Chapter Seven

 

 

Maya’s world of crime became the center of her life. “This,” in her words, “is a pathway to my destiny.” She didn’t question what she was doing, because all that mattered to her was unveiling who she truly was—to find her destiny. Under the watchful eyes of Ms. Diana, Craig, and the other initiates, she was able to pass her other assignments by following the necessary instructions in the same way she’d had success with the first one.

The projects in assignment two were as successful as anticipated. July 18, August 15, September 12, October 3 and December 8, 2000 were some of Maya’s greatest moments. PIMP X, the Real Don, known as the prince of Swaziland, and the Big Man were thoroughly satisfied with Maya’s company; they couldn’t wait to have more of her!

Three days before February 3, 2001, Ms. Diana and Maya met at the La Pierre hotel to discuss the blueprint for both the next mission and the rest that fell under the Drug Trafficking arm. Since this was the final set of assignments, Ms. Diana was especially adamant about Maya’s success. “All hands must be on deck, so to speak, as we attain the full potential of our goal…to be the most respected teen confraternity in Africa and possibly the world.” With those words, she unveiled a plan that she was sure would grant Maya great success.

“First and foremost, Maya, you will have to employ every caution here. Just as you’ve done in the past, you must use all of


the combined effects of the physical and mystical powers you’ve been taught. What I’m trying to say is, don’t let your past successes get into your head and make you careless!

“I have done my part. Contacts are being made throughout the destination perimeters you will go to deliver the parcels in your possession. But your part will have to be played to ensure the success we aspire to, using you as the 39th Initiate. As the courier, you will have to take the following steps.

“You must be in Nelspruit before February 3rd, because the Baron Da Mafia, my good friend, has informed me, through his personal assistant, Mr. Deliverer, that there are loads of competitors around the Nelspruit axis who will be arriving with the same 50kgs’ worth of narcotics. In his words, ‘If you don’t come before the date, I can guarantee you, madam, you will miss him!’

This is how you’ll go about it. On February 1, I will pay for your plane ticket to Nelspruit and for the Nelspruit Hotel, where you’ll be lodged. The moment you’re there, please call my number. Then I will call Mr. Deliverer, letting him know that you’re in town, and he will send an agent to come pick you up at the hotel. You’ll be at the place of Baron Da Mafia, friends with Mr. Deliverer, until the date of delivery.”

Ms. Diana grinned at Maya. “This will prevent other competitors from snatching this opportunity. It’s almost as if the wholesale has been handed to us on a platter of gold!”

The two of them shared a smile for a moment, and then Ms.

Diana got back to business.

“Ensure that you get to know of Baron Da Mafia’s whereabouts the moment you’re taken to his Nelspruit mansion, and inform me as well. Remember to call me.”


Maya nodded impatiently and had to bite back a sigh. These were things she already knew.

Ms. Diana gazed at Maya intently. “Don’t be like that. You must listen; this is very important. With the parcel in your possession, please wait for his arrival so that he can buy the parcel at the stipulated 130,000 Rands.

“Mr. Deliverer will then take you to the Nelspruit Local Airport, where you’ll board the next available flight to Durban. I’ll be waiting for you at the airport for the money.”

She put a hand on Maya’s shoulder. “Rest assured, all has been put together to ensure that these operations go without a hitch. All I require from you is that you do your part like you’ve always done. One more thing: these tactics will be the same as regards the Bloemfontein area, Polokwane zone and Johannesburg axis drug-trade. The same rules apply, but only names that differ.”

Maya happily replied, “Ms. Diana, be certain that this is a done deal! I can almost see my destiny now!”

“Maya, you’re already there! Your destiny is there for you to attain!”

The final assignment in 2001 was characterized by various success stories. Maya used the same tactics each time, and they were all successful. Conveying drugs to the stated destinations of Ms. Diana’s connections yielded the anticipated money. On the stipulated dates, the Nelspruit, Bloemfontein and Polokwane drug deals produced what Ms. Diana wanted – money and firmer connections through Maya’s prowess.

But something happened during the Johannesburg drug deal.

