The Spanish Kidnapping Disaster by Mary Downing Hahn Read Free Book Online Page B

voice began rising to its familiar whine and I wanted to shake him and Amy both. "That's what happens in the movies."
    "Phillip's right," I told Amy. "What's going to stop them from killing us? We have to get out of here," I said, startling myself with my own daring.
    "But how?" Phillip quavered. "How, Felix?"
    Visions of escape raced through my head. We could grab Orlando's gun, we could throw ashes in their faces, we could extinguish the fire. Once outside, we'd steal the
bus and drive to safety in a hail of bullets. I would be at the wheel, of course, while Phillip and Amy cowered on the floor. As we roared into Segovia, Amy would finally acknowledge my skill and bravery. In gratitude, she would kiss my hand and beg me to forgive her for all the unpleasant things she'd said to me in the past.
    "How?" Phillip asked again, louder this time.
    As I opened my mouth to tell him, I saw Orlando leap to his feet. "
¡Silencio!
" he shouted across the cave at us.
    Ignoring me, Amy grabbed Phillip and pulled him down beside her. "Do what Orlando says," she whispered. "Be quiet and go to sleep."
    I lay down too, but instead of falling asleep, I thought about my daring plan. In a way I was glad I hadn't said anything to Phillip. The more I thought about it, the more problems I saw. For one thing, I didn't know how to drive. Maybe I would have to work out something a little less risky.
    While I lay there, I saw the old woman gather some things together and leave. Then the others smoked a few cigarettes and shared a bottle of wine. Finally Grace and Charles crawled into sleeping bags by the fire, and Orlando took a post by the entrance to the cave. Even in the dark, I could see on the machine gun cradled in his arms. There certainly wouldn't be any sneaking past him.
    Unhappily I forced myself to close my eyes and lie still. But all I could hear was my own voice, babbling on and
on, making up one lie after another, giving Grace all sorts of false ideas about us. How could I have been so stupid?
    ***
    Much later, something woke me up. Peering into the cave's darkness, I realized that Orlando and Charles had changed places. Charles sat by the cave's entrance, and Orlando snored by the fire.
    But it wasn't Orlando who had disturbed me. It was Grace. Huddled next to Charles, she was arguing with him.
    "You promised not to tell Orlando of our plan," Grace was saying. "You know I do not trust him so much as this." She snapped her fingers in Charles's face.
    "He's the only one who knows how to manage this sort of affair," Charles said. "You and I are bumbling amateurs. "
    "Yes, but we would not harm anyone, you and I. We agreed there would be no guns, no danger to the children, and what do I see when the Volkswagen arrives? First there is Orlando, then guns, masks, ugly words. And now he talks of keeping the money instead of giving it to the starving children as we planned."
    Grace took Charles's hand. "You must not let him ruin things or harm the ones we hold captive. They are children, too. We cannot help the African babies and hurt these three."
    Charles sighed and drew Grace close. "Come, come, my dear," he said. "Your idealism is admirable, but three hundred thousand dollars can't feed all the world's children. Split three ways, however, it can give us a very nice life."
    Instead of kissing him, Grace shoved Charles away and leapt to her feet. "Traitor!" she cried. "We did this to save the innocents, not to live like degenerates! I cannot believe what I hear from you!"
    When Orlando sat up and began mumbling in Spanish, Charles pulled Grace down beside him. "Shh," he implored her. "Don't upset him."
    "I care not about his upset," Grace said, but Charles held her tightly as Orlando approached them.
    "Let me go!" Grace cried.
    "
El amor,
" Charles said to Orlando. "
¿Para qué sirve?
"
    The two men laughed, and Charles released Grace. Then he handed Orlando a bottle of wine.
    I didn't understand what Charles had said, but it seemed