Chapter 48

An Interrupted Reunion

Héctor had been hoping that Ernesto would have taken into consideration the urgency of the situation as he followed him along the vast corridors of his mansion. He didn't have to undo his shirt to know that his skin had dissolved all the way up to below his chest, and his arms were now bare bones up to the shoulders. Time was of the essence, but apparently Ernesto just had to give him a brief tour of the place before they had a chance to talk in private.

But of course…

Leti had decided to hang back at the party, feeling that she would be intruding on her father and Ernesto's private conversation. Héctor had balked a little at first, not wanting to be separated from his daughter with the remaining time he had left, but he was actually a little grateful. He could still feel the mixed emotions of seeing Ernesto again boiling inside of him, some of them not very pleasant. He would hate for Leti to see him if one of those negative feelings got the better of him. Especially now, watching Ernesto preen and prance around like a peacock as he showed off his treasure trove of offerings while his best friend was slowly dying.

"All of this came from my amazing fans in the Land of the Living!" he had crowed as he showed off more towers of food, instruments and other offerings piled in a grand sitting room, a roaring fireplace casting a beautiful golden glow on the polished marble columns and shiny clean tiles. His four chihuahuas scattered about their feet as they fought for one lone drumstick, despite the fact that there were dozens of bowls of meat for them to choose from. "Well, most of it anyway. A lot goes to places in need, like Shantytown and such."

"Yes, I saw that." Héctor said. "That was very kind of you. I could tell they were very grateful for it all."

"Ohh, you went to Shantytown, eh?" Ernesto grinned, but Héctor could tell there was a hint of nervousness in his voice. "So, uh… What did you do there? Just mingle with everyone? Leti has a lot of friends there, I'm sure she wanted to introduce you."

"I met my mother."

"Ah, gracias de Dios!" Ernesto heaved a relieved sigh, laughing a little. "I didn't know if you did or not, so I didn't know if I should say anything. That must have been quite a shock to you."

"Sí…" Héctor admitted quietly. "I wondered for years what she might have been like, or if she even cared about me. I don't think I ever really considered she was just a poor kid who was treated so badly by people she trusted. And I certainly didn't expect Domingo Cavellero to be my father, or whatever I should call him. She said to call him a cabrón, and I'd have to agree with-"

"WHAT?!"

Héctor turned to see that Ernesto was no longer walking next to him, but had frozen a few feet back. His jaw hung so low it looked like it was about to fall off at the hinges, and he stared at Héctor in shock. Héctor smirked at that. "That was my reaction too. You didn't know?"

"Pfft, NO!" Ernesto pouted and caught up to Héctor with a few bounds. "Granted I'd only spoken to Nieve a few times and she was never the talkative kind. And I guess it's a sore subject matter… But still, the Cavalleros! To think you could have been a part of prestigious family with a silver spoon in your mouth if your papá wasn't such an ass."

"I think if I was a part of that family you and I never would have been friends, let alone have met."

Ernesto pondered that with a small hum, his face softening as his expression turned wistful. "You're right. And in the end you and your family became much more prestigious than any of them, and I'm talking about more than fame and fortune.…" They continued to walk in a much more comfortable silence, smiling softly as they thought back on happier times for at least a brief moment, until with a start Ernesto looked up with a grin. "Ah, speaking of your family, look here. This is where I keep my most treasured of offerings."

Leading them off to the side Ernesto brought Héctor before a long glass case, lifting open the cover to let him see. Inside were piles of offerings, each little mound marked with a year in front of them from 1943 to the current 1951. There was nothing remarkable about them, mostly cakes and pan dulce, cups of frothy hot champurrado and bottles of tequila. What was really amazing was how they all still looked as fresh as the moment they were made, and Héctor could swear he could still see steam rising from the chocolatey mugs.

Aside from the food Héctor also took into account all of the trinkets and tokens as well, a few pieces of artwork catching his eye. They were drawings of Ernesto, though he had to really look hard at some of them. They looked like the artwork of a small child, but every year Héctor could see the improvement to the point where he began to notice the familiar style.

"Are these… Miguel's?" He asked as he held up the newest one from this year, a vast difference between the childish scrawl of when he was four. He certainly got Ernesto's smug grin down pat.

Ernesto nodded, beaming. "Sí! Héctor, all of these are offerings from your ofrenda. The ones that Imelda and the kids leave out for me. Couldn't bear to eat them, they mean too much."

