My Lost Cuba

by Celso Gonzalez-Falla

  Mike took his father back to his car, and they drove to Lourdes’ home. For a few minutes, Don Miguel didn’t speak. Finally, he said to Mike, “I’m very disappointed in Julio. I’ll never trust him again. I don’t know how much to tell Lourdes.” He shook his head at the disgraceful behavior. “I hope Julio has learned his lesson. It could have been worse. I owe the president and the minister one.”

  “Julio didn’t use his head. What are we going to tell Lourdes?”

  “I’ll think of something for the time being, but not the whole truth.”

  When they entered Lourdes’ home, they found a large group of friends consoling her. Julio’s parents were there. Adelaida and Jose Maria had arrived, and Mike was surprised to see Maria Alicia. The maids were busy offering small cups of coffee and soft drinks. Lourdes, seeing her father, got up from the sofa to embrace him.

  “Tell me, how is he?”

  “He’s fine, he wasn’t hurt. He should be in Miami already. He’ll be calling you soon. I reserved a room for him at the Everglades.”

  Don Miguel approached Julio’s father, and they went to an empty room. A few minutes later, the two somber men returned to the group.

  Jose Maria separated Mike from the women, but before they could speak in private, Maria Alicia came to hug and kiss Mike.

  “How terrible! What’s happened to Julio is just awful.”

  Mike squeezed her hand. “It could’ve been worse.”

  She understood immediately that Mike did not want to talk, so she went to console Lourdes.

  “What happened?” Jose Maria asked. Mike told him what little he knew.

  Jose Maria said, “It’s going to get uglier. How much does Lourdes know?

  Mike said, “Very little. Father is going to handle it.”

  Four hours later, Julio called from his hotel room and spoke with Lourdes. No one heard what he said, but Lourdes did not cry. Slowly, the group left. Adelaida stayed with Lourdes, and at around five, the children returned from playing with friends. Lourdes told them that their father had gone to Miami on a business trip. The children reacted with excitement. “Oh goody, he’ll bring us a lot of gifts!”

  THE NEXT MORNING, Julio woke up in his room at the Everglades Hotel in Miami. He had a vicious hangover. Every muscle hurt, and his head! He had not been able to go to sleep the night before. He had tossed and turned in his bed; finally, he got up and went to the hotel bar, where he drank until it closed. He still couldn’t sleep; nightmares taunted him every time he dozed off. In one, he was in a small room. No lights. No windows. The walls were moving. He wanted to scream, to stop them from closing in on him. He could not. He had lost his voice. Esmeralda opened a door. Her face was cut. One eye hung out of its socket. Her front teeth were broken and her lips puffed. Her face was painted like a cheap whore’s. “Papi, Papi!” she cried. She fell back, shrieking. The door closed soundlessly.

  He woke, hoarsely whispering, “Help!” He got up for a drink of water, and then went back to bed. Again, the nightmares came. He was in a new room, this one large and fully lit with large windows on both sides. Through one of them, he saw Lourdes and his children. They all sat on black chairs, immobile, and unblinking. He went to the window and knocked on the pane. He waved his hand. They continued to look straight ahead; they didn’t see him. He cried. He couldn’t see them anymore. They had disappeared. Through the other window, he saw Esmeralda partially naked with blood all over her body, holding a bloodstained white sheet and sitting on a white rocking chair. He ran to the exit door on the other side of the room, but when he got near it, the door closed in his face. The floor moved. He lost his balance and fell flat on the floor. He woke up again, sweating. He looked around the room. It took a few moments for him to realize where he was, but he still couldn’t believe what had happened. He took a cold shower, shaved, and went down to find some breakfast.

  — 28 —

  Maria Alicia’s Engagement Party

  IT WAS THE perfect night. The garden was illuminated by carefully placed soft lights. Iron tables were scattered on the lawn and off to one side, and behind a long bar stood four attentive bartenders. Maria Alicia was overwhelmed when she saw how many friends her mother had invited; her list had expanded exponentially. It had happened this way: Maria invited Gloriosa, who had been one of Adelaida’s best friends, but Maria didn’t know that Gloriosa had spoken with her current best friend, Amalia, who had also been a close friend of Adelaida’s and who had married Don Miguel’s best friend, Antonio Gonzalez, who had been the best man at Don Miguel and Adelaida’s wedding. Maria found out while playing canasta with Amalia that she knew from Gloriosa that Mike and Maria Alicia were getting engaged, and Maria, afraid of not inviting her, because she had already invited Gloriosa, told her, “We’re just having a small family party, why don’t you come?” So after the game of canasta, Maria went home and added names to the list, and those names begat names, and those names begat more names until the party had swelled to two hundred of her closest friends.

