Accidentally in Love With a God (2012) (8 page)

“Aquí se puede esperar por un taxi,” said the driver, pointing to the side of the road.

A taxi? In the last hour, I hadn’t seen more than two cars on the road.

The driver turned all the way around in his seat and gave me a nasty look. “Señorita? Se sale o me voy.”

“
What are you waiting for? Get out,”
Guy pushed.

I quickly glanced out the dust-coated windows, seeing nothing but a long stretch of highway ahead and dense dark green jungle on either side of the road.

The portly driver revved the engine to make his point.

“I’m going, I’m going! Don’t shut the door.” The back of my white sticky-wet tee-shirt made a
ssshhhlep
sound as I rose from my vinyl seat. As soon as I stepped out, peeling my sweat-soaked khaki shorts from my rear end, the doors of the silver bus screeched shut. A cloud of black exhaust engulfed me and the engine rumbled away.

I prayed the driver was right about that taxi. Because being dumped on a sad, lonely highway in the middle of the jungle, sounded like the plot from a bad horror movie. Or at the very least, a paranormal Lifetime mini-series entitled:
Things Young Women Shouldn’t Do When Traveling Alone in Mexico While Going to Meet a Mystery-Being Who Was Trapped in a Mayan Ruin by Evil People; But She Can Hear Him in Her Head, and Needs to Set Him Free; Because He’s Driving Her Bat Shit Crazy, and Might Be the Only One Able to Help Her Uncover the Truth About Her Grandmother’s Disappearance.

“Yeah. Let’s hope he was right about that taxi.”

I slung my red backpack over my shoulder and walked a few yards down the road to take cover from the sun under a large-leafed tree. I could start walking, I thought, but again, I wasn’t sure where I was. I just knew where I wanted to be. My guidebook noted there was a lakeside eco-resort called the Mayan Sun. It was ideal for bird watchers and hikers to access the trails around the lake. Those trails also happened to reach several isolated ruins and a few ancient ceremonial pools. Guy and I agreed that would be the best way to pick up the trail leading to him.

I took one long, slow breath. The heat was suffocating, and the dank air smelled like a hot, moldy shower, reminding me that after a five-hour bus ride, I needed to find a bathroom. No way I’d go into that jungle to squat with the critters. No, señor.

“Frigging-a, Guy. You never told me how hot it is here.” I moved my ponytail to the top of my head—ignoring how stupid I must look—pulled out my water bottle, splashed a little water in my hand, and ran it over my neck.

Not where I am, it is cold in here.”

“Oh. Sorry.” I felt my skin crawl. We hadn’t spoken about his prison. Not because I didn’t ask, but because he wouldn’t tell me. He said it was too dreadful to describe, but according to him, I wouldn’t have to go inside. I’d just have to stand in the doorway of the temple and recite the phrase he taught me in Mayan.

I shivered. There was still the chance I was heading straight for a trap, and everything he’d ever told me was a bunch of bull.
No turning back now, Emma
, I thought.
You’ve gone over every angle, and this is the only path with a potential exit. Get it over with.

I pulled my guidebook from my pack and began thumbing through the pages. “Okay, so you said you’re one kilometer northwest of the lake, right?”

“
Yes. Yes. Do you see a taxi yet?”
he asked.

“Impatient much?” I looked down the road, listening for the hum of a car, but heard nothing except the sound of bugs clicking in the jungle. It was downright creepy. “Guy? How does it feel?” I wondered if he’d say anything to tip his hand.

“
Being trapped? It sucks, as you like to say. But you’ve kept me connected to the world. I’ll admit, in your early years, Barney and Sesame Street weren’t very exciting. Then you started to grow, and I watched the world grow through your eyes. You showed me a side of the world I never knew existed. And…”
His voice became low and pensive.
“I am awestruck by the woman you’ve become. So aware, strong willed. So pure hearted. It has been an amazing gift, Emma.
You
are an amazing gift.”

I didn’t know what to say. Aside from being very direct and unexpected, it was, well...sweet. Quite possibly, the nicest compliment anyone had ever given me. “Guy?”

Several moments ticked by before he answered, “
Yes?”

“Why are we connected? Why me?”

He sighed
. “Because you are special.”

“How?”

“
It is something in your DNA.”

“What is it?”

“
DNA? Well, it is a chain of nucleotides—”

“I know what DNA is, Guy. What makes mine different?”

“
We are in a bit of hurry, and explaining could take hours.”

“I think I’ll head into the pueblo and get lunch.” I crossed my arms.

“
Fine. Your genes have something…extra.”

“Extra? Like what?”

“
That, my dear woman, is all I can tell you without going into a science lecture on quantum physics and genetics.”

“What? You can’t say something like that and leave me hanging.”

“
You would never believe me, no human would.”

“Except—you're telling me I'm not a regular human?”

“
Even so.”

How could he treat this so casually? My head was spinning, trying to put the pieces all together. “Does this have something to do with why you’re trapped there?”

“
No. I am here because I was tracking a group of men—evil men. They found out and set a trap.”

“And you're sealed inside of some Mayan ruin in the middle of the jungle. Yes, I heard that part before. But how? How can a man be trapped without food or water for so many years? Are you dead? Am I going to find some scary ghost hovering over an old pile of bones?”

“
No.”

“Then how?”

“
Because.”
He hesitated, then growled. “
You won't believe me, Emma.”

“Guy, you either trust me or you don’t. And the fact I’m here—”

“
Because I am not a man. Never have been. Never will be.”

