Spirit of the Witch Doctor (eBook)

An SA Police Series Suspense Story, Book 7

Gerrie Radlof, Pieter Haasbroek (Autoren)

Pieter Haasbroek (Herausgeber)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025 | 1. Auflage
116 Seiten
Pieter Haasbroek (Verlag)
9780001021617 (ISBN)

Infos

The victims are torn to shreds, their bodies savaged beyond recognition.

The only clue left behind is the footprint of a barefoot man.

Is it man, beast... or something far more sinister?

In the remote tobacco fields of the South African veld, a community is paralyzed by whispers of a vengeful witch doctor. When local police are left powerless against a series of gruesome murders, they send for their best. It is the legendary Detective Sergeant Kobus Roode. He's a man who finds answers, but this case defies all logic. A savage killer with superhuman strength that vanishes into the night.

On the sprawling Orinoco farm, Kobus finds not solace, but a web of secrets. A reclusive farmer with a hidden laboratory, his beautiful daughter caught in the middle, and a suspicious houseguest all watch his every move. As Kobus survives a brutal attack, he uncovers a conspiracy far more terrifying than any supernatural legend, and realizes the hunter has just become the hunted.

This action-packed mystery blends the relentless pace of a classic adventure with the chilling suspense of a scientific thriller. Perfect for fans of Alistair MacLean, Wilbur Smith, and pulse-pounding pulp fiction.

What happens when justice faces forces it can't comprehend? Spirit of the Witch Doctor, the thrilling seventh book in the SA Police Series, plunges into a gripping narrative where pulp, action, and mystery confront the supernatural. Begin your journey into the mystical today!

Textauszug

7. SPIRIT OF THE WITCH DOCTOR

Chapter 1

THE TRACELESS DEATH

“This is a chilling case, Kobus,” said Major Sonnenberg gravely as he looked at the young sergeant leaning against the window frame. “I had the records checked but could not unearth any similar cases. I have also never heard of such a thing before. I must frankly admit that it baffles me.”

Kobus Roode did not answer immediately. Although he cherished as much respect for Major Sonnenberg as one human can have for another, he had always been treated as a friend within the Chief of Detectives’ office. For this reason, his crew-cut head was not now covered by his police cap, and his broad shoulders were slightly stooped because one hand rested in his trouser pocket while he stood beside the window, lost in thought, with one leg crossed over the other. His left hand stroked his strong chin. Only his eyes, beneath straight, regular brows, were alert, the light within them indicating his deep concentration. The Major’s words had ignited his imagination; the images they conjured were not pleasant.

“But are you honestly telling me that the local sergeant could make nothing of the tracks?” he eventually asked, in his business-like and distinct manner.

“That is what troubles me most, Kobus,” the Major answered at once. “According to the report, the only tracks in the vicinity are those of a barefoot black man.”

“So you mean to suggest,” Kobus quickly summarised the Major’s words, “that this could possibly be the handiwork of human beings?”

“It is incomprehensible!” exclaimed Major Sonnenberg as he walked once around the desk to stand near Kobus Roode. “Even a lion wouldn’t leave such horrific wounds on its prey after pouncing on it. The three victims found thus far have been literally torn to shreds. It is impossible to determine the purpose of the attacks. The sadism apparent from the mutilation could almost only come from a deranged mind. I cannot imagine that any animal, unless it were utterly mad, would launch such an attack merely to kill its prey.”

Kobus squared his shoulders. He pushed himself away from the wall, turned his back slightly, and looked out of the window. He was of medium height and not too heavyset, but there was a litheness and pride in his bearing that bespoke the muscular strength of his body.

“So, according to the report, three victims have been found. The area was combed after the very first attack took place. But nothing was found. Did they use dogs to try and follow the trail?”

“They did,” the Chief of Detectives assured him. “But as you know, all three were black men. Two were employees of Louis de Goede, a wealthy tobacco farmer in the Rustenburg district, and the murders were committed on his farm; the third was on a neighbouring farm.”

“You call it murder?” Kobus asked quickly.

“Yes.” Major Sonnenberg sighed. He wiped his hand over his forehead. “It is as though the whole business is taking on that complexion, Kobus. I don’t know. I could be wrong, but I suspect foul play. The dogs sniffed the tracks, but because none of the attacks occurred in remote or deserted places, there were too many other fresh tracks from other farm folk who had walked there, even during the previous night.”

“So you want me to go there personally?”

