Geoffrey Philp

The Caves

Timmy Sutherland had been coughing all morning, but he knew he didn't have a cold. He had been looking forward to going out that morning, but wondered if he was going to face the same torture as he had in Kingston. Were the boys going to tease him as they had al through first form. "That can't be your mother! She's a quality brown woman! Where's your father?" He couldn't answer any of the questions and when his mother came to pick him up, he slithered into the back seat of the car and watched his classmates run along side the car making faces, hooting and hollering like disturbed cavemen ready to charge at the enemy.

But he wasn't going to spend the day cooped up inside the house, he was going out to face the crowd no matter what happened. Besides, his cousin Robert was going to be there, so nothing could happen to him. He dressed quickly and cracked open the door, waiting for the right moment to leave without having to face any questions from his mother and aunt. He stood by the door and eavesdropped on them.

Amy Sutherland, his mother, picked a handful of gungo peas she had been shelling for Saturday's dinner. She was a short, stout woman with huge arms and sturdy fingers. Her skirt, spread around her on the wooden floor, was filled with empty pods. Amy's older sister, Vivian, had the same firm features with the exception of the streaks of gray that radiated from Amy's temples and haloed her face. Amy looked over to the adjoining room; the windows sealed tightly, and saw that the door was open,

"You have on your undershirt, Timmy?" asked Amy.

"Yes, Mommy. I put it on already," said Timmy and he scurried back to his desk to work on his toy planes. He pretended he wasn't listening to them, but he was hearing every word.

"He catches a cold so easily," said Amy as she turned to Vivian. "Just like his father. If a breeze blows on them too hard, they get sick."

"Not like us, eh, girl. Two strong country girls from Westmoreland." said Vivian. "You know if anyone had ever told me that fifteen years ago after we left this little town, that we'd be back here in our father's house, I'd never believe them."

"We were young," said Amy. "We left here with our boyfriends thinking we'd never come back to Mount Airy and now..."

" And now look at us?" she paused. "So how did you find out about the girl?" asked Vivian.

Amy thought for a moment. She didn't want to talk about it, but she knew sooner or later she would tell her older sister about everything. She always did. So what was the use, sooner or later everything would come out. So why not sooner?

"I went to the dentist to get Timmy's teeth filled and while we were there, the nurse says 'Sutherland,' and the both of us get up with our children. Both of us!"

"So what did the nurse say?"

"She asked if we were both related because it was such an uncommon name. We told her we weren't related, but then when the nurse left, we found out how related we were. For twelve years that man had been playing the two of us. One uptown, one downtown. And if it wasn't for his dental insurance changing his preferred dentist, we'd never have met."

"That man!" said Vivian.

"Hush keep your voice down. I don't want Timmy to know anything. He thinks his father is a god and I want to keep things that way. I don't want him growing up to disrespect his father."

"Disrespect his father? Are you mad? If anyone did that to me he'd wake up without his you know what," said Vivian.

"You too bad, Vivian. You don't mean that. You wouldn't."

"Oh, yes, I would," said Vivian and Amy looked into her sister's eyes for the confirmation of her resolve, and she realized Vivian would have done it to any one of her three other ex-husbands in Ontario, London and New York.

Amy pulled the enamel basin between her legs, picked up another handful, and dropped them into her skirt. She turned again to look at her son. He was gluing the last detail on the wing of the model airplane.

" That's why I worry so much," said Amy. "These Jamaican men walk around the place and breed everywhere. Some of them could be sleeping with they own daughter or sisters. But you think they care?"

"I know girl," said Vivian. "But what we going do?"

"I know what I'm going to do. I'm thinking of going back to church."

"No!" Said Vivian in disgust, "No, you can't be serious. After all you've been through with them. Clear your mind of their rubbish. You're not going back to them!"

"What rubbish?"

"Their rubbish," snapped Vivian and continued although she knew she had hit a sore spot. "They're a bunch of sexually repressed people. Their god will kill you for picking sticks on the Sabbath. I've had enough of them!"

"But Vivian," said Amy, " I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing it for Timmy. If I had had a girl it would have been different. I know I could bring up a girl alone, but what do I know about bring up a boy? He needs some order in his life. The elders, the men in the congregation, will be good role models for him. He need to know he's not the only one in this world. I want him to have values, and morals. I want him to respect women and not just use them for sex. And that's what religion will do for him."

"I'm not too sure about that," said Vivian. "It's not sex that's the problem, it's how you think about it. And that's their problem. Just love the child as you would love the boy."

"I'm not too sure about that, " said Amy.

"Trust me," said Vivian. "I know men and I know boys."

"That's what I'm worried about," said Amy stifling a smile.

Vivian glanced at the boy. He was blowing on the decals trying to dry them with his breath. The last time she saw him he was going off to kindergarten, and now he was in high school.

Vivian looked down at the bowl, and picked up a few pods.

"So how old is he going to be now?" asked Vivian.

"Thirteen," said Timmy butting in. He'd heard enough. He needed to leave. "I'm in second form. I'm going to be in third form pretty soon."

"Thirteen," said Vivian in mock amazement. "You have any girlfriends yet?"

"Vivian!" said Amy, almost scolding her.

"The boy is growing up," said Vivian.

"But he will always be my boy," said Amy as she held his shoulders and kissed him on the cheek. She remembered the last time she kissed him in front of his friends and found out later he had gone through a week of teasing. He was happy no one was there to see her hugging him, and he was still blushing from his aunt's question. If anyone saw him now, he would die.

"Mommy," he said untangling himself from her arms, "can I go and play with Robert? I don't want to stay in the room anymore. Robert said the bats could come back."

"Yes," said Vivian.

Timmy looked at his mother, "Yes? Can I go?"

"Okay. But come back before lunchtime. Put on your sweater before you go down. And remember what I said about the caves. I don't want you going anywhere near them. They're dangerous. "

"I remember," said Timmy.

He ran into the room and pulled on his shirt. He stuffed his shirt inside his pants. He put on his socks and shoes and ran into the living room where he picked up his blue school cap. His father had given it to him on Sports day at the high school. Timmy treasured the cap because it had the insignia of Drax House, the same house as his father when he attended JC.

