Chapter
90: The Great Escape
Orlando
and Doris talked. They needed to dispel all misunderstanding. She
apologised for the needy message. He realized that since the change
in their relationship he had been very happy. But he said he needed
to get away from the nabe and from Isela. He needed a little time.
“I wanted to live here in Chelito's town. With you.” That was
the best news Doris ever heard. They went inside.
Esperanza
and Clara visited Honoria for Christmas Day. They brought some small
gifts and a little news about Max and Maria Dolores. Maria Dolores
wanted Max to spend as much time as possible with his mother. That
was understandable under the circumstances. Julian invited them to
stay for dinner; they accepted.
Max
and Maria Dolores were trying to enjoy their pre-honeymoon. They got
some bad news that there was no news of Corina. She was lost in the
system. He asked her whether there was any other thing she could
remember. Maria Dolores had a flashback of her first meeting with
Corina when she heard her name as “Corina Mil Amores”. She
suggested that they look for her with that name even though it might
not lead anywhere. They had no other clues.
Chelito
welcomed Orlando and Doris to her home. She worried that Doris
wouldn't be able to get work done, but Orlando told her that the
internet would make that possible. Chelito said she didn't have
access and it had taken years to even get a phone, but Doris said she
would take care of this. Chelito was a wise woman, but a little
backward in the modern ways of communication. She liked buying
clothes as she would buy tomatoes in a market: in person. Orlando
had to work on the specialized car for Julian; he would manage
somehow if the town didn't need another auto mechanic. Doris was
determined to become a success even if it meant never marrying to
have children. Orlando took this to mean that her family would
consider her a failure if she married him. He wanted to marry Doris
as soon as possible.
Hosefa
showed up at the Bustamantes' uninvited. Claudio did not want her
there.
“What
do you want?”
“Hello.
I'm here to see my daughter.”
“I'll
check if she's willing to receive you.”
“Never
mind that. If you come back with 'no' I will set off the bomb right
here on the stairs that you love my daughter and not like a father.
Totally to the contrary.”
Leo
entered on the last few words of this.
“What's
going on here, Dad?” he asked.
“Nothing,”
he answered. To Hosefa he said “You know where her room is.”
“Excuse
me,” she said as she passed him.
“Why
did you tell Hosefa? What's going on with Isela, Dad?”
Hosefa
walked into Isela's room without knocking.
“What
are you doing here and why did you come in like that?”
“Sorry,”
Hosefa said, sarcastically. “I don't have much manners. But
neither do you. You stole those papers out of the box. Your
sister's letters. Without asking my permission, don't you agree?
Stupid!” She hauled off and slapped Isela. Isela rolled with the
blow then faced her. Her expression was as cold as ice.
“If
you touch me – so much as a hair – one more time I will disown
you as my mother.” She hit back just as hard. Hosefa was stunned
for about two seconds.
“Alright,
very well,” she said, nodding. “Right now I will look for Alma
and I'm going to tell her everything. And she will die here at my
feet like a dog!” She turned toward the door. Isela ran ahead and
blocked it.
“You
won't do this. If you want I'll read the newspaper articles calmly.”
“Calmly?
You think you can?”
“Do
you have something to hide? Tell me.”
“Give me those papers.
Give me the letter.” She began shouting. “Give me the letter!”
“Alright,
I'll return it to you. But if you hit me again, I will have no
regard for you.”
There
was a knock.
“Isela!”
It was Alma.
Isela
opened the door and faced her lover's wife. Hosefa then chose to put
her arm around Isela and smirked as she stared at Alma.
Doris
started to cry. She had decided that she should not marry Orlando
for his own safety and peace of mind. She would always be a
connection to bad memories. Of Isela, Ari, and all the trouble they
caused him. He said he wouldn't be making the same mistakes anymore.
He said he wasn't a macho jerk. He loved her independence. He
wanted the chance to solve his individual problems. Problems were
inevitable but they were better solved together. They kissed and
Chelito smiled. She was not embarrassed to watch them. She knew
Doris had found a good man.
“Dad,
I asked you a question.”
