The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (2008–2009): Season 1, Episode 3 - The Boy with an African Heart - full transcript
Precious Ramotswe is hired by an American woman, Andrea Curtin, who is looking for her son Michael who disappeared 10 years earlier. He had come to Botswana to live on a farm commune that specialized in growing edible crops in a desert climate. From all reports, Michael had simply vanished into thin air one night and was never seen again. When his disappearance was first reported, Andrea and her husband had come to Botswana to search for him and had even hired a tracker--but to no avail. Andrea's husband died recently and she now needs to bring closure to Michael's disappearance. With Grace's quick thinking, they are able to track one of the commune residents, now a professor at a local university. As the investigation continues, however, Precious thinks they may in fact be looking for two missing people. Grace thinks the time has come for her to be promoted to assistant detective. There has also been a rash of local robberies with a strange selection of items being stolen.
Hey! Hey!
Oh!
This is a very odd letter.
"Too many smart young men I see getting promoted over me.
"And rising up the salary scale, only because he is a male."
What does she want you to do?
I don't know.
It's what happens in the workplace all the time.
The glass ceiling! I have read about this.
Exactly right. The glass ceiling.
Mm!
It has never stopped you.
That's because my father left me plenty of cattle.
If it weren't for that, I'd be slaving away in an office like anybody else, going nowhere.
I don't mean that you are going nowhere.
What I was trying to say was that...
SHOUTING AND RAISED VOICES
I'm going to kill you! Look at my shop.
Stupid boy! Stop this!
Rra Sesupeng, what is the meaning of this?
There have been robbers in my shop.
My stock is ruined, because this boy, this boy forgot to lock the shop last night, huh?
I forgot one time before, but not last night. Look, here are my keys.
The same keys you forgot to put in the lock last night, you idiot!
Let me help. I am the detective. Show me the scene of the crime.
Come, come, come and have a look. Come.
You don't have to be so harsh!
What was taken? Shoes. Three shoes.
What else do you think they are going to take from a shoe shop?
Three single shoes? Yes.
Do you think you were...invaded by a gang of one-legged burglars?!
LAUGHTER AND CLAPPING
And what makes you think they came in, or hopped in, through THIS door?
How else can they come inside, huh?
Ha!
An unlocked window.
Too small for a grown-up person to climb through.
That's my point exactly.
It is clear what has happened.
Rra Sesupeng, you've been robbed by children.
In the future,
if you don't want them to come in, put bars on your window and stop abusing your assistant.
It's not nice.
CROWD CHEERS AND CLAPS
I don't know why he had to beat the boy.
Oh, my God!
Aaagh! Get off my desk! Off! Get out!
Out, out, out!
Ugh! Get out of here!
MAN SHOUTS
Out! Ah!
Get out! Out! Out! Go, chicken!
Out, out, out! Excuse me.
Good afternoon.
Are you looking for the detective agency? Yes. Out!
I'll have that letter ready for you in just one moment, mma.
Thank you.
Would you like to sit under the little tree?
It's cool there, Mrs...?
Curtin. Andrea Curtin.
That would be a good idea.
Mma Ramotswe.
How did you hear about my business?
There was a porter at the hotel who gave me your name.
My embassy was no use at all.
They said there was no such thing as a detective agency here in Gaborone.
We are a new business.
How may I help you?
I'm here to find my son, Michael.
But I don't think he's alive any more.
That's very sad.
I lost a child myself. A boy.
He was born, but he did not live.
We think we get over the pain, but it never happens.
Do you have a picture of Michael?
That's Michael,
just after he graduated from Stanford.
Oh, he wanted to change the world.
You know how kids are.
Well, somehow he heard about a project...
a commune, I guess...
here in Botswana, where they were growing plants and vegetables in very, very dry soil.
"The greening of the desert," that's what they called it.
It was at a farm near, erm...
Silolakwalea...
Silokwalela.
It is very dry in this part of the country, almost desert.
This is Mma Makutsi, my secretary.
Ah. Dumela. Hello. Thank you.
Secretary?
I haven't heard that very much in the United States.
Every secretary is an assistant at least, or an associate executive.
Associate executive.
Michael heard about this project.
Yes, and he wanted to come here and do some good in the world.
His father and I weren't happy about it, but what else could we do?
For weeks, we heard nothing.
And then...
He started to write these wonderful letters.
He said he'd found his African heart.
What else could we be but happy?
Until one day...
..the embassy called and said he'd been reported missing.
Jack, my husband, dropped everything and...
we came here.
It was miles from anywhere.
Took us two hours to get there and the roads.
Well, they weren't roads, just tracks really.
But when we get to the place, I saw what Michael had meant.
Somehow, in the middle of all that dust and heat,
they'd built a garden.
They all came out to meet us.
There was a guy with a little beard, Oswald Ranta.
The leader of the commune was an older man from Kenya.
I think his name was Peter Ngari.
Oh, and the nurse at the clinic that they started for the local people.
Rebecca Soloi was her name.
All any of them could tell us was that Michael had gone to bed the night before
and had disappeared the next morning.
A total mystery.
The embassy and the local police did their best, but after a while, they gave up.
We even hired a tracker, a bushman.
What was his name?
I think we called him JoJo.
But he searched and couldn't find anything.
So we had no alternative but to go back home.
That must have been hard.
Fearing the worst, but not knowing.
Yes, it was hard.
My only consolation was that as the years went by, Jack and I had each other.
Till last September, when he passed away.
Seems like I had a choice of going to Florida and retiring and watching TV,
or to make a life for myself. And that's what I've chosen.
But I can't do it until I find out what happened to my son.
For better or for worse.
Does that makes sense?
It makes very good sense.
I think we should start by going back to that farm together.
But it's deserted. Nobody lives there.
Places have echoes.
If we are sensitive enough, we might pick up a feeling of what happened there.
All right. OK.
Zebras, sunsets, irrigation schemes.
These letters are beautifully written but there isn't one single clue.
We must trace the witnesses.
I have made a note of all their names.
Except they didn't witness anything, so they said.
I have a bad feeling about this case.
Ten years is a long time.
"A stale enquiry is unrewarding for all concerned."
Nnyaa, mma.
It's about a prize he's won.
"The client is given false hopes and the detective feels committed to come up with something."
Yes. Thank you.
"But at the end of the day...
SHE SIGHS HEAVILY
"..nothing is likely to be achieved."
Mma Makutsi!
What are you doing?
I have found a witness.You've done what?
Oswald Ranta is now Dr Ranta.
He is a head of studies in the Department of Rural Economics at the university right here in Gaborone.
