La Candidata Thursday 6/29/17 Chapter 19: Alonso Confronts Gerardo….in the Last 5 Minutes

Regina arrives at the office with her ear still reverberating with Alonso’s insinuations that Gerardo, promising to support her law is just using it to separate the two of them. She gets an update from Daniela on the resignation of De La Garza and Gerardo’s statements in the press. Daniela is worried that it might affect her image. Regina says there will always be scandals. What she really wants to know is if they can trust her friend (Andrés) on the police force. Daniela says they can. Regina will call Sra. Galindo and Dani can call her pal.

 

Omar shows up at the governor’s office. He tells Magda she must never speak of what happened the night before to Alonso or to anyone else OR else…He’ll take care Natalia never says anything and Magda must make sure Dr. Contreras never says anything either. Magda says to his face that she can’t believe he attacked his wife so savagely—he could have killed her. Omar muses that she might find herself in the same situation.

 

Alonso opens the door from his office to reveal the lovely décolleté Lorena, her interview over and a cabinet position in her purse. She’s glowing with pride. Magda shows her out and Omar goes in to talk to his son. He tells Alonso he thinks Magda is too old to continue in her job. He repeats this several times, to Alonso’s skepticism, remembering his mother yesterday, wondering why that museum piece, Magda was still in his employ.

Alonso finds himself talking to a distracted Omar about the Secretary of Health affair. He’s sure there will be further investigation on the matter of the vaccines, but has to be sure he can keep the story away from him, Omar and Mario. Omar volunteers to take care of the matter. Alonso asks about his mother. Omar assures him she’s fine, as always.

 

In a very delicate and embarrassing situation, José is the only one allowed to attend a very badly injured Natalia, on Omar’s orders. She’s humiliated that he’s the one who has to help her use the bathroom. He feels sorry for her and relents and says he’ll call Amparo.

 

Andrés has made it to a meeting with Regina and Daniela. El Cuervo sounds dangerous and they will need some proof before accusing him. Regi also doesn’t want to risk the anonymity she promised Sra. Galindo. Andrés is sure they can find the proof to bring down a corrupt officer, but he’ll need the help of the governor. Regi can’t promise that, but she promises her help. He leaves but Regi catches his thanks to Dani for last night.

 

Mario comes to see his other daughter. She needs his help, but first she want to tell him about a reporter who is making inquiries. Even though her mother helped, Cecelia is afraid he’s going to keep pestering her. Mario remembers Pacheco, recently Alonso’s press director, now working for Gerardo. Mario says he’ll take care of it. Cecelia is horrified. No, she doesn’t want him to “resolve” the matter the way he did with the girls. She’s just advising him of the situation. What she really needs is some dirt on Gerardo that will sink him once and for all. He agrees, then comes back to the Pacheco matter. Ceci admits to his knowing about her and her ties to her mother running a “gentlemen’s” club. He thinks this situation is a lot more dangerous than it looks.

 

Cecelia and Mario talk about how to “eliminate” the Pacheco problem. Mario can’t permit him to publish anything about her or her mother that will lead back to him. It’s either her or Pacheco—no in-betweens. Does she want it all to end or to continue working along side Alonso.

 

Gerardo stops Regina in the hallway of their office building. She doesn’t want to talk to him. She’s lost confidence in him. He goes ahead and asks if she wants his help with passage of the universal assistance law. She says, of course, but she knows he can’t. She won’t let him reply and walks away.

 

Regina is telling Dani that she has to bring her father into the Cuervo thing. He has a lot of contacts in the intelligence community that would be useful. Telling Alonso wouldn’t be fruitful. He wouldn’t give it any importance. Dani wants to know what Gerardo wanted. Simple, he wants to manipulate her. Dani clears the air—she knows something is going on with him and something is going on with her and it has nothing to do with politics. Regina answers that all this—politics—is mixed up with him. So what is she going to do, wonders Dani. Regi says she needs Gerardo and Alonso together….Dani interrupts, and in her life?

 

Mario tells Ceci to leave things to him. As he readies to go he takes a call from Regi. She needs his help with investigating this policeman she’s sure had something to do with the disappearance of Susana. He’ll stop by her office later. He leaves, disgusted with both his daughters making life difficult for him.