"Am I okay?" he asked.

"Yes, you're okay," said his mother. "Enjoy yourself."

"Yes. Enjoy yourself while you have the chance," said Vivian

"Huh," said the boy. "What do you mean, Aunt Vivian?"

"Never mind," said Amy

"Bye, Mommy. Bye, Aunt Vivian," he said.

"Bye, Timmy," they said in unison as he rushed through the door. Vivian waited until he was out of earshot.

"What was that about bats? " she asked.

"He's afraid of them," said Amy. "He woke up the other night and found one sleeping on the bedpost. He's been afraid of everything since I left his father. That's why I brought him down to the country, so he'll learn from the other boys to rough it, for that's what living in the country is all about."

"I'd forgotten all about that. And for a town boy like him, he must have been terrified"

"I know, he's not used to this new life," said Amy and got up from beside her. She walked over to the window and watched Timmy walk down the lane. The rim of his blue cap fluttered with the breeze, then whipped the cap off his head. He bent over to pick it up.

As he picked up the cap, he looked up to the house and saw his mother watching him from the house. He felt bad leaving his mother when she needed him, but he couldn't help thinking about his parents' separation. He knew the separation from his father would end in divorce, especially now that his Aunt Vivian was there. She was a woman who didn't put up with any kind of foolishness from men, women or children.

He knew it would all end like all his friends in school. He would only see his father on weekends, Sports day and Father and Son Team Day. If his mother had really loved him, he thought, she would have done everything to make his father stay. But she hadn't.

He needed to get out of the house. He needed to take a long walk. He started taking walks after one of his parents long and bitter fights. He had found out his father had been cheating on his mother because one of the boys in his old neighborhood had teased him about it. His father had never taught him how to fight, so he couldn't do anything about it. So he just walked it off. But the divorce was something different. He had been thinking about it all morning, and he didn't want to think anymore. He still felt guilty about leaving his mother, but she had Aunt Vivian and she could be really funny sometimes. But who did he have?

He walked down the lane where he had seen Howard, Colin and Robert and Owen, boys from the area sitting in a semi-circle. They were busy planning what they were going to do for the rest of the day. It was too hot for soccer and Colin one of the boys from Mount Airy had lost the cork and pitch ball when he took a short cut through the copse, so cricket was out of the picture.

Then the smell of cedars came rushing into his nostrils and he felt like turning back. On his first day down in the country, the smell had given him such violent headaches that he stayed in his room with the windows and door locked. But today the smell of the cedars would not stop him. He needed to get out.

"Hi," said Timmy as he approached them.

"Hail," said Robert and smiled with him. Robert's mother had been a maid for his grandfather, and he had grown up in the household as almost part of the family. Robert was fifteen and whenever Timmy came down to the country, he was usually the one who was placed in charge of him. It was Robert who suggested that he should come down to the pond.

"Dis is me cousin," said Robert, and although both of them knew it wasn't literally true, they were so close it would count. For although Owen was the leader of the group (he was almost sixteen) with Robert's approval, the group would accept Timmy. Robert was the best shot with a slingshot, and since the summer had started had killed ten ground doves, three Barble doves and two baldpates.

Everyone liked Robert, and if it came down to it, they'd listen to Robert before they'd listen to Owen. But Robert wasn't interested in being the leader, and Owen wanted to be the leader

'Him jus come from Kingston," Robert added.

"Oh, him is town boy," said Owen with contempt. "Town boy with inside toilet? So what you doing down here town boy? A bet yu doan like country life. Too hard, eh"

"Oh I like it a lot," said Timmy.

Owen was about to make fun of him when Robert glared at him. Robert knew Owen didn't like people from Kingston. Owen had been to Kingston one summer and never liked it. The houses were all the same and too close to one another. Owen's cousin in Kingston had also played a trick on him the last time he had been there. He had never seen a house with a bathroom inside and when he got to his uncle's house in Kingston, he wanted to see one. His cousin tricked him into thinking that the closet was an elevator that would take him the fancier bathroom downstairs and locked him in the closet for the whole day while his uncle was at work. When they finally let him out, they taunted him all summer, "Country boy, go back a country wid yu country ways and latrine." Vivian promised himself whenever he had the chance he would repay the favor to a Kingstonian.

"So what we guwane do, Owen," asked Colin.

"Well," said Owen, "if you never lose the ball we could play some cricket."

"I will find it tomorrow. I promise," said Colin. "I promise."

"But what are we going to do today?" whined Howard.

Owen was stumped. He didn't have an answer. He thought for another minute and then said, "Mek we go dung to the caves."

A hush ran through the group. Everyone knew the caves were off limits. The caves were supposed to be haunted. At one time the caves had been the favorite meeting place for young lovers in the village. But after a group of children wandered into the caves, and got lost, their bodies never found, someone started the rumor that their spirits roamed the caverns.

"But I can't, they're....."

Robert grabbed Timmy by the shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Doan worry, I we tek care of yu."

"But my mother..." he whispered.

"Yu have sumting to say, town boy," said Owen. "Doan tell me that a town boy fraid of anything. I hear people from Kingston tough. Them doan fraid a nothing."

"Him not fraid of anything," said Robert. "We can go to the caves. Plus when we go to the other side we can pick some mango, guava, and naseberries that sweeter than anything on this side."

The boys turned to Robert, their eyes lit up with interest. Robert had been through the caves and to the other side. He knew about these things.

"It have a small stream that start from this pond and go through the cave through the mountain and all the way to the other side. I tell yu the mango there bigger than me head!'

"Really?" said Colin.

"True, true," said Robert.

"All right. Mek we go to the cave den," said Owen,

Timmy set off with them, but he was wasn't sure this was such a great idea. This was the first time he was openly disobeying something his mother had told him, but there was no turning back now.. If he backed out now, he would look stupid in front of the boys, and even worse he wouldn't have anyone to play with for the whole summer. He would have to spend all his time in that room with those bats.