How did you find him?
I phoned his home and the maid told me...
Yes, yes, but how did you find his number?
That was very clever of you.
How about witness number two, Rebecca Soloi?
A nurse should be easy to find. You should call Dr Gulubane.
There is no need to trouble Dr Gulubane.
She works in a clinic in Mosopa.
Was she in the telephone directory as well? Nnyaa, mma.
I happen to know her.
Oh!
Coincidence.
Welcome to the Grand Palm.Thank you.
Sorry I'm late. Are you
Of course! OK.
We had 10 outlets in Washington DC.
For the last year of his life I was effectively running the whole show.
Will you go on running the show now that you're on your own?
No, I'm going to see everything off.
Don't laugh too loud,
but I'm planning on going to college to do African studies.
Like your son? Yeah, you could say that.
We should offer this man a lift.
Do you think this is safe?
I'm sure it's safe.
If he was a criminal he would have stolen his own car by now.
Besides, he's not very big.
Thank you.
MUSIC PLAYS FROM BOOM BOX
Do you like music, mma?No, it's OK, thank you.
Could you do something about the volume?
Do you want it louder? I make it much louder.
Rebecca Soloi?
This is Grace Makutsi.
Do you remember me?
Ee, mma. He is.
He... He is not so strong as he was.
No, not yet, but he will.
Mma, I'm calling to make an appointment with you
for the lady that I work with, but I must ask a favour first.
When you see her, can you please not mention Richard?
Hello! What's happening?No, I know you wouldn't.
Hey, 97%. Where's everybody else? Ah, don't tell me...
I'm having a private business call.
Is it private or business? Make up your mind. Out, out!
OK. I'm gone. Don't shoot!
Hello.
HE SINGSAh! Don't shoot!
I'm out! I'm out!
WOMEN: Whoa! I'm out! Don't shoot!
If you want to see that old farm, you must ask Mma Potsane. She was there once upon a time.
Straight down this road?
Yes, down this road. You'llOK.
Thank you.
Sorry.
Well, he was right about the donkeys.
Let me speak with her first.
She knows the farm well and she remembers Michael.
Oh!
I'm Andrea Curtin.
Michael was my son.
Oh, I'm sorry, my sister.
Come, come inside. Thank you.
Last week, my youngest girl sent me a postal order.
If you had come that day, I would have given you meat.
Oh, that's OK.
Is this OK?
She seems to have so little.
What do you think she's cooking?
It looks like mealie meal.
It's corn.
Corn.
I was married once.
You must marry again. Oh!
You must a policeman or a motor mechanic or a minister of religion.
All those are very good men to marry.
You must not marry a politician.
Or a man who works in a bar.
My husband was a trumpeter. He was not a good husband.
I will add trumpeters to my list.
Is she going to join us?
She'll wait until we're finished.
How do I do this? Watch me.
Ooh.
Hm.
Oh, my God!
This used to be beautiful before.
Glad Jack can't see this.
It's like everything our son was trying to do was just a joke.
I think the bush has eaten it up.
What went wrong?
They were trying to grow lettuces and tomatoes in a place that is only good for thorn bushes.
It would be easier to grow grass on your own head.
What do you think happened to Michael?
I think he was sucked up.
Sucked up?
Big whirlwinds come from the Kalahari and suck things up.
But where that whirlwind would have put him down, I do not know.
It could be thousands of miles away.
Yeah.
That is where I lived with my husband.
I, sister,
am sad to see it.
Sad to see it.
It breaks my heart every time she calls me "sister".
Let's do this.
This was the clinic where Rebecca Soloi worked.
She was one of the first to realise how quickly HIV was spreading beyond the towns into the countryside.
Look, there's a photograph.
That's Michael.
In the middle.
Who's that? I don't know.
It says Clara Sedibe.
Michael never mentioned her in any of his letters.
< Mma.
Excuse me.
Somebody made a fire over there.
It is after the last rains.
It was probably hunters.
There's a wind, eh?
What do you think it's saying, this wind?
It's saying that on this farm there is a spirit that can't get away.
I think so, too.
Did she say anything about this girl? The one standing next to Michael.
Clara Sedibe? No, nothing at all.
Hold on.
Look.
Oh, wow!
Can we get out? (If we are quiet.)OK.
They're so primitive.
God!
Why do you think they're fighting?
They're male.
Oh, that reason.
It's always that reason.
They're just children. Yes.
The whole world was young in Africa once.
Ee, mma.
What do you think?
I don't like this guy withNo, neither do I.
Is there anything else?
There is closeness between the boy and the girl.
Yes, I saw that, too. Did you tell the mother?
I think she suspects it already.
I feel worse about something else I didn't tell her.
What's that?
There was a wind that spoke of a restless spirit and that only means one thing.
There is a body there that has not been properly buried.
You have proof?
No, just my instincts.
Well, until you know for certain, best not to say anything.
Americans are very clever people.
They can send rockets into space.
But science isn't the only thing.
There are other things that make the world what it is.
Things of the spirit.
Americans never notice them, even though they're right under their noses.
Ah, please leave the water.
You should change your maid.
She's just jealous. Jealous of who?
Of you.
She has no reason to be jealous.
I know.
Oh, bye-bye. Thank you.
Oh, good morning, Mma Ramotswe.
What can we do for you?
Dumela, rra. How about a romanticOr three?
We are very broad-minded here.
Mm-hm. No thank you! I just have a question.
A-huh. Do you send Basarwa trackers on your safari tours?
What sort of territory did you want to explore?
Do you know a tracker called JoJo?
THEY LAUGH You won't have
I'm not looking for love, thank you.
I just want to know where he lives.
If you come across anyone who might know where he is, please let me know.
It's very urgent. I want to speak with him. Ho, mma! Ho, mma!
What's in it for us?
Maybe, just maybe... A-huh?
I'll try to find a couple of girls
desperate enough to deal with your crazy chatter!
THEY ALL LAUGH
We don't need two girls. Just one who's big enough for two!
Don't go in there.
TYPEWRITER CLATTERS NOISILY
Hoo! Ah!
I've been thinking about the possibility of my promotion.
There need not be any rise in pay,
but if my title recognised my powers of detection, rather than just my typing,
I'd be very grateful.
Well, I don't think "associate executive detective" sounds quite right.
Mm, that would be going too far.
May I make the suggestion of the wording "assistant detective"?
Darling lady, please come and help. There's an emergency. Quick, quick!
How did that happen? I came out
My pants are broken.It won't take a moment.
I'll get a needle. Take them off.
We were in the middle of a business conversation.
