Chapter 1
Linkin Letswalo, nine years old, held his little bulb he made himself to read in his solitary confinement room that was used to confine mischievous slaves who worked the grounds during apartheid. He used the lightbulb when Mother Pricilla turned all the lights off at exactly eight o'clock, and the full moon was no longer brightening his room from a tiny window. 'The Adventures and Stanley' was his favourite read. He tried to sit as comfortable as possible; he didn't have a bed and only a blanket and a duvet which he stuffed his clothing to make the floor more bearable. He glanced with admiration at the words and read them carefully. "Lights out Linkin!" a heavy voice said. "What are you doing in there?! I do not pay electricity for you to waste it!" Linkin switched off the light so quickly that it broke, his heart crushed as he wouldn't have anything to read with tomorrow. The door opened, ed and a silhouette reflection of a chunky figure appeared between the door and the door pane; the figure looked like it had horns in its head. "Linkin stinking! I do not appreciate your ignorance." 'What is ignorance?' Linkin thought. The figure made out a chunky woman. She has ashen skin, wears red lipstick and has crazy round eyes that compliment her round cheeks. She was heavy and fat, and slowly as she walked, her hair had two huge hair rollers on each side. She approached the door and slammed it open. "What did I tell you, you ungrateful little stinking boy. Did I not tell you to turn off the lights?" she said, her eyes filled with fury. Linkin's face pigmented and from a distance, his freckles seemed to be twitching with fear. "I am sorry mother. I will not do it again, I promise," he replied quickly. "You better, because I won't return again, and oh, you just lost your slice of bread for breakfast tomorrow morning," she snorted her face. "But mother, I only get a slice a day," said Linkin, his heart sinking further. "I know. So that means you won't get any bread tomorrow," she turned, and a heavy metal door screeched behind her. Linkin slept in an old unused small room just beside the basement; the room resembled a solitary confinement room used in the apartheid era. He would usually suffer the retribution of being starved because he usually slept with the lights on. Another reason he feared switching off the light every night was because of the two dreams he would have every night. The first dream was about the first day he met Pricilla, and the dream will begin where he hears laughter of two unclear adults in front of him. Then, one day a tall man in a black suit came to fetch him at his home, with no explanation of what was going on. They drove for a long time until the car came to a halt. They got out of the car ta massive house that looked 'evil from the outside,' that's what Linkin thought when he saw it. The man carried a black and torn suitcase in his right hand and took Linkin's hand on the other. He marched towards the do, or and his movement was as straight as a ruler. Linkin thought he walked like a robot. He knocked on the door with a huge door ringer, but the sound was indistinct that he rang the very loud doorbell and a weighty and thick voice called on, "Petunia, go get the door, it's irritating me!" Petunia was a tall and slender lady, with beautiful fair brown skin. 'She looks starved out,' Linkin thought. "Please come in, Sir," she said with a soft inaudible voice. Linkin looked around the huge house with a long staircase that looked like it went out forever inside. The two adults' whispered things to each other, and Petunia, the famished looking lady, disappeared from a door on the side of the staircase. Linkin wondered around and started painting the whole room in his imagination. Moments later, an obese and heavy woman came out of the door. Mother Pricilla, she called herself. She and the tall man whispered things to each other, and from that angle, Linkin could see the woman changing facial expressions. From a smile to a frown, a big smirk, anger and more irritation, and all that Linkin heard were. "His name is Linkin Letswalo, and he is your brother's son." The tall man said impassively. "What? But he is black!" she roared. "Madam, but his skin is lighter than the blacks", he assured her. "But his hair is curly and black," she roared. The tall man cleared his throat and pointed Linkin's side with his eyebrow at Mother Pricilla. It went back to little whispers from the shouting, and her facial expression was no longer favourable. She looked like a person who was seeking alternatives. Mother Pricilla does not want to be embarrassed; moreover, caring for a mixed-race boy would insult and embarrass her further. She classified herself and her family as of high calibre. The tall man turned and left Linkin standing there with the black suitcase. He gave him five Rand and left. Linkin never saw him again. Mother Pricilla turned and went back to the door that Petunia had gone to earlier. Linkin waited for some time. He saw two little people peeping from the stairways, he leapt to look, and they ran away. Petunia came out and escorted him to a plain room. She sighed with concern and left the suitcase on the floor, and turned to leave. Mother Pricilla came moments later after Petunia