Caray, Caray!

We resume as Natalia validates what her two daughters have just been told by the covetous, and otherwise cattily cruel, Tia Constanza: Daddy has abandoned the three of them all and run off with mama's bestie, La Victoria. (Meeeoooowwwwwwwwwhsssssttt!)

Across town, Vicente holds the wake for his newly deceased and dearly beloved wife of twenty years(?) Lucia.  (Viewerville assumes that they waited over 10 years or so to have at least had Benjamin just 6 years prior.  Otherwise, it may mean that Vicente is a decade younger than Natalia.)  And, while guests pray, Olga merrily gobbles, gorges, gulps or otherwise insensitively ingests a plate of food as the apparently only one there with any appetite.  On the other side of the room, her first cousin and Lucia's best friend, Soledad (Chole), cries with Chente and offers her support to the family.  

Gustavo arrives as Chole goes to sit with Olga.  He has more bad news for Chente.  It is about Gustavo's  friend and brother-in-law, the real estate bidnez owner, financier, and/or personal lender, Adrian Cantu, who sold Chente his modest little house.  Adrian, Tavo informs him, has taken a powder and vamoosed--yup, left the  country.  He adds that it is no sure thing that  Adrian will ever be coming back.  The fact that there was no formal sales contract on Chente's house (say what???????) may prove to be problematic and yes, Chente could very well lose his house.  (Cue the clouds and thunder.)

As Chente receives this jolting blow, Olga stands up and then makes certain that he sees her walking toward Lucia's open casket to "pay her respects."  Olga bends over the coffin and thanks Lucia for leaving the way clear for her to take charge of Chente.    Benji watches Olga and one look at the little boy's face shows his total disdain-- if not outright hatred--for his mother's beautyshop associate and one-time secret rival.

The next morning the entire barrio attends Lucia's funeral.  There is a traditional burial and priest praying over the gravesite rather than the of-late so fashionable urn of ashes. The only one with a dry eye is aparently Olga who...er...boorishly and indelicately yawns as the priest leads the others in prayers.

A few days later, the investors and homebuyers who've put in their lifesavings into Adrian's enterprise are waiting in the reception area to see who is going to give them back their poorly invested capital.  Mario, Veronica's curb-sided ex-boyfriend and meal ticket, is left holding the proverbial bag, which  (as Viewerville suspects and he finds out later) is totally empty.  Mario tries to hold things at simmer by stating his partner had to leave Mexico for a bit but he didn't just "run off."  Just then Nata arrives and the crowd there turns to her for answers.  One of her friends asks where  her husband is.  She quips  that she would like to know that as well.  One of the more obnoxious men in the crowd, some Loudmouth Guy With A Tie, yells that she and her husband have gotten rich at their expense,  and he, for one, is certain this dimwitted broad is in on it with her absconded hubby!!!  Chente comes forward and warns El Senor Loudmouth to watch it.  He cannot treat a lady like that!  "--Show the lady some respect!! And, if you don't know how, come outside with me and I will give you a few lessons on how to act like a real man should!"  Loudmouth Guy With A Tie backs off as all lesser men should.

Back in the barrio, Benji's two young uncles are babysitting him, but the kid seems socially and psychologically out of it.  Benji's older uncle, Juanga,  notices when Chole returns to the boarding house with Gustavo chatting about Chente's circumstances and how he grabs a curl of her hair and freely plays with it.  

Back at the Cantu realty lending offices, Chente tells the crowd to give Natalia the floor, after all she has come there to give them an explanation and to accept responsibility for her husband's actions.  Nata states she's just as confounded by the situation as they--some of them friends for a long time--are.  Threats won't help things, she adds, but just give her some time to figure it out.  Chente asks what she needs to speed things along. Her husband's business partner, Mario, will need a bit of time to examine the books and see in what state her husband left their lending company.  Mario agrees that they will pay everyone back, but please just let him and the secretaries examine the books.  Chente agrees.  "--We'll trust you.  Get it done."

Olga arrives at the boarding house and tries to act sweet towards Benji.  He begins crying and pushes her angrily away.  

Mario, Nata, and Tania (Mario's kid sister?) examine the computerized bookkeeping records and realize that Adrian has taken every last centavo.  They are ruined!  They was robbed!

At the Cantu manse, meanwhile, La Abuela and her current, gold-digging attorney hubby/live-in lover (?) Claudio, are discussing the situation with Nata's two daughters.  He tells them that men of a certain age do foolish things, aka, due to "change of life" men can do stupid things for an otherwise loss of selfesteem. . Andrea would rather blame Mama for the lack of whatever Papa needed. La Abue asks them to be reasonable as this took her Mama, just like them, by surprise.  Who could have known?  Oh, it could be a passing thing.  "--Oh, so he might feel sorry later for what he did?"  Abuela stops the conversation right there and tells Claudio once and for all to zip it.  

Meanwhile, back at the company offices, Nata, Mario and kid sis, Tania, were ignorant of what was going on right under their noses.  Nata leaves to speak with Chente over his situation. Mario objects and tells her he's got to wait his turn in line. Victoria disagrees.  Chente Ramirez saved her from a veritable lynching and he has the right to be heard, at least.  

While waiting, Chente remembers moving into the little bungalow a few months back.  It took Lucia and him a lifetime to be able to afford it.....Nata enters her husband's office where Chente is waiting.  He explains that Adrian sold him the house; he loaned Chente the money, but the payments were to be in cash and without any formal paperwork, to avoid the bank being involved, all legal (I think).  However, no, there was no deed of sale, no agreement since they agreed to wait till the house was paid off.  Can't she get him paperwork now for his house so he won't lose it?  At the same time, Mario is coming to terms with the fact that as the remaining partner, since he has nothing to pay off the clients with, he is facing hard jail time.  Kid Sis tells him to skip out and leave the country too.

