Renaldo (17 page)

executive assistant. The celebration would combine both homage to the fallen

hero and acceptance of his daughter’s marriage.

The affair was to be held three weeks hence at the elegant Alvear Palace

Hotel’s ballroom. Along with President Roca and a host of government officials,

the top echelons of business and the military were invited to the fête. Failure to

receive an invitation meant humiliation and a virtual exclusion from the social

register. The unkind gossip stopped at once, and the event was anticipated with

great excitement.

Lonfranco and Maria kept a very low profile in the days leading up to

the reception. The idea of such a gathering had been Maria’s. She was not

bothered in the slightest by the gossip surrounding her marriage. Instead, it

was her intention to use the occasion to cement relationships with potential

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JAMES McCREATH

and existing business associates. She thought it an opportune way of showing

the people that mattered just what her new partnership with Lonfranco had to

offer them.

With the help of Orlando Houseman and Lonfranco’s precise notes of the

general’s business and social dealings, Maria was able to put together a guest

list of the most influential and highly placed people. Over two hundred couples

received invitations, and there were only a handful of regrets.

The evening was a major triumph for the newlyweds. Masses of people

thronged the streets surrounding the Avlear Palace. Security was extremely

tight due to the president’s acceptance to attend, but there were to be no

incidents on this moonlit night.

The breathtaking crystal chandeliers of the ballroom seemed to

captivate the guests with their shimmering light. The mood was one of pure

enchantment.

The host and hostess made their entrance down the sweeping circular

stairway that intersected the edge of the huge dance floor. Maria looked

positively radiant in her new Parisian gown. She had made certain that the fit

was extra tight around her midsection to dispel any talk about her being in the

family way.

Lonfranco was a presence in his formal tails. A red carnation appointed

his lapel, and he had the appearance of a society rogue with his tall firm frame

and his handsome good looks. Many a lady swooned at the sight of him as he

expertly waltzed with his new bride to the traditional first tune of the evening.

He never felt ill at ease or out of place, despite all the unflattering things that

had been said of him.

He and Maria charmed everyone with whom they came in contact, and

even President Roca was seen dancing with the new bride. The orchestra was

the most renowned in all of Argentina, and the food the most lavish delicacies

from three continents.

President Roca addressed the throng of revelers briefly to remind them of

the loss of one of the nation’s great patriots and defenders. He declared that a

prominent public square in central Buenos Aires would be renamed Plaza San

Marco, and that he had commissioned a mounted statue of General Figueroa

San Marco to adorn its center. Tumultuous applause and a course of ‘bravos’

greeted the conclusion of the President’s speech. There was hardly a dry eye in

the ballroom.

Behind the scenes, Maria and Lonfranco would engage in short, productive

conversations with many of the guests that they had preselected to seek out.

Kind words and best wishes were greeted with gracious acceptance and

exchanged for the hope of a more intimate discussion on whatever matter was

of mutual importance to the two parties.

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It was like holding a series of business meetings between intervals of a

sporting event. Interviews were given to the press, the newlyweds danced the

tango to a cleared dance floor, and a giant wedding cake was wheeled in at

midnight to an accompaniment of fireworks in the hotel’s garden terrace. When

all was said and done, the Lonfranco De Setas had attained a place in Porteño

society that would have them the most sought-after couple of the decade. But

it was the business contacts they forged that evening that would secure their

future and make them wealthy beyond their wildest dreams.

The first piece of business to conduct after the lavish soirée was to obtain

a personal audience with President Roca to remind him of his promise to the

general. Since complying with the president’s wishes to return to active military

duty had cost the general his life, Lonfranco was hopeful that President Roca

would honor his pledge that the rail lands in the Pampas would be freed for

development.

The general, who was a meticulous man and wrote minutes of all his

meetings both private and professional, had told his executive assistant of the

president’s offer. As added insurance, Lonfranco took along the general’s diary

containing his handwritten notes when he and Maria were granted a few brief

moments with Roca later that week. It was evident from the beginning that the

president very much wanted the expansion of the Pampas economy.

“The area must blossom quickly as a means of economic stimulation and

also to get the population working instead of politicking!” Roca proclaimed.

Maria, who had been thoroughly briefed by Lonfranco about all the

general’s business ventures, assured Roca that the De Setas were perfectly

capable of negotiating and managing the deal with the British Rail interests.

They reminded the president that Lonfranco, and no one else, had been with the

general in England when the initial presentation was made to the British Rail

Overseas board. The Italian had had his hand in every aspect of the negotiations.

He was familiar with, and known to, the British agents in Buenos Aires that

would be reporting back to London regarding the viability of the project. Some

encouragement delivered to the British from the presidential office was certain

to firm up the deal. The president agreed with that hypothesis.

