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

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58 OUT OF CAPTIVITYto take the next turn to carry all 214 pounds of Keith up that incrediblysteep pitch to where we’d been told the airplane was waiting. Bythe time they got to the top, even the strongest of the FARC wereexhausted. They basically dumped Keith to the ground and stood withtheir hands on their knees, their chests heaving. But neither Keith norI paid much attention. Our eyes were trained on the airplane, or at leastwhat was left of it.In front of us sat the skeletal remains of a single-engine Cessna. Farfrom being a working plane, this thing had ceased to function a longtime ago. Marc had been there for some time before us, and he walkedup to me.“I know. I know. I can’t believe, it either,” he said. I didn’t have wordsto respond to him.Immediately any thoughts we had of being flown to a prisonerexchange evaporated. Looking at that plane, with small-caliber bulletholes riddling one side (clearly not what had brought it to the ground),we couldn’t help but think of our own crash and of whoever had beenaboard this plane. An overnight bag flapped in the twenty-knot wind.Empty sardine cans lay strewn around the wreckage. The FARC hadfound still sealed jars of Nescafé instant coffee and were stuffing themin their backpacks. I walked around the seared metal. The smell ofdecaying flesh was suddenly in my nostrils. I looked inside the cabin.It was empty.On this exposed ridge at what I guessed had to be well above fivethousand feet, the air was frigid. I tried to take it all in. The wreckage.Keith lying on the ground tucked into a fetal position for warmth.Marc, visibly shaken, pale and drawn and lost in his own thoughts ofwhat might have happened to this pilot and crew and what might behappening to us. I hated feeling lucky at that moment, but I did. Wewere still alive thanks to the skill of Tommy Janis, and now, like thepilot of the wreck before us, he was nowhere to be seen.
Changes in Altitude59I saw a pair of black penny loafers sitting on this wind-scraped hunkof rock. They had to have belonged to someone on board that doomedcraft. The pennies were gone. I thought about just how cheap life wasto these guerrillas and just how valuable it was to all of us. I’d beendriven by the pursuit of the almighty dollar most of my life, but I wasjust starting to learn that there were a few things more valuable thancoin.
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OUTOFCAPTIVITYSurviving 1,967 Days
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ContentsAuthor’s NoteviSelected F
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Authors’ NoteThis story is not ov
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Selected FARC Guerrillas 2003-2008T
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PROLOGUEA Place to CrashKEITH“Tha
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A Place to Crashxii“JIATF East, t
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A Place to Crashxv iFlorida; I didn
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xviiOUT OF CAPTIVITYTommy J and Tom
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Choices and Challenges3did not take
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Choices and Challenges5I’m no adr
Page 25 and 26: Choices and Challenges7back into Fa
Page 27 and 28: Choices and Challenges9I’d flown
Page 29 and 30: Choices and Challenges11with the fu
Page 31: Choices and Challenges13KEITHUp unt
Page 34 and 35: 16 OUT OF CAPTIVITYon his skin colo
Page 36 and 37: 18 OUT OF CAPTIVITYhis needs, I gue
Page 38 and 39: 20 OUT OF CAPTIVITYTOMI couldn’t
Page 40 and 41: 22 OUT OF CAPTIVITYlent of doing a
Page 43 and 44: Choices and Challenges25there was o
Page 45 and 46: Choices and Challenges27“¿Qué p
Page 47 and 48: Choices and Challenges29didn’t th
Page 49 and 50: Changes in Altitude31In spite of th
Page 51 and 52: Changes in Altitude33losing a paren
Page 53 and 54: Changes in Altitude35footwear for t
Page 55 and 56: Changes in Altitude37they still wou
Page 57 and 58: Changes in Altitude39ransom for fun
Page 59 and 60: Changes in Altitude41and then at So
Page 61 and 62: Changes in Altitude43words over and
Page 63 and 64: Changes in Altitude45blinded mule.
