by Becca Bloom
Climbing into our vehicle, which José was sure to have seen, I stuffed his machete between the seats, shoved the key into the ignition, and slammed my foot on the gas pedal, leaving a spray of mud behind me.
Worried more about getting caught by the people behind us than the drivers on the road in front of us, we burst out from the trail and onto the main highway. Horns and squealing tires surrounded us, but the scream echoing in my own ears was louder.
Maneuvering between cars much larger than ours, I eventually got in the correct lane and, without a look back, I pressed down on the gas pedal only to find out that it was already pressed to the floor. And the award for the world's worst driver officially goes to Jessica James, I thought, looking over at my partners in crime. I saw the fleeting look of concern leave Tia Rosa’s face as she smiled bravely at me. It served her and Abuelita right for dragging me out here. They had been warned. Of course, I was particularly cautious for the rest of the drive home, not once allowing my thoughts to wander or to take my hands off the steering wheel to scratch one of the thousands of bug bites covering my blistered, sunburned body.
We passed through three tunnels before my limbs stopped shaking and my heartbeat stopped pounding like a ticking bomb.
"Thank you for helping me escape," I said. "What did you do?"
Tia Rosa cackled. "We pretend be mother of José. We call him for eat lunch. The parrots repeat."
“Brilliant!” I laughed a little too heartily. It must have been the nerves.
“And you find machete.” Abuelita nodded toward the sharp instrument vibrating with the roar of the motor between the seats.
“That wasn’t all I found.” The bottles. While I understood that making moonshine was a common and oftentimes legal activity — I seriously doubted the legality of José’s operation — the brand name liquor bottles were definitely out of place. And the tub of spiced water? He certainly didn’t add that to his crystal-clear puro.
"What can José be doing with all of those bottles? I saw whiskey, aguardiente, and vodka bottles in his shed. The same bottles he had with him on the plane."
"Is problem in Ecuador. Tax for good liquor very expensive. If José find way to fake good liquor, he make fortune,” said Abuelita.
Tia Rosa nodded. “It explain new taxi car."
“We go to The Lava Lounge tonight,” Abuelita declared. “If José do business with Dario, it explain everything.”
"Oh no! I am done investigating. We could have been caught, and I don't much like the idea of going to jail in a foreign country."
Abuelita clucked her tongue. “You no think that before you take machete of José?”
I cringed. She was right. Like it or not, he would notice it was gone and I couldn’t exactly give it to the police with my fingerprints all over it. They would ask how I’d found it. We would be admitting to trespassing, breaking and entering, vandalism (although that was a stretch considering how poorly the shed was constructed), and who knew what other charges….
And if José had really murdered his wife, as I was growing more inclined to think, there would be nothing to stop him from going after us. We knew his secret.
Chapter 11
Miriam wasn't too happy about the state of her dune buggy when we returned it, but a couple of dollars kept us from having to stay and wash the mud caked onto its frame. I was relieved. All I wanted was to get home, clean up, and ask Abuelita questions about my uncle before going to the pub with Adi and Jake.
As usual, the streets were busy and, with the way that people turned to look at me, I must have provided quite the site. I avoided looking at my reflection in the shop windows we passed. Sometimes ignorance really was bliss.
Lady greeted us when we entered from the gate. She spun in a circle and pounced on her front feet excitedly. Picking up one of the chew toys I’d bought her, I threw it for her to chase. I would need to take her out for a walk tomorrow.
Abuelita and Tia Rosa took off her plastic ponchos. Smoothing out their slacks, running their hands over her faces, and fluffing their hair, they looked none the worse for wear. Unlike me. I felt like I’d crawled out of a swamp….
The ladies breezed into the kitchen, kissing Adi and Sylvia on the cheeks. I stopped after one step into the kitchen, not wanting to contaminate the room. I still felt things crawling on my skin and my legs were swollen to twice their normal size with bubbled, itchy bites.
