~*~
It was five minutes past ten p.m. when the glasses were dutifully filled with tequila by the bartender. Rodolfo Arrozco, his face bandaged, raised his glass high and faced Raul. “If I have said anything to offend you, I apologize.”
Raul lifted his own. “And if I have besmirched your character, I apologize.”
“Those knives will become famous,” Rodolfo said, indicating the weapons now back in their place on the wall.
“I imagine the details of our duel will become wilder and more hair-raising with each subsequent telling of the tale,” Raul predicted.
“Por su puesto — of course!” Rodolfo replied, laughing. “Why talk about exciting events if you cannot embellish them, eh?”
“Enough of this fighting talk,” Raul said. “Let us turn our attention to an evening of diversion. What is the first thing we shall do?”
“After a few more drinks I suggest we go to El Baron, which is Selva Vista’s best whorehouse,” Rodolfo said.
“What is so special about it?”
“It has the best girls, of course. The madam spares no expense in keeping her stable the most attractive in this part of Mexico. In fact, many men come up from Guatemala just to take their pleasure there.”
“Who is the best girl in the house?” Raul asked.
“There is a girl who is part Indian and part Chinese who makes the best playmate. But the most beautiful is, alas, the coldest.”
“Too bad,” Raul remarked. “Which one is that?”
“La huera — the blond one. A norteamericana who has been there but a few weeks. I am sure she will improve as time passes. She is in great demand because blondes are so unusual, and she is a breathtaking sight. Another problem is that she cannot speak Spanish.”
“Now she really sounds interesting,” Raul commented. Surely this was Loretta Slattery. “How did she end up in Selva Vista?”
Rodolfo shrugged. “Who knows? Like many of the girls she had bruises when she first appeared. No doubt she had no desire for the life of a puta. But since so many have had her by now, she has no choice.”
Raul compared this cavalier behavior of Rodolfo’s with Angel’s strong opinion regarding the callous attitude the rich have for the poor in Mexico. He forced a smile, saying, “I believe I shall try that huera.”
“Let us go now then, “ Rodolfo said. “We are both young stallions and the evening is young.”
Laughing and a little drunk, the two left the hotel and walked through the dimly lit commercial district of the city. The store owners, following Latin American custom, close their businesses for the inevitable siesta time during the hottest part of the day. Then they return to reopen them in the early evening. The day’s work is finished after sunset and they go to their homes for a late supper. As Raul and Rodolfo walked along the streets, the stores were being locked and the merchants anticipated the large meals awaiting them in their homes.
~*~
The El Baron whorehouse was a square formidable building built around an open courtyard. A fancy bar was operated under one archway as the girls working the place circulated in the well-kept garden under the open sky.
Raul and Rodolfo bought drinks then settled down by the fountain that dominated the scene. Both young men inspected the girls who strolled through the area trying to entice customers to take them upstairs. A gaudily gowned middle-aged woman who was obviously the madam appeared. She quickly caught sight of Raul’s companion.
“Rodolfo!” she beamed. “How nice to see you.”
“And you, Doña Barbara,” Rodolfo said, standing up. “May I present my friend Raul Mackenzie? His is visiting our city from up north.”
The woman allowed Raul to kiss her hand, then she turned back to Rodolfo. “What happened to your face?”
“Raul cut me.”
“Ay! How naughty!” Doña Barbara said. She looked at Raul. “Why did you do such a terrible thing to Rodolfo? He is a nice boy.”
Rodolfo laughed. “An affair of honor. Now we are friends and celebrating our new camaraderie.”
“I am certainly glad you are no longer cutting each other,” the woman said.
“Tonight we are not fighters, we are lovers,” Rodolfo pronounced. “My friend is interested in la huera. How are his chances of visiting her?”
“It will not be possible tonight,” Doña Barbara replied. “I have placed her at the disposal of two gentlemen from Guatemala. She will be servicing them until dawn.”
“What about tomorrow?” Raul inquired.
“She is very expensive,” Doña Barbara said. “It will cost you five hundred pesos.”
“That is no problem,” Raul assured her.
“In that case, I shall put you in her appointment book,” she said. “And you can count on it. How does eleven o’clock sound?”
“Fine,” Raul said. “All night?”
“Of course.”
“But for now we shall settle for a couple of your other beauties,” Rodolfo said. “Come, Raul, let us make our choices. I cannot wait another instant.”
Raul smiled weakly, thinking of Loretta Slattery imprisoned somewhere above them, at the mercy of two men whose language she couldn’t even speak. He brightened his expression. “I am ready, Rodolfo. Let us pick two pretty ones, eh?”
It was four in the morning when Raul and his new friend finally left El Baron. As they went through the front gate and walked past the alley that ran the length of the large building, Rodolfo pointed to a heavily barred window on the second floor. “That is the room where they keep the blonde one, Raul. Just think. Tonight you will be in her arms, enjoying her beauty to your heart’s content.”
Raul nodded, his thoughts turning to the grim prospects of forming a hurried plan to rescue Loretta from the people who had enslaved her. The window of her room was not too high, which meant that any escape from there would be relatively easy if chains were used for the bars. When the way out was cleared, they would use ropes to lower themselves to the ground. The problem was the alley. It was long and narrow, faintly lit by street lights at both ends. No matter how dark the night, anyone in it could easily be seen by pursuers.