Héctor noticed the way his name was left out of the group who gave the offerings, as well as the way Ernesto's smile seemed to dim a bit, but before Héctor could start to feel an inkling of guilt Ernesto reached into the case he pulled an item out. "I care for all of the offerings your family gives me, but this? Hoo hoo, this is my absolute favorite!"

Ernesto let the item fall out of his hand, a boney finger catching it on the long chain. Héctor recognized it instantly with a small gasp. It was a pocket watch: still as mangled and tarnished as it was the last time he had seen it, with the bullet still embedded in it. "Matty's watch?!"

"Isn't it marvelous?" Ernesto said. "Best thousand pesos I ever spent!"

"How is that possible?" Héctor asked as he took the watch to examine every inch of it. It certainly felt cold, heavy and real. "I know for a fact that Matty keeps this in his office desk in Houston!"

"He left it on his ofrenda." Ernesto explained. "When an offering is laid out you can just take a copy of it. Well, maybe not a physical copy, per se, more like… you take the emotion and memories of the object, and it becomes part of you and your memory."

Héctor pondered that, vaguely remembering seeing the other spirits in the cemetery collecting ghostly objects from their own ofrendas during his frenzied panic. "I see…"

"And it is a great conversation piece!" Ernesto said, taking it back to place back into the case. "That the very watch that I bought him as a boy was taken to the other side of the world and protected him from a bullet that nearly pierced his heart!"

"Actually he was struck on the right side, the heart is located on the le-"

"His heart that drove him to fight bravely for the Mexican Armed Forces!"

"He was in the American Army-"

"And saved him from dying on German soil-"

"Italian."

"-so far from home!"

As Ernesto finished in a grand flourish Héctor couldn't help but snort in amusement. "Okay, whatever you say." Watching as Ernesto put the destroyed timepiece back in the case, Héctor's smile faded and worry started to worm it's way through his chest. "So… You come to our family gatherings? You, uh… see our ofrendas?"

Héctor couldn't bring himself to ask anything else, though several other questions were obviously implied and hung in the air like a thick, uncomfortable fog.

You see how I never really celebrate the dead, focusing solely on Miguel's birthday?

How I never talk about Leti even when I should?

How I can't even bear to speak your name even on any other day?

Did you witness what I did and said to my family tonight?

Closing the glass lid to his treasures, Ernesto grimaced and looked down. "Ah, no, I… I usually have couriers come and retrieve my offerings. With so many, and in so many different locations, I would be running myself ragged trying to collect them all on my own. I mean I did use to come to your ofrenda, of course, but… I-I kind of got the feeling that I was… unwelcome."

While part of Héctor was relieved that Ernesto was not there to witness Héctor's public meltdown, his other fears were confirmed and he sighed. "Look, Ernesto… I-"

"Neto! There you are, you disappeared from your own party! And is that- Oh, it is! Amor look, it's Teto!"

Immediately Héctor seized up in utter annoyance and anger.

Teto? No way…

Turning around Héctor could see a couple of extravagantly dressed skeletons coming up to the two of them with wide, fake smiles on their skulls. A man and a woman, Héctor was able to see past the gaudy bright colors and gold highlighting their bone structures and recognize them immediately.

Andres and Florencia Dominguez. A married couple. Business associates, Ernesto's producers for his various movies and his close… friends.

But they were no real friends at all. Not only had they enabled most if not all of Ernesto's horrible lifestyle habits, but that had not even bothered to come to Ernesto's funeral when their cash-cow had perished, sending only a half-assed telegram the day of to send their condolences. But by the time Ernesto's body was laid in his mausoleum and Héctor was barely recovered enough from his stay in the hospital, they had pounced on him during his delicate mental and physical state.

With Ernesto's assets being distributed throughout the company, Andres and Florencia had laid claim to an extremely large chunk of his wealth, saying it was their right to do so since Ernesto's demise had deprived them of surely a lucrative motion picture that had been in the making at the time as well as many future endeavors. Héctor had been grateful that Chente had taken the reins of the company quickly and beautifully upon his promotion, making sure that Dominguez's claims were so wrapped up in legal red tape that there was no way for them to unwrap them in the courts.

So when the legal roads were closed off to them, that was when the threats began.

