La Luna de Miel Chapter Nineteen: Abduction
Several hours, several more glasses of fine wine and champagne, several courses of food later, it was long past midnight and time to depart. Manolito and Carmen were among the last to leave. The carriage from the hotel waited at the bottom of the stone steps, and they walked to it, climbing in breathless with laughter, ready to be alone. I cannot believe we stayed as long as we did at the ball, Mano mused, drawing Carmen close. In the dark, they kissed, long and delicious; their hearts beat faster. They paid attention only to each other as the carriage jostled along cobblestone streets. Yet soon Mano realized that they had traveled longer than the ten minute journey to the Hotel Nacional. Even walking, they should have arrived at their lodgings before now. He was about to glance out of the window, when the carriage shuddered to a halt and the door was jerked open.
"What is this?" Mano exclaimed with indignation.
"Step out if you please señores," came a voice, uncultured and coarse. The gun waving at them added weight to the request and the couple complied. Brutish hands gave rough pushes to their backs, forcing them through a door into some sort of warehouse. Inside they saw a dozen or so couples who had also been at the ball...their smiles replaced by worried, frightened expressions. Three men dressed as workmen held guns, their faces stoic, determined, even fierce. They looked like laborers. Ah, Mano thought...such clothing would render them inconspicuous enough in this city where buildings sprang up as mushrooms.
"Manolo…" Carmen began.
"No talking!" a harsh voice barked.
Mano shook his head and put his left arm around his wife's shoulders, holding his right across their bodies to clasp her hand in his. They moved to join the other reluctant guests.
"And now, you will please to give us the señora's jewelry. At once!" came another command, accompanied by a pistol thrust almost under their noses. Had there not been so many people around, and had Carmen not been there, Mano might have swatted the gun away and tried for his own his revolver, tucked into his inside jacket pocket. No, this was not the time for heroics. "Señor, are you armed?" the gunman asked, suspicious. Mano held up a hand to show his intent and then retrieved the revolver from his pocket, handing it to the thief.
Carmen removed earrings and tiara, which the bandito snatched from her hands. Her hands unsteady, she had trouble unfastening the pearls, so Mano reached back to release the clasp before the necklace could be ripped from her throat. She tried to pull off her wedding ring but it would not budge. Panic flared. The bandito closest to her narrowed his eyes. He sneered. "I will let you keep that, señora. This time," he rasped. Her eyes grew wide. Earlier she had twisted the ring so that the jewels were on the inside of her palm. The thief supposed she wore only a thin gold band, not worth bothering about, she supposed.
Mano watched as the men swept the booty into a large gunny sack. Muchachos, I do not forget a face, he thought, committing each detail of all five men's countenances to memory. You will not keep that tiara, mala gente.
The outer door banged open and three more men strode in, all wearing cloaks similar to those worn by cab drivers. Ah, so this is how they accomplished this, Mano realized. They took the place of the drivers. Must have waylaid each on the way or outside, as they waited. This took some planning. A tall man in fine evening clothes sauntered in next, his familiar face marked by a broad smile. Mano thought he had seen this one at the ball.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you for your cooperation," the well dressed man announced. "Your wealth will be shared among those who truly deserve better in this life and you should congratulate yourselves on being such worthy benefactors."
"Benefactors are we? Oh really?" Mano, unable to help himself, said with a laugh. "That is a new name for it."
"Do you doubt me, señor?"
"I do. You have duped these people and stolen their jewels. Now you would have us believe that all this is being done in the name of the poor? A very good joke, señor."
The man stepped in front of Mano and Carmen, who now squeezed her husband's arm with vigor, her nails pressing into his sleeve, urging him to be silent.
"Ah, you are Señor Manolo de Montoya are you not?"
"You are well informed."
"No, just observant. I saw you introduce your charming new bride to the governor at the ball this evening," he smiled. Mano's chest rose and he controlled his breathing with effort. He knew he must not further provoke this man, whose temper might be vented on Carmen instead of himself.
Carmen's chin tilted up. She did not look at the man but kept her eyes fixed on her husband as she prayed. Dios mío, keep him safe. Do not let him do anything rash or foolish.
"Now then, if you will all move over against that wall, please?" the tall man announced while his gang gestured with their guns. The helpless crowd complied. "We will be leaving in a moment and we are hoping that you will be sensible and not seek assistance for at least ten minutes. Otherwise, we may have to shoot you as you come out of that door." His smile was cold and did not reach his eyes. Mano said nothing but his eyes scanned the room as the gang left the building.
