29: I See No End In Sight

", Zolina! I've missed you!" Alberto wrapped his daughter in a consuming embrace. Zola laughed, feeling loved and comforted.

"Me too, Papa! You're looking good!" Zola stepped back to take her father in and lead him to the living room where Matteo was playing with Legos.

", I've finally recovered from the spring shows."

"!" Zola grinned as she watched Matteo and her father greet each other in a familiar way before Alberto settled into the couch. "So, how is Austin? Where is Cora?"

"Austin is good. Cora will be out shortly. She's pretty tired from the Duke trip. She's got to get up tomorrow and do it again."

"Sloan Kettering, right?"

", Cora hasn't said so, but I think that the programs are extremely selective. I get the feeling that she's an exceptional candidate and that they are 'courting' her."

Alberto nodded, impressed but not really surprised. "Cora is an exceptional person, unique."

", Papa. (very special)."

----

The evening moved along at a leisurely pace. Cora emerged, looking rested and happy to be sharing in Zola's family. Marie cooked a simple meal. Roasted chicken, pasta and meat gravy, salad, antipasto, bread. As they settled in, Marie noticed for the first time that Cora ate only salad, antipasto, and bread.

"Oh no!" Marie grimaced. "Cora, I don't know why I'm just now realizing this! You don't eat meat!"

"Oh no problem, Marie, really! There is plenty of food here, all delicious." Cora laughed. "Yesterday, the chaplains took us to a steakhouse called Angus Barn."

Dominic laughed. "That must have been challenging."

"Not at all. Zola was the focus of the evening, not the food."

"Oh?" Alberto raised an eyebrow and grinned at Zola.

"Most definitely, Alberto." Cora's voice softened and she got caught up in the memory. "It was hard for any of us to look away. She was eating with four theology 'experts' and she confidently engaged in one of the most thoughtful discussions I have heard in some time. I think Sister Madelyn was particularly impressed."

Alberto grinned with pride. "How wonderful, Zolina."

"Si, Papa, I had a really great time. It's not often someone gets to sit and enjoy a meal with people who are so clearly bound by fundamental beliefs, but practice and embody those belief systems so differently."

Dom's jaw visibly slackened. "Who are you?! What did you do with my sister?"

Zola smirked. "Dom, don't be a jackass."

"Oh! she is!"

Cora erupted with laughter and was closely followed by the rest of the table. At the end of the meal, shortly after Matteo was put to bed, Zola sat watching and listening as Cora and Marie laughed about Marie's self-proclaimed skill set in killing anything green and growing within a matter of days. Cora was nearly in tears when Marie explained to her that she was responsible for the death of a fake plant when she placed it too near a heat register and some of the leaves melted.

Alberto watched her daughter's gaze and could see clearly that the relationship had intensified. He tore Cora away from her conversation with Marie. "Cora, tell us about Sloan Kettering."

Cora turned, wiping tears of laughter from the edges of her eyes. "Oh, well the program there is . They specialize in cancer treatment and research so the counseling services are a little more focused. The PhD program is in partnership with Cornell University."

"Ah, so you will be leaving Austin and moving either to North Carolina or New York?" Alberto tried to nudge the conversation in the direction he wanted it to go.

"Yes, Alberto. That's the loose plan."

Dominic raised his eyebrows. "Loose?"

"Well, I could always remain in Austin." Cora's eyes drifted toward Zola. "I have a little bit of time to make a decision, by May. Both placements would begin in late summer or early fall."

"And would you leave Austin? Permanently?"

"Oh, I'm not sure, Alberto." Cora met his gaze. "I love your daughter very much. It's hard to imagine leaving her permanently."

Alberto was taken aback by the directness of Cora's statement. Zola flushed with adoration. Marie smiled at the declaration. Dominic watched his father carefully.

The silent moment that followed was broken by Marie. "Well, I don't envy you the tough decisions you will have to make."

Zola saw an opening and decided to push through. "Speaking of tough decisions." Four sets of eyes immediately focused on Zola. "Papa, I would like to invite Cora to Silvio's wedding in June. I know that you have your reservations." Zola shifted her gaze to Cora's eyes. They were widened with surprise and washed with emotion. "But, when it comes to I don't have any doubt."

Silence fell over the table. Everyone collectively held their breath. "Zolina, it's a wedding."

"Si, Papa, but we have many family members bringing their boyfriends or girlfriends."

"Zolina." Alberto glanced at Cora and smiled apologetically. "Cora, you are a wonderful person, I'm sure you understand."

"Certainly, Alberto, I think I understand." Cora smiled softly, her words layered and cryptic.

"Papa, ." Zola's voice trembled and her eyes begged. "I'm not ashamed of us. I want to share my family with Cora. As I am now." Zola scanned the table. "That's love. God is in love."

"Zolina, no. It is not the right time or place." Alberto's voice was firm.

