“We’re looking for Boy. I believe he owns the bar,” Danny asked a muscular, light-skinned man wearing a short-sleeved, Hawaiian button-down.
“What’s it to you?” the man asked gruffly.
Danny recognized a New York accent.
“Is he around?” Helen said.
“Let’s say I’m his associate and any of his business is also my business. Now if you won’t tell me why you’re here then this conversation is over,” the man said.
“Do you know Captain Sando?” Danny asked.
“Am I supposed to?” the man asked.
“Sir, let me apologize for our demeanor. We got off the wrong foot,” Helen explained. “Perhaps you have heard the news about the American abducted in the southern Philippines?”
“I read the newspaper from time to time.”
“We’re here because we need his help locating Commander Berto. We just flew in from Banaue after meeting with Captain Sando. He told us that Boy was the negotiator who helped with the hostage’s release two years ago.”
The man’s demeanor quickly changed from impatience to friendliness.
“You can call me Nick. I was part of the rescue effort. Is the American related to you?”
“Yes. He’s my best friend and her cousin. He was in a research vessel operating on the Sulu Sea when the armed group of men took him,” Danny said.
“Those damn kidnappers are giving this wonderful country a bad name. Every time something like this happens, tourists don’t come. It affects many businesses, especially mine.”
“We were hoping that Boy could help us locate Commander Berto and give him his ransom and get my cousin back,” Helen intervened.
“Do you know that by paying what those thugs are demanding we’re making things worse? They will only do this again,” Nick said.
“I understand that. But what if your brother or your sister was kidnapped by those lawless men, and you had the money to pay for the ransom. Would you still think the same?” Helen said.
He placed his amber bottle of beer on the counter. “Boy is in the cockfighting arena right now. He’s thin and short.”
“Most Filipino men are thin and short. There must be at least a thousand people in there with that description. How will I recognize him?” Danny asked.
“He always sits by the ringside. He’s a big fan of American football—you’ll see him wearing a jersey. He’s superstitious and thinks it gives him good luck.”
* * *
The noise in the arena was deafening when Danny and Helen walked in. They sat in the upper bleachers for a bird’s eye view. Carefully, they inspected each person in the crowd, trying to isolate anyone with a jersey.
“I think he’s that one down there by the ringside,” Helen said. “Let’s go see him now.”
“No. Not now. Looks like he’s passionate about cockfighting and I don’t think he’ll talk to us while he’s still here. We’ll just have to follow him out once the game is over.”
The cockfighting aficionados, armed with cash in their pockets and a prayer from their patron saint, shouted in excitement as they rooted for their fighter. Since it was impossible to hear what the person on the other side of the arena was wagering, the bettors communicated through the pandemonium with hand gestures.
“What are these people shouting?” Helen asked, mystified.
“They’re shouting ‘wala o meron’—‘hat or no hat’. Do you see the two men down there? One has a hat on while the other one doesn’t,” Danny said, pointing to the fighting cocks’ owners as they stroked the feathers of their prized possessions on a brown patch of soil in the middle of the arena. “They’re betting.”
The gamecocks were lowered to the ground. While the owners held their gamecock by the tail, they let the fighters peck at each other to excite their aggressions. Then the referee ordered the fight to commence. The owners released their fighters.
The feathers around their necks spread out like a lion’s mane. The decibel level in the arena quadrupled. The hostile roosters pumped with vitamins and a concoction of energy-packed feeds lowered their heads to commence the fight for their lives. With wings spread and anger blazing in their faces, the roosters attacked each other with ferocity. Jumping high in the air, wings flapping, and with talons outstretched, they tried to rip each other’s guts with fury. Equipped with three-inch blades, they swung their legs up and down and side to side hoping to cut their opponent’s main artery and survive the fight to the death.
As the gamecocks jumped several feet up in the air from the packed soil, the gamblers nervously watched the roosters rhythmically perform the ancient death-dance of alpha male domination. The noise level in the arena exploded into another thunderous level.
A few minutes later, the dark brown rooster managed to maneuver on top of the white rooster and peck for the mortal blow. All that the rooster on the bottom could hope for was to be saved by the bell, but no such clang would ever come.
When the referee rushed in and separated them, the white-feathered rooster was covered in blood, motionless. The match was over. The referee hoisted the red-brown rooster up in the air. The winning side of the arena erupted with cheers knowing that there was money to be collected, while the lifeless body of the white rooster dripping with blood lay silently on the packed soil.
Boy got up from his seat and headed for the exit.
“Come on,” Danny said to Helen.
* * *
“Where is he?” Helen asked, pushing her way through the waves of people leaving the arena.
Danny turned sideways, squeezing himself through the crowd to catch up with Boy. For a second, he lost Boy in the thick crowd. It was impossible to go any faster through the narrow exits and all he could do was wait for the line to move faster. He craned his neck hoping to see which direction Boy was heading toward, but with the new batch of people eager to get in the arena, it was difficult to spot him. Arms and elbows brushed up against his back and torso.
