Page 63 of Hot Summer's Prey

“No, Taara is just convinced you’re wikipedia. She laughed cause she was embarrassed and I laughed because I think my friends are cute,” Anelisa explains.

“I never questioned the basement since I grew up with it,” Zephyr mumbles. “Not that I was allowed down here. I think a couple of times I would open the door and stare down, but the lights were always off and one time a spider landed on me. I freaked out so bad I never tried it again.”

“Well, today’s the day!” Dawn cheers.

It is pretty dusty down here. There’s a little bit of a mildew smell that has to be great for our lungs. As soon as we get to the bottom of the staircase, there it is.

A dusty wooden bar extends across the room. Old bottles litter the shelves behind the bar. A mirror stretching across the wall reflects our own curious faces back at us. Portions of traditional Mexican tiles below our feet are cracked, some of them gone entirely to reveal the cold, packed dirt underneath. Chairs pile up against the walls, littered with cobwebs.

For a brief moment, I forget everything else. My body is pulled to the dance floor where I can imagine hundreds of Nina Martinez’s fancy celebrity friends cutting a rug. There’s a small stage for a band as well.

“Look at the ceiling!” Zephyr squeals.

We all do, and a gasp of admiration fills the room. A beautifully illustrated night sky fills the ceiling, even if much of the paint is peeled. A row of stars shines brightest, though one is brighter than all the rest.

“I can’t believe all of this was down here the whole time,” Zephyr breathes. “Who were you, Abuela Martinez?”

Zephyr looks like they’re in shock, but with everyone else looking out for them, I think they’re in good hands. I’m about to leave, when my eyes fall on a picture that’s fallen to the floor. We’re all in Mystery Machine mode here, so I grab it, thinking it can be my final contribution to this discovery.

It’s a picture of Nina Martinez cuddled up to a man in a peacoat right outside of a lighthouse. She holds her scarf to her head, sunglasses on, as she pulls him by the tie for a smooch.

Slugger barks suddenly, disturbing the silence.

“You’re probably right,” I say, “it’s time. Just give me a second.”

I hear Pacari sigh behind me, but we’re on our way now.

“Hey Dawn, this is such a cool find. And Zeph, I love this for you. There’s probably a bunch of stuff down here for you to find out about her. I just found this.”

I hand the picture over to Zephyr.

Then the ground shakes.

“Nope!” Anelisa and Zephyr shout in unison.

They both bolt for the stairs.

“Stop, guys! You’re supposed to stay put,” Dawn says as she takes a more stable stance.

“And let the whole house crush us?”

“This is probably one of the safest places in the whole house, look how well kept it is,” Dawn argues through the earthquake. “Try to stay calm.”

“I’ve never been in a basement during an earthquake before, it’s a new, scary experience!” Anelisa huffs out.

This whole time, a strange look falls over Pacari.

“We might be too late,” he says weakly.

“It’s just an earthquake,” I argue. “They happen all the time.”

He shakes his head. “This doesn’t feel like a normal earthquake.”

A chill falls over me. Immediate, overwhelming regret falls over me for pushing for us to stay just a few seconds more.

Zephyr & Anelisa make it to the top of the stairs and out of the door. As soon as they do, we hear more screaming.

“Holy shit, of course I inherit a beach house and there’s immediately a tsunami,” Zephyr shouts.

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