Black Horizon by James Grippando Read Free Book Online

English. “No. I didn’t believe that day would ever come. My husband and me, we saved for three years. We bought a spot on a boat.”
    “Bianca is an American citizen now,” said Rick. “I’m sure you know this, being a lawyer, but U.S. immigration policy toward Cubans has always been the same, both before and after the Cuban government started to let nationals travel off the island. Any Cuban refugee who sets foot on American soil can claim asylum.”
    The same policy allowed the Coast Guard to turn back Cuban refugees who couldn’t afford a visa under the new law, jumped on an old-fashioned raft, and weren’t lucky enough to swim all the way to U.S. shore. “I’m very familiar with wet foot/dry foot,” said Jack, and then he turned back to Bianca. “Did your husband come with you?”
    “No. I didn’t want to leave Cuba without him, but we had money only for one. The plan was that Rafael would come later, after he saved more money to buy a spot on a boat.”
    “Why doesn’t he come now? It’s a lot easier under the new Cuban laws.”
    “Not so easy as people think,” she said. “It can cost less to buy a spot on a smuggler’s boat than to buy a travel visa from the government. My husband was saving money. Got a good job.”
    “Doing what?” asked Jack.
    Bianca didn’t answer. The response seemed to catch in her throat.
    Rick said, “He was a derrick hand on the Scarborough 8. One of about two dozen Cubans who were allowed to work for the oil consortium.”
    “What did he do on the rig?” asked Jack.
    Again Bianca was silent. Finally, she looked at Rick and said, “You tell.”
    “From what I understand,” said Rick, “he worked the night shift on something called a ‘monkey board.’ It’s a platform high up on the rig’s derrick. I’m not an oil expert, but there are a ton of websites on offshore drilling. Basically a derrick hand’s responsibility is to monitor the drill fluids and circulation systems, control the drill pipe in and out of the drilling hole, and keep the pipe steady when parts are attached or removed. He does all this from his platform.”
    Jack was almost afraid to ask the next question. “Sounds like it could be dangerous,” he said.
    “One of the most dangerous on the rig,” said Rick. He glanced at Bianca, then confirmed Jack’s suspicions: “Rafael is one of sixteen workers reported dead.”
    Bianca sobbed but said nothing.
    “I’m sorry,” said Jack. “Are you sure he’s gone?”
    “I picked up a BBC News broadcast out of Havana,” Rick said. “There were a hundred sixty-seven workers on the rig from seventeen different countries. None of the workers was from the U.S., of course. Two of the fatalities were U.K. citizens. The BBC report that identified the U.K. workers also listed Rafael Lopez among the dead.”
    “Man, that’s horrible,” said Theo.
    “It is,” said Rick, but he was looking at Jack. “I was hoping a good lawyer could help.”
    “What can I do?”
    “Again, I’m no oil expert, but I’ve done some quick homework on the Internet. The average payout to the widows of the eleven men killed in the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon disaster was between eight and nine million dollars.”
    “Are you asking me to file a wrongful death suit on Bianca’s behalf?”
    “Yeah. It’s a foregone conclusion that the Cubans, the Chinese, the Russians, and the Venezuelans won’t give her ten pesos. Her only hope is to file a lawsuit in this country.”
    “I hear what you’re saying,” said Jack. “But it’s not so clear cut.”
    “Why not?” asked Rick. “Bianca is an American citizen.”
    “That’s true. But her husband was Cuban. The manufacturer of the rig is Chinese. And the consortium was drilling within the territorial waters of Cuba.”
    “So she has no rights in U.S. court?”
    “I’m not saying that. But it’s a definite hurdle.”
    “Do you think you can help her?”
    “Of course Jack can help her,” said Theo. “Compared