Chapter 41: The Conversation

In the moment Arthur heard that John had been shot, all his worries and fears became a reality.

“Bottle Cap! Bottle Cap? Answer me, Bottle Cap!”

Arthur didn’t shout. He pressed the transmit button on the walkie-talkie, speaking in a low, rapid voice.

There was still no response from John, but George’s voice came through.

“Captain, what’s your position?”

“I’m near the coordinates. Bottle Cap has been hit. I can’t see the enemy!”

Frank’s voice was full of fear and an unmistakable sense of helplessness. He didn’t say anything about trying to bring John back or rescuing him.

Arthur’s first thought was that John was already dead. Otherwise, Frank should have reported John’s condition or mentioned an attempt to bring him back. As a seasoned veteran, Frank should be capable of such actions.

But Frank hadn’t said what exactly happened to John.

“What’s Bottle Cap’s status?”

It was Rubber who asked, his tone equally filled with frustration but without panic.

“He’s been captured!”

“Captain, stay calm! Is Bottle Cap dead or captured alive?”

“He’s alive! Damn it! I’m under attack. I don’t have time to talk!”

Frank’s response was rushed, accompanied by the sounds of his breathing and the bursts of AK rifle fire.

Arthur didn’t dare speak. He didn’t want to occupy the precious communication channel while Frank was in combat, and Rubber and George were heading to provide support. All he could do was listen to the live broadcast through the walkie-talkie.

George’s voice came urgently, “We’re on our way to support you, Captain. Head back to the rendezvous point.”

Arthur’s mind was in turmoil. He felt a bitter taste in his mouth, his body turning cold. Finally, unable to bear it, he pressed the transmit button again, speaking urgently, “Bottle Cap, say something! Are you not going to rescue Bottle Cap?”

Frank’s voice came back, filled with rage, mixed with the sound of rifle fire. “Shut up! You don’t understand. Of course, I want to save him. Fuck! It’s all over, it’s over!”

Arthur felt that Frank wasn’t just panicking; he was breaking down.

His mind went blank. He thought John had no hope left. Captain, their leader, the organizer, and the commander, were now mentally breaking down.

George and Rubber had known Frank for years. They must understand Frank’s state better than Arthur, so Rubber’s stern voice came over the walkie-talkie, “Captain, calm down! Calm down!”

Frank didn’t reply, but then a new voice spoke over the walkie-talkie.

“Who are you? Why are you here? Your companion…”

The voice spoke in Spanish, full of menace. Before he could finish, John’s voice suddenly cut in.

“Guerrillas... uh... many people...”

John had been captured alive. He might have been shot, but he was not dead. He tried to warn Frank and the others after his walkie-talkie was seized, but his voice quickly faded.

The walkie-talkie wasn’t voice-activated. Once the transmit button was released, John’s voice couldn’t be heard.

After a brief pause, the Spanish-speaking voice returned.

“Your companion is alive. If you don’t want to die, drop your weapons and surrender. In the jungle, you can’t escape.”

The communication channel was open, but no one spoke. Frank, Rubber, and the others were all waiting for the person to speak again. So was Arthur.

After a moment, Frank finally, in a state of panic, said, “What did he say? Translate, what did he say?”

Arthur licked his lips and said in a low voice, “He said Bottle Cap is alive. If we don’t want to die, we should drop our weapons and surrender. He said we can’t escape in the jungle.”

The situation had become complicated. Frank shouted, “Ask them who they are and what they want!”

As long as there was communication, as long as there was dialogue, there was still hope.

Arthur saw a glimmer of hope through his despair. He took a deep breath, pounded his chest lightly, and, without pressing the transmit button, muttered to himself, “Hello...”

His voice was a bit shaky. That wouldn’t do. He needed to calm down. He had to stay calm. At the very least, he had to sound calm.

Arthur swung his right hand and slapped himself hard twice, so hard that fingerprints quickly appeared on his face.

"Hello, hello... hello!"

Feeling that his voice was steady and calm enough, Arthur pressed the transmit button and said in a deep, authoritative voice, "Hello, may I ask who you are?"

Speaking in Spanish, Arthur began to communicate with the guerrillas.

"Good, communication is a good start. Don’t ask who we are, first tell us who you are and what you’re doing here."

Arthur’s brain was working rapidly, and he didn’t hesitate, saying, "We’re not here for you, but I understand what you’re worried about, sir. I am far away from you, and I have a satellite phone. If you harm my people, I will reveal your location to everyone."

Mutual threats and probing. Arthur didn’t expect a few words to scare the enemy, but he couldn’t let them act recklessly.

“Heh, do you think we’re afraid of being exposed?”

It wasn’t clear whether they were worried about being exposed, but Arthur figured nobody liked moving their base.

