In Too Deep (6 page)

T
he hotel room I shared with Katy was simple, with a thin carpet and twin beds on either side of a small bedside table. As with the previous nights, Katy and I had nothing much to say to each other. When we came back from dinner, she disappeared immediately into the bathroom. The springs in my mattress squeaked a protest when I dropped onto the bed.

I sat cross-legged, the pages of de la Torre’s journal spread out in front of me, and a Spanish–English dictionary at the ready. There had to be something more in those pages—an account of what happened after the storm, or clues about whether the Jaguar made it onto the island—and if Katy wasn’t going to help out anymore, I’d have to handle it myself. The going was incredibly slow, given the combination of the calligraphy, the antiquated Spanish, and my utter inability to say anything other than
“D
ó
nde
está el baño?”

“What do you think, Annie?” Katy said. She stood in the bathroom doorway wearing a bright red bikini top and an expensive-looking sarong that didn’t even come close to her knees. “Too first-world slutty?”

I rested the dictionary in my lap and rubbed my eyes to make sure I was seeing clearly. “What are you talking about? Why are you—”

“You didn’t think we were staying in, did you?”

There was a knock at the door. Katy opened it to reveal Nate wearing a white muscle shirt and a gold chain necklace and looking a lot like a third-rate mobster. Behind him, Josh had wrapped his freshly showered hotness in a bright blue vintage T-shirt with something like a phoenix on it.

Nate rubbed his hands together as if to warm them. “You guys ready?”

“You don’t want to change?” Josh said.

My voice didn’t seem to work. I looked down at my outfit: dirty pink tank top, paint-splattered shorts. “I can’t,” I said eventually.

“Come on,” Josh said. “Just for a bit.”

Nate rocked impatiently from side to side. “I didn’t come down to Mexico for spring break so I could lock myself in a hotel room.”

“There’s a brand-new club,” Katy said. “It’s supposed to be hot.”

“You checked out a club?”

“Try to keep up.”

“But Alvarez—”

“And Wayo will be telling war stories in that dive shop for the next four hours, and you know it,” she said.

Josh pulled a wad of American cash from his pocket. “This’ll be fun,” he said with a wink. “Trust me.”

I opted to give de la Torre a rest and changed into something less comfortable. The thought occurred to me, as I slid into my flip-flops and hustled after the others, that the thing they’d never admit in health class is that peer pressure is almost impossible to resist. And Josh was the ultimate gateway drug: harmless at first, all green eyes and aw-shucks grin, but once you got a taste, you wanted more and more until you found yourself doing things you’d never have believed were possible.

T
he smell of sweat and spilled alcohol hit me like a wave the moment we stepped onto the second level of Club Starzz. Black lights ignited white clothes and set teeth aglow. Framed movie posters papered the walls, and cardboard cutouts of famous actors and actresses stood sentry at various points around the room. A seven-foot Jessica Rebstock—brandishing an old rifle and dressed as a straight-shootin’ prairie mama from
No
Home for Cowards
—hovered eerily next to the packed dance floor.

“I was getting homesick,” I said as we lucked upon an empty table, but Josh either didn’t hear me or didn’t grasp the absurdity of us going to a Hollywood-themed club.

“Margaritas!” Nate said, and we all clinked our glasses together. A techno remix of last year’s Top 40 rattled the drink in my hand. I put it down on the table after the tiniest of sips. Sneaking out of the hotel was one thing, but getting drunk would take it to a whole different level. A level where the
least
horrible thing that could happen would be losing my scholarship.

Nate took his drink with him as he stalked around the dance floor, leaving me and Katy at the table with Josh.

“So, is it weird to see that poster of your mom?” Katy put her elbows on the table and pressed her boobs between her arms as she leaned toward Josh. “Is it like she’s…watching you?”

I hoped he’d see right through her, but it was obvious that the only thing he saw was exactly what she wanted him to see. Her chest shook when she giggled, and I thought smoke was going to come out of his ears.

“You get used to it,” he said.

“Don’t you think someone might recognize you?” I said.

“Nah, I’m nobody.”

Nate returned with half his drink already empty and motioned to a pair of blondes dressed in outfits that made Katy’s look Amish.

“Those chicks are college girls, bro. Down here from Idaho.” He snorted a laugh. “Ida-ho.”

“Shouldn’t we be getting back?” I knew how it sounded, but I couldn’t help it.

Josh pulled his phone from his pocket. “It’s only ten fifteen,” he said.

“I told them we went to UCLA,” Nate said, and then, nodding to me, “and that she was your little sister.”

“Sis!” Josh said, elbowing me and laughing.

I gritted my teeth into a smile I hoped would mask my shame.

“I can definitely see the resemblance,” Katy said.

After not nearly enough urging, Josh got up and followed Nate to the dance floor. Katy stayed at the table for about a millisecond longer. Then she gulped her drink and headed into the throng directly behind Josh, where the two of them proceeded to, as they say, ignore their inhibitions.

