on the final stages of undressing while still kissing like there was no tomorrow when her cell phone rung. I ignored it and thought she would do the same.

She roughly pushed me aside and shot to her feet, burying her head into her hands.

“What am I doing? What am I doing?” she kept on repeating.

She broke into tears and sobbed even as the cell phone continued to ring.

My efforts to calm her down only intensified the sobs. Her bare breasts shook with her body as she sobbed.

The cell phone stopped ringing and then promptly started ringing again.

“Please Teresa tell me why you’re crying so much.” I said holding her face in my hands.

For a moment she looked up at me, her eyes still filled with tears. I will never forget that look. There was pity for me in those eyes, tenderness and bitterness at the terrible hand that life had dealt her.

But there was also something else I saw in those eyes. It was something that I’d seen often in women in my life. But coming from Teresa it was something I will never forget. I so a certain tenderness in her eyes. I saw love. For me.

We remained in that ridiculous position for a long time. Me looking deeply into her eyes, almost naked except for my underwear. She, completely naked, looking into my eyes with tears still rolling down her cheeks in torrents.

After a long time Teresa calmed down a little and went into the adjoining bathroom closing the door behind her. I could hear some water splashing around and then she came out with the huge hotel towel wrapped around her body.

“This must never happen again,” she said in a determined voice. And that was that.

So now as I slipped out of the camp quietly early that morning, I must admit that I had this crazy notion that if I found Teresa, out there in the bush somewhere, everything would be okay. She would abandon her crazy idea and somehow something would be worked out.

A couple of miles from the place where we had seen the lion catch its’ gazelle meal, I remembered noticing some small tiny huts in the distance. I now headed straight there, walking carefully in the bush and off the track, but at the same time being wary of wild animals.

It was very early morning and I figured that meeting a dangerous animal at this time would be quite unlikely.

He must have seen me long before I saw him. He stood majestically under the tree, his spear at his side, and a rather curious look on his eyes. He was a Masai, clad in the usual brightly colored cloth that covered only the front and part of his back. His member was visibly exposed to the elements. I can tell you that like most Masai’s he was well endowed. Cautiously, I walked towards him.

“Speak English?”

“Hapana ero uliza wewe nafanya nini hapa?”

We tried sign language but even that proved extremely difficult. Finally by trial and error I gathered that he wanted me to follow him, which I did. Feeling much more safer in the hands of this strange guide.

We walked for over 4 hours. I stopped him several times so that I could catch my breath and my legs had long started killing me when I finally saw a cluster of small tiny huts in the distance. They were very similar to the ones I had seen on the game drive. They were extremely low and resembled the sort of igloos Eskimos lived in the artic or something- except they were made of dirt. They were so low that you wouldn’t enter then and stand up straight.

Small children gazed at me as we approached. A very young child screamed in horror. He had obviously never seen a white face in his life before. His mother bare chested, hurried away with him. Her breasts bobbed up and down in a funny way as she went.

Low filthy stools were brought out and I was too tired to care as I sat down heavily on the one I was offered. My host exchanged words with another warrior for several minutes and then a young boy was called and given certain instructions. He ran off and disappeared into the bushes.

Sitting quietly there, I was glad we were under a tree as the sun was high in the sky and uncomfortably hot.

It took almost an hour for the boy who had been sent to emerge again, this time with another boy whom I guessed was about 17 years old. He was smartly dressed in black shorts and a white shirt.

“How are you white man.” The boy greeted me.

Thank God. Somebody who can speak English.

“I am fine.”

“My uncle no speak English. He bring me from very far. Want to ask what problem you have?”

“I am looking for a white lady like me. Has anybody seen her wandering in the bush?” I used my hands a lot not trusting the young boy to understand my English very easily.

He translated my words into Masai to my guide. Who shook his head and then asked another question.

“What is white woman doing in bush? She is mad?”

“No. I mean yes. She and I are mad with love for each other.”

The boy looked puzzled. I tried to describe in words and with my hands but to no avail. I was to learn later that I had been wasting my time trying to explain romantic love to the Masai boy. They understood love in a very different way here.

This famous and much-talked about African tribe have a very interesting concept of love, sex and marriage that would horrify any westerner but has survived for centuries.