East of Rio
by DJ
Chapter 3
A week after Chico visited Delgado, the spy sent word of Zapata's arrest. He was to be deported back to the States on a charge of inciting the students to riot, but Chico swore that Niki had avoided all contact with his former friends. Delgado decided it was time to risk a visit to the capital to try and make contact with Niki before the police put him on a plane for Brazil. Fortunately for Delgado, the date of Niki's deportation fell on the day of the new president's inauguration.
Emulating the way other countries did things, a president elect travelled the seventy miles from Porto Duarez in the north, in the only official aircraft the government owned, no matter how much it drained the national economy. On arrival, the General, his Chiefs of Staff, and government ministers would greet him. As many islanders as could make the trip south were ordered to attend such celebrations. Valdez needed the streets filled with cheering crowds complete with flag wavers and photographers. General Valdez decreed it and that gave Delgado the perfect excuse to be at the airport with a loyal crowd in which to hide.
Disguised as a farm labourer, in shabby white pants and shirt, a growth of beard and an old sombrero hiding most of his features, he hitched a lift in the truck of a friend delivering vegetables to San Margarita, and stayed overnight at a safe house in the city. The next day, he arrived at the airport with thousands of others, with a forged pass.
The airport consisted of no more than a runway, alongside a low building housing the customs office and cramped passenger facilities. In front of it, a simple mesh fence kept passengers away from the runway. Between the building and this fence was a small enclosure, again of mesh fencing, through which all passengers except VIPs passed to get to the aircraft. Extending all the way round the airport, another perimeter fence, with passenger and transport gates, kept the general public off airport premises. It was between the two fences that the people of Tamarigo stood to welcome Aguilaz. Naturally, both gates were heavily guarded, but Chico had planned for this, and some of his men created a scuffle. With the guards distracted, Delgado slipped through the gate and pushed his way through the crowds till he was near the enclosure. A few in the crowd recognised him and closed ranks around him.
An hour later, the presidential plane taxied gracefully along the runway. The plane rolled to a stop and the passenger door swung out and to the side. The reception party, led by Valdez, marched forward. Those onlookers standing against the inner fence had been handed paper flags with orders to wave them as soon at Aguilaz appeared. If Valdez expected any other reaction, he did not get it. No one cheered; they had nothing to cheer about. This was just one more puppet Valdez dangled in front of them. It was also siesta time, when sensible people took to the shade unless it was absolutely necessary or there was a gun at their heads. Delgado wished he could do something for them but he was just one man with a tiny army, a man who at any moment might be arrested and, at worst, shot.
Pushing and shoving, he manoeuvred his way forward till he was up against the enclosure fence. Beyond it, Delgado spotted Niki standing handcuffed between two guards. His face bore the marks of a recent beating, his shirt torn and blood stained, but he looked defiant and in control. Chico was right, Delgado thought, there is a difference in him. The guards would not have had such an easy task holding the old Niki captive, he would have struggled, and kicked out in anger and frustration instead of standing quietly between them.
Delgado worked his way round the enclosure till he stood opposite him, hoping Niki would look up and catch his eye. As the presidential party approached the enclosure gate on their way to the waiting open cars, Niki ignored them, choosing to glance around at the crowds. Delgado hoped he was looking for familiar faces. Confident their charge would not make any trouble the guards watched their new president instead, and did not notice him stiffen as he recognized Delgado, giving him a slight shake of the head before his gaze moved on.
The presidential party walked by on its way to the VIP exit, and Delgado noticed Monzanoz glance into the enclosure, his face filling with fury at the state the boy was in. Not caring if he made a scene, Monzanoz called out to the President and brought the whole entourage to an untidy halt close enough for Delgado to hear. The crowds around him also seemed to want to listen, and a silence fell upon them. Delaying the proceedings of the President's inauguration for the sake of a troublesome foreigner was something a less respected man dared not do, especially in front of at least a third of the island's population. But everyone knew the Colonel was the President's legal tool and thus indispensable.
