The Satanic Mechanic (30 page)

CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE

The next day, Tuesday, I was back at the
Gazette
. Jessie had the latest police reports, and we spent part of the morning telling Hattie the whole story. Hattie was wearing a white blouse with gold buttons that matched her hair, and a blue skirt that matched her eyes. With Hattie, everything was always in order. It was good to be with her after my upside-down time. While Jessie was speaking, I sorted the envelopes on my desk and put a new letter from my old friend, the Scottish lady, on top of the pile.

‘So, let me get this right,' said Hattie. ‘Slimkat and Ousies were leaders in the Kuruman struggle for land. Slimkat and his cousin, Ystervark, had taken Ousies where they thought she'd be safe: to her friend, Ricus, and her nephew, Johannes.'

‘Yes,' said Jessie. ‘They all knew each other from up north. Johannes denied knowledge of Ystervark and Slimkat because he wanted to keep Ousies safe. He didn't want people to know who she really was.'

‘Now, the Lemony lady, who put hemlock in the moussaka,' said Hattie. ‘You say she was married to the diamond company CEO. And they matched her prints to those on Slimkat's poison sauce bottle. But will the Hardcore diamond company be held accountable for the murders?'

‘I'd like to see them charged,' said Jessie. ‘But I don't think it's going to happen. The Bushmen reckon the company were responsible for the death threats that took place before the last court case. But I think that once the final ruling was made, the company dropped it, not wanting the bad publicity. This is where Lemoni, whose real name
is Stella Cooke, stepped in. She felt her husband failed her. She needed vengeance.'

‘Oh my. And what does the husband say?' asked Hattie.

‘He says “no comment” to me, but he told the police that divorce proceedings have been underway for a while. His lawyers back him up.'

‘Mm,' I said. ‘I saw a line on Stella's finger, where she'd taken off a wedding ring.'

‘How did Stella track down Ousies?' asked Hattie. ‘I understand that Slimkat would be easy to follow, being on the KKNK programme and all, but the old woman was hidden away.'

‘Stella followed Slimkat,' said Jessie. ‘That day Slimkat and Ystervark came to our office, Ousies was in the back. Stella saw where they turned off to Ricus's place, and then she found Ricus on Facebook and pretended to be a PTSD sufferer.'

‘She made up a story about an armed robbery,' I said. ‘She said she was very upset they stole her jewellery, and she shot one of the robbers.'

‘That woman's love for jewels led to two tragic murders,' said Hattie. She shook her head. ‘Let me make you some more coffee, darling.' Hattie was still fussing over me, even though she'd said I looked as right as rain.

‘I've still got some, thanks,' I said. It was a cup Hattie had made, so it was hard to drink, but it was okay as something to dip my rusk into.

The phone rang, and it was Ricus, for me.

‘Maria. How are you doing?'

‘Ja, fine.'

‘By the time I got to the hospital you'd already left.'

‘I am as right as rain,' I said, looking at Hattie.

‘I reckon we all need a rest and am cancelling tonight's meeting. But I'm thinking we should have a social this weekend. The group and our friends.'

‘I would like to make a feast.'

‘We can each bring something.'

‘No. I want to make it all,' I said.

‘Ousies is leaving next week. So it will be a kind of farewell.'

‘Back to the nature reserve?'

‘Yes. Nick's been staying here with me, and she's been talking to him about supplying ostrich eggs. To make beads for necklaces. The tourists like them.'

‘I'm sure they would like scrambled eggs too. One ostrich egg is the same as twenty-four chicken eggs.'

‘They may start a little restaurant. Nick's been helping her with business plans. It's been good for him.'

‘How about Saturday? For the feast?'

‘Good. I'll get a fire going. Are you sure I can't provide some food, boerewors or something?'

‘Yes. It's something I need to do, part of forgiving myself.'

‘Okay. I'll contact the people in the group. Tell them to invite others.'

‘Just let me know numbers.'

‘So we're having a party?' said Jessie when I hung up. Her hand stroked the gecko tattoo on her arm.

‘Yes. All of us in the group and whoever we want to invite.'

‘Will you invite Henk?' Her fingertips circled the star-shaped scar above the gecko, beneath the strap of her black vest. The place where she'd been shot with an arrow.

‘No,' I said. ‘We broke up. I'm inviting Hattie. Will you come, Hats?'

‘Super. I can't wait to meet all these people I've heard about.'

