It's Just Lola (3 page)

~ ~ ~

The priest celebrated solemn high mass to mark the anniversary of Virginia’s death, ending the official mourning period. 
Lola
tried to
remember the wonderful person the priest spoke of in his sermon, but her only clear memory was that of a beautiful woman in a big white bed.  When she thought of her mother, it was the image of the portrait in the dining room that came to her mind.

~ ~ ~

“
I’ll beat you to the table
.
”
Enriqueta raced
for the dining room.  She stopped short at the foot of the stairs and nearly toppled as Lola ran into her from behind.

“That’s
not
—” 

“Shhh.”  Enriqueta
stepped back and Lola saw what had stopped her—Jacoba was sitting at the foo
t
of the table
,
with her back to the door.
 
Lola saw the billowing skirt of Jacoba’s gown shimmer in the light of the
candles
.  The rich burgundy
exactly matched the color of the wine in the glasses, and
set off her
deep
ivory shoulders, which had never been displayed before. 

“Come in, ladies,” said Enrique. 

“Good evening, Papa.”  The girls took their seats.
  Enrique frowned and made an almost imperceptible motion of his head.

“Good evening,
Jacoba,” said Lola softly.
 
Her eyes went immediately to the
necklace—her mother’s ruby necklace.
  The fire of the large stone
filled her sight,
and she felt unable to move.

“Good evening, Jacoba
.
”
Enriqueta
’s voice sounded very far away
.  After a pause during which it seemed to Lola that even time itself stopped, Enriqueta continued.  “It’s a pleasure to have you join us this evening.”
  Enriqueta was so brave; Lola could not have spoken a word if her life depended on it.

Enrique nodded and Rosa began to serve
, breaking the spell of the necklace
. 

“Ladies, we have good news for you,” said Enrique when Rosa had withdrawn.
  “The lovely Señorita Jacoba has consented to be my wife.”
  Lola’s mouth went dry
; she couldn’t breathe; she couldn’t move
. 

Enrique raised his glass for a toast. 
O
nly then
did
Lola
notice
th
e
wine glass at
her
place
with
its
mouthful of wine. 
She
watched
her hand move toward the glass as though it belonged to someone else.  This couldn’t be happening. 
Her
hand shook as she raised the glass.

“To the beautiful Jacoba, may she grace my life forever.”  Lola tipped
her
glass up and touched the wine to her lips.
Drinking was out of the question.

“I wish you happiness,” said Enriqueta, after a significant pause. 

Lola could feel her father’s eyes on her.  She forced air into her lungs.
 
“M...May you enj...joy h...ha...happiness.”  Her lips had turned to wood. 

“Thank you, ladies.”  Enrique picked up his fork, and Lola could turn her face to her plate.  She felt a tear escape and watched it
land in her food.

~ ~ ~

L
ola
was
stiff and uncomfortable.  What was she doing in Enriqueta
’s bed
? 

“Enriqueta
, w
ake up
.
”  Lola
shook
her sister.  “Did I come to sleep with you after a bad dream?”

“Wha
...wha
t?”

“
T
ell me I had a bad dream last night
.
”
Enriqueta’s face
confirmed Lola’s fears.

“Did you see that dress?”

“Of course,
that’s
what she was doing all those days she left us alone.”

“How could Papa do this to us?  How could he do it to Mama?” 
T
he two girls clung together, weeping.  “Oh, Enriqueta
,
do you think Mama looked down from her picture and saw her ruby necklace?
”

“
Don’t be silly
. 
Mama’s in heaven, not in the picture.”

“I don’t know,” said Lola.  “Sometimes I talk to her in the picture, and she smiles a little—or frowns a little, depending on what I say.  Maybe we could just check and see how she looks this morning.”

“
All right
, but you’ll see.  The picture always looks the same
.
”
Enriqueta
bounced off the bed.  “I
’
m starving and I’ll bet you are, too.  Let’s
get
something
to
eat
and
then we’ll
look at the painting.” 

Lola realized that her stomach was rumbling.  Enriqueta was right; they hadn
’
t eaten much dinner.  The two girls crept down the stairs, the floors cool on their bare feet.  As they approached the kitchen
,
the yeasty odor of rising bread dough mixed with the strong aroma of fresh ground coffee
welcomed them
. 