The President rewarded him with a scowl of irritation and signalled for the Colonel to speak. "If your Excellency will excuse me, that young man in there is -."
"Niki Zapata!" Valdez finished the Colonel's sentence in an off-hand manner. "The Yankee trouble maker is to be deported today."
Monzanoz glared at Valdez, his dislike for the overweight bully showing on his face. "General, I signed a deportation order, not a licence for violence."
"Always thinking about the underdog, aren't you, Nicolo?" Aguilaz said, "Are you worried what the Americanos will say if they see this troublemaker roughed up a little? You are delaying my festivities."
Monzanoz stepped closer to Aguilaz and said something that only Aguilaz could hear, though the rest of the entourage tried to catch what was said. The new president's mouth slackened a little as he took in what Monzanoz said then his face reddened. Delgado was sure he would have the Colonel arrested, but the look of rage faded to be replaced with one of cunning. Whatever the Colonel said had sunk in and made sense. "Very well, Colonel, go and pamper your sweet-faced Yankee brat, but don't expect us to wait for you. You have your own car here, I believe?" As he turned away he addressed the rest of his entourage. "What would I do if all my officers were as soft as Monzanoz?" The party continued on its way, laughing at something Valdez said.
The Colonel came into the enclosure and Niki's guards snapped to attention. Delgado felt proud of the way Niki faced him with cold pride in his dark eyes. Niki had gone away a heart broken and confused boy and returned a self assured young man. The Colonel caught hold of Niki's chin, turning his head this way and that to examine the cuts and bruises. Then he pulled open the torn shirt and saw the marks on his body. He addressed Niki in perfect English. "Who did this to you?"
"Your precious Captain Cabot and his pigs; who else?" Niki lifted his manacled hands. "Look how brave they were. They had to put these on me first." One of the guards dug him viciously in the back and his eyes closed against some hidden pain, and he swayed, making Delgado wonder just how seriously he had been hurt.
"That is enough," the Colonel snapped at the angry guard. "If I find this young man is telling the truth, I will see that you and your captain receive due punishment. Take those handcuffs off him immediately and get him cleaned up, then bring him back here to me."
Niki's face twisted in a sneer. "Such honour. If you expect me to lick your boots, I'll take a bullet first."
The Colonel chose to ignore the remark as the handcuffs were removed but kept his eyes on the boy as the guards hustled him away into the airport building. Then his gaze wandered over the crowd while he waited for Niki to return. Delgado wondered about this unfathomable man. Considerate but firm, an excellent soldier and brilliant lawyer, he seemed to be a gentleman of the utmost integrity, but there was something about him that Delgado never understood. The Colonel had allowed himself to be dragged into the wrong side of the revolt of nineteen fifty-five, although for most innocent people it was fortunate that he had. As the island's first man of law, it was believed that he lessened the sting of Rico's oppressive tactics. Even though it could not be proved, rumour spoke of Monzanoz actually engineering the lighter sentences passed upon many a political dissident. Others conveniently disappeared just as Valdez was about to pounce.
As Delgado thought these things over, he noticed the Colonel giving one of Delgado's men, also hidden in the crowd, close scrutiny. Suddenly the Colonel's gaze swept the crowd. Before Delgado could move or even hide his face, their eyes locked, and Delgado tensed, ready to flee. Only their former association with Carreras could save him now.
To Delgado's relief, the Colonel turned away to look for other faces. Delgado's knees trembled. Any seasoned fighter who said he never felt fear was a liar, he thought as the immediate danger passed. The Colonel's private car was parked between the transport and passenger gates, within the exterior fence. His young adjutant De Silvio, a slight figure in the uniform of a lieutenant, stood by it, talking to the driver. The Colonel beckoned to him and when he stepped into the enclosure Colonel whispered something in his ear. The secretary listened carefully then nodded and hurried back to the car.
