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She opened the door iirl between the adults who spoke: "Preston!"

"Hi, Josefina," he said heartily, sounding like the man of the house

Dellarobia looked from her son to this child and her parents "Preston, is this a friend of yours?"

"She’s in Miss Rose’s rooed in an obedient, ritualistic way, like children at a faaze feeling thoroughly adrift The e mustache and ork clothes, a zippered jacket and billed cap The as a bit more dressed up in a suan This faotten around to the winter coats either, from the looks of it They both pumped her hand firmly and said their naot

"Well, co to the parents, and they cautiously folloiping their shoes on thethe house so tentatively, Dellarobia had so the door closed behind the, startled again, she was half naked underneath The wet clothes she’d stripped off earlier still lay in a puddle in the hallway These peoplehouse

"I a out there We were out If you all would please sit down in the living room, I’ll join you in just one o to the kitchen and get everybody a glass of water?"

Again the girl spoke to her parents in Spanish, exchanging several sentences this time Whatever she told them did the trick, as they walked directly to the sofa and sat down Dellarobia quickly checked on Cordie, as sleeping, and then scurried to the bedroo decent When she returned to the living room, she saw Preston had delivered water in the plastic cups he was allowed to use: Lupe had Shrek, and Reynaldo had SpongeBob SquarePants They held their drinks formally Dellarobia noted the wife’s plastic su exactly what it was like to be a season behind on every kind of payment The man had removed his cap and placed it on the arm of the sofa His mustache made two curved lines around the sides of his ht say would be very quiet, and incidental Josefina was their princess, in flowered bell-bottom stretch pants and a plaid top She sat between her parents s shyly at Roy while her father held out the back of his hand for the dog to sniff, encouraging her to do the same Roy let himself be rubbed under the chin, then went and lay down in the entrance hall, satisfied that he had secured the peri whether she should offer cookies She moved a pile of clothes out of the ar on the carpet at her feet "It’s nice to meet one of Preston’s friends He’shiot this whole other world I don’t know about"

She instantly regretted the "whole other world," which they irl was already passing it on They s to understand that these parents did not speak a word of English Theyin Feathertown if they had a child enrolled in school But whatever their situation, they were evidently doing it with a kindergartner as their a and banking? She couldn’t iine And could not have been more floored by what the child said next

"My mother and father wants to see the butterflies"

"You’re kidding an to translate, but Dellarobia stopped her "No, don’t say that Tell me how they know about the butterflies"

"We know about the her parents "They are mariposas monarcas They come from Mexico" She pronounced it Meheecu, a sue

"Okay," Dellarobia said, astonished

"The monarcas are from Michoacán, and we are from Michoacán" Josefina flashed apoise by the minute She was a little taller than Preston, and seeht have had to enroll an older child in kindergarten, to learn the language, Dellarobia supposed Or maybe she’d just seen twice as much of life as the kids around here It seemed probable

"Monarchs," Dellarobia said "Now see, I’ve heard that name before" She racked her irl repeated, shifting the e to it

"Are you saying they used to be down there, and now they’re all co to those words, which people often said about i accidental offense But the girl was focused on the butterfly issue

"No," she said "They like to live in Michoacán On the trees They live in big, big" She dreide shape with her hands, struggling for a word, then said, "Racirapes"

Dellarobia could have dropped her teeth "Yes, exactly Like big bunches of grapes hanging froirl nodded She said soorously as well

"Myhere like that Her friend read in the newspaper We went to another house to ask for seeing the monarcas And that lady sayed us to pay o"

"My ray ponytail?" Dellarobia signaled a line frooing to charge youtiirl asked her mother a question, who answered with a word that sounded like Noveht Dellarobia Free of charge for churchy locals only Leave it to Hester to hoard the miracle "How did you know to come here?"