Out of Captivity : Surviving 1,967 Days in the Colombian Jungle

Proof of Life 155obliterated, so what could our response be? We all said essentially thesame things, but I think that Keith put it the most eloquently when hesaid, “Enough lives have been lost in our accident and its aftermath.We’ve lost four colleagues, and a fifth man who was completely innocent.I don’t want to die. None of us want to die. I am sick of death. Lifeis the only victory and I pray for a diplomatic solution.”After a few more questions from Botero, we took another break. Thetranslator got into a discussion with one of us—this time it was Keith.I edged over to them when I heard her say something about Cuba andthe U.S. embargo.“The reason,” she said, “that the U.S. instituted the trade blockadewas because if the U.S. lifted it, everyone in the U.S. would flee there.”Keith looked at her.“Have you ever been to Cuba?” he asked. “Because I have. My firstgirlfriend was Cuban. My sister in-law is Cuban. I was raised in Floridain a heavily Cuban neighborhood.”The translator said nothing and took a drag on her cigarette. I couldsee that she was getting irritated with him and his ability to stand upto her.“What’s your relationship with Cuba?” he continued. “What color isyou passport? Your accent seems a bit Cuban American, am I wrong?”She didn’t respond to any of these questions. She had enough andshe walked away without a word.Keith looked at me and said, “What’s with this city guerrilla girl anyway?”He was right. She was definitely a wannabe revolutionary. Thoughshe was dressed in camouflage pants, they were clearly non–standardissue. They rode low on her hips and were tailored. She also wore whatwe’d come to know in Colombia as an ombligo—a shirt that exposed herbelly button and was held up by thin spaghetti straps. She’d also mentionedthat she had heard about our capture when she was in Bogotá—most likely shopping for her outfit.