Smokey Breezes
Chapter 4
By Joseph Adoyo

Julius regarded Batwe for a few moments. Should he pretend he knew nothing about the man? No, Batwe would know he was lying; his boss would have fully briefed him on that. Should he challenge Batwe, come on tough? No that wouldn't work either. He looked past the stocky Congolese and could see the driver and another man hazily through the smoked glass windows.

Batwe looked back at him, one eyebrow partly raised in a questioning manner. Julius decided what his course would be and thrust out his hand toward Batwe, who never moved, "I am pleased to meet first hand my grandfather's arresting officer--" he paused, hand outstretched. Batwe still did not respond.
"Get in the car please." Batwe half turned, his muscles rippling under his shirt as he swept his right hand towards the car.
Julius didn't move; he tried to read signs in Batwe's voice and body language. He saw nothing.
The rear door of the car opened and a man at least 6'6" stepped out. Batwe raised his hand in the way a traffic policeman would if directing traffic. The man stopped, and Julius took another gamble.
"You're not considering forced submission on my part Mr. Batwe, are you? That would be foolish in view of the fact that my legal partners are here and able to observe us right now." He gestured towards the overhead camera cluster.
Batwe waved his hand and big man returned to his seat.

Julius turned towards the big Masai security guard seated at the reception desk. His name was Geoffrey.
"He doesn't look like a Geoffrey," Julius had thought to himself when introduced to the guard earlier in the day.
"Geoffrey, I wonder, could you call Sir Henry, tell him I am leaving now and option 2 has been exercised by level one. Got that - write it down - then read it back to me."
"Yes sir," the guard wrote on his pad and then it out loud. After changing a couple of words, Julius was happy and turned back to Batwe.
"Shall we go?"
He had just given the security guard a message telling Sir Henry that the level two phone call he'd made was responded to by the number 1 person responsible for his grandfather's arrest. He'd also told Geoffrey that he wanted his departure recorded by camera 1. That would capture Batwe as well as the vehicle they would leave in.
"After you."

Julius walked to the waiting car and stopped by the rear door. Inside, the big man who had just got back in, the same one Julius had caught a glimpse of earlier, was pouring a clear liquid onto a folded handkerchief. Julius couldn't see that through the heavy tinting of the windows. He may have changed his mind if he had. Batwe opened the door for him and gestured at the rear bench seat, "Please, join my associate in the back."
"Thank you," Julius said, his face partly turned toward Batwe, smiling, door in hand. He slid into the seat and was about to add something to his previous comment when the second man suddenly grabbed him and thrust the pad against his nose.
The interior of the car began to dim and slowly rotate in Julius' vision and he just managed a slow gasp of one word, "chl--oro--form......", before darkness closed in on him and he slumped forward. The man with the hankie caught him and gently turned him before laying him back against the upright seat back.
Batwe smiled; a whimsical smile. He looked at the young man slumped back into the seat. "I'm sorry young man, but this is too big for you, and you might have undone a lot of hard work."
Julius didn't respond, under the influence of the chloroform he wouldn't notice a bomb go off.
Meanwhile, Joseph was sitting in a large room with half a dozen men he didn't know and wondering who was going to help him out of the situation he now found himself. He was certain this was a false arrest, a trumped up charge, or a case of mistaken identity.
He slowly turned as he regarded the others one by one. No-one spoke.
It was now seven hours since he had been brought in and although he had been fed and allowed to use the toilet, there had been no further appearance made by his captors. He hoped everything was ok at home and that someone was with Patricia, his wife. He knew she'd worry and get herself into a state.

He had not been told anything and was not aware that Julius had become involved. In fact he was going to a shock when the slumbering young man was carried in to join him. Joseph had tried to engage different ones in conversation, and had given up. He didn't know whether they were arrestees like him, policemen, or gangsters. If he moved more than a couple of steps in any direction, one of them would move towards him. What he couldn't see were the three men observing him constantly through two-way mirrors along one wall.
"He's cool, I'll give him that." commented one of them as he made a few notes on a clipboard he was holding.
A second man, seated off to his left, looked up at the clock as he replied, "Seven hours and he hasn't lost it, that's almost a record. Usually poor Tom gets beaten up in a frenzied attack long before that. Do you think he's the one?"
The first observer scratched his chin. "I don't know, there are still some questions, and then there's his grandson."

"They're bringing him in as we speak."
"Really? How did the guys manage to persuade him to come in?"
“Well, they didn’t persuade him to come in, he thinks he’s going to see the Minister for Internal Affairs, unfortunately he breathed in some stuff that put him to sleep, and now he’s coming here.”
“The guys chloroformed a solicitor in execution of his duty?”
“Well, yes, but how else can we get this sorted out once and for all?”

At that moment to door opened and two men with another in between them came in view. The young man in the middle was not able to support himself and dragged his feet. They stopped and dropped him on the floor in front of James.
“Someone you know Mutaye, look after him.”
James looked down at the young man lying at his feet and gasped as he recognized Julius, his grandson. “Julius! – How, I mean .. what?...” He was at a loss of words as he looked at the face of the young son his daughter had brought into the world. “Why is he here? What made you arrest Julius, he knows nothing about….” He stopped.
“About what Mutaye? Were you going to say that he knows nothing about the espionage you’ve been involved in?”
“I have nothing to say.”
“Your wife Patricia is very worried, she’s called several times.”
“You leave my wife out of this!”
“Out of what Mutaye?”
“Out of whatever it is you’ve trumped up about me, it’s all false, lies, false arrest. I will make someone pay for this, and if you’ve upset my wife, I’ll be pursuing that to the highest level.”

