“He then responded, ‘Swimmer boy, I’m sorry for over-reacting the other day. I know I lost my temper with you and treated you harshly. But I’m ready to make things up with you. Now why don’t you just take off all those unnecessary clothes and get into your swimmer boy outfit that I like. Then we will go for a little ride together.’
“I don’t want to go with you, Rogelio. I have a new life here, away from that town and away from your abuse. I am living with my aunt and uncle now.
“He replied, ‘Shall I wait in hiding here until they return and persuade your aunt and uncle to give you back to me with my gun? A pistol whipping and a few bullets are always very persuasive!’
“I knew that if I continued to act defiantly he would probably slug me with the gun, or beat me up. I was worried that he would seriously harm or kill Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Jorge, so I tried to use strategy against him to prevent that from happening. I told him that I would go willingly with him if he promised not to hurt my aunt and uncle. ‘Leave them out of this,’ I said very emphatically. ‘All they did was act as good neighbors and offer me a refuge when I needed it.’
“ ‘That seems to be a reasonable exchange,’ Rogelio replied. ‘I don’t really have a grudge against them.’
“Why don’t you go get your car and put it into the garage. If the neighbors see a strange man taking a nearly naked teen out to the car, they are going to think something is wrong and call the police!
“ ‘Good thinking, swimmer boy! Show me where it is.’ I walked over to the garage entry door with him and went inside and pushed the button to open the garage door. Rogelio then grabbed my forearm, squeezed it really hard, and threatened me again. ‘I’m going to get the car now. You go to your room and get changed into your trunks. Remember I have a gun and will hunt you down, kill you and kill your aunt and uncle if you try to escape.’
“While he went to get his car, I raced into the living room, grabbed the video camera that my Uncle Jorge had been showing me last night, set it to record, and stuck it on the lower brace of his work bench in the garage. Then I raced up to my room. As I was changing, I got the idea of putting a note in one of my chucks, and then left my Converse tee shirts on the bed as a clue. The same thing with the note on my music stand, and I threw some picks on the bed as another clue.
“I had gotten changed into my swimming trunks when I realized how stupid I was! You have a 911 system here and all I needed to do was dial it. Rogelio still wasn’t back yet, so I ran to my aunt and uncle’s bedroom to use their phone. But just after I dialed it and started to call for help, my luck ran out. My stepfather was back and he became furious when he saw what I was doing. He put his arm around my neck in a chokehold and quickly grabbed the phone away from me. He said into it, ‘Now, Son, I told you not to play with the telephone. Sorry,’ and hung up.
“My stepfather then said to me, ‘I see I was wrong to trust you, swimmer boy! I think the best thing to do right now is tie you up before you try any other tricks.’ He had a little carry bag with him, and out of it he took a set of handcuffs, and that roll of duct tape. He grabbed my arms, twisted them behind my back and cuffed my wrists. ‘I think you need a nice training session at my Red Valley ranch. When I am finished with you, you won’t be defiant at all.’ He then gagged me with my socks and the duct tape, and quickly walked me to the garage. When he said ‘red valley’ the words triggered my memory of that folk song that is used to teach music. When we got into the garage, he dropped me down to the floor to open the trunk, and that’s when I hummed the opening notes to the song as loud as I could through the gag. I was able to get off the second phrase before he grabbed me again, dumped me into the trunk, and then taped my ankles before he slammed it shut. He then drove out of there as fast as he could.
“I was really miserable during the long drive down to his property. I was scared to death that I would never see you or my aunt and uncle again. I cried bitter tears of frustration knowing that after finally getting away from his perverted life style and abuse, I was being taken right back into it again, bound and gagged and helpless to do anything about it.
“When we finally got to the ranch, I began to learn what my fate was supposed to be. He opened the trunk and cut the tape binding my feet. He lifted me out of the trunk and made me walk over to the hidden door in the barn. When we got inside the barn basement cell, my eyes widened with fear as I saw for the first time the horrible torture devices inside. Once inside he unwrapped the duct tape wound around my mouth and pulled out the socks he had stuffed in there. He un-cuffed one of my wrists, brought my hands in front of me, and re-cuffed them. He then directed me over to the bathroom. ‘Go in there and use the facilities, swimmer boy. There are cups so you can have a drink of water.’
“After I came out of the bathroom, I tried to talk with him and see if there was any humanity left in him. I figured I had nothing to lose, since I already knew what he was capable of doing to me. I said to him, ‘Rogelio, when you married Mom, she thought that you wanted to help us out, and make us into a family again. But you never wanted to be a father to me! Not once did you ever want to just do normal father and son things, like play sports, or go on camping trips, or even just fix things around the house. Why is every conversation with you always about swimmer boy this or swimmer boy that?’
“He replied, ‘When I met Anna, and later you, I saw exactly the young boy I wanted to have for myself. I wanted a barefoot boy only wearing a pair of trunks. A swimmer boy. Not a normal boy who would cost me a lot of money and time, then grow up and leave, but someone to be there to service my special needs and desires when I wanted them. That’s why I married your mother, so I could have access to you. For years I have been a coyote, bringing in people who wanted to get into this country and also looking for stray, orphan or runaway boys to become slaves for wealthy clients. Those boys have to be broken down and trained. That is why I installed this room. And now it is time for you to have that training so that I can finally have my reward.’