I'm a serial interrupter.D'ah! Not in here.
What if a client were to come in? What would they think?
They would think that my beautiful legs were only matched by these extraordinary underpants.
Mma Makutsi, please. Come in.
I've seen a man with no trousers on before.
D'ah!
HE CHUCKLES
Thank you, darling lady.
They should last for the rest of the day.
I can't answer for them after that.
I'll try and get my own sewing kit next time.
HE WHISTLES
Wait, mma! Mma!
Mma Ramotswe!
Mma Ramotswe!
Whoa!
Dammit!
The hairdryer's gone.
Box of eyelashes, they were next to...
Oh, no! They are gone, too.
Who steals a box of fake nails?
Don't touch anything!
I must inspect the scene of the crime.
Oh! How do you know what to inspect?
BK, I will very soon be an assistant detective.
I would be that already had you not come bursting in here with emergencies and what-what.
Question number one, where were the keys to the beauty salon?
I pulled the keys out of my pocket.
So the door was locked?
No, I pulled the keys out of my pocket to scratch my bottom(!)
Of course the door was locked!
The door...
was locked.
Goods scattered around the floor.
And there is no sign of forced entry.
I am familiar with this modus operandi!
Modus what? We are investigating a similar crime in another commercial establishment.
Oh, oh, I hope you're not comparing this catastrophe
with Sesupeng losing a couple of his horrible-looking shoes.
In fact, I think this crime is identical.
You have been robbed by children.
How do you know?
Because at the back of the shop there is a small window with a broken... A broken...
A broken...
Perhaps I spoke too soon.
I will, of course, personally pay for the damage.
Mma Ramotswe.
Dumela, mma. Dumela, mma. Le kae?
Re teng, mma.
Nurse Soloi, thank you for seeing me.
Oh, this is a good time.
Most of our patients are resting.
Come, let us sit in the shade.
So, Grace Makutsi tells me thatThat's right.
Oh! It must be exciting work.
Ee, sometimes it is.
Do you know her well... Grace?
Not well, but I know that she's aShe is.
So you want to talk about Michael?
Ee, mma. Were you close?
We worked together for six months,Clara Sedibe.
She was his girlfriend, yes?
There were not supposed to be boyfriends or girlfriends on the farm.
Peter Ngari thought it against the spirit of the commune.
So nothing was said, but Michael was not a good actor. Sit.
Thank you.
There is water for us and two iced buns.
I've heard that you are a woman who likes to eat.
Now that I have met you I can see it's true.
Eat, please. Thank you.
Do you know where Clara is now?
No. No, I don't.
I was in Gaborone buying supplies on the night that Michael disappeared.
By the time I got back, Clara had already left.
And you've heard nothing from her? No, not a word.
Perhaps I need to look for two people, Michael and Clara.
Perhaps. What about Oswald Ranta?
Oh, he is now a lecturer at the university.
Do you think he had something to do with Michael's disappearance?
You know, at the time, I would have said if there's anyone to suspect, then, yes, it would be him,
but now something has happened to make me change my mind.
Every year, I drive past that farm on my way to see relatives.
This year, I saw that someone else had been there.
They had built a fire.
Yes, I saw that, too. Lying beside the fire
I found this.
Michael Curtin.
I think that Michael is still alive.
JoJo is here.
I offered them food,Thank you.
Mma.
Doris, JoJo's granddaughter.
Dumela, mma. Dumela. I am going to
Thank you, Doris.
Please tell your grandfather, I'm very happy to have him as my guest.
Ten years ago, your grandfather searched a farm near Silokwalela.
He was looking for a boy that was missing.
Recently, I went to the same farm.
I felt that there was something there.
I thought it might be the body of a missing young man, Michael Curtin.
Now I think I was wrong.
I think Michael may be alive.
My grandfather says that heEe.
He knows where the body was hidden.
He saw an anthill. He believes that the, the body of...
The body is in the anthill.
It was as clear to him as the sun in the sky,
but he could not tell the mother what he had found.
A man, who has a small beard, said that if he told anyone,
he would do harm to both him and his family.
Doris, I have just one last question.
Does he know if the body was a man or a woman?
My grandfather says that if you want to know the answer, you must dig it up.
Thank you.
I still don't understand.
Why did you ask that?
Because it's not just Michael who is missing. No-one has seen Clara Sedibe since Michael vanished.
And if he's still alive, as this suggests,
then we have to consider that the body might be Clara's.
Michael Curtin may not be the victim in this crime.
You mean, Michael killed Clara?
Thank you. My pleasure, mma.
That trip really took it out of me.
Emotionally, I mean.
I thought I had ended grieving years ago...
but now it feels as if I'm just at the beginning.
So how are we doing?
Well, I'm afraid I don't have anything to report at the present.
No developments whatsoever?
I've been working on some ideas, but nothing definite yet.
Is there...
Is there some bad news you're trying to protect me from?
It's too soon to say,
but... there is something I need to know.
If I discovered someone did something wrong,
whoever it is,
could you...
Could you find it in your heart to forgive that person?
No. I would want them brought to justice.
I'm American and that's what we believe in, Mrs Ramotswe.
Most people in this country would agree with you,
but we have an older tradition.
If a wrongdoer is truly sorry for what he has done,
the person he has harmed will try to forgive him.
I think that's what your son would want.
The African heart.
Hey, mma.
Well, I may just be beginning to understand what Michael meant by that.
WOMEN LAUGHING AND TALKING
Dumela, mma.
I'm looking for a Dr Ranta.
Dr Ranta!
Dr Ranta!
One moment he's here, the next moment he's run off.
Do you know where he is now?
You could try his office, it's two doors down.
I'm afraid I'm busy, as you can see.
Knock loudly before you go in if you don't want a surprise.
May I sit for a moment?
I've been on my feet all day.
You look run off your feet as well.
It's my last day. I'm leaving.
About Dr Ranta.
What sort of surprise? Forget what
Oh, I understand.
It's very good you don't gossip about your boss.
Male teachers...
are always getting into trouble for things that perfectly normal men would do.
I understand a little about human nature.
You see, I run a small detective agency.
Perhaps I could leave some leaflets with you?
Sexual harassment...
you'd be a very busy lady if you came to work for this department.
I don't know about that.
I find a lot of accusations boil down to not very much.
Is that so? What if a teacher says to a young girl,
"Come into bed with me and I'll give you an advance peep at the examination paper"?
Oh! I can't believe Dr Ranta does that.
You just try working here.
Now that I think about it,
I heard about that.
The girl's name was Kitou Metsi, wasn't it? Kitou Metsi? No!