“And why are my downy chicks walking around the house in their nightdresses?” asked Pilar, still turning the handle o
f
the coffee grinder. 

“We aren’t downy chicks anymore,”
said
Enriqueta, “we’re young ladies.” 

“That’s too bad because only downy chicks
eat
before breakfast.  Everyone else has to wait.”

“
Then w
e
’re
downy chicks
,
” said Lola.  The two sat on one of the plank benches that flanked the table in the large kitchen where the house servants ate.  Pilar gave a throaty chuckle as she put away the coffee grinder.  She lifted the cloth that covered the mound of rising dough and pinched off a generous amount, flattening it between her hands.  She grabbed a
fistful
of brown sugar from the bowl on the table and spread it over the dough.  Then she rolled the dough into a neat roll and tucked it into the oven of the wood-burning stove where the water for coffee was heating.

“Do you want to tell Pilar why there are tear tracks down the cheeks of my downy chicks?”  Pilar
continued to
bustle about the kitchen.  The two girls looked at each other.  They weren’t supposed to talk about family matters with the servants, but this could hardly be a secret.

“
Papa
’
s going to marry Jacoba,” said
Lola, unable to keep her tears from flowing again.

“
Poor Lola
got so pale
when Papa told us that
I thought she was going to be sick,
”
said Enriqueta.

Lola jumped up and started following Pilar around the kitchen, with Enriqueta close on her heels.  They began
telling Pilar all of their fears and all of Jacoba’s past transgressions against them, both real and imagined.

Pilar turned and gathered the two girls to her, almost smothering them in her ample bosom.  “My poor little lambs, my poor little lambs
.
”  Then, as rapidly as she had embraced them, she released them.  “Ay!  The bread!”
S
he
h
urried to the oven
and
remove
d
the treat. 
After
pour
ing
them each a mug of frothy milk, fresh from the morning milking, Pilar
went back to her work,
muttering under her breath.

“What’
re
you
whispering
?” asked Lola.

“I’m praying that God and the Virgin Mary will deliver us from the
evil in our house
.  You poor little lambs, even your sainted mother wasn
’
t able to cast out the
evil
from our midst.”

“Was Mama really a saint?”
A thrill ran up Lola’s spine at the thought
.

“Oh, yes. 
We all loved your mother and
would have defended her with our lives, but we were helpless against the curse of the pit viper.” 

Enriqueta drew in her breath sharply.
 
“I knew it
—t
here
are
real curses
.
  See, Lola?  It
’
s not a superstition
.”
Enriqueta looked earnestly at
the cook
.
 
“Pilar, tell Lola that spells and curses are real.
 
If you tell her
,
she
’
ll know it
’
s true because you never lie to us.”

“Oh, my little ones, it
’
s a sin to lie.  God sees the truth always.”

“But even if curses exist, they
’
re still sinful
.
”  Lola
’s
conviction waver
ed
in the face of Pilar’s words.

“
Yes, i
t
’
s very sinful to make spells and curses,”
said
Pilar.
 
“Now
go
get dressed.  Your father
’ll
be angry
if he
see
s
you walking about in your nightdresses.” 

“All right,
after we look at Mama’s p
icture
.
” 
Lola took
Enriqueta’s hand and they walked through the door to the dining room. 
She
let out a small scream as they stared at the blank wall where the picture had hung for longer than any of the girls could remember.

Pilar put her flour-covered hands on their shoulders and dr
ew
them back into the safe haven of the kitchen.

T
he wedding was held within the month in the family chapel.  Victoria and Amelia, along with their families
,
arrived first, followed by
Ernestina and her husband.  Ernestina looked pale and tired
,
as usual
.  Juana had sent word from Ecuador that she was under a doctor’s care and unable to travel.  Lola overheard
Amelia
whisper that Juana had just lost another baby.  Victoria said it must be
hard
for her.

“I don’t know,” whispered Amelia, “I think I’d rather be in bed bleeding to death than trying to choke out congratulations at this travesty of a wedding
.
”

“You know you don’t mean that,”
said
Ernestina softly.  “Be careful what you say or God will punish you and make it happen.” 

