MOONRISE

I met her on the internet at a poetry website where as amateur poets
we joined
in poetry chat rooms. We automatically became friends. At first it was
nothing
seriuos. Just mutual friendship. Exchanging ideas and books on writing.
Then it

became something more deep and flowery.

For the first six months we communicated only through snail mail and
email.
Showering each other with the most expensive gifts and presents.

I licked my lips in wonder as I analysed her first photo to me. She
was
dressed in a quite revealing way. She was in beach wear standing akimbo
in a
boat her chest thrust forward provocatingly. She had smoth mermaid
features.
She was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Her name was
Eve.

We were seperated by vast miles of ocean water and yet we felt so
close. The
relationship kept revived by a unique kind of fantasy. She lived in
Zimbabwe
and I lived in England. But there was one thing that was not right God
knows
what. She was a married woman with a kid to the marriage. I was too
hypnotised

with this womans charm that I threw all caution to the wind.

Then after six months she telephoned. Her voice was quite clear,
metallic and
musical.
"Hello." I answered brushing my eyes.
"Hie, it's Eve, Is that you Adam my darling?"
I swallowed and thought I hadn't heard correctly.

"Eve? Eve from Zimbabwe?" I said suddenly brightening up.

"Of course, it's me. Thought of saying hi."
"Oh Eve! What a surprise. You have really made my day. What a
lovely
voice you have got. How is Africa, I mean Zimbabwe?"

"Marvellous. It's like heaven. Talk about the natural scenery,
the
game, the tropical climate it's all lovely, but without you I find it
boring.
I
miss you and &;#8230;&;#8230;&;#8230;."

"How is David?" Apparently David was her husband.
"David?" A pause. "He is fine. Only I find him quite boring. All what
he
cares about is his farm. He seems to spend most of his time working at
the
farm. I cut her. Her compliments ended driving me crazy.
Right now I am alone. Ad, I am sick and tired of it all. I wish
you
were here with me."

"Don't say that rot Eve. David loves you. Only you are being too
dramatic. And how is Sarah?" Sarah was her daughter. She was eight
years old.

"Oh, my dear darling Sarah is fine. She telephoned me yesterday
from her boarding school. The problem is she has been fed lies by her
father
about me and she loves him more than I. Ad, sometimes I feel like
crying."
"Take it easy darling. That's what kids do. They call it
culture. Its kid mentality."
"Ad," she said after a long pause. Something was coming.

"Ad," she repeated.
"Yes darling what is it?" I retorted.
"Do you love me?"
"Listen Eve."
"Do you love me simple?" Her voice high notch.

"Eve my darling but there is David."
"Never mind about David, do you love me?"
"Of course l love you."
And so the conversation went on and on. Agreeing and disagreeing.
Loving and
hating. But one thing was for sure. Accept or deny it. We were deeply
sunk
in the ocean of love to care.

This game went on for months. With telephome bills mushrooming
up.

One year into the relationship she gave me a surprse telephone call.
She was in

very high spirits like she had won a medal. After the usual I -
missed-- you
line she said, "Ad, could you manage to come over hear?"

"You mean come over there to your house at Moonrise farm?"
"That's what I mean exactly."

"But Eve I can't risk to ------,"
"I am alone if that's what you worry about. David has gone to
the
United States two days ago for a two month refresher course in game
management.

David is crazy about learning you know."

I agreed with her. David so I learnt had a string of certificates and
diplomas
in various fields of farming. Yet I was puzzled by the sudden
trip.
"I see, but there is-----."
"That has been taken care of if you are talking about Sarah. She
has visited her uncle Tom in Harare for her school holiday.
The domestic helpers were fired two weeks ago and there is not yet
a
replacement. So that leaves me alone with Divine our lovely dog at the
house."
"Then I will come." I finally said after a long pause.

I summoned up my courage to make the trip. I booked and caught a flight
to
Africa. My first time to visit this continent of plenty full of
beauty.When I
finally landed in Harare quite to my surprise I discovered that
civilisation and

a good education had knocked on the doors of many Africans. Some
African cities
were quite glamorous and more or less like ours in Europe.

From Harare I took an air taxi to Buffalo Range where Eve was waiting
for me. At

first I thought I was seeing a mirage. Then I realised it was her. The
woman I
had so much fantasised for one long year. The woman with smooth
mermaid
features. She looked much younger than what I had imagined. She
was
twenty-eight two years my senior. But she looked twenty. Animal
magnetism
vibrated from her. Her personality was luminous the light around her
almost
playing like moonlight music. She was tall, slender the curves of her
body in
the right places. Her breasts made a provocative thrust against a pink
T-shirt
she was wearing. The features of her face were highly symmetrical. She
had long
silky hair that draped down to her shoulders.

Dimples formed as she gave me a flashing welcome smile. We hugged and
kissed.
"Oh my darling Ad, welcome to Africa.You look charming and
marvelous."
"To be frank Eve you look more stunningly beautiful than what
I saw on the photos. You are an angel."