It was my cousin's daughter, Solu.
Yes, Solu.
But it happened to nobody else?
Well, she's the only one I know of for sure,
but I see plenty of other girl students creeping into his office after hours.
Nobody lifts a finger to stop his going-ons.
He gets away with it every time.
He doesn't have to.
You know, it only takes one person to tell the truth.
Just one.
Ah, yes, I remember now. Michael's mother came nosing around asking questions
and now I suppose she's paying you to do it for her.
Well, I've nothing to add. He must have wandered off into the Kalahari and lost his way.
It is easy to get lost out there.
One thorn bush looks just like another.
Dr Ranta, it is so obvious that you are not telling the truth.
You may as well have a neon sign around your neck saying "liar".
Please don't think your comic-book job gives you any right to come into my office and threaten me.
Our talk is now finished and I must ask you to leave.
I have papers to mark.
Oh, but I have something in my bag that might interest you.
It is a written statement from one of your students.
You might know her. Her name is Solu.
I don't know what you are talking about.
Get out now or I will call security.
You do know who I mean.
I can prove you slept with her and that you showed her the examination papers in exchange.
I also know another girl who's willing to swear
that you offered her the exact same thing if she slept with you.
That's two statements.
It's called corroboration.
We detectives like corroboration.
So tell me, Dr Ranta, what will you do as an unemployed university lecturer?
Will you go back to your village?
Will you help with the cattle?
What do you really want?
I want to know the truth about Michael Curtin.
And if I fail to tell the truth, I lose my job?
Correct. But if I do tell the truth,
As if they never existed.
Very well.
It was Clara's fault as much as mine.
Until Michael turned up at the farm,
she and I were doing fine, just fine.
So you were in love with her, too?
Let's tone down the violin, shall we?
We would slip out at night to an old hut by a dried-up river bed.
Then Michael turned up on the scene with his half-thought-out political ideals.
Clara, of course, was impressed.
I would see the two of them sitting together or going off for walks.
Then they took a trip up to the north together.
When they came back I asked her "What is going on?"
She said she had something important to tell me.
I said to her, straight out,
had she been sleeping with him?
She admitted it.
I felt so betrayed.
And angry. Of course!
And you fought? I may have slapped
Then what happened? Michael burst in.
He had followed her.
There was a struggle...and I ran.
He came after me, but it was pitch dark and it was not difficult to lose him.
Then everything went quiet.
I felt completely alone.
Then I heard Clara screaming.
I ran back and...
Michael had run head first into a deep ditch.
He had broken his stupid, bloody neck.
It was obvious no-one was going to believe it was an accident. So...
You saw an anthill.
How do you know that?It doesn't matter.
You said she was going to tell you something important.
What was it?
That time they went away together.
She and Michael had got married.
Perhaps you can understand why I felt so betrayed?
I understand more than that.
Where is she now?
I believe she is running a small hotel up north.
Thank you. That's what I wanted to know.
I want Solu's statement.
I don't have a statement.
Dr Ranta, for a clever man, you are remarkably easy to fool.
Well, you said someone ought to stop it.
Good luck on your new job. Thank you.
Excuse me.
Yes?
I'm looking for Michael Curtin.
I am Michael Curtin.
I know.
Can I help you?
Clara Curtin?
Who are you?
I couldn't tell Ranta I was carryingOf course not.
He was crazy enough as it was. So?
Afterwards, he tried to make me help him hide Michael's body, but I couldn't.
It was too much.
He told me if I said anything to anyone,
he would make sure I went to prison.
I was frightened for myself...
and my child.
So I just... I ran.
I moved around at first, afraid to tell anyone where I was.
Then I ended up here.
When the baby was born,
I named him after his father and I brought him up on my own.
Recently, he started to want to know about his daddy.
That's why I took him to the farm.
We made a fire and talked and laughed, just like his father and I used to do.
Hm, he's a beautiful boy.
If I had a son, I would want him to be like that.
I'm proud that I have been a good mother,
but what I did on that farm has haunted me ever since.
I don't know if I can ever make up for it.
Tell Michael's mother what happened.
The truth.
She cannot stop grieving until you do.
What will you do when you grow up?
I'm going to study agriculture.
That's a very good thing to do.
It's what your father would have wanted.
It reminds me,
I have something of yours.
I did that!
I know.
Take it with you. Never lose it.
It's what brought us all together.
And this...is a gift for your new grandmother.
I brought this basket from an old lady on the side of the road on the very day I met you.
You see the picture on the side?
Yes. Do you know what it means?
No. Do you want me to tell you? Yes.
OK, now, you know what a giraffe is, right? See the small marks?
Those are tears...
Good.
Michael.
Your father's mother wants to meet you, OK?
She's a very nice lady.
I want you to be on your best behaviour, OK?
Hello.
This is for you, grandmother.
It's lovely.
Thank you. Let me have a look at it.
There's a meaning in it. There is.
These little marks are tears.
Tears?
The giraffe gives its tears to the ladies to weave into the basket.
It means that everyone in the world has something to give, but the giraffe only has its tears.
They're all he's got.
Thank you, Michael.
If you had not found Oswald Ranta, I never would have solved this case.
It was nothing. I just used my head.
Use of one's head is the primary qualification of a good detective.
As of tomorrow, you will be promoted to assistant detective.
I wish you many congratulations on your breaking of the glass ceiling.
Nnyaa, mma.
I cannot accept.
I do not have the true qualities necessary for this work.
Mma... I must say this.
I've watched you all this time and I see that you are not afraid to tell the truth,
whatever the risk to yourself.
There's something I have to say to you,
something I have not said and because...
I am a coward.
I have a brother.
He's sick.
He is very sick.
He attended Nurse Soloi's clinic for a few weeks.
He was one of her patients.
That is how I know her.
He did not stay.
He would not take the drugs.
He would not even talk about it.
I do everything for him.
It is difficult
for some people to accept
they have the sickness.
Ee, mma. That is right.
And that is me.
I know it is nothing to be ashamed of,
but I still cannot accept this.
I'm sorry,
but I definitely...
cannot...
accept your kind offer.
Grace Makutsi,
it is good that you love your brother.
What is his name?
Richard.
Richard.
It is a wonderful thing that you take care of Richard.
There is no other person
on the face of this great continent that I would be more proud to have as an assistant detective.
At no extra pay.
Please do me the honour of accepting.
Come.
PRIEST SPEAKS IN LOCAL DIALECT
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you, my sister.
Excuse me for one moment.
There is something I need to do.
I held him in my arms for six hours.
