TRAITORS

by Gerardo Robledo

  Once back home, Zina and Norma shared some experiences they had lived through and how being in love with the two brothers had made a mark in their lives. Luis and Pablo both shared the same determination and fighting spirit necessary to achieve what they wanted. Pablo had come to America with the firm intention of having a better life, as he had always wanted to share every bit of success with his family.

  He felt that it was the responsibility that comes along with being the eldest son. He was very close to his family and had high principles—both religious and moral. It was always his priority to be generous and to be of help to others, always beginning with family. He also had the firm intention of leading his brother on a straight path and making him an upright human being, just as his mother and grandmother had taught him to be. Luis had learned to follow the advice of his brother. He always did his best to help others in whatever way he could. This earned him the appreciation of both his school and his community. He was always the first to raise his hand when the necessity to help others arose.

  The next morning, Norma received a call that would worsen the situation. Luis’s sister called to report that Grandma Andrea had a very bad relapse and was hospitalized yet again. She was now in the intensive care unit and doctors were not very optimistic about her recovery. They had warned the family to expect the worst. Maria told Norma that her grandmother had already noticed the lack of calls from Luis and had asked her to tell him to call.

  Norma said she would send some money to help with the expenses while they waited for Pablo to call and they could decide what to do.

  “Take care of her and don’t leave her side,” Norma said. “When I hear from Pablo, I will ask him to call you.”

  As she hung up, Norma wrote down the hospital’s information and phone number. Norma immediately called her husband at his base in Afghanistan and made him aware that the emergency was now greater since his grandmother was in a very serious condition and that he needed to call them as soon as possible.

  Later, Pablo was finally able to communicate with Norma. In his situation and the kind of place Pablo was in, it was not very easy to make transcontinental calls. Norma emphasized that he had to seek special permission to leave because his grandmother was hospitalized and was under intensive care; that, on top of Luis’ legal proceedings which had become complicated.

  ` That evening, Pablo approached his superiors to request special permission to travel, back to both the United States and Mexico, to be near his grandmother, and to help cope with the legal proceedings of his brother. Permission was granted immediately as, in the case of a life-threatening condition, it could not be denied. He only had to wait until the following day to arrange his return to the United States.

  The wait was long and uncomfortable. A great feeling of nostalgia came over him in the depths of his being. Things were not going well. Although a baby was on the way and that alone should’ve been cause for joy, his grandmother’s health was deteriorating and she was in the most critical moments of her life.

  Going back was not easy, because he had a series of layovers: first in England, where he boarded another flight bound for Miami, then onto another flight to Edwards Air Force Base in the city of Lancaster. The whole trip lasted about thirty-six hours and though by chance he had landed near where his brother was being detained, he didn’t have the slightest idea he was there. He immediately went home to Sylmar. Norma, in the meantime, was in the courtroom waiting for the judge to make rulings on the case.

  Since he had no information of the whereabouts of his brother, Pablo called Mexico to talk to his sister about the condition of their grandmother. Not finding anyone at home, he dialed the hospital’s number, which he found on a note taped onto the refrigerator door at his house. After several attempts, he managed to get through and was then transferred to the extension number of his grandmother’s room. His sister answered. She was thrilled to hear the voice of his older brother and burst into tears, which made Pablo even more worried.

  “Calm down little sister. I will be there soon,” he said. “For now, tell me how grandma is doing. Do you think it’s possible to talk to her?”

  “I don’t think so,” said Maria “she can barely speak and she just slept almost the entire day, but for sure she knows that you’re calling because she looks serene at the moment. The last time I spoke with her, she asked to be visited by everyone since she doesn’t know how much longer she’s going to live and you know how this breaks my soul,” said Maria with tears in her eyes. “I notice how emotional she is in knowing that you’re calling. It drew a smile to her lips and a tear filled with emotions—a tear that she contained for several days, because very little has been said since we brought her to the hospital. The most important thing for her is that you are well. It has been a long time since she last heard from you or Luis.”

  Pablo ended the call with a promise of being there as soon as possible, but not before thanking his sister for all that she has done for their grandmother. Despite her young age, she had not only had the responsibility of taking care of the elderly lady, but also in managing to balance school while taking care of their home. This was irrefutable evidence of maturity and great love. Not a single word of reproach ever came out of her lips. She had let a part of her youth be sacrificed. She gave up having fun—something that’s quite important for girls her age.

  The scene seemed to have repeated itself that morning in the federal court in Lancaster. Inside the courtroom were Norma, Zina and Aunt Lupita. Norberto and Zina’s mother were waiting outside. Attorney Quintanilla appeared to be well prepared to defend Luis against the charges.

  The judge came in and all those in the room stood up. After the greetings, the judge struck the sound block with his gavel and asked those present to be seated. He then pronounced the case on trial and asked them to bring Luis to dock and said:

  “The Honorable Federal Court presents Luis Arriaga, charged with use and forgery of official documents. How does the defendant plead?”

