Read Online A Horse Called El Dorado by Kevin Kiely - Free Book Online

should all have some food at a café in the airport. I knew that Grandma would get weepy so I said, ‘Why not stay in the apartment?’ No, she wanted to come with us. She hadn’t seen the airport since her honeymoon to Panama.
    Mama carried the carpet bag to the bus stop. I carried the plastic bag with the wet towel in it and my hat. Our bus finally got to the airport through the crowded streets, and then I had two hours to wait for my flight. There were people rushing about in all directions, pushing trolleys and checking times. The carpet bag was labelled and taken away with other luggage. My ticket was checked at a desk, then Mama put it inside the back pocket of my trousers and buttoned the pocket closed. My passport was in my shirt pocket, which also had a button. My shirt didn’t fit me very well. It was much too big, and I had to roll the sleeves up so that my hands poked out. I liked it though; I felt like a businessman going off to an important meeting.
    We sat for a little while in the café. The drink in my paper cup was almost untouched. I felt lonely leaving Mama, who sat looking strangely small and staring down at the table. I would miss Grandma too, whom I had grown to love despite her crazy questions. They both noticed my mood and forced themselves to smile.
    ‘You will have good luck in the northern world,’ said Grandma. ‘But keep warm. Remember to be careful. Watch out for frostbite!’
    ‘You will send me e-mails?’ Mama said.
    ‘How long will I be away?’ I asked, looking down at my feet.
    ‘Well, Pepe, because it is so expensive to travel there, you should stay as long as you can,’ replied Mama.
    ‘But how many days?’
    ‘Days?’ they both asked. ‘Weeks, months at least.’
    Grandma wanted to use the toilet and got up, leaving us alone.
    ‘Pepe, listen to me. I want to work in the hotel as a chambermaid and then maybe in the dining room. I will earn more money so I can move into my own apartment. I cannot live with Grandma much longer. She is driving me mad!’
    ‘You two drive each other mad. What about me?’ I asked. I felt miserable and suddenly did not want to go. Mama hugged me. It felt good, but there were many people at other tables and it made me embarrassed. I took up my hat and stared at it. Why had Grandma ruined it, by sewing on those earflaps? I would rather that my ears froze on the sides of my head in Ireland.
    ‘Pepe,’ Mama began and burst into tears. But soon she got a grip on herself and said in a squeaky voice, ‘You have a lousy mother. And a lousy father.’
    ‘Don’t say that, Mama. You two are my only parents. Don’t say anything bad about my parents,’ I begged her, but this caused more tears to flow and then I began to feel weepy too.
    Grandma came back and, seeing our sadness, tried to be jolly.
    ‘I like the airport. It is better than a circus. And do you know, the sight of those aeroplanes beats any trapeze act, elephants and tigers. You’ve never seen a circus?’ she asked me.
    ‘Yes, I have,’ I said. ‘We all acted in our own circus at the commune.’
    ‘Oh, don’t mention that commune to me,’ snapped Grandma.
    Then my flight number was called and there was no more time for tears. It was a strange moment. I often picture it in my mind at night.
    How do you say goodbye to your mother? You hug her. She tells you how much she loves you. And you know how much it hurts to love her, just at the moment of leaving her. I picked up my hat and the plastic bag with the towel. Mama was shouting something. Grandma was saying, he looks so small. I turned around and walked away, towards the queue of people waiting to board the aeroplane.

Chapter 14
    My first time inside an aeroplane! The engines were revving like the sound of all the animals along the Río Putumayo . I was asked for my ticket by a smiling woman in uniform and shown to a seat. It was very comfortable.
    The aeroplane soon started rolling down the runway, then it roared and began