“You don’t know anyone at the highest level, to you old man, we ARE the highest level.”
“Who are you anyway!?”
“I, James, am the man who arrested you,” Batwe stepped out of the shadows in the doorway.
“YOU! You come to my house, scare my wife, grab me on some fake charge…”
“Who says it is fake?”
“I say it’s fake – I never heard of that woman – Angel whatever- and I was with a relative up the lake shore on the day you say she was murdered!”
“Enough!”
A different voice joined the sounds within the room, “Batwe, you stay, the rest of you, go.”
The men surrounding James left and there was silence for several seconds.

James looked about but could see no-one.
“Who are you, show yourself you coward!”
“I am not a coward Mutaye, I am in a different room, I will be there in a couple of minutes, Batwe, help the young man up onto that settee there and get him to try and take a drink. James Mutaye, I am sorry this has had to happen, give me two minutes and I’ll be there.”
James grunted.”Well, okay, - well come on Batwe, get my grandson off the floor”
Henri Batwe reached down and grasped Julius’ armpits and raised him up onto the settee. He went over to a water cooler and filled a plastic cup and returned as Julius was beginning to take notice of the surroundings. He squinted as the room was almost completely dark, except for the figure standing handcuffed within a circle of light, his grandfather.

“Grandfather!” his voice came in a rasp, a side effect of chloroform. Batwe was beside him with the cup of water, “Here, drink this, it’ll make you feel better.”
“YOU, you bast……”
“Wait before you hurl abuse at me please!” Batwe gripped his arm, “Drink this and go and see your grandfather, here are the keys, unlock the handcuffs, someone is coming here who can explain everything.”
“It had better be good!” Julius drunk down the water and headed for James.

“Oh Julius, Julius, I am so sorry you have been involved.”
“Grandad, Granma called me, she told me about the arrest--- and you—“ he swung around towards Batwe, “You didn’t even read him his rights, you said anything he said would be ignored.”
“It was and still will be, including the abuse hurled at me by both of you, just as well don’t you think?”
“That’s not the way to affect an arrest, and I was abducted, that’s also a criminal offence.”
“So, call the police then…”

“Julius, my boy, it’s no use, I’ve tried talking to these imbiciles for seven hours, so don’t waste your breathe.”
“No Grandad, this just isn’t right and I know enough about the law to get these criminals out of their jobs and behind bars, now Mr Batwe, please release my client and me, we wish to leave.”
“You have already released your Grandfather – and there’s the door – go, if you can. However, it’s a big and dangerous world outside, I think you should stay here, don’t you?”

The door opened again and another man entered the circle of light. He was a tall man, with very noble features, his hair was platted and made a strange contrast to his immaculate suit. He placed his hand on Julius’ shoulder. “Young man, your intelligence and maturity as well as your analytical skills, do you great credit. I am sorry my men had to take unorthodox methods to get you here to join your grandfather, but we knew you have declined any other normal requests.”
“Too right! I’m not happy with the methods you have used and the ham-fisted way you have treated us, I demand to know what is going on here, right now.”
“That is not on the agenda at this time, but you may go if you wish, but if you do – you will hear no more and any complaint you raise will be treated with contempt. Now if you wish to leave under these circumstances, then please do.”

“Just who are you?!”
“I am unable to say.”
“That’s not quite the answer I needed to that question, and it isn’t acceptable.”
“Then you can file a complaint, but nothing changes, NOTHING!”
“My client has done nothing to warrant the arrest, you have no right to hold him, nor me, I demand an immediate release, for both of us.”
“Mr Odinga, you are obviously going to be a good lawyer someday, and you know the drill, I am sure of that. However, you do not know what your are involved in.”
“Then tell me, maybe I’ll not file a jurisdictional violation against you!”
“You will know, when you need to know!”
“I need to know RIGHT now, under article…”
“Don’t quote legal articles at me – we override all the crap you’ve been learning. Listen to me, we have a really big issue here and we will not have our valuable operation jeopardized in any way.”
“So we can walk out of that door, if we want to, you are not holding us?”

“I have said so, we will not stop you leaving, but I have again to emphasise that you will not get any satisfaction out there and it is very likely you will both be arrested again, on charges that will stick. Your fancy training will not help you nor will Sir Henry. If you want to take that chance, then go, GO!” He shouted the last word at Julius.
Julius’ eyes narrowed. He didn’t like what was happening, he didn’t like threats. He looked around the room, but only Batwe was in the light. He knew him and so it wasn’t any help that his face was the only one he could see.
“Listen, I know Henry Batwe, here in front of me, I know that he is part of the Kenyan secret service – that’s no secret anymore because Sir Henry knows that too, and I know he works for John Price, who Sir Henry plays golf with on Saturdays. I am getting tired of this!”
“So what little boy, you know a few names, you and your grandfather can take them to your graves with you, no-one will give a toss!”
“What! You expect our office to do nothing, I don’t believe you, with all your fancy footwork, can be so naive! Look, I had the security guard call Sir Henry and tell him Henri Batwe came to get me and to roll the camera to record my departure.”

“So what? Sir Henry plays golf with John, Batwe only came to fetch you, after you told Sir Henry you were coming here, and the camera will show you getting into the car quite voluntarily. What do you expect anyone to imagine from that?”
“The important factor is this, Batwe arrested my grandfather on a fake charge. Sir Henry knows that and he knows Batwe was sent to collect me. He’s a brilliant legal man, this will give him much to think about, especially when I don’t get back to him in time.”

Julius decided it was pointless continuing the conversation. He placed his arm around James and squeezed a little. In all this, James had made no comment. He was angry that he had been arrested, angry that Julius had been involved and arrested too, and angry that something he had done 30 years ago was now causing them so much distress. He knew what they wanted and he just didn’t know how to tell Julius.

FA©T ©Steve Goodings 2010