Robert patted him on the shoulder and gave slipped a slingshot he had made for him inside his back pocket. He never had one and this one was made with great care. The handle was made from a guava branch in the form of a Y, and it was wrapped with strips of rubber from the inner tube of a tractor. The tongue was made from an old pair of soccer boots Aunt Vivian had given Robert. Timmy's father never had the time to make one for him, and his mother disapproved of them because she said he could shoot his eye out with one of them. When the other boys saw this they walked closer around him.

Timmy walked behind Robert and carefully avoided the cow-itch . If those got on his skin, he would be scratching all day. He picked a few guavas off the low hanging branches in their path. As he jumped to pick a few more, he saw the entrance to the caves. He could taste the mackerel and bananas that he'd had for breakfast.

Owen gathered the boys around the mouth of the caves covered with cords of liana, moss and ropes of rhododendrons, which clung to the sides of the hillsides.

"Now, " Owen said, "we all going walk in a line till we get to the other side. Robert since yu claim yu know the way, yu lead."

"No," said Robert, "is yu decide to come, so yu lead we"

"No, Robert," said Colin, "yu tek we, yu lead we."

"Please, " whined Howard. "Please, Robert yu lead we. We doan want to get lost."

Robert looked at Timmy and he shrugged his shoulders.

"I want Timmy behind me though," said Robert

"Anything yu say, boss," said Owen

"We guwane meet by a big rock on de other side. Now get in line," said Robert.

They all formed a line behind Robert and cut through the bearded entrance. The light disappeared behind them as they walked into the mouth. They walked for three chains, and soon they were deep in the caverns. Timmy could hear the tinkling waters from the stream and the rustle of what he though were wings.

The stalactites hung like sharp teeth from the roof of the caves. Huge columns lined the tunnels formed by the underground stream that tunneled through the limestone base of the hill. Deeper and deeper they went with Robert in front leading them, and shouting "Watch out, wet! "Rock stone, loose!" or "Look out, bat shit"

That's when Timmy's stomach growled. He had forgotten about that part.

When they were near the other side, Robert yelled "We almost there now."As they were nearing a narrow tunnel, the group began to break apart.

"Lawd, lawd, duppy after me came a shout from the back," shrieked Owen as he ran past the boys. He knocked down Timmy and ran ahead of Robert. The two other boys followed Owen and Robert, although he wasn't afraid, joined in the race. The smaller boys screamed and screamed as they ran until they reached the big rock on the other side of the mountain.

Timmy was left alone in the darkness. He tried to figure out the direction to the entrance but everything looked the same. His stomach growled again.

Owen, leading the pack, was the first out, followed by Colin and Howard, and finally Robert. Owen was laughing when he saw them. The two boys joined in, and even Robert was laughing when he realized Timmy wasn't with him.

"Wha happen to Timmy?" he asked Owen.

"Las time me see him, him was crying fa him mada," said Owen and laughed as turned to Howard and Colin.

Robert turned, doubled his fist and knocked him out with a single punch to his jaw. He ran back to the cave and began searching around. If anything happened to Timmy he would be in lot of trouble.

"Timmy, Timmy!" he hollered as his voice echoed through the tunnels.

Timmy rose, but he didn't know where he was. He tried to follow the boys, but he had wandered into a side cavern.

"Timmy, Timmy! Yu hear me?"

"Yes, yes I hear you," said Timmy.

At least he was still alive said Robert. "Okay. Stay where yu is. I coming to get yu."

The echoes off the cave wall made it difficult for Robert to locate him. When he got to the place where Owen had started running, he still couldn't find him.

"Jus stay where yu is. Stay right dere," said Robert. "Doan move," his voice growing shaky, for he had begun to panic.

"No, I see a opening. I can get to it. is right over there above my head."

"Doan move," shouted Robert.

"It's all right," said Timmy. "I can do this on my own."

His voice disappeared into the darkness.

"Yaaaah!" screamed Timmy as he slipped on some loose stones and slipped feet first into a limestone ridge. His legs buckled as he crashed into the ridge, sliding on his buttocks into the rock that sliced at his groin.

"Yaaaah! " he squealed again and he doubled up in pain.

Robert knew he was in trouble. That was it. The boy had fallen. he had killed himself. It would be his fault. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have trusted Owen? He called again, but here was no answer. Timmy was dead. He had to be. Now everyone was going to blame him.

He ran out of the caves through the copse, down to the pond and up the hillside to the road. he ran until his lungs were burning him. He ran until he came to the house, and banged on the door.

"Miss Amy, Miss Amy, come quick Timmy lost in the caves. Him fall down."

Amy opened the door quickly and ran past him. All she heard were the words "caves" and "Timmy" and she was running through the copse to the caves. She didn't even stop to scold Robert for taking him there. Vivian would do that.

A heaviness rose in her chest and then the doubts began. Had she been too lenient for him to try something like this? Why would he do this after she had told him directly not to do this?

She ran into the caves, into the darkness and screamed his name.

"Timmy, Timmy, where are you?"

There was no answer. She ran up and down the passages of the caves as she and Vivian and Delroy had done when they were children. She ran through to the other side of the cave and saw the boys Howard and Colin trying to awaken Owen.

"Any of you see Timmy," she inquired.

"No," said Colin. "Robert knock out Owen. We trying to wake him up,"

Ordinarily, Amy would have stopped to help, but Timmy was in trouble. She ran inside the caves.

"Timmy, Timmy Sutherland. I'm not playing now. Just listen to my voice and you'll be okay."

Timmy heard her voice, but couldn't speak. He was in too much pain. He dragged himself along the floor of the cave. His clothes were soiled by mud and bat guano. He looked out at the opening. He was almost there.

He thrust his arms out, searching through the vines. Pulling himself up on one of the vines, the slingshot Robert had given him stuck in one of the vines, swung him around and tipped his cap into the darkness. It fell into a pool of water at the bottom of the ridge.

"Help!"

A rage of bats raged from the ceiling, and swirled around his body. He looked up and from the dim light saw the face of the bat; its pointed ears, rat-like face, sharp teeth with its mouth open and coming straight for his head.

"Yaaaaah!" he screamed. "Rat bat!"

