Across the Great River (11 page)

Before I can remind her that she did not teach me how to use the black horn, she bolts out the door. I rush to the window and watch her drive out of sight. Then I turn my attention back to the vampire that stands behind me.

“Niña, child, understand that my husband wants you here. I don't care what you do, just so you leave me alone and stay out of my way. If you need anything, speak with Olga, my maid.”

I decide that silence is the best answer, so I just nod. I watch her rise like a sleek black cat that is proud of its power. “Olga! Come here!” She stands with her hands on her hips, looking down at me as if she were a poisonous rattler. A very nervous Olga rushes into the room. “Take her to the room we've prepared,” Pilar commands.

Olga takes my hand in one of hers and picks up the bag with the other. She rushes out of the room and
up the stairs, as if there is a monster after us. She drags me along until we are well out of sight and sound of Pilar.

“Thanks to all the saints!” Olga mutters breathlessly.

“Yes,” I rapidly agree.

She chuckles as she pushes open one of the doors that stand in a row along a big hallway. “I think I am going to like you, child.” She leads me into a large bedroom. “I will call you in time for supper, because I would not want you to be late. Not even the doctor dares be late. Bless his poor soul.” She puts the bag on the bed.

“I don't like her much!” I snap.

Olga laughs. “Not many people do, my child. Stay out of her way and out of the hallway,” she warns. “And never wander to that part of the house. Her rooms are to the south end, but you can come to the kitchen any time. Ah, but look, don't you like your room?”

I glance around. “Yes, but why is the bed covered like a big umbrella? Does it rain inside the room?”

Olga roars and her stomach flops up and down. “Oh, dear me! It's not an umbrella, it's called a canopy, like a hood for the bed. It's a bed for the rich people and, I might add, very much trouble to keep clean.”

“But, why is a hood needed if there is no sun?”

“It is like a very expensive toy for adults. No sun or rain, just a lot of ruffles and pleats to wash and iron.”

“This room is bigger than our hut back home. If we had this room back there, all of the family could live together—even Grandma and Grandpa.”

Olga turns, “I believe they could, but rich people
do not like to be close to one another. The doctor has his room and his library for his books and she has her rooms and her dressing room, not to mention all the closets.”

“Are you rich, Olga?”

“Heavens no! I only work for the doctor,” she chuckles. “But, I have my own room in this house. Now, I must go set the table for dinner. When I have finished I will return for you.”

Olga rushes out of the room closing the door behind her. I know she is afraid of Pilar because she seems to walk on the tip of her toes whenever Pilar is near. I will not be afraid, I decide. I'll be like Anita who is brave and bold. I flop down on the big bed and stare up at the white umbrella, wondering what Nell and Ramona were doing and if Betty still cries.

I soon tire of the umbrella bed and of colord tea cups with ugly people painted on them. I long for the books and toys at the center. I lay on the bed and pull out the pouch. The stone seems darker now. I sigh and return it to the pouch.

My stomach begins to rumble, so I sit up and go to the door. I open it just enough to stick out my head and peek down the hall. Olga turns the corner near the stairs. She sees me, waves her arms and says, “Now I will have to dress you for dinner. Have you something clean to wear?”

I open the bag and pull out the dress Nell gave me. The card with her phone number falls out and I pick it up and then stuff it back into the bag. “I have this dress.”

“That will do fine. Let me help you change,” she offers.

I pull away from her. “I can do it myself!” I order trying to imitate Pilar.

“So, you can. Hurry then, because they will be waiting.” She stands there watching me. “Well, get on with it.”

“Please leave the room,” I ask.

“Oh, no. I dare not. If she sees me in the hall, I'll really get chewed out.”

“Okay, then. But, you must turn your back until I'm ready,” I demand.

“I'll do anything, just get dressed quickly.”

I pull on the dress, then go to her for help in tying the sash at the back of the dress. She does it quickly. We rush out of the room and downstairs to the dining room. “For the saint's sake child, don't speak unless you're asked questions.” She's so jittery that she is making me nervous, as well.

The doctor stands at the entrance way. “Hello, Kata. You look lovely. Are you being tended to?”