  The summer season had ended, according to the calendar. Although the seasons of the year are similar on a tropical island—there is rain or drought—Cubans followed European traditions. Guayaberas were relegated to the closet after the first day of September. Accordingly, the men wore lightweight, dark English wool suits, white shirts with French cuffs, gold cufflinks, colorful Italian ties, white pocket squares anointed with a dab of cologne, and black shoes. Mike tied his red silk tie in a Windsor knot and went down to the safe in the library to remove the engagement ring he had bought for Maria Alicia. As he opened the door, he found the safe open, and his father standing next to it.

  “Mike, I have a surprise for you. I’ve been waiting for this day to give it to you. This was your mother’s favorite solitaire diamond ring. I gave it to her after you were born. She wanted you to have it, so you could give it to the woman you loved. I’m sorry that she isn’t here to give it to you herself. She would have loved Maria Alicia. She’ll make you very happy. She’s a superb girl.”

  Mike embraced his father silently, and slipped the small, worn leather box into his pocket.

  “Thanks, Father, I know she’ll love it. It brings back so many good memories.” He gave his father a tight embrace.

  Yet Mike felt awkward. He had already bought a ring, but he didn’t want to hurt his father’s feelings. Then he realized there was a solution. How lucky for Maria Alicia, he thought. She’s starting her married life with two diamond rings.

  Mike arrived early to be with Maria Alicia. “I have surprises for you. My father gave me this diamond ring. It was his present to my mother when I was born, and when Mother knew she was dying, she asked my father to give it to my future wife. He thought you would love it. My parents had a very happy marriage. My father wishes you to be as happy as my mother was.”

  Maria Alicia opened the small box and placed the ring on her finger. “Mike, it’s so beautiful,” and kissed him. “I have to thank your father so much. It’s so touching. I love it. It means so much to me. I’m so touched by your mother’s thoughts. Has your father arrived? I want to give him a big, big kiss.”

  “No, but he’ll be here soon, he went to pick up Patricia, but I also have another surprise. This one is from me.”

  And he gave her the other ring.

  “You . . . you’re so special. You’re spoiling me!” she said, as she kissed and hugged him again. “Let’s show the rings to my mother and father. They’ll love them. I’m so happy.”

  She ran to find her mother, who was putting the last touches on a floral arrangement. “Mami, look, look at this ring Mike gave me. It belonged to his mother . . . and this one he bought for me.”

  Maria held her daughter’s fingers, admiring both rings. “Mike, they’re absolutely gorgeous. You’re spoiling my daughter. Let’s find your father. They’re fantastic!” Before Maria could find El Gordo, though, the doorbell rang, announcing the arrival of the first guests.

  The party was in full swing
around eight o’clock. By that point, Maria Alicia and Mike’s cheeks ached from smiling for photographs. Though invited, Patricia was trying to be inconspicuous because she was nervous. She was careful about how much she drank. It was the first time she was in a large social group made up of friends of Don Miguel, and she wanted him to be proud of her. Meanwhile, Pepe and Carmen overtly enjoyed the party. Pepe, mindful of Patricia’s request to control his drinking, nonetheless insisted on working his way through the garden with Carmen, introducing himself to every guest with a hearty “How do you do?”

  “Beautiful night!”

  “Maria Alicia and Maria look lovely.”

  “The weather is perfect.”

  “Yes, she’s our sister.”

  “No, I don’t know them well, but the name is familiar.”

  “Yes, I would really enjoy it.”

  The conversations moved gracefully—no politics, no religion, no baseball. Carmen was excited to see so many beautiful dresses, and to know what was “in.” Not that she wasn’t a great modiste, but in some trades, exposure to the habitat of your clients is everything. Around nine o’clock, the guests, sated by the food and happy from the champagne, made their way home.

