Delia's Crossing

  “You know Sophia, Web. This is my niece, Delia, who recently came from Mexico.” She turned to me. “Mr. Rudin is the attorney who prepared the papers I needed to bring you here.”

  I looked at him, but he still didn’t smile.

  “She had a little working knowledge of English but has learned a lot since she’s been here,” Tía Isabela added. “She’s a bright girl.”

  Finally, he started to smile at us and then stopped, as if he had nearly done something very wrong. He glanced at Tía Isabela, and she nodded at the leather sofa. We both sat, Sophia glaring at me once more in warning.

  “Go on, Web,” she continued. “Tell them what you told me.”

  He put his pen down and pressed his palms together. “Three of the Mexican boys have been found and are in custody. The fourth is still a fugitive.”

  “Which one?” Sophia asked.

  Mr. Rudin glanced at his pad. “Ignacio Davila. Has he tried to make contact with either of you?”

  “No,” Sophia said. She looked at me.

  I shook my head.

  “I’ll have to have a clear understanding of the extent of your involvement in all of this,” Mr. Rudin went on. “I have a general idea of what these boys told the police. Let me hear it all from you two.”

  “It will be faster if Sophia speaks for them,” Tía Isabela said, smiling. “You can ask Delia questions after that. I’ll help her if there is anything she doesn’t understand.”

  “Sure,” he said, and sat poised.

  Without the smallest change in her story, Sophia retold everything as she had told Tía Isabela. Then, as an afterthought, she added that she and her friends had been very worried about what the Mexican boy Vicente would do. “He looked like he could kill his own mother,” she said, and glanced at Tía Isabela, who stared without expression. “That’s why we tried to follow them.”

  “So, you’re saying you didn’t urge them on, you didn’t tell them exactly where to go or what to do when they got there?” Mr. Rudin asked.

  “No, sir,” Sophia said, with eyes that would melt the heart of the sternest judge.

  “You weren’t there? You didn’t witness any of it?”

  “Oh, no, Mr. Rudin. We went to the Roadhouse, as I said. I’m sure the police have checked on that.”

  Mr. Rudin wrote something and then turned to me and asked me to describe the previous event when Ignacio had come to my defense. Apparently, Tía Isabela had already told him something about it. I did the best I could with Tía Isabela helping whenever I stumbled over an English word or expression.

  “Well,” he concluded, “if what they’re telling me is true, I think we can keep the girls out of this, Isabela. Make sure no one speaks to anyone, of course. It all goes through me from now on. Call me as soon as any police or investigator contacts you. Both girls know that if they are approached at school, they should call you immediately.”

  “They do now, Web,” she said firmly. She didn’t tell him that I wasn’t going to school for a while, that she was keeping me almost a prisoner here.

  “Very sad thing,” he said, finally expressing some emotion about it all. He closed his pad. “Bradley was the apple of Rod’s eye, the one bright and hopeful thing he had. He was very proud of him. It’s going to be hard for him to face all of this.”

  “Children unfortunately often turn out to be disappointing,” Tía Isabela said.

  I raised my eyebrows.

  Surely, her father had uttered the same words about her many years ago in a different place, in a different country, in a different world.

  She stared at me a moment, as if she knew exactly what I was thinking.

  And then we were excused.

  Sophia said nothing to me. She simply gave me a hateful look and went to her room to call her girlfriends and report, I was sure.

  Later, Tía Isabela came to my room.

  “You did well,” she said. “For the time being, while you’re not going to school, you’ll return to household duties. I’ve already spoken about it with Mrs. Rosario. I will not have you simply lying around.”

  I didn’t say anything. Of course, I would rather be in school, but I wasn’t afraid of work. In fact, I was grateful for anything that would keep me from thinking about all that had happened.

  “I hope we’ll get this all cleared up, but if things don’t go right and it gets any more serious, I’ll have to inform your grandmother. I’m not sure I shouldn’t do that now, in fact.”

