Chapter 2

When Esteban was twenty-one, a new family, by the name of Morales, moved into the area. They had bought the old Gomez's place, which neighboured alongside the farm which Esteban and his brother worked as labourers. Senor Domingo Morales was a widower with three children, Alfredo, Carlos and Juanita and they had come into the district under mysterious circumstances from the northern province of Huesca. No-one knew the reason why they had moved into the area but there were rumours of a duel, a woman, a death but the Morales family did not enlighten the good citizens of the district.

Juanita Morales had just turned eighteen and the moment Esteban saw her, he was smitten by the lovely young senorita. She was a slender young woman, slightly shorter than him, had light sandy coloured hair, almost blonde, with blue eyes. He knew straight away that he had to have her but what chances would he have with her, he was just a farm hand with no real prospects and she was a landowner's daughter.

Antonia urged her son to consider a match with her, for she knew that if the family was to regain their prosperity, her children would have to marry well. She did not want her children to remain as poor peasants, she wanted a better life for them, even if she couldn't have that life for herself. But Esteban was more a practical person than his mother for he realised that Juanita's father would not approve of the match unless he was able to support her to the level of comfort that she was used to. So he worked harder than before, he saved what money he could and by the time Juanita became of age, Esteban had been promoted to foreman and one of the advantages with his new position was separate living quarters isolated from the others, which were large enough to house a small family. Surely Senor Morales would not deny him marriage to his lovely daughter.

Juanita had noticed the young handsome labourer from the neighbouring farm and she felt a strange giddiness every time she saw him. Her heart fluttered at the looks of admiration, of hope that the young man gave her. She knew that her father would not approve of him, considering the story of his family's demise but she found that she didn't care about that, for she was in love. But she wasn't all that naïve, she knew that by marrying her, Esteban would gain the advantages of connecting himself with her family but she saw his potential to become more than what he was. She saw his ambition to recover what his family had lost and that excited her. She too wanted more from the life that her family now lived. Her own chances of marrying well, had disappeared the moment her brother dishonoured their family by his affair with the local official's wife and the ensuing duel of honour.

One Sunday after church, Juanita and Esteban met quite by accident, at least it was accidental on his part. She had wanted to meet the handsome young man for some time now and she realised that the best way would be after church, where no-one would suspect anything. Esteban was startled when Juanita joined him on the walk outside the church and when his eyes met hers, he felt his heart leap in his chest at her beauty, at the invitation in her sky blue eyes. But before he could say anything, Senor Morales called for his daughter.

The following Sunday, Juanita joined him once more on the walk down the aisle and outside the church. It happened the next Sunday but this time, she shyly pressed a note into his hand, which he read later and to his astonishment that she wanted to see him. Slowly a friendship, then a romance grew between them. They courted secretly until she was of age, when he asked her father's permission to marry her.

Domingo Morales felt that his daughter deserved better than some farm hand, whose father had destroyed the de Soto name by gambling his lands away but the prospects for his children were limited and so he grudgingly gave his approval to the marriage. As part of her dowry, he found them a position as tenant farmer in a neighbouring town and he paid for their first quarterly rent. That was all he was willing to do for his future son-in-law. The rest would be up to them.

Antonia was pleased for her eldest son, it was exactly what she had hoped for, a step towards regaining their heritage. He may not own the land, yet, but at least he was his own boss insofar as keeping any and all profits he made, once the rent was paid. She had high hopes for her eldest son.

Esteban was also aware of the importance of this beginning. It was a small step towards a better future. The land that he was now working was fertile, had good water supply and with the high prices that the crops were bringing in, he believed that within several years, he would have saved enough funds to buy a place of his own.

Juanita and Esteban settled quickly into their new life together and for the first several years they were happy, the harvests were plentiful and both saved what money they could and over time their funds grew into a nice nest egg. They had two children, with another on the way and everything seemed perfect for the de Sotos. But nothing lasts forever.

Five years after their marriage, a farm across the other side of the river came up for sale. Esteban and Juanita discussed the pros and cons of placing an offer for the property. It was a much larger farm than what they were looking for and therefore their funds were short of the asking price but Domingo offered them a loan for the difference. He had come to see his son-in-law as a hard working man and it was simply to good an offer not to take up.

The young couple were grateful for the assistance and arranged to meet with the owner but to their dismay, the prosperous farm had already been sold to a wealthy family in Madrid at twice the sale price. The owner was apologetic, he had come to respect the de Sotos and if he had known they were interested in his farm, he would have come to them sooner but the amount he was offered was too good to refuse.

Esteban was frustrated at the missed opportunity. He had a feeling that the new owner would probably not even come to stay on the farm, that he wouldn't take the time to nurture the land and he was right. The new owner stayed in Madrid and advertised locally for a position of manager to run the farm.

Juanita wanted her husband to take the position of manager, the salary was better than what they were earning from their crops and she tried to tell him that being the estate manager for a wealthy banker, would bring more attention to them, which in turn would bring more opportunities of advancement. But Esteban was obstinate, he never wanted to work for someone else, he wanted to own a farm himself and believed that this was the way to advancement. He would wait until he could buy their own place.

So in the end the de Sotos stayed where they were, as tenant farmers.

The next year, their harvest was low as a drought swept across area and it continued into the following year and into the next. It was the worst drought in almost twenty years and it lasted for five years. The de Sotos had to use their funds in order to survive, funds that would have bought their own farm. With the drought came disease and death. They buried three of their children before the drought broke.

During this time Esteban became embittered with life and his lack of advancement. His dream of regaining his family's honour disappeared as the years went on. He blamed others for his failure, he blamed the wealthy elite who took his fathers landholdings by deceit, the wealthy merchant who had stolen the farm he was meant to buy. He began to believe that he should have taken what he wanted, just as the wealthy had done for generations.

Juanita had become disappointed with her life, with her marriage. She had high hopes of a wonderful life with Esteban and of their future together but she had seen his ambition, that spark of zeal to have a better life for them, fade away to nothing. Their love for each other had become indifferent, the passion of their earlier years, gone. Her heart had broken as she buried her children in the hard ground and promised herself that even if she couldn't have the life she longed for, she would give her future children a better chance that she had herself.

So it was in this atmosphere of bitterness and disappointment that Ignacio was born.