 

Ignacio came back to Gerardo’s place. This time he and Tere are alone. She asks him for money. He tells her he doesn’t manage the campaign finances and he’ll have to ask the treasurer. She wonder what he does manage. Well, he kisses her and manages an assignation.

 

Lovely Lorena is boasting to Larreta about landing the Health Secretary job, without even trying (or lying down for it). Larreta tells her Alonso is only using her for his own benefit. He tells her she will have to decide whether she wants to follow her career unaided or let him be the one to use her do what he tells her to do.

 

Daniela announces to Regina that Gerardo is outside and wants to see her. She has 10 min. before the women textile workers are due. Regi agrees to see Gerardo.

 

R – What was up with last night, how could it occur to you to show up at the house like an adolescent?

G – I know, I was wrong.
R – Do you realize what an uncomfortable position you put me in with my husband? And aside from that you are accusing my father of dirty dealings with no proof. So I don’t understand what you want now.
G – It got away from me. The only thing I’m interested in is to be with you. I did it without thinking.
R – Don’t you think we’re too old to be playing at Romeo and Juliet?
G – Do you believe that this, for me, is a game?
R – Stop. Really. You acted as though I had given you reasons to behave as you did.
G – You do it with just your looks.
            <She looks at him.>
G – I don’t want it to happen again.
R – What?
G – I know you were in love with me at University and I lost you. I don’t want that to happen again.
            <He moves in closer to her.>
G – I’ve never loved a woman who wasn’t you.
            <She doesn’t break her gaze at him.>
G – What else do you want me to say?
R – You know this cannot be.
G – Do you feel nothing for me?
R – Confusion. That’s what I feel. In the mix is my husband, politics, your ex-wife, everything, you know? We can’t act like a couple of teenagers, we’re adults and the only thing we have in common is the business of the Senate. You can’t come and talk to me about legislation then talk to me of love. You confound me. I need for you to tell me if you are going to support the passage of this bill.
G – Yes, I’m going to support it, but I don’t want Alonso to use it for his own benefit.
R – <getting agitated> That part doesn’t matter. Don’t complicate things.
G – Then what do you want me to do, stop loving you?
R – Don’t talk to me of love. When you do, you use the word so lightly it perturbs me. You can’t try to make me fall in love with you and turn around and be angry with me, then talk to me about the legislation and turn around and be against me. You confuse me and I won’t allow it. I won’t allow it.
            <She dismisses him, a chastened man.>
Daniela runs after him and tells him not to abandon her, but fight for her.

The textile factory women meet with Regina and tell her they are organizing women in other factories and women everywhere are ready to support her if she stands for election as President. Regina is overwhelmed that women everywhere have such faith in her. Dani wants to know if she’ll accept being nominated. Regi can’t answer.

 

Noemi manages to get in to see Natalia, with José hovering. Nat doesn’t care if he runs right away to tell Omar who she is with. Noemi is shocked at her condition. Behind closed doors Natalia tells her she can’t take it anymore and asks her help in getting a lawyer on the Q.T. If Omar hears about it he will surely kill her.

 

Mario has a car-meet with Almirón. He needs him to get rid of El Cuervo. His daughter Regina is getting too close to learning of their nasty businesses oh, and he also wants anything they can dig up on Gerardo Martinez, his wife, her weak spot. Put a surveillance on her. He needs something to get Gerardo out of the game.

 

Larreta pays a quick visit to Alonso. So, Alonso used Larreta’s lover to send him a message? (He’s the head of Alonso’s Party.) No, not at all, but as quickly reminds Larreta he’s going to be the Party’s candidate for President of the country and his wife is out of the game. Alonso is fuming. He repeats that he’s the candidate and his wife will support him. Larreta wonders if Regina wants to support him. Of course she will, he barks back. Larreta can’t back both of them, so he needs to quit speculating about Regina’s position.

 

Mario climbs the steps of the congressional building. He notes all the women leaving, then runs into Gerardo. They trade barbs on who Gerardo’s next victim will be to be accused without proof. Gerardo promises to keep investigating until Mario ends up in jail, with proof.