Adi almost dropped the plate she held when she finally noticed me. "Oh my God," she said, her eyes as large as saucers.
Sylvia's eyes also widened in shock when she saw me, before narrowing to focus on her mother, who had been very affectionate and attentive to them since entering the room.
"What did you do to her?" asked Sylvia.
Abuelita shrugged her shoulders, doing her best imitation of an innocent, sweet, old lady. "We go nice drive to Rio Negro. Jessica a wonderful driver,” she smiled. The liar.
Undeterred, she continued, “She see waterfalls and we walk, but Jessica too sweet. The bugs, they love her."
While Abuelita’s acting skills were worthy of an Oscar, I could see from Adi and Sylvia’s expressions that they didn’t believe her. Tia Rosa remained suspiciously quiet.
"What? Didn’t you use the trails or the cable cars to get across?" asked Adi, crossing her arms over her apron.
Sylvia wrapped her arm around my shoulders and tucked a chunk of hair behind my ear. "What you need is a good shower in very hot water. I will go to the pharmacy and ask if they can give you an anti-inflammatory to help the swelling and a cream to alleviate the itching."
“You can do that? Don’t you need a prescription from a doctor for pills?” I asked, feeling naive as I was met with their blank stares.
Adi laughed. “Not here. If you need something at the pharmacy, you just ask for it.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously,” said Sylvia, adding, “I forget how difficult it is with doctors and insurance and all that nonsense.” She waved her hand dismissively to emphasize her feelings on the subject. “I will be back soon with something to help you.”
That sounded wonderful. I would've preferred to go myself, but I wouldn't know how to ask for what I needed and I was too miserable to go even if I did.
Before Sylvia could leave, I asked if anyone had called to claim Lady. We had agreed that the best phone number to put on the posters Adi and I had taped around town was the restaurant’s.
Sylvia answered, "I've been here all day and nobody has called for her."
It was sad how someone could forget the cute puppy, but I was relieved she wouldn’t have to go back to a family who didn't even care if she was gone or not.
Pulling off her apron and hanging it on a peg by the door, Sylvia said, "Before I forget, Agent Vasquez called for you. He did not sound happy, but then again, I doubt he ever does. I wouldn't worry about it. I told him I didn't know at what hour to expect you home, so he told me that he would stop by later." With that, she disappeared behind the swinging door.
Great. Just great. I can only imagine what Agent Vasquez would say if he found out about our escapade through José's sugarcane field. Already, I was thinking of good places to hide his machete. A couple days with Abuelita and Tia Rosa, and they had me thinking like a criminal.
Grumbling all the way upstairs, I turned on the faucet and waited for the bathroom to fill up with steam. No more cold showers for me. It was amazing how even in the warm, tropical climate, I still craved a hot shower.
For a while, I just stood under the flowing water, letting it pound against my back. It felt so good. I hadn't realized how tense the muscles in my neck and upper back were until they relaxed.
Though I had to admit there were parts of Baños which had won me over, I still couldn't wait to get back home. A week's visit would have been sufficient, but my parents had never done anything halfheartedly. It would be a long month.
I thought back on the scene in Martha's house. I felt bad for Fernanda. Whil
e her manners and indifference had made me wonder if she could have killed her own aunt to bring her mom and uncle together, I couldn’t believe she’d actually done it. It was nothing more than a gut feeling, but for some reason, I wanted to like Fernanda. Maybe her harsh exterior was an act to cover her sadness? Her affection for her uncle made her blind. He was up to no good and, as the evidence against him piled up, I had to agree he knew more about Maria’s death than he let on. Him and Dario. That man gave me the creeps.
Reaching up through the thick steam, I fumbled for the shampoo. Something fuzzy squirmed under my fingers. Panic seized me, but that didn't prevent me from screaming when my eyes focused on the biggest spider I had ever seen.
