Chapter 9
Going to the mall wasn’t the ideal way David wanted to spend the day, but after seeing how much Tiana and Larissa wanted to go, he understood why Zita couldn’t say no. They were normal teenagers wanting to meet up with friends, and it showed how far they’d come from fleeing for their lives. Besides, he was still spending time with Zita.
After breakfast, he drove them all to the mall. The girls had insisted they take his car. He couldn’t blame them. The black mustang was impressive.
After he parked, Larissa and Tiana hurried to their designated meeting spot with promises they would be ready to go by three.
Zita took hold of his hand. “Where to first?”
“I need to buy a fresh shirt.” He’d sweated a lot while holding Xaviera and didn’t want to smell.
“Of course. I should have thought.”
They headed for the nearest menswear shop. As David browsed, he asked Zita, “What’s the latest with Teresa’s case?”
“Her mother and sister have applied for asylum and are waiting for it to be processed. Teresa’s hearing is in a couple of weeks.”
“They’re still in El Salvador, right?” He held up a green shirt, but decided he didn’t like the color. He put it down.
She nodded. “We’re trying to speed along the processing, as it’s dangerous for them.”
“How so?”
“The gang took Teresa’s little sister as punishment for Teresa running away. If they find out Manuela and Johanna have applied for asylum, they’ll punish or kill them both.”
He froze. “Kill them for moving away?”
“For defying the gang.”
Damn. Here he was worried about a new shirt when their lives were on the line. “How quickly can it be processed?” He took the shirt he was holding to the cash register.
“It’s supposed to take no more than forty-five days until the interview, but there’s a backlog. Then it can take up to one hundred and eighty days for a decision to be made.”
Anything could happen in that time. “Surely it won’t take so long in Teresa’s case? It’s obvious she was abused and is in danger.”
Zita shrugged. “I don’t know. Not many of the foster girls apply for asylum. Both Fernando and Mama have flagged it as urgent, so it might help.”
David hoped so. If his father was serious about politics, maybe he could speed up the processing time. He’d have to speak to him about it. “So what about Beatriz and Elena?”
“Beatriz’s hearing is tomorrow, but Elena doesn’t have a date yet.”
“Can anybody go to it?”
Zita looked at him. “No. It’s closed to the public because Beatriz has been abused, but if you’re interested, I can tell you what happens.”
“Yeah, I’d like that.” The more he knew the better.
After David changed his shirt, they headed for the movie theater. There weren’t many people in there at that time of the day. He wrapped his arm around Zita’s shoulder and she leaned into him. She fit so well against him and was so comfortable with giving affection. Having her next to him made him feel important. Pressing a kiss against her hair, he settled in to watch.
“That was amazing,” Zita said, her eyes shining as they exited the theater a couple of hours later.
David kissed her. He loved seeing her happy and relaxed. “It sure was. Do you want to get some lunch?”
“Yeah. Let me just check my phone and make sure the girls haven’t texted me.” She dug through her bag until she found her cell and checked. “A message from Mama.” She was silent as she read it. She sighed. “It’s a grocery list. We’ll have to pick up a few things before we head home.” Her expression was apologetic.
“Fine by me.” It was a new experience to be so needed, but it was kind of nice. His family was so independent that it would never occur to him to ask them for anything.
“You really are easy to please,” Zita said.
