Renaldo

by James McCreath

  with your football career. Is that not so?”

  The young man was dumbfounded. Female intuition was something he

  had only read about in magazines, but this, this was almost psychic.

  “Mama, you shock me with your clairvoyance. It is true, I have just signed

  a contract to play in London for two years. It is for a lot of money, but more

  importantly, they have promised to secure me an exchange student’s placement

  in a medical course at the University of London. I will be able to continue

  my studies at a world-recognized institution, as well as play football. For me

  though, the best thing is that I will be going overseas with my closest friend

  from the National Team, Ramon Vida. So I won’t be alone, which should ease

  your mind a lot.”

  The Señora did have an air of acceptance about her, a warmth in her smile

  that was a far cry from the hostile barrier she would erect whenever her son had

  mentioned the word ‘football’ in the past. Relieved, the young man continued

  to supply the relevant information.

  “So much has happened because of this football, Mama, it makes my head

  spin at times. Señor Gordero himself is the one that negotiated the deal, and

  I have just come from meeting the English team owners. They are very nice,

  very proper. I am sure that you would like them. The gentleman is a real Lord,

  and . . .”

  “There is only one Lord, Renaldo. Don’t ever forget that over there in the

  land of the heathens! Promise me that you will go to mass faithfully, that you

  will not let your church down and fall victim to the pressures of the unholy

  world. Promise me that, and you will go to England with my blessing!”

  The pressures of the unholy world? Renaldo mused to himself. He thanked

  God that she could not read his mind, for it was awash with the erotic memories

  of his tryst with Simone not twenty-four hours earlier. Add to that the bawdy

  images which had turned him to stone as the melodious Englishwoman spun her

  oral web of seduction, and Renaldo had his first inkling of just how ‘unholy’ the

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  RENALDO

  pleasures of the flesh could be. He had already fallen prey to those pleasures, and

  he was both unable and unwilling to deny himself those newfound delectations.

  The good news was that by playing football in England, his mother did not

  have to be party to his newly discovered libido.

  “Mama, you know me. You know that I would never do anything to upset

  you or disgrace the family name. I will honor your request while I am overseas

  and act in accordance with your wishes!”

  Florencia De Seta embraced her son tenderly, satisfied that a pact of honor

  had been made. It was good that her youngest was going abroad, for heaven

  help her if Renaldo were to move back into Casa San Marco and chance to

  witness some of the ‘unholy pressures’ that she willingly succumbed to at

  Wolfgang Stoltz’s bidding!

  “Will you be staying home until you leave for England? How about dinner

  this evening? I can get Oli to go to the market and get a nice steak for us.”

  Florencia sensed a twinge of regret in her voice, regret that her baby would

  be leaving her soon and be living thousands of miles away. She wanted to spend

  every available minute with him until he had to depart for England. Letting

  this gorgeous boy spread his wings and fly out from beneath the shadow of her

  skirts was going to be more difficult than she had implied.

  “Can we do it tomorrow night, Mama? I still have some team commitments

  this evening, but in the morning we are dismissed from all obligations and able

  to go home,” Renaldo lied to his mother. His only ‘commitment’ was to spend

  the night in Simone’s arms.

  “Alright, if you promise to be here, then we will have a date tomorrow

  night. Just the two of us!” She smiled and gave her son another hug. When she

  pulled away, her expression appeared vaguely disturbed.

  “You know, Renaldo, I wanted to have a similar talk with your brother,

  Lonfranco, and he was here at the casa only a few days ago. He didn’t want to

  see me though. He arrived when I was out and told Oli not to tell me that he

  had stopped by. But Oli couldn’t wait to tell me! She was really upset after he

  left. She said that he looked terrible. Thin and pale, dressed like a vagabond.”

  The color had drained from Florencia’s complexion and fear of the unknown

  replaced the warmth that had danced in her eyes.

  “That leftist tramp was not with him, thank heavens. Oli said that he

  showered and changed into a nice suit, then packed a suitcase. He told her

  that he was going away on a long trip. He claimed to have been camping in

  Bariloche, that he had lost everything in a bad storm and that the woman was

  in the hospital with minor injuries. Oli also said that she saw a handgun on his

  bed when she brought a tray of food up to his room. A handgun!”

  The mother’s hands started to shake uncontrollably in her son’s grasp. The

  boy could not believe what he was hearing.

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  JAMES McCREATH

  “Renaldo, I am scared for your brother! I think he might be in some

  terrible trouble, and I don’t know what I can do to help him. I drove him away,

  out of this home and out of Buenos Aires. He didn’t want to see me, Renaldo,

  and now I don’t know where to find him to tell him that I love him and to come

  home, that everything is alright. I worry about him so much!”

  Florencia was sobbing uncontrollably now. Renaldo held her tenderly,

  letting her rest her head on his shoulder. The news his mother had related had

  turned him cold.

