ELSA'S INVITATION (second post)

 

Ricardo hated everything about dining at Major Morales’ "headquarters." The Major had confiscated the estate from a wealthy merchant who had escaped to Colombia, and the atmosphere inside was suffocating. Two scared-looking maids, their eyes fixed firmly on the floor, served the meal. The food was both abundant and varied—a lavish display that made Ricardo sick to his stomach as he thought of the starving families in the neighborhood.

Throughout the evening, Morales was intensely obsequious toward Elsa. It was glaringly evident that he was attracted to her. He took it upon himself to give her a personal tour, showing her the various rooms of the house. To the quiet astonishment of both Ricardo and Paco, Elsa chatted amiably with him, playing the part of an interested guest with perfect poise. When the meal ended, Morales pressed them to remain longer, but Ricardo managed to weave together enough polite excuses to finally get his family home.

The next morning, the reality of Ricardo's new position arrived early. Morales' men began relocating heavy wooden crates from the riverbank to Ricardo’s storage shed.

Watching them stack the cargo, Ricardo mused darkly. It is a good thing a forest of tall trees covers the shed, hiding it from the Colombian army helicopters. He knew the math was simple: if the shed took a direct hit from an airstrip, the massive explosion would instantly obliterate the structure, along with his family home and everyone inside it.

As the administrator, he had to log the inventory. The crates contained shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles and their launchers, fragmentation grenades, 7.65 mm rifle ammunition, 9 mm machine pistol rounds, land mines, and commercial-grade explosives.

As he closed the ledger, a wave of nausea washed over him. He felt deeply sick. Was it the lingering horror of watching yesterday’s executions, he wondered, or was he feeling the first catastrophic symptoms of rabies?

Later that afternoon, Paco pulled him aside with an update from the riverbank. He reported that several large boats equipped with powerful outboard motors had just arrived at the new landing downstream. They were being prepped to carry supplies to the guerrillas' other areas of operation deep within the country. A plan began to form in the back of Ricardo's mind, but the timeline was completely shattered when he returned home.

Elsa caught him in the kitchen and delivered a piece of news that left him cold.

"Last night, I invited Major Morales to dine with us here," she said quietly.



Ricardo stared at her, his voice rising in a panicked whisper. "Elsa, do you realize what you are doing? That man doesn't want a dinner companion. He wants you as his mistress."

"Yes, brother, I know exactly what I am doing," Elsa replied, her eyes steady and fierce. "I am going to ask him to get us an anti-rabies vaccine for you. It is your life I want to save, and I will do whatever it takes."

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