Kidnapped and a Daring Escape Read Online Free PDF Page B

ask. The question is accompanied by a snigger.
         "None of your business —" she replies, laughing, only to be interrupted by Paolo: "You should hear Gioglio snore. It’s sounds like a
Vespa misfiring."
         "You can talk," Giuglio fires back. "At least, I don’t stink up the
room."
         André decides to move a few steps to the side so that he does no
longer have to hear their inane banter and passes the time studying the
chain of mountains and hills that enclose the expanse of the Magdalena
valley.
         In San Agustin, a guide from the horse stables meets Paolo and
Giuglio. The two young men arranged for visiting the sites in the
archaeological park on horseback. Bianca and André are now alone,
waiting for their Jeep.
         "Bianca, I don’t know what I did that turned you against me, but let’s
make a truce at least for the next few hours. We’ll both enjoy the sights
more if we step beyond this patch of discord that seems to separate us. I
promise to be on my best behavior."
         She hesitates for a moment and then produces a weak smile. " Oké ,"
she replies, the ‘k’ pronounced without aspiration, in the Italian way. He
loves it.
         "Since you hired the Jeep and guide, I will simply tag along. So tell
me a bit how you see the day. What will we be looking for?"
         She seems willing to consider his proposal and asks: "What do you
know about San Agustin?"
         "Only that it contains several hundred statues and monuments that
originate from a culture that disappeared before Columbus, probably
even before the Incas."
         "Yes, that is correct. Over five hundred statues, in fact. Some are
anthropomorphic figures—"
         "—which means?"
         "Resembling human form or having human attributes, like a lion’s
head attached to a human body—"
         "—or the other way round?"
         "Yes. Some are realistic, most are stylistic, their heads always out of
proportion large. Many have large feline fangs, probably depicting
deities. Still others depict animals: eagles, jaguars, even frogs. They are
scattered over a wide area, and the theory is that they were erected as
guardians of burial sites. The archaeological park just beyond San
Agustin contains the largest number, but there are more on the other side
of the river we saw from the van …"
         He notices that she has adopted a lecturing stance. She looks so
endearingly serious. He loves it and smiles.
           She pauses, eyeing him suspiciously. "Why are you grinning? … You
already knew all that and were just pulling my leg."
         "No, Bianca, I do not. I was smiling because when you told all this
you spoke with the lecturing voice of a professor."
         "You see, you’re mocking me, like you did last evening." Her face
becomes angry, distorting her lovely features. She brusquely turns,
moving away.
         He berates himself for having been so tongue-in-cheek last night and
quickly steps in front of her. "No, Bianca. I am not mocking you. I loved
it. I love your enthusiasm. Honestly. Please, go on."
         She blushes and looks at him uncertainly.
         "Please, relent," he begs again. "Do we stay the whole time here or are
we also going across the river?"
         "We’ll spend about three hours here. I want to see the Fuente de
Lavapatas with its famous carvings and then visit the clusters of statues
at the Alto de Lavapatas , just above the fountains. From there one gets
a panoramic view over the whole area. After lunch, we will cross the
river to the second most important site, the Alto de los Ídolos , to view the
largest of all statues. It measures seven meters high. There is a third site
beyond the town of San José de Isnos, which has two very intriguing
statues. One, depending on the angle viewed, reveals four figures, the
other is a highly pregnant woman. I hope we’ll make it there."
         André has stopped listening. The name San José ‘of