  The last time he talked to his brother, Lonnie promised to be back in

  the capital to see him play. If he had been in Buenos Aires just before the

  championship game, surely he would have known that Renaldo had been

  selected to be in the starting lineup for Argentina. How could he not try to

  reach him? A message at the training center, or even through Olarti, or Astor

  Gordero’s office. Anywhere! But there had been no word, nothing at all.

  Had Celeste brainwashed him to the point that he had abandoned his

  family completely? And why did he have a pistol with him? Lonnie had never

  owned a gun in his life. Their father had hated the detestable things and forbade

  them in his house. Renaldo had never even touched a firearm.

  There were many questions and no answers. The only thing that he could

  do now was to comfort and reassure his mother. Renaldo the eternal optimist

  was confident that everything would work out in time.

  “Don’t worry, Mama. You know Lonnie. He has a mind of his own. Heaven

  knows that he can look after himself. I certainly wouldn’t want to tangle with

  the big thug! I know that he loves you, Mama. He just didn’t want to upset you

  by coming home unannounced. Why, I talked to him on the telephone just last

  week and he told me the same story that he told Oli. Celeste was hurt, a broken

  leg or something, and he was going to come home to get some money and fresh

  supplies. Don’t worry, I know he has everything under control.”

  The son tried to sound as convincing as possible to his mother, but it wasn�
�t

  easy. There was a terrible feeling gnawing at the pit of Renaldo’s stomach.

  “Do you really think so? Do you really think that he is alright, and that

  he still loves his mother?”

  “Of that, I am certain, Mama! How could any son not love a mother like

  you? We will hear from him one day soon, when he is ready to contact us.

  Lonnie always likes to operate on his own schedule. So let’s not worry ourselves

  sick about the big bag of bones. He is probably skiing down his favorite slope

  in Bariloche as we speak!”

  The smile returned to Florencia De Seta’s face once again.

  “I suppose you are right. Lonfranco always was the wild one, hard to

  control. You, on the other hand, you were my angel!” She kissed him softly on

  the cheek.

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  RENALDO

  “OK, Mama, OK. Your little angel has to fly off now and go about his

  heavenly business. Before I go though, there is one thing I would like to discuss

  with you. I hope this will not be too painful.”

  After the news about Lonnie, he had questioned whether or not to bring

  up the subject that had become an obsession since going to England was first

  mentioned several days ago. But there would be no time like the present. Right

  now, he could ask the question, then hopefully act on her answer. He simply

  had to know the truth before he set foot on a plane to London.

  “What is it my son? Now you seem to be the one who is upset.”

  “It’s about father. About what really happened to him in England in 1966.

  I need to talk to someone that was there with him,who saw what actually

  happened. If I am going to London, I need to know the truth, or else the

  unknown past will haunt me every day I am there. The explanation that you

  gave Lonnie and me about the traffic accident was fine when I was seven years

  old, but now for my own peace of mind, I have to know the hard facts. Can you

  help me, Mama? Can you give me the name of anyone who traveled to England

  with father in 1966? Please, I beg of you. Let me exorcise my own demons from

  the past. Then and only then can I get on with my future.”

  Her face had grown pale again, just as it had when she was talking about

  Lonnie. Florencia sat silently for several moments, staring down at her hands,

  which she had started to knead together. Presently, she stopped and looked up

  at her son.

  “It is twelve years now, a very long time! I don’t know if any of those men

  are still alive themselves or exactly where they are.” Again she lowered her head

  as if to reflect on the past. Suddenly she looked up at her son, enlightened by a

  flash of rediscovered knowledge.

  “There is one man, a doctor at the Children’s Hospital with your father

  back then. He might be able to help you, if you can find him.”

  The pain in her son’s eyes spurred her on. She could not bear the thought

  of him thinking that she had deceived him all these years.

  “The story about the traffic accident is true, at least as far as I know. But

  I did not delve into the exact details. Your father was dead, and I would never

  see his smiling face or hold him in my arms again. That was my reality. How

  he died, by whose foul hand, it didn’t make any difference. He was gone, gone

  to be with his Maker, and I trusted that he would find peace sitting at the

  hand of the Lord. That was my solace, that your father was in heaven and at

  peace. If you must know more, all I can give you is a name, Doctor Geraldo

  Quinquela!”

  There was no flash of recognition in the boy’s eyes. He had obviously never

  heard that name mentioned before this very moment. Florencia pressed on with

  the few details she had at her disposal.

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  JAMES McCREATH

  “He was the chief pediatric surgeon at the Children’s Hospital in 1966. He

  went with your father and the others to England. I do see him at the occasional

  charity function, so I know that he is still alive. Check the telephone directory

  or maybe the hospital itself. You may get some results there.”

