[Chapter 3]
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"Mariposita, I'm sure you'll love this. Now we have to stay very quiet, and wait" Bruno said as he sat down on a rock right next to Mirabel. They woke up that morning before the other members of the family. Her father suggested going for a walk in the woods that surrounded the house. Mirabel happily accepted, because she wanted to know her father's favorite places.
Finally, both reached a place covered by the trees of the mountain rain forest, he filled a small cup with water and sugar. Suddenly, Mirabel smiled as she saw several types of hummingbirds drinking from there. Her dad was right, it was the most beautiful thing that had happened to her in days. The two of them spent some more time looking at the birds until they decided to go back, since it was time for breakfast.
When they got home, they found Julieta on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Mirabel didn't blame her, since she had to live through, once again, the scene of getting up, going to her daughter's room, finding it empty and understanding that her own brother had taken her with him. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Julieta, we were just walking through the woods," Mirabel apologized. "I understand, just don't scare me like that again," Julieta replied.
The family had already gathered in the garden for breakfast. Mirabel looked at the food and felt no desire to touch it, since everything was Julieta's doing. Bruno took a plate, but she couldn't bring herself to do the same. "What's wrong, Mirabel? Aren't you hungry?" Julieta asked. "No ma'am, I had breakfast before going for a walk with pa... Bruno" said Mirabel.
"Really?" Juliet asked Mirabel. "Yes, Julieta. She ate something" Bruno interjected as he approached the table with the dish full of food. Julieta turned to him with her hands on her hips, and they gave each other a look that contained silent challenge. " Yes? because if things are like that, and both of you already had breakfast, then you don't need this" she said as she took the plate from his hands "not at all, I don't need it, but I'll keep the arepita, just for a snack". Bruno replied, keeping Julieta's challenge, while he sat at the table with the arepa and a cup of coffee. Mirabel was about to turn around, because she wouldn't eat anything, but her grandmother went ahead.
"Mirabel, don't go, we are going to talk about you," said her grandmother. She was ready to argue, and her grandmother must have noticed, since she clapped her hands and said, "casita." Suddenly, one of the chairs sucked her in and forced her to remain seated in front of the dining room table, right next to her. Mirabel bit her lip and got scared, that magic was completely terrifying and her grandmother was not helping her to understand it. "Change that face, Mirabel, it is a happy occasion, we have been waiting for years for you to be safe with your true family,"
"She was safe with me, until a guy with a gun threatened us one night, and I'm part of her family," Bruno intervened, which upset Isabela. "You should have a little shame, you are nothing more than a kidnapper who..."
"Isabela", her grandmother interrupted her. "As I was saying, I know that you have lived away from us for quite some time, and I would like to know a little more about you, what do you like¨?, what are your plans?, this will help to know your place in the family" said her grandmother. Mirabel felt happy, because she was a little interested in her. "I currently go to school, but I was on school break when this happened. I really like to sew, and I think I have a talent for it. Papá had thought about enrolling me in a technical institute for young ladies in the city of Tunja, so I could learn a little more about the sewing business and be able to work on my own," Mirabel began as she wondered if it was a good idea to tell her about Alberto. After all, her friends with old-fashioned, dictatorial patriarchs as fathers, were always talking about the trouble of having a boyfriend like hers.
"I guess papá wasn't wrong about that part," her grandmother said almost wryly.
"What else? How do you spend your days? her grandmother asked. "Well… In the morning, I teach sewing classes for children in the community center of the church. Then I go to class, do my homework, or go out with my friends. There is a lake nearby where we have picnics. I really like the novels for young ladies that I lend in the department's mobile library. My best friend is Miriam Quintero.I spent my days off with Dad working in the garden, taking care of the chickens, doing sewing jobs for the town, and I really like riding my bike and spending time with the neighbors.
"Very nice" replied her grandmother who took a strand of her hair and left it behind her ear. After, she took a quick look at her heart pendant and took a moment "Are you old enough to go out with boys yet, Mirabel? she asked her.
