THE LLAMA CAPER X

4/30/2021 

As the city’s work force moved off on Monday to their appointed labor stations, the radio was awash with a familiar story about a llama found again. In an age of no cell phones and very few cameras, Constitutional Privacy prevailed. The summer morning came to the Animal Aquarium as all the residents stumbled out due to a weekend of continuous taste testing. The last one out the door was DD who, for some reason of fate, was to report to a construction project that was reasonably close to the Animal Aquarium. Being the 1st time at this location, he parked his van alongside all the other jalopies of the construction workers and looked for the job trailer where he would get his work assignment. This week, he was told to report to the city’s Humane Society complex. Armed with a plausible excuse for being late, DD crossed in front of a slew of chain link kennels. Passing in front of the one with the longest runway, he felt the presence of an animal that shadowed his movement on the sidewalk. Holy Shit! It was Rooti. Stopping 6″ from the fence, the llama halted his movements and their eyes met. Llama standards must match those of a dog because the animal had instantly forgiven him of his wrongful deed of abandonment. Looking around, he noticed workers seeing a bond between the 2 mammals and DD quickly moved on before a connection could occur. Getting his job assignment, he moved into the building and away from Rooti. At noon, the lunch break commenced, and a group of workers congregated near a white Suburban with a llama inside the back seat. The entire driver’s side was surrounded with media crews and cameras. Standing back 10′ behind the crews, DD could hear all the questions being thrown at the driver/owner of Rooti. The one that stood out was his response to the question of catching the abductors. “We’re gonna get them,” was the reply. As the culprit and the llama’s eyes met for the very last time, the oath of silence followed them to their future graves.