  It seemed to Renaldo that his mother was about to collapse after she

  completed her final sentence. He held her in his arms lovingly, then helped her

  lie back on her soft pillows.

  “Now, my dear boy, I must rest. Seeing you so fit and strong makes me very

  happy. But knowing that you are going away from me soon, and knowing the

  fear I have in my heart for your brother’s safety, well, just promise me that we

  will dine together tomorrow night. That would lift my spirits immeasurably.”

  “Wild horses could not keep me from dining with the most beautiful

  woman in all of Buenos Aires tomorrow night. Have Oli prepare a feast, for I

  have had to put up with training camp food for far too long! I will be home by

  mid-afternoon, and I will stay with you here until my departure for England.

  Please don’t worry about Lonnie or the other matter we discussed. Everything

  will work out, I promise you!”

  He bent down and kissed her hand gallantly, mimicking Ramon Vida’s

  actions earlier in the day.

  “Good night, my love, till we meet again tomorrow!”

  The Buenos Aires telephone directory made up in a large part for the

  inadequacies of the rest of the telephone system. It was thorough and precise

  in its listings, and the fact that Doctor Geraldo Quinquela’s home address and

  telephone number were listed should not have surprised Renaldo. Nevertheless,

  he sat behind his father’s large desk in the old office at Casa San Marco staring

  at the words and numerals.

  Maybe this will be easier than I had anticipated, he thought as his finger

  dialed the required digits.

  “Doctor Quinquela’s residence, how may I help you?” The voice was

  obviously that of a maid or housekeeper.

  “Would the doctor be available to come to the telephone at this time?”

  Renaldo asked in his most mature, businesslike manner.

  “And who shall I tell the doctor is calling?” The positive response stunned

  the boy into temporary silence.

  “Oh, um, my name is Renaldo De Seta. My father was a good friend and

  associate of Doctor Quinquela’s.”

  “Very well, Señor, please hold the line.”

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  RENALDO

  Renaldo felt his palms growing moist from nervous anticipation as he

  waited. Several minutes passed until,

  “Hello, this is Doctor Quinquela. Who am I speaking to, please?”

  “Doctor, this is Renaldo De Seta. I believe that my late father was an

  associate of yours at the Children’s Hospital. If this is a bad time for you, I can

  call back later.”

  “My dear boy, this is an honor above all expectation. Of course, I knew

  your father. He was a great surgeon. We were very close friends as well! Why,

  I was with him in England when he was . . .”

  Renaldo could tell that the doctor was suddenly feeling some discomfort.

  “Don’t worry, Doctor. I know that you were with him when he was killed.

  It was my mother who gave me your name. I was wondering if you might have

  a few minutes to see me in the next day or so. There are some things that I

  would very much like
to discuss with you on a rather personal level. I won’t

  take up much of your time, say maybe half an hour.”

  “Renaldo, I have taken the last week off from the hospital to fully immerse

  myself in the tournament. As a matter of fact, I was at River Plate to see your

  dazzling performance yesterday. You were magnificent. Your father would have

  been very proud of you! Unfortunately, I must go back to a very heavy schedule

  tomorrow. I am now an administrator as well as a surgeon. But I could see you

  right now. Are you free to stop by my home in the next hour or so?”

  The appointment was made without hesitation, then a second call was

  placed, this time to the Hotel Presidente.

  “Hello.”

  “Simone, it’s Renaldo. I was afraid that you would get bored waiting for

  me and leave. I’m sorry that things have taken so long, but I have one more stop

  to make before I return. Is that all right? Will you wait for me?”

  “Of course, my love. There is nowhere in the world I would rather be

  than here with you tonight! Actually, I have quite enjoyed myself. After all the

  activity of the last few weeks, it is a treat to lay in bed watching television and

  ordering room service whenever I feel like it. We will have a romantic dinner

  right here in the suite when you return, so hurry and complete your business. I

  have many more things to teach you, my darling.”

  Renaldo sat staring at the receiver as the drone of the disconnected phone

  line hummed in his ear. Her last comment had rekindled the passions that

  she had awakened in him the night before. It was only the thought of his

  forthcoming audience with Dr. Quinquela that restored him to his normal

  ‘state,’ allowing him to rise from the desk and make his way to the kitchen to

  say good-bye to Oli.

  “I am on my way, Oli. Tomorrow night, Mama and I will be dining

  together here at the casa, so put on your best spread, for I am a ravenous animal

  after being locked up for a month.”

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  JAMES McCREATH

  He gave the lady-servant a big hug, then grabbed a set of keys off one of

  the hooks by the kitchen door.

  “I am going to take the MGB, so tell Mama if she asks where it has gone.

  I’ll be home for a nice long stay tomorrow afternoon. See you then.”

  “You be careful driving, Señor Renaldo. The streets are full of crazy