"Oh Ad, you flatter me." We broke into fits of laughter. We loaded my
luggage
into a landrover and drove off.
"It's only a twenty five kilometre drive to Moonrise Farm.
You will love the scene Ad." She finally said.

We went via Triangle Sugar Estate then finally took a dust road and
passed
through Jatala Estate A small sugar plantation farm. On the way Eve
kept me
tuned with beautiful stories about Africa.

After what seemed like an eternity we finally reached a gate with a
banner that
read, WELCOME TO MOONRISE FARM.
"This is it a small heaven on earth." Eve finally said.

She was driving at a slow pace. I marvelled at the beauty of the farm
woodlands,

the game, the green slopes as the landrover groaned at a crawl pace on
the sandy

road.

Then we reached a sign post with the prints: DAVID AND EVE'S GARDEN OF
EDEN
THREE HUNDRED YARDS AHEAD. The homestead was located on top of
amountain. It was

screened at the back by lilac and cherry trees that ran riot and in
full bloom.
A myriad of bees hovered and spoke hierogliphics. Birds of all kinds
murmered
like Dolly Partons Orchestra and a cool breeze coming from the Moonrise
Lake
whistled softly. Sweet fragrance gased the whole area. Divine gave a
few wild
barks and came wiggling its tail. She was quite a beautiful tiger
dog.

It was a beautiful 18th century house overlooking Moonrise Lake. The
expanse of
water below glistened under the tropical light and was a pleasure to
see. The
lake partially besieged the mountain and was in the way of the large
Mutirikwe
River. One could see beautiful game drinking water and fishermen
in
boats.Further up beyond the lake was a beautiful country side where
slopey
greens were criss-crossed by pathways and streams.

That same day of arrival Eve took pains to show me around the Garden Of
Eden and

Moonrise Farm.

I scrambled out of bed at around midnight due to lack of sleep. I kept
thinking
of Eve who was asleep in the next room adjacent mine. I decided
to

take a stall outside. I gave a little start at the figure outlined at
the
balcony. I immediatly recognised it.It was Eve looking at the moon.
Against the
background of moonlight in her sweet night dress she looked
stunning
And charismatic.The moon had just risen and it was big round and
glazing and
every detail of the Garden Of Eden and the whole Moonrise Farm seemed
to dance
to the tune of moonlight music. I joined her. Moonrise Lake glistened
and waves
were thrown to bank.

"Adam," she suddenly said without looking at me.
"Eve?" I retorted.
"Isn't this beautiful."
"It's paradise."

She turned to face me.
"It's the Garden Of Eden." She whispered.
"Where is the serpent?" We suddenly were groping for each
other.
"It will come." She said weak with passion.

And we kissed holding each other tightly her body yielding to
mine.
"Ad, carry me to your room my darling." Which I gladly did.

For five days the loving madness, the compliments and fantasies went
on. But
Divine proved quite in the way unco-operative. She disturbed our nights
and days

with her constant barking for no apparent reason.. She was kind of
becoming
strange like in some kind of hysteria.At one time I caught her up in
spare room
number nine barking wildly scratching and biting at the carpet. I had
asked Eve
who just shrugged it off with the reason that she was a mad dog.
One morning I was surprised to wake up in the morning to see Eve
sitting on the
bed snivelling. I scrambled out of the sheets to enquire. She looked
drawn,
tired and pale. She was no longer the angel that I had known.

"Ed, it's David' he is haunting me." She said eyes downcast.
"What do you mean?" I asked confused
"I killed him Adam. Christ, I shot him."
"You mean David who went to United States of America?" I
drivelled.
"David is not in the United States. He and Sarah are in this
house dead. There is an underground house that communicates with a door
on the
floor of spare room number nine.If you remove th carpet you would see
the door.
David was very drunk. I followed him underground and shot him. Only I
was not
aware that Sarah and Divine had followed in. They witnessed the sordid
icident.

I shoudn't have shot her. But she became very wild and I had to turn
the plug on

her. I placed the two bodies in a large referigerator down underground.
I had to

do it Adam, both were in the way didn't you see?"

There was a ghast butchered silence. I opened my mouth to say something
but I
abruptly shut it . I was in some kind of delayed shock..

"Divine was fond of both of them this is why she is acting
quite strangely. We are free now Ad ain't we?"She was calmer now.

Still I didn't say anything. My brain had suddenly zeroed with shock..
I didn't
need to go into the underground house to prove her story. I knew by how
she had
said it and how the events had connected that she was telling the
truth. I
felt like hitchhiking across the galaxies and seek divine audience with
God.

As a reply to her question ,a reply so overwhelmed with emotion I spat
straight
into her face.

Still when the police finally took us she stuck to her story. I was
soon
discharged.
I am now married to Linda my old girlfriend and have two kids. We have
since
moved from London to Peterborough.

THE END