The Fountains of Silence: A Novel

A series of excerpts, including notes from within the Kennedy administration about Franco and letters from Franco’s opposition to President Kennedy, provide a brief timeline of events in Spain after Daniel leaves. Not much changes in Spain, nor does U.S. policy toward Spain change in any meaningful way.

It is now 1975. Daniel attends an exhibition of Sorollo’s work at a Dallas museum, and he cannot help but think of Ana. On the radio, Daniel hears of Franco’s death and the plans for his burial at the Valley of the Fallen.

Two excerpts follow this chapter. The first is from a New York Times article about Franco’s death. The second is from President Gerald Ford’s statement on Franco’s death, offering condolences to Franco’s family and a promise “to continue to pursue the policy of friendship and cooperation” in Spain (409).

Daniel looks through a box of his treasured possessions and important documents. He thinks Ana is probably married and wonders what they would talk about if he returned. Perhaps they would discuss how he left his job at National Geographic and reluctantly joined his father’s company. They might also discuss how he and his father “struggled to raise a teen girl in an era of upheaval and free love” (412), after his mother’s death.