Amy heard his voice, "Don't worry, Timmy. Don't worry, I'll come for you,"

He heard his mother's voice and stared into the whisk of wings funneling past his face and body. Timmy felt the blood drain from his face and arms. He felt like letting go, but the memory of his mother's voice spurred him on. It was the only thing he could trust. The bats flew around him without touching. He froze while they darted all around him and continued climbing the vine. He finally saw the other side of the hill. Robert was right. It was beautiful.

Once he was out, he pulled off his shirt, which was covered with bat guano. He washed himself in the stream and picked a few naseberries for his mother. Maybe she wouldn't be so mad at him he thought if he brought a couple for her, and started picking all the cherries, hog plums, star-apples, and mangoes he could find.

He walked over to the opening and he shouted to his mother, but she couldn't hear him, so he started around to the other side of the hill. She continued searching for him, and when she couldn't hear his voice anymore, she started crying.

As he came around the hill, the smell of the cedars hit him gain, but he was determined not to let it stop him this time. He had to get to the other side. His friends and his mother were worried about him.

This he thought was no worse than his fear of bats that proved to be nothing. The bats were more afraid of him because he had invaded their world. When he went back to Kingston he would remember how he had remained calm when all he could hear was wings fluttering around his face, his arms, his entire body. Yet he did not move. No one had taught him that. He would head back even if the cedars gave him a headache.

He could see the opening of the caves and he could see his mother holding her head in her hands, refusing to be consoled by anyone. When she couldn't cry anymore, she sat on the big rock with Robert, Vivian and the other boys. Owen was just beginning to awaken. Robert felt like hitting him again. It was only fair because he knew he would surely get the beating of his life when he got home. He looked over at Owen, but Aunt Vivian stared at him.

"It's not his fault or his fault, Robert. Nobody plans these things, but they happen. These things are never anybody's fault."

He moved away from her. That was easy for her to say, he thought. She had never been through the things he'd been through. He pulled out his slingshot and shot some stones in the air.

"Watch it, You almost hit me!" said Timmy

Amy got up immediately and ran towards the voice. Vivian followed and so did Colin and Howard. They left Owen on the ground.

"I got these for you," he said holding up his shirt filled with fruit.

Amy smiled, brushed his hand away, and hugged him.

"So are you going to punish me?" he asked tentatively. His mother hugged him even harder. Vivian came over to her side.

"Yes, stick out your hand" she said gruffly.

He stuck out his arm and she slapped his knuckles. "That's for not listening to your mother."

It was the first time since he started high school she had seen him without his shirt on.

"Soon turn big man," she said as she poked at his underarm.

He giggled, dropped the shirt, and hugged his mother. She kissed him on the forehead and on his neck. He kissed her on the cheek and her shoulders. And the strange thing was, he wasn't embarrassed. Amy knew he was going to be all right.

Back top

JOSEPH'S DREAM

A pelican circled Biscayne Bay above the tops of the buoys that rocked almost imperceptibly to the ebb of the tide pulling away from the shore. The sea mirrored the stasis of the palms, and a few windsurfers, camped near fists of mangroves that sprouted along the coast, waited for a gust of wind to take them out far out to sea

Swiveling on his chair, Joseph Forrester gazed at Silvio's office. Silvio's nameplate had been removed. Joseph's secretary, Betty, walked by the door, and he was about to compliment her on her dress when he stopped himself. Bad idea, he thought

He got up from his chair and walked over to the window.

Barely into his mid-forties with graying sideburns, and a neatly trimmed mustache, Joseph, a committed bachelor, had sworn he would never become romantically involved with anyone again--not after Michelle, his first and only love, had publicly and privately humiliated him by splashing her affair with an old boyfriend over the pages of The Miami Herald-- all fodder for the media since he had taken his company, KinderLove, from being a small childcare center in Dade county to one the biggest corporations in South Florida. Joseph knew how to manage people, but he also knew no matter how good he was, a simple mistake could ruin everything.

KinderLove had started as a simple idea on a napkin from El Paradiso, a small Cuban restaurant on South Beach. He was having lunch with Silvio, his friend, that day. Silvio had introduced Joseph to the restaurant. Silvio said it was the only place in Miami where he could get authentic Cuban food that actually tasted like food from the province, Oriente, where he was born. Silvio left Cuba with his parents when he was ten and still had vivid memories of the town where he grew up. He wished he would be alive to be able to go back there some day. For now the restaurant satisfied his homesickness that was still with him after thirty years.

Joseph loved the food at the restaurant. He once joked with Silvio that he must have been part Cuban because he loved to eat chicken with rice and beans and the only thing that separated them was their accents. Silvio had said that all the food of the Caribbean had come on one ship with everyone else packed in like salt fish in the bowels to act as ballast, much like the stones that made the roads in Charleston, South Carolina where he grew up--a lost Pedro Pan until he came back to Miami to reclaim his roots.

He remembered the day when Silvio told him about how his wife, Naomi, had lost her job. Silvio's wife had been working in a day care center, which had been shut down by HRS because it had not met the state standards for operating a day care center.

Joseph nodded his head as Silvio spoke. He knew what it was like to lose a job. He had lost so many he had forgotten to count.

When his mother died, leaving him with the sad irony of his name, he ran away from home and he vowed he would never go back to the island until he could show everyone how successful he had become--without their help. Everyone from Mount Airy thought he was mad. How would an eighteen year old boy survive in America? But he did. He courted an American college girl, married her to get his papers, and then he was free to get any job he wanted.

His first job was as a security guard to get a credit card, and then he worked as a telemarketer for the quick cash. After that, community college and working as a bank teller in Hollywood Federal, where he met Michelle and Southeast Bank where he worked as a loan officer and he worked on a loan for Silvio to refinance his home.

He always had god business instinct and this propelled his meteoric rise within Argo Savings and Loan from senior loan officer to a vice president. When the bank hit the S&L takeovers during the eighties, he left to work with AmeriFirst.