Not knowing what to do with the giant creature, we stood and stared at each other. It was too big to squish and the only advice that came to mind was an old memory of a road trip I had taken with my mom and dad to Yellowstone National Park. We were told not to panic or run if we saw a bear. Unfortunately, that was all I could remember and I doubted it applied to arachnids. Would the spider attack if I made any sudden movements?
There was a loud bang on my front door, and I heard Adi shouting, "Jess, are you okay?"
“There’s an enormous spider in here. I touched it!”
“I’ll be right back. I don’t do spiders.”
Well, I didn’t do spiders either. I could only guess who she was getting, and I prayed it would be anyone but Jake. A guy could only save a girl so many times in the shower.
Slowly, very slowly, I reached up to slide my towel off the rod of the shower curtain. Wrapping it around me, I waited as close to the opposite wall as I could from the hairy creature. I couldn't even turn off the water, the faucet being much too close to the tarantula.
Jake knocked on the bathroom door. "Are you decent?"
I wanted to laugh. It was either that or die of mortification. If bathing wasn't a necessary daily activity (especially in this sticky climate) I would have considered giving up the activity until my return to Portland and my insect-free shower. "I'm fine, but I don't know what to do about the spider sharing my shower."
Jake opened the door and pulled aside the shower curtain. Turning off the water and covering the tarantula with a hand towel in one swift motion, he gathered the edges of the towel like a little bag that carried nothing I ever wanted to see again inside it.
Holding the bagged spider up in a salute, he laughed. "This is becoming a habit."
“Next time, I’ll wear a bathing suit.”
“Clever idea.” Jake backed toward the door. "By the way, Agent Vasquez is waiting for you downstairs."
I peeked around the curtain to make sure Jake had gone and had taken the furry monster with him.
Bracing myself for the inevitable, I made short time of dressing and combing my hair. I didn't bother to put on any makeup. My face was so burned, it hurt to touch.
Lady gnawed on a bone at the bottom of the steps. As hungrily as she chewed on her treat, she dropped it and stood as I passed.
"It's okay, girl. You need to eat," I encouraged her, pointing to her bone. It was like she understood me, because once I gave her permission and a scratch behind the ears, she dedicated her full attention to the bone once again. What a cool dog. I'd be very sad when it was time to leave her.
Sylvia greeted me at the kitchen door with a little, plastic pharmacy bag full of pills and cream.
Holding out a glass of water and two pills, she said, "The white one is an anti-inflammatory and the little yellow one is an antihistamine. The pharmacist recommended you take both every twelve hours until your symptoms improve."
I popped them in my mouth, chasing them down with a gulp of cool water.
"Thank you. I don’t think I’ve ever burned myself this badly.”
“It’s the altitude. We should have thought to warn you.” Sylvia’s cheeks bunched up and she huffed her disappointment. As if it was her fault. It was the same expression my mom wore when she assumed responsibility for someone else’s mistake.
“We can reschedule our pub night, Jess. You look like you feel miserable,” said Adi.
What a relief to be able to spend a night in. And better still, no one had mentioned the shower episode.
With an impish grin and mischievous arch of her eyebrow, Adi asked, “How was your shower?”
So much for that! “Interesting. I hope it’s the last time I get an unwelcome guest in the shower."
Adi giggled. "To whom do you refer? Jake or the spider?"
As if I wasn’t red enough, I felt my face blush.
Abuelita smacked me across the arm. She did that a lot. "You lucky girl. Many woman try get Jake in shower, and he see you two time!" Her whole body shook as she cackled with Tia Rosa.
Still laughing, Adi grabbed a kitchen towel and ran it under the faucet, wringing the excess water out before tossing it to me. "Here, this will cool you down," she said.
I gladly buried my face in the cloth until Sylvia reminded me that Agent Vasquez waited in the dining room. Oh, the joy.
Chapter 12
I grabbed Abuelita’s hand. "Come with me," I said, knowing she would be a much better liar then me if he asked questions I didn’t want to answer.
"He no like me. I try for you."
