Stomach Ache
Miguel sat up quickly and pulled up his friend. "Are you hurt any?"
Tony answered, "No, I am okay except for a skinned elbow, I think."
"Good, then, we need to run before that policia catches us," Miguel began scrambling towards the edge of the boxcar roof as he spoke. "Antonio, follow me now."
Tony crawled in the direction Miguel indicated. Neither boy realized that the policeman had made his way down from the bridge and waited irritably on the track for them to descend. As they scampered down he grabbed each child by an arm and yanked them none too gently all the way back up the embankment to the road, fussing and berating the entire way.
They had been on the receiving end of his angry tirade just a couple of minutes before they saw a young man approaching. When he got closer Tony looked up in surprise and called out in relief, "Lorenzo!"
The young man recognized the voice, then the boys, and jogged over to the little group. When he reached the pair of miscreants Tony broke free from the officer and grabbed Lorenzo's arm. "Lorenzo, the policeman has us and won't let us go- que nos mantiene! Make him free us, please, Lorenzo."
Lorenzo, an extremely handsome twenty year old college student, was Tia's only son. The first time Tony had met him arose on his very first trip to Mexico four years before. Tia had brought Lorenzo and his sister, Veronica, to the hotel to pick up her own sister, Maria, Tony's abuela.
From that visit, and their first contact when Lorenzo had carried the five year old Tony from the car to the house, Tony had hero worshipped his older cousin. Lorenzo proved a patient young man, and generously coached Tony and spent time with him each time the youngster came to Campeche. Despite the fact that he was eleven years older, Lorenzo always took an interest in Tony's activities, and tended to look out for him, as well. He understood that Tony held him in the status of a hero, and treated the child like the younger brother he never had. His fondness for Tony equalled Tony's fondness for him.
Thrown off guard, it took Lorenzo a couple of minutes to understand the story and what the boys had done to upset the officer so badly. Once the policeman shared the account Lorenzo regarded both children with horror, and the two had the sense to hang their heads and appear ashamed. The policeman had no intention of allowing the boys to get away scot free, but when Lorenzo introduced himself as Tony's cousin and assured the man that the children would not go unpunished, the policeman stepped aside and released them to Lorenzo.
The college student waited until the officer disappeared down the road before prodding the boys in the opposite direction towards Campeche. "Let's go now." He was still trying to process the picture of two children sailing off of a bridge and landing several metres below on a rail car.
The youngsters moved quickly, looking from Lorenzo to each other. Tony was used to a laughing, fun Lorenzo, but the one walking with them made him nervous. He did not know how to approach him.
They had walked far enough that the bridge was out of view before Lorenzo turned to Miguel and ordered firmly, "Start talking, hablas- I want to know what you thought to accomplish with that trick, and make sure you use honesty and tell everything to me."
Miguel began speaking first, haltingly, and Lorenzo interrupted a couple of times to make clarifications. When Miguel finally stopped talking Lorenzo stepped back and pulled Tony, who had tried to lag behind, beside him.
Lorenzo stopped in the middle of the road and directed firmly, "Your turn, primo, and I want the truth from you lips, as well." He kept an unwavering grip on Tony's arm and pulled the child along as Tony rapidly tried to obey and give his account.
This side of Lorenzo worried Tony. His cousin always treated him as an adored relative, not a delinquent deserving of reproach.
As they approached the village, Miguel hesitated, then interrupted softly. "Lorenzo, we must stop here a moment."
Lorenzo halted, and the two boys quickly scurried to a hedge of flowery bushes bordering the path. They yanked out the clothing and shoes they had hidden in the foliage earlier in the day.
Tony looked up sheepishly and explained as he pulled on his shoes and shirt, "I will get in trouble for being outside, for playing without a shirt, and barefoot. Abuela says that's bad manners- she does not like me to run around with no shirt. The same goes for Miguel."
Lorenzo nodded, and pointed at the front of Tony's shirt, which had a large bloodstain. Tony held up his elbow. "I hurt my elbow on the train and it's from that."
They reached Miguel's house first. Lorenzo turned to his cousin and ordered softly, "Stay until I return, Antonio, and do not move," then he and Miguel entered the Gonzalez home.
Tony grimaced in sympathy as the door shut behind them. Miguel was going to be in a world of trouble when the train incident came to light.
Standing as instructed in the warm sun, he contemplated throwing himself upon Lorenzo's mercy when his cousin returned, but was uncertain how to proceed. This Lorenzo barely resembled the fun, patient, carefree young man Tony had always idolized, and he couldn't decide on the best approach to employ.
The door eventually opened and Lorenzo jogged down the walkway and joined him again. "Let's go, Antonio."
Tony followed silently, his stomach beginning to knot as his own house got closer and closer. He could predict the reaction from his dad and his abuela, and it would undoubtedly involve some painful discomfort for him. He didn't often get spanked, and the usual responses to his incidents of misbehaviour involved some type of restriction or grounding. However, today's activities would call for bypassing the more lenient punishments and heading straight to the least palatable. He could forecast having his butt suffer badly for the train stunt.
He tried to change the course of events by appealing to his cousin's loyalty to him. When they reached the front door he turned to Lorenzo and implored him, throwing himself upon his cousin's mercy. "Please, Cousin, don't tell them. I will get into really bad trouble if you do. I know that I shouldn't have been on the tracks, or jumped from the bridge. I am begging you to just keep this secret. You have always looked out for me and taken up for me before now. Please, Lorenzo, don't let me down today."
Tony looked at him expectantly, and Lorenzo waited a second before he responded.
"Antonio, you have me for an ally, to protect you, a protector, always. That does not change. I will not, though, allow you to pull the stunt you pulled with Miguel or your interrogation with the police without telling Tia Maria and su padre, your father. This is not a happening like you broke a window. You could have been killed. The response of your papa, the punishment- that will act like the medicine to stop you from doing that again. I would rather know you must take that medicine than that I must go to your funeral because you did not learn."