Concerned for Helen’s safety and wanting to protect her from some of the perverts in the crowd who would seize the opportunity to touch her or press their bodies on her, he pulled her in front of him.
“If people start pushing, just press your palm against the person in front of you,” Danny hurriedly said.
After making their way out of the arena, they frantically searched for Boy, hoping he was still in the periphery. By dumb luck, he saw Boy standing under the tree with a cigarette between his fingers.
“Pardon me for bothering you while you’re having a smoke, but are you Boy Kulot?”
“Maybe?”
“My name is Danny. This is Helen. We just came from your club and were told we could find you here.”
“Are you with the police?”
“No. We’re here because Captain Sando told us about you.” Helen said.
“I don’t know anyone named Captain Sando. Why are you looking for me?” Boy said, throwing his cigarette butt on the ground and stepping on it.
“Captain Sando told us that you helped with the release of the hostage abducted by Kulog ng Timog.”
“I don’t do that anymore. All I want is to live in peace, running my club and going to cockfights.”
“Mr. Boy,” Helen said, “Commander Berto and his men kidnapped my cousin. We need your help with contacting him.”
Boy said nothing and nonchalantly began to walk away from them.
“Please don’t take this as rude, but we are willing to pay for any inconveniences and troubles if you help,” Danny said.
“Think of it as a contribution to a good cause. We know that it takes money to get things moving,” Helen added.
Boy stopped walking and turned to them. The annoyance and distrust carved into his face melted into a smile.
“You know my uncle gave me the nickname ‘Boy’. I actually hate it, but it has stuck with me ever since. If we are going to do business together, you must call me by my real name.”
“And what would that
be?” Danny asked.
“Eduardo.”
* * *
Jeepneys are relics of the WWII-era military jeep with the back extended. There is also a different version for private citizens and non-commercial use with the chassis in the original short version. The “family” jeeps were called owners.
“Hop in,” Eduardo said, jumping into the driver side of his stainless steel owner.
Eduardo sped along the main avenue, his eyes fixed on the traffic ahead trying to avoid a collision with the vehicles abruptly changing lanes. The wind blowing in Danny and Helen’s faces felt good as it dried the sweat on their foreheads from the humid night. Their owner passed by vendors on the side street frying plantain bananas and yams covered in brown sugar. Several carts with propane-powered, portable stoves were selling fried fish balls on a large wok filled with hot oil.
“It’s very important that we don’t tell anyone about what we’re doing,” Danny said.
“I’ll try. Why are you worried about that?” Eduardo asked.
“Without getting into too much detail, someone is after the compound that I need to bring to Commander Berto in exchange for my friend,” Danny said.
“The problem with this business is that it’s hard to trust the people selling the information to locate Commander Berto,” Eduardo said.
“What do you mean?” Helen asked.
“As soon as the word is out that we’re trying to make contact with him, we never really know who had also paid them in order to get to you. For the right price, everyone is willing to sell just about anything. The meeting place could be a decoy, and once we’re there we could be ambushed. But don’t worry, I know exactly what to do. I will go ahead of you and scout the location myself, and if I smell anything fishy I will text or call you right away to abort,” Eduardo said.
“How will you make contact with Commander Berto if the Armed Forces of the Philippines themselves couldn’t locate him?” Helen asked.
“I know people. Where do you think these people buy their guns but through intermediaries like me. I have to make a few calls as soon as I get back to the club. Where are you staying?”
* * *
Eduardo parked the owner in front of the hotel where Danny and Helen were staying for the night. Danny shifted his gaze at the tourists walking in the main entrance with shopping bags and swimwear.
“The money?” Eduardo said, turning to Danny.
Helen unzipped her backpack and placed a stack of hundred-dollar bills on his hand.
“That’s five grand,” Danny said.
“This won’t even cover the cell phone minutes I’ll spend calling people.”
“The money we have is limited,” Helen said. “We still have to pay Commander Berto a million bucks.”
Not wanting to get into an argument over money and worried that Eduardo might decide to back out, Danny placed another stack of bills on his lap. “That’s ten grand altogether now. You can buy lots of fighting cocks with that.”
“I like you two already.”
“I will personally give you another five grand as a bonus when we get Blake back alive and safely back to Manila,” Helen added.
Eduardo inspected the stack of money and thumbed through it. He placed it under his nose and sniffed it.
“I love the smell of American money. Benjamin Franklin couldn’t be more handsome,” he said as he pocketed the money, grinning.
“How do we know that you’re not going to bail out?” Danny asked.
“Relax. You two are too tense. I’ll get things rolling here. You know where I live. Besides, I want the additional five grand as a bonus, rewarding me for my hard work once we get your friend back nice and safe,” Eduardo said, winking. “Now I have to go to work and look for some bad guys. Once I start calling and paying people off, things will happen real fast. Stay by your phone.”
