Facets of Death Read online

  JCK Daily News

  Diamonds remain the most important resource for the government of Botswana, representing one-third of the country’s gross domestic product, said Mokgweetsi Masisi, president of the Republic of Botswana, at the JCK Industry Keynote Breakfast address on May 31, 2019.

  He said when Botswana first discovered diamonds in 1967, the country started what is now a five-decade association with De Beers. Eventually the pair formed Debswana, a 50-50 partnership between De Beers and the government.

  “We met De Beers as equal partners, even though we were unequal to them,” Masisi said. Debswana is “celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and will probably celebrate its 100th anniversary decades from now.”

  The success of the partnership turned Botswana from one of the world’s poorest countries into an “upper-middle-income country,” he said, explaining that the diamond proceeds “were used to develop not just the roads, but our people.”

  The president was compelled to come to JCK Las Vegas because he was “curious,” he said. “Who are these people who buy our diamonds? We wanted to see what they are about. We wanted people to see us. We don’t want to be a secret anymore.”

  Also by Michael Stanley

  Detective Kubu Mysteries

  A Carrion Death

  The Second Death of Goodluck Tinubu

  Death of the Mantis

  Deadly Harvest

  A Death in the Family

  Dying to Live

  Crystal Nguyen Thrillers

  Shoot the Bastards

  Copyright © January 2020 by Michael Stanley

  Cover and internal design © 2020 by Sourcebooks

  Cover design and illustration by Anna Woodbine

  Sourcebooks, Poisoned Pen Press, and the colophon are registered trademarks of Sourcebooks.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without permission in writing from its publisher, Sourcebooks.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Published by Poisoned Pen Press, an imprint of Sourcebooks

  P.O. Box 4410, Naperville, Illinois 60567-4410

  (630) 961-3900

  www.sourcebooks.com

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Description: Naperville, Illinois : Poisoned Pen Press, [2020] | Series: A Detective

  Kubu mystery |

  Identifiers: LCCN 2019024149 | (trade paperback)

  Subjects: LCSH: Botswana--Fiction. | GSAFD: Mystery fiction.

  Classification: LCC PR9369.4.S715 F33 2020 | DDC 823/.92--dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019024149

  Contents

  Front Cover

  JCK Daily News

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Note

  Cast of Characters

  Monday—Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Tuesday—Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Wednesday—Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Thursday—Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Friday—Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Chapter 63

  Chapter 64

  Chapter 65

  Chapter 66

  Chapter 67

  Chapter 68

  Chapter 69

  Chapter 70

  Chapter 71

  Saturday—Chapter 72

  Chapter 73

  Chapter 74

  Chapter 75

  Chapter 76

  Chapter 77

  Chapter 78

  Chapter 79

  Sunday—Chapter 80

  Chapter 81

  Chapter 82

  Monday—Chapter 83

  Chapter 84

  Chapter 85

  Chapter 86

  Tuesday—Chapter 87

  Chapter 88

  Wednesday—Chapter 89

  Chapter 90

  Chapter 91

  Thursday—Chapter 92

  Some Weeks Later—Chapter 93

  Chapter 94

  Chapter 95

  Glossary

  Acknowledgments

  Meeting the Young Kubu

  About the Authors

  Back Cover

  Note

  The peoples of Southern Africa have integrated many words of their own languages into colloquial English. For authenticity and colour, we have used these occasionally when appropriate. Most of the time, the meanings are clear from the context, but for interest, we have included a glossary at the end of the book.

  For information about Botswana, the book, and its protagonist, please visit michaelstanleybooks.com. You can sign up there for an occasional newsletter. We are also active on Facebook at facebook.com/MichaelStanleyBooks, and on Twitter as @detectivekubu.

  Cast of Characters

  Words in square brackets are approximate phonetic pronunciations.

  Bengu, Amantle: Kubu’s mother [Ah-MUN-tleh BEN-goo]

  Bengu, David “Kubu”: Detective sergeant in the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department [David “KOO-boo” BEN-goo]

  Bengu, Wilmon: Kubu’s father [WILL-mon BEN-goo]

  Boko, Joseph: Baggage handler at Sir Seretse Khama airport [Joseph BO-ko]

  Chamberlain, Major David: Head of Jwaneng diamond mine

  Dow, Luke: Inspector in the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department [Luke DOW with the OW as in HOW]

  Elias: Constable at reception in the Criminal Investigation Department

  Gobey, Tebogo: Director of the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department [Teh-BO-go GO-bee]

  Goodman, Elijah: Head of administration at Jwaneng mine
>
  Henkel, Pieter: Manager of Gaborone Cash in Transit company

  Kamwi, Joe: Tour bus driver [Joe KUM-wi]

