Page 17 of Ghostlighted
“Take Felicia with you. I’ve met her. There’s nobody I’ve ever met who’s more on board with tackling an unfamiliar city than she is.”
Hope flickered across Sofia’s face, but then she firmed her lips and shook her head. “No. It is too much. I cannot accept such a thing.”
“But Sofia,” I said, arranging my face in what I hoped was sincere hurt, “this is what family does. If you refuse, it would mean you don’t think I belong in yours.”
She narrowed her eyes and set her glass down on the porch with aclunk. “Maz Amani, you are using my own words against me.”
I grinned. “Is it working?”
She threw up her hands. “You are as fresh as Enrique. There is no way I can win. If I say no, then I am denying your place. If I say yes, I am taking something worth far too much.”
I took her hand. “Say yes, Sofia. You’ve supported your grandson all through his college years. He’s about to walk across the stage and get his diploma placed in his hand. Don’t you want to see that?”
Her throat worked for a moment as she swallowed twice. Tears glistened in her eyes as she whispered, “Sí. Sí, I do.”
Chapter Six
Once Sofia got past her initial protests, she was all in, nearly sparkling with excitement.
“Enrique, do you really think Felicia will agree to the trip? What if she were to miss her own graduation? I’m sure one of the cousins would be happy to go with me.”
“Be serious, Tia. If any of the cousins challenged her for the honor, she’d… well, she wouldn’t do anythingphysicalto them, nor threaten the trip for you, but she’d find a way to make them regret it once they got back. Besides, her graduation isn’t until mid-June and you told me Harvard’s is May twenty-ninth. You’ll both head to Cambridge a few days before the ceremony and return a day or two afterward, putting you home just in time for the party. Which,” he said as she opened her mouth to argue, “Maz and I will arrange along with Papi and Mami, so you don’t have to worry about a thing.”
She scooted forward in the chair and took my face between her smooth, dry palms. “Thank you, mijo.” She kissed my forehead. “I cannot tell you how much this means to me.”
“You’re very welcome.”
“Oh! I must tell Guillermo. He will be so excited.” She beckoned to Ricky. “Enrique. You have your phone. Could you call him, por favor?”
Ricky hesitated for a moment, but then dug his phone out of the back pocket of his Wranglers. “Sure, Tia.” He keyed in a number and held out the phone.
“No, no. Put on the speaker so we can all hear.”
We heard two rings and then the call connected. “Ricky. What do you want?”
Ricky slid a glance at me and I buried a snort at Liam’s peeved tone. Sofia didn’t clock it—either the glance or the tone—because she was beaming down at the screen.
“Oh, Guillermo. I have such wonderful news!”
“Sofia? I’ve told you, I go by Liam now.”
He calls her Sofia, not abuela or even grandmother? What the hell?Ricky had told me Liam had changed his name from Guillermo to Liam and taken his stepfather’s name—Frost—in his quest to be less “ethnic.” But even if he couldn’t manage abuela, surely he could find some way to acknowledge the relationship.
“Yes, yes. Perdóneme, but I was so excited that I forgot.”
“What are you doing with Ricky’s phone, anyway? Does he know you lost your last two? He won’t thank you if you lose his as well.”
“Enrique is here with me. I asked him to make the call.”
“Afternoon, Liam.” Ricky’s voice was neutral, with no trace of its usual warmth. “So nice to hear your voice.”
“Ah. You’re on speaker.”
“We are.”
“Then be sure to get your phone back from Sofia. You know her record with cell phones.” He laughed, and a more condescending sound I’d never heard. “You don’t want yours to be her latest victim.”
“I’m touched by your concern, but maybe you should listen to Tia instead. She has news for you.”
