CHAPTER 20 - THE VICTIMS
But the next day came and went, as did the next week and month. Precious time continued to slip away for, try as he would, Ramon was unable to decide upon the perfect victim.
"A child! A small child is better, Joseph," Ramon insisted. "Easier to take! Easier to handle! Easier to hide!"
"And a woman more easily managed than a man, sir," Joseph added.
"Si! Si!" growled the cowardly, little sorcerer, "A man, woman, or child will do for our purposes. But the Baka prefers an innocent if it is possible."
Joseph eyed Ramon's latest conquest, lying bound and gagged beside Carrisa on the mat before the altar.
"No, Joseph," Ramon chided, "we need a blood relative! Better yet, one that has not been defiled."
Joseph sighed, "Perhaps you would think better after a glass of wine and an excellent dinner."
Ramon shrugged. "Then pour the wine, Joseph."
"Oh, not here, sir," Joseph said in dismay. "I thought, perhaps, we might . . ."
Ramon laughed. "Las Naranjas? Your favorite place! Well, why not? We have certainly worked hard. And we have turned over a fine dollar during these last months." He tossed a rope in Carrisa's direction. "She must not wander. Tie her up. Tightly! And we shall be drinking fine wine before another hour has passed."
Forty minutes later, to Goldie's horror, the two men arrived at Las Naranjas, went directly to the dining room, and impatiently demanded service. As they sat sipping wine and scanning the menu, Ramon heard his brother-in-law's voice. Ramon peeked around an orange plant and ducked back. Jose and Jacob were right outside the dining room.
"Aunt Carolina has had a baby. A boy! That's my wife's aunt," Jose told his employer. "This is why I must borrow the taxi."
"Your wife you will take to Carolina's, yes? Well, certainly, my boy, but you must be back on time. Our guests will need transportation to and from the airport," Jacob insisted.
"Si," Jose agreed. "Tomorrow morning, early, when I drop Señor Kendall off at the airport, I will take Maria and Luis with me. Then I will drop off my family to visit with Carolina and I will return immediately."
"Did you hear, Joseph?" Ramon whispered excitedly. "A boy! A nephew! A brand-new life!"
"Then this is the perfect choice, sir? The Baka will be pleased?"
"Yes," Ramon sighed with relief, "the perfect choice for our purpose. And now, we may order our evening meal with clear minds."
Once he had chosen his victim, Ramon counted the days. It was a month later, back at the hut, when Joseph idly inquired as to when the kidnapping might occur. "Let the child grow stronger, Joseph," his master advised. "It is two months until I must appease the Baka. For the time being, he is better off under his mother's care."
"This is true," admitted Joseph. "Besides, we would have no breast for him when he hungered." As an afterthought, he added, "And babies always dirty themselves."
Ramon poured himself a glass of wine and quaffed it in a single gulp. "Besides, Joseph, I wish to wait until after my sister returns home. I do not want her at Carolina's when we come for the child. It could be dangerous."
"Oh, but, sir, the Baka protects . . .," Joseph began.
"NO!" snarled Ramon. "Maria was to inherit the book! The power!"
"But she didn't want it, sir! Now it is yours!"
Ramon jumped up, startling Joseph by angrily smashing the wineglass. "You don't understand!" he shouted. "Just because Maria chose not to use her great power doesn't mean she no longer has it." Joseph frowned in confusion and Ramon's voice dropped to a whisper. "It lies within her, sleeping, and if she discovered my plans for Carolina's son, that power might burst forth. You see, Joseph, she could destroy me."
The little man began to pace.
"But the Baka will protect!" Joseph insisted.
"I don't know!" snapped his master. "I don't know!" Ramon whirled, grabbed Joseph by his shirt, and glared into the Haitian's eyes. "Every magician who has ever bargained with the Baka has met the same end. Always, within a few short years of making the bargain, at the height of power, something happens."
"What happens?" Joseph whispered.
"Something always happens," Ramon whispered fiercely. "It could be a flaw at the time of bargaining. Or a mistake made along the way."
"But I am here, sir. I am here to help you. Two are better than one. Together we will try not to make that mistake," Joseph assured him.
Ramon relaxed his grip. He patted his friend's shoulder. "Yes," he murmured, nodding weakly, "Perhaps two minds will be clever enough to keep us alive." Ramon placed the black stone on the altar, then sank down on the nearest mat and curled up, preparing for sleep. "In any case," he whispered, "there is no going back."
Joseph blew out the candles and lay down in the darkness on his own sleeping mat. There was a long pause before he answered. "I do not wish to go back, sir! I never wish to go back."