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I took in a quick, shocked breath. “There’s a reason we’re not supposed to go anywhere near them. They’re dangerous.”
“Bullshit,” seventeen-year-old Bella had said with the easy familiarity with cursing that I envied. “Life is dangerous. Those caves have been here since Roman times and I haven’t heard of anyone dying.”
“That’s because no one’s allowed in. They’re blocked off.”
“I bet we can find our way in.”
“Why?” I countered. Silly question. I knew the answer before she said it.
“Because we can.”
There was never any question that I would accompany her. Not from slavish devotion, which I knew Bella counted on, but because if she went on her own, she might get hurt. At least if I went with her, I could go for help if she ran into trouble.
I never considered telling Granda, or Maldonado, or any of the adults who watched over us. Ratting on your buddies was strictly forbidden in our loose code of honor, and I knew Marcus and Ian would view me with deep contempt if I did so. All I could do was try to keep Bella from accidentally killing herself in her quest for adventure.
I’d dressed in shorts and a loose T-shirt, meeting her down by the edge of the vineyards. The lands of Mariposa were so vast they encompassed olive groves, vineyards, Roman ruins, Moorish ruins, a stretch of rocky coast, and the dark caves once used to hold smuggled goods, English soldiers, cheese and hams for curing, and occasionally gypsies. Anyone and anything had hidden in its confines, until Granda had irritably declared it off-limits the previous summer, making a place that had never held much interest suddenly irresistible.
Bella was wearing jeans and a halter top, with her hair pulled back and covered with a scarf, and she looked conspiratorial when she met up with me. “Marcus and Ian have gone riding, Mary Alice is sucking up to Granda, and God knows where Valerie is. We don’t have to worry about any of them.”
“Marcus wouldn’t tell,” I said, defending my hero.
“Of course he wouldn’t. But Ian the Wretch would try to stop me, and you know Marcus listens to him, not to mention that Mary Alice is a tattletale. And I’m not about to let anyone stop me.”
Indeed, when Bella had decided something it was almost impossible to change her mind. She was fiercely single-minded when it came to getting what she wanted, and damn the torpedoes. “Then what are we waiting for?” The sooner this was over, the sooner I could go back to my room and finish the thick, juicy romance I had hidden between my mattresses. I’d been mocked once too often by everyone for my choice of reading material.
The caves had never been easy to get to, which had always been part of their appeal. You had to get past the acres of vineyards, through two open fields and into the woods, moving down at an increasingly steep angle toward the sea. If you weren’t looking, you could miss them—the narrow path steered clear of the entrance, and if you happened to glance that way, you might think it was simply a pile of huge boulders left by an errant glacier. I’d never been inside, and I somehow had envisioned something along the lines of the cave houses of Granada, but it was a far cry from that rustic charm. There were brambles in the underbrush as we forged our way to the opening, scratching my legs and arms, and I wished I’d had the brains to wear jeans the way Bella had. She paused in front of the entrance, her eyes shining, and turned to me.
“Who’s going first?”
I had been regretting this for the last half hour as we’d slogged toward our destination, and I now looked at the narrow passageway with deep distrust. I wasn’t troubled by phobias, either fear of the dark or enclosed places, but the vista didn’t look promising. “I thought it was boarded up.”
“Marcus and I were out this way a couple of days ago, and he helped me move the boards.”
Of course he did. Marcus would do anything for Bella. “Maybe we should head back to the house,” I said nervously. “I’m not sure I’m up for this.”
Bella didn’t bother to hide her disgust. “Coward. I’d thought better of you, Podge.”
The words stung. I’d always hated to be thought a coward, and Bella knew it. I sighed. “I’ll go first. Did you bring a flashlight?”
“A torch? I forgot to. Here. This is almost as good.” She pulled out her pilfered pack of cigarettes and handed me the lighter. It was Granda’s, from the time he used to smoke, solid gold, dated and engraved, and I took it in awe.
“Granda gave you this?” I breathed.
“Of course not, silly. He wasn’t using it any longer, and I doubt he even missed it. And you’re not to tell anyone...”
“Who do you think I am, Mary Alice?” I demanded with dignity. “I don’t tattle.”
She gave me her blazing smile of approval. “Of course not, Podge. I’m sorry I even said anything. You go in and I’ll follow. Unless you’d rather me lead the way.”
I would have, but I said nothing, mentally girding my loins. I could do this, prove myself worthy. Squaring my shoulders, I stepped into the shadowy confines of the cave, ignoring the sudden squeeze of fear.
It was cold after the heat of the summer afternoon, cold and damp. I held the lighter up, clicking it, and looked around me. It was a small room, with a dark passageway leading off it, but it was big enough to stand up in. “I’m okay,” I called back.
The cave darkened as Bella blocked out the light in the doorway. She slipped in beside me, looking around in disgust. “I was expecting something a little more exciting,” she said.
“Like what? Pirate treasure? Prehistoric wall paintings? It’s just a boring old cave,” I said, hoping she’d seen enough.
She hadn’t, of course. “Let’s go this way,” she said, pushing past me and heading into the darkness.
