Cry Mercy

by Toni Andrews

  Tino turned pale, but he didn’t say anything.

  Teresa took a shaky breath, marshalling her strength. I couldn’t imagine what this argument was costing her. “Tino, I didn’t know any other way to take care of you. I wasn’t making enough money to get us a decent place to live. And, I knew I couldn’t keep you out of the gang—the Hombres were everything in the barrio. I even thought it might be better for you, having them to watch your back. But when you started staying out later and later—” Her gaze was imploring, asking him to understand. “I thought that if Flaco and I were living together, you might come home nights. And it worked. But I never wanted another man in my life after your father. Never.”

  “Funny,” said Tino. “I guess I thought you ended up loving Flaco.”

  She shrugged. “Sometimes I thought I did. He didn’t hit me, he gave me respect. And he made sure everyone knew I was his woman. The people in the barrio, they treated me nice. He got me the house. My house. But I never married him, no matter how many times he asked. I am still Señora Pelón.” Her tone was proud, and, even as she lay back against the pillow, I saw a little of that arched neck that had first made me think of a Thoroughbred horse.

  She went on.

  “Tino, when you started telling me about these new friends, how they were helping you, how you were going to leave the gang—I was afraid to believe it. You know how I knew it was all true?”

  “How?”

  “Joaquin. Last night, he said a lot of things. He said you were stepping down as jefe, going to some meeting to name Gordo to take your place. He said you made all the Hombres swear they wouldn’t let Gus back into the gang.”

  “Mami, I told you about Gus.”

  “I know, you tried, and I should have believed you. But if you really named Gordo jefe at the sit-down—”

  “I started to, but we got interrupted.”

  She looked at him sharply. “So you didn’t do it yet?”

  Tino blinked, then turned to me. “Well, yeah, I guess I did. Everyone agreed, right?”

  I cleared my throat. “Yes, they all recognized Gordo.”

  “So he’s jefe now?” Teresa struggled to sit up straighter against her pillows. Tino reached forward to help her, but she waved him away.

  “Not exactly,” said Tino. “He’s still waiting for my say-so.”

  “So what’s stopping you? Tell everyone he’s in and you’re out,” said Teresa.

  “But we didn’t agree on my other terms,” he protested. “We got interrupted before we got to them.”

  “What other terms?”

  “Territory, payments, stuff like that.”

  Teresa shook her head. “None of that matters. Hijo, as long as Gordo’s the new jefe, no one’s going to let Gus back in, right?”

  “Joaquin never agreed,” said Tino, looking mulish. “I gotta take care of him before—”

  “Joaquin’s gonna be too busy to mess with Gus,” said Teresa, “once I give my statement to the police.” She crossed her arms over her chest and lay back with an air of finality.

  “No fucking way! Look, Mami—”

  “Ay, hijo, are you trying to kill me? How am I supposed to get better if I have to worry about you?” Tino looked chastened and I suppressed a grin. Nice guilt trip, Teresa. Well done.

  “Tino?” Frank was poking his head in the door. “We really need to talk to your mother now.” He looked apologetically toward the bed. “Sorry, Mrs. Pelón, I already gave him more time than I should have.”

  “No, it’s okay, Frankie, come in. I have a lot to tell you.”

  “Mami…” Tino protested.

  “Tino, why don’t you go get some sleep? They aren’t going to let me out until tomorrow, at least. And after I’m done talking to the police, I’m going to need to sleep myself.”

  “Mami—”

  “Go!”

  “But—”

  “Come on, Tino,” I said. “I think your mother has made up her mind.”

  He made one last exasperated sound, but Cindy and Frank were already moving toward the bed. “Call me when you wake up,” Tino said weakly, as I followed him out of the room. I turned my head just in time to see Teresa holding out her hand to be introduced to Cindy.

  13

  “What on earth is going on here?” Sukey’s voice echoed my own puzzlement. “Who do you think all these cars belong to?”

  We were on the sidewalk in front of Hilda’s house on Lido Island, our progress blocked by vehicles spilling from her driveway.