“What
do you want?” Claudio asked, looking over his shoulder. “To
discuss that nonsense here where your mother can hear?”
“Excuse
me, but this isn't nonsense.”
“You
two have told me a lot of things about Hosefa. That she's hurt Maria
Dolores, that she's hurt that guy Orlando. What are you
insinuating?”
“You
know I don't do that, Dad.”
“What
are you asking now?”
“Why
are you doing this, Dad? I'm only asking you a question.”
“That
is disrespectful. This is exactly what Hosefa wants, for us to turn
on each other. And why? Because I took Isela out of her miserable
life to help her.”
He
turned and walked away. Leo looked as though he had doubts.
“My
mother is here to get back some papers I took by accident, but I'm
handing them over now. Just wait in the living room a minute.”
Isela guided Hosefa out the door past Alma and turned away. She
looked ready to lean over the porcelain throne.
“Isela,
is that it or are you lying to not upset me?” asked Alma.
“Eh,
yes, Alma. I always want to make sure you're calm.”
“Really?
I was just thinking about what you said. I called the oncologist.
He's out of town in Acapulco right now but his secretary said she
would have him call me. I'd like you to be here when he does.”
Isela
agreed. As soon as Alma was out the door Isela picked up the phone
to Adrian.
“What
is it, Isela?”
“Adrian,
you have to come to the Bustamantes' to get some documents I have for
you,” she said.
“Why?
They don't know I'm helping you,” he said.
“Adrian,
please, they can't know. Nobody else must know, I beg you.”
“I
was about to bring your sister's letter to the graphologist.”
“Get
the ones I have, it's urgent, Adrian! Please!”
“Very
well. I'll be right there.”
Doris,
Orlando, and Chelito ate in a local place she always went to for New
Year's. She made sure to eat lentils so she would not lack for
money. Orlando told the ladies about the money Hosefa tried to give
him to buy back what had been stolen from his shop. He would have
accepted it if he had been like Hosefa. He had refused because he
would have had to withdraw the accusation. That wasn't acceptable.
They talked about loans and pride. Chelito tried to make Orlando
understand that pride was sometimes not a good thing. She was
willing to invest in him and help him so he could get a start and
marry Doris. She wanted to see him and Doris happy together. Too
bad she wasn't Doris' mother.
Hosefa
was giving the Bustamantes' maid a hard time because she had brought
her a second glass of water. She took the water glass and dumped the
contents on the sideboard, then ordered her to get Isela.
“Hosefa,
you don't have any right to treat my maids that way,” Alma said.
She had heard her upstairs and came down to manage the situation.
“No,
no, I don't have the right because you command your own house,”
Hosefa said. “But in your house, nowhere else. And not over Isela
because she is my daughter.” She started back up the stairs.
“As
you well know, that isn't true,” Alma shouted at her back. Hosefa
stopped in her tracks and turned around for the staring contest.
Max
brought Maria Dolores home. They had had a calm and relaxing time
away from everything. They explained what really happened with
Orlando and Doris. Max was about to take their leave and said he
would call. Esperanza said they would be at Honoria's for dinner on
New Years' as they were always invited there. She gave Max a basket
of prayer candles for Alma and Clara had ornaments.
Who
at that moment was telling Hosefa off. “I have never seen her or
have treated her as other than a daughter.”
“True
or not, what difference does it make to you?”
“If
you hurt her again, I'll see to it you never see her again.”
“Speaking
of her, we'll see who's hurting who. I swear you're going to take
that back. Excuse me; I'm going to see my daughter.”
Max
called Ivana while standing in the courtyard.
“I
just have one question. Do you know where I can find Jacinto? I
have to talk to him.”
“Try
Ursula. He's working for her.”
Hosefa
went up to Isela's room but she was not there. She searched an
adjoining room but Isela was not there either. Alma had followed her
and Hosefa asked where Isela would be bathing. Alma stared in
near-disbelief.
Isela
returned and the maid warned her that Hosefa was upstairs and arguing
with Alma. She was acting as though she were insane. She ran
upstairs with the envelope she had retrieved from Adrian.
