by K. C. Hilton
From that day forward Collin brought something new for Adelio to eat as well as a few bags of other items Collin had always taken for granted. He loved watching Adelio’s reactions.
Adelio promised to bring some Cuban beer and rum for Collin to try, as well as some black bean soup. Collin declined the soup but was more than willing to try the alcohol.
The bond between Collin and Adelio grew stronger every year and they missed their visits when hurricane season hit. Whenever bad weather struck their meetings and business adventures were put on hold. But overall, they met quite often and both were always happy to share the latest news.
One day Adelio’s boat came alongside Collin’s, but Adelio wouldn’t come aboard. Collin was suddenly wary, felt the hair rising on his arms. Adelio looked worried.
“Some men have been asking a lot of questions,” Adelio said, his voice shaking.
“Who? What kind of questions?” Collin asked.
“I don’t know for sure but it could be the human traffickers. They could be on to us,” Adelio replied, sounding even more nervous. He glanced around him as if he feared he had been followed. “We don’t want to get caught, my friend. I do not want to die. Not before I find my own freedom!”
“I completely agree with you,” Collin said, trying to sound calm. But secretly, Collin’s heart skipped with panic.
“We should take a break from transporting anyone for a while. We must stay under the radar and be safe.”
Collin nodded. “I’m sure it’s nothing. We’ll be back in business again soon enough.”
“I think we should stop our meetings as well, just in case they know something. It might be a while before I contact you.” Adelio shifted from one foot to the other, clearly impatient to leave.
“Okay. I’ll continue to check the online listings every morning. Get word to me if you find out something important,” Collin shouted above the noise as Adelio started his boat engine.
Adelio started to pull away, then looked back at Collin and waved goodbye.
“We’ll see each other soon!” Collin yelled. He raised his hand to wave farewell, thinking Adelio probably hadn’t heard him over the sound of the engine. “Stay safe, my friend!”
Collin watched Adelio’s boat skim across the water and felt suddenly sick to his stomach. He had to hope Adelio was just being overly paranoid, though he had rarely seen him behave that way. Still, it didn’t hurt to take precautions, even if it was all over nothing. Collin nodded, trying to persuade himself that Adelio’s fears were unfounded.
Their meeting had been very short, having lasted less than ten minutes. Adelio had clearly been shaken and upset, though he hadn’t mentioned any specifics. Did he know something more than what he had told Collin? No. Collin couldn’t believe that. Adelio was a friend. He would tell him if he knew anything more.
Collin stayed a while longer, staring at the sea and thinking hard. Home. I need to go home. He started his engine and turned his fishing boat about. He needed to get home and rest before Joey’s graduation.
Chapter 21
Cuban Departure Day 3
The sun is trying to rise but it is having a hard time. Large clouds are keeping it at bay. A strong breeze is keeping me cool.
I am tired. My body aches, warning me not to move. My hands curl into claws because of the pain. The sun has blistered my burned skin, forming large, dark red blisters.
A storm is brewing. The wind is picking up and the water is getting choppy. The water jumping up and down makes it harder for me to locate shark fins. I hear thunder in the distance. It’s the first real sound that I have heard in days.
If a bad storm is going to hit I would rather it be during the day than at night. It’s bad enough being out here all alone and scared, but if the storm hits in the middle of the night and I have no light from the moon or the stars, everything would be even worse.
Before I set my raft into the water, I never thought about how lonely I would be out here. I suppose I never gave it a second thought. Not that it would have changed my decision to leave Cuba. I was too eager to leave. I was too eager to be free.
I can imagine my son leaving for school this morning after he hugs his mother. He will walk with his friends and laugh and talk the entire way. Some of his friends will ask him questions about me, but he will pretend he does not know. We practiced the questions before I left. It would have been easier on him if my wife and I had decided not to tell him anything, but I would not allow him to think that I abandoned him and his mother. I did not want him to think of me as a low sort of man.
My son is proud of me. He told me so. I know he misses me as I do him, but he also knows that I am doing this for his future.
My wife will work as much as she is allowed today. She will welcome our son home from school with hugs and kisses. I know she will cry a lot because I am gone. Our son is all she has left. She will think of me and no doubt imagine the worst. But when our son comes home, she will put on a happy face and smile for him.
They will keep each other company and talk about me during their evening meal. They will wonder if I made it to America. They will dream of me when they go to bed, just as I dream of them when I dare to close my eyes on this tiny raft.
I want a better life for them. They deserve a better life.
A few days of loneliness and pain will be worth it.
* * *
Evening
I thought I saw something like a raft in the distance today. Maybe it was someone else leaving Cuba. I listened for voices but heard nothing. I know I need medical help, but I kept quiet. Maybe I only saw a creature of the water. Maybe my fears are playing tricks on me. I would not doubt that. I am exhausted and starving and my body has been devastated by the sun and rain and cold.
There is no light tonight. The moon and stars are obscured behind the clouds that have hung over me all day. It’s darker than dark can possibly be. The only light that I see is the lightning in the distance, and that is getting closer.