  I pressed my lips together to keep from bursting into tears. She looked satisfied with how she had made me cringe, nodded, and left, closing the door behind her. I sat there staring in silence, feeling like someone who was waiting for the second shoe to drop.

  It came a little while later, when Sophia appeared to give me some updated news about Ignacio and his family.

  “I just spoke with Alisha. They haven’t caught him yet, but the police are looking for him everywhere because of how important Bradley’s father is in this town. His father is going to make things hard for Ignacio’s father, too, Alisha says. They all might as well just pack up and go back to Mexico. Maybe his whole family will be deported.”

  “That’s not right,” I said.

  “You almost got me into big trouble with my mother. I told you not to contradict me. You know what that means? I told you we stick with my story.”

  “I do not like to lie.”

  “Oh, no, not you, not Señorita Perfecto. Give me back my bracelet,” she demanded. “You don’t deserve it. C’mon, give it back.”

  I took it off, and she seized it out of my hand.

  “I’m taking my dress back, too,” she said, going to my closet. She ripped it off the hanger, looked down at the shoes Tía Isabela had bought to match it, and grabbed them, too. “I have a real friend it will fit now, thanks to what you did to it. I think she’s your shoe size as well. You’ll never wear it again, anyway. You’re nothing more than a servant again, prima or no prima.”

  I said nothing. Actually, it felt good to have her take back her things. It was like a cleansing. She mistook my failure to look upset to mean I felt superior to her.

  “You think you’re so smart. We’ll see. I’m not finished with you yet,” she said, and left.

  Soon after, Señora Rosario sent Inez to tell me to come down to help with the kitchen duties. I worked on the downstairs bathrooms as well and then helped rearrange the pantry and wash the floors. We were to do a general dusting of everything as well. Sophia walked past me as I worked, smiling gleefully.

  When I was finished with the household chores, I went up to shower and change. I was not sure if I would be permitted to have dinner with my aunt and Sophia. Edward, who had remained in his room all day, would probably have his meal there, too, and wait for his bandages to come off the next day. I had not seen Jesse all day and wondered what Edward was doing to pass the time.

  I didn’t need to wonder long.

  He was thinking about me.

  I came out of the bathroom and went to my dresser to take a pair of panties out of the drawer. I was just slipping them on when I realized I wasn’t alone.

  Standing just inside the doorway, dressed in his robe and pajamas, was Edward.

  I gasped. I was naked, but he still had bandages over his eyes.

  “What do you want, Edward?” I asked when I gathered my wits. Even though he couldn’t see me, I quickly slipped my bathrobe on again.

  “I want the truth,” he said. “La verdad.”

  20

  An Opportunity Arises

  For a moment, I simply stood there looking at him. What truth did he want?

  “Sophia is my sister, and when it comes down to it, I will love her as I should love a sister, but I know she has never been the one to accept blame for anything she does. Do you understand what I’m saying, Delia? Sophia always lies and lies until it’s no longer possible, until she is forced to tell the truth, and even then, you have to check and be sure.

 
“Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about, Delia. You know enough English to understand what I want,” he added, and waited.

  I was still unsure about what I should and shouldn’t say. I could see that my continual silence was annoying him. He stepped toward me.

  “My mother told me what Sophia told her about this entire incident. She said you admitted to stirring up the trouble, and she’s busy trying to protect you. You know what that means, stirring up the trouble?” he asked, gesturing to imitate someone stirring a soup or a stew.

  Why had she told him that? Why must everyone lie to everyone in this house?

  “I did not do this,” I said. “This stirring.”

  He nodded. “Okay. I’m listening. Tell me what you did do, then. How did this all happen?”

  “I went to the birthday fiesta with Ignacio, his sister’s birthday.”

  “I know that. I know that,” he said, impatient. “What happened, damn it? Talk!”

