When Miguel knocked on the door, she had gone upstairs and was peeping from behind the curtains to see who the person was. Carlos had made elaborate arrangements for the safety of his family. All doors were well lighted and had periscopes to see who was outside without standing in front of the door to prevent from getting shot through the door and also had second story windows set up for observation of incoming traffic in the street in front of his villa.

The backdoor was a fake facade blocked by a six inch brick wall and the actual back door was in the bathroom behind a tall cabinet. It was covered with a fake brick panel on the outer wall. From the gully it appeared like a real outer wall. Miguel had all the plans and had memorized every instruction, features. He was a well traveled individual in that part of the country and was familiar with the risks. When Mallissa saw him, he was in the Trucking Company uniform and looked more matured than she had remembered but his face had not changed that much, she remembered his well-formed lips; " they are same lusty, full of passion" she thought.

She came down and opened the door slightly. He gave the package and told her to put all her jewelry and gold in the box inside that package and be ready in forty minutes. She started to give her plan of escape but he cut her off and said, "no; that won't work" they will be here anytime; just do as planned. When I come back I will be outside your back door in the bathroom and I won't knock; the pass word will be," finished bath?" and you say, " I don't take bath at night". This way I will know all is fine". Then he gave a bottle and instructed her to give Andres four pills with milk; he will sleep throughout the journey. "Be ready at the rear door in Thirty minutes and I will be there as soon as I can; don't come up with anything new." He gave her the final word on that matter.

When he returned she was ready. He went upstairs and picked Andres and rolled him up in quilt like rough cloth used for transporting rugs. They went out without any event or noise. Miguel looked at his watch and it was 1:30AM. They slipped out of short alley and there was a beat-up and rusty Ford with Arizona License Plate, parked with its trunk partially opened. Get in he told her; she hesitated for a moment but did as was told; then he pushed Andres limp body inside. There was a man sitting on the driver's seat. Miguel jumped in the rear seat and made sure door was locked and the tinted widows were up. They drove for about one and half hour and were out in the country side. Eventually, a hillock came in sight, driver said we are here and Miguel sat upright and said,
"The truck is on the other side, be careful on the climb and watch for large rocks, just drive the car inside gently in first gear only and when your lights come to touch the back of my cab, cut the engine and put chalks under the wheels and tie it up".
Si senior said the man. All went smoothly and Miguel gave the man a wad of twenty Dollar Bills and said "¡gracias por todo! ; they are all there as promise Manuel." "No Problema señor" came the response.

Miguel drove nonstop and they reached Arizona-Mexico borders. It was about three AM when he pulled the truck on a side road and stopped. He went back and called her out," are you OK, "Yes bit cramps in my leg but fine" she responded. We will be entering US. Remain still and make sure Andres does not make any noise. As soon as I cross the border, I will pull over and you will be out; just about forty minutes more" he assured her.

As he entered the international border's custom areas, he saw one read light turning green. He raced to that lane and Custom man recognized him,
" What you got?"
" Just a stolen vehicle returning to the Insurance company and here are the papers from Tijuana police Department". Man reached out and examined the papers briefly and whispered,
"Anything for my troubles?" He asked sheepishly.
"Yes, of course but you have not yet inspected the vehicle" Miguel replied.

" Oh yes, I better do that; we are on the candid camera, I forgot" He took a heavy duty flashlight and lumbered towards the back of the Box Truck and searched the underbelly of the vehicle and when Miguel opened the back doors of truck,the fat agent climbed up in the truck with his help. He barely could go around the Ford inside but managed to get to the back door and opened it. He bent forward and quickly retrieved a brown lunch bag and pushed it in his underpants.
When they reached outside the town of Bisbee, Miguel stopped at a shabby looking truck-stop with a Cantina. He backed up the truck to the rear door of that restaurant, cut the engine and went around and opened the door. He tapped on the trunk and in a subdued voice told Mallissa,
"when you get out of the trunk stretch your legs, hold the side of the truck and stand for about fifteen minutes and don't try to walk. He opened the trunk and helped her out. She grabbed his torso and slid out. He steadied her and when she held the railing on the side of the truck, he got out and knocked on the door. Someone opened it and he took them inside through a poorly lit corridor and into a room. He followed her carrying the bundle with Andres inside.