Page 65 and 66: Changes in Altitude47ing and drawin
Page 67 and 68: Changes in Altitude49it into my mou
Page 69 and 70: Changes in Altitude51prude, but the
Page 71 and 72: Changes in Altitude53we were back o
Page 73 and 74: Changes in Altitude55joined the FAR
Page 75: Changes in Altitude57an airplane, i
Page 79 and 80: ¿Quién Sabe?61took Keith seriousl
Page 81 and 82: ¿Quién Sabe?63Laden had Middle Ea
Page 83 and 84: ¿Quién Sabe?65to type structure t
Page 85 and 86: ¿Quién Sabe?67gotten pregnant, bu
Page 87 and 88: ¿Quién Sabe?69Marc and I looked a
Page 89 and 90: ¿Quién Sabe?71tortured, interroga
Page 91 and 92: ¿Quién Sabe?73“The final detail
Page 93 and 94: ¿Quién Sabe?75of water every day,
Page 95 and 96: ¿Quién Sabe?77pole shelters the F
Page 97 and 98: ¿Quién Sabe?79ings were run-down
Page 99 and 100: ¿Quién Sabe?81We stopped a click
Page 101 and 102: The Transition83chamber a round in
Page 103 and 104: The Transition85promise of taking a
Page 105 and 106: The Transition87the FARC’s rules
Page 107 and 108: The Transition89“That’s a good
Page 109 and 110: The Transition91tioned drugs, Góme
Page 111 and 112: The Transition93knowing that if the
Page 113 and 114: The Transition95by cutting off the
Page 115 and 116: The Transition97there awhile, and t
Page 117 and 118: The Transition99this, but I was sti
Page 119 and 120: The Transition 101hectic, but a lot
Page 121 and 122: The Transition 103of those yes-we-d
Page 123 and 124: The Transition 105over wooden frame
Page 125 and 126: The Transition 107I wasn’t a big
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The Transition 109from the reality
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The Transition 111I’d run through
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The Transition 113journal and decid
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FIVESettling InApril 2003—June 20
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Settling In 117was divided into thr
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Settling In 119The skies didn’t s
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Settling In 121Marc and really take
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Settling In 123In truth, this argum
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Settling In 125meant to our egos, w
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Settling In 127given cigarettes, bu
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Settling In 129the tears started. M
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Settling In 133We did it knowing th
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136 OUT OF CAPTIVITYWith the introd
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138 OUT OF CAPTIVITYI wasn’t immu
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140 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtheir toll. It
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142 OUT OF CAPTIVITYprevious realit
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144 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthat he had lol
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146 OUT OF CAPTIVITYMilton and anot
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148 OUT OF CAPTIVITYproof of life.
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150 OUT OF CAPTIVITYOur commander i
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152 OUT OF CAPTIVITYWith Botero beh
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154 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“What do you
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156 OUT OF CAPTIVITYIn the end, spe
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158 OUT OF CAPTIVITYnecessary sacri
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160 OUT OF CAPTIVITYeleven-year-old
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162 OUT OF CAPTIVITYWhen we arrived
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164 OUT OF CAPTIVITYat high altitud
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166 OUT OF CAPTIVITYcould relate. K
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168 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwall, inside th
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170 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthat she not tr
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172 OUT OF CAPTIVITYand there was a
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174 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbut she seemed
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176 OUT OF CAPTIVITYrusso (Russian
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178 OUT OF CAPTIVITYKEITHBefore my
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180 OUT OF CAPTIVITYLater on, Marc
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182 OUT OF CAPTIVITYOf course, I wa
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184 OUT OF CAPTIVITYHe handed it to
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186 OUT OF CAPTIVITYsame. None of u
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188 OUT OF CAPTIVITYdoor and a tiny
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190 OUT OF CAPTIVITYperson’s beha
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192 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtance and sophi
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194 OUT OF CAPTIVITYof the FARC, Ch
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196 OUT OF CAPTIVITYseen in movies
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198 OUT OF CAPTIVITYloan it to me.
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200 OUT OF CAPTIVITYing for a book,
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202 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“I agree,”
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204 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthis piece of n
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Tom with his son, Tommy. From themo
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As true jungle rats, the FARC were
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The food serving area pictured here
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In all of the camps, cigarettes lik
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We were each givenwriting materials
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The folks at BAMC treated us incred
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Keith’s son, Kyle, went from bein
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Marc with his family: (left to righ
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206 OUT OF CAPTIVITYof images, but
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208 OUT OF CAPTIVITYThe FARC came i
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210 OUT OF CAPTIVITYmealtime and wa
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212 OUT OF CAPTIVITYa mesh bag of e
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214 OUT OF CAPTIVITYback over towar
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216 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwere relieved t
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218 OUT OF CAPTIVITYstood in stunne
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220 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthe jungle comm
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222 OUT OF CAPTIVITYKeith complaine
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224 OUT OF CAPTIVITYIn the end, lit
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226 OUT OF CAPTIVITYeracy. Like nea
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228 OUT OF CAPTIVITYOther people I
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NINERuin and RecoverySeptember 2004
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232 OUT OF CAPTIVITYa few kilometer
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234 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthere was some
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236 OUT OF CAPTIVITYof strength som
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238 OUT OF CAPTIVITYShortly after f
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240 OUT OF CAPTIVITYAs much as it s
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242 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwords. One nigh
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244 OUT OF CAPTIVITYFARC having a l
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246 OUT OF CAPTIVITYKeith and Tom s
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248 OUT OF CAPTIVITYas an antenna.
Page 284 and 285:
250 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwere diabolical
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252 OUT OF CAPTIVITYcomrades were a
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254 OUT OF CAPTIVITYColombians had
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256 OUT OF CAPTIVITYof our presence
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258 OUT OF CAPTIVITYGrunts in every
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260 OUT OF CAPTIVITYin this place a
Page 296 and 297:
262 OUT OF CAPTIVITYity. Roosevelt
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264 OUT OF CAPTIVITYone of them had
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266 OUT OF CAPTIVITYrelieve stress.
Page 302 and 303:
268 OUT OF CAPTIVITYstart to finish
Page 304 and 305:
270 OUT OF CAPTIVITYKeith said, and
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272 OUT OF CAPTIVITYKeith shrugged.
