Bodega Dreams: Book 2, Round 11 Summary & Analysis

The next day, Julio goes to work, welcoming the distraction; he wants to cry when he thinks about Blanca. After work, Julio walks around to try and ease his sadness, and he bumps into Sapo. Sapo is proud of Julio for not cracking and spilling the beans to the police. Julio wants to distance himself from the situation, but Sapo takes him to meet Vera’s husband, John Vidal, whom Bodega and Vera are about to confront. Reluctantly, Julio introduces himself to Vidal, who seems “more American than Mickey Mouse” despite being a Latino. They sit and wait for Bodega, and Julio’s thoughts wander to Blanca: he wonders how he got embroiled in this mess, and he just wants her back. Eventually, Bodega and Vera walk in.

Vera’s manages to blurt out that she’s leaving Vidal. She continues, cruelly saying that Vidal is old and doesn’t perform well in bed. Vidal gets angry and says that this is just one another one of Vera’s many affairs. At this, Bodega loses his temper and starts fighting with Vidal. Suddenly, Vera panics and shoots Vidal. He slumps to the floor, dead. Vera grows hysterical and begs Bodega to save her from prison. Without hesitation, Bodega calls Nazario—Bodega is going to take the blame for Vera. Julio thinks that Bodega is lost, but he numbly agrees to the plan. Bodega ushers Vera away, looks back, and tells Julio that he’s like a brother to him. It’s the last time Julio sees Bodega, because the next day, Bodega is dead.