She turned to Alita.“Tomorrow, Tonda, Carlos and their spouses will arrive and stay in Yuñior's wings.Everyone, rest well.”
Eduardo turned to leave and stopped.“Welcome toLas Tierras,” he said.
*****
THE MORNING STARTEDat a kick.The am arrived in the kitchen to find a buffet style breakfast.Food lined long tables with a variety of Colombian specialties, and Alita stuck a hot cup of freshly roasted coffee into her father’s hand.She pushed Luis towards the plates, encouraging them to eat.Micah entered the kitchens, looking ready to get the day started.
“Bon Dia!”he called out.“Señor Mendoza, do you ride?”
“I do, Señor Delgado,” Ricardo called.
“Señor, I am to be your son by law; please call me Micah,” he replied.“Eat up and head out the side door if you wish to ride this morning with my father andmis Hermanos.This is my little brother, Angel.”
Angel threw up what looked like a gang sign and offered a snarl.“I am no Angel, though.I am the Dart Frog.Deadly but beautiful.”
Luis smiled.“Okay then gangsta!”
“Damn straight.I am theEmberá Chocó!”Angel answered, and Alita and Micah both repeated, “TheEmberá Chocó!”as Eduardo arrived.He called for them all to ride, and one by one the men filed outside.
Yuñior's son Manny sat on his own pony.At the tender age of six, he seemed to know his horse well.Yuñior's horse, the son of his former stallion Thunder, was named Lightning, a spirited animal with a shiny black coat.As Ricardo and Luis stepped outside into the Colombian sun, Ricardo blinked several times at the picturesque landscape.Micah mounted Molecule, a chestnut Paso Fino, sitting proudly astride the animal.
This is not what he imagined when he thought of Colombia or The Fer de Lance.Workers were in the fields, flowers bloomed, children were playing, and birds flew overhead.It took a minute to catch his breath as he took it all in.
“Señor Mendoza and Luis, welcome toLas Tierras de mis Antecendents, the Green Valleys of My Ancestors.This is where your grandchildren shall grow up,” Micah explained.“They will learn to honor these lands and care for their people.We provide the world with the best coffee, tested and roasted by our own hands.The land also grows the most natural and organic coca that we supply to pharmaceutical companies and Chad's who like to call their friends Bro, but that is another story.Mount up.It shall be a quick ride; we are due in Bogotá this afternoon.”
Luis asked as he climbed aboard a mare, “Bogotá.Am I to go with you?”
“Have you ever flown in a helicopter, Luis?”
“No, I haven't.”
“Then good, it shall be, how you say, Papa,ah si, hella fun,” Micah said, kicking the side of Molecule to get the animal moving.
****
INSIDE THE HOME, THEwomen sat at the at the kitchen table.Ryanne, sensing Eliza’s discomfort, spoke softly.She looked at Alita then at Diadra.
“We went to Medellin yesterday to pick out wedding dresses,” Ryanne started.“I tell you what, Señora Mendoza, it just didn't feel right not having you there to aid in the choices.So, while the men are out, Alita, go and grab the three dresses you selected.We’ll do a mock fashion show here and we can all vote on the one that is the loveliest.”
Eliza looked up, her eyes filled with tears.“You bought three so I could be a part of the choosing?”
“Of course; her mother means everything to her,” Ryanne said.“Hurry, Alita, before the men come back.We also need to go to the church to check the arrangements.The flowers should be coming in soon.Señora, we will go to the garden tomorrow to start selecting flowers for her bouquet that you can help her build.”
Eliza, in response, began to cry.She cried at each dress Alita put on, each lovelier than the last.She cried in the church as it reminded her of the smallErmitawhere she grew up outside of Buenos Aires.Father Julio stopped to pray with her, making her cry even more.
The afternoon arrived, and a small lunch was shared as the Mendozas prepared to head to Bogotá.Her mother didn't understand why they had to leave so soon when so much needed to be done for the wedding.
“Mami, Micah and I have to get our class schedules and purchase books for Uni,” she said.“We also want you to see the flat where we will be living while we attend college.”
“A flat,” Ricardo said.“You have a flat.”
“Yes, we co-own a flat in Bogotá,” she told her father, leading them out the door to the helicopter pad.
He stood looking at the helicopter as if he were waiting for the pilot.Alita opened the back door and ushered them inside.She helped her mother strap in, and assisted Luis with putting in the headset.Her father's mouth dropped open as his daughter took the passenger seat and Micah was the pilot.He listened as she called out commands through the headset, and they began to lift off the ground.
“Las TierrasTower,” Alita said into the headset, “The Bushmaster is requesting clearance for takeoff.”
The tower came back, clearing Micah for flight.
