Mission Libertad (13 page)

“Let's start making some shots!” shouted a group of parents.

“Defense! Defense!” shouted others from the packed bleachers.

By the end of the second quarter the Tigers led 20–12. The Lions fans became quieter, attentively watching every pass with hopes of catching up. In the third quarter, the Tigers started to get too confident, and the Lions started scoring. When the score was 24–23, with the Tigers still leading, one of the Lions stole the ball, zigzagged
down the court, and made a three-point shot! Now the Lions were leading. But by the end of the third quarter, the score was tied again, 30–30.

As the fourth quarter started, the Lions players' tiredness started to show in their slower running and clumsier passing. All of them had played the whole game so far. Coach Jerry signaled to Luisito.

“Lewis, you're in!” he called. “Give Paul a rest.”

Luisito nervously trotted out onto the court. Both teams continued to play well, and when the buzzer rang, the score was tied and the game went into overtime. Luisito was certain that Coach Jerry was going to take him out and put Paul back in, but to his surprise Coach Jerry sent him back out onto the court.

Now it seemed no one could get the ball in the hoop. Luisito could feel his jersey glued to his back with sweat. His face was now bright red, and the once cold gym felt as warm as a day on a Miami beach.

There were only forty seconds on the clock when the referee called a foul against the Lions, and the Tigers made the two penalty shots.

“No more fouls!” Coach Jerry yelled at his players.

Now the Lions had the ball. Eric passed it to Ron, who dribbled in and made a layup, tying the score yet again. They went into defensive mode as the Tigers took off down the court. They moved too fast and went out of bounds, and the Lions had the ball again. Fifteen seconds left.

This time Eric passed the ball to Luisito, but one of the Tigers pushed him and Luisito fell hard on the floor. The referee called a foul, and Luisito had the chance to
make two shots. If he made them they would win the game. He felt the pressure almost suffocating him. He could hear faint gasps and Spanish comments from his relatives.

Luisito stood just behind the foul line. He was so nervous! A thousand thoughts swirled through his mind.
You
can
do
it
if
you
just
concentrate
hard
enough. But what will happen if I miss it? Will everyone hate me? They're just starting to warm up to me . . .
He heard shouts of: “Lewis, you can do it!” and “Bend those knees!” He looked toward his parents and saw Miguel cheering him on and his mother covering her face with her hands. He heard a woman's voice calling,
“¡Encomiendate a Dios, mi hijito!”
It was surely one of his relatives reminding him to say a prayer.

He caught the ball and dribbled it twice. He didn't know if this merited a mental prayer, but he said one anyway. “Dear God, I hope this goes in . . . for my team and for my sake. Please, God, hear my prayer and, if not, let me cope with whatever happens.”

Then he shot the ball high in the air and it bounced right off the rim of the basket. There were sighs from one side of the gym and cheers from the other.

The referee bounced the ball back to him and signaled that he had one more chance. He breathed deeply, dribbled just once, bent his knees, and shot the basketball. He didn't even want to watch, so he shut his eyes. When he opened them the ball was spinning around and around the rim of the basket. Finally, it dropped in. Immediately a cheer roared from the crowd, and his teammates charged toward him with hugs and pats on the back. The buzzer rang. The Lions had won by just one point.

His parents and a long line of relatives ran onto the court to congratulate Luisito and each team player.

“Great job, Lewis!” Coach Jerry yelled as he jumped in the air with excitement.

The Lions stepped aside to have their picture taken with a big silver trophy. They let Luisito stand in the center holding the award.

As Luisito turned for more pictures, Sherry came up and gave him a big hug. “You were amazing, Lewis!” she said.

“Well, let's go celebrate!” Coach Jerry said. “Where should we go?”

“How about
El
Rincon
Cubano
?
”
Paul suggested. “That's the Cuban restaurant in Silver Spring.”

Friends and family paraded out of the school and headed to the restaurant. When they reached the restaurant, the owner had to open up the area reserved for parties in order to seat them all together. Luisito was all smiles.
Thank
you, God!
he thought so strongly that he was sure the others could hear him.

It was raining and Abuela held a trash bag over her head as she walked to Mass early in the morning. She opened the large wooden doors of
La
Iglesia
de
la
Merced,
the Church of Mercy
.
Although it needed repairs, the church and especially the altar were still breathtaking. Abuela walked toward the confessional and waited in line with two other older ladies. When it was her turn she knelt down and closed the confessional door. Finally, Padre Pepito opened the small grated window that separated them.

“Padre, forgive me, for I have sinned,” Abuela said.

“How long since your last confession?” Padre Pepito asked.

“It has been a month,” Abuela said. At the end of her confession, she added the phrase that would identify her, “I am sorry for my lack of trust in God but I know I can count on his mercy.”

“Oh, yes,” Padre Pepito said, recognizing her. “You can count on his mercy. As penance, pray a rosary and meditate on the life of Christ. If I may suggest, you should do this in the rose garden by the statue of Mary.”

“
Si, Padre
,” Abuela said as the priest absolved and blessed her.

Abuela left the confessional and looked for the door that led to the rose garden. She prayed the rosary by the statue of Mary as she waited for the priest. She really didn't need to go to confession today, but she did need to speak to Padre Pepito. They had to go through this ritual in case someone overheard them in the confessional. There were rumors that some confessionals were bugged by the government. Once Padre Pepito finished hearing confessions, he walked into the sacristy to put his stole away and then quietly slipped through the door to the rose garden. He walked slowly toward Abuela and gently tapped her on the shoulders.

