Chapter 21:
Jake gets involved in a protest march outside Mitchell’s Plain police station.
He again comes up against Captain Steenkamp of POPU and manages to
turn Steenkamp and his men away from the crowd and appeases them
with news of the arrests.
To consider:
Detectives get to see many gruesome sights and we are reminded that
Jake had also seen Vanessa Witbooi’s stab-ridden body as well as
Jimmy’s corpse.
Questions:
To consider:
The scared policeman at the gate and the angry crowd are reminiscent of
the shootings in Sharpville 40 years ago. It is not unusual for investigative
journalists to get information that the police do not have.
1.
2.
3.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
Who was it that pointed out the mistakes in the original autopsy?
What is the meaning of “haemorrhaging”
Why does Sondile say that Nkosinati Tetwa could not have been the
killer of Jimmy?
Chapter 24:
Sondile and Jake share notes. We are told that Jake and Kate are now
working together to find Nomsi. We also hear that Tigger may have been
abducted by Rasta drug dealers.
What does the fact that Christian ministers and Muslim imams were
leading the march have to say about how the community was
feeling?
Was Jake lying to the crowd when he said they had two suspects in
custody? Explain.
Was Kate being responsible or irresponsible when she queried the
autopsy results in front of the crowd?
To consider:
This chapter shows that Jake and Sondile are keeping their fingers on the
pulse of cases they are no longer officially involved in.
Questions:
Chapter 22:
A very short chapter in which we learn that Nomsi is alive, and there is also
the first reference to the Power House.
1.
2.
Chapter 23:
Jake returns to the mortuary where a forensic professor tries to put right
the mistakes his colleagues have made. Bruises on Jimmy’s face indicate
violence before he was shot. A blow to the back of his head is indicated as
the fatal blow.
3.
1
Why do you think that Nkosinati was ordered to report to the Langa
police station once a day?
Why did Jake and Sondile not hand over their information to Captain
Steenkamp as ordered to by the colonel?
What does Sondile mean when he asks if Tigger might be “looking for
Africa”?
Chapter 25:
We are given a slight insight into Scar (Edward Batjies) and how he came
to be a taxi driver.
Questions:
To consider:
Scar, although working for Ronnie, does not know how Jimmy died, and it
bothers him.
Although he hints at being involved in bad deeds, there’s no mention of him
being involved in the Klipfontein Rd attack in Ch 1.
2.
Questions:
Chapter 27:
1.
2.
1.
3.
4.
What was it about Scar’s personality that made being a taxi driver the
perfect job?
What do you think Scar means by “… and how had Ronnie managed
to stay alive?” (Last line of the chapter).
Why do you think that Scar admits to having dated Nomsi at one
stage?
How does Ronnie’s description of Jimmy differ from what Darlene
had said when she visited Jake?
Darlene’s viewpoint has been supported by others in the story so far.
Given your answer in No. 3, what idea do you think Jake was forming
in Jake’s mind at the end of the chapter?
Jake updates his mother about Tigger and then calls Melissa Ruyters,
Jimmy’s former girlfriend. She eventually remembers Jimmy and Nomsi
walking towards the dunes on the outskirts of Mitchell’s Plain. Kate adds
that members of the choir had mentioned Jimmy talking about a power
house, though neither can make any sense of it.
Chapter 26:
Jake visits Ronnie at home and questions him about Jimmy’s death and
Nomsi’s disappearance. Scar is in attendance, though looking very
uncomfortable, taking his cues from Ronnie. Darlene arrives and Jake
realizes that Ronnie doesn’t know about her earlier visit to see him. He
plays along. We are told at the end that Jake found the visit very useful and
that the investigation has “… taken a jump forward”.
To consider:
Although they were very different, Jimmy had made a huge impression on
Melissa.
This is the second time we have heard of the power house. We were
earlier told that Nomsi was there.
Questions:
To consider:
Scar, despite his thoughts about Jimmy’s death, plays along with anything
Ronnie says.
Ronnie denies that Jimmy is his biological son. This may have played a
part in his being so disappointed by Jimmy’s lifestyle.
1.
2.
3.
2
What else did we learn about Tigger that made her seem even more
“alternative?
How long beforehand had Melissa and Jimmy dated?
What do we learn in this chapter that tells that Jimmy trusted Nomsi
far more than Melissa, even early in their relationship? .
Chapter 28:
Jake and Kate finally find the Power House, a disused power station. There
they find Nomsi, barely alive. Once the ambulance has taken her away,
Jake and Kate look around the Power House, learning more and more
about Jimmy as they do.
To consider:
It had earlier been mentioned that Sondile had his finger in many pies, and
that BJ had told him to stay out of the Witbooi case. Yet, it is Sondile and
not BJ who seems to be making progress. This emphasizes Sondile’s
value to the unit as a whole.
To consider:
The strength of Jimmy’s relationship with Nomsi is evident in that he had
not brought anyone else here before, not even Melissa. It is also evident in
that Nomsi is prepared to lie there and quietly die, just to be with Jimmy
again.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
Questions:
1.
2.
In what way had Melissa saved Nomsi’s life?
What was unusual about the posters that Jimmy had put up on the
wall?
Chapter 29:
Jake waits for Nomsi to recover so he can question her. Dave Higgins tells
Jake that they have interviewed Tigger’s Rasta friend. Kate and Jake meet
again and it is obvious that there is a personal relationship growing.
Chapter 30:
This is a short chapter where Jake phones BJ about the Witbooi case. BJ
has no new information, but it is Sondile who gives Jake some hope when
he invites him to accompany him to Valhalla Park with regard to the case.
3
What is meant by “She’s a flake,”?
Can you remember what the problem was with this eye-witness
What is suggested by “His mother… will make his life hell if she finds
out what I’ve found out about her sweet, innocent child.”?