Her Tattered Prince

Chapter 6

When the three young men who accompanied Kingston reached them, they were shocked to see him lifting up a young woman on to his horse and mounting behind her.

He was not the type to open up and was not approachable to strangers. He was friendly to locals and would often let his guard down when playing and running around with the little kids who had become regular visitors to his cabin.

They knew better not to ask questions, they could only acknowledge the young woman although skeptically.

They rode in silence.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when he whispered very close to her ear, his warm breath caressing her, the sensation causing her body to tingle and delight in the feeling

“You never told me your name.”

“My name is Katlo and I want to thank you for everything you are doing for me”.

“No worries, it is the least I could do after my unbecoming behaviour towards you.” He assured her.

“For the third time why were you alone in the middle of nowhere, separated from your colleagues?” he probed.

She remembered that she never answered any of the questions he asked. She was infuriated then, to worry about his questions.

“We have couple of minutes to get to the homestead, I am all ears.”

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. The way he spoke irritated her. She did not like the commanding authoritative voice he often used. Yet, she had to admit that there was a presence about him that no one could ignore.

“Who the hell does he think he is, he has a chip on his shoulder and feels entitled for someone herding cattle and living in a cattle post”

She could not help herself thinking that much about him as she puckered her lips in annoyance.

Nevertheless, she owed him that much. If it was not for him she did not even want to imagine what could have happened to her. It all came flooding in, the experience of the past hours.

She could not contain herself and broke into a sob. She wept shamelessly. She had to get it out of her system.

His heart felt heavy at the sight of her sobbing uncontrollably. Instinctively, he wrapped one arm around her and pulled her closer to him.

“There now Katlo, you are safe with me. I will not let anything to happen to you” He spoke into her ear, comforting her.

It took her a while to regain her composure. She narrated her ordeal to him, how lost she was and that she had been walking since morning.

“The whole time you did not realise you were wandering further away from your destination?” he asked in bewilderment.

He composed himself upon realising that he was questioning whether she had developmental topographical disorientation and that could not auger well with her.

She raised her chin in defence “How was I supposed to know that? Everything looked the same besides my sense of bearing not being good.”

He shook his head and muttered something inaudible to himself.

“I heard that!” she exclaimed accusingly.

“As a herdboy, I bet you know the veld like the palm of your hand.” She snapped.

He c****d his head to one side and smiled at the mention of that word again, ‘herdboy’.

If only she could refer to him as a herdman he was not some teenager.

Not that he had a problem being mistaken for a cattle herder, infact he was more than happy because that was the whole point, to blend in.

It felt good not to have the image of what he was haunt him. For some reason, deep down it mattered to him what she thought of him.

He managed to stay low and it seemed the young woman had no clue to his real identity. If she did, nothing betrayed that knowledge of him.

Besides, most people her age would not be stuck up on newspapers and news.

He found it amusing at the thought of being mistaken for a thief who wanted to rob her of her valuables.

With a smile still on his lips, he gathered his thoughts back to her.

“It is about an hour’s walk now to Xanaga” he stated. “Since darkness is upon us, you should rest for the night, my place is just around the corner” he pointed.

Indeed she could clearly see smoke rising nearby. She swore she could even hear the sound of children’s laughter.

“I will personally take you to your new home the following day.

Despite his arrogance, she thought he was very kind-hearted.

***

True to his word, a cabin came into view. There was a visible fence with six strands of barbed wire. Each strand stretched taut to ensure there was no sag between the line posts. The fence stretched further and beyond.

A little boy came rushing from nowhere to open the bull gates.

As they rode in with the herd following, she could not help but notice that there were huts within, although sporadically positioned. Hen houses were built close to the huts.

From afar she could make out what were paddocks which were used for the calves and small stock.

There was some acres of land that stretched beyond the horizon.

Katlo was relieved when Kingston guided the horse to the cabin leaving the rest of the work to the other men.

As much as she knew cattle post were not meant for comfort, it was usually some shack in the absence of proper structure.

She was impressed with the cabin which looked like it could be cosy inside.

For Kingston, the cabin was his sanctuary. The cattle post had provided him with the therapy he needed; being in one with nature, surrounded by the wilderness.

Since he came to the cattle post, he had learnt a lot and even to appreciate small things in life. He chose to live among the herd boys, to serve and live like them.

His survival skills had improved. He knew most trees in the unenclosed communal grazing area and could even distinguish those with medicinal properties.

They would sometimes let the cattle out in the morning to graze in the communal grazing area.

Then they would later traverse the farmland rounding the cattle up for the night and herd them back to avoid being killed and eaten by wild animals.

He had become an expert at trekking Guinea fowls and small game like bucks. It was his most adventurous activity.

The feeling of coming back with some meat, and calling the neighbours for a braai was what he loved the most.

The braai would often be followed by storytelling, dance and sometimes a strong bottled alcohol for the boys who were of age. Such nights were even better during the full moon.

Kingston dismounted and helped her down.

When she stepped inside she was disappointed to realise that there was no electricity and any form to suggest plumbing. Her heart sank.