Chapter Nine
Raul immediately woke up Angel when he returned to their hotel room. The young peon yawned and rubbed his eyes. “Que paso?”
“I have located the girl,” Raul answered. “Get up, Angel, there is much to do.”
“Have you seen her? How is she?”
“I did not get a chance to see her, but according to Rodolfo, she is in good shape except for some faint bruising left over from her kidnapping.”
“If they have her working in a fancy brothel then her injuries cannot be too severe,” Angel reasoned as he began to dress.
“Or if they were, they have healed enough not to detract from her good looks.”
“At least she is not suffering the brutality of a bandit camp,” Angel said. “What is it we must do?”
Raul walked across the room, and sat down on the edge of his bed to think. “It is obvious that only direct action will work at this point.”
“Que bueno!” Angel happily exclaimed. “We shall get our guns and attack the whorehouse, eh?”
Raul shook his head. “There seems to be plenty of tough hombres inside in case of trouble. Besides the gunfire would draw the local policia to the site and we would not stand a chance against so many men.”
“We need have no fear, patron. Do you not remember the bandits we defeated on the way here?”
“I remember,” Raul acknowledged. “And I also remember that we were down to our last bullets and that it was Demonio and his men who actually killed most of our ambushers.”
“A small detail,” Angel said, preferring to recall the event as a great victory.
Raul turned his attention back to the current situation. “There is no problem in reaching her and having the time to prepare for the escape. But she is in a second floor room that is barred. I could never get her down through the courtya
rd and out the front, so our only means of leaving the place is through that damn window.”
“We will get some dynamite and blow the bars off,” Angel happily suggested.
“And end up blowing the girl and me both to pieces?” Raul pointed out. “No; we must get those bars off as subtly as we possibly can. But it is going to be noisy, no matter what.”
“While you are inside I could climb a ladder,” Angel said. “If we get tools I could take the bars off that way.”
“That would take too much time. The window is visible from the street and someone is bound to see you.”
“You find fault with everything I think of,” Angel complained. “Now let us hear your ideas, patron.”
Raul’s mind dwelled on several alternatives, before he finally reached a decision. “As soon as the stores open we must make some purchases, Angel. We will need some chain, rope, some men’s clothing in a small size, and a horse. A good one, with saddle and everything. Just as important we must get a map of the local area as well.”
“What is your plan, patron?”
“I will explain later. In the meantime go down to the kitchen and fetch us some breakfast. With coffee. Lots of coffee. And that reminds me. We must get food suitable for the trail.”
Angel rubbed his hands together in anticipation. “I cannot wait to find out what we are going to do. Whatever it is will be great adventure like our battle with the bandits, verdad?”
“It surely will,” Raul agreed. “But we must move carefully and deliberately through our preparations. If we rouse the least bit of suspicion on anyone’s part, we will fail. And probably lose our lives in the bargain.”
“But we are brave and fearless!” Angel insisted. “Now let us prepare to make the purchases, patron.”
Raul’s head buzzed from the previous night’s drinking and whoring. “But first let us have that breakfast with strong coffee.”
~*~
That evening Raul met Rodolfo in the hotel bar as he had the night before. This time they were the center of attention since quite a few of the local gentry wanted to meet the stranger who had engaged one of their young men in an unusual duel with Bowie knives.
Francisco Valverde, the coffee plantation owner whom Raul had met during his first evening in Selva Vista, turned out to be Rodolfo Arrozco’s uncle. He used the occasion now to brag about the bravery of his nephew and the fact that of all the duels fought in the area, this one was without parallel.
“These two young men are truly caballeros,” Valverde declared. “A misunderstanding develops and they both bravely go to the field of honor to do battle. Blood is drawn, honor is satisfied, and the air is cleared as true comradeship is born.”
“Out of mutual respect,” Rodolfo added. The cut on his face showed great promise of becoming a permanent, but light scar that would enhance his macho image.
“And we are going to celebrate again tonight,” Raul said. “Which reminds me; we must leave shortly.”
Rodolfo laughed loudly. “Raul is anxious to spend some time with the new blonde girl at El Baron.”
“I have heard she is cold but beautiful,” Valverde said. “I propose a toast to her.”
Raul, who was anxious to get to the real activity of the evening, took a quick subtle glance at the clock above the bar. It showed ten-thirty. He joined in the toast and once again tried to leave, but Valverde would have none of it.
“Let us not forget to drink to that most unusual duel,” he said, ordering another round of drinks.
“We shall have to make it quick,” Raul remarked.
“Cool your hot blood, young man,” another planter in the group said with a chuckle. “The huera is not going anyplace.”
That’s what you think, Raul thought, but he said, “I have an appointment at eleven.”
“So?” Valverde said. “If you miss her tonight, there will be other occasions.”
Raul felt dismay as several additional toasts followed. The others at the bar would think it odd if he became too insistent about wanting to go to the brothel. To them a prostitute — no matter how beautiful — was nothing more than a hireling to be enjoyed then forgotten. They would be more curious about a horse’s pedigree than the former life of such a woman.