"Of course not," answered Bruno bluntly as he crossed his arms. "I have not allowed it. She is still very young, and I prefer that she continue her studies," he said. Mirabel knew that this was a complete lie. Bruno had always supported her relationship with Alberto, as long as she didn't neglect her grades.
"That's true, mom," intervened Julieta. "We saw it ourselves. She is still a child, the best thing for her is to continue her studies". Mirabel remembered Camilo telling her that he had been watching for weeks. Actually, he knew Alberto, it was impossible that she hadn't found out about him, and even so, she confirmed Bruno's lie.
"Oh Julieta," her grandmother complained, "you said the same thing about Luisa, if it weren't for our dear Isabela, I don't know what would become of us," she said. "Grandma" interrupted Isabela, "she is still very young, just a girl. Besides, Look at her, judging by her appearance, in this town there won't be anyone who wants to lay eyes on her, besides, she doesn't have a special gift, or something similar, she doesn't have anything to offer," Isabela opined in an arrogant tone. Mirabel felt her cheeks burn. She wanted to tell her that she was wrong, maybe she wasn't as pretty as her, or she didn't have a magical gift, but that wasn't true. Mirabel never had low self-esteem, but what she had lived through in the last few days was beginning to go to her head.
Despite the above, no one defended her. Mirabel felt very sad, but she didn't want to argue since she was still terrified by her sister. She didn't know why Isabela had to treat her that way. Her sister seemed to be perfect for that family, she was beautiful, intelligent, she had a very powerful gift, and her grandmother adored her, so she didn't understand why she attacked Mirabel.
"May I retire?" asked Mirabel, who wanted to get out of there, and go around the town to get to know it better. However, all the rest of her family stared at her. It was clear that they could not retire, it was her grandmother who ordered it. "No, not yet, dear, we're not done talking." Mirabel had to wait while they finished talking about the town, and it was there that she understood the family a little better.
Madrigals had sought a way to make themselves completely indispensable in the life of the town, in such a way that not a single leaf moved without their authorization, they were unintentionally what the people referred to as the "gamonales" of the town. Every town in the country had at least one family with similar conditions, in some way, some more extreme than others, or even two or three that sometimes clashed with lethal consequences. However, the Madrigal's gifts made them more dangerous, and far more powerful. She wondered if they had ever considered the possibility that outside of Encanto there were people who lived without needing that magic.
"Now, you can go," said her grandmother. Mirabel got up from her seat and walked towards the house, when she realized that Antonio blocked her path. "Mirabel" he said worried "one of the rats in the house told me that he wanted to apologize to you for yesterday. It wasn't his intention to bite you. He says that your scream scared him, but he's very sorry. He also told me that he is very clean and has no diseases" he said. Suddenly, she felt the gazes of her family upon her.
"Did a rat bite you?" asked Pepa, concerned as a cloud formed over her head. "This is all my fault, for not cleaning that room", she complained, while her husband ran to her side "calm down, Pepi , it was just a mistake. I will go through the boxes and everything will be solved ".
"Let me see," Julieta told her as she held up her hands. "It is impossible that you alone would have done this healing" she said.
"Dr. Octavio Calle did it for her," said Bruno. "I took her," she added. Julieta's facade seemed to transform, she seemed ready to gouge out her brother's eyes with her own hands, to the point that Agustín ran to her side, in case she decided to do so. "How dare you take her to that charlatan without my permission?" Juliet asked.
"I know it was wrong, but I've been this girl's father for ten years," Bruno said. "Besides, this wouldn't have happened if her parents had even bothered to get her a decent room, or say goodbye to her before bed, just the night of the long-awaited reunion." At that moment, her mother's little self-control ended and Agustín had to take her by her shoulders.
"Why did you just take her with him? Why didn't you take her with me?" Julieta asked. "Mom" said Mirabel who had never had the courage to call her that "it was my fault. I don't know how your powers work, so it seemed more sensible to go to a real doctor" replied Mirabel.
"A real doctor" imitated Isabela in a low voice, making fun of her. Julieta calmed down when listening to Mirabel. "Let's all calm down" intervened Uncle Félix, who had observed everything that happened in the company of his family. Julieta and Bruno gave each other one last resentful look and each went back to their work.