“Where
were you?” demanded Hosefa.
“I
didn't have the papers here. I had to take a cab to the office for
them.” Hosefa snatched the envelope and marched out without a
word. Alma waited until she was gone.
“Isela,
what's in those papers and why are you lying to me? Because today I
know nobody is working in the office. So what's going on?”
At
the Santibañez mansion Isidro was telling Ursula how the house would
be decorated for the new year. Ursula wanted white flowers in all
the rooms for her baby's homecoming. “He's coming from such a dark
place,” she said. “So I want it all to be beautiful.” Anyone
who didn't know these people would have thought she was welcoming a
war hero. The doorbell rang and a second later Maleny led the way
for Max. He looked like he was ready to chew steel.
“Look
who's here.”
“I
see; I'm not blind.” She looked Max in the eye. “What do you
want? Or are you here to wish us a Happy New Year?”
“Maria
Dolores told me that Jacinto kidnapped her to bring here here.”
“Oh,
the seamstress,” she said with a superior smile.
“Don't
call her that.”
“I
will call her anything that pleases me in my house. And if you don't
like it you can leave.”
“No.
Not until you tell me where to find Jacinto, because Ivana said he
works for you.”
“Why
do you want to know?” Maleny asked.
“I
don't have to explain that to you, Maleny.”
“Therefore,
you won't find out what you want from us.”
“Between
him and Daniel they put an innocent woman in prison. She helped
Maria Dolores escape when they were following her.”
“The
only innocent is my son. He's in prison because of your tart of a
girlfriend.”
“I
asked you not to talk like that about her, Ursula. And if Daniel is
in prison it's fair because he has a mother like you.”
“Daniel
gets out today,” she said, triumphantly.
“I
don't want Hosefa in this house or in my life,” Isela said.
“What
happened, Isela?”
“I
did lie. The documents were in the hands of a friend who was helping
me investigate the death of my sister.”
“What?”
“My
sister wrote a letter before her death. He took it to a graphologist
to see if it was actually written by her.”
“Why?
Do you think Hosefa forged it?”
“Yes,”
said Isela after a few seconds. “Which would mean that she also
lied to me about my sister.”
“But
she didn't know you had those papers.”
“No.”
She sounded a thousand miles away.
“Don't
worry. We will help you find out who your parents are and what
really happened to your sister.”
Alma
then clutched her stomach in pain.
“What's
wrong? Are you alright?”
“Yes,
my love, I'm alright.”
But
she wasn't. She got up and left Isela's room clutching the other
side.
“That
isn't true. Daniel hasn't faced the judge yet.”
“He'll
be out soon. And tell your woman not to worry. She'll soon be with
her little friend and I will file charges against her for what she's
done to Daniel.”
“We'll
see.”
“Yes.”
“I
am making it my business to see that he stays where he is. And he'll
have plenty of company in the Big House. Like Jacinto.”
Maleny
laughed. Max ignored her. “You've exhausted all the honest people
we've talked about.”
“Maleny,”
her mother warned.
“Listen
to me!” Maleny shouted. “Don't you realize that the two people
you most value in your life are major liars?” Maleny said.
“Maleny,”
warned Ursula.
“Major,
major hypocrites,” Maleny continued. “Especially that nobody
you're with. You will learn that.”
Max
gave her a hard look and left without a word. Ursula grabbed
Maleny's arm and tried to pull her back.
“What
do you think you're doing?” she asked. “Don't you realize that
Claudio has to help us so your brother doesn't rot in jail?”
“I'm
not stupid. What I want is him to remember my face when he finds out
what his father and that tart are hiding.” She
flounced out, leaving Ursula frustrated.
Alma
reached her doctor on the phone. She told him she was in pain,
nauseous, and wanting to cry like she had when she was pregnant. She
didn't want to bother him and would have called him in the new year.
As she sank to her knees in pain again she asked about the results of
the PetScan. “Didn't you talk to your husband?” he asked.
Alma
dropped the phone and doubled over in pain. She cried profusely.