But Raul was keyed up for action, and the drinking session was beginning to look as if it would never end. Another glance at his watch showed the time to be five minutes before eleven.
“What made you think of choosing Bowie knives?” a mahogany plantation owner asked. “Why stray from pistols or swords?”
“We are very innovative in Sonora,” Raul explained. “I suppose it is from being in such close proximity of the yanquis across the border.”
“Now there is a strange race of people,” Valverde said. “They can take a nice casual life and divide it into increments of time to be rushed through at all possible speed.”
“That is something I picked up from them,” Raul said. “Such as keeping appointments.”
The lumberman scoffed, “Forget that blonde. I have had her already and she is a statue and just as cold, believe me. The only excitement was from her unusual light coloring. But that lost its attractiveness after a while.”
Raul took another look at his watch, noting it was ten after eleven. His mood plummeted in his disappointment.
“Perhaps we should go,” Rodolfo said. “There is that bunch in town from Guatemala. If they get in before us, there will not be any of the girls left at all.”
Valverde slapped his nephew’s shoulder. “You can always go down to Bajo El Mundo had have an india.”
Rodolfo winced as his mind pictured a drunken Indian woman selling her body for a drink of cheap tequila. “Come, Raul. We are wasting time.”
They left amidst the good natured teasing of the older men, and hurried across the small city toward El Baron. Raul was sick with worry as they went in and sought out Doña Barbara.
“Do not worry, Raul,” Rodolfo said, trying to cheer him up. “If the huera is not available you can make another appointment to see her tomorrow night or the night after.”
They approached the madam who beamed at them. “Buenas noches, jovenes. What a pleasure to see you again.”
Raul hoped to appear unconcerned. “Well, I certainly hope I have not missed my appointment with the huera.”
“Why should you?” Doña Barbara said, smiling. “You had her reserved for all night anyway. I will take you up there now if you wish. Or do you prefer a drink first?”
Raul felt weak with relief. “I believe I will pass on the drink.”
The madam smiled sweetly at him. “Five hundred pesos, por favor.”
Raul paid, and the madam led the way to the stairs. When they reached the second floor, the pair went down to the end of a hallway. Doña Barbara pulled a large key from the depths of her ample dress and unlocked the heavy door. As she ushered Raul inside, she confided to him, “They say she is cold, but perhaps you are the man to put some life into her. You have the same light complexion she has.”
“I shall see,” Raul said, stepping into the room. He could hear the key click as Doña Barbara locked the door.
Loretta Slattery was seated at a dresser, her hands folded in her lap. She looked at Raul’s reflection in the mirror, then dutifully got to her feet. She was indeed beautiful with long blond hair and eyes as bright a blue as those of Raul. Her body was slim and shapely with small breasts, and she stood but an inch over five feet tall. She walked to the bed, undoing the chemise she wore. Her face was blank as if her mind were a thousand miles away.
Raul spoke up, “Loretta Slattery?”
The girl swung her gaze to him, her eyes wide in surprise. “Yes?”
“My name is Raul Mackenzie. Your Uncle F.T. Slattery hired me to bring you home.”
She stared at him for several seconds with no sign of emotion.
“Miss Slattery, are you all right?” He walked over to her and spoke slowly and deliberately. “I said my name is Mackenzie an
d your uncle sent me to fetch you.”
“Oh, my God!” Loretta uttered, stumbling back until she bumped into the bed. “You’re speaking English!” She closed the chemise, and sat down. “I thought I would be here for the rest of my life.” She tried to maintain a semblance of control over her emotions, but couldn’t quite do it. The girl let go completely, her weeping making so much noise that Raul was afraid someone outside the room would hear.
“I can give you just a few moments,” he said softly. “Then we must get to work.”
“I don’t understand. Did Uncle Fred pay a ransom or something?”
“It was impossible,” Raul explained, sitting down beside her. “I’m afraid we’ll have to make a run for it. How do you feel?”
She stopped crying and wiped her eyes. “I don’t know how I feel. I really don’t.”
“Can you ride a horse?”
“Yes. I’ve been riding since I was a very little girl.”
“Fine, Miss Slattery, because you’re going to be riding tonight like you’ve never ridden before. How do you feel now? I hate to rush you, but the sooner we get started, the more darkness we’ll have to cover our escape.”
She stood up. “I have no clothes. None whatsoever. They took away everything and just left me this chemise.”
“We have some clothing for you,” Raul explained. “It is men’s to disguise you.” “You’re not alone?”
“No,” Raul replied. “I have a friend to help.” He went to the window and whistled softly.
“There are bars on that window,” Loretta told him.
“They’ll be gone in just a few minutes,” Raul assured her. He looked down into the dim light below and whistled once more. A few moments later a rope looped itself over the window sill. Raul pulled on it, dragging in a tightly wrapped package tied with string. He tossed it on the bed. “Change into these things.”
He turned his back as Loretta opened the package, revealing a set of men’s clothing suitable for riding. Included was a pair of small boots such as a charra might wear. Loretta quickly slid out of the chemise and dressed in the outfit.
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