Chapter 17
The next morning, Rego attended Mass for the first time in a couple of years. He sat next to his Aunt Lina in the large Cathedral of St. Paul. He stared at the baroque ceiling and the beautiful altar at the head of the church. From then on, he vowed to renew his faith and attend Mass regularly again.
Sister Lina gave him another surprise that same afternoon. The pastor of the town’s church was a devoted fan of football and had arranged to have a small television set up at the monastery to watch the quarter-final match of the World Cup between Brazil and Peru. Rego enjoyed the match immensely, laughing and talking with his aunt and the pastor and the other sisters of the monastery. They all enjoyed their time off from their daily chores, and all of them loved to be around Rego’s youthful energy and excitement. Brazil triumphed over Peru with a convincing victory, four goals to two. His favorite player, Pelé, did not score a goal, but he made many assists and spectacular plays on the ball that Rego enjoyed just as much. He thanked the pastor for the opportunity to watch the game and to spend time with them.
The following morning, Rego sat in the kitchen of the monastery eating a small breakfast. His Aunt Lina walked in to join him.
“Aunt Lina, what do you call these little pastries? They are delicious!” he asked with a mouthful.
She smiled at him. “They are a favorite dish among the Maltese. They call it pastizzi. As you can see, I love to eat them as well,” she said with a laugh.
Rego continued devouring the small pastries. “Oh, I love pastizzi.”
Sister Lina sat next to him and put a piece of pastizzi on her plate. She looked at her nephew as he ate. “I have some good news for you, Rego,” she said. He stopped eating and looked at her. “The pastor allowed me to phone my sister this morning very early.”
Rego put down his breakfast. “You talked to Grandma? How is she?” he asked very concerned.
“She is well. It was so good to hear her voice,” she said. “I wanted to let her know that you were here and that you were alright. She was upset with Enso for putting you through such an ordeal, but I assured her that you made it here with flying colors!” Rego smiled bashfully. “She misses you though, Rego. And a certain someone else misses you too.” His face turned even redder.
“What else did she say?” Rego asked impatiently.
“I’ve been praying for her and for Enso. She told me that Rosa brought her to Salvador for the funeral and everything was nice,” she said with a tear appearing in her eye, thinking about her brother. “He would be so proud of you, Rego.” She sobbed a little in her seat. She wiped her tears away and sat up straight. “The good news is that Enso left your grandmother and me what he had left in his savings, God rest him. And we have decided to use most of it to send you back home to Brasilia.”
Rego almost felt like he wanted to cry now. He looked at her with his eyes red. “I don’t know what to say.”
“We’ll put you on a nice airplane this time,” she said with a wink. “We girls know how to travel.” She wanted to see a smile on his face and tried to make him laugh. It worked well. He gave her another huge hug. “You’ll be home in no time.”
Sister Lina stood by the gate at the small Malta airport. Rego was at a loss for words. He didn’t know if he would ever see his great aunt again, so he tried to push those thoughts out of his mind.
“God will always be with you, Rego,” she said to him, smiling at him proudly. “Always remember that. And I will always be with you as well.” She hugged him one last time. “Thank you for bringing the letter to me. I will always cherish it. Nothing like hand delivered mail!” she said putting another smile on his face.
“Goodbye, Aunt Lina,” Rego said smiling. “Thank you for everything. I will never forget you.” He started to walk away, but then he gathered up his newfound courage and decided to let his feelings be known. He hugged her quickly again and said, “I love you, Aunt Lina. May God be with you also.” She held him tight and then let him go and watched as he walked to the plane. He turned and smiled as he disappeared around the corner.
She stayed at the gate and watched as the plane rolled down the runway and take off into the sky.
Rego landed at the Brasilia airport, the same day Brazil was playing for a spot in the finals of the World Cup. They were facing Uruguay in the semi-finals in what would be another classic match between two South American countries.
