Kagiso was taken aback for a moment to hear Lesedi himself, not the assistant he had been dealing with up till then, at the end of the line. And he was surprised by how ‘white’ the accent was. It was reminiscent of the still-white suburbs of Cape Town, certainly not Mitchell’s Plain.

‘Hey! I’m fine. Are you on your way?’

‘Yeah. I think I’m about an hour away, two at the most. I’ve just stopped to get something to eat. It was an early start.’

‘How many of you are coming?’

‘Just me.’

‘Really? I thought you would be …’

‘You sound shocked. I know we Motlantshes are meant to travel with an entourage, just to show how important we are.’ Lesedi was laughing.

‘Well, we’ll be ready and waiting.’

‘You make it sound like I’m about to walk into an ambush!’ Another chuckle.

‘No one’s going to ambush you here. Listen, you’re the biggest thing that’s happened here since some American rapper passed through on his way to the Sabi Sabi game lodge. Most of them probably just want to shake your hand.’

‘I’d better brush up on my rap, man.’ That chuckle again. It was infectious.

‘So how do you want to play things today?’ Kagiso asked.

‘I don’t plan on making any big speeches or anything. I just want to listen. I know there’s a lot of loose talk about what the Motlantshes are up to and I’d like to reassure people.’

Ever since the meeting had been arranged, Kagiso had rehearsed the various ways in which he might broach their disagreements. He was acutely conscious that he was about to change the tone of the conversation. ‘Well, I wouldn’t say it’s all just loose talk. At Soil of Africa we think there are other ways of taking care of the land and the people who live on it.’

‘I know. I’ve been looking at your website. Your achievements are pretty impressive. Maybe there are things we can talk about … You know, reach a compromise.’

This was unexpected, but Kagiso remained wary. ‘I certainly hope so. People here just see all these land deals and feel betrayed. And the new black owners are as bad as the old white ones. And now we’ve got all these foreigners coming in …’

‘Look, I know, there’s a lot to discuss. Maybe it would be good if we – you and I – could get a few minutes to chat on our own, away from the others. I don’t agree with everything that’s going on and I want to find a way to help.’

‘Well, just tell your father and his friends.’

‘You don’t know my father! Anyway, see you just now.’