"But those are old arguments," Nic said. "And what we heard was that something new happened between you two recently. Something that pretty much made you stop talking to each other. So what was it?"
"I was angry at him. You're right about that."
"Why? What happened?"
After a long hesitation, Victoria said in a rush, "I found out that he was grooming someone to take my place. But as Jim would say, it wasn't personal; it was business. I would never kill anyone over that. Especially not like that. Watching Jim die and knowing there was nothing I could do to help--it was the worst moment in my life:'
"Do you know who it was?" Allison asked.
"He wouldn't say." Victoria stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go back to the gathering and remember why so many people hung on Jim's every word."
"What do you think?" Nicole asked after Victoria had left.
"If she hadn't stayed behind with him, I think she would be my number one suspect."
"Yeah," Nicole agreed. "I'm beginning to think she doesn't feel right for this. And neither do the Gardners. But--"
Allison's phone rang, and she held up a finger to ask Nicole to wait. "Hello?"
"Hey, Allison, it's Joyce over at Child Protective Services. I thought I'd give you an update about the little girl you found downtown during the evacuation. We were finally able to locate her family."
"What? Are you saying Estella has been in foster care this whole time?" Allison's heart sank as she wondered what it had been like for her, all alone with a new set of strangers. At work, Allison had managed to put the girl out of her thoughts. It all seemed like a dream, anyway, picking up a toddler and running through the streets while the city went crazy around her. Now it was as if Estella were again clinging to her trustingly, looking up at Allison with her dark eyes.
"It turns out Estella's mother's not in the country legally, so she was afraid to come forward."
"Oh." Allison let the news sink in. "So what happens next?"
"We'll give the child back to her and let them go on with their lives. We're not ICE." ICE was Immigration and Customs Enforcement "Estella was born here, so she's a citizen, which means she doesn't fall under ICE's jurisdiction, anyway. Her mother may be subject to deportation, but it's not our job to start that process. We're all about reuniting families, not separating them. And the girl seems well cared for."
"Have you met the mom?"
"Just this morning. Her name's Ana. She asked about you. She is overwhelmingly grateful that you tried to help her daughter. She kept crying and grabbing my hand and praising God. She wants to thank you. I told her I needed to check with you before I gave out any information."
Allison didn't have to think twice. "Give her my phone number, my address--anything she wants." Part of her had been hoping she might see Estella again. "So what's the mom's story?"
"Ana got a tourist visa eight years ago, but then just stayed on. It's only one of the reasons we didn't hear from her until now. She also doesn't speak much English, and she doesn't have Internet access. She works as a cleaning lady for private citizens. She never married Estella's father, who doesn't have contact with the girl. Estella's babysitterwho is also her cousin--was with her downtown when the two got separated. The cousin's not legal either." Joyce sighed. "The same kind of situation happened on 9/11. Several dozen undocumented immigrants died in the Twin Towers: deliverymen, busboys, janitors, construction workers. It took a long time to figure out about them too. Relatives were reluctant to come forward."
"What happens if the authorities do catch up with Ana?" "Mexicans without papers are automatically deported. Some people think these kids are 'anchor babies: but it doesn't work that way. It doesn't matter that the kids are citizens. Three million American children have at least one parent who is illegal. But if you're here illegally, whether your kids are legal or not, you'll still be deported if you're caught. And if that happens, the only way your children can stay in America is if you leave them with someone who is a citizen. And the kids can't appeal for their parents to become citizens until they themselves turn twenty-one."
In Oregon, nearly every person holding a leaf blower or a broom had a brown face. And then there was all the produce that was grown in the state. Cherries, apples, potatoes, pears, strawberries, peas, beans--none of it could be grown and harvested without the help of illegal immigrants. Allison didn't know what the solution was. Some people said Americans didn't want such backbreaking work, others that they would willingly take the jobs if they paid more, still others that the farmers couldn't afford to pay ten dollars an hour.
And in the middle was a sweet little girl who hadn't had any say on where she was born.
Chapter 32
Mark 0. Hatfield United States Courthouse Saturday, February 11