When Niki finally emerged from the airport building, in a clean shirt and with the worst of his cuts taped, the guards stayed a few steps behind, unwilling to incur more of the Colonel's wrath. Niki carried his flight bag to where the Colonel stood and hitched it over his right shoulder. Relaxing in a confident slouch, he confronted the Colonel with a steady gaze. "That deportation order you signed is illegal, Colonel. I'm no more American than you are. I was born right here on this island and someday I'll be back to prove it, and you'll be in big trouble; you and Cabot for what he did to me today. You can tell him from me, I'll make him pay."
"You can apply for re-entry through the normal channels but you would have to wait a few months."
"Why should I fill in forms in triplicate, just to say, please sir, can I come home now?"
"It would only be a matter of four or five months."
Delgado watched Niki's face tighten with irritation. "I don't have four or five months, Colonel; not for you, not for anything." He gave the Colonel a mocking salute and marched with determined strides in front of the guard towards an aircraft parked a hundred yards or so in front of the presidential plane. The Colonel gazed after him and, from the look on his face, Delgado had the feeling the Colonel wanted to call him back, to say something more. Instead the Colonel turned and walked towards his car, his shoulders sagging as if he had let the boy down in some way.
The show now over; the crowds began to make their way out of the passenger gate to walk the half-mile to the outskirts of the city, and on to the palace. Delgado's cover was disappearing by the second, and he was less confident he and his men could still get through the gates without detection, a second scuffle being too obvious a ruse. Most of the guards were already aboard their own transports but there were still enough left to cause trouble. As Delgado came level with the rear of the colonel's car, the door on his side swung open and barred his way. He felt a hand tug at his shirt and a voice behind him hissed, "Get into the car, quickly."
Sympathisers in the crowd sensed what was happening and a press of bodies blocked the view from the gate. Suspecting this might be a trap, Delgado took off his hat and slid into the back of the car, hoping his men had escaped safely. The crowd parted in front of the car and the chauffeur had the vehicle already in motion as De Silvio scrambled into the front passenger seat. Darkened, bullet- proof windows prevented the guards from seeing inside as it picked up speed and swept out of the gate.
Delgado settled back and fixed his attention on Monzanoz who nodded and said, "A good disguise, Estoban, but not good enough to fool me. It has been a long time since we last met, are you well?"
"Well enough." Delgado replied.
"Good, then listen carefully. Someone tipped Valdez off that you were at the airport. You should have been arrested but I have my reasons for not doing so. Your men are also safe and on their way north. I also have my own reasons for wanting to keep that young rebel away from this island. It was easy enough to keep him safe from harm this time, and to get him out of the country, perhaps one day he will realise this deportation was for his own good. But if he tries to return he will be breaking the law and I may not be able to help him again. No doubt you heard him promise to return. It would not surprise me if he tried to enlist your help, and perhaps that of Carlos Mendoza. Under those circumstances, you and Carlos would also be putting his life at risk and I could not guarantee his safety; or yours for that matter. Do you follow me, Estoban?"
"Perfectly."
"Good, then I suggest you use what influence you have, to put the idea of aiding him right out of the heads of your associates." The car swept round the back of the palace, slowed down and finally stopped at the gate leading to the staff quarters. One of the two guards on duty unlocked the gate.
Before Monzanoz could get out of the car, Delgado grabbed his arm. "Colonel, before you go, I am curious to know what you said to Aguilaz to make him back down at the airport instead of having you shot for turning his illustrious arrival into a shambles."
The ends of Colonel's moustache lifted in a faint smile. "I just reminded him that he has very few friends, and most of the people watching him were there under duress, hence the less than enthusiastic welcome. I also mentioned that, had the people been given a choice, it wouldn't have been the President's arrival they welcomed. I suggested that a show of compassion towards the boy would not go unnoticed." Before Delgado could comment, the Colonel raised a hand to the visor of his hat and slid out of the car, and slammed the door before either of the guards could identify the other passenger.
As the car sped away from the palace, Delgado looked through the rear window and witnessed the transfer of something from the Colonel's pocket to that of one of the guards before he disappeared through the gate. When Delgado turned round again, he found De Silvio smiling at him from the front seat. "I'm to take you as far as possible towards the mountains, without arousing suspicion, where would you like me to drop you?"