Roca was so impressed with the De Setas that he signed a presidential

decree that week authorizing the expropriation of thousands of acres of land by

a newly formed state tribunal.

Working closely with the Minister of the Interior, the appointed head of

this new tribunal was none other than Lonfranco De Seta. Assisted by a team

JAMES McCREATH

of high-ranking civil servants and government officials, Lonfranco set about

opening the fertile heartland of the Argentine Pampas to the world.

Once the rail deal was signed, sealed, and delivered by the British Rail

board, the floodgates were opened for investors, both corporate and individual,

to flock to the new promised land. Millions of pounds sterling poured into

every sector of the Argentine economy.

With its technology and skilled personnel, Great Britain had developed

and still controlled the gas, water, and telephone systems. The British population

began to swell in the capital, reaching a very prominent pinnacle of over one

hundred thousand souls by 1920. English schools, restaurants, social clubs, and

political societies became very noticeable on the local landscape.

In the midst of all of this, whenever problems arose, the man most

often contacted by the British business community to make inroads into the

Argentine bureaucratic labyrinth was Lonfranco De Seta.

Directorships on several boards of foreign-owned companies followed

success after success for the young immigrant. The final hurdle in attaining

respectability came with the acquisition of his Argentine citizenship papers,

which had been aided by a few well-placed directives from President Roca.

Lonfranco was eternally thankful for the chance that he had been given to

prove himself, and he never forgot the one who had made it all possible.

Out of both respect and pragmatism, he styled his business persona after

that of General Figueroa San Marco, always negotiating shrewdly but in good

faith. His honesty and forthrightness elevated him to a position of trust and

high standing in the foreign business community. It was said that Lonfranco

De Seta’s word was his bond, and a gentleman’s handshake often replaced reams

of legal documents.

Never far from the center of things was Maria, who was updated nightly

by her husband on the latest activities. It was much easier for a man to stroll

the corridors of influence in chauvinistic Argentina than a woman. Thus, it was

decided that Lonfranco would be the more visible of the two partners.

Maria had her own staff that worked behind the scenes to plot strategy

and integrate any social niceties into a scenario that might be in need of some

extra attention. The arrangement worked to perfection, and there was not a

more influential and respected couple in all of Argentina.

Domestically, the couple always seemed to find time for romance and

adventure. They traveled alone to England and the continent extensively,

combining the business of cultivating new investors and cementing old ties

with her passion for antique furniture collecting and his for fine horse flesh.

Maria was also very active in the women’s rights movement that was

gathering momentum across the European community. Lonfranco gave her his

blessing in this regard, but he warned her to keep in mind that they were

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seeking investors from the same male ruling class that she and her fellow

‘suffragettes’ were vocally denouncing. The two would joke incessantly about

who got to wear the pants in the family on any particular day. It was all taken

in the spirit of growing together as two separate, yet united people. Their life

and love together was every bit as exciting and stimulating as they ever could

have asked for, except in one regard.

By the year 1915, Europe was embroiled in the Great War. Travel to that

region of the world was far too dangerous, and the De Seta’s business interests

had expanded to the point where they needed constant attention from the

principals.

The most modern rail lines in the world now carried Argentine exports

to nearby ports. Foreign investment in machinery, factories, and technology

were at an all-time high. Prosperity abounded. Yet, there was an unmistakable

absence in the lives of Señor and Señora De Seta.

Maria had been unable to bear any children in almost ten years of marriage.

She had been able to get pregnant easily enough, but three miscarriages over

ten years had left her frustrated and drained of much of her self-esteem as a

woman. Lonfranco was totally devoted to her and tried to be as compassionate

as possible. There was talk of adoption, but Maria would have none of it. In the

fall of 1915, Maria became pregnant for the forth time and managed to carry

the baby for seven months.

Late one night she awoke to a wet sensation in her lower midsection. Her

scream startled Lonfranco. He had leapt out of bed to fetch his pistol and was

about to run into the hallway to investigate for intruders when her sobs for him

to return to her registered.

His heart sank as she held a bloodied hand out to show him. They were

losing their baby! Immediately the panicked husband dispatched a coachman

and carriage to fetch the family doctor. In the hour that it took the physician

to arrive, the profuse bleeding had not subsided. The look on the doctor’s face

told Lonfranco that not only was the baby’s life in grave danger, but that his

wife needed emergency medical treatment as well.

She was taken to Hospital Rivadavia in the family carriage. Although the

trip took only minutes, Maria was already unconscious by the time the first

surgeon reached her side.

Lonfranco was ushered into a waiting area and told to try to stay calm.

Doctor Lujan, the family physician, stayed by the distraught husband’s side

for the next hour until finally, Dr. Mercedes Plata, the head surgeon of the

hospital, appeared in the room.

He asked the two men to accompany him, then turned and proceeded to