Having done all of the works assigned to her without questions so far, it seemed strange to Maya that she had not received the payment that had been promised to her. She let it go for a while,


but as the days and months progressed and she still didn’t have any money coming her way, she finally had to ask someone. And that “someone” was Craig.

She approached him one day while they were at home and said, “Craig, something’s been bothering me, and I have to ask you about it.”

He looked up from watching the TV. “What is it?”

She asked, “When will get my 15 percent of the money?”

“As soon as you’re done with the whole assignments! Remember, you don’t question our activities!” Then he turned back to his program.

This did not satisfy Maya, and she asked him several times about it over the next week or so. He would get mad and tell her the same thing, and she would go away without any more answers.

It got to a point where she couldn’t take it any longer. Maya started doing what she wanted to do. She wouldn’t come to the initiation ground as instructed, was hardly ever at home with Craig, and started to keep late nights at clubs outside Durban. These were against the ALC’s DOs and DON’Ts.

Two nights before the Johannesburg drug trip, as she sat alone in one of the clubs she went to, she thought to herself, “It appears I’ve been brainwashed. I’ve been following a very vague path to my so-called destiny…true self. Anyway, I have harboured the sleep of mistakes and it’s about time I engaged my waking of corrections! But before I do that, I’ll have to give Ms. Diana, Craig, and the entirely-sick ALC a taste of their poison.”

She took a sip of her drink and smiled as she planned. “This next ‘assignment’ is going to be different. I’m going to do things my own way! This time around, the proceeds from this deal are all mine! I don’t care, and I damn the whole consequences of what


might happen between me and the ALC. After all, I have my connections in the whole of Johannesburg, and I trust my connection, Carr Singles, to do the job for me! When I get the money from him at D’People Pub in Johannesburg, I’ll be on my way out of South Africa to Paris to enjoy myself. All I need do is to ensure that the money is paid to me, not to Ms. Diana again! May 30, 2001 mustn’t pass me by! , she told herself.”

Violation by any initiate, as observed by the ALC, “will lead to the attack of the society on him or her.” It meant that the long arm of the law would catch up with the person. In other words, Ms. Diana and the ALC had the police in their pocket, and could turn in a traitor with no questions asked.

Because of the fact that Maya was a household name in South African politics and known in other Southern African countries, she thought her “connections” would help her in her final Johannesburg deal. Unfortunately, that was not a reality.

One of Maya’s connections, and her confidant, Carr Singles – who, ironically, was planted by Ms. Diana to watch for any unusual moves by Maya – was the one who busted Maya’s plot to Ms. Diana, who in turn informed Craig.

Two days after Carr Singles told Ms. Diana of Maya’s intentions; she called for a meeting with Craig at her Durban Lodge to discuss what had happened, and what kind of movement they should take against Maya.

Sitting on the spacious porch, comfortably sitting in lounge chairs and sipping glasses of whisky, Craig and Ms. Diana considered Maya’s change of behavior.

“Craig, I’m very surprised about Maya’s behaviour. She thinks that she can take us for a ride. Who does she think she is?”

“Please, what do you mean, Ms. Diana?” Craig seemed very perplexed. He hadn’t had an inkling of Maya’s change in attitude.


“Craig, do you know that Maya wants to put us out of the Johannesburg drug deal?”

Craig was shocked. “What do you mean? This can’t be possible! Maya is the most trusted initiate we have. She knows the implications of violating the rules of the ALC! Who told you this?”

“My dear Craig, Carr Singles did. Remember that for every assignment Maya has covered, the ALC had informants who were planted to monitor her moves and report back to me.”

“Going by what you’ve said, that means that the mystical power is about to dim in its illuminating power of greatness.” Craig got up and paced about, clearly agitated. “Ms. Diana, what do we do now? It appears that Maya has suddenly de-programmed her from our spell! I see danger coming!”

“Where is your faith, Craig?” Ms. Diana asked calmly as she sipped her whisky. “It appears you’ve been carried away by what has happened.” She leaned forward and gestured for Craig to sit back down. The satisfied smile on her face calmed him somewhat, and he took his seat again.

She said, “All we need do is to put Maya behind bars.” Then she frowned as another thought occurred to her. “But by doing so, all my phone lines would have to be disposed of and put out of the GPS coverage areas in this country.” She waved away the thought dismissively, and sighed. “For sure, we’ll get a replacement for Maya in time. But she must be seriously punished!”

