Queen of the South - My Season 6: Full Circle

Chapter 10, Asuntos de Familia II

Dallas, TX

Even if he had been surprised that she was alive, Charger had not shown it when Pote had arrived with new guests to the compound. He had hugged her and had welcomed her and the others, offering them to stay as long as they needed. He had not asked her any questions aside from quizzing Pote and her about James's state as well as the state of his brother in law, even though he had lost one of his men to the whole affair.

James was supposed to remain in the hospital for another two to three days at least and after seeing Bobby to NYC and Laura to her house, Teresa had decided to drive around Dallas to clear her head. Pote had offered to tag along, but she had told him to start packing as he was flying back because Kelly Anne had five children to deal with.

She had driven around for some time and without realizing it had ended up in the neighborhood of Camila's old warehouse which had been her first home after her dreadful escape. She had subconsciously driven to this part of town as that's what she knew best. Not much had changed, the same old buildings, bridges, the ugly graffiti, the narrow alleys, the spilled garbage from the ugly black square bins.

She parked close by and wondered whether it was a smart idea to walk the two blocks to the warehouse. What if it's used for the same purpose as before? This was a sketchy neighborhood! The hell with it, she had to see it with her own eyes, the place where she been so terrified and so lonely, where she had fought for her life, where she had played Camila's game of hide and seek and where she had met James, her heart and soul. The place where it had started for them, she just had to take one quick look.

The warehouse had been painted in fresh light beige and there was a lot of activity around with. The minivans coming and going read "Lobo's Cleaning Services & Supplies". The rolling doors were up and she could see stacks of pallets and human figures driving forklifts in the isles. This is a legitimate business, or a front for something else, her mind quickly corrected itself. There was nothing scary or sketchy neither in the building, nor in the vehicles around it. The hate she had felt when approaching the block had dissipated and her heart filled with a warm pleasant feeling. She had survived this period of her pinche vida (cursed life) and had remained sufficiently unscarred, she had prevailed, which thought gave her satisfaction and she turned on her heel in the direction of her car.

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Laura's call had not surprised her as she thought she would want an update on James. However, the suggestion that they visit their mother Teresa taken by surprise. She had no idea how James would react to her visiting the mother he had not been in contact with over 20 years; she also was not clear herself what to expect or how to behave. But she had not had the heart to refuse and after reaching the Taco Bell plaza that Laura asked her to meet at, and sitting patiently in her car waiting for her sister in law to arrive, Teresa said to herself out loud: "No importa (doesn't matter)...it's not like I went on one date with him... I have lived with him for a long time...it's time I met the old lady as she happens to still be alive..."

The house was not very big, but wasn't tiny either, the neighborhood was lower middle class and the green sedan parked in the driveway had some rust but didn't look more than ten years old.

The woman who opened the door was in her late sixties, had light brown colored hair with visible gray roots, bright green eyes and didn't look at all like her children. She was dressed unpretentiously in a gardening outfit and held the gardening gloves in her left hand. She didn't seem surprised to see her daughter, and after a few small sentences about her dropping off the face of the earth for two weeks, she looked at Teresa and said: "And who's your friend?"

"This is Teresa, Mom...she is Jimmy's wife", Laura said and before the look on the woman's face could change, Teresa extended her hand saying: "Mrs. Valdez, I am so happy to meet you!"