Heavy rain has been steady most of the day. I am freezing cold and shaking so much it’s making my teeth chatter. I am soaked through. There is no point in my crying. If I cried the tears wouldn’t be seen because of the rain streaming down my face. I am so dehydrated I might not be able to produce tears anyway.
The giant waves are like a most horrible ride. Up the wave and down the wave, making me sick. I grip the raft, trying to keep my balance, trying to hang on after the rainwater has made the raft slick. Some waves are taller than the tallest building I have ever seen. It’s an amazing sight, but it’s also scary. No boat will be on the water in this storm. There is no chance of a rescue tonight. I feel very small out on this water. I am unprotected and at the mercy of this fierce storm.
The longer I am out here, the more horror stories I recall of people whose journeys to America did not end well. I had always thought the stories could have been lies made up by the government to scare people so they wouldn’t leave. I’m not sure anymore.
Over the noise of the storm I can barely hear myself weeping, though I can’t tell if the water on my face is from tears or rain. I will cling to my miserable little raft this entire night, riding the ever-growing waves, praying it does not flip me. I am holding on for my life. I cannot let go.
The only things that keep my mind alive are the dreams I carry. I dream of the day when I am allowed to earn a decent living, when I am able to provide for my family in a respectable way. I dream of buying more food than what is allocated to us so that we will not worry about our next meal. We will eat eggs and bacon for breakfast every morning. We will eat meat every day. And we will have fresh bread with every meal.
We will buy a home which the government will not own. We will buy as many seeds as we want and have our own garden. My wife has always wanted a garden, but we could never get permission to buy seeds. It is sad because in Cuba only farmers that are overseen by the government can buy seeds to grow vegetables. And they are only allowed to grow so much.
The lands have gone to waste.
Tomorrow is day number four. If my calculations are correct I should find land or at least be found by Americans tomorrow. If only I can live that long.
Chapter 22
May 2011
One year. It was hard to believe it had been one year since George and Betty had died.
It had also been just over a year since he had heard from Adelio. He had heard nothing from his friend. Adelio had not even contacted him through an online listing, which had been their normal routine.
Collin finished unpacking the boxes and put the contents in appropriate places around on the yacht.
One year. So much could happen in one year.
When his parents had been killed, he had not been able to confide in his friend. Surely Adelio would have had some comforting words for Collin since he had lost both of his parents as well. That would have been worse in a way, he admitted, because Adelio’s parents had died when he was younger. He’d had to provide for himself from a very young age.
For the thousandth time, Collin checked the online listings. Nothing. He felt helpless and frustrated. All he could do was hope Adelio was okay. He had seemed so frightened the last time they’d met.
Adelio could have been right when they had met the last time, but Collin didn’t want to even consider that possibility. He had to assume Adelio was okay, just playing it safe. Sure. That’s all it was. Playing it safe.
But for an entire year?
After Collin had finished unpacking the boxes he decided to clean up some of the mess on his fishing boat, make it a bit more presentable. Then he might take it out for a while. It had also been a year since he had taken his fishing boat anywhere, and though he had been consumed by grief and distracted by alcohol, Collin had missed being on the water. It was time to get back out.
Joey was at the library. Knowing him, he would be there all day and probably most of the evening. If Collin left now he would be back before Joey even got home. Not that it mattered. Even if Collin got home after Joey was already in, Joey wouldn’t mind. He would be glad that his useless big brother had at least done something. Anything was better than doing nothing.
Collin pushed off from the dock, comforted by the familiar sound of his boat’s engine. He didn’t know where he was going; it was just important that he go. As he got into the open water he opened up the throttle, needing to feel the wind whip against his face and through his hair. The tang of salty air in his nose and the sounds of the birds and splashing water felt genuinely good. He took a long, deep breath, enjoying the day. It felt therapeutic to be back on the water again.
Time flew by, and by the time he looked at his watch it was already five o’clock. Without even realizing what he had done, Collin found himself pulling up at one of the places where he and Adelio had so often met at in the past.
From a distance, Collin noticed another fishing boat speeding toward him. He felt a pang of nerves ripple through him at the unexpected sight. Who was this? He pulled out his binoculars from under a bench and studied the approaching boat. Amazingly, it looked like Adelio’s fishing boat. Collin frowned, scratching his head as the boat drew nearer.
Then he lowered the binoculars, mouth hanging open with amazement. The other boat contained none other than Adelio.
“What the hell?” Collin mumbled. He felt an odd mixture of elation and fury at the sight of his old friend. Had Adelio been coming out here all this time without him? What was going on? But at the sight of his friend’s open grin, he dropped his anger.
“Adelio! Where have you been, man?” Collin cried, waving in excitement as the boat came alongside. “I haven’t heard from you in a year!”
“Hello, my friend!” Adelio called, smiling as he waved back. “How have you been? Good, I hope.”
A thousand emotions swirled through Collin’s heart as he tied his friend’s boat to his. “No, Adelio, I cannot say I am good. A lot has happened. But I’m so relieved to see you. I was so afraid something horrible had happened to you.”
Adelio embraced him as usual and the two men held on just a moment longer, enjoying each other’s presence once again. Then Collin pulled away and frowned down at the shorter man.