Josh had forgotten his cell phone on the table. I figured it had an international plan, and besides, he wouldn’t mind if his sister made a phone call, right?

I snatched it up and pushed my way downstairs through the crowd and across the street. I hopped onto the seawall and dialed a number and let my legs dangle over the gentle lapping of the waves. I should have borrowed a mask and fins for a peaceful night snorkel instead of letting myself get dragged along like a little girl.

“Gracia, it’s me,” I said when she answered.

“Annie?” she said uncertainly. “Whose phone is this? Is that techno in the background?”

“They made me sneak out! We’ve been here for two days and—”

“Slow down. What do you mean, sneak out? What’s Cozumel like? How’s Josh?”

“Katy said his last girlfriend was a princess.”

“Okay, first of all, that totally didn’t take.”

A cluster of drunk spring-breakers spilled out of the Hard Rock Cafe and onto the street. Someone told someone else to shut up. A beer bottle shattered. Then another. Then they all laughed and disappeared.

“You knew?” I said.

“Duh, and I didn’t tell you because I knew you’d get all, ‘Boo-hoo, I’m not a princess, I don’t stand a chance,’ on me.”

“I can’t do this for a whole week,” I said. “Katy just now practically assaulted Josh with her bikini, and—”

“I don’t want to hear any more of this ‘can’t do it,’ soldier. Make him jealous. Dance with the hottest guy you can find, and be sure to glance at Josh from time to time. Give him a look that says, ‘All this could be yours.’”

I rolled my eyes even though she couldn’t see. “Good-bye, Gracia.”

“You’re in Mexico, sweet pea. Now get back in there and hook up with a native.”

Josh and Nate were getting busy with the Idahos on the dance floor when I went back inside. I couldn’t find Katy, but three fresh drinks had been added to the collection of empties at our table.

A black-haired guy wandered tentatively up next to me and nodded. His sleeveless white T-shirt glowed under the black lights, revealing well-built arms and the broad shoulders of a swimmer. “What’s up?”

I smiled and used my margarita like a crutch, taking a tiny sip before pushing it away.

“Something wrong with your beverage?” His jaw was strong, and his eyes were dark brown and sultry. Except for the traces of a unibrow, he was far too good-looking for me to talk to. Maybe he had me confused with someone else.

“Nope,” I said. “It’s fine.”

He opened his mouth, then closed it. He looked confused. Then he shook his head and walked away. I reached for my drink again but thought better of it.

Nate appeared over my shoulder, his hips still bumping with the beat. “Want me to kick that dude’s ass for you? I could, you know. I could kick it.”

“You’re such a gentleman.”

“The offer stands,” he said, moving back to the dance floor, the margaritas clearly having their intended effect. “If you want me to kick it.”

“No offense, but you need to work on your moves,” Josh said, startling me as he collapsed into the chair. His cheeks were flushed, and he was sweaty and out of breath. “That guy was totally hitting on you.”

“He was not.” Besides, it didn’t matter. How was I supposed to tell Josh I didn’t want
that
guy hitting on me?

“Why are you surprised? I’d totally hit on you,” he said, and my own breath disappeared. A few strands of his hair were caked sexily against his forehead. “You know, if we weren’t related.”

The DJ slowed the bumping and grinding on the dance floor. Unibrow had found a new target in Katy, and he held her waist and went to work as she laughed and threw her hands into the air.

Josh placed his glass in the center of the table and pointed to mine. “You going to drink that?”

I pushed my drink across to him. Condensation on the glass made it slide faster than I’d expected, and I might have shoved it harder than necessary. He caught it, but not before a hefty splash of margarita cleared the rim.

“Oooh,” he said, wiping the liquid from the meat of his hand. “Cut her off!”

It was midnight by the time we finally took a taxi back to the hotel. Katy was drunk enough that she didn’t talk to me, which was fine. I collapsed into bed. It might not have been the Presidente InterContinental, but the sheets were clean, and I fell into a deep sleep almost the moment my head touched the pillow.

Less than an hour later, I awoke to a fierce pounding at the door.

“
A
nnie and Katy!” Alvarez yelled between knocks. “Wake up and get dressed. I need everyone at Tango Divers in five minutes.”

He moved on to the boys’ room and pounded some more. He knew everything—I was sure of it. He’d probably already called my parents, who were probably already on their way down here.

“Katy,” I said, shaking her. “Wake up!”

I heard Nate’s groggy voice through the walls. “Go to hell!”

“No thanks,” Alvarez said with a laugh. “Be at the dive shop in five minutes—no, make that four.”

“What’s going on?” Katy said, rubbing her eyes.

“He must have followed us,” I whispered. “He must have known exactly what we were doing.”

Katy waved me away as if I had BO, which I totally didn’t.

“Please shut up. Please.” She shuffled to her drawer and threw on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt. I did the same. We met up with Nate and Josh outside our room and trundled silently across the street like a quartet on death row.

Just as we reached the door of the dive shop, I leaned over and whispered, “Josh, what—”

“You need to keep your mouth shut, Annie,” Nate said.

