Boy Who Said No : An Escape to Freedom (9781608090815) Read online

  “What were you doing?”

  “Drinking.”

  “You weren’t trying to escape?”

  “No, why would I do that?”

  “Because you’re a troublemaker, that’s why.”

  “Well, I wasn’t.”

  “Do you take me for a fool, Mederos?”

  “No, sir.”

  “Then tell me again what you were doing.”

  “Drinking.”

  “What’s that I smell on your hair?”

  “Alcohol, sir.”

  “You got alcohol on your hair?”

  “It’s not on my hair. It’s on my breath, sir.”

  “You said it was on your hair,”

  “With all due respect, sir, you said it was on my hair.”

  “You know what I think?”

  “No, sir.”

  “I think I smell gasoline. Gasoline from a boat. A boat you were on to try to escape. Only it didn’t work. Isn’t that right, Mederos?”

  “No, sir.”

  “Where did you get the gasoline then?”

  “It’s not gasoline. It’s alcohol, sir.”

  The questioning went on for five hours, but I stuck to my story. No matter what Pino asked me—or how he framed his questions—I simply told him I had been out drinking with friends. No more, no less. As time went on, his eyes turned feral and his face bloomed red in frustration.

  Finally, one of the guards went off duty, and I knew the soldier who came on. He alerted Lazo that I was in a holding cell. Lazo immediately informed Lieutenant Brown who hurried down to the cell to find me. He burst in upon the scene, furious with Pino.

  “What the hell are you doing? You have one of my men in a holding cell and you haven’t told me?”

  “That’s right, I do.” Pino turned to look at me with contempt. “Mederos tried to escape last night.”

  “Has he confessed to that?”

  “Not yet.”

  “How long have you held him here?”

  “Five hours.”

  “Five hours and you haven’t bothered to inform me?”

  “It’s none of your business. Mederos is under my authority.”

  “The hell he is.”

  “This is a political matter.”

  “Not if he hasn’t confessed.”

  “I smelled gasoline on him. He claims it’s alcohol, but I know better.”

  “You’re an expert on odors?”

  “I’m not an expert, but I know the difference between alcohol and gasoline. I’m not an idiot.”

  “I’m not sure you do know the difference,” said Brown.

  “Are you challenging my authority, Lieutenant?”

  “No, you are challenging mine. You’ve overstepped your bounds, Lieutenant.”

  “But this is a political issue.”

  “It’s not a political issue just because you say so. You have no proof that this man was trying to escape. You’ve been itching to find a way to get Mederos for months. Now let my man out of that cell, or I’ll report you to the base commander immediately.”

  The two men glared at each other for what seemed like an eternity while I stood watching. Pino’s eyes bulged and his mouth contorted with rage. His nostrils opened slightly as he blew out his frustration. Finally, he turned to the guard and gave the order for my release. The guard unlocked the cell door. Brown nodded to me.

  “Clean yourself up and report to my office,” he said. I looked at the lieutenant in gratitude and headed toward the bathroom. I took a long, hot shower and scrubbed my skin, my hair, my arms, my legs. I worked to get the remnants of filth from beneath my fingernails and to remove the patches of grease from the back of my legs. When I finished, my skin shone pink.

  I dressed in a fresh uniform and went to see Lieutenant Brown. When I entered his office, he looked at me skeptically. He shook his head slightly and pressed his lips together. I wondered where this conversation would take us.

  “Are you going to give me the same cockamamie story you gave Pino?”

  “What do you want me to say?”

  “Tell me where you were last night, Frankie.” His voice was soft, almost paternal. His eyes were full of sympathy. I looked at him and I knew I couldn’t possibly admit what I had done. It would put him in a terrible position.

  “I was out drinking,” I said in a low, unconvincing voice.

  “Is that the truth?”

  “That’s the truth.”

  I felt sad to be lying to him, but I suspected he already knew what had transpired. I looked at him and a faint smile played on my lips. He returned my stare and the corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly.