Mirabel went to her room, since she was the only one who hadn't been assigned a task. Even Bruno had been assigned to attend to the wishes of a wealthy rancher from a nearby village who wanted to know the future of his family before he died. She didn't even want to talk to Antonio, because if it hadn't been for him, nothing would have been known and now Bruno, Doctor Calle and her could be in trouble.
As she was completely alone in that huge house, Mirabel decided it was time to overcome her fear and go out to town for a walk. She walked for a long time through each and every one of the streets that made up the town, to the point that after a couple of hours she already had it memorized. Mirabel realized that people gave her two kinds of looks: pity and resentment. However, she ignored them as she made her way to the church. "I was wondering if they have extracurricular learning groups here," Mirabel asked the priest, as she offered to work in one of them, but he didn't have a place for her.
Mirabel didn't know why, but she had the impression that the priest didn't want to talk to her. Actually, no one had approached her since she started her walk. Mirabel was not used to that treatment, she had many friends in her former town, and her neighbors were also kind to her. Yet everyone there seemed terrified of her.
"Good morning, miss," said Estela, the doctor's wife. That small and motherly woman was the first person who spoke to her that morning. Both made small talk, until finally she invited her to lunch. Mirabel was completely famished. She hadn't had breakfast, so she accepted immediately.
"Good morning, doctor Calle" Mirabel greeted him as she entered the old man's house. He seemed happy to see her, and soon lunch began. "Doctor", began Mirabel who did not know how to introduce the topic without him knowing that she was talking about herself "let's say someone wants to leave this town, I have noticed that there is no road here, what should this person do?" Mirabel asked.
"It's not easy to leave the Encanto" replied the Doctor as he took off his glasses "the mountain should not be underestimated my dear, it's easy to get lost here, outsiders think these natural barriers are a walk in the park,something fun for tourists, something domesticated, but they are not. People get lost and die very often on these trails. There are entire caravans of families that have disappeared without a trace, it is as people say, eaten by the manigua." she started. "So if this imaginary person wants to leave Encanto she must hire a group of specialized mountaineers to guide her through the forest."
"Is there this type of mountaineer in Encanto?" asked Mirabel. "Of course it is", answered the Doctor who got up and turned on the radio at full volume "But, let's say that this person wants to leave without Alma Madrigal knowing, then I'm afraid she will have problems because all the muleteers in this town work for her. Also don't forget that she has a very powerful set of ears working for her," he continued as the singer's voice struggled to make itself heard. "In that case, what this imaginary person should do is save money, learn the way to Santa Rita, the neighboring village, and maybe there she can get the services of the local mountaineers" he said in a very low voice as he leaned towards her.
"How much money are we talking about?" Mirabel asked. "About seven hundred pesos," replied Dr. Calle. Mirabel was alarmed, that was quite a lot of money. Her grandmother had given her one hundred thirty, and getting the money would be quite difficult. Mirabel nodded, now she knew what she truly needed, and this was a job.
"Doctor Calle" Mirabel started again "do you know where I can get a job?" she asked.
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Mirabel felt discouraged when she saw the facade of the Madrigal house again. She didn't want to go in there, but she had to. "Mirabel" said Antonio, who approached her in the hall. Mirabel couldn't resist a sigh of exasperation, because that boy had already created too many problems for her. Still she stopped and gave him a fake smile.
"What's wrong, Antonio?" Mirabel asked. "I am very sorry about what happened this morning. I didn't think it was going to get you in trouble, I just wanted to make sure to tell you that the rat isn't sick, but I screwed it all up. Look, I brought you this to apologize" Antonio said as he handed her a paper bag. Mirabel looked inside it, they were yuca breads. "Mom made them?" Mirabel asked. "No, I bought them at the bakery, they're for you" answered Antonio with a smile. Mirabel smiled back, maybe she had been too hard on him. "Thank you very much"
Mirabel walked to the kitchen where all the women in her family were drinking coffee and laughing. "Mirabel!" her mother said happily "you've finally arrived, I saved you some lunch, there's minced meat, salad, soup..." Julieta continued. "I already had lunch, thank you very much." Mirabel interrupted her. Julieta prepared herself to give her a sermon.
