“Me?”
“No, Valentina.” She giggles.
I look over at Val, who has already been taken over by the soothing rocking of the river and lulled into a deep nap.
“Oh. Nothing really. Just…stuff I need to do.”
“Like what?”
I hesitate for a moment. Do I tell her everything that’s plaguing me? Do I pretend everything is fine and silently suffer?
“What do you know about Silvie and Maritza?” I say, slightly changing the subject.
“What do you mean? I know they’re my cousin and aunt?” She laughs softly, staring up at the sky.
But they’re not.It seems Sofia is unaware of the news Silvana just told me.
“What about Silvie’s dad? Where’s he?”
“I think she divorced him about six years ago? Ronaldo, right? Yeah, she took more than half his money. That’s basically how she and Silvie have lived so comfortably without working. That’s probably why they’re so snotty too.”
I snort.
“Do you know why they divorced?” I ask.
“Prima, I didn’t peg you for such a gossiper,” she says, laughing. “Maria must be rubbing off on you.”
“She’s like a parasite, really,” I joke.
“Well, it is kind of scandalous.”
I lean in. We both look over at Valentina, who is still fast asleep. Or wins Best Actress for her role in pretending to be.
“He found some letters between her and her lover. Allegedly, it had been going on for years. We’re talking, like, decades at this point. She finally admitted that she was in love with someone else for their entire relationship. It was a whole thing. They dislike talking about it because it makes them look bad.”
My stomach churns.
“And you said this was six years ago?”
She nods. So it was three years before my father passed. She must have felt like she needed to be true to herself and him before he got too sick.
“And is she still with him?”
“I have no idea—we never found out who it was. That was kind of the last thing we heard about her alleged lover. The whole story could be fake, for all we know. You know how they are. Always making shit up to be the center of attention.”
“Well, I don’t, really. I haven’t been around much to know.” I laugh softly, but even I can hear the pain in my voice.
“Shit. Sorry, Isa. You know what I meant. I promise you haven’t missed much. You’re lucky not to have been around for all that drama. It’s all she’d talk about for a year. Then suddenly, she stopped mentioning anything about it and her lover. It’s a blessing in disguise you missed it, honestly.”
I chuckle weakly. “I guess so.”
I turn around to see if Valentina has woken yet. Nothing.
“So—” I say.
Sofia begins reapplying suntan lotion to her shoulders, knowing I’ll continue talking regardless of what she replies.
“Silvie and Val,” I continue.
