Chapter 10 One: The Suspects

The search was intense; the Kadi chronicles had mysteriously vanished. Kadi sent men to ransack everybody's house on Kyxhitu island. They had done it twice, yet the chronicles had not been found. Baat sat right next to Fizima, ordering men to different people's homes for yet another search and coiling out people who were tagged to be suspects. There were about three suspects whose houses were searched, including their children's houses or relative's: two were written off the suspect list. Zidudi was the other.

Her house had been ransacked a good number of times. Her children had already been held up as a threat to the chronicle's release. She pleaded with the men to let her go, saying she knew nothing about the chronicle. Of course, it was Baat that set her up; she feared. They dragged her alongside her husband and two of her children to Gishi Kadi (Kadi's palace.) The Gaga Kadi Kyxhitus were always the ones who decided whether a trial would take place and organized the trial with a few other wise men in the locale. "Bring them in," Gaga Kadi Kyxhitu said with a frail but sharp voice.

"Yes, Kadi," one of the Dishi (servers of the palace or guards) said.

"You are no Dishi," Gaga Kadi Kyxhitu said, "You call Gaga, Kadi?" he said strongly, as if he was reprimanding a child. The guard wanted to bend his forehead to the rug, but Gaga stamped his feet speedily. The guards pushed Zidudi and her husband into the palace as they begged for pardon.

"We did nothing, my Lords," Zidudi said, "We don't work around here, my Lords."

"I'm a craftsperson, my Lords," Zidudi's husband said.

Everybody in the room burst out into loud laughter, including Zidudi. They were quite astonished to hear that he was a craftsperson. Craftsmen were very well into the disdain line. They were considered as people who couldn't fight for Kyxhitu when the need arose. The reason for the despair has always been a cultural thing that only history can tell. Zidudi had always feared this would happen, and her children would be craftspeople like their father. A fisherman would have been better for a confession. "What do you craft, young man?" Gaga asked.

"Baskets, mats," Zidudi's husband said anxiously.

"You weave hair too?" Hadi asked in disgust.

"No, Hadi," he replied.

Gaga stood up from his large seat and moved closer to them, specifically Zidudi.

"Do you know anything about the chronicles? This is your last chance to confess. If you don't," he said and looked away, "Your children will watch you hang." Zidudi and her husband began to weep. They knelt with their hands high up and subsequently bent their foreheads to the rug. Zidudi watched Baat's mean stare turn into a glare of mockery and mischief. Kadi sat clueless: he believed he had failed his ancestors in protecting the chronicle. Gaga ordered his guards to put the suspects in custody.

"The craftsperson has nothing to do with this," Hadi yelled. He stood up and walked to the men like he wanted to help them, "The lady must know," he gave a deep look into Zidudi's eyes. "I'd fuck you, but you are too dirty for me," Hadi said. Gaga was not very comfortable with that because of his facial reaction.

"Where do you work, young woman?" Baat asked.

"I… I… I… don't work anymore," she spluttered with a teary voice. "I worked at a school, I was fired," she was very lachrymose.

"Liar!" Hadi yelled and turned back to his seat, "Take her away. Keep her husband. He'll be very useful here." Zidudi cried out loud as they carried her to the cell.

Gaga was filled with annoyance by Baat's actions. "What are you doing? Her husband's a suspect," Gaga said.

"I found her to be a suspect, not her husband," Hadi said, "He was only involved because he was an adult who could have a hand in this." Hadi saw the disappointment in Gaga's face while he talked. "Look, with all I've analyzed and theories I've put forward, she's the only one that would know about the chronicles, and not her husband."

"And why do you say that?" Gaga asked.

"She's been lying to us from the beginning," Hadi said very convincingly. "I checked her records. She never worked in a school. She'd previously worked as a Kyxhitu spy in Daso, she's not someone we can trust," he added.

"I'd like to see the records."

"You don't believe me? Are you suggesting I'm lying?" Hadi questioned.

"No, no, son. But we need to be sure. We're dealing with humans here; we can't be impetuous."

"Anyway, you'll see the records after the trial. They've been locked up for safekeeping," Hadi said as he walked back to his seat. Gaga wasn't quite comfortable with the plan of trying Zidudi rather than talking about eliminating her. He felt something wasn't right – he didn't think Zidudi stole the chronicles – he thought of Horaeti. Kadi's devastated expression was still boldly written.

"Have you heard anything about Horaeti, Fizima?" Gaga asked.

"She didn't do that," Kadi said calmly.

"I have a feeling she's the one," Gaga said.

"No, she didn't," his voice a little more energized.

"We should check out for her," Gaga said.

"She didn't!" Kadi said with all the energy he had. "Horaeti has not been here in years. She's human like you, like me. She has feelings and emotions, those are real things, yet you keep raising all sorts of blasphemy against her; she can't fly up here and steal the chronicles," Kadi shouted. Gaga kept an incredulous look, and so did Hadi. "She'd always avoided coming here because of you. She'd sometimes sleep in the forest because you were around, she'd try to quit because you were around," he said, jerking out all the anger that had been buried deep for God knows how long. "You never really liked her, you never cared about her. But she's my daughter, and she's the one I see fit for this position after me. Whatever it is you try to do to hold back on her, I'm sorry Gaga, but the plan has failed," he stood up, "You better begin to abort the plan."

Gaga watched Kadi as he stepped down. A built, muscular man in his middle age who had just felt he had let his daughter down because he had tried to meet his father's expectations. Maybe he had said it out of anger, or bitter sincerity. He walked down the dais and ordered his men to accompany him out.

Just before he walked through the door, a guard came and said something in a low tone to Kadi. Kadi's face brightened in expectance as he walked back to the dais. "Bring the child in," Kadi said as he sat down.

The little boy of about eight to ten years of age walked in diffidently with the guards tapping his back. "What's your confession, Jaki?" Kadi asked sternly. 'Jaki' meant boy or young man in the literal English translation. It took the boy some time to answer, but before he did, he looked at Hadi apprehensively for a long time.

"I saw one of Hadi Kyxhitu's guards walk into the Liou," the boy said.

They all stared at Hadi in utter despondence.