"Will there be a right time or place?"

Alberto's focus was now entirely on his daughter, frustration and anger rising. He did not like being put on the spot at "his" dinner table. It smacked of disrespect. Alberto spoke entirely in Italian but Cora understood the tone.

"Zola, . I told you no. She is a beautiful person but she is not for us. I told you to let her go or you would end up hurting her. Now you are forcing my hand."

To Cora, Alberto said softly, "I'm so sorry, Cora, I tried to explain to Zola that there would be complications if she continued with your relationship."

Cora didn't like how Alberto spoke to his daughter but the nuance of the Italian family dynamic was not one she completely understood. She slipped her hand into Zola's and tread lightly. "Alberto I can assure you, we have shared many deeply meaningful and complex discussions. I think Zola understands all the perspectives and complications."

Alberto squared on Cora, raising an eyebrow, "I don't think your short time with her gives you quite the insight you think you have." His eyes flickered toward Zola and for just a moment, softened with a wash of sorrow. "Zolina is more strong willed than level headed, . She's just like her mother."

"Papa!"

Alberto spoke in English, "Zolina, there are considerations."

Dominic tried to de-escalate the conversation. He too spoke in Italian.

"Papa, please. It can wait, we can talk about it later."

Cora shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "I am sorry Alberto, Zola. I don't mean to overstep, I do not want my presence to disrupt your family dinner. I'm going to just freshen up."

Zola winced but did not stop her from leaving. Marie stood and followed Cora. Once Cora reached the threshold of their room, she turned and whispered,"Marie, I'm not sure what's happening out there, but I have an interview tomorrow morning."

Marie nodded sympathetically. "I'm so sorry, Cora."

Cora grimaced. "It's not your fault, no one is at fault. It just is." Cora's heart broke as she considered all the different ways Zola and she did not make sense. She felt an intense and familiar need to create space. "I'm going to grab my bag and head over to the hotel by the hospital. That's where the hospital originally reserved a room for me. Tell Zola I'll call her after I'm done out there."

"Are you certain? Zola might miss you. You don't have to go."

Cora nodded, "Tell her I love her, I'll be back." Cora collected her things and slipped out the front door, she could still hear the heated Italian conversation.

Without Cora present, the Basilios spoke Italian, occasionally broken by English. Marie came back in and sat down, quietly observing.

"Papa, Cora is different and you know that. She is not a fling or an affair or temporary. She is good for me. I'm a better person ." Dom and Marie nodded slightly in agreement.

"Zolina, why can you not understand this? I've been very tolerant. You be with her. There is in her."

Zola's eyes widened in exasperation. "I don't understand, what are you being so stubborn?!"

"Zola, Papa, please. There must be some middle ground. Papa, Marie, Matteo, I. We Cora. . Zola, what do you expect of their relationship? Is it forever? So soon? Have you even discussed this with her?"

Both Alberto and Zola sighed in exasperation but Zola was first to respond. "Dom. I love her. If she leaves Austin and I can't handle the distance, I'll move. I want her to know all of me and all of my family. I'm of her, "

"Zolina, there is no future in her, ."

Zola's voice was steady but softer. She looked directly into her father's eyes. "Papa, are you ashamed of me? Embarrassed?"

Alberto's gaze did not waver. "Of course not, Zolina. I know that I have struggled in the past but I will love you always and you are . I am in that I will not get to see you marry in the house of God, but I am coming to terms with that."

Tears flooded Zola's eyes with love and confusion. "Then what? What is it? I don't understand why you're so resistant. I love her."

"Zolina. . How can I trust any man or woman with my daughter's heart and soul who does not believe in God and the Heavens above?"

It seemed the two were at an impasse and the silence suffocated the room. Dominic looked at Marie with concern thick in his voice. "Is Cora okay, Marie?"

"Yes, Love. She was sorry to have been a source of conflict in our family."

Zola stared into the space at the center of the table. She spoke to no one and everyone. "She believes in God. , . She practices all of those things. Her love, her compassion, her kindness, it has . In more than one way."

"Zolina, she believes that when you die your body and soul will Alone. She believes that about all of us. About Matteo. About , your mother."

"No, Papa! She doesn't. I just don't know how to explain it." Zola stood. "I'm going to get Cora."

"Zola, she left." Marie cringed at the look of disbelief and pain on Zola's face. "She needed to prepare for her interview and wasn't sure where this was going. So, she went to the hotel by the hospital." Tears were rising again in Zola's eyes.

"I'm sorry, Zola. I didn't want to interrupt your discussion and Cora wasn't sure if she should stay or go. She thought you might need some privacy. She said she would call as soon as she was done with the interview tomorrow. She said to tell you she loves you."

Zola slipped back down into her chair and dropped her head into her hands. She sobbed quietly. Marie moved to sit beside her. Alberto and Dominic retreated to the library.