  Maria asked Mike’s family to stay for a last glass of champagne. Don Miguel and Patricia joined Lourdes, Adelaida and Jose Maria, and Maria Alicia’s sisters and their husbands in the living room as El Gordo opened another bottle. Maria Alicia and Mike entered holding hands. They were exhausted. Mike gave a big kiss to Maria. “Thank you. It was a beautiful party. I’ll always love you as my mother. This was perfect. I’ve never seen so many of my mother’s friends. You both were so generous, inviting all these people. Thank you, again.”

  El Gordo replied, “We want you to take good care of our daughter. I know you will.”

  “Yes, sir. I will.”

  El Gordo was getting ready to make a toast when Don Miguel interrupted.

  “I don’t know if this is the proper occasion. Our families are together, and I know that Maria Alicia and Mike will have a beautiful life. I loved his mother. You, Maria, and you, Gordo, knew her well. We were and are good friends.” He was building up to his point, taking a careful route. “I have an announcement to make. Patricia and I are going to get married. I went to Pinar del Rio to ask for her hand from her father. He agreed. I didn’t want to compete with these two lovebirds, but their marriage has been announced now, and there’s nothing that will surpass it. Patricia and I will soon have an intimate church wedding in Pinar del Rio.”

  Adelaida and Maria Alicia ran to embrace Patricia, and El Gordo embraced Don Miguel, telling him in a low voice, “You bastard, she’s beautiful.”

  The next day, Luis de la Posada’s column at the Diario de la Marina had a complete description of the party and the guests. He took great care in describing the dresses worn by Maria Alicia and Maria; he also made a brief mention of Patricia, whose face appeared with Miguel’s in several photos. The rotogravure section of the paper had plenty of photos of the party. Maria Alicia and Carmen both carefully clipped the section: Maria Alicia for her wedding album, Carmen for a special box she kept in her armoire. For both, it would be a night they would never forget.

  — 29 —

  Paulino’s Turn

  THE NOTARY PUBLIC’S office in the pueblo did not open until nine o’clock, with the arrival of the secretary and the clerk responsible for handwriting deeds and wills. Dr. Rico, the notary, usually came in after ten; he spent the early morning at his small sugar plantation. His job was not demanding, time-consuming, or well paid, since the jurisdiction his practice covered was not a busy one. Few people bought or sold houses, and the traffic in other land sales was nil; wills were few and far between and uncomplicated because of the testamentary provisions contained in the Civil Code. Dr. Rico wondered why he had spent so many years in law school and why had he bought the rights to this notary public office in the middle of nowhere. When he had such thoughts of regret, he considered what the life of a trial lawyer would have been like—long hours in a dimly lit, hot, and smelly courthouse arguing the merits of a client’s claim before a magistrate or a judge. In that, he found consolation in his career, dull as it might be.

  Paulino was exhausted. He forgot to set his alarm clock, and he was now in a hurry. He had, nonetheless, dressed carefully. He had never met Dr. Rico, but he wanted to look like a suitable groom for Elena. He pomaded his hair and brushed it hard to flatten it against his skull. As he left his room, wearing his white guayabera and blue slacks, Cuca shouted out, “Paulino, you look like a caricature out of Zig-Zag. What are you selling today, a new encyclopedia or guaranteed burial insurance?” Paulino snickered and waved good-bye.

  Elena and Paulino had to wait for Dr. Rico, who had been detained by a very important piece of business: having a cup of coffee with Adela, the telephone operator, whom he was courting to no avail. He showed up wearing a crumpled linen coat and a tie, sharply clashing with Paulino’s rigidly-pressed look.

  “Elena, Elenita, how nice it is to see you, and you’re all dressed up! You also look so well in your riding clothes.” Dr. Rico was extremely effusive with her. The sisters had been excellent clients when he had settled their parents’ estates. “And who is this fine gentleman?”

  “This is my fiancé, Paulino Rodriguez. He works with Don Miguel Rodriguez at Las Guásimas.”

  Dr. Rico immediately said, “Welcome, welcome. You have to know how close I am to Elena and her family. She’s like a sister to me, a little sister.”