  “Uh-huh,” he said. “Get back to your troops.”

  When the base commander heard what had happened, there was hell to pay. Pino was reprimanded for not informing Brown that he had put me in a holding cell, and Brown was reprimanded for yelling at Pino in front of one of the troops. The men were livid with each other.

  Although Brown’s authority over his men had been reaffirmed, Pino was not about to forget what had transpired. He had a long and vicious memory.

  CHAPTER 29

  In certain circles in Cojimar, I had become a bit of a cause célèbre. Macho had told Cuni how I risked my life to save Joey and Pedro, two kids I didn’t even know. Cuni couldn’t believe what had happened—he never thought the boys would get so tired they would almost drown.

  To Señor Lopez I was nothing less than a hero. He was so impressed with my actions that he told the story to many people involved in clandestine operations in Cuba. That one action enabled me to gain a reputation as someone who could be trusted. He told Cuni he was willing to do anything possible to help me, including providing me with whatever money I might need to escape.

  In August of 1966, the government granted Magda’s family their visas. Sophia and Rigo’s home had already been inventoried, and they were anxiously awaiting issuance of their own visas.

  With our days together quickly drawing to a close, Magda and I again discussed getting married in the States. We wanted to marry in a Catholic church sooner rather than later. It was an exciting yet difficult time, full of conflicting emotions and passions. I kissed Magda and her family a teary goodbye in mid-September.

  With Magda’s father gone, Rigo and Sophia were my only link to Cuni. Fortunately, Cuni had taken a keen interest in me and kept Rigo well informed about upcoming plans.

  Ever aware of the dangers involved, Cuni requested I name a couple of people whom I could trust if things got dicey.

  My choice was Uncle Luis whom I had not seen in a year but who had consistently voiced anticommunist sentiments. He lived a couple of miles from my home in Guanabacoa. Cuni suggested I visit him on my next leave to see whether his political views had changed. I stopped by on a pleasant Sunday afternoon. After dinner we went out to his backyard.

  His property was surrounded by a cinder-block wall, seven-feet-high on the sides and four-feet-high in back. An old wooden outhouse listed behind some weeds, despite the fact that the house now had indoor plumbing. I had used the outhouse when I was a kid, and it provided Luis and me with an opportunity to reminisce about the good old days. Rosa, his wife, had asked Luis to fill it in many times over the years, but Luis kept it as a backup in case there was ever a problem with the toilet in the house.

  We opened the door to the outhouse and watched three brown rats scurry down the hole, breaking the cobwebs that laced it. The stench took our breath away. It was so intense it made my eyes water. My hand flew to my nose to ward off the smell. I closed the door and stepped away from the odor.

  Beyond the back wall was an empty lot where Uncle Luis grew corn and kept a cow and some chickens.

  “So, how’s the army treating you?” asked Luis.

  I shrugged. “It’s the army, what can I say? How’s it going for you?”

  Luis sighed. “Not very well. Since I lost my job at the Coca-Cola factory, I can hardly make ends meet. Luckily, we’ve got t
he cow and chickens for milk and eggs. It keeps us going for now, but there’s no light at the end of the tunnel.”

  “I’m sorry things are so tough.”

  “It’s bad, Frankie. I can’t find a job—there’s just no work to be had.” He hesitated a moment, thinking and shaking his head in frustration. “Fidel is the worst leader we’ve ever had—even worse than that crook, Batista.”

  “Yeah, but he’s smarter than Batista,” I said, trying to keep the conversation on the topic of Fidel.

  “Smart enough to ruin the country. Cuba will never be the same.” He hesitated for a moment and lowered his voice. “To tell you the truth, I can’t take it anymore, Frankie. I’m thinking about leaving Cuba. I’d like to get my whole family out.”

  I looked at my uncle, surprised. “Do you have a plan?”

  “I’m working on it. I’ll just take some time.”

  “They sure don’t make it easy to leave.”

  “Not easy at all.”