“No, of course I don’t mean it,”
said
Amelia.  She gently kissed
her sister
on the cheek.  Ernestina was always reminding everyone of God’s presence.  Ma
ybe
her poor health made her feel
closer to God.

“I
wouldn
’t be surprised if lightning strikes the chapel during the ceremony,”
said
Victoria.  “There weren’t this many flowers at Mama’s burial.” 
Lola edged closer to hear the lowered voices of her sisters.

“Pssst
.
”  Enriqueta
was
gesturing wildly for her to come. 
Lola
slipped
away from
the little knot of sisters and went to the door of the chapel.  Enriqueta grabbed her skirt and pulled her outside.
 
“You’re not supposed to be in the chapel
yet.
”  She handed Lola a basket of rapidly wilting flowers.  Lola picked one up and giggled as it drooped limply on the short stem.

Enriqueta
sniffed
.  “You wait and see what happens to them after Devil Spawn Pit Viper walks over them.  They
’
ll curl into brown death
.
”  Lola’s eyes widened.

T
he bride
stepped out of the carriage
, h
er
ivory gown set
ting
off her s
lightly
dark
er
skin.  Lola’s jaw dropped as she saw Jacoba’s long black hair falling in shining waves to below her waist. 
Her
smile showed perfect gleaming white teeth and even her eyes sparkled.  It was hard to believe
this
was the same woman who stormed around the house with a perpetual frown and a big ugly chignon at the base of her neck.  Something in Lola began to recognize the spell Jacoba had used on her father.  Before she could quite get it straight in her mind
,
a
shove from Enriqueta made her turn and begin to walk slowly down the aisle of the chapel.

“Throw the flowers
,
”
whispered
Enriqueta. 
As
Lola scattered flowers from her basket,
s
he
kept
waiting for signs of lightning or earthquakes
.
She wanted
to sneak a glance back up the aisle to see what had happened to the flowers
, but she couldn’t see around Enriqueta
. 

Mass was almost over when Enriqueta nudged her
and whispered,
“Look at Padre
.
” 
The priest
was preparing to give communion to the newly married couple, and his hands were shaking visibly.  The two girls looked at each other.  So Pilar was not the only one who knew what Jacoba was
.
  Lola held her breath as Jacoba received communion—no lightning, no one was struck dead.  Lola let out a sigh of relief that no natural disaster had descended upon them, but
her
relief was tinged with disappointment.  How could God let one of
H
is enemies receive communion? 

Lola and Enriqueta were corralled by their older sisters as they left the chapel, and were told to take their nieces and nephews to the
upper
verandah.  The nursemaids would go along to take care of the babies, but it was made clear that the older children were the responsibility of Lola and Enriqueta. 
Lola saw her disappointment mirrored on Enriqueta’s face
. 
I
f they were inside
with the nieces and nephews,
they
’
d miss all the
wonderful sweets Pilar had been baking for days
.
  They’d probably only get a taste of wedding cake brought up on a tray.

“
C
an we take the
boys
down to the village?  They could watch the dancing and have fun
,” said Lola with sudden inspiration
. 
“
We promise to be sure they stay with us; promise, promise
.
”

“We
’
re very responsible
,
”
said
Enriqueta. 
Amelia looked at Victoria and gave an almost imperceptible shrug.

“All right,”
Victoria said
, “but stay out of trouble.”

Enriqueta and Lola left quickly and found their two oldest nephews.  They grabbed their hands and ran toward the Cholo village before anyone could tell them that they needed to take the next younger ones as well.  The boys were excited about the prospect of visiting the village without their mothers or nursemaids around. 

“Wait
,
” said
Lola. 
“One of us has to go back and find a
dueña
to
come
with us.”

“
We don’t need a
dueña
,”
said
Enriqueta
.  “
Ricardo and Mateo
’
ll be with us.”  The boys nodded solemnly
and n
o one mentioned a chaperone again.

When they reached the village,
t
he streets looked as though they had been swept clean
.
T
here were no children playing outside. 
There weren’t any dogs, or cats, or even chickens. 
 
It was not what the girls had expected.  They looked at each other.

“What do you think?  Should we go back?” asked Lola.