“Again I pleaded with him, ‘Why have you chosen such a cruel and brutal occupation! What did I or any of those other boys ever do to you?’
“ ‘You don’t get it, swimmer boy,’ he replied. ‘You Americans are all puffed up and think you are special even when you have no money or influence. Same thing for all of those immigrants seeking a better life. But a poor kid like you is actually no better than a stray dog. In the big picture you don’t matter! You are nothing!’
“ ‘You call us worthless,’ I responded in anger, ‘but aren’t you really the worthless one? All you can do is pick on others to scratch out a living as a criminal and a pervert!’
“Rogelio then told me, ‘Well I can see that you have been spending too much time with people that think you are worth something, when I know better. Since our last meeting your head has been filled with a lot of stupid crap. It will take some time to get these ideas out of your head, and for you to learn to keep your mouth shut. In this room you don’t need to be gagged because no one outside could possibly hear you. But in your case I will make an exception.’ He then opened his bag and pulled out a blue bandanna with a knot in the middle. ‘I saved this from our sessions at the Springdale house. I knew it would come in handy again some day. You will wear this all the time until you learn to keep your mouth shut and not talk back when I talk to you!’
“He then tied the bandana gag in my mouth and brought me over to one of his torture devices. He un-cuffed me, and placed my wrists into the loops of the device, which he then tightened up so that my hands were above my head and my body was six inches off the floor. He tore off another piece of duct tape and taped my feet together. ‘Swimmer boy, you will either learn to be my obedient slave or I will torture you to death! It’s your choice! Why don’t you hang around here for a while and think about it.’ He then laughed at me with his cruel laugh and turned out the lights, leaving me here in the dark. That was the last that I ever saw of him. I think I was strung up there for about an
hour until you guys came and rescued me! You can imagine how scared I was, hanging there and knowing that his plans for me involved either a life of sexual slavery or death by torture. What a choice to have!”
When Eric finished talking, there was stunned silence. Daniel had his head in his hands, and was nodding in disbelief as he stared down at his black high-top chucks. Jason had his arms crossed with his fists clenched and was just blankly staring ahead shaking his head slowly back and forth. Their happy reunion with Eric had been overtaken by a moodswing heavy with sorrow and melancholy.
Joe Connor then realized that he needed to intervene and say something to help Eric and the other boys deal with what they had just heard. With a determined look on his face, Mr. Connor got up, went over to where Eric was sitting, and sat down beside him. “Eric, you have gone through a set of experiences that have been unusually cruel and demeaning. Your friends Jason and Daniel here have to be quite shocked at what you have described, because they have lived normal lives and have not experienced the horrible abuse that you have been put through. We all feel great sadness for the terrible things that were done to try and crush your spirit. Each new shocking thing that we hear merely strengthens our commitment to helping you get back on the road to recovery. And you should know that all of us would have continued looking for you day and night until you were found. We would never have allowed that pervert to enslave you!
“Right now I want to talk to you as father would, a real father, not that predator you have had to deal with the past couple of years. No real man, and it doesn’t matter what race, religion, sexual orientation, or economic background he has, would ever treat a child the way you were treated. A true family environment is never abusive or demeaning, and it is the father’s responsibility to keep it that way. A father-son relationship should always be special, as gradually the son learns from his father how to be a man, how to treat others, and how to deal with the harsh realities of the world. Most importantly the family environment should be a safe place for a kid, at any age when you think about it, but especially for young teenagers like yourself.
“That trust was brazenly and cynically destroyed by your stepfather. Even using the word ‘father’ to describe that man is wrong; he was just a low life predator. Instinctively you understood what the role of a father and son should be. All you really need are simple things liked you described, shared activities, conversations together, and the safety of a family environment. That is not much for a kid to ask for, and every time you did so, you were viciously put down. The only way he knew how to respond to the righteousness of your requests to be treated normally was to react violently and to try and silence you! He had no real answer for what you were saying because deep down inside he had to know you were right. But the perversions of his lifestyle that were dominating his actions always seemed to have the upper hand. He couldn’t stand hearing a young kid protest his abusive treatment so his response was to gag you or beat you up!
“Even worse was the fact that he said you were no better than a dog, that you were worthless trash to be used and then discarded. He wanted you to be a living incarnation of his sexual fantasy, his ‘swimmer boy’ that he could use and abuse. This was being pounded on you over and over, so that your real personality, your normal male instincts, your sense of modesty and morality would be repressed and gradually weakened until you submitted to his desires. This was the most insidious part of his plan. Eric, it is to your credit that you were able to resist this, and that thought has to be at the core of your recovery from these horrible experiences that you had with him.