‘I saw the way he looked at you when you were in hospital,' said Jessie. ‘That man doesn't want to lose you.'

‘I haven't heard from him.'

A leopard wandered in the open
Gazette
door and then out again. I felt troubled. But not because of the leopard; the doctor had told me I might carry on seeing things for a little while. I was worried about what I was going to feed everyone. What would be the right meal for this special feast?

I set my question aside and opened the envelope with the spidery handwriting.

Dearest Tannie Maria
,

You have become very dear to me. Thank you so much for the saamgooibredie – the young woman made it and it was simply delicious.
And for the Van der Hum recipe, which she has made too. Turns out she is quite a little cook and I have a fine recipe of hers I would like to give you, in a moment
.

But first I want to say thank you. Thank you for all the recipes and for the kind ear. Thank you and goodbye. I am writing this from my bed. The moonlight is shining in through the window. Tomorrow I am going in to the hospice. I will spare you the details, but I won't be coming back. The doctors wanted me there long ago, but I wasn't ready to go. My new family have offered to keep me here, to nurse me to the end, but I do not want to leave death behind in this house
.

I also wanted to tell you that I am not an old fool. Any more than anyone who loves, is a fool. I know that the man is employed to take care of me. But no one can pay a man to love. And he gives me love. It is in the tenderness of his hands when he bathes me. And the brightness of his smile. It is in the woman and the child he brought to me, who treat me as their own
.

It was in the last meal she cooked for us. I could eat only a little, but it was the best meal of my life. You must try it. It is a chicken dish from West Africa made with peanut butter of all things! And with lots of love
.

It is because I have loved and been loved that I am now ready to go. It would be a very sad thing to die without having experienced that
.

Your Scottish Lassie

Fare well

She included the recipe for chicken mafé. It looked delicious. My heart felt very sad that the old woman was dying. But I was happy that she had found love and taken it in, like a wildflower drinks in sunshine. I was also glad that I now had ideas for what to make for the feast.

CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR

‘Jislaaik, Tannie M,' said Jessie, ‘this West African food is awesome. What do you call it again?'

‘Mafé,' I said.

‘You say it's made with peanut butter?' said Dirk, as he spooned the chicken mafé into his boy's mouth. ‘No wonder Jamie likes it so much.'

Jamie's blue eyes were bright and his blond hair neatly combed. He grinned and clapped his hands together. Next to his wheelchair sat a short man wearing white – he was the nurse from the special needs home. He was gobbling up the food too.

We were all inside the laager of panel vans and thorn trees. The chairs were not in a circle but were all higgledy-piggledy as people had moved them to chat with each other. It was a still, autumn evening, and the sun was thinking about setting.

Henk and Reghardt sat a bit away from us, drinking beer and chatting to Ricus, who had Esmeralda wrapped around his neck. Ricus made a joke, and Henk laughed.

Henk and I had greeted each other politely earlier, and I'd raised my eyebrow at Jessie, who winked at me. That Jessie. She must have invited him.

Beyond the talking and laughter of the guests you could hear the birds. They always seem to have a lot to say to each other just before sunset. On the thorn tree nearby was a bokmakierie pumping out a beautiful song from deep in its chest. I couldn't hear a reply from its mate.

‘I know this food,' said Fadhi. ‘You cooked it well.'

He was eating with one hand, while the other was held by his devoted husband, Ahmed. Fadhi wore a purple shirt and pressed black trousers, and Ahmed was too busy admiring him to pay attention to much else.

Piet and Oom Jan (wearing his waistcoat with its rabbit-ear collar) squatted by the fire, chatting to Nick and Ousies. Jessie told me they were discussing plans for the Bushman nature reserve.

‘I thought they'd get along,' Jessie said. She must have invited Jan too.

As the sun was setting and the sky turned the red of that rusted metal that you find in the veld, Mielie brought in the whole herd of sheep to say goodnight. The light dyed their wool a pinkish colour. Kosie went straight to Henk, and the Colonel came to greet me. Ricus whistled, and Mielie herded them out again.

When the dust settled, I stood up to fetch our pudding, which was still in my bakkie. It was also a recipe from my Scottish friend. Before I left the circle, Ousies pointed and Ricus said, ‘Look. The moon.'

We all turned and watched the fat yellow moon rising over a low hill. It lit up the Karoo veld and the slopes of the Swartberge. It even reached as far as the Langeberge. And the thorn trees and the cars, and all of us, were washed in moonlight.