  The lawyer had already advised Luis to not lie in front of the judge as the sentence could be harsher if the judge discovered a lie. Luis had to plead guilty to the charges: they would later demonstrate the right reasons for doing what he did.

  Luis had sworn on a Bible to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.

  “Mr. Luis Arriaga is accused of the crime of using and falsifying documents, which were found in the vehicle owned by his brother. The documents were in his name. How do you plead to that?” The judge repeated.

  Luis looked up and saw those present. After a few seconds, he turned to the judge and answered, “Guilty, Your Honor.”

  “The court will recess for fifteen minutes then decide his sentence,” the judge said.

  The judge left the room and Attorney Quintanilla approached Luis to tell him what came next once the judge determined the sentence. The fifteen minutes seemed like an eternity for Luis and his family. When the judge appeared again, everyone in the courtroom was in complete silence bracing to hear the sentence. Luis, at the time, was in a cold sweat.

  “Due to the display of good behavior by the accused during his days spent in this prison, and because he had pleaded guilty and cooperated with authorities, the sentence of the defendant for the use and falsification of documents is six months imprisonment in federal prison. After completing his sentence, he will be deported back to his country of origin within 24 hours.”

  There was a collective groan in the courtroom. The pronouncement was like a bucket of cold water for Luis. He did not expect the judge to give him a punishment so harsh since he did not have any other offenses, and the charges from the previous accident had been completely wiped out of his records. After waiting so long, his world was crumbling beneath his feet. He felt great anger and a devastating sense of helplessness because nothing could be done. Not only did he lose his freedom, but he also lost a life full of pr
omises and dreams waiting to be fulfilled. He did not know where to begin assessing the damage caused not only to himself, but to the woman he loved. Zina looked at him with a gaze full of tenderness, seeing her beloved again be imprisoned and unable to do anything about it.

  “Order in the court,” demanded the judge. “On behalf of the defendant, is there anyone who has any objection?”

  Quintanilla stood up and walked towards the bench.

  “Your Honor, I have an objection to the sentence and I request an extension of thirty days to prove that my client only made use of the forged documents to find work. I will also show that he is protected under Immigration Act 245i. Please also allow me to come up with references of good behavior in society so that he may be granted pardon and thus avoid being deported; enabling him to continue the legalization process he had already started.”

  “You have 48 hours to file supporting documents of his 245i protection,” said the judge. “And in thirty days, you must present evidence of your defendant’s good behavior and civic participation in society. In the meantime, he is hereby ordered to remain in custody until the hearing. There will be no change in his sentence until such claims are proven.” With a strong strike of the gavel, the hearing adjourned and he withdrew.

  The verdict was clear. Luis was taken back to his cell to await visiting hours—which would be about two more hours. Making the most of his time while waiting for visiting hours to start, Quintanilla spoke with the family to gather information about Luis’ good behavior. He mostly wanted to have a talk with Luis, from whom he would get most of the ideas to support such a complicated case.

  Norma contacted Pablo to tell him where they were and asked that he join them immediately. Pablo left for Lancaster with the uncertainty of what had happened because his wife had not given him many details over the phone.

  Pablo arrived just in time for the start of visiting hours. The meeting was the most touching. It had been a little over a month since he last saw his family. Norma’s pregnancy was now obvious. Although she looked beautiful in his eyes, she wasn’t able to hide the dark circles beneath her eyes. They went into a private room where they would be meeting with Luis. It was a special privilege that Quintanilla managed to obtain for them since the two were serving in the Armed Forces. Being in that private room, allowed them to have a face to face with Luis. With tears in their eyes, the two brothers clasped into a long embrace filled with emotions. Pablo never expected to see his brother deprived of his liberty and had great sorrow in his eyes.

  Still a little confused by the arrival of his brother, he apologized to his whole family.

  “I never wanted to cause all this mess,” Luis said to all those present. “I never wanted to keep you from your daily activities, let alone be a burden both financially and emotionally. I apologize for everything and I ask God for the opportunity to correct all my mistakes. Although I did not intentionally cause them, I still caused them nonetheless. I accept my faults for not taking the necessary actions to prevent them.”

  “No, Luis, you are not guilty of anything. It was a situation created by the simple reason of being in this country in search of better opportunities,” said Pablo. “Perhaps it was more my fault for bringing you here without the necessary documents for work and school. Maybe I should’ve handled these documents while you were back in home, and now, I am filled with sadness to see you in this situation.”

  “Nobody is to blame here. We better listen to the lawyer and start looking for solutions!” interrupted Norma.

