“Don’t think, Rra,” she said, “that what you are doing, your work in the hospital up there, is not appreciated. Nobody might ever have said thank you to you, but I do now, Rra. I say thank you for what you do.”

He had lowered his gaze, but now he looked at her, and she found herself staring into those unnerving green eyes.

“Thank you, Mma,” he said. And then he picked up his knife and fork and began to eat.

Mma Ramotswe watched discreetly as she started on her own plate of food. She saw the way his knife moved, delicately, with precision.

MR. J.L.B. MATEKONI talked to Charlie that afternoon.

“You can stop work today, Charlie,” he said. “I have made up your final pay packet.”

Charlie wiped his hands on a piece of paper towel. “This stuff isn’t as good as lint, Boss,” he said, frowning at the towel. “Lint gets grease off much better.”

“Paper towel is the modern thing,” said Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. “Paper towel and that scouring powder. That is very good for grease.”

“Well, I won’t need that any more,” said Charlie. “Except maybe when I service the taxi.”

“Don’t forget to do that,” warned Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. “It is an old car. Those old cars need regular oil changes. So change your oil every two months, Charlie. You will never regret that.”

The apprentice beamed with pleasure. “I will, Boss.”

Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni looked at him from under his eyebrows. He doubted that the car would be well looked after, but he had steeled himself to let Charlie get on with his plans. And now it had come to the point where he would say goodbye and hand over the car. There was an agreement to be signed, of course, because Charlie did not have the money to pay for the vehicle and it would have to be paid off month by month for almost three years. Even then, he wondered whether he would ever see the money, or all of it, as of the two apprentices Charlie had always been the more financially irresponsible one and always tried to borrow towards the end of the month when money got tight.

Charlie glanced at the document which Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni had drawn up and that had been typed out by Mma Makutsi that afternoon. He would pay six hundred pula a month until the cost of the car had been covered. He would make sure that it was insured. If he could not keep up the payments he would give the car back to Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, who would pay the book price for it. That was all.

“You should read that carefully,” said Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. “It is a legal document, you know.”