I went to my car and took the biscuit tin from the front seat. As I closed my door, I turned to see Henk had followed me.

‘Jessie was right,' he said. ‘It is stupid to lose you because I'm scared of losing you.'

He stepped forward and took the tin from my hand.

‘Will you forgive me?' he said.

The tin was full of heart-shaped shortbread biscuits.

The full moon of forgiveness shone down on us.

I got back to my house before Henk. He was dropping Piet home before coming to me. The food I had cooked had been polished off at the feast. I sat on my stoep with my empty pot and my empty tin, feeling not at all empty myself.

I looked at my garden, the moonlit leaves of the lemon tree, and out
at the veld, at the shadow that lay like a dark pool beside the gwarrie tree.

A leopard walked onto my lawn. Its honey and black patterns looked softer than velvet. I thought it might be worth hanging on to some of those pills so I could enjoy such sights again. Henk's car arrived, and the leopard looked in that direction but did not move.

Henk walked down the footpath, and we saw each other in the moonlight.

‘Maria!' he shouted, reaching for the gun on his belt.

The leopard disappeared.

‘Did you see it?' Henk said. ‘The leopard.'

‘Yes. I didn't think you could see it; I thought it was from the pills . . .'

He was on the stoep, holding me.

‘That was lucky,' I said.

‘Ja. Imagine, after all you've been through . . . to be killed by a leopard on your front stoep.'

‘Shows you. Staying at home doing nothing can be dangerous. But no, what I meant was, how lucky to see such a beautiful creature up close.'

Henk held me tighter and looked down into my eyes. ‘My beautiful creature,' he said.

I put my hand on his chest, in the gap where his shirt fell open. His heart was thudding hard. A fiery-necked nightjar called. The bright, liquid song rippled through me.

‘I was thinking,' I said, ‘that tonight you might get lucky.'

We went inside.

We made love.

My, oh my.

Tannie Maria's Recipes

One day, I'll write a proper cookbook, then I won't have to squash in just a few recipes at the end. How can I choose when they are all so lekker? I want to give you a taste of the Karoo – coffee, beskuit, apricot jam and brandy. And flavours of autumn – pumpkin, sweet potato, pomegranates, figs . . . And some cake recipes – cakes are so kind and clever. And then there are the delicious dishes that travelled to my kitchen from faraway places – Scotland, Somalia, Greece and New York. Oh well, I can't give them all, but here are a handful of my favourite recipes.

Of course it is the best ingredients that will make the best meals. Buy your meat and dairy from a free-range farmer, where the animals are happy, out in the veld.

Measurements

t = teaspoon (5 ml)

T = tablespoon (15 ml)

cup = 250 ml

All cup measurements are unsifted, unless otherwise stated

All eggs are size Large

MEAT

LEMONI'S MOUSSAKA
(Serves 8–10)

3 T butter

1 medium onion, chopped

750g mince

½ cup tomato ketchup

½ cup white wine pinch of salt

½ t ground black pepper

½ t grated fresh nutmeg

2 T chopped fresh oregano, or 1 T dried

1 cup grated Cheddar cheese

4 medium aubergines

2 T salt for aubergines

sunflower oil for frying

¼ cup dried breadcrumbs

Béchamel sauce

4 T butter

6 T cornflour

4 cups (1 litre) milk

pinch of salt and ground black pepper

1 t grated fresh nutmeg

2 egg yolks, beaten

Topping

1 T dried breadcrumbs

1½ cups grated Cheddar cheese

1 T butter

Heat the butter in a large frying pan and brown the onion. Add the mince and stir-fry until brown.

Add the tomato ketchup, wine, salt, pepper, nutmeg and oregano. Simmer for 30 minutes and then stir in the cheese.

Slice the aubergines lengthways and sprinkle with salt. Leave them to stand for 30 minutes to remove bitterness. Rinse very well and pat dry with paper towel. Fry in hot oil until golden brown.

To make the béchamel sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan, then take it off the heat and add the cornflour, stirring to a thick smooth paste. Return to a medium heat and slowly add the milk, stirring until thickened. Stir in the spices and beaten egg yolks.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a big ovenproof dish (about 30 × 40 cm) and sprinkle a thin layer of breadcrumbs over the base. Top with a layer of aubergine, followed by a layer of mince. Alternate the bread-crumb, aubergine and mince layers until they are all used up. Pour the béchamel sauce over the top.

