Rain of Gold

On the way home from the dance Domingo asks for an absurd amount of money. Salvador pulls over and tells Nellie and Domingo they need to learn to “respect” money (420). He agrees to let Domingo borrow a small portion of what he originally asked for, and they return home, where he tells his mother the good news about Lupe. She agrees that they should live apart from their families for a while, and she tells Salvador that if he expects to make Lupe happy, he won’t be able to spend nearly as much time with his mother ever again. This upsets Salvador but Doña Margarita insists that this new beginning is a good thing.

The following Thursday Salvador picks up an intoxicated Father Ryan and heads to propose to Lupe. At first angered by Father Ryan’s inebriation, Salvador ends up joining him so that they are both drunk upon arrival. The priest falls out of the car and then accidentally proposes to Carlota, not Lupe, but other than that they hold their own, fooling everyone except for Don Victor. Don Victor tells them he and his wife will consider the proposal and let Salvador know. They leave, and Don Victor ponders a story Don Manuel told him recently about a bootlegger whose description matches Salvador. He decides to investigate on his daughter’s behalf. Doña Margarita warns her son that this search is happening, and she tells their friends in the area to cover for him. The day arrives and Salvador is nervous as he and the priest approach Lupe’s house. Once inside, Don Victor calls him aside and reveals that he knows about Salvador’s lies. He says he doesn’t see drinking and gambling as bad unless they are abused, and that he will still allow Lupe to marry Salvador as long as he promises to not hurt Lupe. Salvador agrees, and he gives Lupe the diamond ring, which Carlota insists is fake.

Salvador rushes home to tell his mom that Lupe’s family accepted his proposal. Luisa and her sons come over to celebrate, but Luisa gets upset when she finds out Carlota was mocking the ring. He then leaves for the distillery but is stopped and caught by four armed men on the way there. They bring him to the distillery, where Domingo is trapped and bloody yet still shouting out insults. Wesseley, the man behind the large hotel bust Salvador had avoided, is there and tries to trick Salvador into admitting guilt. Salvador refuses, so Wesseley physically attacks him. They are thrown in jail, where Domingo admits he invited a narc into their operation by mistake. Salvador is exasperated and angry but doesn’t attack Domingo, just rages against the bars of the cell. He then pays a guard to get ahold of Fred Noon, who bails him out of jail. He goes to the distillery and sees that all of his tools are destroyed and all his liquor is gone. He passes out only to be found by Epitacio and José, who bring him home. There, Doña Margarita tends to his physical wounds, but inside Salvador feels wrecked, knowing he is penniless with no way to marry Lupe. With time, he decides he needs to attempt to rebuild. He tries to borrow from many people, including Archie, but can’t get anyone to give him a sizable enough loan. In the meantime, Lupe worries he is somewhere dying. When she tells Manuelita about this intuition, Manuelita assures her it’s just nerves. They talk about their futures late into the night, making Lupe very happy.

As weeks go by, however, she gets more and more worried and starts planning a trip to visit Salvador in Corona. In Corona, Doña Margarita is busy trying to revive her son, who feels hopeless. He decides to have Kenny sell his car, so Epitacio and his sons drive him to the car lot. While on the way there, Salvador complains about being duped by his Mexican brethren, stunning his nephews, who had always been taught “the gringos were the bad guys” (445). When Salvador tells Kenny what happened, Kenny refuses to sell the car and instead offers to loan him several hundred dollars to get back on his feet. Overwhelmed with thankfulness, Salvador kisses and hugs Kenny as he accepts the loan. He heads home and tells his family. Pedro asks if he can drive the car, and Salvador says yes, and also says he will teach him how to shoot a gun as long as he stops pretending to shoot white people with his friends. Pedro agrees, not wanting to get hit with the switch again.

Soon after, Nellie and Luisa both give birth to children. Salvador takes Lupe and her sister to Harry’s to decide on clothes for the wedding. Salvador explains to Harry that he needs to get the clothes on credit this time, and Harry is more than happy to oblige. Once Salvador makes a little bit of money, he pays to send Nellie back home to her three children. She leaves her newborn for Luisa and Doña Margarita to raise, wanting to move on from this chapter of her life. The case against Salvador and Domingo goes to trial. Salvador walks free, but Domingo is sentenced to five years. Before Domingo leaves for prison, Salvador visits him and brings him some whiskey. At first they fight over which parent loved which child more, but eventually they end up laughing and sharing old memories. They discuss how their father was in love with his cousin, a fact that Doña Margarita had recently revealed to Salvador, and how their father treated them differently because Domingo was lighter-skinned than Salvador. They discuss moving back to Mexico together when Domingo gets out, and then the guard makes Salvador leave. Salvador swings by the distillery to see how Epitacio and José are holding up. They report that Archie is looking for him. They talk about their business, and Salvador brings up Duel. José asks what happened to Duel, and Salvador blows up, saying never to ask about that subject again.

The day comes for Lupe to meet Doña Margarita. She gets all dressed up but can’t help feeling anxious, knowing how educated Doña Margarita is said to be and knowing that Rose-Mary had just yesterday said Salvador was a bootlegger. Driving to his house, Salvador gets pulled over for speeding. Carlota freaks out, but Lupe takes control of the situation when she sees the officer being abusive to Salvador. She is so commanding and well-spoken that the officer lets them go. When they drive away, Lupe asks Salvador if he is a bootlegger, and he says no. She apologizes for asking and says that she and Carlota had heard rumors but that she didn’t believe them. They arrive at the house, and Carlota complains that the house is dirty and poor. She whispers to Lupe that she cannot “have anything to do with these people” (463). When Salvador introduces his mother to them, Carlota faints and starts to get sick. The men bring her outside while Lupe and Doña Margarita talk. Doña Margarita realizes she is the girl who was able to milk their angry goat years ago, and she is so happy. She asks to hold Lupe’s hand since she is the “future of our familia” (465). She tells Lupe about her responsibilities as a woman and a wife, and Lupe feels transported back in time. Salvador walks in and sees them deep in conversation, so he joins them, and all three are so happy to be together.