“Now as to who you really are, Eric, that should still be an open book. No matter what guilt or shame you feel because you were forced to submit to and participate in his abusive acts of molestation, that is not you and that was not your choice. Those despicable acts and moments in your life are now over. With some counseling help and the support of your family and friends, soon you will be able to put that portion of your life behind you. With Rogelio Fernandes no longer interfering with your life, you now can go after your true potential, whatever that may be. You could become a great musician, or an Olympic swimmer, or successful businessman, a store owner, a dedicated teacher or social worker, or maybe just a proud father with a loving family. Never for a minute believe what he told you about your worth. You are a human being capable of great good in the world if you choose to do so. You are young, alive, and just freed from a horrible captivity. Today you discovered inside yourself that you have the strength and ability to fight back for what is right, and that indomitable spirit inside you is not worthless, it’s priceless!”
After that last statement by Joe, Daniel and Jason jumped up and cheered. “Yeah, go Eric!” They then went over and started to high five and give Eric some encouraging slaps and light pummeling until he broke into a big smile and started laughing.
“Joe, that was a great speech! If I ever need to be inspired, I know who to call!” Jason shouted enthusiastically.
“Yeah, Joe, your analysis and explanation of things, as usual, is so right on!” Daniel added.
Eric got up and gave Joe a big hug. “Thank you for caring so much! What you just said was very comforting. I don’t know what else to say except that I am truly grateful to you for saying it!”
“You don’t have to say anything,” Joe responded holding on to Eric for a moment and hugging him back. After Joe let go of Eric, he said, “We are really happy that you are safe, Eric. We are your friends now, and we are here to support you whenever you need us!”
Jason and Daniel came up to Eric and put their hands on his shoulders, “Yeah, we second that!”
“I am so lucky that you guys came into my life,” Eric said in an emotional voice. “You have already saved me twice from the horrible fate my stepfather had planned for me. I can’t thank you enough.”
Joe replied, “After all of the bad breaks and despicable things that have happened to you, your life had to change for the better. What we did is what any caring person would want to do. Best of all, Eric, you are now free from the grasp of that evil man!”
Joe paused for a few seconds and looked at the three boys. “You know, guys, it’s time for some relief from all of this seriousness and stress. Daniel, I think that there is a soccer ball in the trunk of my car. Why don’t you get it and go kick it around for a while. It would make me happy to see the three of you having some fun for a change!”
Soon Joe had a smile on his face as he heard the sounds of Eric, Daniel and Jason kicking the ball around, laughing and shouting at each other.
THE WAKE
(Thursday Afternoon and Evening)
About ten minutes later, a police car drove up, and Lieutenant Garcia got out along with Sergeant Malone. The officers exchanged greetings with Joe Connor, Jason and Daniel, and introduced themselves to Eric.
“It’s been quite a day for us,” Lieutenant Garcia began. “It looks now like this case has a lot more to it than just the crimes done to young Eric here. After running a thorough sweep of the property, we think there is a good likelihood that there are some unmarked graves on the property, most likely more victims of Rogelio Fernandes. The San Benito County sheriff is going to bring in a dog team to help search for grave sites and the FBI will participate if additional bodies are found. There is a lot more investigating to do.”
“Wait until you see the hidden torture room where we found Eric,” Joe Connor replied. “It is full of devices that Fernandes used to torture his victims, and according to Eric, a lot of these victims were young boys he would capture and train to be slaves for wealthy clients.”
Joe Connor went with the two police officers to show them the hidden room. After they left, the three boys went back to their makeshift ball game. About ten minutes later, the adults came out and Joe was having a heated conversation with Lieutenant Garcia. Eventually Joe shook his head in disgust and walked away.
Lieutenant Garcia came over to where the boys were playing. “Guys, we n
eed to talk to Eric and update you on things. Could you come over here and sit down?”
Eric and the others walked over to the barn where Lieutenant Garcia indicated they should go and sat down on some bales of hay.
“I don’t know any easy way to do this, Eric,” Lieutenant Garcia began, “so I will just come out with it. Some Monterey County sheriff’s deputies went over to your mother’s house on Green Street to check on her because there was no answer when we tried to telephone her, and she wasn’t at work. After knocking on the door several times there was no answer, but her car was out front. Eventually the sheriff’s deputies broke in the door and once inside found your mother lying on the floor. Apparently she had fallen and hit her head on the sharp edge of the kitchen island. There were no vital signs, and after the EMTs and an ambulance arrived, she was pronounced dead. We believe that she was probably pushed and stumbled, which caused her to hit her head. From what the coroner has indicated as a preliminary finding, her death was instantaneous, so at least she didn’t suffer at all. It appears that she was having an argument about the telephone bill, because several pages of phone bill were on the floor next to her.”
“You are telling me that my mother is dead?” Eric asked in a horrified voice. “She was killed over a telephone bill?”
“From what we have heard, her death was accidental, as there were no other bruises or marks on her body. But apparently the telephone bill had something to do with it.”
“That must have been how Rogelio Fernandes found out where Eric was staying,” Jason interjected. “He looked at the telephone bill and saw all of those calls to your Aunt Marilyn’s telephone number. Then it was a simple matter to get her name and address from your mother’s address book.”
“That bastard Rogelio managed to get in one more fatal blow at me! He killed my mother to find out where I was staying. I can’t believe no one thought of that! How stupid! My poor mother!” Eric cried out in anguish, and then was overcome with tears.
Double Fugue Page 21