“Our purpose here is not about you. We just happened to run into each other. Sir, are you the guerrilla commander? Can we talk? You release my man, we’ll leave and never bother you again, how about that?”

“Sure, if you want your man, come and get him.”

Arthur took a deep breath, thinking about how to continue the conversation. At this moment, Frank’s voice came through, urgently, “What did you say? Tell us, what did you say?”

Frank’s voice was too panicked. Arthur found it hard to believe that a battle-hardened veteran who had been a commando leader for a long time like Frank could be so unsettled.

“Switch to the backup channel.”

George was calmer than Frank. Switching channels was primarily to prevent the enemy from eavesdropping.

Arthur switched to the backup channel and immediately said, “I made contact with the other side. They demand we come and get Bottle Cap if we want to save him. I think we can negotiate. I can get Bottle Cap out.”

Frank didn’t speak, but Rubber did, in a very despairing tone, “It’s difficult. If they are guerrillas, negotiating is almost impossible.”

Arthur immediately responded, “Then what do we do? Just abandon Bottle Cap?”

Frank’s voice came through, trembling, “It’s over, it’s all over…”

Feeling a wave of disgust, Arthur was deeply disappointed in Frank.

Finding someone else at the treasure’s location meant the money might have been discovered and taken long ago, or if the money was still there, the presence of a guerrilla group made it impossible to continue searching.

Frank’s dream was shattered. His greatest hope was gone. Years of effort turned into nothing, and he broke down.

Arthur understood Frank; he truly did, but he couldn’t accept Frank’s current behavior.

“Captain, stay calm! We haven’t completely lost hope yet!”

Not wanting to be too explicit, Arthur tried to subtly remind Frank. Then he said coldly, “What we need to think about now is how to rescue John. I’ll switch back to the main channel to negotiate with the other side. Do you have anything to tell me?”

George said urgently, “Negotiate however you need to, just keep Bottle Cap alive. We’ll regroup and then figure out how to rescue Bottle Cap, over.”

Arthur switched the walkie-talkie back to the main channel and resumed the conversation with the enemy, saying in a deep voice, “Sir, are you still there?”

“I’m here.”

“Sir, you don’t bother me, and I won’t bother you. Return my man, and we’ll leave. Is that acceptable?”

There was a moment of silence on the walkie-talkie, then the person speaking to Arthur responded with a mocking tone, “Do you think you can leave?”

“I could abandon my companion’s life and leave, then you’d at least have to move your camp. Sir, we don’t want to be enemies with you. Why make it like this? You can state your demands. Intimidation and threats won’t make this conversation meaningful.”

“Then let’s stop talking.”

The enemy’s tone was resolute and cold. Arthur panicked a bit and immediately said, “Wait, state your terms! Name your terms!”

“It seems you care a lot about your companion’s life. Very well, if you want to talk, do it face to face. Do you dare to come?”

“Of course I dare! Wait for me!”

Arthur agreed to the terms without hesitation.

"Very well, then come. I'll be waiting."

"Wait! I'm far from you, this damned rainforest. I need ten hours to get to you. Just wait for me!"

As long as they could talk, it didn't matter whether it was face-to-face or over the walkie-talkie. After Arthur gave the time estimate, the other party paused for a moment before coldly replying, "The communication range of the walkie-talkie determines your distance. You won't need ten hours. I'll give you four hours. If you're not here in four hours, I'll shoot your companion. That's it."

"Wait, let me talk to my companion."

"Hey, are you there? Say something."

This time, Arthur waited for a few minutes, calling out several times, but got no response from the other side.

George's voice came through on the main channel, quietly saying, "Backup channel."

Switching back to the backup channel, Frank's weak voice asked, "What did you talk about?"

Arthur replied quietly, "Four hours. If I don't meet him in four hours, he'll shoot Bottle Cap."

After a brief pause, Frank said softly, "I got on the boat. The enemy didn't pursue. They won't chase me through the swamp; obviously, they don't have a boat."

Frank had escaped and seemed to have regained some composure. Arthur breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Good, let's meet up and discuss."

Putting down the walkie-talkie, Arthur's hands began to tremble. He was initially panicked but now felt a bit lost.

Looking at the plane anchored on the lake, their only means of transport, Arthur's chaotic mind felt like it was injected with a dose of clarity.

Arthur suddenly grabbed the rope and began pulling the plane towards the shore.

The plane was already near the shore, and with Arthur's effort, it moved slowly but steadily toward the land.

Few people might know that a Cessna 208, a small private plane, has keys. Maybe not all models, but at least the one Arthur and his companions had required keys—very complex, electronic signal-equipped keys.

Arthur pulled the keys out of the plane and hid them.