The Governor's Wife by Mark Gimenez Read Free Book Online

mailing addresses. The colonias do not officially exist, at least as far as the Postal Service is concerned. So the Census Bureau must send workers in, to go door to door, to count the residents. But they are too afraid."
    "The workers or the residents?"
    "Both."
    "We have boxes of forms in the back of the Suburban. We can give them the forms, and they can fill them out and mail them in."
    "Mrs. Bonner, these people do not go to the post office, and most cannot read or write."
    "The forms are printed in Spanish, too."
    "They cannot read or write Spanish or English."
    "But we've got to try!"
    Lindsay Bonner prided herself on being a positive person who never lost hope—not when volunteering at the food bank or the AIDS clinic or even the homeless shelter in Austin—but the heat and the stench and the filth now seemed to suffocate her spirit that day. She fought back tears.
    "We can try."
    The congressman offered a grandfatherly squeeze of her shoulders and a sympathetic expression.
    "Yes, Mrs. Bonner. We can try."
    They walked down the dirt road and stopped at a shanty with a covered contraption sitting above an open fire like a cookout. The congressman leaned over the pot and sniffed.
    " Tesguino . Homemade corn liquor." He called into the home. " ¡Hola! "
    A hand appeared and parted the blanket that served as the front door. A young Mexican woman peeked out; she held an infant in her arms. Lindsay smiled and spoke to her in Spanish.
    " Buenos días, Señora . I am Lindsay Bonner. We need you to be counted for the census."
    " No habla, Señora. No habla. "
    The woman pulled the blanket shut in Lindsay's face. But, of course, she did habla . They walked down the dirt road, deeper into the colonia . Lindsay approached every woman she saw, but she received the same reception. No habla, Señora.
    "I travel all over Texas, and people always want to talk to me. But not here."
    The congressman patted her shoulder as if consoling her.
    "Do not be offended, Mrs. Bonner. These women, they do not know you are the governor's wife. They do not even know who the governor is. They have no television, no cable news, no English newspapers. These people do not live in our world. Here in the colonias , you are just another Anglo whom they fear."
    "Where are the men?" Lindsay said.
    "Gone. For good or for the day. They come and they go, leaving pregnant women behind. The men who do stay leave before dawn and return after dark. And you do not want to be in the colonias after dark."
    "How do they get through the gate, with the Border Patrol?"
    "They do not. They came here to work construction in Laredo, but the wall prevents that. So now they work for the cartels in Nuevo Laredo."
    "Where do these people get food?"
    "Across the river."
    "They work and shop on that side and sleep on this side … This is just a suburb of Mexico."
    The breeze blew stronger, and she gagged at the foul smell from the river. The congressman held out a white handkerchief to Lindsay. She took the handkerchief and covered her mouth and nose. For a moment, she thought she might throw up.
    "Perhaps we should go back?" the congressman said.
    "No."
    She removed the handkerchief from her face and marched down the dirt road to a shack constructed of old garage doors for walls, a black tarp for the roof, and a dirty blanket for a door. A clay flowerpot with a single yellow sunflower sat outside.
    " ¡Hola! "
    A small brown face peeked out. A child's face. A haunting dirty little wide-eyed face. Lindsay smiled at her, and the child smiled back. Lindsay reached into her pocket and pulled out a peppermint from breakfast at the hotel. She stepped closer and leaned down and held the candy out to the girl. The child hesitated but took the candy. Then she was gone. Lindsay stood straight and faced the congressman.
    "We've got to get these people counted, so we can get that federal money. So we can help them."
    "But I am afraid that they do not trust us."
    "Is there anyone here they