EPILOGUE: APRIL 1997

01:21pm 31 Jan 2010 0 comments

The Boeing 747 broke through the scattered clouds. Below the silvery thread of the river Thames curled its' way through London. Sir Charles and Lady Quartermain were thrilled to be back. "See down there Susan, that's where the old Royal Albert Docks used to be. I set sail from them on my first voyage to New Zealand, forty one years ago.  Now it's now a small airport; it all seems like yesterday."

Charles Quartermain was taking up his new position as New Zealand's High Commissioner to the Court of St. James. The task in front of him weighed heavily. It was all part of the healing process for his country following the pain and economic injury of the last three years.

Charles and his party had lost the last election. The economic disruption caused by the foot and mouth outbreak had been too much for the people of New Zealand. Some had compared his loss to 1945 when Winston Churchill had been ousted after leading his country to victory in world war two. The new Prime Minister, Dr. Tony Blake, had not taken long to invite Charles to consider the London post.

For Lady Quartermain, it was a return to the country where she'd spent most of her early adult life. She had been appointed to Queens College at Oxford University, as visiting Professor of Jurisprudence. She felt this successfully maintained her independence from Charles and his career.  She looked adoringly at him.  His excited face was not too different from the one she'd fallen in love with when he was a young Merchant Navy Officer. The pressures of the last decade had taken their toll, but at fifty eight he still stole her breath away. His inner strength, compassion and wisdom had been carved by his extraordinary life experiences.

She leant over the arm of their first class seats and whispered; "You know Charles, you're dead sexy... especially with the sun behind you." Charles roared with laughter, quite disconcerting the plane's Purser, who announced, "Sir Charles, the head of Chancery will meet you, with the High Commission car and chauffeur. We land at Heathrow in five minutes time, please fasten your seat belts.

CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN: AFTERMATH

01:19pm 30 Jan 2010 0 comments

Paremoremo Prison

Auckland

September 1996

Prime Minister,

CHAPTER THIRTY SIX: FINALE

01:16pm 29 Jan 2010 0 comments

His worst fears about Mohamed were confirmed with a distraught phone call. "I am so unhappy Abu," he'd blurted," all those beautiful cattle being slaughtered because of something I did; all these people being hurt....its too much...... I don't know what to do or who I can talk to. If I meet with Peter or any of the other vets they'll see I'm very upset and will want to know why."

"Mohamed just stay where you are. I'll be there in two hours...just stay in your house and don't answer the door or phone...I'm on my way." Abu knew what had to be done, and he grabbed his loaded pistol and took off for Kihikihi.

It was dusk when he arrived. It was a small town with the smell of wood fires hanging in the air. A few kids on their bikes skidded around the roads and shouted at him as he parked his car a couple of hundred yards up the street from Mohammed's house. He shouted at them to "get out of it." They moved fifty metres down the street.

 No lights were on in the house and there was no answer to his knocks on the door. He opened it with his credit card, an old trick learnt during his criminal youth in Saudi Arabia. Janice wasn't the first person to find Mohamed's swinging corpse, although Abu's reaction was totally different; 'he did the dirty work for me, good riddance', he thought to himself. He checked around the house for anything that could implicate Mohamed or their cause. He removed the almost empty phial from the fridge. He left the Koran where it lay, '...will give credibility,' he decided. He didn't notice the white envelope sticking out from inside the cover.

 'Next stop... get Tolga out of the country, at least so far he had remained faithful to the cause, but one peep out of him and he'll get a bullet in the back of his head, bloody Turks,' he muttered to himself as he walked back to his car now surrounded by the kids on bikes, and started the four hour trip to Hastings.

CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE: THE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN.

01:14pm 28 Jan 2010 0 comments

Five ships, loaded with New Zealand's primary produce, were refused entry to their destination ports. Their Masters turned them around in mid ocean and plotted their return courses to New Zealand.

On Monday morning the bottom fell out of the stock market and the value of the dollar plummeted. Trading in both share and currency markets was halted. Inbound tourism dried up. New Zealanders traveling overseas were subjected to strict surveillance at their destinations.

There was some panic buying at super markets, especially in Te Kuiti. The abattoirs and meat works stopped killing. The dairy companies could only store their products and wait. Storage areas were at a premium. All internal transporting of stock was halted.

In a television broadcast Charles told the country about the Te Kuiti outbreak. It is estimated eighty five percent of the population watched. He made it clear that the actions taken and the restrictions put into place were part of the government's efforts to quickly eradicate foot and mouth. He asked every New Zealander to be patient, to avoid rash decisions and to help keep an eye out for actions that could further spread the disease. "We, as your government, are doing all we can to stop this miserable thing in its' tracks. Bear a thought for the farmer who had to watch his herd of four hundred cattle be slaughtered and burnt this morning. If any of you have relatives or friends in Te Kuiti, which is now isolated from the rest of the country, ring them and see how you can help. Inwards traffic of supplies is acceptable."

Prime Minister Charles Quartermain rang Stan Frewin and commiserated with him. "Nice of youse to ring Prime Minister, much appreciated," were all the words Stan could get out. "We all feel for you Stan; we'll do the best we can for you and your family.

CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR: FREWIN’S FARM

01:13pm 28 Jan 2010 0 comments

A distraught Stan Frewin had phoned his wife Rosy with the news. "It looks bad hun. They are coming back when the tests is done. I'm scared shitless. If it is foot and mouth you know what will happen, they'll have to...." He could get the words out, "....Sorry hun, I'm all choked up. They said it would be better for you and the kids to be off the farm, and I think they're right, but Jesus I miss you right now...."

"They've been pretty good to us Stan love, put us up in that flash motel in Awakino Road; the kids are loving it; they're on the swings and things. I've promised them McDonalds tonight. Look, if the worse comes to the worst we'd have been confined to the farm, so its' probably for the better... I'm only sorry I can't be there for you and I'm sorry I bit your head off this morning love, sometimes everything gets on top of me an' all. Stay in touch 'cos they said the phone was for free, love you pet.... must go 'littlun' is trying to hang hisself on the slide!"

They'd arrived at daylight; six cars full of people in protective suits.  Stan had been officially informed of the need to slaughter and burn his whole herd. He'd been handed a piece of official looking paper on which was typed the words "Mr. Stan Frewin, it is my duty to inform you that under the Biosecurity Act 1993 your farm has been deemed the site of a biosecurity emergency. With the potential outbreak of foot and mouth disease on your farm, it is considered to be in public interest to manage and if necessary eradicate this organism."

 "Stan, I'm so sorry that this has happened to you," said the official from MAF. "In English, what you've just read means that we are going to have to humanely euthanize all your stock, right now."

"Slaughter them? Jesus mate you can't mean it; all my lovely herd..... and the dry stock?" He'd stumbled and fell onto some bales of hay he'd brought in for the sick heifers. He sobbed his heart out.