had left. She looked at Linkin and then came closer to observe Linkin like he was some unknown disease. She further scrutinised him, shrivelled his hair, then wiped herself on Linkin's shirt. Closely she looked at his feet, under his arms, in his nostrils, then she frowned at his freckles. "Young boy, I shall establish the rules. Rule number one you must do as I say, when I say and how I say it," she said thoughtfully. Linkin stood looking at her dumbfounded, and he tried to ask a question, "eh…." "And number two, do not attempt to ask questions. And number three, get rid of those clothes," she said hastily. She handed Linkin and old grey shorts and a dirty white shirt. Linkin looked at his clothes and back at the one Mother Pricilla handed her. He urged to ask, but looking at mother Pricilla was scary. "Can I go and play outside?" he gloomily asked. "No! No! No! You do not play outside. You will never play outside!" she looked fanatically at him. Linkin looked down sadly. "What am I going to do then?" he asked uncertainly. "Well, of course, you will be doing the chores around the house. There is much to do in this magnificent house since Petunia couldn't get around to everything!" she snapped. "Listen to me! I am about to reveal where you come from, and you better note this. When people ask who you are, say that you are the maid's infidelity. Petunia is your mother and she had you out of wedlock. You are from far and she hid this shame for some time" she browsed at Linkin. "Are you listening carefully, boy?" she added. Linkin nodded, and a ray of golden light would appear. Linkin's second dream would be of the golden train. He would see an average-sized man with a moustache and a navy Breton hat winking at him and ushering him inside the train. He walked slowly and happily towards the man. "It's morning, stinking little boy, now get to work! Those statues won't shine themselves," said Mother Pricilla grimly. Linkin awakened with fear and quickly dressed in his torn clothes. As Linkin got out of the tiny isle room, he saw the two little people disappear to the other room, Charlie and Scoop, Mother Pricilla's twins that she is proud of. Mother Pricilla dislikes Linkin and does not want him near her boys, as her high calibre extends to think Linkin may turn her boys into petite black boys. Her late brother's extracurricular activity of indulging in black women was enough for Mother Pricilla to dislike his brother to death. A stem man would pass Linkin every morning when he cleaned the statues. He mostly wore brown corduroy pants, a beige shirt, a dark green tie and firmly held his brown briefcase. "Hello boy, bye boy," said Mr Pricilla, as Linkin called him. He walked past Linkin and went out the door. Linkin always sees him during the mornings, and sometimes he does not even see him. 'What a strange man', Linkin thought. Linkin performed his duties just like always. He firstly washed the dishes, and Petunia helped to dry them. He then shined the rest of the house, and when he was done with his chores, he would sit by the round window overlooking the backyard garden and stare outside. Petunia offered him four toasted bread, but Linkin refused. "Why?" she asked, "because Mother said I do not have bread today", he sadly said. "What nonsense, here you can save some for later in your room," she offered. Linkin took the bread happily and saved some in his room. "Petunia!" a loud voice called. "Yes, Pricilla, I am coming," she hurriedly left. Linkin went to the window and stared outside. His sad face looked out into a different and wonderful world that awaited him. He thought about what it would be like to be outside, out in the open and then his thoughts changed to the dream he has every night, 'The Golden Train', he imagines himself inside the train, in total happiness and all the lovely and weird people in it. Linkin smiled, and he then became gloomy and thought about his parents. He wondered how they were and whether they loved him as much as he loved them. Linkin cannot make out their faces. He only remembers his father holding him and his mother feeding him in a blurry vision. These thoughts made him sad, and he wished to see them at least once so that he may have their still memories. Then outside, it started to snow the window frosted and became gold. Linkin was amazed at this. He looked around to see if anyone was watching. He ran towards the kitchen to find Petunia, but he found Mother Pricilla. "What are you doing boy? And where are you going in such menace?" she looked deep into his eyes and frowned. "Mother, where is Petunia? I have something to show her." "She is not here! And I think it's time for your nap." "But I am not sleepy", he sadly said. "Now you are, stinking boy," she insisted. Mother Pricilla always had a way to crash Linkin's happiness because she thought little of him. "Mother, it is snowing outside," said Linkin quickly. "So, what is the problem with that? I know snow, now go!" replied Pricilla annoyed. Linkin left the kitchen and went to his isle room. He ate the second slice of toasted bread Petunia gave him, and he slept. He had the most beautiful dream on that day. He dreamt of a moustache man on the train, giving him his ticket, and winked at him. A loud doorbell woke him up.
