“This isn’t about Matthew, Helen.Not really.”I finally decide to confess.“I am marching to my death though.The death of my reputation.”
Helen squints slightly.“I’m only on my first glass, uh, cup, and I’m already confused.”
“It’s James—”
“Dios mio, I’m gonna need more than this one bottle,” she interrupts, taking a healthy swig this time.
“To get through what I have to do tomorrow night,” I reply, taking a long pull of wine myself.“I’m gonna need a miracle.”
“What’s tomorrow night?”she asks, her brows knotting in confusion.
“James is threatening to recall the loan,” I say, taking a desperate sip from my cup.“Unless I cheat on him.In front of everyone.”
“¡¿Perdón?!”
I inhale deeply before elaborating, “At Hydra Nightclub tomorrow night, James wants me to be seen with another guy, getting hot and heavy, in front of his group of friends.”
“What the fuck?!”Helen slams her cup down hard.The thin plastic buckles a little under her palm.
I down the rest of my wine, watching Helen jump off her stool.
“¡Este maldito hombre!¡Increíble!” She yanks the bottle off the countertop and forcefully refills my cup before splashing more wine into hers.“This man!!No!He’s not a man!No.”
Helen prowls the space in front of the counter, a restless storm of fury in every sharp turn and agitated gesture.She mutters in Spanish.Her words are a clipped, angry blur I can’t understand, but the tone is universal.
I just sit on the stool, gripping the flimsy plastic cup, watching this hurricane of a woman rage on my behalf.Her anger becomes my shield.For the first time, my sense of violation feels real, witnessed.It doesn’t solve a single thing, but in this moment, I’m not alone in this wreckage.
She stops abruptly, planting her hand flat on the countertop and leaning toward me, her dark eyes blazing.“Okay.So this… this plan of his.You are not doing it.”It’s not a question; it’s a command wrapped in outrage.
Not again!
First Matthew, now Helen.
How can’t they see I have no choice in the matter?
“Helen, I…” My voice falters, reality crashing back in.“The loan.Maddy’s Place… If I don’t do what he says, he threatened to ruin me.I lose everything.”
“So you let him humiliate you like this instead?”she demands, pushing away from the counter.“You let him use you in his nasty game?Making you cheat, pretend to cheat, so he doesn’t look bad?No, Ames, no!”She throws her hands up in exasperation.“His promise not to recall the loan means nothing!You think a man who demandsthis,” she gestures wildly, encompassing the whole sordid plan, “is going to keep his word once you’ve done his dirty work?He’ll still find a way to screw you over!”
Her words hit hard because they echo my own deepest fears.I stare down at the dark wine I’m swirling in my cup, unable to meet her fiery gaze.
Helen goes still.“Wait a minute,” she says slowly, tapping a finger against her chin.“Of course you can’t do what he wants.But… you should still go.”
My head snaps up.“I don’t get it.”
“No hot and heavy business with anyone.Just go there alone.Find him and his group.Walk right up to them…” She pauses, eyes narrowing.“And you tell them.You tell all of them, loud and clear, exactly what kind of degrading stunt their buddy James tried to force you into to cover up the fact that he’s a cheating, manipulating bastard.”
Vengeful longing surges through me at the thought.“I-I couldn’t.Could I?Really…?”I whisper, shaking my head.“No, no.I can’t, Helen.He’d destroy me.I’d be left with nothing.”
“And what will you have if you go along with his sick plan?”Helen counters fiercely.“Maybe he lets you keep the café for a while longer.Maybe.But at what cost,mija?Your dignity?Your self-respect?Don’t let thatpendejobreak your spirit!”
She softens, reaching across the counter to cover my hand.“Look, maybe he calls the loan.Maybe not.Maybe we fight it.But you don’t trade your soul for this place, Ames.Not for him.”Her gaze is steady, filled with conviction.
Tears sting my eyes.“I know,” I whisper, my voice thick.“I know you’re right.”I swallow hard, fear still coiling tight in my gut.“It just feels impossible.Losing Maddy’s Place feels like losing everything.”
“So you lose everything.”She shrugs.“But you never lose yourself.”Her eyes hold deep compassion.“Believe me, I know it’s easier said than done.But,mija, some things you can never get back.No matter what.”
“It’s not easy,” I agree, finishing off the last of my wine.
