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“So he killed her? Just because she was friends with another man?”
A small cry escaped Aunt Ruthie. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice wobbling, and she left the kitchen.
“It’s okay,” Uncle Sal said. “All this is really hard because your aunt loved your mom so much. They were best friends growing up.”
I nodded and thought about the picture of Aunt Ruthie and my mom when they were about my age. The two of them had gone blackberry picking, and they looked so happy.
“Hey.” Uncle Sal rinsed out a dish towel to wipe down the counter. “If you have any questions, or you just want to talk about this or anything else, you can talk to me, okay? It doesn’t matter what it is, you can ask me anything, okay?”
“Okay.”
My younger cousin Lia charged into the kitchen and launched herself at Uncle Sal. “I have a question.”
He easily caught her and tossed her over his shoulder. “Lia? I thought you had a question for me, but now you’ve disappeared. ¿Dónde está mija? ¿Dónde está?”
Lia laughed and kicked her feet. “I’m here, Papa. Estoy aquí.”
Uncle Sal set her upright and kissed her forehead. “Aw, there you are, mija. Now, what’s your question?”
She grinned. “Can we order pizza tonight? Please?”
“Pizza?” Uncle Sal looked at Aunt Ruthie who’d come back into the kitchen. “What do you think, cariño?”
Aunt Ruthie’s eyes were bloodshot as though she’d been crying, but she nodded and even gave a little smile. “I think pizza is a great idea. And maybe while we wait we should make brownies for dessert.”
“Yes,” Lia shouted. Then she said something to Uncle Sal in Spanish that I didn’t completely understand.
Unlike me, Lia spoke flawless Spanish just like her dad and grandma. I tried not to be jealous, but sometimes I wished I had flawless Spanish too.
For the rest of the evening, I tried not to think about what I’d just learned about my dad. I also tried not to think about how I’d feel when I saw him this summer.
During dinner, Uncle Sal and Lia joked about the Full House episode where Stephanie backs the car into the kitchen. Aunt Ruthie, Lia, and I were obsessed with that show. Aunt Ruthie and I had watched Full House from the beginning when I was just three and Lia was in her mom’s tummy.
Uncle Sal didn’t have time for TV because he was so busy at the restaurant. Sometimes he watched a show with us while he did his paperwork, but he never paid close attention, which was why he was so confused now and kept asking questions about how the car wound up in the kitchen.
Later that night, when we got into bed, Lia asked me what theme we should choose for our birthday this year. Even though we were born four years apart, Lia and I always celebrated our birthdays together in July right after Aunt Ruthie’s birthday.
Every year, we did the same thing, which I loved. We’d invite all our friends to the restaurant where we had run of the banquet hall. The menu was usually the same, but each year we chose a different theme. In the past, we’d done Paris, polar bears, mermaids, and nearly every Disney Princess.
“What do you think about a Beanie Baby theme?” Lia asked. “Instead of a gift bag, we could give everyone a Beanie Baby when they leave.”
My nose clogged, and hot tears burned my eyes. I opened my mouth to respond, but my throat hurt so bad I couldn’t talk. Suddenly I was crying like I did when Abuela got really sick and almost died.
“Brandy, what’s wrong?” Lia climbed out of her bed and sat on mine. “Are you hurt?”
I shook my head and sniffed hard. “No.”
“But you’re crying. Why are you crying?” She patted my leg. “Do you want me to get my mom?”
“No. Don’t.”
“Okay.” She sat very still, deep in thought. “What about a beverage? Do you want something to drink? Maybe milk or juice?”
Her question reminded me so much of something Aunt Ruthie might say that I smiled. Then I laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
I wiped my tears on my pajama sleeve. “You sound like your mom asking if I want a beverage.”