Sprinkle over the breadcrumbs and cheese for the topping and dot with butter.

Bake for 20–30 minutes until golden brown.

OUMA'S KAROO LAMB PIE
(Serves 6–8)

Sour-cream pastry

3 cups plain flour

1 t salt

250g cold butter, cubed

1 cup sour cream

Sift the flour and salt three times in a large bowl and use a small knife to cut in the butter. The knobs of butter should stay pea-sized and not become as small as breadcrumbs.

Add the sour cream and cut in with a knife. When it is well mixed, knead the dough until it holds together and makes a ball. Don't add extra liquid – just carry on kneading lightly – the dough will become manageable and start to stick together.

Leave the dough to rest for half an hour or longer – overnight is best.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface and fold it into quarters. Turn the dough parcel half a turn, so that the open side faces towards you.

Roll and fold once more in the same way. Let the dough rest for another half an hour.

Repeat the ‘roll and fold' twice more. The dough is now ready for use and can be refrigerated for 3 days or frozen for 3 months.

Pie filling

2kg lamb on the bone (shoulder, neck or knuckles, or a mixture of the three)

2 cups water

1 whole onion, peeled and spiked with 10 whole cloves

1 bay leaf

5 peppercorns

1 t ground coriander

1 clove garlic, crushed

½ t dried red chilli flakes or cayenne pepper

2 t mustard powder

2 t white sugar

2 T vinegar

2 t salt

½ t ground black pepper

5 t cornflour or potato flour mixed with a little cold water to make a paste

1 whole onion, peeled and spiked with 5 whole cloves

1 egg, beaten for pastry

In a large saucepan, simmer the lamb very gently with the water, onion, bay leaf and peppercorns for about 2 hours until the meat is completely tender and starting to fall off the bone. (You can also leave it in a hotbox for an hour to help it soften.) Remove the pan from the heat and allow the meat to cool in the liquid. Remove all fat, bone and gristle from the cooled lamb. Flake the meat lightly and return it to the stock in the pan. Remove the onion, bay leaf and peppercorns.

Add the coriander, garlic, chilli, mustard, sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper to the meat and bring it to the boil. If too watery, thicken with the cornflour paste.

Preheat the oven to 190°C. Dish the meat mixture into a pie plate, about 23 cm in diameter. Put the second spiked onion in the middle to stop the pastry from sagging. Leave to cool down.

Roll out the pastry until very thin and use to cover the pie. Trim and scallop the edges and brush with the beaten egg. Decorate with pastry leaves cut from the pastry offcuts. There will be pastry left over that you can store for another time.

Bake the pie for 1 hour until golden brown.

FATIMA'S LAMB LIVERS AND RICE
(Serves 4)

⅓ cup sunflower oil or 5 T ghee

1 onion, chopped

1 tomato, chopped

½ green pepper, deseeded and chopped

1 green or red chilli, chopped, or ½ t chilli powder

grated zest of 1 medium lemon

juice of 1 medium lemon

1½ t ground coriander

3 T chopped fresh coriander or Italian parsley salt and ground black pepper to taste

500g lamb liver, cut into thin strips

Heat the oil or ghee in a frying pan and fry the onion until soft and light brown. Add the tomato and simmer over a medium heat. Add the green pepper, chilli, lemon zest and juice, ground and fresh coriander or parsley, and salt and pepper.

Stir in the liver and cook until tender. After 10 minutes, take out a piece of liver and test for tenderness. Serve with Somalian rice.

Somalian rice

½ cup olive or sunflower oil

1 stick cinnamon

½ t ground cumin

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 whole cloves

3 cardamom pods

1 chicken stock cube or 2 t chicken stock powder

¼ t ground nutmeg

¼ t saffron

1 small onion, thinly sliced

2 cups basmati rice, rinsed until the water runs clear

1¼ litres chicken stock or water

½ cup frozen peas

Garnish

1 small onion, chopped

2 T butter or ghee

Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the cinnamon, cumin, garlic, cloves, cardamom, chicken stock cube or powder, nutmeg, saffron and sliced onion. Fry until the onion is translucent.

Add the rice and stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add the liquid chicken stock or water and the peas, and steam-boil until the liquid has reduced.

For the garnish, fry the chopped onion in the butter for about 2 minutes and then sprinkle over the rice.