  It wasn’t so much the quantity of cars as the quality; these weren’t the upscale sedans, sports cars and SUVs one expected to see in this neighborhood. A rust-pocked pickup truck crowded closely behind a violently green Dodge Charger. Parallel to them sat a white 1970s Oldsmobile sedan, clean but faded, and about the length of an aircraft carrier. A plastic Madonna, arms outstretched, festooned the dashboard. Several more vehicles were parked at the curb, some of which looked as if they were held together by baling wire and others that were low-rider works of art.

  “Some of Teresa’s relatives must have come by to visit,” I said, squeezing between vehicles.

  “And I’ll bet Hilda’s neighbors just love that.” Sukey rang the doorbell.

  The door was opened by a boy of about six. He held a ratty stuffed animal of indistinguishable breed and looked up at us with enormous eyes.

  “Well, hello there!” said Sukey. “What’s your name?”

  The eyes got a little bigger, but otherwise there was no response.

  “Alejandro? Alejandro, where—” Hilda came around the corner into the foyer. “There you are, you little dickens. Come on back and finish your breakfast.” She hoisted the unresisting child onto one hip and turned to us. “Well, don’t just stand there, you two, come in.”

  I followed her, mystified. She continued to talk to the child. “You didn’t finish your cereal. Don’t you like bananas? Your auntie said they were your favorite!” As we turned into the kitchen, Sukey stopped so suddenly I almost bumped into her.

  The room, including the adjoining breakfast nook, was full of people. Hilda put the boy down on the bench that ran behind the table, and he climbed onto some pillows and started solemnly spooning cereal into his mouth. One of the two men seated at the breakfast nook reached over and tousled his hair.

  “Everyone, I want you to meet Sukey and Mercy.” Hilda raised her voice over the buzz of conversation, and I watched as several unfamiliar faces turned to look at us. The room was redolent of breakfast smells and, if I wasn’t mistaken, cigar smoke.

  “Let’s see if I can get everyone’s name right. Sukey, Mercy, this is Teresa’s brother, Javier, and her cousin Jorge.” The two men at the table nodded. “And this is Lourdes—have I got that right, dear?” A young woman, who was pouring orange juice from a pitcher into a row of glasses on the counter, smiled and nodded. “She’s Alejandro’s mother. And this is Maria, her mother, and her father, Benny. And…where’d Gloria go?”

  “She’s outside, with the twins. They wanted to watch the boats,” said Lourdes.

  “Oh, dear, I should have told them to be careful on the dock. I have life preservers in the boathouse. Sukey, could you run outside and show Gloria where the life preservers are?”

  “Sure,” said Sukey. She looked over her shoulder at me as she headed out the door, eyebrows raised. I don’t even know what to think about this, she said silently.

  I could feel her amusement, even if I couldn’t hear it. I looked away quickly, afraid I’d burst out laughing myself.

  “Mercy, don’t stand there like a statue. Wouldn’t you like some breakfast? How about coffee?”

  “Coffee will be fine,” I said automatically.

  “I’ll get it,” interjected Estela. She’d been unloading the dishwasher when I’d entered the kitchen, and when she turned to reach for the coffeepot, the expression on her face was thunderous. She pulled a mug from the top rack and filled it for me.

  The phone rang, and
Hilda crossed the room to pick it up. “Hello? Oh, Isabella, I’m glad you called back. Did you get the directions?”

  “Are all these people here to visit Teresa?” I asked Estela, as she put down the pot and opened the refrigerator to get cream. Tino had brought his mother directly to Hilda’s house from the hospital as soon as she was released, with the idea that it would be a safe and quiet place to convalesce.

  Estela snorted. “Visiting? They’re staying here.”

  “You’re kidding me.” I took a sip of excellent coffee. Lido Island, the new barrio. Next thing you know, Hilda would be voting Democrat.

  “No, it’s true. Teresa told Hilda all about this man who shot her, this Joaquin person, and Hilda, she decides that maybe he’ll go after someone else in Tino’s family. So she invites them all to stay here until the police catch Joaquin.”

  “Chickens?” Hilda said, still on the phone. “I don’t know, Isabella, that may not be such a good idea. There’s no fence around my yard.”