  “That’s very sweet of you to say,” Elena said.

  Paulino shook his hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”

  “I had the honor of being Elena’s father’s counselor. What a man! He was a titan! Unbelievable strength! And his mind! If he had played chess, he would’ve beaten Casablanca,” Dr. Rico declared with exaggerated drama. “It’s a pity that he died at such a young age. Imagine, he wasn’t even sixty! I miss his humor and wit.”

  Nervous about what he was about to do, Paulino didn’t utter a word.

  “Sorry to keep you standing,” Dr. Rico apologized without a hint of sincerity. “Well, you two look like a pair of doves. Come into my inner sanctum. Excuse me for the books and the dust. You know how hard it is to find good help. It’s almost impossible, and it’s so difficult to be kept abreast of what’s happening in the world of law, every day a new decree. I’ve become a fervent connoisseur of La Gaceta Oficial. I’m obliged to read it every week. Well, well, Elena, it’s true then that you’re contemplating the institution of marriage? And if I’m not presumptuous in my logical deduction, this gentleman is the lucky man? Tell me, tell me.”

  Elena had to recover herself from Dr. Rico’s whirlwind of superfluous chatter. She thought if she had not already known him for so long and had respect for his legal ability, she would have figured him for a babbling idiot. “Yes, Dr. Rico, Paulino is my fiancé, and I want to see if you could marry us. We’ve set a date next month on a Saturday—October 11th. I want to be sure that you’re available. It will mean so much to me. We plan to have the ceremony at the plantation.”

  “Well, I have to see if I have a conflict on that date,” he cautioned. He got up from behind his desk and moved to the door, talking at the same time, “Let me call my secretary and have her bring my appointment book, and if a conflict exists, I’m sure that for you, I can take care of it. Oh, it’ll be a tremendous pleasure to perform such a lovely ceremony.”

  “We just want a simple ceremony at six o’clock in the evening,” Paulino informed him.

  “I’ll be very pleased, let me see,” he said, and shouted for his secretary. “Asuncion! Asuncion, please see if I have October 11th blocked out for anything?”

  Asuncion played her role and promptly brought the empty appointment book out for him to see.

  “Let me see . . .” He took his time, looking very carefully. “Yes, no, maybe, oomph, no, this can be moved . . .” After he handled each page with care, he, finally
, after cleaning the lenses of his thick glasses, said, “Well, I can make minor changes to my schedule, and . . . Yes! I can do it!” he said, breaking the suspense only he believed had existed. “I’ll be delighted to marry you. Now, let’s discuss the details.”

  Half an hour later, Elena and Paulino left the office satisfied that Dr. Rico would perform the ceremony just as they wanted. Holding hands, they walked together to the warehouse store to order the liquor for the wedding party. A few customers were milling around, and Paulino recognized Mulato from behind. “Mulato, my good friend, come, come here. I’m back. Say hello to your best customer!”

  Paulino held Elena’s hand as she happily spoke to Mulato about the quantities of liquor she would need for her wedding. Elena asked about cider, she liked El Gaitero, but Mulato, the great salesman, told her that if she was having a bubbly, she should have champagne, and recommended Veuve Cliquot. Elena agreed, and before leaving, Paulino invited Mulato to the wedding. “Be sure you come early, so you have time to enjoy.”

  The sisters were thrilled. Elena told Julieta and Cristina how they had spent the day preparing for the ceremony and celebration, that Dr. Rico, the very busy notary public, was going to marry them, and that they were serving champagne. The invitations were printed and mailed. Elena went to the pueblo to call Paulino’s mother, and invited her. In the portal that night, Paulino told Elena, “I’d like to help you with the wedding. What do you think if a group from San Joaquin plays so we can dance? If you like the idea, I’ll arrange it.”

  Elena didn’t hesitate. “It’ll be fun! Remember, I was the one who asked you to dance. You were very bashful then.” She nudged him with a coquettish grin. “You’ve lost it now.”

  The days passed, and neither Mike nor Don Miguel had returned to the farm, so Paulino had time to be with Elena. Together, they picked out their bedroom furniture set, including a new type of mattress that the salesman told them was the best. It was large, as wide as it was long. It was advertised as a “king size” mattress.