  His anger frightened me. I stumbled for the words. “Sophia…her friends came luego…later.”

  “And they riled up the Mexican boys, didn’t they? Sophia’s friends are just like her. Well?”

  “Sí. Sophia told Ignacio what Bradley did.”

  “And she told him where Bradley was, right? She would be the only one who would know where he was at that moment. Well? Did she tell him?”

  “Yes, Edward.”

  “I thought so. She hasn’t been innocent since the moment she was born, and even that is questionable,” he said.

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Forget it. I just wanted to know what really happened.”

  “Sí, this happened, but su madre, your mother, does not want this to be said this way. She told the lawyer different, and I must do and say as she says.”

  He nodded and felt his way to a chair, lowering himself carefully.

  “Tell me what really happened after that, Delia. Qué sucedió? After the Mexican boys left the fiesta?”

  “Sophia and her friends wanted to…how do you say, follow, go behind Ignacio and his friends.”

  “And she told my mother you lost them because they were going so fast. My mother should have known that was a lie. Since Sophia knew where Bradley was, it wouldn’t matter if they had gone so fast ahead of them, right? Which means you were all there when they attacked Bradley? You saw what happened to him, didn’t you?”

  “No adentro…no en la casa.”

  “You didn’t go inside the house, but you saw what happened to Bradley?”

  “Sí, yes. The window…he came out. Fell…”

  “And then what?”

  “Sophia’s friend drove away quickly. I didn’t know…no sabía…”

  “You didn’t know how badly Bradley was hurt?”

  “Sí.”

  “Why did you go with them?” he asked angrily, and then shook his head. “That’s a stupid question. What else could you do?”

  He put his elbows on his knees and lowered his head to his hands.

  “I don’t know what to believe about anyone anymore,” he said. He raised his head slowly. “Why did you come to my room nearly naked?” He pointed his finger in my direction. “You are not as innocent as you pretend to be, right? Well?” he demanded. “La verdad. You’ve been with other boys in Mexico, right? You knew what you were doing when you came into my room. You weren’t so innocent in my room. Does that mean you weren’t so innocent with Bradley? Well?”

  I was shaking my head, but he couldn’t see, of course.

  “I did not want to be in your room. I…”

  “Then why did you do it? Por qué? Huh? Why? I liked you, Delia. I thought very highly of you, and I felt sorry for you when Mr. Baker took you away and treated you that way. Why would you come into my room and do something like that? Is that how you got boys to like you back in Mexico? Is it?” he practically shouted. He looked as if the effort gave him pain.

  “No.”

  “You grew up fast, huh? You might as well tell me the truth. It doesn’t matter now. C’mon,” he said, taunting me. “Tell me some of your Mexican stories about you and your boyfriends. Go on, tell me.”

  “No, Edward. There are no such stories.”

  “Right. You just decided to come into my room and offer yourself to me.”

  “No, I did not want to do this.”

  “So, how did you come to do it?”

  “Su madre,” I began.

  “My mother?” He stopped smiling. “What about my mother?”

  My lips fell shut, but I realized I had already opened the door. The truth was like a balloon I was trying to flatten; it just kept popping up here and there. His face seemed to brighten as he thought.

  “Are you saying my mother sent you into my room like that?” He grimaced. “But why would she do that?”

  “Para ver…to see.”

  “To see? You’re saying she was there at the time? Mi madre estaba…in the room? Tell me!” he nearly shouted, now standing again.

  He was angrier than before. I thought I would burst into sobs and not be able to speak. My throat was tight, but I said, “Sí.”

  He was quiet. He nodded softly. “Por qué, Delia? Tell me why she was there.”

  “To see if you would like…”

  “Like what? What?” he demanded, stepping toward me.

  “Chicas,” I said.

  “Chicas…girls?”

  “Sí, girls.”

  He paused. And then he did something I did not expect. He smiled.