  “Ay, Dios mío.” Estela looked heavenward. “Tino’s great-uncle wanted to bring a goat.” She turned to interrupt Maria, who had picked up a wooden spoon and was about to stir whatever Estela had cooking on the stovetop. “Es mi trabajo.”

  The woman gave up the spoon with reluctance, and I retreated to the other side of the kitchen. Estela obviously wasn’t taking this incursion into her territory very well.

  Hilda hung up the phone. “Sorry,” she told me. “That was Tino’s cousin. She wasn’t sure what to bring with her.”

  “Is she really planning to pack the chickens?”

  Hilda laughed. “I hope not. My neighbors are upset enough about the cars, but there isn’t anything they can do about it, as long as everyone’s parked legally. I’ll rearrange later, and put the real eyesores inside the garage.”

  I looked at her more carefully. Whereas Gus’s arrival had made her a nervous wreck, I saw no sign of stress on her face at this new chaos. On the contrary, she looked exhilarated. “Did you come by to see Teresa?” she asked me. “She should be awake from her nap soon.”

  “Sukey and I came to pick up Cupcake.”

  “He’s not here yet. Tino went to the marina to pick up Gus. They’ll be back any minute.”

  “I thought they were coming back yesterday.”

  “Grant called, ship-to-shore, and said they were having a good time and wanted to stay out another night. Since Gus didn’t know about Teresa being shot, the timing was perfect.”

  Depends on what you call perfect, I thought. “It’s going to be interesting when he finds out you kept it from him.”

  Hilda grimaced. “We’ll just have to burn that bridge when we get to it.” I wondered whether the mixed metaphor was intentional.

  “Señora Hilda, we’re out of milk,” said Estela. “We’re going to run out of everything else, too.”

  “I suppose you’ll have to make an extra grocery run. Jorge? The Oldsmobile is yours, right? Can you move it, so Estela can get the Suburban out of the garage? Just pull it in after she leaves—she can park on the street when she gets back.”

  Estela removed her apron. “How many more people are coming? I need to know what to buy.”

  “I’m really not sure. Lourdes, how many children does Isabella have?”

  “Four,” said Lourdes. “And her younger brother stays with her, too.”

  “So, six more people. That makes…oh, I’m sure you can figure it out, Estela. Do you have my credit card? And don’t forget diapers—Gloria said the twins are running low, and I think two of Isabella’s kids are still young enough to need them.”

  “Sí, Señora Hilda.” Estela sighed theatrically and opened a kitchen cabinet door to remove her purse. She turned the heat off under the bubbling pan, then looked around the kitchen. They better not break anything while I’m gone.

  I almost choked on my coffee as the door to the garage slammed behind her.

  “I’m going to have to give her a huge bonus,” said Hilda. “Come on outside and meet the twins. Wait until you see them—they’re completely adorable.”

  On the patio, Sukey sat on one of the lounge chairs, her sweater buttoned high against the wind, chatting with a hugely pregnant young woman. A thin man about Tino’s age stood on the dock, supervising a pair of identical toddlers encased in matching oversized lifejackets.

  “That’s Eddie, Gloria’s husband.” Hilda waved, and the young man waved back, then returned his attention to the children, who knelt near the edge of the dock and peered over the side.

  “You seem to be enjoying yourself,” I commented.

  “You know, I am,” she admitted. “I was an only child, and my cousins didn’t live nearby, so I’ve never been around big families. I thought they’d drive me crazy, but they’re really no trouble.”

  “I don’t think Estela agrees.”

  “Oh, she’ll get over it. And they’d help if she’d let them. She about had a fit when Tino’s aunt started a load of laundry in her washer. They’re all used to doing things for themselves.”

  “How’s Teresa?”

  “Tired, but okay. I haven’t had an opportunity to speak with her alone yet.” A furrow appeared between her brows, the first sign of discomfort I’d seen on this visit. She turned to face the water. “She’s not what I expected.”

  You’re probably not what she expected, either.

  “No, I suppose not.”

  I almost dropped my cup. Hilda had answered exactly as if I’d spoken aloud. It was a good thing she’d been turned away from me when I had the unspoken thought. I was going to have to be more careful.