* * *
A gift basket filled with pili nuts, pastillas, ensaymada and packages of dried mangoes was sitting on top of the table when they walked into their room. Helen laid down on the bed under the thin, white canopy cascading off the ceiling like a waterfall.
Danny slid next to her. “When this whole thing is over, are you going back to Boston right away?”
“The school year is ending soon and I have some tidying up to do.”
Danny laid on his side, resting his cheek on his hand. “I’d be very happy if you move in with me.”
From the expression on her face, Danny sensed that Helen was intrigued by his question. She said nothing and just stared at the overhead canopy. The situation became awkward, as if they were teenagers contemplating if they should be a steady couple. A minute later, she broke the silence.
“Do you think it’s a good idea?”
“No matter what happens when we return to San Diego—with or without Blake—I want you back in my life.”
“What makes you think it’s going to work this time?”
“I can’t be a bachelor forever and I need you in my life.”
“What are you saying?” Helen responded while running her fingers in his hair.
Danny dug inside his backpack sitting on the floor and retrieved a small cloth bag with a pearl ring inside. Helen sat up on the bed, curious what he was doing.
He knelt in front of her and held up the pearl ring.
“Will you marry me?”
Danny watched her eyes as they focused on the glistening pearl resting atop its shiny silver band. She appeared as if she was trying to process his simple question. Danny knew that she loved him too, and from the hints she had been suggesting during their past week together, she didn’t want to be alone in her cold and empty Boston apartment.
“Yes, Danny, I would be very happy to marry you,” she replied, kissing him on the lips.
Danny took her left hand and placed the ring on her finger.
“I promise to love you forever,” Danny said.
Danny could count the few times he was truly happy in his life—Helen agreeing to be his wife ranked on top.
Danny climbed into bed and tenderly pulled Helen down next to him, staring at his future wife. He planted a long, lingering kiss on her pink lips. He kissed the top of her shoulders and ran his tongue across each of her earlobes. Helen let out a sigh of pleasure. With his left hand, he reached for the lampshade on the nightstand and flicked it off.
* * *
The cell phone woke Danny up. He lifted Helen’s arm off of his chest and gently pushed her leg off of his thigh. Helen rolled away from him. The morning sun highlighted the smooth skin on her naked back. For the first time since they broke up, Danny and Helen made love, twice in one night. The first time was before going to bed and the second was when Danny woke up in the middle of the night to Helen’s tender kisses.
He looked at the screen and recognized Eduardo’s number. There was a kind of hurry in the way the phone rang, as if it wanted to be picked up right away. He imagined what Eduardo would tell him—either the bad news that Commander Berto had stayed quiet in his hideout and couldn’t be located, or to pack up and get ready to leave right away to meet him.
“Eduardo?”
“Danny, it’s your lucky day. I’m in Zamboanga City right now. I flew out last night a few hours after we talked,” Eduardo replied.
“Were you able to contact Commander Berto?” Danny said as he nervously anticipated what Eduardo was going to tell him.
“Not just that. I was able to set up a meeting with him this afternoon. You need to get the money and the Cube and fly it out here as soon as possible. Commander Berto wants to meet at a secret location in the city.”
“I need to drive back to Manila to get the Cube. It’s stored in a deposit box. As soon as we get it, we’ll fly there right away.”
“Great. Text me before you leave. I need to meet you at the airport.”
* * *
Danny shut the phone. His ordeal was getting closer to being resolved. Blake was finally coming home and the thought of it lifted his
spirit. He dialed Melchor’s number, eager to share the latest development.
“We finally got a hold of Commander Berto and he wants us to meet him in Zamboanga City,” Danny said.
“That’s great news. I left the hospital to be safe. I think the damn driver I hired was feeding information to Dr. Klein.”
“How do you know?”
“He keeps asking questions about where we’re going next. I began to suspect something wasn’t right.”
“Where are you now?”
“I’m hiding out in a friend’s house. Hire a van to take you here, then we’ll go to the airport together and fly out right away,” Melchor said.
* * *
Dr. Klein was sitting at a table in a beerhouse watching a drunken man singing karaoke when his phone rang.
“I just received orders to fly them.”
“When and where?”
“I was only told to be on standby and to be ready to fly within a moment’s notice. It could be anywhere,” the pilot said.
“Very well,” Dr. Klein said. “I will compensate you for your information. See how easy it is to do business with me? I’m in Baguio City right now looking for Danny and his girlfriend. Bastards got away from me again.”
“I will contact you as soon as I know.”
Dr. Klein swallowed a mouthful of beer and looked out the window. He knew that by the end of the day, the Cube would be his.
FOURTEEN
The white van arrived in front of the hotel an hour later. Danny felt both trepidation and excitement knowing he would either come back home with Blake unharmed or their meeting would be another bust. The thought of Dr. Klein intercepting them again came to mind, but since their rendezvous was kept a secret he was confident that things would go well.
Somewhere in the Shallow Sea: A Novel of Suspense Page 15