"She tells the truth, aunt. Dr. Calle's wife approached her in the street and invited her to lunch, it would have been rude to say her no." Dolores said as she looked at her over her cup and winked at her. Mirabel couldn't help but feel nervous, her cousin might have intended to defend her, but her gift was terrifying. She only hoped that she hadn't been able to hear her conversation with the Doctor.
"Mom," Mirabel said, "Dr. Calle told me that there is a vacant position at the town pharmacy. I can work there in the mornings before I go to school, it seems like a good place, and it would be a way to adapt to the town. I know you don't get along with him, mom. I swear I tried to find something else, but I have the impression that no one in town likes me, no one wants to talk to me" Mirabel said while waiting for the blow, since the doctor told her he had noticed that the village pharmacist was not among Julieta's favorite people either. Her mother doubted her and stared at her, while the others ate in silence without missing a detail of the scene. It was obvious that she didn't want to refuse, but she didn't want to accept either.
"Mother!" Julieta said. Her grandmother was startled and nearly choked on her coffee. Julieta didn't want to say no, so she passed this responsibility to Alma Madrigal. "What do you think?" she asked. "Me? I am nobody, you are her mother "answered her grandmother immediately. "Mother, you always have an opinion, go ahead, do it, give your opinion." Her grandmother took a long exhalation, a sip of her coffee, then another long exhalation and replied: "it seems like a great idea, you will earn extra money and learn a new thing," Alma said, while her daughter looked at her.
"Really?" Mirabel asked as she smiled. "Yeah, you're not doing anything wrong. I just want a favor in return" said Alma as she gave her a smile "tonight you will have dinner with us. There will be guests and I want you to eat something, do not think that we have not seen what you are doing, and it is not healthy "continued her grandmother. Mirabel nodded without thinking. At that moment, Mirabel thought it would be a good idea to take advantage of the fact that her grandmother was feeling generous.
"Excuse me, Grandma, I would like to know where I can find a telephone around here," said Mirabel. As she said those words a thunder was heard. "She needs a phone, see? I told you it was important," said Pepa, who seemed annoyed, while the other women in the family gave her looks full of exasperation.
"I said something wrong? Mirabel asked. "No, nena, you are correct, you are absolutely right, I haven't heard anything more correct in months. We urgently need a phone in Encanto. I think we must be one of the few municipalities in the country that does not have one. A few months ago I decided I would get a phone installed for us. Wait a minute here, I'll show you the documents" said Pepa as she left the kitchen.
"Again with the phone" Luisa complained. "Mom has been upset for months. The head of the departmental phone company threatened her to ask a restraining order on her if she didn't remove the black cloud she put over his head. In the end, my mother was so insistent that the Minister of Communications himself wrote her a letter telling her that the infrastructure still does not exist for this town in particular to have a telephone, "explained Dolores between laughter and exasperation. Mirabel laughed when she heard that, apparently this absurd bureaucratic obsession must be a family thing, since Bruno had also had a couple of issues with the water company and the municipal hospital in which he had driven her to exasperation. They might be on the right, but they could be so annoying.
"Do you want to call someone?" asked Isabela who, for the first time, addressed a word to her in a non-aggressive way. "Yes, my friend Miriam Quintero, she has a phone at her house" Mirabel lied, because she wanted to communicate with Alberto. "Wow, your friend must come from money, because it is not common for someone in a small and remote town to have a private telephone. This is one of those hidden places where people come to ask for shelter when they have nowhere else to go. We don't have much stuff yet. The nearest telephone is in Manizales, five hours away on horseback. I think you'll have to make it work with letters or telegraph" replied Isabela. Mirabel just nodded as she couldn't force herself to answer her. Her sister wasn't accusing her of anything, actually, she was just trying to make a nice and normal conversation, and yet, she had a very imposing personality, very much like her grandmother's, which still scared her.
"Mom is coming back, if I were you, I would run. Once it took her an hour and a half to show me all her documents, and if you don't want to lose precious minutes of your life, it would be best to hide in the coffee plantations." she said. Mirabel could only remember Bruno's bureaucratic wars and she decided that she would rather hide in the coffee plantations than go through that again.