I glance at Olga, who looks as though she is about to faint. “Yes, I am,” I answer. I swear that I heard a sigh escape from plump Olga's lips.

“We have another dinner guest. So, please try to mind your manners. For my wife's sake, you see.” He says this in a soft voice and takes my hand to lead me into the dining room, which smells of lemon oil and chicken.

Pilar is already seated next to the guest. She has a smile from ear to ear and is laughing like a silly school girl. She stops when we enter the room.

The doctor introduces me. “Don Francisco, this is my temporary charge, Katarina Campos.”

The man with the thick black hair and very straight nose rises and bows. “What a lovely child,” he says more to the doctor than to me. Then he reseats himself, glad to forget me, it seems. He immediately turns his attention back to the cat-woman, Pilar.

The doctor leads me to a chair and sits next to me. Pilar starts laughing again like a crazy witch, stirring her boiling potion. The doctor should tell her to behave, I think, but I notice he seems to ignore his wife and concentrate on his glass of wine. Don Francisco, I notice, is all eyes and ears, like the big bad wolf ready to eat up Pilar.

Dinner is served very quickly by Olga. Pilar and Don Francisco keep their whispering jokes to their side of the table and the doctor concentrates on his food, occasionally smiling down at me.

Doctor Mendez looks tired. I can tell by the rings under his eyes and the way he slouches on his chair. He is too young to have those rings, I think, as I watch him take a second glass of wine. This is not how my Mama and Papa act during meals. I've seen them kiss countless times before and during meals.

By the time Olga brings the ice cream, I have decided that the doctor does not care what his wife does nor does she care about him. The doctor must have read my mind, for when our eyes meet he looks quickly away.

After I finish my ice cream, the doctor asks, “Kata, would you like to go for a walk with me?”

“Yes!” I say quickly, for I do not want him to change his mind. I am tired of being inside and I long for the open air. I scoop up the remaining ice cream and stand. He takes my hand and leads me out of the dining room. He doesn't bother to tell Pilar or Don Francisco that we are leaving, but I don't think they will have noticed anyway.

As we walk in the evening twilight I notice the
doctor's silence and say, “Cola del gato! Tail of a cat!” He was very much surprised, for no words had passed between us. “Does the cat have his tail in your mouth?” I ask. “You do not speak.”

“I see.” He smiles and removes his pipe. “Well, Kata. I have my problems and worries to think about, as you can probably tell.”

“But with all this wealth you should not have problems.”

“That is not so, child. Even the rich have common problems.”

“Still, I can see that you are not happy.”

“Happy, a child's word. Still, I believe I was the happiest when I was a poor medical student.” He stopped walking and leaned against a fence post.

“You don't like Pilar, nor does Olga, nor Nell. That must be part of the problem, or else you would smile more.”

He laughs, “That's three strikes against Pilar. But, Nell would dislike her the most.”

“Yes, I believe they could have killed each other this afternoon. Nell left very quickly after Pilar blew smoke into her face. Have they always disliked each other?”

“It's all my fault. You see, I wanted to marry Nell long ago, but that was before Pilar came to live with me.”

“That's the reason they don't like each other?”

“What I should have done is sent Pilar back home and married Nell, but I chickened out, simply because I felt I owed Pilar's family for financing some of my education.” He took a long puff and blew little circles of smoke into the air. “Also, Nell being Anglo, I felt that it might hurt my practice. Stupid, it was all so stupid.”

“Did you ever kiss Nell?”

“Yes, many times and I found it very enjoyable.”

“My Mama and Papa kiss all the time. They say it's fun, but I've never kissed a boy, just Pablito, my baby brother.”

“Some day you'll kiss a boy, but you must remember to marry from the heart, not the mind. The mind, you see, as brilliant as it is, plays tricks, but the heart remains true.”

“I would have noticed that Nell and Anita do not like each other also.”

“You have to understand that Nell is Anglo and she doesn't understand lots of Mexican folk customs, but she tries to learn. Look how she's mastered the Spanish language.”

“Yes, she speaks good Spanish. I believe I like Nell much better than Pilar and I like Anita much better than Nell, but Mama and Papa I like best of all.”