WEST AFRICAN CHICKEN MAFÉ
(Serves 8–10)

2 hot chillies, chopped

1 t salt

2 T finely grated fresh ginger

1 T paprika

2kg chicken pieces peanut or sunflower oil for frying

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 onions, chopped into big chunks

4 ripe tomatoes, cut into big chunks

400g canned tomatoes, chopped, with juice

2 T fresh oregano, chopped, or 1 T dried

6 T crunchy peanut butter

200ml chicken stock, made with 50ml water and 150ml coconut milk

3 medium sweet potatoes, cut into chunks

50ml cornflour mixed with a little cold water to make a paste

2 limes or lemons, cut into wedges

Mix the chillies, salt, ginger and paprika in a bowl and then dip the chicken pieces into it to coat.

Heat some oil in a frying pan and brown the chicken in batches (5 pieces at a time). Remove all the chicken from the pan.

Lightly fry the garlic and onions in the same pan. Add the chicken pieces, the fresh and canned tomatoes, then the oregano, peanut butter, chicken stock and sweet potatoes.

Bring to the boil and then simmer for 30 minutes. Scoop out half a cup of hot liquid from the stew and mix it with the cornflour paste. Stir this back into the mafé to thicken it. Simmer for another 5 minutes, then put in a hotbox for at least an hour. (You can leave it longer to keep it hot before eating.)

Serve with rice and wedges of lime or lemon.

SWEET

VENUS CAKE
(Serves 10–12)

1½ cups freshly brewed hot strong coffee

3 cups (380g) plain flour

2½ cups white sugar

4 t bicarbonate of soda

½ t salt

1 cup (110g) Dutch cocoa powder

1⅓ cups sunflower oil

1½ cups buttermilk

3 eggs

1 t vanilla extract

approx. 9 T crunchy peanut butter

approx. 3 T apricot jam

Coffee-chocolate icing

1½ t instant coffee granules

180g dark baking chocolate, broken into pieces

60g butter

3 T milk

Topping

1 t instant coffee granules, crushed to a fine powder

Get your coffee started. Make it lekker strong. Preheat a convection oven on the fan setting to 180°C. Grease two 20-cm cake tins and line the bottoms with baking paper.

Sift the flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda, salt and cocoa into a large bowl and whisk thoroughly by hand or with an electric mixer. This mixes them together and lets in air.

Gently add the oil, followed by the buttermilk and then the eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Put the hot coffee in a jug and add it to the mixture, pouring it down the side of the bowl.

Divide the batter between the two tins and bake for 20 minutes, then turn down the temperature to 160°C and bake for a further 25–35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the centre of a cake comes out clean.

Allow to cool for at least 20 minutes before removing from the tins, then let the cakes cool completely on a wire rack. Once cool, if the tops of the cakes are bumpy and crusty, you can use a bread knife to cut them flat. (It is important the cake that will form the bottom layer is flat.)

Spread a generous layer of peanut butter on the bottom cake-layer and top it with a comfortable layer of apricot jam. Put the second layer of cake on top.

To make the icing, melt the ingredients – except the teaspoon of crushed coffee – together in a double boiler. (You can also melt them in a mug inside a bowl of boiling water.) Use a fork to mix the ingredients thoroughly.

Allow to cool and thicken, then spread the icing on the top and sides of the cake.

Allow to cool some more (you can even pop the cake in the fridge for a while), then sprinkle over the teaspoon of coffee powder.

CANDY'S CHEESECAKE
(Serves 10–12)

Crust

200g Brazil nuts, crushed

75g digestive biscuits, crushed

100g desiccated coconut

finely grated zest of 2 oranges (approx. 4 t)

1 T caster sugar

150g butter, melted

Cake

750g plain cream cheese, softened

finely grated zest of 2 oranges (approx. 4 t)

finely grated zest of 1 large lemon (approx. 2 t)

1 cup caster sugar

3 eggs

¼ cup lemon juice

¾ cup (180g) sour cream

Sour-cream topping

1 cup (240g) sour cream

2 T caster sugar

2 t lemon juice

finely grated orange zest for garnishing

Use a pestle and mortar or a food processor to crush the Brazil nuts (I like them a little crunchy). Use a rolling pin to crush the digestive biscuits, and
add these to the nuts, along with the coconut, orange zest and caster sugar. Add the melted butter and mix well.