Page 12 of Hot Summer's Prey

“But anyway, I wouldn’t recommend it,” they finish.

If my naked hot guy news had sent Zephyr into a bout of melancholy, that would be my sign to yeet into the ocean. I feel like everything I try lately is just making things worse. All I want is my lighthearted vacation, and I know that’s selfish, but I need it.

“Hey, Zeph!” Dawn calls from across the room. “Where’s the Lighthouse?”

“There’s a lighthouse?!” Taara asks, excited.

“Uh, yeah, on the other side of town—why?” Zephyr asks.

Dawn tramps over with a stack of old papers.

“Am I wrong in saying this doesn’t look like a lighthouse?” she asks, laying them flat.

It’s an old newspaper clipping, a little wrinkled, a little faded. The photo in question shows bartenders in white jackets handing drinks over to men in tuxes and women in long, decadent gowns.

“Is that…” Taara starts.

“Motherfucking Nina Martinez!” Anelisa says, pointing to a woman that does, in fact, look an awful lot like Zephyr’s grandmother.

“Look in the background! That’s Cab Calloway!” I exclaim.

The famous black jazz singer is mid-song on the stage behind her, holding a baton. I remember watching videos of him performing over and over again when I was younger, captivated by the way he moves. He looks like he’s about to jump out of the picture here.

“Charlie Chaplin!” Taara points out a man in the corner with his iconic mustache.

“I think that’s Gloria Swanson,” Zephyr points out next.

“Who?” I ask.

“Fifty years later, revisiting the Lighthouse,” Dawn reads. “Hollywood’s speakeasy away from home. Invited in for an exclusive tour, the current owner has requested we keep the historical landmark secret—Zeph! We have to find the Lighthouse!”

“I mean, I’ll take you to the Cryptic Cove lighthouse, but—”

“But this is probably not the actual lighthouse.”

“Which means…”

“Maybe your grandma has more clues about where it could be. It’s gotta be around here somewhere. She was obviously a member—I mean, did they have memberships for speakeasies? She was a regular. Something!”

I groan, disinterested in the sudden mystery. This does not sound like a vacation, this sounds like I’m being roped into an escape room I didn’t sign up for.

“You know where I’d rather go?”

“To a nude beach?” Anelisa jokes.

“True,” I acknowledge. “Or the modern version of a speakeasy. You know, like a place where they sell alcohol and there’s dancing?”

“Oh, you mean like a bar?” Dawn asks too earnestly.

“Yes, Dawn, a bar,” I agree.

“Wait, that’s actually not a bad idea. We can ask around! They might know the local history and have some clues about where the Lighthouse is!”

I let out a long sigh, but it gets buried under everyone else agreeing to go to the bar. At least we’re going to a bar! The rest of them can look for a mystery… I’m just looking for a good time.

6

MR. HOTTIE-WITH-THE-DOG

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