Julio – The Growing Years

 by: Miguel Sanchez

© 2006-2008 by the author

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

Marco was shaking his head and Ronnie was smiling. “That was the idea Dad. I would like to talk with Jay and get some more details then go and take a look at it. Maybe we can get Angel to see it too.”

Chapter 29 

Ronnie was mentally doing his homework and it showed in what he was telling me. “Alright son, talk with Jay and get some more details. Find out where the place is and we’ll see about going down for a weekend.”

Ronnie hurried to get in touch with Jay while Marco and I talked about his upcoming Citizenship test. “Have you studied your history kiddo?”

Marco nodded his head. “Yeah Dad, it’s a good thing I’m good with dates. I don’t see a problem passing it.”

Just then Ronnie came back into the room and he was grinning from ear to ear. “I just spoke with Jay. The restaurant is attached to a hotel. He said it was a pretty nice hotel but he doesn’t know who owns the building.”

I just figured out where we would be staying that weekend. “I’ll call Steven and see when he has a 4 day weekend and we will have a little vacation in Durham.”

I finished my drink while I watched the news and called it a night. It was good to sleep in my bed again and I slept until well after 8.

It took a couple days for Steven to get with me as to when he had a 4 day weekend but we set it up for the first weekend in March. Angel was doing some research on the property and she gave me a call that evening. “Hi Dad, look I’ve found out a few things here but I’m not sure which way to go.”

I carried my drink over to the recliner then sat down. “What did you find out?”

“As you know, the restaurant is attached to the hotel. But it’s owned by the hotel. Now, the restaurant owner had a lease with the hotel and it seems he’s behind on his payments. The only thing I don’t know is if the equipment in the place is owned by the hotel or the lessee. I found out the place will close on the 30^th of March. Here is what I don’t know about Dad. I don’t know if a long term lease would be best or should we try to buy the whole thing, hotel and all.”
 

Angel had once again done her homework. “We have a hotel already going up in Receife my love. I don’t think we want to get into another one quite so soon.”

There was a short period of silence as I guess Angel was digesting what I had just said. “Maybe you’re right Dad. I talked some with Jay and the place does get a lot of students. He said the place was listed as a three to four star establishment. I know Ronnie wants 5 star places but I’m afraid he’d lose the college trade if he did that near Duke.”

“Ronnie is out with Marco for the evening love. Why don’t you talk with him and see if he’d agree with keeping the place as it already is. I’m sure if he wants to make the place work, he’d have to cater to what the clientele demands.”

I could almost hear the wheels turning in Angel’s head. “I think you’re right Dad. I couldn’t find out how much the guy was paying a month on his lease. These are the only unknowns we have.”

I took a sip of my Baileys and thought for a moment. “That’s not an issue because we’d be negotiating a whole new one. I’m sure we can find out how much the owner is paying once we arrive. I’ve booked three rooms at the hotel and I don’t plan on letting anyone at the hotel know what our intentions really are until the time is right.”

“OK Daddy,” Angel replied in a chipper voice. “In the mean time, I’ll see if I can find out what he’s paying, just so we have an idea.”

I finished sipping my drink while we were talking. “Ok Angel, if you can find out that information it’s great. If you can’t, don’t worry about it. We’ll know soon enough.”

No sooner had I hung up the phone when I heard Ronnie and Marco come in. “Hi Dad,” Ronnie said as he gave me a hug. “Did you hear from Angel?”

I rinsed my glass out then returned to the recliner. “Five minutes sooner son and you’d have caught her. She’s found some useful information about the building and also some about the clientele.”

“Clientele Dad,” Marco asked giggling. “If Jay goes there, it can’t be all that upscale.”

Marco was getting a little dig in at Jay. “Not quite Marco. The hotel is rated 3 stars and the food tries to be between 3 and 4.”

Ronnie came in from the kitchen and sat beside Marco on the love seat. “Dad, you know I want to do 5 star work?”

I nodded my head in agreement. “I know son but this is your first place. You’ve proved you can come up with a good menu. Five star food takes an experienced team. I know you have the talent and the drive but the clientele there isn’t used to nor do I think really wants that type of cuisine. So why not give them what they want with good food that not only tastes good but comes at a fair price. That is the claim to a good chef son.”

“You want me to make burgers and fires all the time? They can get that at any fast food place.” Ronnie asked thinking I’d lowered his standards.

I shook my head no. I saw Marco put his hand on Ronnie’s shoulder and stroke it. “Easy bro, that’s not what Pop means. For lunch, I’m sure a lot of the college students will like burgers during lunch but I know others will like a nice balanced meal. I would want a burger sometimes but I would also like a nice meal. Start there and get some good experience running your own place then when the hotel opens, you’ll be ready to knock their socks off.”

I liked the way Marco explained it and I could see the wheels turning in Ronnie’s head. Ronnie got up and went into his room then came back carrying a notebook. He sat beside Marco and started writing like his hand was on fire. Marco and I sat watching Ronnie go at it for about 15 minutes then he came over and set the notebook on my lap. I looked at what he had done and there was a quick menu. “You put meals out like this son and I see the place making money pretty quick.”

