Shine your light upon me

Chapter VIII: Aunt Isabel arrives for a visit

Panama, La Chorrera, February 1909

Several months after the wedding, Nieves and Horace had exchanged nothing but cutting words in reference to each other. The tension from their wedding night argument was still in the air.

The family had begun construction of a house behind the Pardillo estate, intended for Horace and Nieves to make their own home. Although Nieves felt her freedom had vanished at the time of her forced marriage, at least she would have her own space and privacy. Construction was progressing, and the house was gradually taking shape.

Nieves often visited the construction site, watching the wood and brick structure go up. She dreamed of the day when she would have her own space to escape the constant tension with Horace and, perhaps, find some peace.

The young woman still thought of Louis, often looking off into the horizon and wondering if she would ever have the chance to have a conversation with him again. After all, Louis had not shown up for the wedding — and she understood that— nor had she seen him pass by the meadow, which she visited from time to time with the intention of seeing him. She knew he worked with Mr. Asprilla, so, on some occasions, she would get up early for a walk and pass by the grocery store with the intention of seeing him.

Horace, for his part, was busy with the affairs of the estate, making sure everything was running smoothly. Although Nieves was not the center of his world, he was weighed down by the awkward situation they found themselves in. Tension was still in the air, and despite the house under construction, the distance between them seemed to grow.

During the middle of the day, a well-dressed woman with a haughty air appeared in front of the Pardillo estate. She stepped out of a luxurious carriage with an umbrella covering her head. Jorge Pardillo greeted her with surprise and allowed her to enter the house.

The woman took a seat in the living room where Mr. Pardillo and his wife sat across from her, offering her a cup of tea. With trepidation, Jorge spoke:

"What brings you here, Aunt Isabel?"

"I had a letter from you, don't you remember?" she said, taking a sip of her tea, "about my nephew's wedding. I'm glad he's finally settled down."

"Right, I'd forgotten. It took you a while to come visit us, I honestly thought we'd have to go into town to see you."

Isabel denied.

"I was delayed as I was in Spain attending to some business, but that's not the point" she continued "I'm here because I want to meet my nephew's wife."

Gregoria happily rose from her seat and excused herself before leaving the room. She ran through the corridors until she came upon Nieves, who was drenched in sweat as she diligently helped with the construction of the house.

"Nieves, my dear!" cried Gregoria as she ran to her, "Aunt Isabel is here and she wants to meet you, hurry! Come and get ready!"

As Nieves ran home to get ready alongside Mrs. Gregoria, Horace had been paying attention to his mother and wife's conversation. He wiped off his sweat and left the tools in place to enter the house. He reached the room where he found his father and his aunt Isabel, whom he had never met before.

"Good afternoon, aunt," he said, standing in the doorway.

Isabel looked at him and smiled.

"Horace... how great you look, I'm glad to see you. Have a seat."

He carried out the order.

"I'm sure you don't remember me; you were very little the last time we met."