Héctor knew that they and Ernesto had been close, but he had been horrified to realize just how close. They spoke of tales of how Ernesto's turbulent lifestyle had caused such problems for them and the company, the massive amount of drugs and alcohol consumed by him and his groupies on and off the road. The parade of women and men that rotated through his bedroom at an alarming rate, the hush money that had to be paid them to keep their silence. Ernesto's reputation as a family-friendly idol was held together by the thinnest of strings by the time of his death, and unless they were given enough hush money themselves then the Dominguez's were prepared to go into an all-out war.

Chente had been prepared as well to fight back, Héctor still too emotionally and physically weak to take much part in it, when fate had struck. Because it was not just Ernesto who lived the hard lifestyle of a celebrity, as Héctor was soon to find out. Just before the news was going to break Andres and Florencia had decided to celebrate their soon to be victory in the only way they knew how. And when they didn't show up to work the next day the police found the both of them in their bedroom, needles still stuck in the arms, covered in all sorts of bodily grime, and completely, unmistakably dead.

The public relations nightmare was over before it could begin, and life went on.

Yet here they now were, all decked to the nines in the Land of the Dead, at Ernesto's party, giving Héctor cloying smiles on their skulls like nothing had ever happened.

Héctor despised showbiz.

"Ah, Andres. Flor. How lovely to see you." Ernesto smiled at them, all traces of vulnerability gone from his expression as Héctor watched him go back into "proper host" mode. He welcomed them with open arms and delicately kissed Florencia on her pointed cheekbones. As he shook Andres' hand heartily, Héctor saw how Ernesto's grin was so charming and so fake at the same time. "I'm so glad you both could make it this evening, what with your tight schedules."

"Oh, we were just admiring your impressive haul this year, Neto" she said, gesturing to all of the offerings with a greedy glint in her eyes. "I swear it gets bigger every year! But then we saw you and then saw our dear maestro in the flesh!"

"I thought that was you, amigo!" Andres said, clapping Héctor so hard on the shoulder that his own bones rattled. "There were whispers of a living man in the city, but I never would have guessed it was you! Por Dios, but you got old! And still stick thin to boot, you really blend in with the rest of us skeletons!"

"But it is so good to see you again, Teto!" Florencia cooed sickeningly, and as she drew closer Héctor could see how gaudy and overwhelmingly bright her facial markings were. When he realized that she was closing in to place a kiss on his cheek Héctor recoiled lightning quick away from her, both in disgust of her character and not really wanting to feel skeletal lips on his skin. Florencia blinked in surprise at his movement, a quick flash of anger at the rejection fading away into amusement. "Ohh, come now Héctor. Don't tell me you're still mad about that business back in the Land of the Living?"

"You mean how you tried to fleece from the company and destroy a dead man's reputation?" Héctor growled. "You've got some nerve coming into his house."

"Water under the bridge, dear boy, all water under the bridge!" Andres said, literally waving off Héctor's ire and then clasping a hand on Ernesto's shoulder. "We were just looking out for our affairs in the Land of the Living, there were no hard feelings! But now our affairs are all sorted out in the Land of the Dead: a simple transition, thanks to Ernesto. Right, amigo?"

"Quite right." Ernesto said, his smile even more fake than before and his eyes simmering with something Héctor could not decipher. A guarded wariness perhaps. Clearing his throat, Ernesto tried to make the move towards Héctor. "Well, I hope you both enjoy the party. But right now I have some important business to do with Héctor. He is in dire need to return home and-"

"Home?!" Florencia whined shrilly. "But you only just got here. At least stay so you can see the Sunrise Spectacular!"

Héctor blinked. "The what now?"

"The Sunrise Spectacular!" Andres said. "Every year when the sun rises Ernesto marks the end of Dia de Muertos with an enormous concert. All of his greatest hit-well, both of your greatest hits- sung to a jam-packed stadium, radio listeners and we're working on getting on those newfangled television sets so that everyone can still watch it in the comfort of their own home. It's a grand send-off and brings souls hope for a prosperous and memorable new year."

"Ah, well…" Héctor cleared his throat. "That does sound very nice. I'm not much into music anymore though, and I really do have to get back before I-"

"Ah I can see how that is." Andres smirked. "What with that last concert that Ernesto had in the living world it's no wonder that music would leave a bad taste in the mouth. But por Dios, what a way to go! One last triumphant belt before all was silenced!"

Ernesto chuckled awkwardly, not failing to see out of the corner of his eye the way Héctor had stiffened entirely. "Ah ha ha, sí. Well let's not dwell on the past, we have a lot to do tonight."

