What the River Knows

The ring Cayo Olivera sends to Inez serves as a motif of The Perils of Extending and Withholding Trust. The artifact is described as a “golden ring [that fits] around [Inez’s] littlest finger” (4), and its cartouche displays Cleopatra’s name in hieroglyphs: “the resting lion, falcon and feather, staff, and the shen ring encircling the symbols, offering eternal protection for the person named within” (68). Cayo finds the ring in Cleopatra’s burial chamber, a site eagerly sought by his wife and his brother-in-law. However, Ricardo and Lourdes lost his trust after he learned his wife was having an affair and involved in smuggling. He therefore withholds his discovery from them and sends the ring to his daughter. In reality, Ricardo is innocent of his sister’s misdeeds and may have proven a valuable ally if Cayo had confided in him.

Cayo demonstrates great trust in Inez by sending her the ring, but he withholds key information from her about the ring’s importance until Chapter 31, when he sends her a letter urging her to safeguard the ring and beware of her mother: “I must protect everything I hold dear from her vile hands. Which is one of the reasons I sent you the golden ring, querida” (337).