Lockdown

By Wame David Legakwa

In the face of the deadliest virus ever faced by mankind, a novel teacher in the developing village of Goodhope, South of Botswana, begins a tumultous journey.

He finds himself in the middle of trouble when his sense of justice compels him to act and resolve a murder and a series of rape incidences.

Little does he know what lies in wait for him as he faces a life far removed from the profession he trained for.

A moving, fast-paced action that will leave you gawking, as Mosegi is thrown way beyond his capabilities and abilities. And he has to dig deep down his recesses and trust his instincts to survive.

Like a lone lion under attack from a pack of wolves, he thinks on his feet, knowing it's a do or die situation.

Wame David Legakwa is a practising veteran teacher of English in Botswana. His experience as a teacher extends over 22 years. He studied English and Special Education at the University of Botswana and the University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA. He has previous publications which include an anthology of short stories and a motivational. He is also a motivational speaker and a netball coach.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wame David Legakwa
• Release date: Jul 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005545864

Book preview

Lockdown

A Moving, Fast-Paced Action

That Will Leave You Cawking

Wame David Legakwa

Copyright © 2018 Wame David Legakwa

Published by Wame David Legakwa Publishing at Smashwords

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The Author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the Author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 1

The nation waited with bated breath for the president’s speech. It was clear in everyone’s mind what his message would entail. The virus had finally come and the only reasonable thing to do was to lock everyone away. This was obviously unprecedented on many levels.

My people, having considered all options on the table, I have no other choice but to declare a state of emergency. This will be coupled with extreme social distancing, otherwise known as lockdown. From midnight of 2nd April, no one will be allowed to leave their homes. This is the only way we can control the spread of the corona virus. When people don’t move, the virus doesn’t move. I wish you well. Be safe, stay at home.

The announcement was like the culmination no one wished for. In a weird way, it was pleasant to know that the president had made that decision, although it was only too clear what the aftermath would be. There was going to be literally no movement, people had to keep in their houses for twenty eight days. The terrible thing about it wasn’t staying home as such, it was that many people weren’t used to staying home at all. What would they say to the strangers at home? What would one do with that brother they barely spoke with? How would they survive their mother’s tongue-lashing ?

Mosegi was undecided what to do with himself. He had known for quite a while that this eventuality would happen in the end, but he had no plan at all how to spend the time. He had been working in Goodhope for a while now, and he had a few friends. He was confident that he would have company. On Thursday though, late afternoon, it dawned on him that it was going to be a difficult twenty eight days. All of his friends texted indicating that they had departed to their home villages. It was too late to travel anyway, Maun was just too far.

Mosegi made up his mind to stock up. He went to the local store, Choppies, to get what he would need. He secured enough toiletry and food items to last him the entire lockdown period. It was fortunate that he had just been paid. He was that sort of person whose money left his pocket the same day he got it. Thus, Mosegi was satisfied with this beautiful feat; a truly rare occurrence.

As he left the shop, it dawned on him that his happiness was a hoax. How was he going to enjoy all the food by himself? How would he even cook, when he ate from the open space restaurant by the hospital all the time? Did he even remember how to knead dough? Wasn’t he going to need bread every day for his tea? All of a sudden these questions pierced Mosegi’s brain like Chinese acupuncture needles. He was going to need company more than he needed the food.

Being the clever teacher that he was, Mosegi quickly went back into the shop. Desperate times called for desperate measures. He cast a glance across the shop but he couldn’t see what he was looking for. He then went to the back where they sold food, perhaps he would find it there. A young female assistant was busy attending to the impatient customers. Mosegi studied her movements, her definitive features and then made up his mind.

Excuse me! If you were me, and felt really hungry, what would you eat? The lady was taken aback by this curious question, but quickly recovered herself. Goodhope had its share of lunatics. I’m not sure what you’re looking for sir, but if you don’t mind, please place your order! She said this with a stern tone, calculated to put Mosegi in his place. Why did men like to be funny?

Well, that’s my order though. Please bring me what you’d love to eat! The customer behind giggled, obviously listening in on the conversation. It was another lady. She was tall, athletic and donned some tight-fitting All Kasi pants. She wore a cologne that dispensed a rare sweet fragrance, and for a moment Mosegi ran short of both breath and words. She’s waiting, the lady said. Mosegi looked at the shop assistant again, and decided she wasn’t worth his attention anymore. Lady, please order yourself what you’d like, on me!

When the lady and Mosegi left with a bucketful of Choppies’ best chicken goodies, they weren’t aware that the shop assistant was in a foul mood. I’m Mosegi by the way, Mosegi said in the deepest voice he could muster. Lesego, said athletic lady. I really appreciate the kind gesture, you can have my number. It was like Mosegi’s prayers were answered. They exchanged numbers and parted ways.

Lesego walked into the parking lot. Mosegi’s eyes were locked on her as she made her way to a suave Citi Golf at the far end of the parking lot. Before she opened the door, she cast him a lingering glance, like she knew he’d be there, salivating. As she drove past, she waved and smiled. Mosegi felt things that both confused and amazed him. This was going to be a beautiful lockdown.

Chapter 2

Mosegi lay on his back in his bed. It was a big bed. When he bought it, it hadn’t been his intention to. He had gone to look for a small radio just to help him with the boredom as he was new to Goodhope and didn’t have enough money yet. However, the lady from Furniture Mart was too much. He told her he didn’t have a bed yes, but he couldn’t afford to buy such an expensive bed at the time. She however convinced him that he had three months payment holiday. That twisted his arm.

Mosegi looked up the ceiling and counted the ridges in the corrugation sheets. He surprised himself that he was actually doing this, but then again what else was there to do? He didn’t have to cook this particular night as he had eaten out earlier. When he was bored counting the ridges, his mind drifted back to his experience back at Choppies. Was it a coincidence that he met Lesego? Or could it be that he had magical brain powers that brought him fortune with delightful women?

That line of thought caused him to look at his phone. It was a Samsung Duos, always useful for getting him together with his friends. But now its value had all of a sudden shot up. It was the one instrument that was going to deliver him the all-important message. It was this little gadget that was going to connect with a woman whose name he just loved to pronounce. What was he going to say when she said, Halo? Could he trust his instincts and spontaneity?

No, he wasn’t going to leave anything to chance. Mosegi took his phone and opened Google. He typed, How to respond when a woman says halo. A list of suggestions came out. The first one he read went, Respond to the poor girl before consulting the internet. He felt really silly and quickly closed the page. What was wrong with him? Couldn’t he just be himself and respond naturally? But then again, women seemed to have a different wiring to men’s. He might think he was doing what was rational and common sense, yet in the girl’s books he was being idiotic.

The phone rang. Mosegi jumped out of his skin. He could feel a lump in his throat, and his heart beat in discordant rhythms. He checked if his pants properly fitted around his waist and zipped up. He couldn’t be inappropriate speaking to Lesego. Halo, Mosegi said in a high-pitched voice. That wasn’t right, he coughed to clear his voice and tried a little deeper tone. But that was clearly unnecessary. What a waste of energy. The voice on the other end was his mother’s.

Halo Mother, Mosegi said, trying