Guardian Saints
- No, not angels. We don't like the guy named Angel, remember?
- On the road. The foursome gets stopped by a routine highway check, but they pass through without a problem. Sigh o' relief.
- Taylor does all of the driving, and aside from stopping occasionally so that she can nap, they make steady progress Oklahoma-ward.
- As they drive, Estevan explains to Taylor for the first time that he and Esperanza are Mayan people, which is different from being Guatemalan.
- The Mayans had quite a big-deal empire of their own back in the day, until Spanish colonization came along, at least. But that is a different (though also violent and sad) story.
- Back to personal histories. Taylor tells Estevan that her legal name is Marietta, and that Marietta is the name of the town in Georgia where she was conceived. Um, TMI, Mama and Dad.
- As they move into Oklahoma, Taylor heads towards the Broken Arrow Motor Lodge, where she hopes to stay for a night so that they can all get some proper sleep. Remember that place from all those chapters back?
- They're welcomed by Irene, the daughter-in-law of the woman who gave Taylor a room for the night back when she first passed through.
- The next day, Estevan, Esperanza, and Taylor finalize the travel plans. Rather than having Taylor drop them off at the safe-house right away, they'll come along to help look for Turtle's relatives. Road trips are more fun with company, right?
- As they drive, Taylor notices that Esperanza and Turtle are playing very well together in the backseat. Did Esperanza just call Turtle "Ismene"? Awkward. But Taylor decides not to say anything about it.
- Taylor finds the bar where Turtle's aunt first gave the child to her. After working up her courage, she heads in.
- Inside, she finds that the bar has changed hands, and the old owner is gone. The young woman working the counter doesn't know anything about the previous owner or patrons. Mysterious. And totally unhelpful.
- She does tell Taylor something that Taylor didn't know, which is that the bar isn't really on Cherokee tribal land. It sits on the very edge of it, and the main part of the Cherokee Nation's territory is further east, nearer to the Ozark Mountains.
- Taylor admits to herself that there's no possibility of finding Turtle's relatives, but she tells Esperanza and Estevan that she isn't yet ready to give up and leave.
- She decides to head to a tourist spot in the mountains, called Lake o' the Cherokees, where she'll rent a cabin for the day. Because everyone knows the best thinking gets itself done in cabins in the mountains.
- Esperanza and Estevan decide to come with her. They've got thinking to do, too.