The Truth about Anton van Zyl
Moti’s a big wheel in Port Elizabeth: an entrepreneur, a fixer, a philanthropist, and a showman. In short, he’s not a man to be ignored and that’s not just because the suits who run City Hall hang on his every word.
But Moti’s got a problem. His not-so-favourite son-in-law, Anton, has gone AWOL. And the only reason that matters to him is because his daughter’s been left distraught. At least, that’s what he tells rich but mentally-troubled private investigator Sol Nemo.
Sol agrees to look into the case, but soon faces complications. For instance, there’s Anton’s pregnant girlfriend to be considered and why is that Anton’s wife can’t be found? And as challenging as that may be, there’s a cache of puzzling documents needing interpretation and the unsettling interest of State Security to be reckoned with.
Whatever the answers to these questions may be, Sol quickly comes to know it’s dangerous to pursue enquiries when his every move is being watched. Watched that is until somebody decides it would be better if Sol got missed; like permanently.
By then though, Sol’s involvement has become personal. You see there’s an obligation to a young woman who’s literally been scared to death and there’s one also to some of the Eastern Cape’s most disadvantaged citizens who are being ruthlessly exploited in the name of profit.
All in all, it’s a very confusing picture and that’s to say nothing of the missing Anton who remains out of sight until suddenly it seems he needs Sol’s help. It’s only then that the truth begins to emerge, but is it the truth, and nothing but the truth, or is it some version of it calculated to beguile and deceive?