Chapter 27
It was finally 9:00 p.m., the time Nicholas Biwott had been waiting for. He went to the bathroom, away from his nosy Jewish wife, and flipped his cell phone. He dialed.
"Hello?" Bozo said.
"Bozo, it's Biwott."
"What do you want?"
"I need to know that everything is okay."
Bozo was in his maskan when this call came through. This squalid, right in the center of Korogocho, was the very definition of squalor. It was leaking .... it had roaches ..... and it smelt like last year's urine.
He had a bed in the same room as the living room. Right in the middle of the room, he used an off-white bed sheet to partition it. That partioning created an extra room. It was the kitchen.
"You want to know if things are okay?" he asked.
"Yes. Do you have everything you need?"
"I do."
"So how will you do it?"
Bozo walked out. He stood in front of the squalid where fresh sewage was flowing in from somewhere, "You want me to update you over the phone?"
"I am secure."
"All right. I have everything. I managed to track down Bad Boy and Osiris."
"Where have they been?"
"That's not important," Bozo said, "The important thing is - they have agreed to help."
"So you will share the loot with them?"
"That's none of your business."
"Why so testy tonight?"
Bozo laughed, "You think I am testy?"
"Listen. I don't care about your mood. Just make sure you do your job. I can't afford to have that woman alive anymore."
"I got you."
"Don't blow this!"
***
Chairman Sungu got home at about 10:30 p.m. He seemed exhausted. Standing at the door, he took a minute to study his wife's mood, " Is everything okay today?" he asked.
His wife nodded, "No strange letters, if that's what you mean."
He walked to the refrigerator, fished out a bottle of Tusker Premium, then sat at the dining table with it. "You can¡t believe what happened today."
"I have watched the news."
"You saw Mrs. Ouko."
She nodded, "Amazing!"
"I can't believe she has kept herself up like that."
..... kept herself up? ..... She looked at her husband, "Men are strange. You looked at Christabel Ouko and all you saw was a woman who has kept herself up? - Did you not see a grieving widow? - Did you not see a dazed mother? - Did you not see a woman who still fears that her husband's killers may come also after her?"
Sunguh's brows furrowed, "You saw all that on TV?"
"Women are perceptive," she said. "I'll bet you, your women Committee members saw the same thing I saw: Christabel is a very unhappy and sad woman."
"I don't doubt you. But I was not meaning Mrs. Ouko. I am talking about Marianne."
She poured the beer into his glass, "You talked to her?"
"She called me this morning."
"What for?"
"She wants to know if she can meet Moi."
His wife frowned, "Will you let her?"
"The Committee voted that she could."
"Bad move," she warned, "I cannot believe you would allow that to happen ..... what if Biwott takes advantage of the meeting and harms her? Did you think of that?"
He turned pale, "What?"
"It seems that all of you continue to underestimate Nicholas Biwott. That's a big mistake. Don't create a situation that a pervert like him can take advantage of. If I were you, I would consider revoking that authorization."
"But the Committee voted already."
She rubbed his back, "Terrible mistake."