  “What? She watched to see if I liked girls? She was testing me with you? Is that what she said? Is that what you’re telling me? She sent you into my room like that as a kind of test…like an exam?”

  “Sí,” I said, nodding, even though he couldn’t see me nodding. “A test, yes.”

  He was silent. Then he shook his head.

  “That doesn’t make sense. Why would my mother…she’s always known who I am,” he muttered, thinking aloud. Once again, he thought I was lying. I had gone too far to stop now.

  “With Jesse, she worries,” I said, trying to explain more. “She told me this. She asked me to help her.”

  “Help her? How?”

  “To tell her what I see, what I hear.”

  “To spy on me? No,” he said, shaking his head. “My mother and I have had that conversation. We talked about it. Nothing should have surprised her. My mother did not need to watch a test.”

  I started to cry. “I do not lie, Edward.”

  He was silent, thinking again. “Maybe not,” he said, and smiled as another thought came to him. “Yes, maybe not. I believe she would do that, send you into my room almost naked. But not to run a test.”

  “I do not understand, Edward. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s simple,” he said. “My mother and my sister are the same…you know, same, similar? What’s a good Spanish word for sneaky, deceitful, sly like foxes…what? Cómo se dice sly en español?”

  “Furtivo,” I said. But I was still very confused. “But por qué?”

  “Furtivo,” he said, nodding. “My mother did not want me to trust you, Delia. My mother did not want me to be your…to be su primo or su amigo. I took your side too strongly against Mr. Baker and her, matter of fact. I was the one who insisted she let you stay in this room, be a member of the family, stop being a servant. I told her I would tell what happened if she didn’t do what I said. She did it, but she doesn’t like being told what to do.”

  He paused to think again.

  “However, she’s never been this ruthless,” he said. “There’s something else, something I don’t know, some reason she feels the way she does about you and wants me to feel the same way. Neither Sophia nor I know much, if anything, about our family. You know that. I didn’t even know about you.

  “What is it? What happened years ago in Mexico? Do you know why my mother does not want to remember her family, why she does not like her own family? Por qué mi madre no le gusta su fa
milia? Sabe?”

  “Sí,” I said.

  “Why?”

  “Mi abuelo, my grandfather, was angry when she married su padre. He said she was muerta…dead to him.”

  “Yeah, I kinda knew about that, but there must be more. Why wasn’t she closer to your mother, to her own sister, after their father died?”

  “She wanted mi padre to be her marido.”

  “Huh? Marido?”

  “Her husband.”

  “Oh.” He smiled. “I see. He fell in love with her sister instead, and she blames your mother?”

  “Sí.”

  “So she hated her sister and, by proxy, you.”

  “I do not understand this word proxy.”

  “She couldn’t take revenge on your mother. Your mother was already dead. She’s taking her revenge on you. That’s good old Mom. Now this makes sense to me.”

  He laughed. His laugh actually frightened me.

  “Why do you laugh?”

  “Don’t worry about it,” he continued, now moving toward the door. “I’ll take care of it.”

  He paused at the door, fumbling for the knob. I started toward him to help him, but he found it and turned back to me. He reached out.

  “Delia.”

  “Sí,” I said, and I took his hand. He held it firmly and smiled.

  “I am happy I did not make a mistake fighting for you, Delia. Thank you for having the courage to tell me the truth.”

  He brought my hand to his lips and kissed it, and then he opened the door and left me standing there, not sure if I should be happy or even more terrified. It would not be much longer before I would learn which one I should be.

  In the morning, Sophia went off eagerly to school. Before she left, she caught me in the hallway and told me how exciting it was going to be for her. I thought I was making a mistake with the English.

  “Exciting?” I shook my head.

  “Yes, stupido. Everyone is going to want to know what happened. All of a sudden, everyone is going to want to be my best friend. Alisha and I have already discussed how we are going to behave and what we will say and won’t say. Too bad you don’t go to my school. You’d be número uno.”