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274 OUT OF CAPTIVITYup. The FARC ha
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276 OUT OF CAPTIVITYHe pressed some
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278 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtheir superiors
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280 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbarbed wire and
Page 316 and 317:
282 OUT OF CAPTIVITYknown for manuf
Page 318 and 319:
284 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“If you are e
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286 OUT OF CAPTIVITYboard from a sc
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288 OUT OF CAPTIVITYknow the number
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290 OUT OF CAPTIVITYhim, we saw his
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292 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwas pretty tall
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294 OUT OF CAPTIVITYknew she’d ha
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296 OUT OF CAPTIVITYJust a few mont
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TWELVERunning on EmptyMay 2006-Sept
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300 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbut Tom describ
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302 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbe very differe
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304 OUT OF CAPTIVITYTo top that off
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306 OUT OF CAPTIVITYa good thing. T
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308 OUT OF CAPTIVITYMilton’s “c
Page 344 and 345:
310 OUT OF CAPTIVITYFrom the time S
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312 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwhite water. Ra
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314 OUT OF CAPTIVITYEven in our sle
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316 OUT OF CAPTIVITYUpon hearing th
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318 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtime, you have
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320 OUT OF CAPTIVITYof a captive’
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322 OUT OF CAPTIVITYmen we were wit
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324 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtively harmless
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326 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwas in a comple
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328 OUT OF CAPTIVITYThe heaviest th
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330 OUT OF CAPTIVITYMarc, Tom, and
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332 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwere involved i
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334 OUT OF CAPTIVITYMuddy Waters wo
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336 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbunch guarding
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338 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“What did Mar
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340 OUT OF CAPTIVITYchess players a
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342 OUT OF CAPTIVITYI wasn’t goin
Page 378 and 379:
344 OUT OF CAPTIVITYIngrid had been
Page 380 and 381:
346 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“Yeah, Tom. I
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348 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthat. It seemed
Page 384 and 385:
350 OUT OF CAPTIVITYdirty. We prote
Page 386 and 387:
352 OUT OF CAPTIVITYI detected some
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354 OUT OF CAPTIVITYa large group.
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356 OUT OF CAPTIVITYShe didn’t te
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358 OUT OF CAPTIVITYout both the be
Page 394 and 395:
360 OUT OF CAPTIVITYThe next thing
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362 OUT OF CAPTIVITYhappy? It seeme
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364 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthe cross fire.
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366 OUT OF CAPTIVITYHe didn’t loo
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368 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwho’d wandere
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370 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtor in front of
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FIFTEENPolitics and PawnsAugust 200
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374 OUT OF CAPTIVITYfocused on the
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376 OUT OF CAPTIVITYWe all looked a
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378 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthe FARC wanted
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380 OUT OF CAPTIVITYto focus more a
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382 OUT OF CAPTIVITYfeelings and st
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384 OUT OF CAPTIVITYhad a shot with
Page 420 and 421:
386 OUT OF CAPTIVITYBy offering to
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388 OUT OF CAPTIVITYit, too—the p
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390 OUT OF CAPTIVITYcould let her k
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392 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthose birds hav
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394 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“I know, I do
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396 OUT OF CAPTIVITYchains went on
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398 OUT OF CAPTIVITYall the things
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400 OUT OF CAPTIVITYAs bad as the t
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402 OUT OF CAPTIVITYsaid she believ
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404 OUT OF CAPTIVITYlier. Having Wi
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406 OUT OF CAPTIVITYI did what he a
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408 OUT OF CAPTIVITYby asking for t
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410 OUT OF CAPTIVITYThe weeks follo
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412 OUT OF CAPTIVITYWe all quickly
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414 OUT OF CAPTIVITYLike everybody
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416 OUT OF CAPTIVITYFARC mentioned
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418 OUT OF CAPTIVITYWe were all loa
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420 OUT OF CAPTIVITYtied. I could h
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422 OUT OF CAPTIVITYof the FARC wea
Page 458 and 459:
424 OUT OF CAPTIVITYwoman who was w
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426 OUT OF CAPTIVITYstripped to his
Page 462 and 463:
428 OUT OF CAPTIVITYing to move for
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EIG HTEENHomecomingJuly 2008-Octobe
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432 OUT OF CAPTIVITYThey believed t
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434 OUT OF CAPTIVITY“Unreal. Look
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436 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthing I’d bee
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438 OUT OF CAPTIVITYThis was my fir
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440 OUT OF CAPTIVITYto open the doo
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442 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbook with all k
Page 478 and 479:
444 OUT OF CAPTIVITYgroup was tryin
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446 OUT OF CAPTIVITYhappy he was an
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448 OUT OF CAPTIVITYthat it wasn’
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450 OUT OF CAPTIVITYbefore the acci
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AcknowledgmentsThe three of us lear
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Acknowledgments 455the William Morr
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Acknowledgments 457vived alone. Tom
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CreditsDesigned by Sunil Manchikant
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About the PublisherAustraliaHarperC
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