Soon after Argo Saving and Loan was taken over by the government and sold to another banking conglomerate. The bank had been in trouble for some time and could have come out of there troubles if they had been given the time. The bank made bad loans made to several prominent businessmen, including Russell Davenport of NileSource Inc.

But when a local television station did a story on the bank and Joseph was tied to the scandal, he was furious. Not long after, the newspapers joined in, the customers clamored for their money, which caused a rush on the bank's deposits, and they were forced to shut down their operations. Although Joseph didn't have anything to do with the collapse of the bank, he was still tied to the collapse of the bank.

For a long time Joseph made a picture on the television reporter, Ray Santiago, who had started the trouble and threw darts at the picture whenever he was bored.

"They are always out there circling," said Joseph. "Ready for the first unsure step to take you down."

"Its all in your mind," said Silvio.

Joseph ignored him and continued to listen with interest for he was intrigued by the regulations that governed the operations of what he considered to be a simple business.

"You mean non-compliance with any of these rules can shut you down," he asked.

"Well," said Silvio, clarifying his thoughts, "repeated non-compliance for things such as cockroaches, or the staff-child ratio may get you into trouble, but big things like even a hint of child abuse, especially after Wacko Jacko, or any hint of sexual scandal surrounding children and you're history. HRS doesn't take kindly to that kind of stuff, especially with kids."

"So why was your wife's place shut down?" asked Joseph

"The play areas were too small," said Silvio.

"Too small! You're kidding, right," said Joseph incredulously. "I've been there with you, those play grounds were huge!"

"But the owner decided to take in some more children which prompted a review of the application. HRS came and re-measured the play area and they said it was not up to code. Until it was up to code, they would be shutting it down. The owner couldn't afford the remodeling, so they shut her down."

"Just for that."

"Just for that. The owner figures a former employee was out to get her. Probably a girl she fired for bringing in a copy of Playgirl into the office and reading it while the kids were sleeping. None of the kids even saw her, but it was reported to the owner, so she had to fire the girl after it was verified. She didn't want to take any chances.

"Interesting, "said Joseph.

It was at that point that Joseph began laying out the groundwork for his company. On the napkins, he drew up the proposals, relying on his old friends in the banking business and his reputation as a good manager; he began putting the pieces of his business together.

Taking the notes home, Joseph began outlining the essential steps of forming his business. After making a list of all the people whom he thought would be helpful and that he needed, Joseph went to the library and local chamber of commerce and combed through all the state and local guidelines regarding childcare centers. He hired his friend Jerry Bucher who had worked in legal affairs at Argo and had all the proper legal documents drawn up. He hired Jerry on a retainer, for even if he hired a friend, it was always perfectly clear where friendship ended and business began. With his Jerry, he searched through all the public records and newspapers for childcare centers that were in trouble.

Joseph began his plan by approaching the owners of the childcare centers with a deal. For a small percentage of the ownership, he would broker a loan using his capital, a part of the money he had received for his early retirement, bring in a team of workers and architects, and restructure the child care centers to the correct dimensions which were demanded by the state.

Once he had secured enough businesses through partnerships of this kind, Joseph began building childcare centers of his own according to state guidelines. He called on his old friend Silvio. If he named Naomi as a co-owner and president of the company he could secure minority contracts and loans through the Small Business Administration. He didn't want to put his name as the owner because of his reputation and the banks would be reluctant to lend him money for that kind of enterprise, but he could invest as a silent partner. This was where he thought Silvio would be of greatest help

At first, Silvio didn't want any part of the deal, and Joseph had to make it very lucrative for him to leave his job as a Dade county schoolteacher. But they were other conditions.

"I don't want any part of it, if it involves any deception," he said. "You know, people look at us Cubans, in fact, all Latinos, and they think that we're all corrupt and dishonest. They say it was corruption under Batista that lead to Fidel's coming to power and it's the same corruption that's going to lead to his fall. Well, if that's true, then this is one Cuban who wants to be ready and to make sure that when Fidel falls, there will be no more corruption in Cuba. When my family left Cuba, we did not leave our dignity behind us."

"So how do you think I feel? All Jamaicans are drug dealers! That's why I have to be in the background."

Joseph bowed his head in agreement and out of habit. He'd heard the speech before, but he also knew his friend was serious. He knew how proud he was of his family name, Montoya. He remembered his first meeting with Silvio when his bank was trying to open a new branch in Hialeah. They were having a difficult time attracting clients because the bank was perceived in the Cuban community as being prejudiced against them. There had even been some protests against the company by some members of the Cuban community, and these had been covered in a local telecast by Ray Santiago.

Joseph devised a plan and during Hispanic Heritage Month. He ran a publicity campaign, which featured Cuban writers and artists. With the investment that the bank was going to make, they needed someone who could be trusted by the bank and within the Cuban community. Silvio was nominated by his school and members of the school board to oversee the project. He passed through all the screening because all as a man of unscrupulous integrity regarded him.

After several meetings, Joseph realized they had several interests in tennis and golf and they began playing together at several charity events in Miami. It was after one of these tournaments that Silvio had told him about the significance of his name. His great grandfather had come from Madrid, and they had once, about three centuries ago even been part of the nobility of Spain. Several members of his family had even fought during the Spanish American War, on both sides. They had also fought against Fidel when he came to power. His name as he saw it stood for honesty, bravery and he would never sully his family name for any momentary reward. He was even a little displeased with other Cubans who had come from similar social backgrounds in Cuba, and had readily thrown off their names like Francisco for Frank, and Jose for Joe. How could the sheer sound of a name like Francisco be traded for the bland name like Frank?

Joseph had listened to his story as he had listened to all his other stories about Cuba. At first he was skeptical. All the Cubans he ever met, even Marielitos, all claimed to have had tons of money in Cuba. For them the air was cleaner, the fruits sweeter, and the women prettier. For very Cuban, the island was paradise so, at first, he dismissed it all as mere exile rantings. He had been there, done that. Gotten a T-shirt.

But Silvio was to be different. He never claimed to have had money, just his name.

Silvio was a principled man who hated deception of any kind. He didn't want to be associated with any business that practiced any form of deceit as part of its daily operations.