The Major nodded. It was not the first time he had given the young sergeant a break from his studies. Kobus Roode had begun his career as a mounted constable at rural police outposts. As a result of reports concerning his skill and the results of certain investigations received by headquarters, he was eventually summoned there after having already attained the rank of sergeant. He was still only in his twenties and the youngest detective sergeant in the service. At headquarters, he had to immerse himself in research and the perusal of old files, and was required to continue his studies immediately. His commanding officer soon noticed that the young man was growing restless and that he still longed for the outdoors and the feel of a pair of reins between the fingers of his left hand. The Major swiftly found a solution for this. Baffling cases like this one, of the three mutilated bodies of the black men, were referred to headquarters from time to time. Although Major Sonnenberg was reluctant to impede Kobus’s progress, he had already, on a few occasions, given him the opportunity to take charge of an investigation.

“You’re not just doing this because you feel my hands are itching to tackle the case?” Kobus asked cautiously.

“There is no one else I can send, Kobus,” the Chief of Detectives replied. He knew Kobus considered it an honour to be chosen to go, but on the other hand, there was no one to whom he could entrust the case with greater peace of mind. Time and again, Kobus had proven that within a few days he could sniff out a secret and crush a clandestine plot where the local police had come up against a sheer, baffling wall.

“Have you already considered the best way to begin?” Kobus enquired modestly, for although he had read the report thoroughly, the Major had had more time to study it.

“The epicentre of these activities is apparently Louis de Goede’s farm, Orinoco. That’s the name of the type of tobacco from which he makes his money. I will telegraph him at once to say you are coming. Perhaps you should stay with him for the time being. I will also inform the sergeant. He has two white and four non-white constables at his post in Boshoek, a few miles beyond Rustenburg that you are taking over the investigation. You can, of course, get full details from him.”

“When must I depart?”

“As soon as you are ready, Kobus. Our police vehicles will probably not be of much use in that mountainous terrain. You had better go by train and use the jeep at Boshoek.”

Sergeant Retief saluted smartly, and with clear relief on his face, he shook Kobus’s hand on the platform of the small station at Boshoek. A native constable took Kobus’s suitcase.

“Good heavens, Sergeant Roode!” Retief exclaimed. “I am glad to see you.”

Kobus smiled. He immediately liked the forty-year-old police officer. When he was younger and had been in the service only a short time, he had had the good fortune to work under such a man, and that had contributed to him receiving the Service Medal.

“I came as soon as I could,” he assured him. “Major Sonnenberg only received your report a few days ago.”

“I know.” Sergeant Retief looked at the carriage door behind Kobus and then along the windows. Only a few people were disembarking at Boshoek, but some of the other travellers got out to stretch their limbs. A slight frown appeared on Retief’s forehead.

“Were you expecting someone else as well?” Kobus enquired.

“No, but… but where are your men?”

“My men?” Kobus laughed. “I came alone, Sergeant.”

“Alone!” Retief’s eyes widened. Then a look of disappointment crept in, and he slowly shook his head.

“This won’t be the first case that I…”

“I know your history well, Sergeant Roode,” Retief assured him. “I know that you have often succeeded where many others have failed. You are surely the most famous sergeant in the police force. But do you realise what is going on here?”

“I have read the report.”

“It was impossible to describe the full truth in words,” said Retief earnestly as they walked through the small station building. “This is the most ghastly reign of terror I have ever heard of. The victims are horrifically…” He shivered and put a hand over his eyes as if to block the scene from his mind’s eye. “And not a single clue, Sergeant. Not a single one. I get the impression that the prey is not stalked and then pounced upon, because the tracks seem to suggest… it is almost as if… it is almost as if it will suddenly turn around and tear you to pieces, and then calmly walk on again. There is so little indication of where the danger came from. The most ferocious gorilla… if such things existed in these parts… might be able to inflict such wounds. But even then, they would have to have been exceptionally large and powerful beasts.” He sighed. “So you must not take it as an insult, Sergeant,” he apologised. “But I really thought that headquarters would send sufficient reinforcements.”

“If it proves necessary… after my preliminary investigation… I can assure you I will not fail to have a whole troop brought in.”

Sergeant Retief slid behind the steering wheel of the jeep and Kobus took a seat beside him. As soon as the native constable had jumped onto the back, they pulled away into the dusty street, towards the police station on the edge of the small town.

“My few men and I have combed the area around the places where we found the unfortunate creatures, to the best of our ability,” Retief continued. “But we are just a handful. It would take even a hundred men days to search the slopes and thickets around there.”

“So far you have found absolutely nothing?”

“Nothing, Sergeant. We haven’t even found the spoor of the beast. Mr de Goede… it is on his farm where the evil has already struck twice… has offered help, but his black workers are terrified and of no use to us. According to a communication from headquarters, you are apparently on your way to Orinoco.”

“I am.”

“Well, we are at your service,” Retief assured him. “But tonight, I hope to get some sleep for a change. The responsibility of this whole business had become almost too much for me. The entire district is in an uproar. Even...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 18.9.2025
• Übersetzer: Pieter Haasbroek, Ai
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Krimi / Thriller / Horror
• ISBN-13: 9780001021617 / 9780001021617