“Hola, Padre,”
Abuela said quickly. “Listen to this! The exodus will begin soon.”

“Is it confirmed?” Padre Pepito asked.

“Yes,” Abuela said. “We just don't know exactly when. What do you know about our Lady?”

“She is on her way,” the priest said with a smile.

“Will you ever join your family in Miami, Father?” she asked.

“I can't, Maria Elena,” Padre Pepito responded. “If there is anyone whom the government would immediately allow to leave Cuba, it is the priests. But if I leave, who would tend the flock?”

“God bless you, Padre. We certainly need you here,” Abuela said, giving the priest a hug.

Abuela left the rose garden feeling assured that things were taken care of.

On her way home, she stopped in the side chapel of
La Iglesia de la Merced
to kneel before the image of our Lady of Lourdes. Abuela had gotten married in this church. It was filled with so many happy memories. How she wished she were with her family again! Abuela prayed hard for her family and for her country.

She walked home slowly, occasionally looking back to see if she was being followed. She noticed a strange car parked outside the church. It was the same car that had been parked across the street from her house for two days now with someone inside listening to the radio. She hadn't known if they were watching her or someone else, but now she was certain they were watching her. She decided to avoid the man in the car by going into the
bodeguita
. Besides, the line was long.
They must have meat there today,
she thought. Then she remembered that her friend Miriam lived in the nearby apartments. She hurried across the street and went into Miriam's building. When she saw a door at the end of the complex that led to an alley, she decided to go through the hall and out the
back of the building. Cars couldn't make it through the narrow road behind the building. She walked down the alley to the next block, turned, and followed her usual way back home, looking cautiously behind her. Nobody was following. She reached her apartment a bit out of breath. It was too much excitement for an old lady. She only wanted to live in peace.

Her hands were still shaking as she opened the door to her apartment. She closed and locked her door. She heard footsteps, but they stopped, and she heard a door slam. It was just a neighbor. Before she even put down her purse, she looked in her cupboard for a few twigs of
tilo,
linden leaves. She was in luck—she had electricity today. She boiled the soothing herbal tea to calm her nerves and whispered a quick prayer to her guardian angel.
Things will be fine
, she assured herself.

Sitting on his bed, Luisito emptied out his book bag. He would start with math homework, which came the easiest to him. Tommy was downstairs raiding the kitchen for snacks. Sonia knocked on his door.

“Meeting in my room in five minutes,” she said, gesturing toward it with her glass of chocolate milk.

“Here, do you want a doughnut?” Tommy said, offering a plate to Luisito as he walked into Sonia's room.

“Okay, what's new?” Luisito asked, taking a bite of his doughnut.

“Well, you tell us,” Sonia said.

“I spoke to your mom and she said she would find a way,” Luisito said.

“Okay, but did she say when?” Sonia asked.

“I haven't had a chance to speak to her again,” Luisito said.

He glanced out the window and caught a glimpse of a man with blond hair in a car across the street. He got up to take a closer look. The car drove off suddenly.

“What are you looking at?” Tommy asked.

“I thought I saw that man who seems to be following us,” Luisito said.

“Do you think he has anything to do with the secret?” Tommy asked.

“I don't know,” Luisito said.

“La cena está servida,”
Miguel called upstairs.

“Let's go, you heard Dad. Dinner is served,” Sonia said. “When I'm nervous I get very hungry.”

Everyone took his or her seat at the table and they said a prayer. Then they began passing around the fluffy white rice, juicy pork, and steaming black beans. There were also sweet golden plantains.

“You know, Tía Rosie,” Luisito said as they ate, “I just saw that car that passes by often.”

“And we keep seeing people following us,” Tommy added.

“Have you written down the license plate number of the car?” José asked.

“I got half the number of one car,” Luisito said, “but they are quick and it's not just one car. We see different people in different places. Always men.”

“You know,” Miguel said, “I thought I saw someone looking at me the other day when I was leaving work.”

“I will call a friend of mine from the police department and ask him what he thinks,” José said.

“He is going to think we are crazy,” Sonia said. “Really, Dad?”

“Well, let's not worry too much,” Rosie said, looking at Elena with concern. “With so many of us in and out of this house I don't think they can rob us. But maybe you should talk to your friend anyway, José.”

“Yes, I will do that,” José said.

“Now, I was thinking we could go to Miami for Christmas. What do you all think?” Rosie said, changing the subject quickly. She panned her eyes around the table.

“I don't think I can ask for time off from work,” Miguel said.

“José, can you try asking Raulito?” Rosie asked, referring to José's friend who was now Miguel's boss. “Maybe you can tell him it's a family vacation and you need a break.”

“If Miguel can come, I think it's a wonderful idea,” Elena said.

“We need to tell Abuela Maricusa. Christmas is in a few weeks,” Sonia said, breaking a piece of soft Cuban bread.

Luisito ate quietly, not knowing whether to be relieved or nervous that his plan to go to Miami was working out. More than anything, he wanted to fulfill his promise to Abuela, but he was getting the feeling that it was no ordinary message he was about to deliver. He caught his aunt's eye and realized she was thinking the same thing.

Abuela went to the
bodeguita
to get her ration of food for the month. The line wasn't that long today. She stood there chatting with the neighbors about the weather and the latest gossip about who was getting married and who was divorcing whom. There wasn't much else that was safe to talk about in Cuba.