Aid in Africa : Part One : Emily

AID IN AFRICA

PART ONE: EMILY

(this is the first of three parts,each part will concentrate with one girl, though the second and third will include the preceding characters as well)

The girls were excited. Their NGO had just tied up with an aid organization working in Africa for victims of human trafficking and drug addiction, and they had been selected by their head Mr Samuels for going there. It would be the first time Mandy, Emily and Trish went out of their country. They weren’t sure what exactly they were supposed to do, but nevertheless the idea itself was exciting, plus they could always show it on their extra curricular activities.

Two weeks before they were to leave with their team leader Mr Smith, the girls first met the head of the African organization, a man named Mgwabe who seemed more like a drug lord himself than one working for social welfare. He had taken particular interest in 19 year old Emily, a natural blonde, and this almost made the poor girl pull out of the trip. However, given that the other members were either too busy or too disinterested in Africa, it was left to the three to represent their organization on African soil. However, as the ever practical Mandy pointed out, Mr Smith would be going there with them if the blacks tried any voodoo he would handle it.

The girls spent the weeks before their departure going through their wardrobes more than their travel brochures. They didn‘t expect to understand a word of Swahili or whatever they spoke there, and didn’t really expect to be asked to do much work. The stay would be for two weeks and it was more a formality than anything else. On the other hand the girls wondered what clothes they had for their temperate climate could be suitable for a country where the average temperature was 40 degrees Celsius. Smith had warned them that people there were known to be conservative and they should pack their bags accordingly. Mandy and Emily had no problem with this, but Trish flatly refused to obey. Being the rebel of the group she had decided that it would be too hot to wear anything other than bikinis and hot pants she took only what she intended to wear. As the other two heard time and again from the muscular girl, if any tried to get fresh with her, she had the kicks ready for it.

The day of departure arrived with a frenzy of last minute checks, repacking and phone calls. Their boss Samuels wished them the best for the journey and told them that Smith would arrive at Emily’s door for picking them up. The girls had spent the night before at her house so that wasn’t a problem. Smith arrived on schedule, his 6’2” frame glistening with sweat in spite of being in the car. It took him and the girls half an hour to pack the stuff into the car as all three girls had exceeded the allowed weight limit for the flight. Once packed, they sped off to the airport, their faces aglow with expectation of the unknown.
However it was at the airport that their problems began. Smith seemed to have made some mistake with his ticket although he had all four tickets and had given the girls theirs at the airport itself. They called up Samuels, who told them that the girls should proceed as the NGO really couldn’t afford to rebook them again so late. He assured them that Smith’s problem would surely be sorted out and he’d join them at the lounge soon. The girls had little option but to proceed and their processing went quite smoothly; within 30 minutes they were waiting at the lounge for the craft, which was due in about an hour.

Yet 45 minutes later there was still no sign of Smith. The girls were starting to get worried. What if he didn’t turn up ? How could they go alone ? They called Samuels again but the tower wasn’t catching and the girls realized they’d have to take the call themselves. This was easier said than done, and an argument ensued.

Trish : If the moron screws his ticket, why should we cancel our trip ? Plus didn’t Mgwabe say he would personally be at the airport ?

Mandy: It’s not a question of our not being able to. But what if Smith finds we’ve left without him ? We haven’t obtained permission for that have we?

Trish: Fuck Samuels. I signed up to enjoy the visit and I’m not letting go because some gorilla fart forgot how to book a ticket.

Mandy: Problem is gorilla fart is our leader here.

Trish: I can manage myself without any farty leaders thank you.

And so it went on, with the quiet Emily looking from one to another, just wishing the argument would end and someone would tell her what to do. She wasn’t used to taking decisions alone and didn’t want to either.