  Katlego: Witch doctor [Cut-LEH-go]

  Kenosi, Salekany: Armoured car guard [Sul-é-CAH-nee Ken-OH-si]

  Letsi, Lucas: Debswana diamond trader [Lucas LET-see]

  Mabaku, Jacob: Assistant superintendent in the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department [Jacob Muh-BAH-koo]

  MacGregor, Ian: Pathologist for the Botswana police

  Murewa: Constable in Otse [Moo-REH-wuh]

  Naledi, Sheila: Armoured car guard [Sheila Nuh-LEH-di]

  Neo, Mathew: Detective sergeant in the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department [Mathew NEE-o]

  Nari, Phineas: Manager of the Jwaneng airport [Phineas NUH-ree]

  Oteng, Jake: Armoured car guard [Jake OH-teng]

  Pono, Happy: Inspector at the police station in Sejelo [Happy POH-noh]

  Roberts, Tony: Pilot for Debswana

  Samkoa, Nelson: Detective sergeant in the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department [Nelson Sum-KOH-uh]

  Serome, Joy: Clerk in the Botswana Police Service Records Department [Joy Sé-ROE-meh]

  Tau, Eddie: Head of security at Jwaneng mine [Eddie TOW with the OW as in HOW]

  Tshane, Peter: Guard at Jwaneng mine [Peter TSHUH-neh]

  Tuelo, Vusi: South African criminal [VOO-si TWEH-loh]

  Venter, Piet: Colonel in the South African Police Service [Piet FEN-ter]

  Zuma, Alfred: Baggage handler at Sir Seretse Khama airport [Alfred ZOO-muh]

  MONDAY

  Chapter 1

  The early-morning sun promised a scorcher of a day, and David “Kubu” Bengu’s clothes were already damp with sweat—not unusual for a man of his size in a hot climate. He was standing in front of the Criminal Investigation Department on Queens Road, excited and nervous about walking through the front door—excited because it was his first day as a detective in the Botswana Police; nervous because he’d been hired to the position without having had any time as a constable on the beat. In fact, he’d never even been in uniform. He was expecting to take some heat for that.

  Kubu pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. He leant over and cleaned his shoes, which were covered in dust from his long walk to work. When he was satisfied, he took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. “Here goes,” he said out loud and strode towards the door. “I’ll always remember the thirtieth of November, 1998—my first day at work.”

  “Detective Sergeant Bengu reporting for work,” he told the man at reception, who looked him up and down with a frown.

  “Bengu?” The man shuffled through a stack of papers. “Bengu?”

  A few moments later, he found what he was looking for. “David Bengu?”

  “Yes, but everyone calls me Kubu.”

  The man snorted, taking in Kubu’s bulk. “I can see why.”

  Kubu didn’t react. He was used to that sort of response. After all, he’d had the nickname for over five years, ever since he first met Angus Hofmeyr, a rich white boy, at Maru-a-Pula School.

  “You’re David?” Angus had exclaimed in disbelief when they first met. “David Bengu? That’s not right. You aren’t a David. Not even a Goliath! You’re a kubu. That’s what you are—a big, friendly hippopotamus.”

  Kubu remembered being upset at first, but he’d come to like the special familiarity of the name. The other kids had laughed, of course, but soon Kubu was his name. Now he was sure that some of his friends didn’t even know his real name.

  Miffed that his snide comment had failed to raise even one of Kubu’s eyebrows, the receptionist ordered Kubu to go immediately to Assistant Superintendent Mabaku’s office. “He’s going to be your boss! I don’t envy you because he eats nails!”

  * * *

  “Sit down. I’ll be with you in a minute.”

  Mabaku waved at one of the chairs in front of his desk. Kubu lowered himself, carefully maintaining some of his weight on his legs until he was sure the chair wouldn’t collapse. He waited patiently while Mabaku growled at a letter he was reading.

  Mabaku’s office was small and very hot. The window air conditioner was on, judging by the strained noises, but very little cool air was being pushed into the room. There were stacks of files on every horizontal surface, and on top of one filing cabinet was a colour photo of a woman whom Kubu took to be Mabaku’s wife.

  Eventually Mabaku looked up and glared at Kubu. He shook the letter in the air. “It’s your fault. The director wants me to file all the paperwork so that you get paid, that you have health insurance, and that you start contributing towards your pension. I thought that’s why we have secretaries—to do all the tough work.”

  Kubu didn’t respond.

  “Do you have a driver’s licence?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And a car?”

  Kubu nodded and smiled. “An old Land Rover, sir.”

