Riley's Point of View from Courageous Love

by Isabel

      As I stumbled at the feet of the man they called jefe (boss), all I could think is how worn out Andi looked. What had she been doing for the past two weeks? As my mind shifted to Procopio, who stood over me a few feet away, he nudged me with his boot and said, ''Speak quickly. If I do not like what I hear, you will die.'' Then he slid a knife from his belt. ''Who are you?''

I struggled to get myself up. I was sure I was a sorry sight, with all my bruises and a week's worth of a beard. Yep, Andi would probably not recognize me. ''I am Ramon Ortega, nephew of your compadre, Chano Ortega,'' I said, hoping I sounded more confident than I felt.

 Suddenly, Procopio grabbed a fistful of my hair and pulled the cold knife blade to my neck. After a second, I could feel blood trickling down my neck. ''How can that be? I have not ridden with Chano for many years, not since San Quentin.''

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Andi clamp her mouth shut with her hand. I could tell she was worried. More people came to see what the commotion was all about.

''Allow me to prove my sincerity, senor,'' I whispered.

He did not twitch an eyelash and gave me a hard shove toward my horse. ''Be quick,'' he growled.

As I grabbed the two sacks of money from my saddlebag, I said a quick prayer that this would all go to plan. ''Look inside,'' I said and dropped the bags at his feet. Just as expected, Procopio bent down and grabbed the sacks. His eyes showed shock and wonder as he looked in the sacks stamped with BANK of CENTERVILLE and held them high for all the people to see. The crowd gasped.

''Tio (uncle) Chano was shot during the Centerville holdup five days ago. He told me how to find this camp.'' I paused for a moment, choosing my next words carefully. ''The money is for you, jefe,'' I finally said.

For a moment, Procopio looked speechless, but he got over that quickly. 'Welcome, nephew of my old friend,'' he said loudly and began saying instructions in Spanish. 

I quickly remembered my excuse for not knowing Spanish and began telling him it. ''Please not so fast. Uncle Chano constantly needled me about my poor grasp of Spanish. My American mother raised me, and she had no use for my father. When he died, she forbade me to speak his language.''

Procopio broke into a grin. ''I do not blame her. Elias was wilder than Chano,'' he said in English.

''My uncle heard that you escaped San Quentin. Will you now return to Mexico?'' I asked. When Procopio nodded, I smiled. ''If you will have me, I will go along. You will pass through Arizona Territory, no? Though my Spanish is poor, I speak very good Apache.'' To prove my point, I broke into a short discourse."NohwiTaa yaaka'yu dahsindaahii"-(Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name...)

''Bueno,'' Procopio cut in, ''very good. You can ease tensions along the way.'' Then he clapped me on the back. ''I am sorry to hear about Chano, but he is a tough hombre (man). He knows the Sierra Madre and will eventually slip away from the gringos and join us there. It will be good to see him again"

I smiled and said the only thing that comes to my mind. "Si jefe."

I hated what I had to do, but every time Andi walked by, I had to act as though I liked her, which wasn't far from the truth. As I was walking around the camp I heard Andi's voice asking, "Can Jed go with me?" I stopped walking to listen.

"What is this, afraid to walk a handful of steps?" another voice asked, although it sounded like Procopio's wife. "You go now, rapido (fast). Little Santos awaits his bath.

Perfect, Andi will be going to the river, and I will be waiting to tell her my plan.

I waited in the bushes for Andi. I got there before her because I could run. Andi had to carry those buckets. As she came to the river all I could do was watch her. I had missed her so much and here was my chance to take her, Lucy, and Sammy home.

As she filled her last bucket, I made my move. I slowly walked towards her, trying not to scare her. As she turned around, I knew I could not call to her. It would be too risky, so I put my finger to my lips and hoped she would recognize me.

It didn't look like she would though, so I had to do it. I jumped and grabbed her arm just in time. She really put up a fight. Once I got her to stop trying to punch me, I whispered in her ear, "Stop it, Andi. I need to talk to you and there isn't much time." I could see her put the pieces together and scream, "Ri-"

 I clamped my hand over her mouth as fast as I could "Careful, or you're going to get us both killed. Sorry for jumping on you, but you looked ready to bolt. I didn't dare call your name. You never know who might be lurking." I looked behind me and took my hand off her mouth "I'm Ramon. Don't forget that even for an instant."

I knew she had a million questions, so I told her all I could here. "We didn't know the layout, so we decided on stealth rather than attempt a reckless shoot-out. Procopio would know your brothers but would be less likely to recognize me. The bruises worked in my favor, and Tucker showed me the way. I'm sorry I have to play this part, but there is no other believable reason to get you alone."

"What a story you spun. Is any of it true?" Andi asked.

"Enough, I hope. That's what took so long. Digging into Procopio's past for his associates, finding Chano's nephew, making arrangements with the bank. I'm living a dangerous lie right now. Chano Ortega is buried in the Visalia churchyard. Ramon is alive and well, and a decent sort. Wants nothing to do with his family skeletons. a good source of stories though."

"The sooner we leave, the better," she said.

"I agree. What about tonight?"

Andi shook her head. "It would be better to wait until tomorrow. I overheard their plans. Procopio and his band are leaving on a big raid."

Perfect, now for my plan. "All the better. Listen, here's what we'll-"

The sound of laughter and running feet cut me off. Terrified, I pulled Andi, proceeding to plan B. "Play along. Try and get away. Hit me."

"Ho-ho, Ramon! You have found our little wildcat. Watch out or you might get scratched.”

At this I had to . . . I had to kiss Andi Carter. I hope her brothers don't find out. I whispered, "Forgive me. Remember I am Ramon." Then I kissed her.

Suddenly my foot was on fire, and my face started stinging. Ouch! I didn't mean that hard.

"How dare you! Get out of my way," she yelled. Then she walked off. There were whooping and catcalls everywhere.

"You are bold to put your brand on this one, amigo (friend). No one else dares." Said Paco.

"You are a fool, Ramon. The jefe has plans for this girl. Ones that do not include a hot-blooded, reckless youth, no matter that your uncle is his close compadre," said Vega.

Then I knew I was in for it.