Fables & Other Lies - Claire Contreras Page 0,73
kitchen and threw everything inside the big tin trash bin on the kitchen floor before soaking it with gasoline and starting a fire inside it. I burned the leaves first, watching as they withered inside the bin, and then, I grabbed the container of gasoline and walked around the house, saying a prayer as I went.
By the time I reached the door and set the match, I’d made my peace with everything. I walked out and put on my helmet, grabbing my bag and reversing the Vespa to the street. I watched the flames for a moment, watched the black smoke as it took over. My grandmother would curse me for this. My mother would get over it and rebuild, but would probably be upset at me as well. I was fine with both of those things because despite that, I wasn’t going to let the Caliban Manor go down alone. Not when the house that caused it all was still standing.
Not in my lifetime.
Chapter Thirty-Three
One year later
Whoever said time eased pain was a liar. Every time I thought of River, my heart squeezed tighter than the last. I hadn’t even dreamed of him since I left Pan. A part of me wanted to make a tea with the dried-up remnants of leaves I’d found in the pocket of my jacket when I unpacked my clothes, but I couldn’t live with myself if I forgot him.
“It’s beautiful here,” Dee said, sighing as she sipped her drink.
“It is.” I smiled, looking out into the water.
“What made you pick Santorini?” Martín asked. “Was it our wedding?”
“Of course, it was your wedding.” I rolled my eyes, smiling as I shook my head. “Because I totally knew you were going to pick Santorini to elope in when I chose to move here.”
Dee laughed. “Well, thank God for you. You’ve made this elopement possible by booking everything for us. Maybe you have a future as an elopement travel agent or something.”
“After dealing with one bridezilla? No, thank you.” I raised an eyebrow.
“You deserve a medal.” Martín laughed. “The pictures have been nice. Who knew there were this many decaying houses on an island formed in two thousand BC?”
“Right?” Dee laughed. “The message boards have been going crazy with their talk about the Lost City of Atlantis.”
“Have you found it yet?” Martín asked.
“I haven’t looked.” I laughed. “Besides, they’ve found a lot of proof that Atlantis is deep beneath Doñana for me to even go on that hunt.”
I didn’t even bring up the fact that the mere thought of searching for a lost city that was now undersea made me feel like crying. As it was, crying was the only thing I seemed to do when I was sitting in my therapist’s office. I cried, I laughed, I cried some more. It was healthy to let it all out, she said. Still, all the therapy in the world couldn’t cure the loneliness I felt.
“Have you met anyone?” Dee asked. “A male anyone.”
“Not really.” It wasn’t a total lie. I had met a few guys here, but I wasn’t interested.
“You will. Soon you’ll meet a golden Greek god and he’ll sweep you off your feet,” Martín said.
I laughed and drained my drink. I wasn’t ready to meet anyone. I didn’t say that aloud because I didn’t want to have to explain myself or lie to my friends.
“So, what else is on your itinerary while you’re here?” I asked.
“Actually, we’re going to try to find Atlantis,” Dee said. “Which, now that you said that it’s in Spain, I guess we won’t.”
“I don’t think you’ll find it during a snorkeling trip.” I laughed. “But I’m sure it’ll be just as magical as you envisioned.”
“It will be. You should join us,” Martín said.
“When?”
“In an hour actually.” He glanced at his watch.
“Oh.” I pouted. “I can’t. I have a house to take a picture of. For the real estate company, not The Haunt.”
“Bummer,” Dee said. “But yay for making money.”
“Yay for making money.” I took some money out and Martín stopped me.
“It’s on us.”
“No way. You’re here for your wedding and I know Greece is spectacular, but don’t think you’re fooling me for a second by saying you’re not getting married here because of me.” I shot them a look.
“We couldn’t get married without you. We wouldn’t have met if not for you,” Dee said, raising an eyebrow. “By the way, Jose is also coming. He should be getting here later today.”
“Oh, fun.” I smiled wide and hoped I could keep