  The conversation continued. I left convinced that I could still trust my uncle.

  When I got back to the barracks, Lieutenant Brown lined up the troops and told us that we would be participating in the Multiprovince Military Exercises to be held in Las Villas, a couple of hours’ drive from base.

  This was to be the largest military exhibition ever held in Cuba. The exercises would include the infantry division, the 57-millimeter cannon division, and three rocket operators, including myself, Lazo, and Manny. And that was just the troops from our base. All told, more than a thousand army personnel would participate in the event and thousands of people would attend.

  Due to my experience and past performance, Brown again chose me to demonstrate the ATGMs. Once more the top military brass would be on hand to witness the event, only this time it would be attended by both Castro brothers: Raúl and Fidel.

  Since so many military units would be involved, we were informed that we had to leave base around November 20, 1966, to practice for more than a month with units from various provinces throughout the country. The exact date of our departure was still undetermined.

  Pino was none too pleased that I was again to demonstrate the rockets. His demeanor toward me was icy. He routinely reviewed my file for the slightest transgressions and scrutinized the files of my friends Lazo and Manny. He watched us like a hawk, ready to pounce on any infraction of the rules, any sign of subversion.

  On November fifteenth, one of the guards at the base notified me that I had an unexpected visitor: Magda’s Aunt Sophia. She had told the guard that my mother was gravely ill, and she needed to talk to me. Brown issued me an hour-long pass. I climbed into Sophia’s car and we drove to Santa Maria to talk.

  We sat in the car by the side of the road. Sophia had taken her usual care with her clothing and was impeccably dressed, high heels and all.

  “What’s so important that you’d risk your life to come here?” I asked. I was worried that something really had happened to my mother. That thought was almost more than I could bear.

  “I have news from Cuni,” said Sophia. She kept her voice low, even though we were in the privacy of the car. She fixed her eyes on mine. “He’s gotten a reliable boat and is planning a ‘trip’ for you and nine other army personnel.”

  This was unexpected and welcome news. I let out a sigh of relief. Maybe this was finally my break. “When?”

  “Late November, early December. The exact date depends on the weather. You know the drill.”

  I felt suddenly confused, panicky. “Christ, that’s when I’m supposed to be in Las Villas, practicing for military exercises.”

  “Can’t you get out of it?”

  “Impossible. I’m in charge of launching the rocket. It’s a big deal—the highlight of the event. Everyone will be there, including Fidel. It’s a command performance.”

  Sophia sucked in her breath. “Well, Cuni says you need to leave base within the next few days—no matter what’s going on. So you’ll have to leave before the exercises take place. That’s all there is to it. Rigo and I can help.”

  “Do you know what you’re saying? As soon as they discover me missing, they’ll launch the biggest manhunt in the history of the country.”

  “That doesn’t surprise me. But Cuni says this might be the last boat out. He’s taking a big chance with the weather on this trip, and he can’t guarantee any others. It’s an opportunity you can’t pass up.”

  I looked at Sophia with renewed respect. This was one courageous lady.

  “I’m not the only one taking a chance here,” I said. “As soon as they discover me missing, they’ll come looking for you. You and your entire family will be under suspicion. They’ll question you—and God knows what else. What will you do?”

  Sophia reached for my hand. “I’ll deny knowing anything about it. I don’t owe those people a thing. I have no qualms about lying to save you.”

  “Well, the guard saw you today so they know who you are and what you look like. It won’t be difficult to make the connection. You’ll be taking a very big risk. Are you sure you’re up for it?”

  “If you aren’t taking risks, you aren’t living life. And from what Cuni has told us about what you did the last time you tried to escape, I figure you’re a pretty good bet.”

  “This won’t be like last time. Last time I was lucky. This time Pino has me under a microscope. He already has his suspicions about me. And believe me, his pride will demand that he bring me to justice if I cause any trouble.”

  Sophia thought for a moment. “Why does he hate you so much?”

