The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto

Cecile says that she and Aurora’s father was a spy, and she recalls how he was murdered when they were young. Afterwards, their mother remarried an unkind man, and Aurora ran away to America. She and Aurora have always been very different, with Aurora being free-spirited and drawn to nature, and Cecile keeping more with proper decorum.

Cecile hadn’t heard much from Aurora after she moved to America, but one day she got a call saying that she was getting married to Francisco. She explains that this long periods of absence, then intense moments of togetherness are usual for the pair: “It was as if they had a secret they were bound to, which made them joyful most of the time and insane the rest” (256).

Cecile goes to the wedding in America. It’s a party at the French Quarter, and Francisco and Aurora don’t have the paperwork to officially marry.

Music confirms that Frankie and Aurora were meant to be together, “A symphony in itself” (260). The main loves in Frankie’s life are music and Aurora, and he spends much of his life in the pursuit of both.