Chapter 45
“It’s all worked out, Tomás. The investigator ruled that the fire started in the dumpster, probably with your old oven,” Peregrino said.
“My oven?” My dad’s mouth dropped.
“And some drywall, and a cigarette someone threw in there. But it wasn’t your fault. It was the Lard Company’s improper disposal of their highly flammable waste that allowed it to spread. My attorney spent a few hours on the phone with their insurance company last night. They’re willing to compensate us for our losses at a hundred and fifty percent so long as we sign waivers,” Peregrino continued.
My dad let out a deep breath. Peregrino shrugged as if it was no bigger deal than someone changing the packaging of cod liver tablets from green to blue. He was getting a fat check after all, which was all he’d ever wanted according to Felix. Peregrino had enough sources of income that I suppose it didn’t matter.
“As the owner of record for La Gran Pirámide, the Chamber will do very nicely. Now it’s up to the neighborhood to decide if you want to rebuild. I’m off to tell Colonel Franco,” Peregrino said and left.
My dad pushed a tray of ginger pigs into the display case and sat at the counter—looking both relieved and astonished. I wiped down the counter in front of him.
Felix walked in with his backpack on and a duffle bag over his shoulder. I leaned into the display case and made myself busy sweeping for crumbs.
“You doing laundry, Felix?” my dad asked.
“I heard you guys are getting your money back. I’m glad. With La Gran Pirámide gone and school starting soon, there’s nothing left for me to do. I’m heading back home. I just came to say goodbye.” Felix extended his hand to my dad.
My dad grabbed Felix’s hand and pulled him into a hug. “Keep in touch. We’ll miss you, but I’m sure your mom will be glad to have you back.” My dad took a plastic bag and threw in some bread. “This is for your trip. Masi, come say goodbye.”
I walked over to them. Felix blinked at wet eyes and smiled that beautiful smile.
“You going somewhere?” I asked, as if I hadn’t been listening.
“Yes. Home to New Mexico.”
“I’ll walk you to the train.” We walked side by side. It was like we were going downtown again. Except, completely different. There was a heaviness between us. I stopped in front of the platform.
“Masi, there’s something I need to clear up before I go,” he said.
“You don’t have to.”
“I really did like you. I made a bad choice that I have to live with,” he said. “If it makes you feel any better, they fooled me too. Belinda packed up and left like a thief in the night. No apologies. No goodbyes. She drove away as soon as she heard about the check. She offered me a ride back home, but I wanted to wait until I saw you and your dad. I did everything I could to try to make amends. You can’t hate me for that.”
“Did you set that fire? Did you?”
“Please don’t ask. I’ll have to tell you the truth this time.” He leaned in and grabbed hold of my wrist. I squirmed, but he tightened his hold. His face came closer and closer. It wasn’t magic. It was real. I forgot the question. My eyes shut. My body betrayed me. I jolted out of the kiss. “You can’t do that,” I said. It was too little too late.
Felix stumbled back. “I’m leaving.”
“That doesn’t change what happened.”
“It means there’s no time left for regret.”
Train lights approached in the distance. The train screeched to a stop. His voice carried over the train’s commotion. “Maybe this isn’t the end,” he said.
The door folded shut. The boy of a thousand questions disappeared as suddenly as he had appeared. I thought about all the things I almost lost. I thought about my friends, Pig Park and the bakery, and I knew he was wrong. It was the end. I felt a little sorry, but he was right about one thing. There was no time left for regret.
Chapter 46
I walked into the bakery. Loretta stood by the counter with my dad. A pair of glasses hung from a chain around her neck. The computer sat open in front of her. A newspaper lay spread out on the counter. A dozen copies of the same paper sat off to the side in a stack.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
Loretta looked up. “Mija, I called everyone. Your phone was busy. The news just couldn’t wait. I had to come in person.”
“I was talking to Patricia.” My dad blushed. “She was telling me about her doctor’s visit.”
I panicked. Was he about to tell me my mom wasn’t coming back as planned? “Did something happen?” I asked.
“No. Nothing like that. Your grandmother insisted she get a checkup before traveling. The doctor cleared her to head home. In fact, she’s all packed. She’ll be back by the first day of school for you. We were just confirming the arrangements for her trip,” my dad said. I let out a deep breath. “Loretta is here because we’re in the newspaper.”
“Look at this, Masi. Page thirty-two of the Times. Online and printed editions. Ooh, Patricia will be very excited to see this good news,” Loretta said. She motioned for me to come closer and moved aside, so I could see.
The headline read: Blaze Reveals Neighborhood Gem by Bill Jones. Bill Jones. “Hey, I think that’s Mrs. Jones’ husband,” I said.
“Mrs. who?” Loretta asked.
“She’s the Eastside teacher who came the other day. I sold her and her husband a day’s worth of bread. They bought everything we had.” I picked up the section and read aloud.
“Located amidst the compound of the recently abandoned American Lard Company, Pig Park is a neighborhood most have never heard of. A five-alarm fire last week revealed that gem of a neighborhood and a definite place to explore. Bypass the steel ruins of their once ambitious pyramid, a modernist replica sculpture built on the southeast side of the park, to treat yourself. The local flower shop offers flowers more fragrant and colorful than any market abroad—great for any occasion—”
“That’s me,” Loretta laughed.