The tall man exited the warehouse last. Nobody within moved except Mano, who tore himself from Carmen and darted along the line of people to the side of the building where he found an unlocked door. With a glance at Carmen who stared after him, silent, her mouth ajar, he turned the handle and proceeded through to a smaller room, again with a door, this one to the outside. He tried this handle and found this door, too, unlocked. He opened it a crack and saw that it looked onto a brick wall and an alley. He stuck his head out the door with caution and glanced right and left, spying the courtyard where the carriages had dropped them. He tiptoed into the alleyway and edged along the wall toward this courtyard, stepping in silence, then dropping to his knees to minimize his chances of being seen before peering into the courtyard. Using an old Apache trick, he froze so that he could survey the scene, motionless and undetectable in the dark.
He saw the men climb into a long wagon and drive out of the courtyard at a brisk trot. The tall man, grasping a riding crop and the bulging gunny sack, prepared to climb onto a horse but the animal proved skittish. As the man took a minute to calm the horse, Mano used his enemy's preoccupation to edge along the building, sticking to the shadows. He crept nearer the man and horse. When Mano got within ten yards, the man placed his foot in the stirrup and grasped the saddle horn to hoist himself and the gunny sack atop the horse. Vamonos, hombre, Mano said to himself, sprinting across the short distance and springing onto the back of the tall man, grasping his coat and pulling him down. The man stumbled backward, dropping the gunny sack onto the ground but dealing Mano a savage blow above the left eye with the riding crop still in his hand. Mano countered by tripping him and falling upon him. The men rolled on the ground, wrestling, till Mano pinned his adversary. Still the man struggled, so Mano sat on him, shoving his face into the dirt with a hand.
"Señor, keep still or I may have to break your neck. No one would blame me," he said in a cold, even voice and the tall man stopped wriggling. "Carmen, señores, ven aquí," he shouted as he next pulled the man's arms behind him while keeping a knee in the small of his back. "Ahora! Ayudame! Andale!" Carmen rushed from the warehouse, followed by several men, victims all who now helped Mano secure the tall man. One gentleman used a rope attached to the thief's own saddle to bind the man's hands. Another ran to fetch the policía. Two men sat on the tall man's back, preventing him from even thinking about moving.
Mano retrieved the gunny sack and opened it, taking the tiara, grabbing his wife's pearl necklace, then rummaging for her earrings before passing the sack to the anxious ladies. "You are bleeding, Manolo!" Carmen cried as she threw her arms around him for a few seconds before pulling back to speak in the loudest voice she could manage, "Don't ever do that again!" Tears of relief streamed down her face, mixing with the blood on his, as he smiled and drew her close.
The police arrived with endless questions, making notes of every detail Mano and the others could recall. Descriptions. Identifying marks. "They have my gun," Mano explained, describing the small pearl handled revolver that his father had favored. Soon cabs, each driver checked with care, arrived to convey all the guests home. Mano accepted handshakes, thanks, and congratulations from the men and kisses from the women. "It was nothing," he insisted. In truth, it had not been as risky as fighting the Apache. And the danger had energized him.
Dirty and disheveled but intact, Mano and Carmen soon arrived again at the hotel. The manager already knew of the drama-informed by his driver who had himself returned battered and bruised after a few hours of unconsciousness. Señor Garza rushed out to meet them, calling for bath water to be heated and sent up to their room.
"Lo siento, Señores Montoya! The ball, so spoiled."
"Oh, it was not spoiled, Señor Garza," Carmen smiled in reply. "It was a beautiful ball and I enjoyed every minute of it. What happened afterwards was unfortunate, but has not tainted my memory of the ball."
On that note they climbed the stairs to the safety of their room to prepare for the arrival of some much needed bath water. Enough for one, or perhaps two, if we are inventive, Mano smiled to himself, not at all tired and thinking of how much he loved his wife. A knock at the door proved to signal the coming of Dr. Hernandez, called by the manager, so Mano sighed and allowed the physician to attend to his cuts while Carmen bathed. Fifteen minutes later, maids scurried in with additional bath water for Mano and he followed his wife into the tub after the doctor departed. Carmen kissed him and scrubbed his back and teased him. Soon, bathed and refreshed, they sank into bed.
VKS & MJRod claim the creation of Carmen Navarro, although we took her first name from a David Dortort script proposal. We also are the creators of the Vargas clan , Rancho Navarro and its people including Delgado, and all of the characters in and around Hermosillo. We would have nothing to create were it not for our favorite western, "The High Chaparral," to which we pay tribute.