TRAITORS (7 page)

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.

There was no reproach whatsoever from Grandma Andrea. Seeing him brought a smile on her face, accompanied by tears. Pablo kissed her and took her suffering, but gentle hands and caressed her for a moment. The scene had left him speechless. The old woman was connected to several machines that controlled oxygen and monitored her heartbeat. She also had an I.V. that administered medications, which had hurt her wrinkled hands to the point that she had bruises everywhere. The never-ending “beep-beep” of the machines made the moment more chilling.

The doctor suddenly entered the room.

“You must be her grandson Pablo!” said the doctor. “Your grandmother can’t stop talking about you. She said you’re a hero who has fought for a good cause, and every day she kept asking if you were here.”

“Yes, Doctor,” said Pablo. “I want to apologize for not being able to be here sooner, but circumstances didn’t allow me. What can you tell me about my grandmother?

“We have had difficult days,” said the doctor, “and I think your presence will be the best medicine. But I regret to say that diabetes can only be controlled by insulin, and apparently her heart is not pumping blood properly, either. We will receive the results of the analysis tomorrow. So for the time being, you all should rest. We’ll see what happens tomorrow. You can stay, but avoid emotional situations to avoid worrying her.”

Pablo called his sister to tell her that he had arrived and decided to rest beside their grandmother and that there would be time to talk the following day.

There was a buzz in the Civil Hospital of Guadalajara the next day. The hospital was located in the downtown area. It was dedicated to providing medical services at low cost, and in some cases, free. It had great quality doctors and state-of-the-art medical technology. It was subsidized by the state government and several recent college graduates volunteered there. It allows patients from within or outside the state, even outside the country, to receive medical care.

Pablo woke up a little sore from the uncomfortable night on the chair, along with several nights of insufficient sleep. A few minutes later, his sister Maria arrived. She would routinely visit her grandmother before going to school, just a few blocks away from the hospital.

“How was your night?” asked Maria. “It was needless to ask because that chair couldn’t possibly let anyone have a comfortable sleep. Those awful dark circles beneath your eyes said a thousand words.”

“Well, it was hard,” Pablo said letting out a big yawn. “And you, my little sister? How is everything up to now? As for me here, I keep waiting for the doctor to show up since he told me that he was waiting for the latest results. So far, only the nurse had stopped by twice, but only to check the machines and the medicines. The nurse told me that the doctor would arrive around ten o’clock.”

“Look, Pablo,” Maria said, “according to her doctor, Grandma’s health is deteriorating day by day. He said that she suffers from heart failure and from now on, we must have an oxygen tank at home to help her breathe.”

“The doctor also said she had let herself be taken by her illness as if not interested in recovering. I think what affected her most was the fact that you guys are so far away. She asks for you and Luis every day, and I found her several times alone crying for you both. She said she is very afraid of not seeing you again, and although Uncle Antonio would occasionally visit, she would say that her concern is you two. To add to that, Luis has not called for almost a month! I really don’t know what to do. I’m desperate! I’ve already missed many classes at school and I don’t even know if I’ll pass this semester. My grades are very low and they have already called it to my attention several times.”

“You don’t know how much I regret this whole situation. One can be lost in time not realizing how much harm we have caused until it is too late. I feel a great sense of guilt to see our grandmother this way, and I think I should have convinced her to go with us to the United States but I never did enough to make her budge and now the damage is done. For now I’ll stay for a couple of weeks, or until she recovers and see if she agrees to go with us,” Pablo said and told her about Luis and everything that had happened with his case.

In the days that followed, Grandma Andrea somewhat recovered with Pablo’s presence and care, as he was engaged tending to her day and night. However the doctor confirmed, with the results of her recent tests, that she had heart problems and she ought to exercise extreme care since the next relapse could be fatal. The doctor also added that they ought to avoid strong emotional situations such as giving her bad news. Although she still needed oxygen and was still weak she could finally be discharged; per the approval of Pablo and Maria.

Back in Los Angeles, the struggle had just begun. Zina, along with her mother, had developed a plan to talk to her father since they were one hundred percent sure that he would react extremely upset. They had the hope that after a few days, he would change his mind and decide to help in the case. And so they decided to wait for the weekend to talk to him as he would be on his day off and thus be more relaxed. They knew that, as a city councilor, he was always under stress.

On Saturday morning the typical family ritual took place as normal. They had breakfast together and talked, as usual, about the activities of the week. Zina’s younger brother chatted with conceit that he is going to graduate high school with honors. Just like his sister, he was very dedicated to school. He had even participated in state interscholastic contests and had won first place. Zina listened quietly and was deep in thought. She had been fighting for Luis’ case for four weeks. That weekend had been the saddest for her because they had moved Luis to federal prison. When her brother finished his story, she only congratulated him with a very dull smile. His father, meanwhile, gave them great news. He quietly planned a family trip to visit his brother in Texas. Almost three years had passed since they had visited and he was very excited because he was his older brother and was very fond of him.

“Zina and I have a very delicate matter that we would like to share,” finally said the mom, “but perhaps it would be best if she tells you about it.”

“Of course,” said Zina. “Look, Dad, the thing is… Luis had an accident about a month ago for which he was not at fault, but a passenger of the other car was injured and was hospitalized. Luis was in jail until the child left the hospital. There were no charges filed by the other party but as Luis was driving without a license, he was presumed guilty until the case was investigated thoroughly and until they knew what ultimately happened to the injured kid.”