Marco came over and looked at it. “Man bro, stuffed pork chops, several kinds of fish, lamb and a great lunch menu to boot. I might decide to go to Duke instead of going out to California.”

I saw right then that there wasn’t anything Ronnie couldn’t do once he put his mind to it. “I think someone has their mind set on making this venture go all the way.”

Ronnie blushed as Marco and I sang his praises over the menu. He took the notebook and put it away then we relaxed and watched a movie until bedtime.

The next few weeks flew by as I was back at work in the operating room. The rest of January was a blur and things didn’t slow down until mid February. I was on my way home from an all-nighter and I remembered I had to confirm our reservations in Durham. I got home about 10 and fixed a cup of coffee then made the phone call. I was finishing my second cup of coffee when there was a knock on the door. I looked at my watch and it was after 11. I wondered why Marco didn’t have his key until I looked in the garage only to find his car still there. I opened the front door to find two guys in suits standing there. “May I help you?”

One suit started to push on the door and I held it firm. “We’re looking for a Marco Cortez.”

The suit then tried slipping through the small opening then stopped when I put my hand out. “Might I enquire as to who you two people are?”

The second suit pulled out his ID and waved it in my face. I had to grab his wrist in order to read it. “We’re with the INS and we have some questions for him.”

I knew he hadn’t done anything and his Student Visa was still valid so I was at a loss as to why these two guys were wanting to talk with him. “He’s still asleep. What is the nature of the problem?”

I was getting tired of holding the door. I stepped back and let the two men come inside. “Where’s his room?”

Now I was really getting pissed. Ain’t no one coming into my house looking through it without a warrant. “Do you have a warrant? Unless you do, if you go though my house I will have the police here in 5 minutes.”

One suit tried to pull a macho act on me. “I wouldn’t really advise that if I were you.”

I picked up the cordless then stood in front of him. “You don’t scare me. Now take a step out of the living room and I’ll dial 911 faster than you can blink. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll get Marco for you.”

I went down the hall and went into Marco’s room. I shook him a couple of times to wake him up. “Hi Pop. What’s going on?”

I waited until he was awake before I tried to speak to him. “Get up son. There are two guys from INS here. I haven’t a clue what they want and they’re getting on my nerves to boot. Get dressed and bring your passport with you when you come out.”

When I got back out to the living room, I didn’t see the suits. I was pissed and I started looking for them. “Dad, in here.”

I turned and went back to where I came from. I walked into my room and there they were looking through my stuff. “Just what the hell do you think you two are doing?”

I walked out and pretended to push 911 on the handset. “I need the police at my home please. There are two people inside.”

Just then the INS agents came out. “What are you doing?”

I looked at the men and was ready to strangle both of them. “You better start talking fast. What are you doing here and what the hell do you want?”

The men looked at Marco. One man pulled out some paper and asked, “Are you Marco Cortez?”

“Yeah, what of it?”

The man started looking at the papers. “I see you have a Student Visa.”

Marco was about to open his mouth but I beat him to it. “So what? You seem to have so much information here, what else do you have?”

The agent started flipping papers. The other man pulled some papers out of his jacket then turned to me with a smug look on his face. “Are you Miguel Sanchez?”

I couldn’t believe this. “Yah, I’m Miguel Sanchez.”

“Where were you born?’

I was furious. I was Cuban American. “I was born in the United States. Just what the hell is this all about?”

The other agent looked at Marco. I was tired and fuming. I was about to blast them with both barrels when Ronnie came in from school. “What’s going on Dad?”

The men looked at Ronnie. “Who are you son?”

Ronnie was confused and he could tell I was really pissed. “What is it to you and who are you?”

“We’re with the INS and we’ll ask the questions.”

“Well I’m an American so what the hell are you doing here?” Ronnie shot back at them.

The taller of the two glared at Ronnie when he fired off at them. “Yeah and where you were born?”

Ronnie turned and headed out of the room but before he left I saw him stick up his middle finger. “None of your fucking business as to where I was born.”

A few minutes later he returned with the phone stuck to his ear. Ronnie took his Passport and slapped it against the chest of the taller man. I heard Ronnie say something then handed Marco the phone. The tall man looked at the Passport then handed it back to Ronnie.

I looked over at Marco with a puzzled look on my face. “That was my attorney gentleman. He told me to inform you that the police have, in fact, been notified and I don’t have to tell you anything. Also, if you try to take me from here, you two and the Government will be facing the biggest lawsuit in history. Now, what the fuck is it you want?”

The taller of the suits was about to speak when there was another knock on the door. Ronnie walked over and opened it to see two of the city’s finest standing there. The officers stepped inside and the Sergeant said, “We got a report that there were two men going through your house?”