Andres was still under the influence of sleeping pills. A Native American waiter brought breakfast and pot of hot coffee. Both eat hungrily. He went out and she fell asleep on the bed next to Andres. When he returned after a long time, perhaps three hours, he found her freshened up and alert. She was ready to discuss his next move. He told her that she has to be on her own from now.
" There is a man waiting outside for you in the car; take all your stuff except the gold and jewelry, Did you bring the wig, sunglasses and other stuff Carlos told you to?" She responded by nodding her head in affirmative gesture. He continued," You will be dropped at Bisbee downtown. There are three antique shops selling Native American Stuff. You go in the shop which is on the opposite side of that road by itself and the others are side by side opposite to this one.
When you enter, do not go to the counter but go on a browsing trip like a tourist until a white woman in her sixties with many strands of beads around her neck and Turquoise earrings comes up to you and says, "Have you seen my special collections?" Then you say, " Is it any different than one in Santa Fe?" If she says " Ours is better than that". Then you just follow her in the back of the store to get further instructions. If she responds anything else? Then just get out of that place, take taxi and return here. The taxi will wait for you with its hood open in the same place where he will drop you. Any questions? "
" No, but what is happening to Andres? And when will I see my husband?" she asked. "Andres is going with me and answer to your question is, I don't know when". "Will I see you again?" " I don't know that either but I promise you, when dust settles down, I will find you."

They went separate ways. She did exactly as she was told and when she went back of the store, the woman gave her an envelope and left her alone. She opened it and there was a scribbled note in Carlos handwriting,
" Go with the taxi and he will drop you at a place called, "Thousand Steps". Make sure you pay him as you would pay a real taxi. Take your bags and go up the steps; they are not thousand but just lots of steps. When you go up, you will see a house sitting right on the edge of that ridge. You go in and stay there. Everything you need is there including phone but do not make calls or answer any phone. If I want to contact you I will find a way. If you made it up to that point, you made it. I miss you; love you and may Santa Maria be with you. There was no signature or name printed but she knew it was from him. There were Three Hundred Dollars in many denominations.

She read the letter again and then went out. Woman sold her something and she paid her what so ever was on the invoice. Then the shopkeeper asked her to return the letter to her and she did. After that everything went as planned. When finally Mallissa fell in the bed, she sunk in despair and all her strength melted away like butter left on the table and she started to weep silently.

In just forty eight hours her world was shattered again as if providence had set a program to destroy everything she cherished every ten years. Her first world of childhood was shattered when her father, a subsistence farmer refused to sell his holding to the marijuana plantation builders was killed and her mother was dragged to the labor camp. She had escaped the capture because she was in school away from home. She was just ten then and after that she landed in Veracruz orphanage thanks to the padre who happened to be in the village on that day to conduct a wedding.

For the next five years she went through relatively without any untoward event and she got some basic education in Spanish and Basic English.When she turned fifteen, she was sent to work because the orphanage was for children under fifteen. She worked as house maid but her quickly growing youthful body became her enemy. To prevent her master- the husband of the woman she worked for- from seducing her, she was kicked out of job by and ultimately reached her mother's village, found her uncle and aunts living on meager earnings by selling vegetables and flowers. Her arrival in one way helped the old man because right after her arrival he lost his wife to snake bite. Mallissa managed his life and made improvements in his business. She turned eighteen, when Carlos came into her life.
The next ten years were the best of all three decades when she did not have shortage of anything, and she regularly sent money to her uncle until he died of alcohol poisoning few years after her marriage. Life's vagaries are hard to understand and impossible to know what purpose to any, they serve. Many theories are floating around ranging from God's wrath laid upon the Children of Eve because of her seeking knowledge to the consequences of bad deeds and bonanza of good ones performed in this and all past lives as the Eastern Religions believed. Whatsoever theory one wants to believe in, it really does not matter; the fact remains that the human life is manipulated. Who does the manipulation or why? Has no answer now nor it will ever be found. The "Wheel of Samsara" as the Eastern philosophers described it, is turning all the time and Mallissa, Andres, Carlos and Miguel are nothing more than houseflies going around and around till I suppose they fall of the wheel. For now, the chapter, Miguel's Mission, seems to be coming to an end for her.