Torine shrugged, then looked at Castillo, his facing asking, Why not?
Castillo nodded.
“And I further suggest that the sooner you get off the ground, the better,” Ordóñez said.
Torine went down the stairs and, passing a fuel truck that had just pulled up alongside the portside wing, walked quickly to the Base Operations building.
Ordóñez turned to Yung. “You will help me with the picnic lunch, David?”
Yung nodded.
Ordóñez looked at the women, who were now all sitting on the couch.
“You are in good hands. I will look after Alfredo. ¡Via con Dios!”
Then he went down the stairs and started to climb onto the truck.
Yung handed Castillo a folded sheet of typewriter paper.
“Everything I
know is on here,” he said and went down the stairs.
Castillo started to unfold the sheet of paper, but before he had finished he heard Yung call his name. He went to the door. Yung was extending an insulated container to him. Castillo went halfway down the stairs and took it from him. He some what awkwardly turned and set the container on the floor of the passenger compartment.
When he turned again, Yung was holding another identical container. By the time he got that into the airplane and turned again, he saw that Ordóñez was hauling Yung into the Airport Gourmet truck.
“Call the office and leave a number where I can reach you!” Castillo called out.
Yung nodded as the truck doors swung closed. A moment later, the truck pulled away.
Castillo smiled.
“Call the office and leave a number where I can reach you,” said the aluminum-siding sales manager to one of his problematic sales counselors.
Jesus H. Christ!
He sensed the eyes of the women on him. He walked into the cabin.
“I’m Carlos Castillo, a friend of your father,” he said to the youngest daughter.
She smiled shyly at him.
“You speak Spanish very well for a Norteamericano,” the girl said.
“Thank you very much,” Castillo said.
“Here comes Jake!” Lopez called from the cockpit.
Five minutes later, after Torine dealt with the fuel crew and did his walk-around inspection of the aircraft, he came up the stairs and pulled the door shut behind him.
“Wind it up, Fernando,” he called and turned to Castillo.
“We can take off local and change to Porto Alegre in the air,” he said.
Torine looked at the women and addressed the youngest girl.
“Do you speak English?”