The Memories of Ana Calderón by Graciela Limón Page B

even though he stood barely above his father’s waist, he was able to intercept the next blow. But Rodolfo was blind with rage and taking the boy by the jaw lifted him off the floor, smashing him against the wall. César was knocked out by the impact and he flopped inertly onto the floor.
    His intervention, however, had given Ana the few seconds she needed to make an escape out the front door. Stumbling over the rickety porch steps, she made it outside. Rodolfo was enraged. He unbuckled his heavy leather belt, sliding it off his waist with one pull. He wrapped one end of it around his wrist leaving the metal buckle dangling. Then he went after Ana, catching her just before she could open the wire gate leading out to the street.
    He took her again by the wrist, and he held her at arm’s length as he beat her. The belt whizzed through the gray morning air, striking Ana’s body each time with a dull thud. He aimed at her face, but she was able to twist and turn so that sometimes the blows fell on her shoulders, others on her breasts, and yet others on her buttocks. She was mute; only involuntary groans escaped her, and her silence provoked and infuriated Rodolfo even more. When her legs could no longer support her, she fell to her knees while her father continued to lash her, this time striking even her face.
    By this time, the other girls had run out the door and onto the porch. Except for Alejandra, they were crying out hysterically, screaming to their father to stop. Octavio had also come outside; his face had turned the color of ashes, but he did not move or utter a sound. Rodolfo kept up the barrage, whipping his daughter as he screamed.
    â€œWho is the father, whore? Tell me who is the bastard, so I can kill him the way I’m killing you!”
    Rodolfo kicked Ana with all the force of his leg. He had aimed at her stomach, but she contorted her body, and when his foot landed instead on the small of her back, her mouth opened wide, letting out a groan.
    The girls’ howling brought frightened neighbors to the Calderón house. The first was Reyes Soto. When he realized what was happening, he crashed through the gate in an attempt to take hold of Rodolfo’s arms, but his strength was not enough. As he struggled to intercept the belt, Reyes received several stinging lashes. Twisting his head, he yelled at Octavio, “You son of a bitch! Come! Come! Help me!” But when he saw that Octavio was not going to help, he kept shouting until other men came running to help him.
    Octavio was paralyzed with fear, and he stayed nailed to the porch while the other men assisted Reyes. They were finally able to disarm Rodolfo by wrenching his swingingarms behind his back. They knocked him off his feet, but even though he was face down, he kicked at them and resisted by contorting his body, wiggling as he bellowed obscenities and curses.
    When Ana, dazed and close to losing consciousness, realized that the attack had ended, she was crawling on the dirt. She was disoriented and crept about in circles. She couldn’t stand up, or see anything to hold onto for balance. Her clothes were in tatters, as if she had been attacked with scissors, and her face was a mass of cuts, as were her arms and hands. She cupped her hands to her face as she coughed through her fingers, and she saw that the dribbling saliva was filled with blood and mud.
    It took two of the neighbor women to slowly move her first onto her haunches and then, with their help, up to their shoulders so that they could lift her off the ground. Her last recollection before fainting was seeing Octavio, still standing on the porch. His face blurred until it disappeared.

    I regained consciousness when Reyes, with the help of several men and women, took me to his house. Once there, however, he realized that it would be the first place that ’Apá would come looking for me. Everyone had heard him vow to find and kill me. The Soto house filled with