11“Checkpoint!” said Lama.
Suddenly, I saw machine guns. Only a few feet in front of us stood six armed men in khakis and red hats.
“Oh s**t,” said Mom, under her breath.
Lama had warned us about crooks in the mountains but I didn’t think much of it until I was standing face to face with their huge weapons.
“Don’t worry, Honey,” said Mom. “We have lots of cash. Lama will take care of it.”
“Think good thoughts,” said Lama. “Be calm.”
The men surrounded us, squinting their eyes as they laughed like hyenas.
“Mom? What’s going on?” She put her arm around me, protectively. “What are they going to do to us?”
“Buck up,” she said.
Mom had always coddled me, picking me up whenever I fell. I’d never, ever heard her say anything like, “Buck up.”
I stood up tall and tried not to look scared.