 

In post-coital exhaustion, Tere again asks Ignacio for money. She fulfilled her part of the bargain. Iggy wonders if money is all that interests her. Has she ever, in her life, loved anyone? Yes, but he betrayed her. Tere wants to know what his interest is in “this.” Why would he want to betray Gerardo? He claims he’s not. He loves Gerardo. He’s merely keeping Tere entertained. (Lovely put-down.)

 

Pacheco (aka Dead Man Walking #1) and Gerardo have a car-meet. Pacheco actually tells Gerardo what he learned about Ceci, Cecelia’s mother and the house of prostitution (before he dies). He also admits to the trap they laid for him with the video to keep him quiet, although he found Isela to be an enchanting woman. He realizes these folks don’t mess around. He found a policeman (aka Dead Man Walking #2) who might be willing to pass them information in exchange for money. Pacheco thinks this is a dynamite bomb and they ought to use it on Alonso right away. Gerardo will think about it.

 

Cecelia is promising Alonso dirt on Gerardo soon. Alonso and Mauro walk out of the office and Alonso shares that Ceci is driving him crazy—as in he really digs her. He asks Mauro to call Gerardo and tell him he’s to step aside because Regi is going to be on Al’s side.

 

Regina is filling in the story of Susana’s disappearance to her father (a story he's already quite familiar with). She needs his help to find out what happened to her. Mario would rather she drop the issue. It sounds dangerous and now they are in pre-campaign mode it wouldn’t be prudent. He says he noticed the textile workers outside. Are they going to support Alonso or her? Regi says that’s not what they are discussing. He replies that it’s all the same thing. She asks again if she can count on him for help. Mario will and wants the names and contact information of all the people they’ve talked to. Daniela and Regina don’t want to divulge them. He claims he can’t  help her without them. They finally give them up.

 

Gerardo gets home and finds out from Ximena that Tere took some pills and will probably sleep all night. Xi tells him about Ignacio being in their house when he called earlier that day. He claimed to be looking for her dad, but he was standing very close to her mother. Does Gerardo trust the guy? Before he can continue, he gets a call from Morales (the head of Gerardo’s Party) that the governor wants a meeting with them both. Gerardo excuses himself, promising to take Xi out to dinner afterwards. Xi prefers to just go to bed, since one never knows when his meetings will be over.

 

Omar shows up at his favorite breakfast place (although breakfast has long been over). He asks for a double espresso. The chippie Mario hired to seduce Omar is on the clock. She manages to flirt and engage him, sort of, bats her eyes at him, talks sweetly and wiggles her bottom as she goes to get his coffee. Poor sap, he’s hooked, or at least intrigued.

 

Alonso greets Morales and Gerardo with a stupid joke about being welcome to the precinct of corruption. He gets right to the point. Both gentlemen know how important the legislation for universal coverage is for his wife and this senator here is opposed to its passage and claims his only interest in her is business. Well, Alonso finally gets to the real point—he’s offering the opposition a tidy sum for public works, right in the middle of the campaign. Gerardo wonders why he’s making the offer when it should be the Senator Barcenas who makes the offer. Alonso delays answering for the moment.

 

Regina is on the phone with somebody, persuading the person to extend a helping hand to the Sra. Galindo and her son, who has a disability and needs special help. She succeeds. Dani wants to go tell her personally. Dani then shares that she’s worried about having given Mario Galindo’s contact information because she seemed so frightened about the whole Susana business. Larreta drops in to see Regi as Dani leaves. She welcomes him, but whatever it is they need to talk about has to wait.

 

Back to Alonso’s meeting. Gerardo feels Alonso will utilize the situation for his own ends. Naw, not so. He explains he’s the only one with access to the President to release the funds. He wants to save his wife from the unpleasant task of negotiating with Senator Martiniez. Alonso begins to get a little hot under the collar now. He’s doing it because he’s sick and tired of Gerardo circling around his wife. Morales is cara de impactado and tries to get a word in, but Alonso’s dander is up and lets loose on Gerardo that the man calls his wife at any old time and then showed up at his house in the middle of the night. It wasn’t right. He’s losing patience with the senator. Gerardo, who has been fairly quiet up to now, says he’s losing patience, too. So, how are they going to fix this?