SHE EXHALES SHARPLY
Mma Makutsi, case number one. You must follow her and see where she goes.
If you were to come with us, Mma Ramotswe would be VERY jealous!
ALARM SOUNDS What did they take?
My new CCTV camera.
Before I met her, I was resigned to loneliness.
Now I cannot be happy without her.
Do you want to go to the police?
No, that is why I came to you.
I promised her anonymity.
Conspiracy of silence. That is what breeds crime.
You must tell me what I need to know.
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
Oh!
This is a very odd letter.
"Too many smart young men I see getting promoted over me.
"And rising up the salary scale, only because he is a male."
What does she want you to do?
I don't know.
It's what happens in the workplace all the time.
The glass ceiling! I have read about this.
Exactly right. The glass ceiling.
Mm!
It has never stopped you.
That's because my father left me plenty of cattle.
If it weren't for that, I'd be slaving away in an office like anybody else, going nowhere.
I don't mean that you are going nowhere.
What I was trying to say was that...
SHOUTING AND RAISED VOICES
I'm going to kill you! Look at my shop.
Stupid boy! Stop this!
Rra Sesupeng, what is the meaning of this?
There have been robbers in my shop.
My stock is ruined, because this boy, this boy forgot to lock the shop last night, huh?
I forgot one time before, but not last night. Look, here are my keys.
The same keys you forgot to put in the lock last night, you idiot!
Let me help. I am the detective. Show me the scene of the crime.
Come, come, come and have a look. Come.
You don't have to be so harsh!
What was taken? Shoes. Three shoes.
What else do you think they are going to take from a shoe shop?
Three single shoes? Yes.
Do you think you were...invaded by a gang of one-legged burglars?!
LAUGHTER AND CLAPPING
And what makes you think they came in, or hopped in, through THIS door?
How else can they come inside, huh?
Ha!
An unlocked window.
Too small for a grown-up person to climb through.
That's my point exactly.
It is clear what has happened.
Rra Sesupeng, you've been robbed by children.
In the future,
if you don't want them to come in, put bars on your window and stop abusing your assistant.
It's not nice.
CROWD CHEERS AND CLAPS
I don't know why he had to beat the boy.
Oh, my God!
Aaagh! Get off my desk! Off! Get out!
Out, out, out!
Ugh! Get out of here!
MAN SHOUTS
Out! Ah!
Get out! Out! Out! Go, chicken!
Out, out, out! Excuse me.
Good afternoon.
Are you looking for the detective agency? Yes. Out!
I'll have that letter ready for you in just one moment, mma.
Thank you.
Would you like to sit under the little tree?
It's cool there, Mrs...?
Curtin. Andrea Curtin.
That would be a good idea.
Mma Ramotswe.
How did you hear about my business?
There was a porter at the hotel who gave me your name.
My embassy was no use at all.
They said there was no such thing as a detective agency here in Gaborone.
We are a new business.
How may I help you?
I'm here to find my son, Michael.
But I don't think he's alive any more.
That's very sad.
I lost a child myself. A boy.
He was born, but he did not live.
We think we get over the pain, but it never happens.
Do you have a picture of Michael?
That's Michael,
just after he graduated from Stanford.
Oh, he wanted to change the world.
You know how kids are.
Well, somehow he heard about a project...
a commune, I guess...
here in Botswana, where they were growing plants and vegetables in very, very dry soil.
"The greening of the desert," that's what they called it.
It was at a farm near, erm...
Silolakwalea...
Silokwalela.
It is very dry in this part of the country, almost desert.
This is Mma Makutsi, my secretary.
Ah. Dumela. Hello. Thank you.
Secretary?
I haven't heard that very much in the United States.
Every secretary is an assistant at least, or an associate executive.
Associate executive.
Michael heard about this project.
Yes, and he wanted to come here and do some good in the world.
His father and I weren't happy about it, but what else could we do?
For weeks, we heard nothing.
And then...
He started to write these wonderful letters.
He said he'd found his African heart.
What else could we be but happy?
Until one day...
..the embassy called and said he'd been reported missing.
Jack, my husband, dropped everything and...
we came here.
It was miles from anywhere.
Took us two hours to get there and the roads.
Well, they weren't roads, just tracks really.
But when we get to the place, I saw what Michael had meant.
Somehow, in the middle of all that dust and heat,
they'd built a garden.
They all came out to meet us.
There was a guy with a little beard, Oswald Ranta.
The leader of the commune was an older man from Kenya.
I think his name was Peter Ngari.
Oh, and the nurse at the clinic that they started for the local people.
Rebecca Soloi was her name.
All any of them could tell us was that Michael had gone to bed the night before
and had disappeared the next morning.
A total mystery.
The embassy and the local police did their best, but after a while, they gave up.
We even hired a tracker, a bushman.
What was his name?
I think we called him JoJo.
But he searched and couldn't find anything.
So we had no alternative but to go back home.
That must have been hard.
Fearing the worst, but not knowing.
Yes, it was hard.
My only consolation was that as the years went by, Jack and I had each other.
Till last September, when he passed away.
Seems like I had a choice of going to Florida and retiring and watching TV,
or to make a life for myself. And that's what I've chosen.
But I can't do it until I find out what happened to my son.
For better or for worse.
Does that makes sense?
It makes very good sense.
I think we should start by going back to that farm together.
But it's deserted. Nobody lives there.
Places have echoes.
If we are sensitive enough, we might pick up a feeling of what happened there.
All right. OK.
Zebras, sunsets, irrigation schemes.
These letters are beautifully written but there isn't one single clue.
We must trace the witnesses.
I have made a note of all their names.
Except they didn't witness anything, so they said.
I have a bad feeling about this case.
Ten years is a long time.
"A stale enquiry is unrewarding for all concerned."
Nnyaa, mma.
It's about a prize he's won.
"The client is given false hopes and the detective feels committed to come up with something."
Yes. Thank you.
"But at the end of the day...
SHE SIGHS HEAVILY
"..nothing is likely to be achieved."
Mma Makutsi!
What are you doing?
I have found a witness.You've done what?
Oswald Ranta is now Dr Ranta.
He is a head of studies in the Department of Rural Economics at the university right here in Gaborone.
How did you find him?
I phoned his home and the maid told me...
Yes, yes, but how did you find his number?
That was very clever of you.
How about witness number two, Rebecca Soloi?
A nurse should be easy to find. You should call Dr Gulubane.
There is no need to trouble Dr Gulubane.
She works in a clinic in Mosopa.
Was she in the telephone directory as well? Nnyaa, mma.
I happen to know her.
Oh!
Coincidence.
