90 Miles to Freedom (16 page)

Behind the warehouse Collin could make out the profiles of other rundown buildings and warehouses built extremely close to each other. If Collin and Joey could stay hidden behind the buildings, they could have a chance of getting away. The few dingy lamp posts leaned as if they could fall at any moment, their light was very dim.

Collin gently wrapped his arm around Joey’s waist, half-carrying him behind the buildings. At the end of each building he hesitated, leaned Joey against the wall and peered around the corner. He wasn’t sure yet of their destination, and for the moment he was focused more on staying out of sight.

Joey’s consciousness dwindled and Collin had to keep him both calm and alert. “Joey, how did you end up here?” Collin asked, trying to keep Joey distracted from the pain.

Joey gasped in a breath before speaking. “My friends brought me. Or at least I thought they were my friends.”

“
What friends?” asked Collin.

“
You know. The guys that would stop by once in a while, hanging out in front of the house. They drove a blue car, remember? Sometimes when I checked the mail they would just happen to be driving by and they’d stop and talk for a bit. They invited me to go boating with them,” Joey muttered wryly. “Sure sounded like fun at the time.”

Collin remembered the sweet blue car, could picture it clearly in his mind. He’d seen it that morning after Joey had chewed him out for always being drunk. It was the morning of the first anniversary of their parents’ death. Joey had stormed out the front door to check the mail and Collin had, through the window, seen Joey meet up with the men in the car. Collin felt ill at the thought. They had befriended Joey in order to get to Collin, because they were working for the traffickers.

Joey’s voice was weak but he kept on talking. Maybe he knew it was good to be distracted. Collin didn’t care why. He was just happy to encourage Joey. Though the whole story only made Collin feel worse, he needed to know.

“
They told me,” Joey suddenly sucked in air through his teeth and flinched. A sting of pain held him hostage for a couple of breaths. When he looked back at Collin his eyes looked flat, as if he fought back not only the pain, but the thoughts behind them. “They said they had recently moved to Key West and were new to the area. They told me they lived in the neighborhood. I went on a few boat rides with them, did some fishing, no big deal, really. They seemed nice enough.”

Joey paused for a moment and his whole face seemed to harden before Collin’s eyes. “Pello, he told me what you did, or what you use to do,” Joey said. “He told me you brought illegal Cubans to America.” Collin said nothing, only waited, so Joey went on, sounding cooler than ever.

“
Pello also said that he hadn’t meant to kill Mom and Dad. That he hadn’t meant to kill them, Collin! That he had meant to kill you instead. Pello killed our parents, Collin. It wasn’t an accident!”

Collin swallowed hard. It must have been overwhelming for Joey to hear all this. It had been hard enough for Collin, and he’d at least had some idea of what was going on.

“
So the guys came by and invited me to go fishing with them that day, and I went. We were farther out in the ocean than normal and when I asked about where we were going to fish, they started laughing. They told me that someone wanted to talk to me about you. One thing lead to another and they ganged up and beat the shit out of me. The next thing I knew, I woke up here, in Cuba no less. Collin, what’s going on?”

“
Let’s go,” Collin said, helping him run again.

When they had gone past about twenty buildings, Collin looked around one wall and recognized a man he’d met only briefly: Neo, the Cuban who had given him food when he’d first woken up.

“
My friend! You’re alive!” Neo exclaimed in a whisper, then looked furtively around. “You must leave! You must go before they know you’re gone.”

“
Can you help us? We need a boat,” Collin asked.

“
Yes! Yes! Come. Follow me, but be quick!” Neo said. With a wave of his hand he signaled for Collin and Joey to follow him toward the docks.

“
You see? Look there!” Neo said. He pointed down the dock, three boats away. It was Adelio’s boat.

“
Here. Take my jacket and hat!” Neo said firmly, putting them on Joey. “When you walk down the docks do not act as if you are in pain, amigo. Your life depends upon this. Walk straight and tall and normally, not slow. Do not slouch. You must act normal or you will get caught again. The men, they are busy. They like to drink too much and be with women, you see. I will follow a little behind you, to try and keep you covered.”

“
Thank you, my friend,” Collin said, shaking Neo’s hand.

Neo clasped Collin’s hand in his. He had kind, grateful eyes. “You and your friend, God bless his soul, have helped many of our people go to America to find freedom. Your friend told me. You helped my brother go to America a few years ago, and he is doing well. My brother wrote to us, telling us of the kind American man who took them to land. He sends us American money and because of you and your friend, my family will be joining him one day soon. May God’s speed be with you and keep you safe,” Neo said. “Now let us go. We must go before they discover you are gone.”

Chapter 29

Collin and Joey walked out onto the docks, trying to look as normal as possible. Joey walked tall, without the help of his brother, but Collin saw the strain on his face.

The dock held very few people, and these were poor workers. They kept to themselves, keeping their eyes purposefully away from what was going on. They didn’t want to intrude or be witness to anyone’s business.

The rain and fog were a blessing. As it was, the docks were already poorly lit with inadequate lighting. The walk to the boat wasn’t far. Collin and Joey climbed aboard Adelio’s boat and Neo nodded to them as he strolled past.

