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“¿Estás loca?” he said, instantly angry “We’ve coo back”

“But…” She sed hard “How er?”

“We’ll be there soon,” he promised

But would she be any happier after they arrived? They were going to a safe house and then the home of his cousin, Carlos Garcia She’d met Carlos on two different occasions and didn’t like hi he wasn’t She didn’t want José to become like him…

“Hurry!”

Her husband was getting impatient Benita kne much this trip meant to hi, painted appealing pictures of the opportunities to be found in America But…

Gathering her courage, she started after hiain She wouldn’t be a disappoint her Besides, as he said, they’d come too far to turn back Surely the number of mobile homes meant they were indeed close to the safe house Bordertoas as far as they had to go tonight It was all arranged They’d rest, then they’d call Carlos and he’d pick them up and take them to Phoenix There, they’d live with him and two other roommates and, hopefully, find work so they could help pay the h to afford their own place

“Aren’t you worried about snakes?” she grumbled

“Snakes will be the least of our worries if you don’t keep ”

Sighing, she tried to move faster, but with every step she wished she’d been able to talk José out of this They were young and in love; they couldin Mexico soo to Ain a foreign land? A land that didn’t want theun to build a life here?

It was a risk Benita didn’t want to take “José, I really, really want to go hoan to stream down her cheeks

He didn’t even turn around “You’ll be glad we did this Just…trust me”

She thought of the water bottle they’d finished hours ago Would they find themselves lost in the desert when the sun caer around in the one hundred and fifteen degree heat without food or water and eventually die a terrible death?

The mere possibility made her shudder All she had left was a pocketful of nuts And they were covered with salt

“We shouldn’t have crossed,” she said “We should not have done this”

A gruff chuckle alerted them to the presence of a third party “Well, hat do you know? It sounds as if so to their senses”

Benita squealed, then clamped a hand over herthe faint light of the moon She couldn’t er And she was pretty sure he earing a cowboy hat and holding a gun He had so in his hand…