  I looked at my watch. “Hilda, I need to go open the office. I’d like to see Teresa later, though. I’ll come by at lunchtime, if that’s all right.”

  “Do you mind if I stay here until Tino gets here with Cupcake?” Sukey asked. “I can walk over to the office with him. Your first appointment is Mrs. Needham.”

  I nodded. Sue Needham was a repeat client. My methods meant that a follow-up appointment was usually unnecessary, but I had a one-issue-per-session policy. If a client wanted to quit smoking, start exercise and improve their work habits, I tackled the items one at a time.

  I almost made it to the front door when it was flung open violently.

  “Where is she?” Gus asked, looking around wildly. “Mami! Mami!” I had no idea in which room Hilda had installed Teresa, but Gus wasn’t waiting for an answer. He sprinted down the hall just as one of the women—Maria?—came out of the kitchen and into the foyer.

  “¡Gustavo! Espera, muchacho, su madre necesita dormir.” She set off after Gus, followed by the rest of the people in the kitchen. If Teresa was, in fact, sleeping, she soon wouldn’t be.

  Tino appeared in the doorway with a leashed Cupcake, who barked joyously at the general chaos. Tino’s expression was murderous.

  “I swear, I should have told Grant to throw that pendejo overboard somewhere between here and Catalina Island.”

  “He’s pretty upset.”

  “And blaming me. He said it’s my fault Mami got shot.” Which maybe it is. I heard the words as loud as thunder. He shut the door and unhooked Cupcake’s leash, upon which the big mutt followed the gang down the hall.

  “It’s not your fault, Tino. You were trying to settle things peacefully.”

  He ignored me. “Then he said that I should have told Grant about it when he called yesterday, not let him stay out sailing a second night. He said I was trying to make sure he didn’t go after Joaquin.”

  “Well, he’s right about that.”

  “Yeah.” And if Mami hadn’t made me promise, I’d have gone after the fucker myself.

  I squirmed. This was the first time I’d heard Tino’s thoughts, and it wasn’t something I wanted to get used to. I hoped I heard them now only because his emotions were so strong. I knew how to block someone’s thoughts—my experience with Dominic had taught me that—but it took an effort. I was afraid a consequence of my recent telepathic exercise
s was that I was going to have to be on guard all the time.

  He sighed deeply. “I better go get him. He’s gonna get all crazy with Mami.”

  “Whatever you think. But you’re not going to be able to keep him away from her forever, and right now she’s got all your relatives to protect her.”

  He gazed down the hall for a moment, shrugged, then turned into the kitchen. I followed and watched as he poured himself some coffee.

  “Tino, I need to ask you to do something for me.”

  He looked surprised. “I’m a little busy right now.”

  I shook my head. “It’s nothing like that. It’s about the…hypnotism I’ve been doing for you lately.”

  “What about it?”

  I’d planned this speech. Tino might not be educated, but he was smart. “My methods are a little different from the way most hypnotherapists work. I’d rather you didn’t tell anyone that I hypnotized those men at the meeting. Or Marisol and Gus. Or the nurse at the emergency room.”

  “Why don’t you want anyone to know? That shit is powerful, man. You could make a fortune. You could, like, walk into a jewelry store and tell them to give you a Rolex.”

  I sighed. I’d also planned the next part, just in case. “You will not tell anyone you have seen me compel someone to obey or agree,” I pressed, twinges of guilt like bee stings in my mind. “If someone asks you about it, you will say that you saw nothing unusual. Will you do that?”

  “Sure. I didn’t see nothing unusual.” He sipped his coffee.

  Sukey came into the kitchen, followed by Hilda. “Did I hear Cupcake?”

  “Yes. We need to go now, or I do.”

  “I’ll come with you. Let me just go get—” Before she could head down the hall in Cupcake’s direction, the dog heard his beloved’s voice and bounded around a corner toward her.

  “My baby!” she crooned. “Mama missed her best baby boy, didn’t she? Yes she did!”

  It was a mad dash, but we made it back to the office in time for Sue Needham’s appointment, and my morning clients were comfortingly routine. I was glad none of them had come in for the purpose of dealing with family issues, at least not today. Between Sam and Tino, I was about done with families.