I moaned when I sat up and looked at my poor, bandaged ankle. After I had some breakfast, I would apply the moist heat, I thought.
There was a knock on my door, and Edward and Jesse came in quickly. I had forgotten that they were coming today. They had obviously gotten an earful from Señora Rosario or Señor Garman, perhaps even mi tía Isabela.
“Tell me what the hell happened,” Edward said angrily. “And don’t make any excuses for her or diminish what she has done.”
I looked at Jesse’s expression, a duplicate of Edward’s rage, which now reflected my own.
“Don’t worry,” I said. “I won’t.”
7
A Gift
I am sure mi abuela Anabela would not approve of my turning a brother so against his own sister, but with every throb of pain in my ankle, my reluctance to do so was diminished. Edward and Jesse sat on the edge of my bed attentively as I described the evening’s events. The moment I finished, Edward exploded in rage and leaped to his feet.
“That little mean bitch! I’m going to rearrange the features on her face.”
“Hold it,” Jesse told him, reaching out to seize his arm as Edward charged toward the bedroom door. “You’re not going to do Delia any good by beating up on Sophia. She’ll only go crying to your mother, and your mother will take it out on Delia.”
“She needs a good whipping. If there was ever a case of spare the rod and spoil the child, there she is.”
“Maybe so, but not now and not this way.”
A part of me was disappointed. I would have liked to see Sophia beaten, but the more sensible part of me told me Jesse was right. In the end, Sophia would be the one considered the victim, and somehow I would be the cause of it all, poison making a sick family even sicker. Edward relaxed and returned to the bed. He realized that as well.
“So, what do you suggest, Jesse? We just let her get away with this?”
“No. I’m sure you and I can come up with something that makes more sense.”
“Whatever it is, it won’t be severe enough,” Edward muttered. He looked at me. “Who did bring you home last night, Delia?”
“Adan Bovio.”
“Adan Bovio?”
“Maybe the future senator’s son,” Jesse said.
Edward nodded, but he didn’t look happy about it. “What is he, about twenty-six?”
“Yes, I think so,” Jesse said. “Maybe even twenty-seven or twenty-eight.”
“Fani invited him to the Johnson party tonight.”
“Fani invited him?” Edward asked. “It’s not her party. How can she invite someone?”
“Don’t forget, Edward, she’s like a real princess around here,” Jesse told him.
“Yeah, right.”
“Adan is going to pick me up, if I’m able to attend,” I said.
“Well, you won’t be doing the rumba, but I don’t see why you can’t go,” Jesse said.
“Pick you up, huh? You’ll have to stay on the ball, Delia. He has a reputation.”
“What does that mean, Edward, this reputation?”
“He’s a well-known lady’s man.”