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“They’re building a dormitory,” Sarina said. “So the older kids have somewhere to stay while they attend college.” Sarina reached and squeezed Suki’s hand. “Your dad made a big donation after you got back.”
“He what?”
Sarina nodded. “Jorge told me. It’s through a US charity, but the funds have helped Jorge expand. They don’t need to depend on the resort food to feed the children and families now. In fact, they’ve started a shelter in Cancún that feeds low-income families meals twice a day.”
“Es okay,” Jorge said, smiling with embarrassment. “Es okay.”
He unlocked the door to the main building and flicked on the lights for them. Inside his office were several bags of clothes. “I get food. Comida. To eat. You change. Hurry. Brenda is waiting at the boat.”
Jorge then shut the door to give them privacy. The clothes looked like the kind you’d get from a thrift store. They had that same smell too. Suki dug through one bag and found a pair of shorts and a black T-shirt with the San Francisco Giants logo on it. It reminded her of living in the Bay Area, so she decided to keep that one. There was also a sweater that was light pink with stains on it, but she figured it would be good to have that too.
“Am I really going to see my mee-maw again?” Jane Louise asked hopefully.
Sarina crouched down and hugged her. “Yes, sweetie. We’ll reach her as soon as we can. Then we can all go back home.”
Suki swallowed. Calakmul knew where they lived. Home wouldn’t be an option unless he was taken down. She also wanted to call Brice really bad. And her dad. Then she realized her mom didn’t even know she had a boyfriend.
“Yeah,” Suki said. It had been about two weeks since she’d been kidnapped, but she didn’t know if her family was still in Montana or in DC, like Calakmul had said.
They left the office, and Jorge brought them a tray of tacos.
After they’d changed and eaten, they went back with Jorge to the van. Some children from the orphanage had gathered around it.
“¡Gracias!” some of them said with bright smiles. “¡Gracias por todo!”
Sarina hugged each and every one of them. A few of the kids came up to hug Suki and Jane Louise too, which was awkward, but Suki permitted it. Then Jorge shooed the children away, and they got back into the van. Once they were through the gate, the kids shut and locked it behind them, and the van went trundling off into the night. This time, they all sat in seats.
Jorge took them to the main part of San Miguel, the prominent city on the west coast of Cozumel. It seemed like a party town. There were tourists everywhere and quite a bit of traffic, even this late at night. Suki recognized the dock where the ferry arrived from the mainland every hour.
Jorge hummed to himself as he drove, moving slowly. People kept crossing the street at weird times, and there were a lot of neon lights and loud Latin music playing. Once they made it past the ferry dock, the traffic lightened up, and they wound their way along the coast. There were so many boats in the various harbors. Then they were heading back toward the jungle again. By the time Jorge turned, they were the only vehicle visible on the road. He entered a marina that had a few streetlamps with bugs swarming in the light.
A woman stood waiting there, black haired, and probably in her early twenties.
“Es Brenda,” Jorge said, slowing down and then stopping.
Brenda opened the side door of the van.
“Hello, family!” she said brightly. “Come with me. You ready to go home?”
“Yes,” Sarina said. She exited first and hugged the other woman. “Thank you for doing this.”
“The Calakmuls are evil,” Brenda said. “If we can stop them, it’s all good. Welcome. You must be Suki and Jane Louise? I’m Brenda.”
“Your English is very good,” Jane Louise said and gave her a hug. Brenda was about as tall as Suki. She didn’t look old enough to own her own boat or run a business.
“Thank you! I work with tourists every day, so I get lots of practice. Do you like ceviche? I have some leftover from the tour earlier.”
“What’s that?” Suki asked.
“Ooh, I won’t spoil it by telling you. It’s delicious. We have lots of soda and water to drink and extra gas for the trip. Let’s get going, okay?”
Another set of headlights turned into the marina parking lot. Fear fluttered in Suki’s stomach. It was a police truck. On the side in big letters was the name of the state Quintana Roo. Had it followed them? They were so close to getting away . . .
There was no way Jacob Calakmul could have alerted authorities. Right? Or did he also have ways of communicating over great distances? She didn’t know.
Brenda’s smile faded. “Jorge. Mira.”
The headlights began to sweep across the parking lot.