Welcome to the Grand Palm.Thank you.
Sorry I'm late. Are you
Of course! OK.
We had 10 outlets in Washington DC.
For the last year of his life I was effectively running the whole show.
Will you go on running the show now that you're on your own?
No, I'm going to see everything off.
Don't laugh too loud,
but I'm planning on going to college to do African studies.
Like your son? Yeah, you could say that.
We should offer this man a lift.
Do you think this is safe?
I'm sure it's safe.
If he was a criminal he would have stolen his own car by now.
Besides, he's not very big.
Thank you.
MUSIC PLAYS FROM BOOM BOX
Do you like music, mma?No, it's OK, thank you.
Could you do something about the volume?
Do you want it louder? I make it much louder.
Rebecca Soloi?
This is Grace Makutsi.
Do you remember me?
Ee, mma. He is.
He... He is not so strong as he was.
No, not yet, but he will.
Mma, I'm calling to make an appointment with you
for the lady that I work with, but I must ask a favour first.
When you see her, can you please not mention Richard?
Hello! What's happening?No, I know you wouldn't.
Hey, 97%. Where's everybody else? Ah, don't tell me...
I'm having a private business call.
Is it private or business? Make up your mind. Out, out!
OK. I'm gone. Don't shoot!
Hello.
HE SINGSAh! Don't shoot!
I'm out! I'm out!
WOMEN: Whoa! I'm out! Don't shoot!
If you want to see that old farm, you must ask Mma Potsane. She was there once upon a time.
Straight down this road?
Yes, down this road. You'llOK.
Thank you.
Sorry.
Well, he was right about the donkeys.
Let me speak with her first.
She knows the farm well and she remembers Michael.
Oh!
I'm Andrea Curtin.
Michael was my son.
Oh, I'm sorry, my sister.
Come, come inside. Thank you.
Last week, my youngest girl sent me a postal order.
If you had come that day, I would have given you meat.
Oh, that's OK.
Is this OK?
She seems to have so little.
What do you think she's cooking?
It looks like mealie meal.
It's corn.
Corn.
I was married once.
You must marry again. Oh!
You must a policeman or a motor mechanic or a minister of religion.
All those are very good men to marry.
You must not marry a politician.
Or a man who works in a bar.
My husband was a trumpeter. He was not a good husband.
I will add trumpeters to my list.
Is she going to join us?
She'll wait until we're finished.
How do I do this? Watch me.
Ooh.
Hm.
Oh, my God!
This used to be beautiful before.
Glad Jack can't see this.
It's like everything our son was trying to do was just a joke.
I think the bush has eaten it up.
What went wrong?
They were trying to grow lettuces and tomatoes in a place that is only good for thorn bushes.
It would be easier to grow grass on your own head.
What do you think happened to Michael?
I think he was sucked up.
Sucked up?
Big whirlwinds come from the Kalahari and suck things up.
But where that whirlwind would have put him down, I do not know.
It could be thousands of miles away.
Yeah.
That is where I lived with my husband.
I, sister,
am sad to see it.
Sad to see it.
It breaks my heart every time she calls me "sister".
Let's do this.
This was the clinic where Rebecca Soloi worked.
She was one of the first to realise how quickly HIV was spreading beyond the towns into the countryside.
Look, there's a photograph.
That's Michael.
In the middle.
Who's that? I don't know.
It says Clara Sedibe.
Michael never mentioned her in any of his letters.
< Mma.
Excuse me.
Somebody made a fire over there.
It is after the last rains.
It was probably hunters.
There's a wind, eh?
What do you think it's saying, this wind?
It's saying that on this farm there is a spirit that can't get away.
I think so, too.
Did she say anything about this girl? The one standing next to Michael.
Clara Sedibe? No, nothing at all.
Hold on.
Look.
Oh, wow!
Can we get out? (If we are quiet.)OK.
They're so primitive.
God!
Why do you think they're fighting?
They're male.
Oh, that reason.
It's always that reason.
They're just children. Yes.
The whole world was young in Africa once.
Ee, mma.
What do you think?
I don't like this guy withNo, neither do I.
Is there anything else?
There is closeness between the boy and the girl.
Yes, I saw that, too. Did you tell the mother?
I think she suspects it already.
I feel worse about something else I didn't tell her.
What's that?
There was a wind that spoke of a restless spirit and that only means one thing.
There is a body there that has not been properly buried.
You have proof?
No, just my instincts.
Well, until you know for certain, best not to say anything.
Americans are very clever people.
They can send rockets into space.
But science isn't the only thing.
There are other things that make the world what it is.
Things of the spirit.
Americans never notice them, even though they're right under their noses.
Ah, please leave the water.
You should change your maid.
She's just jealous. Jealous of who?
Of you.
She has no reason to be jealous.
I know.
Oh, bye-bye. Thank you.
Oh, good morning, Mma Ramotswe.
What can we do for you?
Dumela, rra. How about a romanticOr three?
We are very broad-minded here.
Mm-hm. No thank you! I just have a question.
A-huh. Do you send Basarwa trackers on your safari tours?
What sort of territory did you want to explore?
Do you know a tracker called JoJo?
THEY LAUGH You won't have
I'm not looking for love, thank you.
I just want to know where he lives.
If you come across anyone who might know where he is, please let me know.
It's very urgent. I want to speak with him. Ho, mma! Ho, mma!
What's in it for us?
Maybe, just maybe... A-huh?
I'll try to find a couple of girls
desperate enough to deal with your crazy chatter!
THEY ALL LAUGH
We don't need two girls. Just one who's big enough for two!
Don't go in there.
TYPEWRITER CLATTERS NOISILY
Hoo! Ah!
I've been thinking about the possibility of my promotion.
There need not be any rise in pay,
but if my title recognised my powers of detection, rather than just my typing,
I'd be very grateful.
Well, I don't think "associate executive detective" sounds quite right.
Mm, that would be going too far.
May I make the suggestion of the wording "assistant detective"?
Darling lady, please come and help. There's an emergency. Quick, quick!
How did that happen? I came out
My pants are broken.It won't take a moment.
I'll get a needle. Take them off.
We were in the middle of a business conversation.
I'm a serial interrupter.D'ah! Not in here.
What if a client were to come in? What would they think?
They would think that my beautiful legs were only matched by these extraordinary underpants.
Mma Makutsi, please. Come in.
I've seen a man with no trousers on before.
D'ah!
HE CHUCKLES
Thank you, darling lady.
They should last for the rest of the day.
I can't answer for them after that.
I'll try and get my own sewing kit next time.
HE WHISTLES
Wait, mma! Mma!