She left the kitchen through a side window and stood there by the wall. Until they started talking again. Surely they thought she couldn't hear them. But nevertheless. Mirabel peeked through the butterfly windows and watched.
"Thanks for your support, mom," Julieta said resentfully. "Julieta, I don't see what the problem is," Alma answered. "The problem is that I just had to look for the old Calle, one of the people who despises me the most, that filthy old man who feels more offended by the fact that I dare to heal as a woman, than by my magic itself," she said. "Julieta, I don't like that doctor either, but you heard her: she makes the townspeople nervous. They associate her with Bruno, there are those who believe that they could endanger magic. I can't force everyone in town to change their minds. And if Octavio Calle makes her feel better, then so be it" began her grandmother who, seeing that Julieta still could not find peace, decided to continue.
"What do you want me to tell her, Julieta?" her grandmother asked, "that she's not allowed to talk to anyone, that she can't have a perfectly decent job for a girl her age. Let's face it, yesterday was a complete disaster, and she even got bitten by a rat. She already sees us as the villains of her story, and I'm sure that the only thing your mother-in-law did was turn her against us. Octavio Calle was a problem when he arrived, but he is already here, and if he is nice to Mirabel, we could try to put up with it." Her grandmother paused and continued. "Besides, the truth is that Mirabel is not very useful and she is not well liked by the people of the town, but I do not want her to feel bad, I want her to feel at home, so having a job and acquaintances in the town will be good for her." said her grandmother who took a sip of her coffee and smiled "If I don't remember more, Octavio has a couple of boys of school age, I think they are the same age as Mirabel and they are studying in Manizales, they...
"Mother, no, absolutely not," answered Julieta. "In any case, I would like that girl to drop that expression of tragedy that she has since she arrived. I am the villain in her story" said her grandmother.
"Don't worry, Grandma" Dolores intervened with a malicious smile on her lips "there is another person here who is the wicked witch in her fairy tale" said her cousin, while she gave Isabela a sideways glance. Mirabel blushed, she didn't know she was so obvious. "Mirabel is too sensitive, she always was" defended Isabela who crossed her arms, frowned and lowered her head like a scolded child.
"I'm here" said Pepa as she entered the kitchen. "I'm sorry Pepa, mom sent Mirabel to run an errand" said Julieta who gave Alma a look full of resentment "but she's dying to hear how your affairs are going" she commented. Alma sighed and nodded as her daughter moved in next to her. "Look, this is the first letter I sent, that was last year, in April 1939...
Mirabel walked around the house and entered her room. The first thing she noticed was the absence of the boxes, and the second, the small army of mousetraps on the floor. Mirabel learned several things at that time. First, that perhaps the circumstances were not as black and white as she had initially thought. Second, Encanto was much more isolated than she had initially planned.
There was only one way out: the mountain, and that was very much controlled by the local muleteers, who were at the service of her grandmother. Communications were no better, since there were no telephones, and the letters were transmitted by these same muleteers. Mirabel had seen a telegraph office, but this way of communication was falling into disuse. In Tocama, surely none of her friends would have thought of going there to receive a message, when they had telephones to communicate. Not to mention that the telegraph operator could take the message to her grandmother.
At that moment, Mirabel admired Bruno's questionable achievement. He had found a way to escape from that town, alone, in the middle of the night, with a five-year-old girl who was probably struggling. Not to mention that a bunch of men paid by her grandmother could have chased them up the mountain.
Mirabel took the paper bag and looked at the yuca breads that Antonio had handed her. The bag had the bakery stamp on it, so she assumed he had actually bought them. Suddenly, Camilo's words echoed in her head "Bruno has as much magic as any of us". What did that mean? That anyone in that family could erase the memories? Mirabel felt bad for mistrusting a five-year-old boy, but the truth was that this little boy could talk to animals, and there was no guarantee that she hadn't put something in her food at the instruction of his grandmother or her mother.