“I agree with you. Maya deserves to be revealed to the law- loving general public! We have to deal with her now!”

“I’m grateful to Carr Singles for this information. I have known him for years as one who can be relied on when it comes to information.”

She added drily, “…provided the money is there to be paid.”


Her fingers curled in anger. “For without him, Maya would have gotten away with the life-changing 100 Million Rand deal!”

“I’d have found out sooner or later…” Craig felt some jealousy that Ms. Diana approved of someone over him.

Her gaze was cold as she gazed at him. “Don’t forget that Carr is part of the Johannesburg police team, working for the ALC as an informant. This is why I trusted him to tell me the truth. Now we’ll have to use our connections in the police force and have Carr work for us, pretending to be working with her as her ‘connection.’ Then he will secretly engage the service of the Johannesburg police to come arrest her!”

“You’re indeed a goddess, but the physical type! You have everything all planned out from inception! It’s really good to be associated with a goddess!!” Craig gushed, a happy grin on his face.

She shook her head.

“Don’t flatter me, Craig. I know what I’m called for, and I’m here to protect the faith at all costs. That is all.”

She reached for her calendar. “Now, today’s date is…” “May 27, 2001,” Craig interrupted.

“Yes! I will put a call through to Carr Singles about what we’ve discussed. After that, we will disengage our phone lines.”

“Okay, Ms. Diana,” Craig agreed.

The call was made, and everything was planned so that all would go smoothly. Maya would be the unsuspecting scapegoat when the time came to hit it big in Johannesburg.

 

May 30, 2001 was the date Maya thought her dream would come true. She met Carr Singles at the Johannesburg popular pub joint, D’People. Maya told him that she was there with the


consignment, but she had left it at the hotel, a few buildings away from the pub.

“If you will follow me, you can have your consignment. Do you have the money as we agreed, Carr?”

“Yes, Maya. Don’t you trust me? Let’s go to the hotel, since you said that is where the consignment is. Remember, all I need do is to call my boss – you know, Mr. Bruce – about the consignment, and you know what happens. Your check will be signed right away. It’s that simple. Maya, let’s go to the hotel and see what you got.”

Though Maya suspected his unusual attitude, her attention was centered on what she would gain.

Meanwhile, the Johannesburg police had been contacted to track them by Carr himself. Because of Ms. Diana’s influence, they did not ask questions. They were all disguised as customers and passers-by, as they secretly kept an eye on both of them.

Carr and Maya were trailed by the policemen as they made their way to the hotel. As Maya unlocked the door to her hotel room in the company of Carr, they heard voices and running feet. As they looked back, they heard a sudden command: “Johannesburg police! Put your hands above your heads! You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be used against you in the court of law!”

One of the policemen, Jen Robins, ordered Maya, “Lady, open that door. Let’s see what’s in the room.”

“Let me call my lawyer, please,” Maya requested, after seeing the search warrant held out by Police Officer Robins, as the men ransacked her hotel room to find the 30kg drug parcel.

“Woman,” Jen shook his head, “I don’t think that will be necessary!” He turned to the officer beside him. “Jake, handcuff her.”


Maya was handcuffed and taken away from the hotel room by the three other policemen.

As she was being led away, Robins turned to Maya’s traitor. “It’s a pleasure working with you, Singles. You’re an asset to the force. Well done!” Jen commended him, patting him on his back.

Maya was shocked.

“You set me up! Carr, why did you do this to me?! I can’t believe you betrayed me at a time I needed you the most! I didn’t know that you have been my enemy all this time! I’ve made the biggest mistake of my life…trusting you, Carr! I never knew you were a policeman! You bastard!”

“Never trust anyone, Maya!” Carr sneered. “Never bite the fingers that fed you! Never bite the hands of Ms. Diana! You can rant all you like, but the long arm of the law has caught up with you. Good riddance to bad rubbish!”

Maya’s world came crashing in on her. Handcuffed and in chains, all roads led to the Crime Court in Johannesburg on June 1, 2001. She was sentenced to three years in prison.