Together, we walked to Agent Vasquez’s table in a corner offering some privacy from the diners. He stood when we joined him. Motioning to the seat opposite him, he said, "Please have a seat, Miss James." To Abuelita, he said, "Thank you, Mrs. Jimenez. That will be all," dismissing her before she could take a seat.
Squeezing my hand before she left, I begrudgingly sat in the chair he offered me.
"Where were you this afternoon?"
He knew how to get to the point.
I shifted my weight on my chair. It was impossible to sit comfortably with so many bites.
"Abuelita and Tia Rosa, the Missus Jimenez, took me to see the waterfalls. They were beautiful, and I'd like to go again. Which is your favorite?"
The wood squeaked as Agent Vasquez sat back against his chair, looking at me dead on. "Really?"
I nodded and smiled feebly.
He crossed his arms. "How did you get there?"
I was unfamiliar with licensing laws in Ecuador, but I was pretty sure it was illegal to drive a dune buggy on a major highway. I hadn’t seen any others about. Maybe if I played the ‘ignorant tourist’ card, he’d let me off with a warning. I tried to breathe normally and hold my hands still, though the urge to pop my knuckles was unbearable.
“We crammed into a dune buggy. I’d never driven one before, but once I got the hang of it, I really enjoyed it.” I grinned, feeling the skin on my cheeks crack.
“I’m guessing it wasn’t a planned trip?”
“It was a surprise. Otherwise, I would have worn sunscreen and bug repellent.”
He sat forward, clasping his hands on top of the table. "Hmm,” he grunted, narrowing his eyes at me and drawing all sorts of conclusions. I could only hope they were favorable.
After an eternity, he smiled. “Those are fun. Did you stick to the road or take the bike paths?" He almost seemed like a normal man and not a scary detective. Or was this some variation of “Good Cop/Bad Cop”?
I hadn't recalled seeing any bike paths. Of course, the path leading to José’s fields could qualify. “We mostly stuck to the road, but we did take some paths.” It was the truth. Mostly.
He considered me for a while, clearly trying to determine whether or not I told the truth. Finally, he leaned forward over his clasped hands and lowered his voice. "Miss James, do you know why I requested this interview today?"
Another honest answer. "No, I don't. Unless you have caught the murderer and you have come to return my backpack," I said hopefully.
He crushed my hopes in one bluntly spoken word. "No. I asked José and he didn’t recall seeing it. He assured me it wasn’t in his house."
I sighed, feeling my shoulders hunch over ever so slightly. I knew Agent Vasquez
had much worse problems to deal with than tracking down my bag, but I still mourned its loss. “Oh, well, thank you for asking. I appreciate it. The folks at Casa Hood were nice enough to let me borrow some books and I can start a new journal until I can replace it when I get home.” I closed my mouth. Agent Vasquez’s patience thinned the more I rambled. “Sorry. Why did you want to talk to me?”
"I received a disturbing call from Señor Guzmán." He paused, letting his words sink in. And sink in they did. My legs started fidgeting. I put my hands over them to still them, saying, "Too much coffee," in a lame excuse to disguise my nerves. I would never be able to trick a lie detector test. He probably saw right through me.
Agent Vasquez observed me silently, making me more nervous with each passing second. I wished he’d say something.
Needing to fill the silence, I asked, "Is José okay?"
"I don't know. You tell me."
I channeled my inner Abuelita and shrugged my shoulders as nonchalantly as I could. I drew the line at poking him in the chest though. I didn’t think he’d react well to that. "Why would I know? I haven't seen him."
Now, technically, that was absolutely true. Though I was certain it had been him inside the shed, I hadn't seen him with my eyes.
"Is that so? How interesting." He stared at me as if he could read the truth in my eyes. There was a reason I always got into trouble while my sisters got off scot-free. Even when I was absolutely innocent, they had a way of blaming me in such a way that made me look completely guilty. You'd think that as an adult, I would've had a clue, but as I sat there under his scrutinizing stare, I realized he was doing exactly what they did. And it made me mad.
