“Clementine?”
“She’s a classic, so she needs a classic name.” Lucio beams. “What do you think?”
His enthusiasm is infectious. “She’s great,” I grin.
“Shall we take her for a spin?”
“Really?”
“You can’t come all the way to Mexico and not see some real Mexican culture. Plus, you deserve a break.” Lucio jumps on the motorcycle and kicks some part of it to start it. I’m not entirely sure what’s going on. I’ve never been this close to a motorcycle before, let alone to a boy asking me to ride one with him. Lucio motions for me to get on behind him, and to my surprise, I do. Mom is going to kill me.
I wrap my arms around him, and we lurch forward as he navigates the rocky path, but soon we’re on a dirt road and moving quickly. It’s a different road from where I came into Llevar la Luz with Aidan. We must be on the backside of the property.
The sun sinks below the horizon as Lucio deftly maneuvers the pothole-filled road. It doesn’t take me long to feel completely safe as I hold onto him and watch the jungle pass by and finally fade into the distance behind us. Suddenly the Pacific Ocean comes into view in front of us, glowing as the sun sets above it. A tropical ocean breeze hits my face as we descend a hill toward what looks like a small coastal village twinkling in the distance.
For the briefest moment I close my eyes and pretend I’m not a luiseach. I pretend I’m not a sixteen-year-old girl whose whole life seems to be predestined for her. I pretend I don’t have a responsibility to help lost spirits every day for the rest of my life. I pretend I’m on a journey to explore the far reaches of the Earth, and Lucio is my guide. I pretend I’ve been whisked away to a world that could only ever exist in my imagination. And for just a second I pretend Lucio is actually Nolan.
He hits the brakes and we slide to a stop across the dirt road. I open my eyes and look around.
“We’re here!” Lucio proclaims as I climb off the bike and he sets the kickstand. True to Lucio form, he doesn’t stop moving, and we’re already walking into town.
“What’s this place called?” I ask.
“I just call it the fishing village.” Lucio shrugs like he’s never given it much thought. We walk a couple of blocks into the town square, which seems to be bustling with energy as the locals go about their business. Small carts are set up throughout the square, selling a variety of things. Kids play in the fountain at the center.
“I didn’t know places like this existed in real life.”
“They do! Or at least this place does,” Lucio responds. “I come here sometimes when Aidan gets to be a little too serious for me. He doesn’t like it, but I think he knows I’d go stir-crazy if I never left Llevar la Luz. Not that this is technically leaving Llevar la Luz.”
“What do you mean?
“Llevar la Luz stretches way beyond the campus.”
“You’re telling me Aidan owns this town?”
“Not exactly. But let’s just say that a lot of this region is more or less attached to Llevar la Luz.” Lucio holds out his arms, then adds, “Have a seat. I’ll be right back.” He motions to one of the many picnic tables set up throughout the square, and I sit as he runs off.
I notice the sound of music playing in the distance. It doesn’t take long for him to return with four small tacos and two bottles of orange soda.
“You’re gonna love these.” He says as he hands me two fish tacos and takes the first bite of his. For a moment we sit in silence as we eat. The evening breeze blowing through town feels like heaven.
“Amazing, right?” Lucio grins, and I nod in agreement. “Hey, let me ask you something. That girl I helped move on earlier. How’d you know it was a girl? I was the one who pulled her in. We weren’t working together, so how’d you know?”
“Well . . .” I pause. “She just looked like a girl.”
“What do you mean?” Lucio asks.
“You don’t need me to explain what a girl looks like, do you Lucio?” I tease, flashing him my best eyebrow raise.
“Are you telling me you can see the spirits when they’re close?”
“Yes. Can’t you?”
“No.” Lucio shakes his head. “I just see a ball of light.”
“Really?”
“I don’t think anyone’s ever seen them before.”
I bite my lip. Why does it feel like my powers are different from everyone else’s?
“That must be terrifying sometimes,” Lucio offers gently, seeing my discomfort.
“I’ve had a couple of really gruesome ones,” I confess.
“Can you see the darkness too?” Lucio asks, wide eyed.
“What darkness?” For the first time since I arrived here I remember the shadowy man I saw at the Seattle airport. He was surrounded by darkness. Is that what Lucio means?
“Aidan hasn’t told you about that yet?”