MEET LARRY AND ANNETTE
The story begins on a hot and humid day on the docks in Key West in the year 1959. Larry Marino and Annette Ewing, a young couple very much in love, are going fishing with an old Cuban boat captain Named Manny Perez. Larry is a writer who has come to Key West hoping to meet Ernest Hemingway, the world-famous novelist. Manny tells him that Ernesto is in Spain and that he is not at home on his island off the coast of Cuba. After much red wine and a day of fishing, Larry and Annette decide to go to Havana.
ARRIVAL IN CUBA
The next day they arrive in Cuba and are surprised to find a heavy military presence at the airport. Green uniformed soldiers seem to be everywhere. After checking into the Sevilla Biltmore, one of Havana’s finest hotels, they find that the hotel also is overrun with soldiers carrying automatic rifles and other weaponry.
ENTER MIKE AND PAM
In the hotel dining room they meet Mike Dillon and Pam Clemons, a young American couple who have fled the U.S. because Mike has got Pam pregnant, Pam is underage and her father has gone after him on a federal warrant, which has caused them to flee to Cuba.
WE’VE FLOWN INTO A REVOLUTION
Mike tells Larry and Annette that they have landed in Havana in the aftermath of a revolution. A young Cuban, Fidel Castro, and his band of rebels have overthrown long-time dictator, Fulgencio Batista. Although the revolution is mainly over and has gone into the pages of history, there are still random bombings and other acts of violence. The Sevilla Biltmore hotel is serving as Castro’s temporary headquarters. Mike tells them to just act like “dumb tourists” and have a good time.
SLOPPY JOE’S BAR
That evening the four young Americans visit the famous Sloppy Joe’s bar in old Havana. They have fun drinking and acting as tourists. While at Sloppy Joe’s, they invite a handful of Cuban soldiers to a party in their hotel room the next evening. The following day, the day of the party, they visit the ancient and historic Morro Castle. Afterward their taxi driver takes them past Fidel Castro’s home. His residence features an American Sherman tank on the front lawn, machine gun emplacements at the four corners of the property, and barbed wire everywhere.
VIOLENCE ON A HAVANA STREET
As Larry and Annette await the party that evening, they sense an ominous undercurrent of potential violence, still simmering in the aftermath of the revolution. In a short time, their fears are fulfilled.
Lieutenant Sanchez looked over the rail with his Colt 45 pistol pointed down at the street. Larry and Mike moved onto an open space at the end of the balcony and watched the action below. Three men lay dead in the street. They all wore brightly-colored sport shirts and slacks. One lay on his back in a pool of blood. His mouth was open when he was hit with a bullet through the heart and it was still open as if he was tired and was yawning. He would be sleeping forever. The other two men lay in death in grotesque positions. Somehow a junkyard dog came onto the scene and was sniffing around the bodies. A dozen or more soldiers were standing over the three dead men.
The exciting events that occur during their few days in this fascinating and historic city, make this thrilling adventure story a must read. The entire adventurous tale of the four Americans. is packed with action that will always have you wanting to turn to the next page.