Isela came into the room and stood there in shock.
Isela
rushed to Alma to help her up. Alma realized that Claudio knew about
her illness. She also realized that she was sicker than she thought.
She needed to talk to Caludio because her time was too short. She
told Isela she would have to do the wedding planning for Maria
Dolores and Max. She began to cry. Isela embraced her and began
crying herself.
Hosefa
got home and thought about recent confrontations with Isela. “I'm
tired of how you treat me. I can't be your daughter.” echoed in
her head along with Isela's statement that she was sad for Alma, who
was the mother she never had. Next to the memory of that afternoon's
bitchslap and Alma's accusation she realized it only meant one thing.
“She knows and the stupid bitch was faking. She betrayed me.
Well, let her go on faking. She'll be sorry, the wretch. I'm going
to make her sorry. Today I start my revenge against you, you little
whore.”
Leo
and his father returned home from shopping for holiday decorations.
Claudio asked the maid to put the bags away while he went upstairs.
Before he could go to the first step Max arrived.
“Dad,
Ursula told me that Daniel gets out of prison today.”
“And
why did you visit Ursula?”
“I
was looking for that guy who works for her. Jacinto. But that's the
least of it. Do you know something?”
“I?
How come?”
“Because
you told me they asked you to help them.”
“Yes,
but I told them no. In the first place what they told you is true.
One of their lawyers found a loophole to get him through. This could
happen. You know who their lawyer is.”
Max
stared at him like he was a private dick in a B movie.
Leo
had gone upstairs to see his mother. Isela came out of the master
bedroom, closing the door. She told Leo that his mother was resting.
Her cell began ringing so she excused herself and ran into her own
room. It was Adrian. He told Isela not to worry because the expert
had copies of the letter and some articles. They were still going to
find out what they needed to know. That is, if she could produce a
known sample of her sister's handwriting. Which could be difficult
at this point. She thought of something, but looked unsure when she
ended the call.
The
Morales women prepared to go to Honoria's home. Adrian arrived,
telling Julian that he had called Jenny. She was with Fermin at an
AA meeting. Adrian greeted Honoria and went to the AA meeting to get
Fermin and Jenny. Julian privately told his mother that he was
getting a little annoyed with Fermin's latest fixation. He knew he
wouldn't be able to have children and didn't know how to burst his
bubble. Honoria made some comment about miracles.
The
Bustamantes were dining al fresco in their front garden. For the
first time they still had flowers despite it being winter. Alma
hugged her sons, then Isela. Max looked at his father with the same
hard expression as before.
Even
prisoners had visitors for the new year. Except Danny-Boy. A guard
who had to have been bribed led him to the exit and said “What are
you waiting for?” and shoved him out. He stumbled out along the
pavement, clutching his side. He may have had broken ribs. He was
lucky if it were no worse than that. He leaned against a signpost
and spat out blood.
The
clock at Honoria's house tolled midnight. Everyone ate red grapes
for luck in the new year. Some of them fell on the floor. At the
Bustamantes they did the same. Alma prayed that she would be happy
in the time she had left. That her sons would be happy and that she
and Claudio could help Isela. Isela prayed for Alma to be saved and
that she could liberate herself from Hosefa and go far away. Chelito
watched Doris and Orlando feed each other red grapes and wished them
happiness. She embraced both of them. When Leo saw his father
embrace Isela he watched very carefully. Clara swept near the door
to get rid of bad luck. Esperanza asked Maria Dolores to go out for
something.Max called Maria Dolores to wish her a happy new year.
They would be married shortly. They made a red paper balloon and
sent it up. They watched it go straight up above them.
Arango
stood outside the prison. He was on the phone to Ursula to tell her
that Daniel wasn't there. He had been waiting a while. She was as
sour as ever when she ended the call and did not answer Maleny's
questions.
Julian
and Maria Dolores were out on the street. They talked about the
coming year and what it would bring. They did not see Danny-Boy in
his prison uniform until he was close enough to touch them. “Happy
New Year, my love,” he said. Maria Dolores turned around and saw
him.
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