That night, after cleaning the scratches on her arm, Gaby filled the small saucer on her porch with milk. It was all she had to spare. She checked the dining room table for a note from her father. It was covered with bills and newspapers, but nothing from him letting her know what time he’d be home. As usual, she made her bed on the couch, keeping the cordless phone next to her.
When she finally fell asleep, she dreamed there was a knock at the door. Her mom called to her.
“Gaby, it’s me. I don’t have my key, please let me in,” she said.
In her dream, Gaby jumped from the couch and opened the door, but her mother wasn’t there. Instead, the Siamese cat she’d rescued earlier gazed up at her. She’d recognize those blue eyes anywhere. When Gaby bent down to pick the cat up it swiped her face with its claws. Gaby cried out. She woke grasping her cheek.
Through the dark, she looked toward the front door. It was closed. No cat. No mom. Then she heard her father’s voice. She sat up and saw him hunched over the dining room table with his back to her. She felt around for the cordless, but it was gone. Her father was whispering to someone on the phone. He mumbled something about money and about not wanting to risk something.
“Dad, who are you talking to?”
“Go to sleep, Gaby. It’s late.”
“Is it Mom?”
He quickly whispered good-bye to the caller and hung up.
“Dad?”
“Don’t worry about it. Go to sleep.” He stood up, went to his room, and closed the door behind him. Gaby got up, grabbed the phone from the table, and tucked it under her pillow.
With love and gratitude to the following people:
My wonderful editor, Anna Bloom, for once again believing in my voice and the stories I want to tell.
The superb Scholastic team: Monica Palenzuela, Lizette Serrano, Emily Heddleson, and Robin Hoffman. Special thanks to Nina Goffi for creating beautiful book covers that capture the spirit of my stories.
Eternal gratitude to my agent at Full Circle Literary, Adriana Dominguez, for her continual guidance through this big scary publishing world and her unstoppable work to champion diverse kid lit and Latina authors like me. ¡Mil gracias, Adriana!
The Firehouse Five: Jane True, Victoria Dixon, Lisa Cindrich, and Shannon A. Thompson for not only sharing their wonderful manuscripts with me, but for providing supportive feedback during early revisions of this novel. A big hug to my young editor, Anna Walker, who provided me with generous encouragement.
Many people gave freely of their time and memories with me so that I may capture the experience of an English Language Learner. Luisa Fernandez, whom I met in Kansas City, shared her stories as a young student from the Dominican Republic learning English in Missouri. Andrea Pardo-Spalding, a former ESL student in Kansas and now an architect. Both women shared many vivid and touching anecdotes that I used for this novel. Educators: Felicia Orozco, ESL teacher, and Carlota Holder, English Learner Coordinator, provided me with helpful insight into the ESL students’ experiences in the classroom. Alejandra Subieta Jordan for always picking up the phone when I called and providing a voice for my beloved Brisa Quispe. ¡Muchas gracias, compañeras!
While I was writing this book, there was one person who never seemed to tire of reading my drafts: my mom, a former fifth grade teacher. She’d come over to my house, sit out on the deck with a cup of cafecito and my fresh pages on her lap. Many times, in her typical teacher demeanor she’d pause her reading, put the manuscript down, and glance over at me to declare, “I’ve known a lot of Hunter Farmers in my career. That boy just needs someone to believe in him.”
Thankfully, we have a world full of Hunters, Letys, and Brisas to keep us on our toes and hopeful for the future. With that, I want to give a big shout of love and encouragement to all the children learning English and Spanish or any new language. Don’t let anyone silence you. Never stop dreaming big. Never give up!
Finally, I am grateful to my husband, Carlos Antequera, for his love, support, and patience throughout the writing of this novel.
Angela Cervantes is the author of the middle grade novels Me, Frida, and the Secret of the Peacock Ring, Gaby, Lost and Found, and Allie, First At Last. Angela is a daughter of a retired middle-school teacher who instilled in her a love for reading and storytelling. Angela writes from her home in Kansas City, Kansas. When she is not writing, Angela enjoys reading, running, gazing up at clouds, and taking advantage of Taco Tuesdays everywhere she goes. Learn more about Angela Cervantes at angelacervantes.com.
Also by Angela Cervantes:
Gaby, Lost and Found
Allie, First at Last
Me, Frida, and the Secret of the Peacock Ring
Copyright © 2019 by Angela Cervantes
All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. SCHOLASTIC, SCHOLASTIC PRESS, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available
First edition, March 2019
Cover photography © 2019 by Michael Frost
Cover design by Nina Goffi
Author photo by Kenny Johnson
e-ISBN 978-1-338-15936-3
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
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