Read Online The Twelve by William Gladstone - Free Book Online

and friends to celebrate the music festival. They lived in La Paz and had arranged for the school bus to drive them up and back.
    As the conversation continued, the girls flirted with these two gringos who represented worlds they could not even imagine. They invited Rolf and Max to join them on the bus for the return trip to La Paz, and the two jumped at the opportunity, knowing the company of the girls would make the trip all the more enjoyable.
    The next morning, shortly after sunrise and after another night spent sleeping with the farmer’s alpaca goats, Rolf and Max boarded the school bus. The trip was uneventful, though there must have been at least twenty checkpoints along the road to La Paz. The checkpoint guards always recognized the bus and the driver and waved them through without incident.
    They reached La Paz by late afternoon, said their goodbyes with thanks to the girls and their families, and decided to stop at the outdoor cafe near the bus station. As a native of Holland, Rolf was particularly fond of beer, and the Bolivian beer was a superior brew created by Germans who had been brought to Bolivia specifically to create breweries.
    With the freshness of the mountain water throughout the Andes, the local beers were extraordinary and served in bottles double the size of their American counterparts.
    â€œThese are the best beers I’ve ever had,” Max asserted. “Even better than the Peruvian Arequipeño beer.” He and Rolf ordered another round to go with bar-food delicacies they were enjoying.
    â€œI think you’re right,” Rolf agreed as he downed his glass.
    Suddenly Max jumped up from the table.
    â€œOh my God,” he said. “It’s Archie Benson.
    â€œArchie, Archie, over here,” Max shouted as he gestured wildly to draw Archie’s attention. “What in the world are you doing here ? ” he asked as his friend walked over to the table, an attractive, young woman at his side.
    Introductions were made, and Archie explained.
    â€œI don’t think you ever met my wife, Elizabeth, did you Max ? We were married in June, right after classes got out, and are down here in South America on a special fact-finding mission for the United Nations. We’re both taking the fall semester off to complete our project.
    â€œBut what are you doing here ? ” Archie asked.
    â€œJust visiting, but Rolf here wants to go to Yungas to hunt jaguars.” Max smiled as he spoke.
    â€œWell, we just returned from Yungas ourselves,” Archie noted. “The best way to get there is to jump on what they call the ‘banana boat.’ It’s a truck that comes in from the jungle loaded with bananas, and when the delivery has been made, the truck goes back empty the following day. The locals just hop on board, and for about a penny a mile, you can go all the way to the end of the line, the town of Caranavi.
    â€œFrom there I’m sure you can arrange guides for your jaguar hunting.”
    To Max’s surprise, Archie then handed him a hotel-room key.
    â€œWe have two extra nights paid for. Why don’t you take the room, if you need a place to stay.”
    This delighted the duo. Yet again they had found lodging for the best possible price—in this case, free.
    Since Bolivia was a country of many revolutions, and the laws were clear that all foreigners had to be registered, every hotel had a firm policy of reviewing each foreigner’s passport and making note of each visitor. Thus Rolf and Max entered the modest hotel very surreptitiously and settled into their free room.
    The next day a strike was declared by all communication services—every media worker walked out and shut down each and every newspaper, radio, and television station.
    Anxious to set out on their jaguar adventure, they walked to the final gas station heading east on the road from La Paz to Yungas and boarded the “banana boat,” an open-bed truck, where they