“Okay, we’ll call Bex.” “And Daisy,” I went on. His arms tightened further and I snuggled in closer. “And Shirleen,” I said though I had no idea why. “Shirleen?” “She seems like a nice lady,” I explained to him but also to myself. “She is,” Hector said quietly. We laid there and Hector held me. This went on for a long time. I knew I should put a stop to it. All of it. But I didn’t. How bizarre was that? Finally, once the tears were subsiding, I called, “Hector?” “Yeah?” “Why?” “Why what?” “Why do you want to take care of me?” His body went still for a few seconds then he kissed the top of my head. “We’ll save that for another talk.” I didn’t think I wanted to have another talk with Hector. This one didn’t go so well for me. I found out he knew I was his informant (which was kind of embarrassing). I found out he’d been tracking me and doing more to protect me than he and his buddies sitting in cars outside the house. He totally didn’t listen when I explained why we wouldn’t work.