"Hold on there," said Joseph. "You're making it sound worse than it is. We're no worse than Harvey's and Goldstein."

"Harvey's and Goldstein. I bought some shoes there last Christmas. They're one of the biggest shoe chains in Miami. They can change their names, but I can't change my skin."

"They're owned by your compatriots Alejandro Salazar and Francisco Gonzalez. And they started over on Miami Beach. But can you see anyone on the Beach walking into a shoe store named Salazar and Gonzalez Shoe Store?"

"I see."

"Those guys were smart," said Joseph. "They saw an opportunity and they grabbed it, and that's what we've got to do."

"And it was all on the up and up?"

"Only a name change. And hell, people do that every day in Miami. We might even change you're name to James Martin."

Joseph waited for the look of surprise on Silvio's face before he smiled knowingly, "I know, Silvio, I know."

Silvio smiled. Joseph had gotten one on him.

"Where do I sign?" said Silvio. He shook hands with Joseph for he couldn't wait to get home to tell Naomi the good news. He began to compose in his mind his letter of resignation to the department chairperson and principal of his school for he wanted to give them as much time as possible to find a replacement.

With Naomi as the nominal president of KinderLove Day Care Center, Joseph moved into offices overlooking the bay. Silvio put his nameplate on his door and repeated something about a man's name was his trust, his honor. Silvio had also managed to recruit several other teachers or retired teachers who already had HRS clearance and FBI checks. This was one of Silvio's other demands, he wanted the centers not merely to be warehouses for children, but they should be dedicated to giving quality education to the children. It was Silvio who suggested changing the name to KinderLove Child Care Center.

"Why?"

"We have to stress that we take care of children, not days," said Silvio.

"That's smart. I'll make a real capitalist of you yet," said Joseph.

"And I'll make a father of you yet. When are you going to settle down? What's the use of having all this money if you don't have a family to share it with? When are you going to get yourself a son to leave your empire to?"

"Son? What would I do with a kid?"

"Teach him."

"Teach him? What do I know?"

"A lot more than you think, my friend. A lot more.'

From the small offices, Joseph opened other day care centers in low-income areas, Alapattah, Liberty City, and Little Haiti using the same methods he had used with Silvio. By this time, however, he had enough capital to buy the land, build the childcare center to specifications. He had blueprints drawn up to meet any contingency. All he needed was a plot of land, and he could build a replica of his center, put his people in place and move on. He had enough money to finance his buildings, and using his formers ties in banking, he no longer needed the minority status to finance his loans, and he paid Silvio for his share of the business.

Silvio continued to be a manager, for he was committed to the project. It was doing well. Mothers, who before stayed at home and collected welfare checks, were leaving their children in the child care center, and through a deal Joseph had worked out with the community college, were getting financial aid and child assistance form the federal government by attending their child care centers. But they had to submit the correct documentation that they were full time students.

"Hell, I could become the Mc Donald's of child care centers in Miami. Over one billion children served," he once joked with Silvio.

Soon Joseph was in charge of nine day care centers in three counties, all headed by the right people, as he saw it, in each city. He had black managers in Liberty City, Haitian managers in Little Haiti and Jewish managers on Miami Beach--they were all a part of the KinderLove family.

Joseph envisioned a slow steady progress up the Gold Coast and across the state to Tampa. He would build his company slowly by selecting each manager according to the racial composition of the area. When he finally closed a deal in Homestead and everything was finally ready, Sabrina left him because she said he was paying more attention to his work.

"You're more than married to that job. You're obsessed," she said.

"You haven't been complaining about the restaurants and the clubs."

"I don't need that to feel in control of my life."

"When you've seen what I've seen, you don't want to go back," he said.

"Do you think you're the only one who's been poor? I climbed up all the way from Standpipe to be here. But I'm not going to let this country take my life. I want more than a bank account out of life."

The next thing he heard was that she was dating a local radio talk show host and that they would soon be married. Joseph staggered around Miami for a few weeks, and then refocused his efforts.

"Can you imagine," he once said to Silvio," if Fidel died tomorrow, we could set up centers all over that island. With everybody going back to rebuild, they'd need someone to take care of their children. Hell, I might put you in charge of all my Cuban operations once Fidel goes."

Silvio thought that Joseph was joking, but he wasn't. Once the island became free again, Joseph thought, Silvio would be an excellent choice to run operations in Cuba. Silvio would be the man to be in charge, for he kept a tight watch on all the expenditures, and daily operations. He once reprimanded a secretary, a fellow Cuban, for taking home pencils for her son.

"Relax, it's only a box of pencils," said Joseph.

"It starts with pencils," said Silvio.

In fact, the trouble had started three months before Silvio had come into his office with a stack of papers.

"I really think you need to see this," said Silvio.

"What's up Silvio? More missing pencils? "

"This is a lot worse. Take a look at this."

Silvio placed a file from the Hialeah office on Joseph's desk. Inside the file were requisitions for toys, vacation leave, invoices for food delivery, records of pay stubs and HRS maintenance forms and licenses. Joseph looked over the files and everything seemed to be in order

"What's the problem Silvio? Everything looks okay to me."

"Everything," said Silvio. "Except this request for leave which I didn't sign."

"You didn't? There's your signature."

"It isn't mine. She forged my signature, Joseph. "

"Forgery. That's a serious charge. But has she stolen anything."

"No," said Silvio. "Only my signature. But I haven't finished with this file yet. And it only came to my attention because I called the office and was told by the secretary she was on paid leave. I asked the secretary who authorized the leave and she said, ' Why you, sir.' That was when I told her I was coming over to her office. I told her to have all the files ready for me to review. I've been looking through them since this morning. She has two week's paid vacation on our time. We haven't taken a vacation in five years, Joseph"

"Well, when you get to the bottom of all of this you tell me what I should do. She's your girl."

The last sentence stung Silvio, but he couldn't say anything because it was true. He had hired Caridad Rodriguez, the manager at the Hialeah center. Now she had put him in a bind, and he didn't like it. He didn't like that one of his own, had put him in this position. He had to be tough with her, extra tough. It was a matter of principle. If word of this got out that he was soft on her, his own family, then morale in the entire company would go down and everything would come tumbling down.

