The Promise

Part 2 begins nine years after the action of Part 1, in June 1996. Astrid, who is now married with twins, calls Anton to tell him that their father has been bitten by one of the snakes at the reptile park he owns, Scaly City, and is in the ICU. Although Anton and Manie have been estranged since their fight after Rachel’s funeral, Astrid implores Anton to come home as Manie will likely die soon.

Anton has had a difficult life since he deserted the army. The reader does not receive many details about this time, but Anton recalls “images of dirty acts in filthy rooms” (96). As he rides to the hospital, he marvels at all the changes the country has undergone since the end of apartheid and the beginning of Nelson Mandela’s presidency two years prior. He is still adjusting to seeing Black South Africans walking the same streets as white South Africans.

When he arrives at the hospital, Anton tells Manie that he still is not sorry for anything he said nine years ago, even though Manie is in a coma and cannot hear him. At 3:02 the next morning, Manie dies.