“Why haven’t you contacted me? I checked online every day for a year and you’ve left nothing, not even one word. What was I supposed to think?”
“I’m sorry, Collin. Truly, I am. It hasn’t been very safe this past year. I would have contacted you, but I didn’t want to put you in any danger,” Adelio replied. Then he frowned back at Collin. “Are you all right, my friend? You look as if you’ve been ill. You have lost a lot of weight since the last time I saw you.”
Collin shrugged, trying to contain his emotions. He didn’t want to burst into tears in front of Adelio, but the urge was there. “No, actually, I’m not really all right. A lot has happened, like I said. Just after the last time I saw you, my parents were killed.” Collin looked away. “I could have used a friend.”
“I’m so sorry, my friend,” Adelio said gently. “I didn’t know. If I had known … I’m sorry. I am very sorry.”
“How could you know?” Collin kept his eyes averted. He wanted to clear his thoughts, move on, but he was too torn up. He wasn’t angry with Adelio. No, it was worse than that. He was disappointed and felt he had been let down. Not only had Collin lost his parents, but he also felt as if he’d lost his friend.
“Again, I’m sorry,” Adelio said. “I wish I could have been here for you. I know what it feels like to lose your parents, but not at the same time. I am sorry.”
Collin sighed. “I’m sorry too, Adelio. I don’t mean to take this out on you. It’s just that I needed a friend. That’s all. Anyway, today I’m just happy as hell to see you again. Enough about me. How are your wife and baby? Did you have a boy or a girl?”
Now it was Adelio’s turn to look away, but Collin could see sadness fill his dark eyes. Collin felt immediately guilty. Something was very wrong, but he’d been so consumed by his own selfish rant he hadn’t spared a thought for his friend.
“My wife and baby died during child birth. She got sick a few days before going into labor. After that she was too weak. The baby was stillborn.” He sniffed and wiped a hand over his eyes. “It was a boy,” he said softly.
Collin set his hand on Adelio’s shoulder and squeezed gently. “I’m the one who should be sorry, Adelio. I didn’t know of your loss either, and you needed a friend too. I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you. I’m very sorry for your loss.”
Collin didn’t know what else to say. He and Joey had heard those same words over and over at his parents’ funeral, but he’d never had to say it to anyone before. “I’m sorry for your loss,” had always seemed like something people said when they didn’t really know what else to say. At the time, he’d gotten so tired of hearing those words. It surprised him to hear his own voice saying the same ones to Adelio.
Chapter 23
Collin abruptly changed the subject. He didn’t want to speak about death anymore. It was too painful. “Have you been out here much in the past year?”
“Yes. I have been coming two to three days a week, hoping to catch you out on the water,” Adelio said. “I’ve been wondering what happened to you as well. I assumed that I would see you, but you never came. I thought something bad might have happened to you.” Adelio lowered his eyes. “And it had.”
Collin shook his head. “But I’ve been checking online every day, and I didn’t see anything from you. I would never have thought you’d be here. Today was a total coincidence,” Collin blurted. “Up until today, I hadn’t been on the water for an entire year.”
“I couldn’t risk contacting you online. So I continued to come here,” Adelio replied. “But how could you have known? Our last meeting was so short, and I’m sorry for that”.
“I never would have thought to come out here. You seemed so concerned that I figured this was the last place you’d come. Anyway,” he said, grinning, “I’m just gl
ad you’re okay. I’ve been worried about you.”
“I’ve been worried about you, too,” Adelio replied, smiling back at Collin. “Shall we do some fishing?”
Collin and Adelio fished and talked for hours, going well into the evening. For Collin this evening’s chance meeting changed everything. A small piece of his life, which he’d thought had been lost, had returned. He had his friend back, someone to talk to. He knew he’d always had Joey, but it just wasn’t the same as having a best friend in whom he could confide. From this point on he felt confident life would get better.
By the end of the evening Collin had gained an optimistic new outlook on life. He felt encouraged and strong enough to once again take control of his life. It was time to get back to work and take care of Joey, and make sure he went to college. It was time to “grow up”, as Joey would say.
Adelio tucked his fishing gear away in his boat and asked Collin if he’d like to meet up again in a few days.
“That’d be great,” Collin said, already looking forward to seeing his friend again. This is what he needed. Just to be able to talk to someone and lift his spirits. Collin felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. In the last moment, though, his mind flashed over what Adelio was now going home to. No wife, no baby, no food, no hope.
“Adelio,” Collin said quietly.
Adelio looked up, concerned when he heard Collin’s serious tone. “Yes?”
“Come with me. Get in my boat and just come with me. Come to America. It’s your turn, man. It’s time for you to find your own freedom and have a new life.”
Adelio grinned. “I will think about it.”
“What is there to think about? I’m sorry to be so blunt, but from what you have told me, you have nothing left in Cuba. Why not just come with me now? What is there to think about? You could live with me and Joey for as long as you want.”
Collin got more animated as he spoke, realizing it was an actual possibility now. “You could have a new life. A wonderful life! No more rations, no more worrying about where you’re going to get your next meal. Come with me, Adelio. Just do it. Get on my boat right now and come with me to America.”