Mirabel hid the loaves to bury them or get rid of them later. She got ready for the dinner her grandmother had invited her to. Bruno bought her a short-sleeved yellow dress to travel to the beach during their last vacation. She hadn't had a chance to wear it since then, as it was very cold in her town, but it would be perfect for the occasion.
"Adored cousin of mine," Camilo joked as he knocked on the door of her room. "Are you ready yet?" he asked. Mirabel opened the door and stepped out, and she realized that he had pretty much dressed up too. Both went down to the first floor. The family's guests were already there, but there was not the slightest sign of her father. She supposed he would not be invited to dinner, considering the circumstances. However, Mirabel knew that if he had already arrived, he would greet her.
"Grandma" Mirabel began as he approached her. "My dad hasn't arrived? Mirabel asked. "I'm afraid not, my dear. The village where he went is quite difficult to reach. Bruno's client is an elderly farmer who wants to know what will happen to his family after he dies" she said. "Who are we talking about?" Camilo asked, who for the first time seemed curious about the conversation. "From Manuel Villanueva, he wants to know which of his children will get the business," he said.
Camilo's smile disappeared immediately, "Grandma, that's very dangerous. The Villanueva brothers are about to kill each other for the inheritance, if that man dies while Uncle Bruno is there, it will be really dangerous, he could be in the middle of a war between Ramiro's and Hernan's mens, specially, because he is able to see the future," he said. Mirabel would have wanted to die at that very moment. "Grandma, how could you…" Mirabel mumbled in pain. However, she interrupted her. "Nothing will happen to him, Mirabel. The old Villanueva has been dying for two whole years, and he hasn't. Also, your mom sent him a few snacks so he can hold out a little longer. Julieta always does her job well, her magic may not be infallible, but the idea is that he survives a little longer. It would be too much of a coincidence if he happens to die right now."
They all took their places during dinner, and again, Mirabel had to sit next to her, caught between Isabela and her grandmother, right in front of her mom who would make sure she ate. Mirabel met Isabela's fiancé and his mother. He was a tall and handsome man who made a perfect match with her. His name was Mariano Guzmán, and her sister treated him with a cold kindness that scared her.
Dinner began and everyone started chatting around her, while Mirabel looked at the mazamorra soup in front of her. Mirabel was hungry. She only had lunch, and she didn't even want to drink the tinto coffee her mom made that afternoon, and it smelled so good. Mirabel remembered that Bruno had no problem eating her mother's dishes, even though she hated him, so she could give it a chance, there was no reason to fear. She slowly picked up the spoon and prepared to bring it to her mouth.
"Alma, dear. Did you hear about old Villanueva? He died this afternoon, "said Mariano's mother. Suddenly, all the sounds of spoons hitting the plates stopped. Alma Madrigal suddenly dropped the spoon and a hundred drops of soup spread everywhere. Her grandmother looked like someone had slapped her.
"He died precisely today?" her grandmother asked with a broken voice. "Yes, I know, it's strange, he had been dying for years, and from what I heard, he was slightly better." Mrs. Guzman answered. "Death is always a terrible thing..." began the old lady Guzman who did not stop talking about the importance of life in a flowery language, which was beginning to hurt her nerves.
Mirabel remembered who was in charge of Mr. Villanueva's survival for the day: her own mother. Could it be possible that she had done something as vile as poisoning him to get her father involved in his son's fight? Mirabel looked up and realized that the only two people who still had an appetite were her mom, and Isabela. Mirabel noticed that Agustín was holding hands with her across the table in front of her, and she wondered to what extent her biological father knew about it.
"... It is very difficult to love anyone more than your own children" Mrs. Guzmán continued the same stupid tone of hers. "It's completely true, Mrs. Guzmán" replied her grandmother "that's why despite how bad they behave, despite all the horrible things they do, one can't help but love them," said the old woman who turned very pale. "Well, Mom. I also adore my daughters, I would do anything, no matter what, to protect them "Julieta answered while she continued eating calmly.
"Can I go, Grandma?" asked Mirabel, who despite knowing she would tell no, wanted to try. "Yes, Mirabel, you can go," she replied. Mirabel ran up the stairs as fast as she could. She took her grandmother's money out of her suitcase. She decided that she would go to Dr. Calle's house, ask him for the names of some muleteers, and go look for them, even if she had to walk three hours to Santa Rita in the middle of the night. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door of her room. She opened it, it was Camilo.