  “Good,” Quintanilla agreed. “To start, we need the complete immigration file to verify that Luis is protected under Act 245i since we only have forty-eight hours to present it to the court and with that, we begin the 30 day period the judge gave us to seek a favorable sentence. Then we will need three people to help us, each one with a letter of recommendation for Luis and we need them to testify that he is a good person who deserves to stay in this country. These people should not be family members. They must be American citizens and must also have some degree of influence on society like a political or religious representative—the school principal, for example.”

  “Does anyone have any idea who might those be?” Quintanilla asked.

  “I think it’s time to talk to my father and explain the whole situation,” said Zina. “And although I think he will scream to the high heavens, I’m sure he will eventually support us. Even if we were married without his consent, this situation is very special. His help would be of great importance since he is a very important councilor in the San Fernando Valley. I will speak with him today.”

  Pablo, meanwhile, said he would talk to his superior—Major Albert Smith. In addition to being his superior, he had become a close friend since the two had many ideals in common. Pablo had also shared several very difficult moments of his life with him. At the moment, he was at Edwards Air Force Base just a few minutes away from the prison.

  “I will speak to him as soon as possible. I am sure he will help us,” Pablo said.

  Aunt Lupita promised to get help from their parish. She knew the pastor very well and was quite sure some members would surely support them as well.

  “Excellent!” Quintanilla said, “But we need a little more help. Two or three people would give us more power to win the case.”

  “I will speak to the principal of the school where we went. I was a member of the student council and she knows us very well. We can also speak with Mr. Ortega because he too was an immigrant like us and always showed compassion towards those subjected to discrimination,” said Norberto.

  “I would also recommend visiting the Mexican consulate to explain the whole situation. Sometimes the consul may extend his support if he deems it prudent,” Quintanilla added, “and in this case, I think we can count on his support.”

  After wrapping up the session, Quintanilla said goodbye to those present and left them with a clear idea in mind. He asked the family to call his firm to set an appointment to update him with the progress on the information collected.

  “There is something else you should know, Luis…” Pablo added. “The reason I got permission to leave my base was because grandma was hospitalized again. She is under intensive care at the moment, a bad relapse. I’ll leave for Guadalajara today. I don’t really know how bad her health is… the only thing I know is that she is in serious condition. Maria said she wants to see us and asked us to come. I think she foresaw something. I really don’t know how much longer she’ll be with us.”

  “I was feeling something too,” said Luis. “In fact, I could not stop thinking about her. It has been almost a month since I last called her. Sometimes I wish I could fly to her and leave everything behind. I would never forgive myself if she passed away and I didn’t have a chance to see her. Please don’t say anything about my situation. Tell her that I will see her soon, that I love her more than ever, and that she has to endure just a little longer waiting for me.

  Luis gave Zina a big hug. He again apologized for causing so much suffering. He asked her to hold on until the end because he knew that everything would turn out all right and they would eventually make up for all the lost time.

  “Of course” Zina said, “I will be with you until the last moment. We will do our best to get you out of here, but if for some reason you were deported… I will go with you no matter where. Maybe we can start a new life in Mexico in the company of your family. Wherever you are, I will be too.”

  Visiting time was over and they parted with a promise to stay in touch. She would visit him at least once a week since she was still in school and did not have much free time, not to mention the prison was far from her house and visits were very restricted.

  “But I will be communicating with you through letters,” she said with a kiss.

  Luis returned to his cell with the anticipation that everything would be fine.

 
; As soon as he got home, Pablo packed his bags and left for Guadalajara. The two-hour flight seemed forever. With only a few minor setbacks, he arrived in his hometown at almost six in the evening and immediately left for the hospital.

  The image that greeted him upon entering the hospital room could not have been more heartbreaking. It seemed twenty years had passed in just a few months. Sometimes we lose track of time and would like to see those we have left behind remain just as they were when we emigrated: that strong and protective image that guided our first steps, and those great heroes who solved all our problems with the tenderness of a kiss. We would like time to pause from the day we left, preserving our parents or grandparents, and our siblings until the day of our return. But we soon realize that time and illnesses do not spare anyone, and like it or not, years pass by while we’re fighting for our ideals, forgetting that the best time of our lives have been left behind. We take notice that everything is out of our hands and the years that have passed are reflected on their faces and that until the last moment, they have awaited our return.

  Pablo heard many stories from friends who had lost their parents and who had not been with them in the last moments of their lives. Much less in the delicate stages of their illnesses that unfortunately eat away their days making them live, in most cases, in agony and loneliness that seems to never end. Ironically, they blame themselves for being in such a situation, as they feel that they haven’t done enough to retain their children so as to not migrate and causing them to be far away. The little energy they have left during their moments of lucidity are spent praying for their children, asking God for their well-being, ignoring that they are the ones who are now in need of prayers. It never crossed Pablo’s mind that it would happen to him; but there laid the one whom had been his mother, the one who had guided him, tired, due to so much suffering throughout the years and the wear caused by her illnesses. He never imagined such pain to see her in that state.