  I sighed wearily. “We got off on the wrong foot a long time ago. He thinks I’m the reason so many of the men challenge him—and he’s right.”

  “I see.”

  “Besides, if I don’t show up for the exercises, he’s going to be in big trouble himself. He may lose his job—and perhaps worse. He has a lot at stake. As do Lieutenant Brown and the base commander. So they’ll pull out all the stops to get me back. They’ll do anything to avoid embarrassment and disgrace.”

  Sophia’s face suddenly looked tired and drawn. Yet there was a determination in the set of her jaw and the muscles around her eyes that I had never seen. I understood how she could have founded and run a school. She was kind, bright, and extremely determined.

  “I have no sympathy for those people,” she said. “They are grown men. They are a big part of the problem in this country. They can fend for themselves.”

  I locked eyes with Sophia. I wanted to reiterate the implications of what she was proposing. I had to make sure no doubt existed in her mind regarding the possible consequences of her actions.

  “Once I leave, I can’t come back to base under any circumstances—whether the ‘trip’ materializes or not. If I defect, Pino will do everything possible to find and kill me. Guaranteed. And that may involve you. When that happens, I cannot—and will not—surrender.”

  “Nor should you.” Sophia nodded. It was a sage nod, more like she was acknowledging my motives and character than agreeing with my reasoning.

  “It may mean they’ll put you and your whole family in jail. It may mean torture. Even death. Are you getting the picture?”

  “I understand. But we can’t just sit by and let Fidel run roughshod over everyone.” She considered for just the slightest moment before saying, “It’s a big risk, but one I’m willing to take.”

  I shook my head in amazement. “But I’m not even related to you.”

  Sophia smiled and squeezed my hand. “You are now,” she said. “And some day you will be officially part of the family. We’re all in this together.”

  A tear appeared in the corner of my eye. “Then we agree?”

  “You bet,” said Sophia as if she were leading a pep rally. I could hardly believe my good fortune of having this remarkable woman on my side. “When you escape, you’ll come to my house. Cuni will know what to do from there.”

  Sophia reached over and hugged me. I was wordless, in awe of
her courage. I embraced her long and hard before she drove me back to base.

  The next morning Pino lined up the troops to tell us about the upcoming event.

  “Soon, you will participate in the most important military exercises in the history of the country,” he said. “Your performance will be witnessed by Fidel and Raúl Castro as well as top representatives from the Soviet Union, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Vietnam.”

  Just the mention of all of this gave me a headache. Sweat gathered in my armpits. I adjusted my body slightly while I remained at attention.

  “As you know, Cuba has the strongest army in all Latin America. These exercises will demonstrate our military power to the world, especially to the Americans. We need to scare them, to show them what we can do if necessary. Even though no American officials will attend the event, they will know our capabilities. Word spreads in the intelligence community. Am I making myself clear?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “We will move out on November twenty-sixth or twenty-seventh. Until then, Lieutenant Brown will exercise the troops extra hours every day. You are to remain sharp and focused.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “To make the best possible impression, you will all be issued new military uniforms and helmets made by our comrades in communist China. Pack your uniforms, clean your machine guns, and be ready to go.

  “We will depart at two a.m. so as not to disturb the civilian population. That way we will travel through the cities in the middle of the night while people are asleep. I’m counting on you to make these the most successful military exercises Cuba has ever held. Any questions?”

  “No, sir.”

  “Dismissed, men.”

  It was time to inform Manny and Lazo about my plans. Not the details, but the general outline. They were horrified.

  “This is the worst possible time for you to leave,” warned Lazo. “The entire world is watching, and when you don’t show up, they’ll come looking for you. You can bank on it.”

  “The timing can’t be helped. I’ve put my trust in a good man who can get me out now—and I’m going with that.”

  “Christ almighty!” said Lazo. “This is the most ridiculous idea I’ve ever heard. The first time we were able to cover for you. And last time you got lucky that Brown came to your defense. But if you let down the chain of command at the exercises, no one can help you. Not Brown, not Manny, not me.”