  He was still amazed that he’d been able to buy it. It was mainly due to the generosity of one of his lecturers at the university, who had wanted to sell it and had told him to pay it off as he could afford to. At his police salary, it wasn’t going to be paid off anytime soon.

  Mabaku glanced up, surprised. “How old?”

  The smile vanished. “Um…quite old, sir.”

  Mabaku picked up a sheet of paper from his desk and handed it to Kubu. “Fill this out and take it to Miriam, the director’s assistant. It authorizes you to take a car from the pool if you need one. Use one of them for business rather than your Land Rover. There are usually two or three pool cars at the back of the building. Check they haven’t been reserved before you take one.”

  Mabaku scratched his head. “I’m sure I’ve missed something, but it’ll come to me, probably at an inconvenient moment.”

  There was a long silence, something that Kubu was good at maintaining.

  “Do you fit into your office?” Mabaku asked at last. “I’m sorry it’s so small, but it’s the only one we’ve got. Have they stocked it with pens, notebooks, the usual forms, and so on?”

  “Nobody’s shown me my office, sir.”

  “Goddamn it.” Mabaku pounded the top of his desk. “That Elias at reception is already trying to cause trouble for you.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “It’s my fault! I just hope it doesn’t become too much of a problem for you.”

  Kubu frowned.

  “You impressed the right people at the university. They persuaded me you’d be wasted spending several years in uniform on the beat, so we took a chance and hired you as soon as you graduated. We’ve never done that before. Just ignore Elias and others like him. That’s my advice. They’re just jealous.”

  “I was expecting something like that.” Kubu shrugged.

  Mabaku looked through the papers on his desk. “I think that’s all for now. Any questions?”

  “Yes, sir. What’s my first job? I’m keen to get to work.”

  “We meet every Monday in the room at the end of the passage. We’re meeting in fifteen minutes to be exact. We’ll find out then what’s happened over the weekend. That’s all. Go and tell Elias that he’s to show you to your office and to make sure you have the supplies you need.”

  With that, Mabaku lifted a file from one of his stacks, opened it, and started reading.

  “Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.”

  Kubu heaved himself out of his chair. He closed the door quietly as he left the room and walked back to reception.

  “What do you want now?” Elias asked.

  “Assistant Superintendent Mabaku would like you to show me to my office and to make sure I have all the supplies I need.”

  “I’m busy right now.”

  “The assistant superintendent wants me to be settled in my office before the staff meetin
g in fifteen minutes,” Kubu responded, stretching the truth a little. “But if you are too busy, I’ll go and ask him who can help me.”

  Elias glared at Kubu, knowing he’d lost the round. “Follow me,” he barked.

  As they walked down the corridor, Kubu made a mental note to double check anything Elias did for him. He was sure Elias would try to even the score.

  “That’s your office.” Elias pointed to a door. “I’ll bring the stuff you need in a few minutes.”

  “Thank you for your help.” Kubu wasn’t quite able to keep the sarcasm from his tone.

  Sure enough, Elias walked into Kubu’s office a few minutes later with a box full of supplies.

  Again, Kubu thanked him, but Elias just glowered.

  With only a few minutes left, Kubu grabbed a notebook and pencil from the box and headed to the meeting room, where Director Tebogo Gobey would preside.

  At last, Kubu thought. He was about to start doing what he’d wanted to do for such a long time—be a detective.

  Chapter 2

  A hundred miles to the west, Phineas Nari, the manager of Jwaneng’s small airport, spotted the pilot driving up to the gate. He knew Tony Roberts well, and once he’d pulled open the gate, he waved him through with only a cursory glance at his Debswana identification. Then he locked the gate and followed the car up to the parking lot. The pilot was grabbing his bag from the boot of the car.

  “How are you, Phineas? Nice morning for flying.”

  Nari nodded. The weather was clear, and the early-morning air was still.

  “Where are you headed today, Tony?”

  “Off to Orapa to pick up some De Beers engineers and fly them back to Joburg. I’d best be off.”

  He headed for the apron. The plane had been refuelled the day before and was ready to go. Nari stood watching him as he went through his checks and climbed into the plane. Jwaneng had no tower, so Roberts would call Gaborone once he was airborne and activate a flight plan he’d already filed by phone.

  At last the engines started up, and the plane moved onto the runway. It would taxi to the far end, turn, and then take off towards the east. Nari lit a cigarette. His job was hardly demanding. There would be nothing else to do until the diamond transport plane arrived a few hours later.

  When the plane was about halfway to the end of the runway, he saw flames and smoke coming from the right engine. The plane stopped, the propellers stopped turning, and Roberts jumped out and walked around to where the fire was. Suddenly a fireball burst from the right wing. Roberts staggered back, clutching his face.