Read Online The Red Umbrella by Christina Gonzalez - Free Book Online

do the chaperoning. And you think your mother will agree to this?”
    “Yes, yes.” I bounced up and down. “I’ll take care of it. Please, will you do it?”
    He blew out a puff of smoke and nodded.
    I threw my arms around his neck. “Thank you, Tío. You’re the best!” I raced back toward the house.
    Mamá stood in the doorway with her arms crossed.
“¿Qué quiere Antonio?
Is he here to argue again?”
    “No, he’s just waiting for Papá.” I saw Mamá’s eyes narrow. “He wants to apologize. He wants to straighten everything out.”
    Mamá dropped her arms and her face softened. “I knew he’d come to his senses. Family is family, after all.” She looked over at the brown convertible. “Tell him to come inside. We can wait together until Papá gets home.”
    I looked back at my uncle casually smoking his cigarette. “Mamá, Tío says he can take me to the dance and be my chaperone. That way I won’t be late and you can stay with Frankie.”
    Mamá waved her hands. “No, no. I think it’s more appropriate if I chaperone you. It’s your first dance.”
    “But if we keep waiting, I’ll miss my first dance. Please. You can meet us there after Papá gets home. Just don’t make me be late. Not tonight, please.” I glanced back at Tío and waved.
    “Bueno
, I don’t want you to be late.” She thought it over. “Fine, but I’ll take a taxi over there the moment your father gets home. Then your
tío
can come over and talk to your father in private.” She nodded, approving of the idea. “Yes, a little time together alone is just what those two brothers need.”
    “Thank you, Mamá!” I turned around, held up a finger to let Tío Antonio know that I’d be back in a minute, then rushed into the house to get my purse and gloves.
    Mamá trailed after me. “Lucía, wait, one more thing.”
    I quickly stopped to check my reflection in the hall mirror. My pink dress was still crisp, no sign of wrinkles anywhere. My hair still held a few curls at the bottom and there was no shine on my nose. Perfect.
    “You do look beautiful,
mi hija.”
Mamá beamed.
    I turned and smiled. This night was going to be one I’d always remember.
    “Here. I want you to wear these.” Mamá reached for her diamond earrings and unscrewed the backs.
    “Mamá, you never take those off.”
    “Tonight they’re yours.” She placed them in the palm of my hand. “Now go. Your
tío
is waiting. I’ll be there in a little while.” She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.
    *  *  *  *  *
    “I promise you won’t have to stay long, Tío.” I held my hair in one hand so that it wouldn’t fly all over the place in the open convertible.
    “Not a problem, Lucy.” He adjusted the rearview mirror. “You can always count on me, even if I’m not your father’s favorite person.”
    “Why are you in a fight with him?” I asked.
    Tío Antonio shrugged.
“La vida.”
    “Life?”
    “Just the way life is. Fernando and I have always seen things differently. This time, though, he’ll come around. He just needs to learn a few hard lessons.” Tío Antonio took another drag from his cigarette.
    I leaned back against the white leather seat. We were approaching the center of town. The park was nearby. I knew Doc Machado had already been buried, but I didn’t want to see the tree or even the park entrance. I turned to face Tío Antonio.
    “What’s
patria potestad?”
I asked, partly because it bothered me that my parents had never answered my question, partly because I wanted an excuse not to think about Doc Machado.
    “Wow, where’d you hear about that? No, wait, let me guess.” Tío Antonio shook his head.
“Mi hermano.”
    I sat, silently waiting.
    “Patria potestad
, huh? Okay, well, I think it’s Latin. It means parents have the right to make decisions for their own kids.” Tío brought the cigarette back up to his lips, this time leaving it dangling from the corner of his mouth. “But that’s not why you heard