Back in Adrian's office, Nata explains how hubby left the country, taking every centavo out of the company's accounts.  She doesn't really know what she can do for him, but she will check with a lawyer first to be certain.  He warns her nicely that he doesn't let anybody make a fool out of him.  Either pay up or face the consequences.  She will do what she can.  He hopes her day gets better than it started out to be.....

At their country club, Nata's sister, Constanza, and Sammi Heddad are gossipping about Nata's current financial situation.  Who knows how the gossip has gotten around, but who cares? Connie's sister got what she deserved.  Well, as for Sammi, she says her hubby made certain there were all sorts of guarantees signed.  So now, Adrian and Nata's house belongs to her and Elias.  

Elias's son, Omar, however, is not happy at the way Papi plans to kick his girlfriend's family out of their house and onto the street with barely the clothes on their backs.  Papi tells him to look for a better class of girl to get serious over than Andrea Cantu.

Nata, meanwhile returns home to explain the situation in a bit more detail.  She tells her daughters that she feels terribly deceived and disappointed, but worst is what their daddy's done to them.  All Andrea can do is to throw the entire blame back in her mother's face.  (Aren't spoiled children a blast?)  Nata says she agrees: for some reason he decided to run off with another woman.  "--However, he acted like a coward rather than come to me and explain or inform. And that is not something I am to blame for!  Just don't cuz that isn't at all my fault!!"  Regina wonders then why did he say then at the party that the girls were his greates gift of all?  No matter.  They will come out alright from this as long as they stick together, says Nata.  

Taht same morning, Gustavo comforts Chente while he lays flowers on Lucia's grave.  Chente tells Tavo how Benji's been so withdrawn since his mother's death.  He won't eat or speak, let alone tell him how he's feeling. Well, he's got his two younger brothers that will help out with the boy.  So then, how about the deal with the house?  The man's wife says she'll give him a hand with it.  Tavo says he can trust her.  And, she's his sister-in-law--good people.

Back at Nata's, Claudio tells her it's time to take the blinders off about her husband.  Adrian at times needed to launder money.  He bought houses and put them in her name so that the authorities wouldn't get wise.  His wife asks how he knows this.  He has contacts, various ones here and there.... "Good lord!  What kind of man was I married to????"

Mario, meanwhile, is wondering how he ever allowed himself to get duped by Victoria.  (Easy, she was a long-legged, long waisted blonde with high cheekbones, big boobs, and luscious lips.  She was a player and knew how to reel you in, turn by turn by turn.)

Chole seems to have a way with Benji and he begins eating.  She tells him how his family used to live there with her and that's how she met and made friends with his mama.  Chente is thrilled that he at least has eaten.  Tavo flirts a bit with Chole it seems.  Chente begs the little one to open up to him, but the boy doesn't respond.  

Claudio finally stops sippin' when Nata finally informs him and her mother that Adrian not only ran off with her BFF but robbed the company blind.  All her mother's money was invested in the company as well!  They're all about to be out on the street!! Whaaaaaa????

Chente walks around his house and remembers how he and Lucia worked to paint and decorate the place and to make the house a home.  He then remembers the last time they spoke as she got ready to go to the bank for him to pay their loan payment.

Chole, at the same time learns that Wannabe Mechanic Girl, aka Valentina, was fooled by her boyfriend into running off to Puerto Rico with him.  Rather than marrying her he tried to involve her in prostitution.  She waited till there was an opportunity and hit the guy, knocking him cold and then raced off back to Mexico.  Chole promises to speak to the manager of the garage, a friend of hers, and to get her a chance to work there.

Later in the day, Omar Haddad comes to speak to Andrea but takes a moment to explain to her mother what his father plans on doing.  Omar explains that Elias went to his lawyers and although he tried to change his father's mind, he couldn't. All he can do is to warn her. Nata tells Omar to tell it to her straight.  "--He's planning to evict you.  He's going to take your house." (Talk about having the proverbial rug pulled out from under you.....)   Don't tell the girls yet, right?  Ok.  He's there to treat both girls to the movies.  

Claudio has gone to Mario to persuade him to help him out.  Mario tells him despite the friendship he's going to have to wait in line just like all the others.  He'll try to figure something out, though, for him.  Claudio then lets him know that Nata and the girls are being evicted.  They have nothing and will be left centavo-less!!

Across town again, at supper, Chente discusses how lost he is without Lucia, especially with the day to day in the house and with Benji. Later Juanga and Pepe  return the the boarding house where they come face to face with Valentina again and learn she's going to be staying there while she gets a job, hopefully at the garage with them....  Chole tells Juanga to watch it with Tina or else.  Pepe follows Tina up to her room, introduces himself, and they decide to become buds.  Downstairs still, Juanga tells Chole how rough it is for Chente without Lucia there and Benji in such a bad way emotionally.  He then professes his love to Chole for the umpteenth time and she, for the umpteenth time tells him to get real and get away.  

That night up in her and Adrian's bedroom, Nata starts pitching out all the photos taken of the two of them together.  Finally out comes the old wedding dress. "--I loved you and I thought you loved me. *Sob. Sniff, Rrrrriiiippp, sniff.) What you did to your daughters--humiliating them, deceiving them-- is totally unpardonable! (Sniff.)  No.  Not a single tear more will be shed over you.  Not a single one!!"

Labels: fortuna

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