Besides, he had built the Hialeah Branch from nothing. It was a tough sell because most families preferred to leave the children with the grandmothers, or abuelas. Silvio convinced many parents to send their children to KinderLove because of the computers and other educational technologies he had installed in all the center. Hialeah had been the pilot project, which he called the child centers of tomorrow.

"Do you think abuela can help your children when all the other American children are all working on computers and cellular phones and we're still playing bolitas ?" he asked the parents.

Soon the center was filled with children from all over Hialeah. At that time, Joseph was opening a new branch in West Palm Beach and he wanted Silvio to jumpstart the project. Silvio needed help, so he did something he had never done before. He hired someone from his family.

"And you're sure Caridad is okay," he had asked his cousin Oscar.

"She's okay, man. She's had a small problem in the past with a professor at UM, but everything worked out. She's changed. She graduated with honors in education and computer science. She's just the person you're looking for."

"What kind of trouble was she in?"

"Nothing big. Something about her grades. It was nothing. You know these Americans; they're always making something out of nothing."

Naomi suggested that Silvio should invite her to dinner. After the dinner, as he watched Caridad mingle with the guests and she showed her breadth of knowledge about current affairs, history and traded a few quips with his wife, Silvio decided to hire her. Caridad was a model of Cuban -American grace and charm. She was fluent in both English and Spanish, and not the Spanglish they spoke on Calle Ocho, but something approaching Castillean Spanish. Punctual and precise, she loved children and she would have gone into teaching if the salary had been better. Instead she went into computer science.

Silvio was impressed by her demure appearance. She was five feet four inches tall, blond and green-eyed, but she never allowed her natural good looks to interfere with her professional behavior. She was a model of the new Latin woman--with enough of a hint of the old ways to charm and enough of the new ways to disarm those who would be impressed by her poise.

Joseph was awed with her credentials and showed her off at the grand opening, and several other openings around Miami. She ran the centers without a hitch. Fathers would spend hours trying to get interviews with her regarding the progress of their children and would spread the word about how cooperative she was with them. Mothers were impressed with they way she used her charisma to bring in new families. She had been a perfect associate until this.

Silvio spent the entire weekend researching the files, and found the only irregularity was the vacation. He reported to Joseph on Monday.

"And this is the only thing."

"She's done everything by the book until today. But I still say we have to let her go. The word, I know, has probably spread all around the company. We've got to do something."

"We've got to move pretty slowly now," said Joseph. "Let me handle this."

"Are you sure?"

"Things like this can break a family a part and the last thing that I want is for your family to suffer because of this. My family broke apart on something smaller than this and we've never forgiven each other."

"KinderLove is a company, Joseph. It's not a family."

"For me it is."

Joseph waited until Silvio was away from Miami and Caridad had resumed her post in Hialeah before asking her to come down to the main office. To protect her, Joseph invited Caridad to his office after the regular office hours. Caridad unaware of what was happening stared with disbelief when Joseph told her that he was going to fire her.

"But, why? Haven't I worked and worked for this company giving it a hundred and ten percent all the time. I've even worked on weekends without charging anyone. I worked on the payroll and everything else including the typing and correspondence when my secretary was out. I did all the work in the branch, and because I took two weeks you're going to fire me?'

"All you had to do was ask, and you would have gotten it. It was all yours for the taking."

"You mean because I took two weeks..."

"It was on company time, and you forged Silvio's signature. That was wrong."

"And you've never done anything wrong in your life?"

"Not like this, Caridad, not like this."

He tried to comfort her, but she would have nothing to do with him. He told her he would write a letter of recommendation to any employer who wanted her, and he wouldn't mention the reasons why she had left KinderLove. Everything would remain between them and nobody else would need to know about the affair. It would be their secret. He spent at least three hours in his office consoling her and when she came out she was so visibly shaken, Joseph's secretary, Betty, who had never trusted Caridad offered her the use of the sofa staff lounge.

"What's wrong, Miss Caridad?"

"Nothing, nothing at all," snapped Caridad. "I just want you to record the time that I went into that man's office and record the time that I left," she sobbed. "That beast," she screamed as she ran down the hallway.

Joseph came out to the door when he heard her scream. He thought she would have taken it badly, but not like this. As he was about to go into his office, Betty mumbled something under her breath.

"Sorry fe maga dawg, maga dawg tun rung bite yu."

"What?" he said trying not to get angry. He didn't have any more time for these quaint island sayings that she was so fond of spouting whenever she was trying to understand something.

"Don't worry yourself, Mr. Joseph. You will see her again," said Betty. "Girls like that always land on their backs."

And she was right. Caridad came back, but not in the way he had expected. She had rallied all the parents to her side, and many of them had signed petitions demanding Caridad's reinstatement.

When Silvio tried to stand up for Joseph, they branded him as a communist and called him a traitor to his race. Caridad's uncle came on a Cuban radio station, and said Silvio's family had been a supporter of Fidel and an El Nuevo Herald editorial denounced the practices and racial hiring practices of KinderLove Inc. Ray Santiago had joined in, and nearly every night there was some story involving Joseph or his company. He couldn't do anything to escape the publicity. It was now taking a toll on Silvio's marriage.

At this point, Joseph started to get worried, but Silvio reassured him that it would soon die down. People would soon see through Caridad's tricks.

"We can reveal what she did, and the reasons we fired her," said Silvio." She now saying that I was the one who authorized everything and that I am afraid of you."

"Don't to anything, said Joseph. You'll just make matters worse. This is between me and her."

A week passed and the picketing continued. Silvio tried calling Caridad, but she now directed him to her lawyers. Joseph was losing business in Hialeah, but picking up in Palm Beach. He decided to step in. Joseph called Silvio into his office, and told him about his plan.

"I'm reassigning you to Monroe County, Silvio. And I'm bringing back Caridad to Hialeah. I'm sorry, but I have to do this."

"But that's almost admitting that you've done something wrong. She ahs shamed me, my family.'

"I have to do it for the sake of the business. It's the only way I can get your people off my back."

