Chapter 5 - The Fall of Hector
The hunt for Hector did not last long.
The stairwell he had run into led directly down to the basement parking garage, but the police had already blocked the exit gates. Trapped, Hector had attempted to hijack a delivery van, threatening the driver. He was quickly surrounded by six armed officers.
From the window of Valeria’s fourth-floor room, I watched the flashing blue and red lights paint the asphalt below. I saw them drag Hector out of the garage in handcuffs, his head pushed down as they shoved him into the back of a police cruiser.
He looked small from up here. Like an ant.
I turned back to Valeria, who had woken up from the commotion. She was looking out the window too, her eyes wide.
“They got him, Mom?” she asked quietly.
“They got him, baby. He’s going to jail.”
A heavy, peaceful silence fell over the room. For the first time in fifteen years, we did not have to worry about the sound of his key in the front door. We did not have to hold our breath when we heard his footsteps.
The next day, Officer Jenkins returned with a domestic violence advocate named Evelyn. Evelyn was a gentle woman with warm brown eyes and a silver streak in her hair. She sat down with us and laid out a plan.
“First, we are going to file an emergency order of protection,” Evelyn explained, handing me a stack of papers. “This will legally bar Hector from coming within 500 feet of either of you, your home, or Valeria’s school. Second, because he has been arrested for felony child abuse, his bail will be set extremely high. The district attorney is already working on the indictment.”
May you like
“But the house,” I said, my chest tightening. “The lease is in his name. All our things are there. I only have sixty dollars in my pocket.”
Evelyn smiled warmly, placing a hand over mine. “You are not alone anymore, Marisol. We have a transition program. We will secure an emergency apartment for you and Valeria. And as for your belongings... we are going to get them. But you won't be going alone.”
