Exotic Stranger: Hallowed Blues 1

by Isaiah Fields

  Adam smiled secretively. Camila fed the chickens. She wasn't sure what the smile meant but she was certain she wouldn't like it if she ever found out.

  Adam returned to his room.

  Camila went back to hers, wishing it was nightfall so that she could talk to Javier about all this.

  Chapter Four

  DINNER THAT NIGHT was an elaborate spread of slow-roasted pork, tomato-and-salsa salad, melons dressed with mint and a touch of rum, guacamole, tortillas to wrap around everything, and cold pale beers to wash it all down.

  In the kitchen, Javier fried up the churros -- not strictly Mexican, of course, but nobody could refuse a fresh churro rolled in cinnamon and sugar and dipped in melted chocolate. He cleared the table and set down the twists of fried dough and little cups of chocolate and then disappeared back into the kitchen.

  Camila desperately wanted to join him but Martina warned her not to.

  "Professor Simons can help you," she had told Camila earlier.

  Like he helped you? Camila had wanted to ask. She kept her mouth shut, though. Not because she was afraid of antagonizing her mother but because she didn't know what had happened exactly.

  It could be everything, it could be nothing.

  And did her father even know?

  "We'll be heading out to the cenotes the day after tomorrow," Adam said with a chuckle. "Drew and Meryse will need a day to rest, since they'll be doing the hard work. A few days of diving, taking samples, photographs and measurements at each cenote and that'll finish off September and the grant money pretty nicely."

  "What will you be doing?" Camila asked. She tried to sound curious but from Martina's look, she must have sounded accusatory.

  "Minding the camp, I suppose," Adam said. Drew snorted and Meryse smirked. "Well, I suppose the actual name for what I'll be doing is 'trying not to get my feet wet' or something along those lines."

  "It's his first time in the field," Drew said.

  "It's my first time in the jungle," Adam corrected, sounding only mildly annoyed. "I've done lots of anthropological studies before."

  "So what's with the cenotes?" Camila asked. This time she was genuinely curious. She had visited one with her parents way back, when they weren't sure if they were going to stay in Mexico forever. It looked like a giant sinkhole and the water in it was filthy.

  "Professor Simons has a theory," Meryse said, "that they're all connected to each other by this giant underground river and that this river goes to the ocean. All of them," she added. "And that this could mean that there will be seafaring life in some of them. That's what I'm here for -- to catalog the life forms that Drew will be bringing up and to see if I can determine the direction of the flow, if there is any. My own research project will be to see if we can determine signs of evolutionary splitting between the species found in the various cenotes, but that is assuming there is no connection between the cenotes and that the professor is wrong."

  "So, you don't agree with the professor?" Martina asked.

  Meryse shrugged. "I do my work and pass on my conclusions to him. I suppose it's possible that many of them are connected. But all of them? That's a bit much. Of course, I could be wrong," she added. "But there's only one way to know for sure."

  "What do you think, Drew?" Chico asked. "Right or wrong?"

  Drew laughed. "No thanks, sir. I learned long ago not to question the divine wisdom of professors."

  "Oh, come on," Adam said. "I'm not that kind of professor."

  "I wouldn't be so sure," Drew said. "It's those kinds of profs that get the grant money, after all."

  "Maybe the ones you've worked with," Adam retorted. "When you write as many books as I have, you don't need the big grants to fund your adventures."

  "Why don't you let Javier help you, then?" Chico cut in.

  Martina's mouth dropped open with surprise, while Camila wondered what prompted this suggestion. Javier popped out of the kitchen upon hearing his name but of course, he didn't understand English and could only watch Chico and try to figure out what he was saying.

  "He speaks the local language and he's quite handy to have around," Chico added.

  Adam looked at Drew and Meryse.

  Meryse shrugged. "I just count the worms," she said, licking the cinnamon and sugar off her lips.

  "It would be easier on you," Drew conceded. "I mean, have you ever set up a camp in the jungle before?"

  There was a moment of silence while Adam nibbled on his chocolate-dipped churro, weighing the pros and cons. "I can't afford to pay him," he said, eventually. "At least, not what we're supposed to pay porters."

  Martina began translating Chico's suggestion and Adam's response to Javier. Javier murmured something into her ear. Martina drew back, surprised. Camila thought she saw a triumphant smile flash across his face.

  "Javier says he doesn't mind not getting paid, since he is also not paid here," Martina said, stiffly. "He also says that he would like it if Camila could come along. He is afraid that he is not -- worldly enough to be of much use to you."

  "I don't know that worldliness has anything to do with helping set up a camp in the jungle," Adam said.

  Drew turned to Camila. "What do you know about camping in the jungle?"

  "Enough to know that you won't be using those tents you brought after the first night," Camila said.

  Silence descended upon the dinner table.

  "What? Do you know how big the centipedes get here?"

  That did it. Meryse looked as if she were about to throw up. Adam's face turned red, as though embarrassed for not having considered this. Drew's face was measured, neutral. Camila knew she had said the right thing, despite Martina's silent fury from across the table.

  "What would you propose, then?" Adam asked.

  "Hammocks," Camila answered.

  Drew cracked a mischievous smile at Adam. "Told you so," he said.

  "You didn't mention the centipedes," Adam said.

  Drew shrugged. "But I did tell you so." He flashed Camila a smile and gave her a thumbs-up.

  Camila automatically smiled back until she thought, Wait, is he flirting with me? She glanced at Javier, hoping that he didn't see. The stony look in his eyes dashed that hope. She wanted to tell him it didn't mean anything; that she was just being friendly. But then Drew kept talking.

  "C'mon, Prof. She lives here. She knows more about the area than you do."

  "I wrote--"

  "Yeah, yeah, you wrote a bunch of books. You still insisted that we'd be camping in tents."

  Camila caught Martina's eye and promptly wished she hadn't. She didn't know what she did but somehow, Martina had figured out how to blame the souring of the last two minutes' conversation on her.

  Drew continued, oblivious to the frosting atmosphere, "Why don't you come with us? Save the prof from running into a jaguar or something."

  And then, much to Camila's surprise, Meryse joined in. "Yeah," she said. "I could use someone to help me categorize stuff. You could learn a few things and when you finish, Professor Simons will write you a recommendation for college."

  Adam threw his hands up in mock exasperation. "Well, if I'd known there was going to be a mutiny, I'd have just stayed home!"

  "I'd love to," Camila said, smiling graciously. "But my mother will need--"

  "If you promise you will write her a recommendation," Martina cut in, giving Adam a quick look before glancing at Camila, "then no, I don't need your help."

  Professor Adam Simons nodded his assent. "Of course," he said. "I would be honored to help your daughter the way you've helped us."

  There were so many wrong things implied in that statement that Camila couldn't help but shoot a questioning look at Javier and her mother, even though she knew he didn't know anything. Martina was scraping the inside of her chocolate mug with the last bit of her churro, pointedly ignoring her.

  What does he mean? Why is he saying that? Did you actually do anything with him that would hurt Dad?

&nbs
p; Camila had so many questions in her mind that she wished she could ask her mother outright.

  In the meantime, Drew was grinning at her. "Welcome to the team, kid."