“Several family restaurants will take you back to mother’s kitchen, though not necessarily your own mother—still an excellent homage to homecooking. The bakery will satisfy any sweet tooth. If you think you can’t have sweets, try the Skinny Pig. My wife, the health fiend, polished off half a dozen in one afternoon—”
“That’s us.” My dad blushed a second time.
“Indeed it is.” Loretta clapped and nodded. Her eyes scanned the room. “So what’s this about a Skinny Pig?”
“It’s our latest recipe. A healthier version of our marranito. Masi, give Loretta a taste.”
I walked to the kitchen and took the tray of Skinny Pigs from the cooling rack. I passed the tray in front of Loretta. She reached for one, broke off a piece and nibbled on it. She smiled and gobbled the rest down, but didn’t say anything. Maybe she was at a loss of words for once.
“So?” my dad asked.
“I can see what the rave is about. Wow. Put a few of these in a bag for me to take home. My girls could stand to eat a little healthier.”
I stuffed half a dozen Skinny Pigs into a paper bag and handed it to her. I smiled. My dad smiled. Loretta smiled.
She took the stack of newspapers with her free hand. She pointed to the paper on the counter I’d read from earlier. “I’m leaving that copy so you can show your mom. I know you can just print it from the computer, but it’s not the same. Getting in the printed newspaper, that’s the real deal. It won’t be gone tomorrow. They can’t just hit delete. Mark my words. This is going to change everything. EVERYTHING! Pig Park is on the map now, mija.”
Loretta practically danced out the door. Pig Park—that was us. It was the end of summer and nothing would be the same.
Chapter 47
I grabbed a copy of the newspaper article and tacked it on the wall. “We should probably clean up for when Mom gets back,” I said. We divided up the chores between us. I ran the washer/dryer, folded laundry on the kitchen table
, and put the clothes away. My dad dusted the furniture, wiped down the counters, and ran the vacuum in the living room.
We worked all night. I didn’t care that the next day was the first day of school. I couldn’t sleep anyway. I showered and dressed. My dad came out of his room fidgeting with the collar of his white dress shirt.
I heard footsteps on the stairs. I ran to the door and opened it. My mom stepped through. My dad’s eyes lit up. He stepped forward. He was a young man again, watching his dream girl stroll across a room. “Once I thought I lost the girl I loved, but she came back,” he murmured. He grabbed her so tenderly that I was forced to look away.
“Masi, come,” he said. He pulled me in with them.
My mom’s arm wrapped around me. “I’m sorry,” she said. I grabbed her tight.
“Give me a second,” my dad said and disappeared. I pulled my mom’s bag into her room and began unpacking for her.
“I’m never leaving again. I blamed your dad and the bakery for how I felt. But I wasn’t myself. I want you to know that. I love you, Masi,” she said. She hugged me a second time. We stood like that for an eternity. Her arms were an eraser. It was almost like she had never left, except that her leaving and getting sick had resulted in my dad’s creation of the Skinny Pig.
“You were sick, Mom.”
“I have your surprise,” my dad said from the hallway. He walked into the room with a dozen Skinny Pigs on a tray.
“What’s this?” my mom asked.
“Skinny Pigs. Sugarfree for your diabetes,” I said. I broke away and grabbed the copy of the newspaper article. I handed it to her.
She bit into a Skinny Pig as she read. Her mouth blossomed into a smile. “So that’s what happened out there,” she said.
“We have a lot to talk about,” my dad said. Of course, she had seen all the burnt-down buildings and the new faces coming off the trains. The pyramid scheme had led Felix here, sparked the fire and brought down the American Lard buildings so people would notice us. It had brought Mr. Jones here to write that article so that, from one night to the next, there’d been visitors from all over the city straying beyond the park. But it was the Skinny Pigs that kept people coming back to the bakery. We had our hands full. They were now our biggest seller. Things weren’t perfect, but they were getting better.
“No more letters from the bank,” I said. I ran back to my room to get my backpack. I heard the sound of dresser drawers being knocked around in their room. Or maybe something else. There was giggling. The knocking stopped. I rolled my eyes and laughed.
“I’m going to school now,” I yelled as if they weren’t otherwise occupied. I slipped on the backpack and walked past the train tracks toward the new school bus stop. Josefina waved. Marcos angled his head. His bangs fell away from his eyes. The richness of their brown popped off his face.
Marcos grabbed my bag. I smiled. He smiled. His cheeks dimpled. He winked. I thought about what Josefina had said and flashed back to that 5th grade kiss. The heat rose up my spine. I had no trouble wrapping my head around it. “I’m ready,” I said.
Acknowledgments
I am grateful to Lou, Penny and the baby for teaching me that the world is an ever-evolving place: I live in a world full of people. Gracias a mi mamá, Concha, y mis hermanos(as) por su paciencia. Thank you to Alicia and Susana for being bookworms.
I am also grateful to Lee Byrd for not tossing that first draft of The Smell of Old Lady Perfume into the recycling bin and helping me to become a better writer with every draft. Thank you also to my Prairie Writers Critique Group—Mary Joe Guglielmo, Jane Hertenstein, and Tim Brandhorst—for your encouragement and expertise. A special thanks to the Illinois Arts Council Individual Artist Support Initiative and the City of Chicago Community Arts Assistance Program for their support of my development as a writer.
Finally, thanks to everyone, mentioned and not mentioned, who stood with me in the Pig Park of my imagination and watched that crazy pyramid get built!
Contents
Copyright Page
Dedication
Map of Pig Park
Epigraph
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Pig Park Page 14