The two suits tried to act big around the local police. They puffed their chests up and showed them their ID. The short suit said, “We’re with the INS and we’re here on official business.”

“Is that so,” the Sergeant replied. “Does your business include rummaging through this man’s bedroom? I think you better show me your search warrant right now.”

The tall suit pulled his note pad out of his pocket. “We’re the Government.”

The short suit looked at the Sergeant’s partner. The name on his nametag read Alvarez. “And just where were you born Officer Alvarez?”

The Sergeant had had enough of these guys bull. He reached behind his back and unsnapped his handcuff case and removed the bracelets. “I’ve heard just about enough of your shit. Here in this city, you need a search warrant to look through a person’s belongings. It’s obvious to me that you don’t and now you’re trying to intimidate my partner, who I might add was born in Los Angeles. Now start talking or you’re both under arrest.”

The short suit decided that virtue was the better part of valor so he started talking. “Mr. Sanchez, my partner here likes to make mountains out of mole hills and until now; there wasn’t much I could do about it. We were doing routine Student Visa checks when we noticed Marco had graduated.”

I was still fuming. “So this is all you’re after? If you had bothered to look at his application, you’d have seen he was going Pre-Med.”

The tall suit still had an attitude. “So what? The University of Virginia stated that he graduated in December.”

The short suit shook his head. “Like I tried to tell you jack ass, Pre-Med is a preliminary to going on to Medical School. Marco, have you been accepted into Medical School?

Marco had relaxed as he heard the short man talk. “Yes sir, I’m going to UCLA. I worked hard and got my Batchelor of Science Degree in 3 years.”

The tall suit didn’t want to be upstaged so he tried one last ditch effort to save face. “I see here you all have been back and forth to Brazil many times. Might I ask the nature of these trips?”

I had forgotten to close the front door when the police arrived. “No you may not,” a voice said from the open door. “I’m Hugh Gaza and I’m Marco Cortez’s attorney. Do you realize who you’re talking to?”

The tall suit hadn’t learned. “Some guy from Cuba making loads of trips in and out of South America.”

The short suit wanted to disappear and Mr. Gaza laughed. “Cuba did you say? I’ll have you know this man was born in this country and his mother was American. Yes, it is true his father was Cuban but that just makes Mr. Sanchez here Cuban American.”

That hadn’t satisfied the tall suit at all. “That still doesn’t answer my question as to why all the trips to Brazil.”

Mr. Gaza just shook his head. “By rights, we don’t have to tell you shit but since this will cost you your job, I will. Mr. Sanchez here runs a multi-million dollar foundation. He is a philanthropist and works to help the street children in a city called Receife. He’s just opened an orphanage there and from what I’ve heard, he’s also building a hotel there also. He is very well known in international circles and his credibility is above reproach.”

The short suit was totally embarrassed. “Mr. Sanchez, I do so apologize here sir.”

I wasn’t in a very forgiving mood. I was tired and now these two guys come in and question my credibility. “You can apologize but if you felt like this, why did you proceed with him into my bedroom? I want you two out of my house now and I’m directing Mr. Gaza to file a formal complaint against the both of you. If you lose your jobs, that’s you own fault.”

I turned and went into the kitchen. I heard the two officers talking with the INS agents then heard the front door close. I poured a cup of coffee and sat at the table as Marco and Ronnie came in. I could see Marco was still pissed. “Damn, can you imagine the nerve of those two goofs?”

I looked at Ronnie who had cooled down. “Where did Mr. Gaza go? Did he leave?”

Ronnie got a soda out of the fridge then sat down with me. “Yeah Dad, he said he’d get back in touch with you. He’s going to want to know if you want to file suit against them.”

I knew I had a case but I really didn’t want the hassle. “No son, I don’t want the hassle of it. I know we’d win and they’d probably settle before it ever went to court but right now, I just want some sleep.”

Ronnie came over and took my coffee cup then took me by the hand taking me to my room. He kissed me on the cheek then I went to get some much needed sleep.

I looked at my clock and it was almost 2. “Wake me for dinner son. I want to eat and not get my body clock screwed up.”

“I’ll wake you up in time Dad,” Ronnie said as he closed the door behind him.

The next thing I remember was Marco shaking me gently. “Pop come on, wake up. Dinner is ready.”

I opened my eyes and Marco was holding a cup of coffee. I let my eyes get accustomed to the light then sat up reaching for the cup. “Thanks son, tell Ronnie I’ll be out there in a few minutes.”

I finished the coffee then emptied my bladder. I went out to the kitchen and Ronnie had Beef Stroganoff with homemade biscuits. I sat down and dug in and before I was full, I had demolished two big plates of food. “Man Dad, you were starved, weren’t you?”

I swallowed my mouthful then sipped some coffee. “I guess I was Ronnie. My last solid meal was last night at the hospital.”

I helped the boys clean up the kitchen then we relaxed and watched a movie. I was still very tired when the movie was over so I called it a day.

To be continued...

Posted: 06/27/08