GULP.

“What do you mean ‘not a man?’ Like, as in, you're a woman? Or”— the words stuck in my throat—“another species all together?” I always knew he was something…different, but my rational mind steered clear of anything too outlandish. Hearing him say the words suddenly made everything real, made the frightfulness of the situation undeniable.

“
Emma, please. No more. You have to trust me.”

“Why? You're some…thing who was apparently trapped by some men—”

“
Dark priests, actually. Descendants from the Mayans
,” he interrupted nonchalantly. “
But they’re more powerful and vicious than one might think.”

“Oh, great. Even better!” I threw up my hands. “And you were hunting them? But, of course, you won’t tell me why. And I'm the only person who can hear or talk to you on the entire planet, so I have to rescue you. Oh, and you're not human. But I'm supposed to trust you. Did I get that right, Guy?”

“
Yes, you did. And see? I knew you would never believe me.”

“You're right. I don’t believe any of this.”

My grandmother sometimes told stories of the existence of another world, but I thought she was just having fun. And, I knew she was a New-Age kind of person who believed in energies and spirits. I could swallow those concepts, sort of. But this? Not a man? What did that mean? Was he an alien? Demon? Monster?

I stood and began pacing under the tree, kicking small pebbles off the side of the road. I still had to go to him; there was no other way out. Doing nothing meant suffering to the point of insanity. Attempting to free him gave me a chance at a normal life and to find out what happened to my grandmother. Sadly, all roads led to extremely bad places, like this jungle.

“
Emma, what more can I do to convince you?”

“Nothing.”

“
Fine. You win. Leave me to rot for eternity.”

“Not a chance because I’m not rotting with you.” I opened my mouth to say something else, but then a tiny green dot appeared on the horizon. It was an actual taxi.

“Ha! See! I am good luck. Admit it.” I clapped.

The chewed-up lime green taxi slowed and pulled to the side. “Buenas tardes, señor, voy a las cabañas Maya Sol,” I said in my best
español
to the hot and tired looking driver.

“
What was that? Klingon? You really need to work on that accent of yours, Emma. It’s embarrassing,”
Guy said.

Arrogant turd. “I guess I’ll never be a master of the universe like you, Guy.” I realized that was a stupid comeback. Maybe he
was
master of the universe. Anything could be possible at this point, and he did know a lot about history, science, and math. Let’s not forget he spoke almost every language on the planet, according to him.

“Perdón señorita?” asked the driver.

“Oh. Um—” I paused trying to think of the word. “Nada.”

The taxi driver nodded and waited for me to load myself in. We drove for several minutes before the driver told me he passed down the highway every day at the same time to pick up passengers from the bus.

“
More like dumb-lucky,”
Guy jabbed at my earlier statement about being good luck.

“Jerk,” I said, hoping the driver didn’t understand English or wonder why I was talking to myself.

The car continued for several minutes, finally turning down a narrow dirt road that cut into the jungle. The tree branches swiped the sides of the open windows as we passed, flicking small pieces of bark and leaves at my face. After several bumpy minutes, the road opened up into a large sunny clearing with an enormous thatched-roof structure at one end and several huts at the other.

I left the taxi and was immediately greeted by a sweet looking, old couple. Their faces were dark brown and leathery from the sun, with deep soulful wrinkles around the edges of their eyes. The woman had long white hair pulled neatly back into a bun and wore a white dress with elaborately embroidered flowers. The man had straggly silver hair pushed under a worn straw hat. They were too cute, in a rustic sort of way.

The man reached out for my bag and spoke in a thick local accent, “Hemos estado esperandote mi-ja.”

I did a double take. “Did you say you've been waiting for me? Your daughter?”

“He meant—we’re glad you've come to stay with us…my dear,” said the woman, plucking a leaf from my hair. “My name is Señora Rosa, and this is my husband Señor Arturo. Will you be staying long?”

“
Tell her you’re only staying one day, that you’re an avid bird watcher and heard about the toucans.”

“I don’t know, exactly,” I said, ignoring Guy. I hated when he barked orders. “I’m just passing through, doing a little sightseeing. Then I have to head back to Cancun to meet my friends,” I lied.

They both gave me a peculiar look.

“You’ve taken quite a detour just to see our quiet corner of the state. What kind of sights are you here to see?” the woman asked.

“The lake, birds...you know, stuff like that. Maybe it’d be nice to see a few of those Mayan ruins I’ve read so much about.”

“
Emma, stick to the plan. You childish—”

“Oh. I see.” She narrowed her eyes. Was she trying to size me up? “Well, most of those things are an hour or two hike from here, and it’s much too late in the day to start out. So, you’ll have to wait until morning.”

“Well, I’m really tight on time, and it looks like there are a few more hours of sunlight—”

“
Don’t argue with her. Just check into your cabaña and go. You can still make it!”

“But you’re probably right. I don’t want to get lost in the dark.” I agreed with Rosa just to irritate Guy. In reality, I was just as anxious to get this over with as he was.

She nodded. “Good. I’ll show you to your cabin.” She turned to Arturo and mumbled something in a language I didn’t recognize, and then started toward a row of thatched roof huts. “Dinner is at eight if you’re hungry, and we sell good trail maps for your hike tomorrow, if you’re interested. Oh, and do not forget to bring a walking stick with you.”

“A walking stick? Is it a difficult hike?” I asked.

“No, for protection—from snakes and other animals. We even have jaguars, but if you see one, say a prayer. Don’t bother with the stick.”