He stepped through the gate to see a very familiar face. Rosa smiled broadly when she saw him walk through the door. He walked up to her and put down his things. They just stood and stared at one another. He couldn’t believe she was standing in front of him. After all he had been through and the great distances he had traveled, he was finally home. His ordeal was finished. To Rego, seeing Rosa was the greatest moment of all.
“Hey there, pretty eyes,” he said smiling broadly. “You’re just as beautiful as the day I met you.”
“Oh, be quiet!” she said with tears running down her face and threw her arms around him. She was overjoyed to see him again. They hugged each other for what seemed like an eternity.
“I have something for you,” he said reaching into the satchel.
“After all this time, you better have something for me,” she said smiling at him.
He pulled a small object out of his satchel that was wrapped in brown paper and handed it to her. She unwrapped it slowly and pulled it out of the paper. It was the leather coin purse he had seen in Gibraltar with the sun shining over the land. He had bought the satchel instead and left the coin purse behind in Gibraltar. But he made up for it in the nick of time. He had found the same leather purse in Malta before he had boarded the bus for Mdina.
“It’s beautiful,” she said looking at it. “It looks like something I’ve seen before.”
“Really, where?” he asked curiously. She smiled at him with a clever look on her face.
“You’re not going to believe this,” she said as they walked out of the airport.
“Believe what?” he asked impatiently. She kept smiling at him as if she had a secret. “What, tell me!” She began to laugh heartily as they boarded a bus back home.
Chapter 18
Rego, Rosa, and his grandmother Maria, stood in the cemetery in Salvador, looking at a headstone. Rego read the name and stared at it with sadness in his heart. It read, ENSO SANCHES BOTELHA. A few feet from the Botelha plot was another headstone for Enso’s friend, Jacomé Pascoal.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out an old cloth pouch. He opened it and inside was a handful of old coins. They were the coins he had been given by Enso all those years ago when he was a child. He looked at them briefly then dumped them back into the old pouch. He placed the pouch on the headstone.
“Thank you, Uncle Enso,” he said looking at the headstone. “You always knew how to make me smile.” He knelt down beside the stone and put his hand on it. “It was a wonderful journey,” he said with a whisper. “Thank you. And thanks to you Mr. Pascoal for helping me. I’m so sorry for what those men did to you.”
He stood and put his arm around his grandmother. Maria looked at him and said softly, “Rosa and I have something to show you.”
High upon a cliff, they stood staring at a vast panoramic view of beautiful open country. The sun shined brightly on them and the enormous green hills and fields below. The land stretched as far as they could see up against the sky blue backdrop. It was the land that belonged to the Botelha family. Rego stood and looked at it with awe.
Rosa reached into her pocket and pulled out her new coin purse and showed it to Rego. The picture on the purse was almost the same as the view from the cliff side. She smiled at him as he looked at it with surprise.
“Amazing, simply amazing,” he said looking with them at the incredible view.
“So are you, my love,” Rosa said and kisse
d him on the cheek.
They stood and took in the beauty of the vast expanse before them. With satisfied smiles on their faces and a sense of renewal, they took one last look and then headed back home to start the new day.
About the Author
Keith R. Rees has been writing for over a decade now. He has written poetry, novellas, and a few short stories. The Brazilian is his first full length novel.
Keith loves the outdoors, golfing, and traveling with his wife, Jeesica. Since they met in 2002, they have traveled together at home and abroad. One of their favorite destinations is the islands of Hawaii, where they honeymooned in 2004.
Keith has never traveled to Brazil, but has always been interested in the many cultures of South America. His experiences in college with his brother John, as an exchange student on the island country of Malta, were a great inspiration for the story of The Brazilian. Keith and John were students at the University of Malta in the spring of 1988. They returned to Malta once again to visit friends in 2000. He hopes that one day he can show Jessica this wonderful island country.
Keith and Jessica reside in Austin, Texas, where they both enjoy writing and many other hobbies.
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