Joey collapsed on the boat while Collin, pulse racing, released the lines. They were far enough away from the warehouse now that they would not be noticed. A few boats came and went around them as the rain tended to bring good fishing. Adelio’s boat eased away from the dock and quietly moved out into the open water.

They were ninety miles from home. Ninety miles to freedom. Joey badly needed a doctor. Could he make it home in time?

As soon as their boat was well within American waters, Collin got on the radio, begging for assistance from the Coast Guard.

He gripped the receiver and screamed through it, putting all his fear and relief into the call. “Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! This is Captain Collin Scott. Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! I am captaining the Adelio and need urgent help! Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! I require immediate assistance. Two people on board. One has been shot and is bleeding severely! Over!”

Once he’d made the mayday call on any frequency no other radio traffic would be permitted except to assist in the emergency. He would have the Coast Guard’s full attention. They could launch helicopters and any other boats in the nearby vicinity to assist him. He would get the help he needed for Joey and everything would be fine. Joey would be okay.

Finally, after what felt like ages, the U.S. Coast Guard replied. Collin gave them his exact position and repeated the message that emergency assistance was needed as quickly as possible. The Coast Guard instructed Collin to continue on his current path and they would rendezvous with him soon.

“
Joey! Everything is going to be okay,” he called. “The Coast Guard is on their way!”

Joey was not looking good. In fact he was looking quite pale and seemed barely able to keep the shirt pressed against his wound. Collin wanted to go to him, but he had to control the boat as well. He decided to try and distract him with stories.

“
Joey! Hey, Joey! Do you remember the ‘Bucket Story’ Mom used to call it? Do you remember?” Collin was desperate to keep Joey’s attention.

Joey mumbled something non-committal, but Collin kept it up, trying to stay calm for Joey. “Mom called us all into the house for dinner. You were only about five years old. I came rushing into the house and took my seat at the table. Mom looked at me, then she looked at Dad, and he just shrugged. They waited a few minutes for you to come in the door but you never did.” He tried to laugh, tried to engage Joey, but everything he did sounded forced. “Mom asked me where you were. She was staring me down like a hawk, I tell you. She knew something wasn’t right.” Collin looked back over his shoulder at Joey and tried to laugh again. “I tried to keep from laughing and she told me to look at her. You know? The way she’d demand that and nobody on earth was going to look away after that? Anyway, she asked me again where you were and I told her you were in a tree. She looked at Dad, but he just sat back and folded his arms, waiting to hear what else I was going to say.”

Joey made a grumbling noise that didn’t resemble any kind of words. At least he was trying to be attentive as Collin told the story. That was a good thing. Joey was staying as alert as he could.

“
She told me to go tell you to come inside for dinner, but I said you couldn’t because you were in the tree. Mom was getting upset by then and she asked me what I was talking about. So I told her you were hanging in the tree and couldn’t come down. Dad started to laugh and I thought Mom was going to blow a fuse or something. Then she got up from the table and stomped through the house, heading out the back door.”

Joey made a little chuckling sound when Collin looked back at him.

“
Dad asked me what I had been up to and before I could answer him, Mom started screaming for him to come and help her get you out of the tree! Do you remember that?” Collin started really laughing now, unable to help himself. “Do you remember getting into the five gallon bucket and me hoisting you up with a rope tied to the handle?”

“
At least you tied it to the tree with a good knot so I wouldn’t fall,” Joey managed. He laughed a little and grasped the shirt to his wound. “Stop! It really hurts when I laugh.”

Chapter 30

When the Coast Guard arrived, approximately twenty miles from Key West, Collin and Joey were transferred to the Coast Guard’s boat. Another boat towed Adelio’s boat behind.

Collin held Joey’s hand while two Emergency Medical Technicians administered first aid. At one point Collin looked up and recognized one of the U.S. Coast Guards on board, and the name Perez jumped to mind. He’d seen the man before during some of the Coast Guards’ routine checks of fishing boats in the Florida Strait.

The technicians didn’t move fast enough. Everything seemed to be progressing in slow motion. Collin was frantic. “He needs to get to a hospital! He needs a doctor!” he yelled. “Aren’t you going to get a helicopter here?”

The two Coast Guards assessing Joey’s wound exchanged a knowing glance but didn’t speak. They continued to work on Joey but didn’t look at Collin.

“
Air support is on its way,” one of the men said from behind him. It was an unsympathetic and cold reply and made Collin instantly suspicious. What did these guys know that they weren’t telling him? Something was wrong, Collin thought to himself. Where was the damn helicopter?

Joey squeezed Collin’s hand hard, sweating through the pain of the first aid as the two men applied pressure to his wound and prepped him for an I.V.

“
You could have stopped this, Collin!” Joey sobbed. “It didn’t have to be this way. We should have left. You promised to take me away from everything, just you and me. You promised! Do you even remember that?” He cried out, squeezing his face tight in agony, then went on, his words spitting out. “You said when the day came you would tell me it was time. Well, that day never came, did it? It’s all your fault, Collin. I hate you,” Joey managed. A line of blood started leaking out of his mouth. “Do you hear me? All of this is your fault!”