Morrison ultimately got the people to sit down and to put their hands up and to introduce themselves should they get a chance to voice their opinions. He points at a man in the front row.
“My name is Khayalethu. I know Rene Bosch very well, one of the people who eloped from here, and I can assure you all she is the loveliest woman. I’m sure they wouldn’t have invited us here if it was not safe, but why did they go back to a secret hide-out in Port Elizabeth?”
“That hide-out is, according to them, 100% safe and has only provisions for ten people to stay there for a month. They can only hide there for a month, and as far as we know, they are planning to come back to the farm then. Your safety, as commander, is my responsibility. That is why I am going to rule with an iron fist.”
Other people anxiously wave with new questions and Morrison points at an obese man occupying two chairs. He rises very slowly.
“Oscar Brown. You are not telling us the whole story. We noticed that these people were put under house arrest and had to carry wristbands and they, therefore, were obliged to escape from you and leave here unnoticed.”
“You are correct. We suspected that they hid something, that’s why we kept an eye on them and therefore the wristbands. I had to pressurize Major Hunter to let me in on their secret. People, we simply cannot tolerate conspiracies like these and I am going to make an example of these offenders to curb any future mutiny! From this moment on Hunter and Jane will fulfil their duties meticulously or they will be punished.
“They are going to arrest Ronnie and Lyle and we are all going to accompany them to the detention cell. They will be held in The Box for seven days, which is the small cell made of corrugated iron sheets in the open under the hot Africa sun and will be given only saltwater to drink. That place becomes hot like an oven in the day but at night they will have to sleep on the cold cement floor. Offenders will be locked in there and if they transgress again they will be banned from the farm and must try to survive outside.
“We are all now going to proceed to The Box and from there to the dog cages. Yesterday evening Chloe used the dogs that I had given her to train, to smuggle those eight people out secretly. She is now going to shoot her two old dogs before your eyes. That will teach her to apply the younger dogs to the advancement of the community and it will be a lesson for you all not to take a similar route.”
Suddenly a man jumps up and without permission addresses the community. “People, what the colonel wants to do now, is not wise and it is totally authoritarian. This tent was erected so that we as a community can handle issues but it is not viable if we give the colonel a free hand to do as he wishes. I propose that we elect representatives of all the parties here together so that we can also give our input in the decision-making process or else we will have to live by the rules of a tyrant. Hands up those of you who agree.”
Morrison would have liked to stop him but he was too fast and took him by surprise and the whole community put up their hands in agreement.
The man undercuts Morrison’s control even further by pointing to a lovely, slender, black woman who rises and points with a wave of her hands to all around her. “Colonel, we all agree wholeheartedly with this man …”
Morrison interrupts her: “This man is Doctor Isaac Horn, Chloe’s husband. That is why he jumped up so quickly. People, I must from the outset maintain strict discipline and you are now breaking the order. You even haven’t introduced yourself properly.”
The lady talks quickly and uses Morrison’s argument to cut him down quickly. “Nonkosi van Loggerenberg. I propose a jury. Let’s make it four representatives from the community and four from the army with a secret final ballot that will finally determine the implementation of your proposals against the community’s. Further, I propose that when there are so-called perpetrators they will have the opportunity to relate their side of the story and can be questioned by all jury members to answer to the charges brought by you. We can start off here and build upon this basic idea until we have a fair system.”
With open palms, she asks the rest: “Do you agree.”
Once again all the hands go up in the air eagerly and Morrison shakes his head flabbergasted. “Okay, I will allow it on one condition. If there is a tie, my decision will automatically be adhered to.”
Hurriedly they elect a jury. The military is presented by Haasbroek, Heinrich, Marco, and Alex. The community chooses Doctor Khayalethu and Nonkosi representing the broader community and Isaac Horn and Hayley representing the owners of the farm.
The members of the jury then get the opportunity to quiz the accused one by one and Hunter takes the opportunity to tell them the real reason why the eight had to go to PE. He explains the mission of Prof Johan de Ridder to find an infected but immune carrier who must eventually save the world from the plague and that he only will open the hide-out for those eight people.
Hunter also pleads that Ronnie and Lyle get suspended sentences because he takes all the blame upon himself. He asks them to rather ban him together with Batista and Buddy from the farm and in this way lessen the punishment of Chloe by losing her dear dogs. At least the dogs would then be saved.
The jury must now either with a Y or N on a ballot paper indicate their decisions and shove it in a box. If Y wins, Hunter’s wishes will be accommodated. If N wins or there is a tie, Morrison’s original punishment will be executed.
Now Nonkosi and Haasbroek stand next to the ballot box. Everyone waits anxiously for the first result of their newly appointed community court.
Tension gnaws in Chloe’s stomach while she thinks about her innocent beloved dogs. Hunter told her beforehand that he would make such a proposal and she is thankful Isaac persuaded the community, thanks to Nonkosi, to establish a type of democracy that gave him the opportunity. She, however, has little hope that one of Morrison’s men would secretly dare to vote with the community against him and who says the community will vote for Hunter’s proposal?
She now wonders whether Hunter and the dogs will be safe outside. He told her he is worried about Robert and his sister all alone on the desolate smallholding in the dark woods. He also had warned them to put out their lights when the spiders came down at all the places with artificial lights. Those eccentric people are not easily going to survive when their stocks run out. Although Hunter begged them to come to the farm, they obstinately refused.
Now at least Hunter and her dogs can try to survive with them in the woods. Chloe only wonders whether the smallholding is far away enough from the city and whether they are in danger of being overwhelmed by spiders from the neighbouring smallholdings. It is not even sure if this community on the farm will be safe against spiders from neighbouring farms or even the town.
There is so much uncertainty!
~*~*~
It is seven-o’-clock already when Nico phones Jack. The group is hiding in a secluded part of Settler’s Park around a picnic table surrounded by dense growth. They rather don’t dare to walk around because their faces are all over the media. There even is a ransom of R500 000 on their heads. Kadin looks and anxiously listens when her father answers.
“Hello Nico, what’s news?”
“Morrison deployed hefty SADF forces on both smallholdings and I am sure they are not aware of the forthcoming plague. Francois and I have already decided; we will have to negotiate. That’s the only way forward. We simply can’t wait till tomorrow. Time is too short. Say we stand in front of that 666 wall and the professor doesn’t open up! I am going to drive in while Francois will be watching me through his gun’s telescope and keep radio contact with me. I will hand myself over to the commanding officer and ask to negotiate with Morrison.”
“It is a big gamble, Nico. Much can go wrong.”
“I know, but at least you will have the opportunity to save yourself if I can’t reach Morrison or is unable to convince him. I only hope I will be able to explain our mission to him in time and that he will understand. You’ll never know, maybe I can even convince him to use the Puma, standing here on the smallholding, to come and fetch us in a month and take us to the farm.” Jack smiles. “Let’s hope for that. It will be the best solution for all of us.”
The Free Story Magazine 