Elephant Dropping (9781301895199) by Bruce Trzebinski Page B

at him.
    Brian hastily
left the office followed by Mugo. ‘Excuse me,’ he began, addressing
the woman on the floor.
    Mugo
interrupted him. ‘No talking to the prisoners,’ he pointed towards
the exit. ‘Tomorrow, nine o’clock Mr Nicholls don’t be late.’ Mugo
spoke harshly to the girl in Kiswahili. She quickly got to her feet
and without a backward glance walked to the reception counter.
Brian hurried out after her but she was already striding across the
car park. He made his way to the car relieved and furious at the
same time; at least the girl was free - was she aware that he had
just paid her fine? He got in beside Evans.
    ‘Not good
news,’ he angrily explained what Mugo had said as Evans listened.
‘This whole thing is ridiculous! And I have to come back here
tomorrow.’
    ‘Sorry Sir
these cops, they only want money.’
    ‘Money, huh,’
Brian snorted, ‘I just gave them five thousand to release a girl
they were bullying.’ He pointed at a figure walking down the road
ahead of them. ‘Can you follow - I would like to talk to her.’
Evans reluctantly drove up alongside the girl, uncomfortable with
this new twist. It had started with the trainers and now his boss
was paying off policemen and picking up tarts in broad daylight.
Whatever next!
    ‘Excuse me,’
Brian called out, ‘are you alright?’ The girl stopped and squinted
at him with her swollen eye. ‘I paid your fine,’ he explained.
    She brightened.
‘Yesy I’m ok.’
    Evans looked
nervously around him wishing he was someplace else. ‘Can we give
you a lift somewhere?’ Brian offered, reaching behind him and
opening the passenger door. My name is Brian,’ he said as she
eagerly climbed in.
    ‘Lucy,’ she
leaned forward displaying her breasts. Evans already aghast was now
seriously unhappy.
    ‘Can we drop
you in town?’ Brian asked as the car set off.
    ‘Yesis that be
good.’ Lucy said.
    ‘Those police
are horrible,’ he sympathised, ‘that sort of thing would never
happen in England. I hope your eye is not painful?’
    She leaned
forward and audibly breathed in Brian’s ear. ‘I fucky you for free,
you nice man.’
    Brian was
stunned. ‘No, my dear, that won’t be necessary.’
    Evans driving,
shot a backward glance at the girl and then spoke sharply to her in
Kiswahili. She leaned back in the seat and snarled a retort. Evans
bristled behind the wheel and pulled over abruptly. ‘Sir,’ he
appealed to Brian, ‘we drop her here, she not good woman, malaya a prostitute.’
    Brian sighed.
‘Evans, I was only trying to be helpful. If you could have seen
what those cops did. It was atrocious.’ Lucy sat in the back not
moving, glaring at the back of Evans’s head.
    ‘Yes sir.’
Evans turned to the girl. ‘Toka! Out, get out of my car.’
    She started to
sob. ‘No moneys,’ she wailed, not moving.
    Evan Brian
could see this was an act, but felt responsible, guilty even, for
being a witness to the police abuse. He took out a five hundred
shilling note from his pocket. She quickly snatched it and gave
Evans a contemptuous look, as she opened the door.
    ‘Anytime,’ she
pouted saucily at Brian, ‘for you nice man, for free,’ and strode
off down the road, hips swinging in tight jeans.
    ‘Sorry about
that,’ Brian apologised.
    ‘No problem,’
Evans relieved to get rid of her.
    ‘And where
shall I drop you Sir, the apartment?’
    ‘No, the bank
of course, we have work to do.’
    ‘But the
police, Sir, said you are not to work.’
    ‘You can’t be
serious!’ Brian exclaimed.
    ‘Sir, if they
find you working in the bank, we can be fined heavily. I could lose
my job,’ Evans said in earnest.
    Brian shook his
head. ‘This whole thing is farcical. Ok, take me to the apartment.’
Evans drove to the hotel.
    ‘Thank you for
your help.’ Brian said. ‘Listen I will call Mr. Njenga and explain
the situation. It’s not your fault, and I will let you know what he
advises.’
    *
    Lucy hailed a
passing tuk-tuk and