Mma Ramotswe!
Mma Ramotswe!
Whoa!
Dammit!
The hairdryer's gone.
Box of eyelashes, they were next to...
Oh, no! They are gone, too.
Who steals a box of fake nails?
Don't touch anything!
I must inspect the scene of the crime.
Oh! How do you know what to inspect?
BK, I will very soon be an assistant detective.
I would be that already had you not come bursting in here with emergencies and what-what.
Question number one, where were the keys to the beauty salon?
I pulled the keys out of my pocket.
So the door was locked?
No, I pulled the keys out of my pocket to scratch my bottom(!)
Of course the door was locked!
The door...
was locked.
Goods scattered around the floor.
And there is no sign of forced entry.
I am familiar with this modus operandi!
Modus what? We are investigating a similar crime in another commercial establishment.
Oh, oh, I hope you're not comparing this catastrophe
with Sesupeng losing a couple of his horrible-looking shoes.
In fact, I think this crime is identical.
You have been robbed by children.
How do you know?
Because at the back of the shop there is a small window with a broken... A broken...
A broken...
Perhaps I spoke too soon.
I will, of course, personally pay for the damage.
Mma Ramotswe.
Dumela, mma. Dumela, mma. Le kae?
Re teng, mma.
Nurse Soloi, thank you for seeing me.
Oh, this is a good time.
Most of our patients are resting.
Come, let us sit in the shade.
So, Grace Makutsi tells me thatThat's right.
Oh! It must be exciting work.
Ee, sometimes it is.
Do you know her well... Grace?
Not well, but I know that she's aShe is.
So you want to talk about Michael?
Ee, mma. Were you close?
We worked together for six months,Clara Sedibe.
She was his girlfriend, yes?
There were not supposed to be boyfriends or girlfriends on the farm.
Peter Ngari thought it against the spirit of the commune.
So nothing was said, but Michael was not a good actor. Sit.
Thank you.
There is water for us and two iced buns.
I've heard that you are a woman who likes to eat.
Now that I have met you I can see it's true.
Eat, please. Thank you.
Do you know where Clara is now?
No. No, I don't.
I was in Gaborone buying supplies on the night that Michael disappeared.
By the time I got back, Clara had already left.
And you've heard nothing from her? No, not a word.
Perhaps I need to look for two people, Michael and Clara.
Perhaps. What about Oswald Ranta?
Oh, he is now a lecturer at the university.
Do you think he had something to do with Michael's disappearance?
You know, at the time, I would have said if there's anyone to suspect, then, yes, it would be him,
but now something has happened to make me change my mind.
Every year, I drive past that farm on my way to see relatives.
This year, I saw that someone else had been there.
They had built a fire.
Yes, I saw that, too. Lying beside the fire
I found this.
Michael Curtin.
I think that Michael is still alive.
JoJo is here.
I offered them food,Thank you.
Mma.
Doris, JoJo's granddaughter.
Dumela, mma. Dumela. I am going to
Thank you, Doris.
Please tell your grandfather, I'm very happy to have him as my guest.
Ten years ago, your grandfather searched a farm near Silokwalela.
He was looking for a boy that was missing.
Recently, I went to the same farm.
I felt that there was something there.
I thought it might be the body of a missing young man, Michael Curtin.
Now I think I was wrong.
I think Michael may be alive.
My grandfather says that heEe.
He knows where the body was hidden.
He saw an anthill. He believes that the, the body of...
The body is in the anthill.
It was as clear to him as the sun in the sky,
but he could not tell the mother what he had found.
A man, who has a small beard, said that if he told anyone,
he would do harm to both him and his family.
Doris, I have just one last question.
Does he know if the body was a man or a woman?
My grandfather says that if you want to know the answer, you must dig it up.
Thank you.
I still don't understand.
Why did you ask that?
Because it's not just Michael who is missing. No-one has seen Clara Sedibe since Michael vanished.
And if he's still alive, as this suggests,
then we have to consider that the body might be Clara's.
Michael Curtin may not be the victim in this crime.
You mean, Michael killed Clara?
Thank you. My pleasure, mma.
That trip really took it out of me.
Emotionally, I mean.
I thought I had ended grieving years ago...
but now it feels as if I'm just at the beginning.
So how are we doing?
Well, I'm afraid I don't have anything to report at the present.
No developments whatsoever?
I've been working on some ideas, but nothing definite yet.
Is there...
Is there some bad news you're trying to protect me from?
It's too soon to say,
but... there is something I need to know.
If I discovered someone did something wrong,
whoever it is,
could you...
Could you find it in your heart to forgive that person?
No. I would want them brought to justice.
I'm American and that's what we believe in, Mrs Ramotswe.
Most people in this country would agree with you,
but we have an older tradition.
If a wrongdoer is truly sorry for what he has done,
the person he has harmed will try to forgive him.
I think that's what your son would want.
The African heart.
Hey, mma.
Well, I may just be beginning to understand what Michael meant by that.
WOMEN LAUGHING AND TALKING
Dumela, mma.
I'm looking for a Dr Ranta.
Dr Ranta!
Dr Ranta!
One moment he's here, the next moment he's run off.
Do you know where he is now?
You could try his office, it's two doors down.
I'm afraid I'm busy, as you can see.
Knock loudly before you go in if you don't want a surprise.
May I sit for a moment?
I've been on my feet all day.
You look run off your feet as well.
It's my last day. I'm leaving.
About Dr Ranta.
What sort of surprise? Forget what
Oh, I understand.
It's very good you don't gossip about your boss.
Male teachers...
are always getting into trouble for things that perfectly normal men would do.
I understand a little about human nature.
You see, I run a small detective agency.
Perhaps I could leave some leaflets with you?
Sexual harassment...
you'd be a very busy lady if you came to work for this department.
I don't know about that.
I find a lot of accusations boil down to not very much.
Is that so? What if a teacher says to a young girl,
"Come into bed with me and I'll give you an advance peep at the examination paper"?
Oh! I can't believe Dr Ranta does that.
You just try working here.
Now that I think about it,
I heard about that.
The girl's name was Kitou Metsi, wasn't it? Kitou Metsi? No!
It was my cousin's daughter, Solu.
Yes, Solu.
But it happened to nobody else?
Well, she's the only one I know of for sure,
but I see plenty of other girl students creeping into his office after hours.
Nobody lifts a finger to stop his going-ons.
He gets away with it every time.
He doesn't have to.
You know, it only takes one person to tell the truth.
Just one.
Ah, yes, I remember now. Michael's mother came nosing around asking questions
and now I suppose she's paying you to do it for her.
