Fruit of the Drunken Tree

Chula fears for Petrona and feels responsible for her safety. She and Cassandra hatch a plan to skip school and track down Petrona. As the girls walk to the school bus stop, Chula remembers the anecdotes describing the grisly things Escobar’s men have done. When the bus arrives, Chula and Cassandra sneak away instead of boarding. They decide to wait in a bakery until Petrona’s usual arrival time. In the bakery, they encounter Petrona and Gorrión. Chula tells Petrona there was a bombing, which is why they are not in school, and Petrona introduces Gorrión. He says he will call “the driver” (213), and the girls are confused.

Chula sees Petrona’s eyes well up. The bakery proprietress asks Gorrión who he is, and when he answers suspiciously, she calls the police. Gorrión snatches Cassandra and runs away. Chula runs after her, but loses them, and a car with an unknown male driver and Petrona in the passenger seat approaches her. Chula runs, but the driver catches her, drags her by her leg back to the car, and locks her in the trunk. Chula locates a cable that opens the trunk from the inside, and when the car stops, she escapes.