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SOFIA
Ifeel him watching me during my shift. He never moves from his post at the bar where he can see the Italian side of the house where I’m working tonight. I wonder if they put me here because it’s more sealed off than the Cuban side.
I wouldn’t be surprised.
I spotted Nico’s friend Miguel squatting at one of the tables in my section, but Livia told me to ignore him so he could do his job.
It makes me a little sick to think that Vin and Viv might be paying a cop to keep an eye on things while I’m working. I wonder how much that’s costing them. Perhaps I should offer to have them take it out of my pay.
“What’s wrong?” Livia asks when she finds me stewing in front of the soda machine.
“Nothing.” I straighten up to head back to work.
She shifts to block my exit path. “What is wrong, Sofia?”
“How much is it costing to have the police officer here?”
“I don’t know. Why?”
“I should pay for it since he’s here to protect you from people in my life.”
“They’re not people in your life. They’re people in your soon-to-be ex-husband’s life.”
“What is the English word for when something means the same thing or something similar? We learned it in school.”
“Semantics.”
“Yes, you’re using semantics. They wouldn’t be of concern to you or your family if it wasn’t for me.”
“Let me tell you something about how things work in this family. You are one of us. We protect our own. Period. The end.”
I’m mortified when tears fill my eyes. “You’re far too kind.”
“This isn’t kindness. It’s family, Sofia. We’d do this for anyone in our family who was in danger. I know I speak for Vin and Viv when I tell you not to give another thought to the cost of having Miguel here. They don’t care, and you shouldn’t either.”
“I do care. I hate that this is happening.”
“We hate it for you.”
“He… He wasn’t always this way. He used to be sweet and kind and…” My chin wobbles. “He wasn’t like this.”
Livia looks around to make sure the early customers have drinks and bread. “Once upon a time, before I met my husband, I had a boyfriend like your Joaquín. Oh, he was so sweet and funny and handsome as all get-out. I was madly in love with him. So madly in love that I didn’t notice for the longest time that he didn’t like it when I disagreed with him or wanted to do things with my friends that didn’t include him. Every time I went anywhere, he asked where I’d been, who I’d talked to and if I was interested in other men. He controlled my money, my mind, my body and made me afraid to tell him the truth and just as afraid to lie to him. He made me afraid of everything, and that was before he started hitting me.”
A sob erupts from the deepest part of me as Livia wraps her arms around me.
“Shhh. It’s all right now. You’re free of him, even if he hasn’t realized it yet. He will. Eventually. And in the meantime, you must stay firm in your resolve to move on without him.”
“I’ll never go back to him.”
“You may be tempted to before all is said and done.”
“I won’t be.”
“No matter what happens from here on out, we’ve got your back. We’re here for you and your son. You’re not alone with it. Not anymore.”
“Thank you so much. For everything. For the job and the family and for letting me know you understand how I found myself in this situation.”
“I understand all too well. I saw it in you from the beginning. You looked stunned, the way I did when I finally came out of the fog and saw what he’d done to me. I get it, and I’m here for you and Nico. Whatever you need. I’m here. We’re all here.”