“No
,” said Enriqueta
. 
“
If we go back we
’
ll have to stay on the verandah.  Let’s walk through the village; if no one comes
out,
we can turn around and go somewhere else.  Maybe we can sit under the guava trees in the orchard, or even
walk
to
the river
.
”

“Are we allowed?” asked
Mateo. 
Lola always felt an affinity for Mateo, Amelia’s eldest son.  Not only had he inherited the same small stature that bothered Lola so much, but he was completely dominated by
Ricardo,
Victoria’s eldest
.

“Of course we are,” said Ricardo.

“I’d much rather walk in the orchard,” said Lola quickly.  She knew that taking the boys to the river would get them all in trouble. 
“Here comes Juan.”  Lola waved, feeling much better.

“
Hola, Juan
.
”

“
Buenas días, señoritas y muchachos.
  Good day.  What brings you to our village?”

“We thought it might be fun to come and listen to your music and watch the dancing,” Lola
said
.  It was comforting to see Juan there.  She knew her father trusted him, and he was often in the main house.  His powerful build and his air of authority always made Lola feel safe, although she could not have put the feeling into words.  His
warm
smile
put
them all
at ease.

“You are most welcome,” he
said
.  “Please, come and stay in my home until the party starts.”

“Why are
n’t there any
children outside?” asked Enriqueta as they followed Juan to one of the larger houses in the village.  It was surrounded by a neatly tended vegetable garden and there were a few flowers planted by the front door.  Unlike many of the other houses, it had curtains in the windows.

“We
’
re keeping them in so they stay clean and neat
.
”

As they reached the house, the door was opened by Juan’s wife, Carmen.  She was large and solid looking and appeared more than capable of keeping the entire village under control.  Only her welcoming smile and soft words kept Lola from thinking they might
’
ve been better off at the river after all.  Lola looked enviously at the large colorful skirts that Carmen and her daughter, Inez, were wearing.  
Inez was about Enriqueta’s age, but she was dressed like her mother and
seemed
very grown up.  Lola
felt like a white mouse next to beautiful jungle parrots.

“When El Patrón and his bride
arrive
,
everyone must greet them and wish them happiness in their marriage,”
said
Juan.

Lola went rigid. 
“They
’
re coming here?”

“Don
’
t worry, Señorita Lola, you can stay inside the house.  They
’
ll only stay long enough to let us know that the food and drink are a gift
,
and we should be grateful.”  Lola couldn
’
t
understand
the bitterness in his tone.

The girls sipped the lemonade Juan’s wife had insisted on serving.  They watched as Juan’s sons and their nephews slowly approached each other, finally disappearing into the other room, followed by the voice of the mother reminding them to stay neat and clean.  Lola absently kicked her feet back and forth as she sat on the cane settee and looked around.  One end
of the large room
held a plank table and benches like the one in their own kitchen.  The furniture was mostly cane
,
and colorful pillows made the room look comfortable and inviting. 

Lola was
impressed
by
how clean everything was.  She
glanced
in the corners and under the furniture—places
Maria used to scold
Rosa for not cleaning.  Not a speck of dust was visible.  Even the leaves of the plant in the corner looked shiny and clean
.
  Why did everyone
say
Cholos were dirty? 
Shouts came
from outside.

“They’re coming!”
O
ne of Juan’s sons
ran
into the main room and rac
ed
toward the door, with all the other children at his heels.  Enriqueta grabbed Ricardo’s arm just as Juan’s wife put her hand on
Mateo
’s shoulder.

“The treats
are
for the village children,” said Enriqueta.

“Why can’t I have some, too?” Ricardo asked, struggling to get his arm away from Enriqueta.  His cousin was too intimidated by
Carmen
to
move or
say a word. 

“Because your grandfather might not be pleased to see you here,”
Lola
said. 

The boy stopped squirming immediately. 
“But Mama said we could come.
”

“Yes, to watch the dancing and listen to the music,”
said
Lola
. 
She
, too, suspected
t
he
ir
father might be angry to see them in the village—especially without a chaperone. 

Carmen
smiled.  “El Patrón will be too busy to think about you youngsters today, but it
’
s always better not to call attention to yourselves.”  Lola nodded.  That was
often
the best way to deal with
her
father.  The four watched from behind the curtains as the village children came pouring out of their houses, followed by the older children and adults who stood stiffly and smiled.  Lola thought they looked like Cholo dolls with smiles pasted on their faces.