10.

When Miisi returned to the campsite, he found Kusi’s military presence littered all over the hill. At first, elation surged through his body—Kusi had managed to come to the reunion, however late—but then he was alarmed: Kusi had come with all her army paraphernalia. It was three o’ clock and local residents had begun to arrive. Miisi was worried that the little village would be frightened by the presence of so many armed soldiers. What did people think of armed men in their sacred place? Miisi rushed to apologize.

But as he walked through the camp he noticed that the earlier anxiety over Muganda seemed to have thawed. The cousins were clearly waiting for him. He braced himself for the usual curiosities about him being Kusi’s father—why had he not mentioned it; where did the name Kusi come from? But she is so tall!

As soon as she saw him, Kusi hurried toward him and threw herself at him. There was an unusual vulnerability in her eyes. She looked tired and her air of self-control was gone.

“Before you complain, Mzei, I have done all the rituals I was told to perform. I’ve put my mud on the shrine. I’ve buried the patriarch and I’ve drawn three jerricans of the ‘Holy’ water from the gorge to take home for everyone. When I get back, the first thing I’ll do is to have an ablution.”

“It’s true. She did as she was told,” Elder Kitooke stepped in. Then in an injured tone he asked, “Now, why didn’t you tell us that the distinguished General Salamander is our daughter, Miisi?”

“Her name is Kusi. Salamander is her war persona. How is Muganda?” Miisi changed the subject.

“Kusi has a few Tutsis in her personnel. One of them gave us some blood and Muganda is coming around.”

“Kusi cannot stay. As you can see, her men are like red ants,” Miisi said apologetically.

“I am taking you with me, Father,” Kusi said, her in-charge aura back. “There’re critical issues I need you to help me with.”

“But I can’t just leave. I have a duty here.”

“Miisi, if our child needs you,” Kityo pointed at Kusi, “then she needs you. Everything here is done, all that is left is to make sure that the taboo is disposed of safely. We shall bring you a full report.”

“Where is Kamu?”

“He could not come.”

“I am not sure—”

“You know my job, Father,” Kusi interrupted. “Today I am here, tomorrow I am there. When something should be done, it’s done immediately.”

“All right then,” Miisi, feeling ganged-up on, conceded. “Kitooke, Bweeza, and Kityo, we need to bring the child, Kalema, into the clanfold. We also need to decide how we’re going to keep this place going. How do we stay in touch with the Tanzanians? We need to find a caretaker.”

“Don’t worry. We won’t do anything without consulting you.”

“Kityo and Kitooke, you must take care of Kalema. He needs careful attention.”

“Of course, now go,” Kityo waved Miisi on to leave.

In a moment, Miisi was packed but as he walked to Kusi’s car he remembered. “About Suubi—Bweeza, what is your plan?”

“Tomorrow, I’ll take her back home. I’ll stay with her until she is able to use her hands again.”

“That is selfless of—”

“I am the Great Aunt. What else is my duty if not to look after lost ones like Suubi?”

“I would like to hear Suubi’s side of the story though. As soon as I am finished with Kusi, I’ll find her and we shall talk.”

Miisi hugged his three cousins. “I think we’ve done a good job so far,” he whispered. “Tell Isaac I will have to see him again to thank him for his good work and,” Miisi said as he got in the car, “You must come to my home and visit. I have a lot of little kaperes.”

As he waved at the elders, Miisi was sure he had seen a distinct look of worry on their faces but he did not dwell on it.

All the way home, he could not get Suubi out of his mind. To him, Suubi’s spinning was similar to the lambs’ kicking as they were slaughtered. Was transpossession the “slaughtering” of consciousness? He had heard of the “slain in the spirit” phenomenon in the new churches. Had the Christians inadvertently stumbled onto something profound? When Muganda was possessed, he fell as if dead. Was this because his consciousness did not resist being suppressed? Miisi was frustrated. It was all so elusive. How could he retrieve it from Christian perversion when he could not grasp it himself? He could not wait to talk to Suubi about her experiences.