The situation may have led to a nasty fight between the two had the arrival of the plane not caused each to make their own decisions. As soon as the announcement for boarding was made Trish stomped off to the boarding desk leaving Mandy furious and Emily baffled. Mandy looked at Emily, saw the hopelessly confused look and sighed. If Trish went alone either she would be kicked out or they would be. On the other hand knowing what a hothead Trish could be it wasn’t safe to leave her alone. And if they went back now they would be wasting two tickets. She tried Samuels one last time but got no response. Wondering if she’d regret her decision later she headed to the boarding ignoring Emily from habit. Emily was left alone and followed Mandy like the docile lamb she was.

During the flight neither Mandy nor Trish spoke to each other. Emily sat in between in uncomfortable silence, her sweet face turning from one to the other in a vain hope that she could become a conduit for restoration of dialogue. But her attempts were stonewalled until the plane landed when the necessity of coordination made them speak again. Samuels had given them a SIM given by Mgwabe on his last visit for use by the girls. Trish now took it and stuffed it into her Iphone 4S, only to find that her top of the range phone didn’t support it. Finally it went into Emily’s older phone, which was promptly appropriated by Mandy in order to prevent Trish taking it. Hence Emily landed in a foreign land with no phone and two friends who had decided that speech beyond the barest necessity wasn’t required of them for the time being.

The airport in spite of being the main one in the country was small by western standards and they had little trouble finding the exit. Collecting their goods, the three headed out, keenly scanning the men standing outside for any sign of Mgwabe. They had almost given up when a tall thin man came up and introduced himself as Abdul. He said Mr. Mgwabe had some urgent work and had sent him instead. This made the girls uneasy – one they were alone, and second the man who was supposed to pick them up wasn’t there. Should they trust him?

Before they could decide the man was taking Emily’s bag from her hands. Emily, having a natural tendency to give in, began to let go of the bag. But Trish gave her a strong kick out of Abdul’s range of vision. This made Emily’s grip firmer. Abdul responded by squeezing and pinching the poor girl’s thin wrist. Emily would have still held on, but something in the action told her she wasn’t in control. The bag slipped out of her hand, with neither of her friends having noticed the show of authority on the part of Abdul and the effect it had had on Emily. Trish shot Emily a dirty look before following the man to the car. To their relief the journey was short and uneventful. They would be staying at the Hotel Desert Pearl (the name made the three laughs) and in the evening Mgwabe would personally meet them there. All expenses were paid and all the ladies had to do was grace Mgwabe with their esteemed presence. Again the three laughed.

Once they had reached their rooms, Trish and Mandy resumed their bickering over rights to the only bathroom, leaving Emily alone with a tired body and nothing to do. She undressed and landed on the soft bed, instantly dozing off. When she awoke, neither of the two were there and it was nearing eight by her time zone adjusted mobile. Fearing that she had missed the appointment with their host, she hurriedly dressed in a pleated skirt and top and headed out; the room had three keys and the two had consented to leave her with one. She locked the door and sped off to the elevator, her lack of mobile making it impossible to communicate with the others.

Emily assumed that the man would meet them at the large room where guests lounged and enjoyed the cool air of a summer evening from huge French windows opening onto the gardens. She wasn’t too keen on meeting him, to tell the truth, but felt it would be quite rude not to meet him at least once. And who knows, the man may actually turn out to be nice. She searched the room for any sign of the two girls or Mgwabe but found only Abdul lazing in a corner with a cigarette and a glass of wine. She remembered the brutal assault on her wrist at the airport, and how it had seemed almost as if she could do nothing to stop him. It made her feel uneasy but she was out of options and so headed towards him.

Abdul noticed the most timid of the three girls approaching him, and smiled. He would need to play his part well, though as a chieftain’s son he was seldom asked to play the role of a servant. So when she reached him, he stood up reverently and asked her what he could do for the lovely lady? Emily was taken aback by this courtesy and managed to ask rather bluntly if he’d seen Mr Mgwabe or her friends? The three were supposed to meet him in the evening but she’d overslept out of fatigue and a slight fever.

Abdul’s smile broadened. So she was alone for all practical purposes. He replied that he’d seen the two leave with him about an hour ago and presumed that they would be back in another.