"You're not going to leave in the middle of the night to look for Bruno, are you?" he said, crossing his arms and leaning against the door frame. "A guy like him isn't worth risking," he said. "Shut your mouth, no one asked for your opinion" replied Mirabel who abruptly pushed him out of the way. However, he caught her forearm. "Wait, everything will be easier if we go together. I'll pretend to be our grandmother and we'll hire a couple of muleteers to bring him back, but it'll cost us money" Camilo said as Mirabel gave her full attention.
"It's a terrible plan" said her grandmother who was approaching them down the hall. "They will know immediately. This is an authorization signed and sealed by me" said her grandmother as she handed them a piece of paper in an envelope. "Here's fifty pesos, tell them I'll pay them a hundred and fifty more if they bring my son back safely," she continued. "Your wishes are orders grandma" Camilo responded before taking Mirabel's hand and pulling hard. "Thank you, Grandma" was the only thing Mirabel could say before starting the road after her cousin.
Camilo's help was very valuable. He knew exactly where to go, and who to talk to. The mountaineers immediately received the money, mounted their horses, and set out on the road. "We should stop by Doña Flor's inn and eat something, I think neither of us could have dinner," Camilo said. Mirabel immediately agreed. She was very hungry.
"Why are you helping me? Mirabel asked Camilo "I thought you don't like dad," she said. "I don't like him, but I'm the hero who saved you, and it would look really bad if I didn't do a good job," he replied, mocking her. Mirabel couldn't help but smile "I'd say you feel guilty, since I've only been in this town for two days and they've been a complete disaster." Mirabel responded. However, Camilo preferred to remain silent.
Needless to say, Mirabel did not sleep that night. She spent the evening at the window hoping to see lights on the way. The next day no one questioned her when she refused to eat breakfast. Her grandmother also did not want to distribute tasks, or give them instructions. They all stood in cold silence as the tension grew. Suddenly, horses were heard on the way to the house, and the whole family left the table.
Mirabel saw one of the muleteers carry Bruno on his back while the two shared a horse. Her dad was swaying from side to side, as he was about to lose his balance. She felt like crying, he was probably hurt. Suddenly, Bruno couldn't take it anymore and fell from his horse onto the gravel floor. Pepa let out a scream, and Mirabel froze while the mountaineers got off their horses with the intention of helping him. Camilo was the first of the family who had enough courage to check how he was doing. Her cousin crouched down, wrinkling his nose, and kicked him in the stomach.
"Stop!" Mirabel yelled as she ran towards them. "He's hurt," she said. Camilo rolled his eyes "he's not hurt, he's drunk" his cousin complained. "Of course not, dad never drinks like that, he…" Mirabel began, who upon sensing a strong aroma, immediately moved away. "Papi?" she asked. "Mariposita" Bruno stammered as he opened his eyes. "Félix, Agustín, we have to get him up" said her grandmother who approached him "Bruno, what happened to the Villanueva's".
"Don Manuel Villanueva passed away while he was eating buñuelos, and I was preparing to see his future. I thought they would kill me," Bruno drawled. "His sons blamed my "perverse magic" for that event. Apparently I have a terrible reputation as a fish murderer," he continued. "However, it turns out that Don Manuel was a miserable, disgusting and perverted old man, a dictator in his own house, whom nobody loved. His two sons and his three daughters threw a party in my honor, because I had the courage to do what no one else wanted to do." she said.
"Such a good luck of yours,dear brother" said Julieta who had approached with her arms crossed and an indecipherable expression. "The Villanueva brothers decided that yesterday it would be a party, but tomorrow a real war will begin between them. I was wondering, dear sister, if we could postpone our personal war a bit longer," Bruno muttered as he held Julieta's gaze.
"Of course not, dear brother, our war is here and now" answered Julieta.
Hi everyone, I still have a lot of free time, so I am going to write. Thanks for the comments, kudos, categories, etc. That means a lot. Bye.