"Oh that's right!" Florencia giggled and pointed at Héctor. "Andres and I weren't at the concert but we heard about it immediately after. You were right on stage when the bell collapsed! Saw the whole thing! I can only imagine! Remeeeember me! BONG!"

Andres laughed along with her. "That's right, you did see it. Better than front row seats! You know, I don't believe we've ever spoken to any soul who was there that night! Tell me Teto, when they lifted the bell did Ernesto come out like an accordion, just like in all those little cartoons?"

At this Florencia burst out into shrill, screeching laughter as she watched her husband bob up and down making accordion noises. Watching the two of them make fools of themselves in front of Héctor was quite enough for Ernesto.

"Okay, I see that both of you have been enjoying the open bar a little too much this evening, but we really must be going." Héctor sternly said, gesturing towards his friend. "Héctor and I-… Héctor? Héctor?!"

Héctor was gone.

"Ah, puta madre! Are you kidding me?!" Ernesto ran his hands through his hair, casting a quick glare over to his two, still giggling, associates as he started heading for the door. "Now you two have done it! I have to find Héctor and give him my blessing as soon as possible."

"Well, do hurry up amigo!" Andres called after composing himself. "The sooner he is gone the better. Héctor has always had a habit of making you put aside what you are supposed to be doing."

Ernesto stopped walking at that, glancing over his shoulder. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh come now, old friend." Andres said in a condescending tone. "You are a performer first and foremost. But anytime Héctor had something going on: Weddings, birthdays, funerals, et cetera. Why you just drop everything at short notice to go to him. And then every time you came back home you were a mess that Flor and I had to clean up."

"Exactly." Florencia nodded. "I mean the last few months where he stayed with you, you completely collapsed into your vices. Face it, Neto, Héctor Rivera's presence has always been poisonous to you."

Ernesto glared at them both viciously. "I like to think it's the opposite, actually. And don't pretend that you two are saints. You are on the thinnest of ice after what you two just did to my brother."

Flor snorted. "Please, brothers. You are just two orphans who clung to each other because no one else would."

"And we're not the ones on thin ice, Ernesto." Andres said back. "Get rid of him, however you need to do it, and get back in time to do the Sunrise Spectacular. Or our information about your activities from the Living World and the Land of the Dead starts to trickle through. And you know just how well a trickle can turn into raging river fast."

At that moment Ernesto felt something inside his chest and in his brain something he had not felt in thirty years. A white-hot rage that threatened to overtake his mind and actions into something he wouldn't be able to control. He clenched his jaw until his teeth were creaking together, his fists curled into tight balls until they were about to crack. How dare they threaten him. HIM! Ernesto de la Cruz, the greatest musician of all time.

Ernesto always knew that Andres and Florencia never cared about him. They knew how to have a fun time and were near perfect when it came to deals and business, sure, but even those positive aspects of their lives were toxic. They enabled his most self-destructive tendencies, had their fun with him at his most vulnerable times, and now they were threatening to ruin his reputation over missing a stupid concert.

His eyes scanned the ground rapidly, quickly trying to think of swift retaliation that would end this before it began, and when he looked up, he froze.

Standing before him were not the skeletal remains of Andres and Florencia Dominguez. But a young man in a peachy-orange mariachi suit, guitar case in one hand and a shot glass of tequila in the other. A small, relieved small was gracing his lips as he brought the glass up to them, not noticing the shimmering film on the liquid's surface.

Ernesto gasped and blinked his eyes, and in that moment Héctor was gone and his two business partners were back in front of him, smiling smugly. Ernesto panted in relief that it was just a vision from his past, but then he seized up in horror.

I was going to destroy them. I was trying to end their threat on me as soon as I could.

Just like I did that night.

Nothing has changed.

I'm still a… I'm still a mon-…

His non-existing heart breaking inside of his ribcage, Ernesto slicked back his mussed-up hair, stood tall and proud and chuckled. "Ha ha, yes well… That would be a PR nightmare, wouldn't it? Not to worry though, I'll settle this whole Héctor thing and then he'll be out of our lives once again."

"I'll leave you to it then!" Andres said jovially, leading his wife by the arm as they walked out of the offering room and waving back. "I'll see you then before the first light breaks."

Now alone in his room full of treasures, the flowers not smelling quite as sweet as before and the food's scent rolling his stomach, Ernesto allowed his face to crumple slightly before he turned and ran out of the room.

He needed to save Héctor. He would not be a threat on his life once again.

He would do whatever it takes.