AllFreeNovel
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“Say it like you mean it.”
“I mean it. Now shut it and have your sponge bath.”
“Dude, it’s the best. You ought to try it sometime.”
“I’ll take your word for it. See you tomorrow.”
“Later.”
I walk into the waiting room where the family is gathered. “Yeah, he’s totally fine.”
“Busting balls and giving orders,” Maria says. “The baby of the family thinks he’s the boss of us. We’ll put him back in his place when he gets out of here.”
“Yes, we will,” Dee says.
“Now I gotta go home and get ready to feed you all,” Maria says. “See you at the house in a bit?”
I give my sister a hug as she goes by me. “See you then.”
“If we get a minute later, can I talk to you about something?” Sofia asks Dee.
“I’m free right now.”
Sofia’s eyes dart around the room as if she’s not sure she should tell everyone her news.
“They’d want to know, sweetheart.”
“Is something wrong?” Mom asks.
“No, nothing is wrong,” Sofia says. “In fact, it’s good news. I found my father after wondering about him all my life.” She tells them about posting on Facebook and how easy it was to find him. “He lives in Minnesota and wants me and Mateo to visit him as soon as possible.”
“Are we going on a plane, Mama?” Mateo asks.
“We are. Doesn’t that sound like fun?”
“When can we go?”
“That’s what I wanted to ask Dee.”
As the general manager of Giordino’s, Dee makes the schedule, among many other duties that will eventually free up Vincent and Vivian to spend more time traveling and doing things other than working.
“That’s amazing news, Sofia,” Dee says. “You have to go as soon as possible.”
“I have to work this week, but I was hoping to maybe go Sunday to Tuesday of next week and only take Tuesday off.”
“I’ll take your shifts and give you the tips,” Dee says. “You need to meet your dad. Is there other family, too?”
“He’s married with four other kids.”
“You have four siblings!” Nona says. “How exciting. I agree with Dee. Don’t wait. Go as soon as you can. We’ll cover for you and make sure you get paid.”
“Who are you people?” Sofia asks softly. “The way you always put others first… I’ve never known anyone like you.”
“You’re one of us now, cariño,” Abuela says. “And I agree with Dee and Livia. This is such amazing news. You need to go right away and meet your family. We’ll cover your shifts.”
“Thank you all so much. Not just for this, but for everything. I wouldn’t have blamed you if… Well…”
“We know who shot Milo, honey,” Dad says. “And we know who didn’t shoot him. I’m sure I speak for my entire family when I tell you we’re deeply grateful that you and Mateo are no longer with him. Oh, and one other thing. Everyone is right. You should go meet your dad as soon as possible.”
I’ve never loved my dad more than I do in that moment, when he says exactly what Sofia needed to hear. “We’ll see you guys at Maria’s?”
“We’ll be along after a bit,” Dad says. “We want to spend more time with Milo first.”
“Can you give me a ride?” Dee asks me. “I took an Uber here so Wyatt and I would only have one car at Maria’s later.”
“Sure. Let’s go.”