Alvarez and Wayo sat with their arms crossed in the plastic chairs next to the corner table, which was now covered with a gray beach towel. The only lighting came from two exposed bulbs in the middle of the ceiling. We stood before them in a police lineup.

Say nothing, say nothing, say nothing,
I reminded myself. I pretended to look around the shop, but my eyes were tracking Alvarez the whole time. He pushed himself to his feet and walked toward us with his arms dangling at his sides.

He was doing one of those torture scenes where the interrogator rolls out a tray of rusty instruments, the wheels squeaking on the stained linoleum floor, and lets his silence make the pitiful victim crack.

“We have to get some things out in the open.” Now he was pacing in front of us like a drill sergeant.

All I could think about was my mom and dad. The disappointment on their faces.
Where did we go wrong?
they’d say to each other. Tears were welling up in my eyes so that I almost couldn’t see Alvarez as he turned back toward the table. A single drop broke free and rolled down my cheek.

“Get a hold of yourself,” Katy whispered through clenched teeth.

Alvarez grabbed the towel and yanked it off the table with a flourish. His change in mood was so unexpected that it gave me an excuse to rub the tears from my eyes. I waited for the lecture, but it didn’t come. For some reason, we’d been given a stay of execution. I stepped closer.

“I may not have been completely honest with you guys about why I wanted to come down here,” Alvarez said.

The table was covered with maps and charts, some of which were new color printouts while others were clearly hundreds of years old. In addition to the documents I recognized as de la Torre’s journal, there were others. Photocopies of the Spanish calligraphy with corresponding translations.

“You had the English version already?” I said, picking up a page of the journal to reveal an ancient map of the Yucatán Peninsula. “You could have saved us a lot of time.”

I tore my eyes away from the table just long enough to see that everyone was either drunk and tired, or as confused as I was, or a combination of all three.

“This was not part of my plan,” Alvarez said. “You were supposed to do your volunteer work, get your credit. Those of you who cheated would have your slates wiped clean. But when you’re flying by the seat of your pants, the plan has to change from time to time.”

“This isn’t for real?” Josh said. He squinted at Alvarez. “We can’t put this on our résumés?”

“Borders Unlimited is real. Your résumé will be fine.” Alvarez laughed. “But treasure hunting is expensive. Plenty of dead ends, and even dead ends cost money, so I’ve learned to get creative.” He leaned back and gestured to the room as if it proved his point. “Here we are, down in Mexico on Pinedale’s nickel!”

I couldn’t tell if this made sense or was the most ridiculous thing I’d ever heard—or if it was both. “Good Deeds for us, Gold Doubloons for you?”

Katy said, “You’re still a treasure hunter?”

“Part time,” Alvarez said modestly. “Only part time. Treasure hunting isn’t a real dependable source of income, hence the day job.”

“How do you know we won’t tell the administration about this?” Nate said.

“My word against yours, of course.” Alvarez slapped his hand on his forehead as if remembering something. “Oh, and a statement I’ve already written to the ethics committee about how uncooperative you were. And the tests you cheated on, which I still have. I’m sure you’ve heard of the concept of mutually assured destruction.”

“I’m still telling,” Katy said.

“Teaching jobs are a dime a dozen, no offense, but there’s only one Golden Jaguar.”

There was silence. Then Nate said, “You’re insane.”

Alvarez ignored him and focused on me as though I were the only other person in the room. “We had plans. Things fell through. And, Annie, it just so happens that we need you to be our Plan B.”

“What happened to Plan A?” I said.

“We had another diver and a crew all lined up, but they had to cancel at the last minute.” Alvarez glanced at Wayo before saying, “Don’t worry about that right now.”

“Why can’t you just hire someone else?” I said.

“Is no time,” Wayo said.

“Wait, wait.” Katy stepped forward and shook her head as if to clear it of the tequila haze. She walked toward the table. “Why does Annie get to be Plan B? We have skills.”

“If he needs a cartwheel, he’ll give you a call,” I said.

Katy shot me an icy look and leaned an inch in my direction. “I could kill you with my bare hands—how’s that for a cartwheel?”

“Easy, now.” Alvarez smiled, trying to defuse the tension.

“I don’t have any skills,” Josh said matter-of-factly.

Nate hit him on the shoulder with the back of his hand. “Sure you do. You’re famous, almost. You can be a distraction.”

“Look,” Alvarez said. “I like history and everything, but at the end of the day, isn’t there something pathetic about studying it? About teaching it? No offense to your dad, Annie. But we’re stuck in classrooms reading about people who were out there actually
making
history. So why not do something worthy of reading about?”

I had to admit that he had me there. I thought of Gracia and Mimi, of the way they rolled their eyes at me whenever the subject of treasure—or even the ocean—happened to come up. The eye rolls said I was different, that I would never quite get it, whatever “it” was.

“So I’m your Plan B,” I said. “What does that mean?”

Alvarez nodded at Wayo before leaning in to me, and the corners of his mouth ticked up in mischief.