It was the first time the words your people had hurt Silvio so much.

"They're not my people when they behave like that!"

"They are now, and they want your blood."

Silvio was stunned. He leaned back against the chair and watched the pelicans dive into the sea. Along the shore some kids were collecting shells along the dredged beach.

"I can't do it, Joseph. I can't live under a cloud.'

"What are you saying, my friend?"

"I have to leave."

"Why?"

"It's better that I leave with a good conscience so I can live with my self tomorrow. Do what you have to do."

"Suit yourself, amigo, suit yourself," said Joseph. "I'm not going to beg."

Joseph almost choked on the words as he said them, but this was business and he would either sink or swim. He was not ready to drown, and Silvio would now have to swim on his own.

Joseph figured he would call the girl into his office, offer her a few drinks, and sell her with his lines. He would give her old job back with a raise; perhaps give her Silvio's office. All this seemed to him to be quite reasonable, and he knew Caridad would accept willingly for he had always had the feeling she was not the demure Cuban girl everyone was making her out to be. Both of them would be satisfied. She would have her old job back, and he would be rid of all the bad press.

Inside his office, Silvio began packing his briefcase and books. He was careful to take only the things that he had purchased with his own money for his office. He packed all his belongings in a cardboard box that had been placed in the recycling bin. It had been discarded already, so no one needed it. Although it was unnecessary, he began composing his letter of resignation that he would turn in whenever he came back to get the rest of this things. It was hard leaving the office where he had so many fond memories, but the really hard part was breaking the news to his wife.

How was he going to tell her after all they had been through that he was out of a job? How were they going to face the future without any health insurance or any of the others benefits the job provided. He had saved some money; he had always put aside something each month. But what if something really catastrophic happened. What would he do?

On the long drive home through the long traffic lines on the I-95, Silvio looked across the Julia Tuttle Causeway and he realized how much Hurricane Andrew had changed Miami. For six years, even through the hurricane, he had gone to work at six and reached home at eleven at night. He hadn't realized how many trees had disappeared from the skyline. He made his exit to the I-195.

When he got home, he told his wife and children the bad news. He told them they would have to cut back on a few things. They would be probably taking lunch to school, and they might have to give up cable television and MTV. The children started crying. Silvio knew they wouldn't understand, but he had to at least warn them of what could happen

Later that night Naomi told him after she had tucked in the kids, that she'd explained the situation to the kids and that all he had said was just a possibility. She told him she would take a second job to help out.

"But you're already working too hard. The kids need one of us to be around."

"Don't worry," she said. "Now that you're out of a job, you'll have lots of free time on your hands."

He laughed with her and marveled how she could always make light out of things that always seemed to him to be so tragic. But this was why he had married her. He held her in his arms and fell asleep.

When he woke up the next day, Silvio began updating his resume. He searched through the newspapers and contacted old friends. Six weeks passed before he was invited for his first interview. It was downtown, so he decided to visit his old office to pick up the rest of this things, and say hello to his former co-workers.

When he got to the office, Joseph's door was locked, but when Betty saw him, she greeted him with a hug and a kiss on his cheek. Silvio was surprised, he had never seen her so expressive.

"You is a good man," she said. "Take care of yourself," and she went back to her desk as if nothing had happened.

"So where's Joseph?"

"He inside the office with the lawyer. He had a long four-hour meeting with the girl and she pulled the same stunt with him that she pulled with you, but this time in broad daylight. He wanted to give her your job!"

"Did she take it?' asked Silvio

"Bigger dumplings to fry"

"What? Please, Betty don't go into your Jamaican now when I need the facts."

Betty explained that Caridad had been offered a new job with a raise, but she wanted everything in writing.

"Did he give it to her?"

"Of course. That girl have that man wrap around her finger like a dog looking for him shadow. The fool give her everything she wanted just to stop them people from coming around here."

She saw the look on Silvio's face, "You know what I mean, sir"

"I know, Betty. I know"

"The next day the girl file a complaint with the Equal Opportunity people, and before you know it them was all over the office. But don't worry you not involved."

Silvio wanted to stay, but he realized he had to get to the interview, and he didn't want to be late. He picked up the box with the rest of his things that Betty had finished packing and headed for the door. He pried his nameplate off the door and put it in his box.

"I don't think anyone will mind if I take this," he said

"I don't think so," said Betty. "And what him can do, fire you?"

Silvio smiled. "Tell the boss I stopped by," he said as he walked past Joseph's door, which was slightly ajar. Jerry Bucher, Joseph's lawyer, stepped into the hallway. He had been retained by Joseph from his breakup with Sabrina and had drawn up the pre-nuptials which Sabrina had refused to sign.

Joseph's eyes met with Silvio, but Jerry closed the door in Silvio's face.

"What did you do that for?" asked Joseph

"He may be in this with her. You never know these Cubans," said Jerry.

Joseph was about to scold Jerry, but he didn't. It was no use alienating him, even if he was a professional and would do a good job.

"You mean there's nothing we can do?" asked Joseph.

"Nothing. She's got you by the short ones Joseph. We gotta just pay and move on. She's an attractive woman. You're a bachelor. You don't have any family ties, a loyal wife or kids to stand beside you on these charges of sexual harassment."

"This almost ruins me."

"That's the only alternative Joseph. And now that Silvio is out, if she wants to play the anti-Cuban card, you're dead."

"If she wants..."

"If she wants," said Jerry. "She's a real pro at this stuff. I've checked around and she did this with one of her professors at UM. They settled out of court, of course. But that was for chicken feed and good grades. This is big time and you're it."

"I'm it?"

"You're it," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow with the papers.

Jerry left Joseph's office and left him standing by his desk. Joseph looked over to Silvio's office and saw that Silvio's nameplate had been removed.

"Is he gone?" he said

"Yes, Sir, he's gone," said Betty.

Joseph walked back to his desk, sat in his chair, and stared at the top of the door where Silvio's nametag had been. Now there was only a rectangle a shade darker than the rest of the door. He looked over the papers once again and wished Silvio was there with him.

Cover Design: Joseph McNair