Why Me?

Chapter 30 Cuba

Beckett

     I wasn’t really into the whole “private jet” thing. I mean I always wanted to ride in one but under better circumstances. When we arrived at the airspace it was about five o’clock and Uncle Pedro was waiting for us. Apparently Juan wasn’t the sole handler of the “Lopez Drug Company”. He was second in command while Pedro Lopez, his uncle, was the boss.

     “Now Beckett, Uncle Pedro was very nice in offering this job to you.” Sarah started instructing me as we stopped the car. “He decided instead of sending someone that looked like a drug smuggler, he should send someone who looked like a tourist. Now Juan and I were so nice to go and mention your name. He obviously agreed. Now don’t look in his eyes for too long, have a strong handshake, and just don’t screw this up.”

     “I’ll try not to.” I said as I unbuckled my seat belt and opened the door. By the time I shut it, Juan was by my side clutching my arm with a rock-crushing grip. All three of us slowly made our way over to the plane. A tall man dress in khaki pants, black sandals, and a Hawaiian shirt waited near the entrance. When we were in front of Uncle Pedro, he took the cigar he was smoking out of his mouth and blew the smoke right in my face. I didn’t dare cough.

     “This must be our friend Beckett.” Pedro said, showing me his yellow rotting teeth. His Spanish accent was thick and his skin around his left eye looked burnt. He also had a long scar running over his right eye. This reminded me of Scar from The Lion King and I could help the little twitch that started at the corner of my mouth. Pedro instantly stopped smiling and stare at me as if he was trying to burst my body into flames.

     “Hello… sir.” I said trying to get him to smile again. I extended my hand toward him but he just stared at me.

     “Grande un chico blanco educado. Yo no voy a poner mi coca.” He said turning from me to his two goons standing next to the jet. They laughed and even Juan managed a small smile. Then Pedro turned back to me and I gulped. I had no idea what he just said but I wasn’t keen on asking him. Then out of nowhere, he started laughing and slammed his hand on my shoulder. I cringed but laughed along with him.

     “You have a lot to learn gringo.” Then, with his hand still on my shoulder, he led me into the jet and that’s when my journey truly began   

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     The jet ride lasted around an hour and a half. On a normal plane it would have been almost three hours, but good old Uncle Pedro was lucky to be able to afford one of the fastest jets on the market. As I sat there on the verge of throwing up, Pedro and Juan took turns explaining what was going to happen when we got to Cuba. I was to get off with Sarah and Juan and head to El Mesón Flamenco or The Flamingo Inn, in my language. Once there, we were going to rest and then the next morning Juan was going to wire me up and dress me as if I was a tourist. I didn’t find it necessary since I was already wearing jeans and a white tee-shirt but when we did land I understood why I needed to change.

     Getting off the jet, I didn’t see not one person in a pair of jeans. They were either wearing swim trunks or khakis. To be honest it was kind of sickening. I had to say though, Cuba was very beautiful. The sky was clear, the roads were filled with people, mostly natives, but there were a few tourists. Pedro had a few tequilas on the way to here so he was being awfully generous in offering me a tour. I eagerly agreed but as he pointed out important land marks, I caught Sarah glaring at me.

     Everything started out nice when we were in the capital, Havana. The buildings were big and white, only a few were a different color. Then we started making our way to the outskirts. That’s when things got a little… well different. Instead of huge white buildings and huge main roads, there were little houses all clustered together and little side roads. But the buildings were all sorts of colors. Yellow, pink, orange, blue, you name it. It was weird but it reminded me of Evangeline. She liked things that were unique. Evangeline…