Well, I've nothing to add. He must have wandered off into the Kalahari and lost his way.
It is easy to get lost out there.
One thorn bush looks just like another.
Dr Ranta, it is so obvious that you are not telling the truth.
You may as well have a neon sign around your neck saying "liar".
Please don't think your comic-book job gives you any right to come into my office and threaten me.
Our talk is now finished and I must ask you to leave.
I have papers to mark.
Oh, but I have something in my bag that might interest you.
It is a written statement from one of your students.
You might know her. Her name is Solu.
I don't know what you are talking about.
Get out now or I will call security.
You do know who I mean.
I can prove you slept with her and that you showed her the examination papers in exchange.
I also know another girl who's willing to swear
that you offered her the exact same thing if she slept with you.
That's two statements.
It's called corroboration.
We detectives like corroboration.
So tell me, Dr Ranta, what will you do as an unemployed university lecturer?
Will you go back to your village?
Will you help with the cattle?
What do you really want?
I want to know the truth about Michael Curtin.
And if I fail to tell the truth, I lose my job?
Correct. But if I do tell the truth,
As if they never existed.
Very well.
It was Clara's fault as much as mine.
Until Michael turned up at the farm,
she and I were doing fine, just fine.
So you were in love with her, too?
Let's tone down the violin, shall we?
We would slip out at night to an old hut by a dried-up river bed.
Then Michael turned up on the scene with his half-thought-out political ideals.
Clara, of course, was impressed.
I would see the two of them sitting together or going off for walks.
Then they took a trip up to the north together.
When they came back I asked her "What is going on?"
She said she had something important to tell me.
I said to her, straight out,
had she been sleeping with him?
She admitted it.
I felt so betrayed.
And angry. Of course!
And you fought? I may have slapped
Then what happened? Michael burst in.
He had followed her.
There was a struggle...and I ran.
He came after me, but it was pitch dark and it was not difficult to lose him.
Then everything went quiet.
I felt completely alone.
Then I heard Clara screaming.
I ran back and...
Michael had run head first into a deep ditch.
He had broken his stupid, bloody neck.
It was obvious no-one was going to believe it was an accident. So...
You saw an anthill.
How do you know that?It doesn't matter.
You said she was going to tell you something important.
What was it?
That time they went away together.
She and Michael had got married.
Perhaps you can understand why I felt so betrayed?
I understand more than that.
Where is she now?
I believe she is running a small hotel up north.
Thank you. That's what I wanted to know.
I want Solu's statement.
I don't have a statement.
Dr Ranta, for a clever man, you are remarkably easy to fool.
Well, you said someone ought to stop it.
Good luck on your new job. Thank you.
Excuse me.
Yes?
I'm looking for Michael Curtin.
I am Michael Curtin.
I know.
Can I help you?
Clara Curtin?
Who are you?
I couldn't tell Ranta I was carryingOf course not.
He was crazy enough as it was. So?
Afterwards, he tried to make me help him hide Michael's body, but I couldn't.
It was too much.
He told me if I said anything to anyone,
he would make sure I went to prison.
I was frightened for myself...
and my child.
So I just... I ran.
I moved around at first, afraid to tell anyone where I was.
Then I ended up here.
When the baby was born,
I named him after his father and I brought him up on my own.
Recently, he started to want to know about his daddy.
That's why I took him to the farm.
We made a fire and talked and laughed, just like his father and I used to do.
Hm, he's a beautiful boy.
If I had a son, I would want him to be like that.
I'm proud that I have been a good mother,
but what I did on that farm has haunted me ever since.
I don't know if I can ever make up for it.
Tell Michael's mother what happened.
The truth.
She cannot stop grieving until you do.
What will you do when you grow up?
I'm going to study agriculture.
That's a very good thing to do.
It's what your father would have wanted.
It reminds me,
I have something of yours.
I did that!
I know.
Take it with you. Never lose it.
It's what brought us all together.
And this...is a gift for your new grandmother.
I brought this basket from an old lady on the side of the road on the very day I met you.
You see the picture on the side?
Yes. Do you know what it means?
No. Do you want me to tell you? Yes.
OK, now, you know what a giraffe is, right? See the small marks?
Those are tears...
Good.
Michael.
Your father's mother wants to meet you, OK?
She's a very nice lady.
I want you to be on your best behaviour, OK?
Hello.
This is for you, grandmother.
It's lovely.
Thank you. Let me have a look at it.
There's a meaning in it. There is.
These little marks are tears.
Tears?
The giraffe gives its tears to the ladies to weave into the basket.
It means that everyone in the world has something to give, but the giraffe only has its tears.
They're all he's got.
Thank you, Michael.
If you had not found Oswald Ranta, I never would have solved this case.
It was nothing. I just used my head.
Use of one's head is the primary qualification of a good detective.
As of tomorrow, you will be promoted to assistant detective.
I wish you many congratulations on your breaking of the glass ceiling.
Nnyaa, mma.
I cannot accept.
I do not have the true qualities necessary for this work.
Mma... I must say this.
I've watched you all this time and I see that you are not afraid to tell the truth,
whatever the risk to yourself.
There's something I have to say to you,
something I have not said and because...
I am a coward.
I have a brother.
He's sick.
He is very sick.
He attended Nurse Soloi's clinic for a few weeks.
He was one of her patients.
That is how I know her.
He did not stay.
He would not take the drugs.
He would not even talk about it.
I do everything for him.
It is difficult
for some people to accept
they have the sickness.
Ee, mma. That is right.
And that is me.
I know it is nothing to be ashamed of,
but I still cannot accept this.
I'm sorry,
but I definitely...
cannot...
accept your kind offer.
Grace Makutsi,
it is good that you love your brother.
What is his name?
Richard.
Richard.
It is a wonderful thing that you take care of Richard.
There is no other person
on the face of this great continent that I would be more proud to have as an assistant detective.
At no extra pay.
Please do me the honour of accepting.
Come.
PRIEST SPEAKS IN LOCAL DIALECT
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you, my sister.
Excuse me for one moment.
There is something I need to do.
I held him in my arms for six hours.
SHE EXHALES SHARPLY
Mma Makutsi, case number one. You must follow her and see where she goes.
If you were to come with us, Mma Ramotswe would be VERY jealous!
ALARM SOUNDS What did they take?
My new CCTV camera.
Before I met her, I was resigned to loneliness.
Now I cannot be happy without her.
Do you want to go to the police?
No, that is why I came to you.
I promised her anonymity.
Conspiracy of silence. That is what breeds crime.
You must tell me what I need to know.
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd