Chapter 8: Chapter 8 – We Must Outwit Them

I've decided to try my hand at making cosmetics to sell. I've finished collecting a bag full of the ingredients in nature, to be used in making cosmetics. I'm lugging the bag to the Gold Nuggets River where Hoa and I have planned to meet up, so we can go to my house to make cosmetics together.

I've reached the riverbank. As I'm about to go through a line of trees, I spot a hundred-dollar bill lying on the ground, with the bill's one end tilted slightly up at an angle by a transparent white fishing line.

I'm afraid the bill would be taken by someone else before I could get my hand on it. But a hundred-dollar bill lying on the ground is too good to be real, so I'm beginning to have an uneasy feeling that someone is trying to pull a trick on me.

I remain staying in place and stare at the bill. There're many footsteps facing different directions all around the bill. I don't know if I should just go ahead and snatch it up and immediately run away. I say to myself, "Stop worrying about it and go for it."

But all I do is keep staring at the bill until I can make out a fishing line with its bottom end attached to the underside at the end of the bill, with the line running away from the bill, over a tree branch, and across a road.

My eyes trace along the fishing line, and I land my vision upon an isolated house, which is set among the papaya trees, just a few meters back from the road. The house is made of straws mixed in mud, with a roof of palm thatch.

As I'm trying to decide whether to come out and take the bill, Hoa rushes in long strides towards the bill, carrying a thick wad of lottery tickets.

Hoa and her mom have fallen on hard times after her dad left his family for a girl working in Saigon Bar. Hoa has resorted to selling lottery tickets after school to help her mom make ends meet.

Hoa stoops down to pick up the bill, with her face turning toward the house. Instantly she drops the bill and lifts herself up into an upright position.

The house's front door opens, and two boys, whom I recognize as the bullies who teased Hoa and me when we climbed my banana tree to go to school, come out of the house and dash towards Hoa.

Hoa turns in my direction and throws her wad of lottery tickets, and it lands among the persimmon trees.

I drop down on my knees, put my head in between the tree trunks, and peer down at the bases of the trees. I retrieve the wad of lottery tickets and a clear plastic bag containing money tied to the wad with a rubber band.     

The bullies come up to Hoa and shove her toward the house. The door opens, and they push Hoa in, and then the door closes.

I stamp my feet in dismay. What can I do to help Hoa? I've thought of running away to get help for her, but I hate to leave her here with the bullies. I dash around and find a small hole where a swarm of fire ants crawling around. I put the lottery ticket wad and the money bag in the hole, snatch handfuls of grass and cover the hole with it. The ants crawl up out of the grass.

I come up to the door and stand outside listening. From inside the house, a boy says, "Give over the lottery tickets and all your money to us. Don't expect to get out of here without giving in to our demand."

I pound on the door as confidently as I can. I know from peddling that with mean people, I must act assertively, or else they may toy around and give me trouble.

The door opens a crack and a boy says, "Oh wow, look at who's here! What do you want?"

"Let the girl out," I say.

The door opens wider, and two other boys look out at me. "Oh, you're a poor girl. Go away." The door slams shut in my face.

"I won't unless you release the girl," I say.

The door opens again. "Oh yes? What will you do if we don't?"

"I will report you to the police," I say.

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"Don't you dare report on us, or you'll be sorry! By the time you come back here, we won't be here."

I turn to look around the area surrounding the house and see no one. Then I see Tin coming through the trees, carrying a toolbox.

It has been an insufficient tactic for the Tunnel Rats to go into the Cu Chi tunnels to scout for the VCs. So the Tunnel Rats initiated the "Open Arms Program," to encourage the VCs and their supporters to defect to the side of the American Army and Vietnamese Army.

Tin has participated in the program, and the Tunnel Rats have offered Tin a job as a Tunnels Detection Specialist, to come up with a method that correctly identifies the tunnels with VCs living in them.

I run up to Tin, pointing to the house and saying, "The bullies are holding Hoa in that house, and they have demanded the money and lottery tickets she has with her. But she had thrown them over to me, and I've hidden them in a fire ant nest."

"How many bullies are in there?" Tin says.

"I think three," I say.

Tin says, "That house is an abandoned VC post. I know what to do to rescue Hoa. You go knock on the door and distract them with talks, while I get into the tunnel under the house and manage to get Hoa out by way of the tunnel." Tin runs away into the woods.

I dig up Hoa's money bag, take some coins out of the bag, and put it back into place. I walk up to the door again and knock on it.

The door opens and a boy says, "You've been here before, but what are you back for?"

I say, "I have the girl's money bag, and I'm going to give it to you so that you let her go. But I want to talk to all three of you. Would you all please come out here and talk to me? But you must stay at a distance from me, and I will throw the money to you and run away."

They come out and stand facing me in a line in front of the door.

I say, "You stay where you are while I walk away, and once I gain some distance from you, I'll throw the money bag to you."

At about fifty feet distant from them, I throw the bag containing ten quarters wrapped in a piece of paper far away from them, and they run for the money.

As the boys run towards the money bag, I see Hoa wave for me to come to them from the back corner of the house.

When I join Tin and Hoa, we run into the woods and keep on running until we're sure the bullies can't find us and stop.

Hoa says, "Thank you guys for saving me. They demanded I hand over the lottery tickets and money. When I said I didn't have them, they slapped my face."

I say, "Oh, yes. Do you know where your lottery tickets and money are?"

Hoa says, "I threw them to you. I saw you lurking behind trees, and figured it was better you get them, instead of the boys. I am smart, you see?" she taps at her temple.

I say, "I know you're smart. But why did you pick up the 100-dollar bill without first looking around out of caution? Yes, I got your tickets and money and hid them in a nest full of fire ants. I used a little of your money to lure the bullies out of the house."

We take the lottery tickets and money bag out of the nest of fire ants.

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