The doctor laughs, “You children! You make life so simple, as if it were a ladder to climb up and down.”

I glanced up at him and studied his face for a second before I asked, “Why don't you send Pilar home? Then you can take Nell and marry her.”

“I doubt Nell would have me now. And besides, grown-up ways are not so simple, Kata. Would you trade your mother for another one if you didn't like her?”

“No, because she loves me,” I declare. “And Nell still likes you. I can see it in her eyes each time you pass her.”

“Well, perhaps so, but I think deep inside Pilar loves me.”

I shake my head as I climb onto the fence to sit. “I don't think so, doctor. She likes Don Francisco more.
Ask her yourself,” I suggest.

He coughs and taps his heart. “I just might do that.” He lifts me off the fence and takes my hand. On the front porch he says, “Goodnight, Kata. Sleep tight.” He turns to the door and shouts, “Olga, please take Kata to her room.”

From the top of the stairs I look back to see that he is still outside, looking up at the stars and rubbing the back of his neck. Once in my room, I hear a car engine start up. I dash over to the window to catch a glimpse of him putting the car into reverse. Poor doctor, I think, as I watch the tail lights of his car zip down the drive, like a wet snake disappering under a rock. Pilar probably doesn't know that he has left, since her eyes are all wrapped up in Don Francisco.

I lie upon the umbrella bed thinking of Anita and Pablito. I can see him sucking his thumb as he lies asleep on the bed of straw. Anita will be lying on her back, snoring and gasping at the same time. The summer moonlight floods the room through open windows and a breeze freshens the air. I spread my arms out as far as they can go and still cannot reach the ends of the big bed. I wonder if Anita would snore in this bed or even if she could sleep confortably. I move over to one side of the bed. Yes, I think, there is plenty of room for both Anita and Pablito.

I push the pillows off the bed and lay flat on my back, watching the ruffles above me sway gently as the breeze seems to kiss them goodnight. I wish Papa were here to kiss me goodnight. As I fall into sleep I hear Papa call to me as he used to do back in Mexico.

Anita once said that dreams can be made real if one wishes it. I will wish for Papa to come visit me in my dreams tonight and for him to lift me into the air like he used to. I close my eyes tightly and clutch the pouch, forcing myself to think only of Papa. But the dream does not come nor does sleep. I snap my eyes open and slowly sit up. I turn over on my stomach and stare into the moonlight. Soon, I fall asleep.

In my dream Papa comes, but he is wet and hungry. His eyes are huge and seem to stare into the distance. He cries for help as he runs to me with his arms outstretched, but he passes me as if I were not standing there at all. “Papa!” I scream, but he continues to run. I watch as he runs out of sight, growing smaller and smaller in the ghostly distance. My head hangs to my chest and my arms fall to my side. Papa has disappeared
from sight and, in sadness, I turn to walk away.

When I look up again, I see a small black object growing larger as it shortens the distance between us. I can see it is some sort of animal, a cat, a black cat. Dust rises as each of its paws pounce on the ground. It rapidly approaches me, but I cannot move out of its path. Perhaps it's chasing Papa, I think, but its huge front paws knock me down on my back and pin me under them. The cat licks my face clean with its sponge-like tongue, as if tasting me, and then it crawls on top of my chest staring at my eyes and mouth, as if deciding which one to eat first.

With each moment that passes the cat becomes heavier and heavier. Soon I am gasping for breath and I begin to struggle with it. I try to push it off with my arms, but it remains unmoveable, yet constantly staring at my mouth.

“Anita!” I scream, as I cover my face with my arms. Immediately after I call out to Anita, the cat springs off of me. It scampers into the darkness and I awake covered with sweat and frozen in fear. Anita said to pray whenever I am frightened, so I pray over and over again until daylight floods the room.

I awake when Olga enters the room. “Good morning,” she sings. “Did you sleep well?”

I follow her movements with my eyes, not bothering to answer. I feel weak, so I close my eyes for a moment of relief.

Olga closes the windows. “Not ready to rise? Well that's fine. Sleep late, child. We have plenty of time before we visit the hospital.” She straightens the blanket, takes my hand. “My, you look pale.” She touches my forehead. “But, you're not running a fever, which is good.”