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  “Mr. Schmidt?” Ernesto asked, then realized maybe that wasn’t the name he should be calling. “Mrs. Schmidt? Debbie?”

  She’d fallen in. That had to be what had happened. Except was had caused the plume of water? Where did the blood come from?

  Ernesto scrambled to the edge, barely noticing as he stuck his hand in some warm liquid that was definitely not water. Bernie stayed where he was, not moving, completely frozen in place. Ernesto wasn’t even sure he was breathing.

  “Debbie?” he called out over the side. The water below churned for several seconds as something dark and large moved somewhere deep in the blue waters. Then the water became still.

  “What happened?” Ernesto asked, standing up and grabbing Bernie by the shoulders. “Where did she go?”

  Bernie’s eyes remained unfocused, his face a perfect sculpture of shock. His mouth moved silently a couple times before any sound came out. “I… I… it moved so quickly.”

  “What? What was it?”

  “It was too fast. Too much water. I didn’t see. It… It…”

  Bernie looked down at something on the ground. “It took her.”

  Ernesto followed his gaze. There, near the edge of the cliff, was a severed human left arm. Blood still dribbled from the open wound. If there was any doubt about who it had belonged to, the doubt vanished when Ernesto noticed the recognizable sun-burnt skin, and the wedding ring on its finger that was an exact match for Bernie’s.

  2

  Maria Quintero stared at her fingers sitting in the water, slowly pruning among the greasy dishes from dinner. After a few seconds, she realized she had been looking blankly into space and tried to force herself back into the moment. The night was almost over. All that remained was dessert, and she and Kevin would finally be able to leave. She would have said that they would leave to be alone, but there was no longer any such thing for them. A small crew of camera people, sound engineers, and various other television types now followed them everywhere. The price of modern insta-fame.

  Even at this very moment, catching her period of spacing out for everyone to see, there was a woman with a camera standing a discreet distance away. Charlene, her name was, and as much as Maria wanted to not like any of them, Charlene and most of the other crew of Sea Avenger were good, polite people, many of whom had the decency of being embarrassed at how in-her-face the producer forced them to be.

  Sea Avenger. Ugh. Just the name of the show made her twist in embarrassment. Both she and Kevin had had a lot of input on the show and its content, but the title, unfortunately, had been set in stone at The Education Channel, or TEC as it was better known, when they had approached her in the hospital with the contract. With her face all over the news, ensuring she had already lost most of her privacy, along with mounting medical bills, she and Kevin had agreed.

  So here they were, creating riveting television of her washing dishes. Yeah, there was a reason the suits at TEC were starting to get antsy.

  I suppose I better give them something a little better to watch, she thought, suppressing a noticeable sigh. She finished up the dishes as quick as she could, then grabbed Mama’s pies from where they had cooled on the counter and brought them into the dining room.

  So many people in such a relatively small room. Mama, Papa, her two brothers, and Kevin were all crowded around the table. Other than Charlene following her, there was one other cameraman, Gary, the young man who had been fortunate enough to catch the footage that had propelled Maria to fame. There was also the sound engineer and boom mike operator. Susanne Merchant, the producer whom the network had tapped after the inexplicable disappearance of previous producer Doug Vandergraf, was probably in the living room right now, undoubtedly on another call with the network arguing about the footage they’d gathered so far. It was an argument that was happening more and more frequently, and one that was becoming harder for her and Kevin to ignore.

  Tonight should probably make them at least a little happy, Maria thought. It wasn’t the exciting, tense footage the network had thought they would be getting, but she supposed someone out there would probably think the extreme awkwardness could make for good television.

  Kevin, for his part, had done his best to ignore the disapproving looks of Maria’s parents for all of the dinner. He was used to people giving him weird stares when they found out he was transgender, and knew how to make it look like he was blowing it off in public. In private, of course, Maria knew just how much it bothered him, but that ability to act was what made him so photogenic, right along with why he had originally been considered as the star of Sea Avenger.

  Then the events in the Sea of Cortez had changed everything. As much as Maria wanted to forget about it all, she couldn’t. Especially at night, when she took off all her clothes, followed by her prosthetic leg, then stared forlornly at her stump before going into a restless sleep.

  She hobbled to the table and put the pies in front of everyone, hoping this would trigger some semi-civil conversation. Her brother Ramon made the obligatory noises about how good they smelled, although the older brother, Felix, continued his intense brooding silence. Papa quietly said thank you, while Mama was her typical self and chided Maria for forgetting to bring a knife and serving plates. While she bustled off to get them, Maria sat down next to Kevin and held his hand under the table, a show of solidarity and a sign that this damn night was almost over.

  The whole night had been Merchant’s idea. Maria had known it would need to happen eventually, although she’d never expected it would happen on camera and then get edited in the most dramatic way to increase ratings. Because at the moment, there didn’t look like there would even be ratings. Sea Avenger had been shooting for nearly a month, and there was one very important element missing. Maria was here, the titular Avenger, and there was plenty of footage of her in physical therapy, learning to walk with her new prosthetics, lots of tender moments between Maria and Kevin.

  No, Sea Avenger had no lack of Avenger. What it was missing so far was the sea. The first episode was supposed to air in less than a month, and until they got back to the water, the network was getting antsy and doing everything they could to create drama. Hence tonight. Hence the first time her family had ever met the famous marine biologist Kevin Hoyt.

  So far, by both Maria’s and the network’s ideas of success, it looked like tonight was a disaster.

  “So, uh, this looks like a new recipe,” Maria said, indicating one of the pies.

  “Mama bought it at the store this time,” Felix said. “This all happened with too little time for her to make it from scratch.”

  “Oh,” Maria said. Under normal circumstances, she would have been able to say something jokey with her brother, but he hadn’t said anything more than he had to since they’d arrived earlier today, well before dinner to ensure the crew had time to set up. Mama came back from the kitchen and set a plate in front of each one of them. Maria couldn’t help but notice the way her mother put Kevin’s plate farther away from him than everybody else, a passive-aggressive show of disapproval.

  “Okay, look, can we just finally talk about this?” Maria asked. Ramon stopped jabbering to anyone who would listen. Papa sat up straighter in his chair. Charlene and Gary tensed, each of them focused on getting the best possible shot of whatever happened next.

  “Whatever are you talking about, Maria?” Mama asked. Her tone made it obvious that she knew exactly what Maria was talking about.

  “No, I think you’re right,” Papa said. “It’s time we got some things off our chests.”

  “Okay, you know what? I have nothing to do with this,” Ramon said. He stood from his seat and left the room, all excitement for pie completely forgotten. No one tried to stop him, and all conversation ceased until he was gone.

  “Look, I know you both disapprove…” Maria said.

  “We never said that,” Mama said.

  “You’re damn right we do,” Papa said at the same time.

  “But I’m surpri
sed at both of you,” Maria continued. “I never thought you would be this narrow-minded.”

  “We’re not narrow-minded. We have legitimate concerns, Maria,” Papa said.

  “No, the fact that I’m seeing a transgender man is not a legitimate concern. It’s my own damned business.”

  Mama and Papa went silent, both of them turning to give each other confused looks. After several seconds, Mama responded. “Maria, honey, is that really what you think this is about?”

  Now it was Maria’s turn to be confused. “Well, yeah. You’ve both been so terse when you talk with me whenever I bring up Kevin, so I just thought…”

  “Maria, don’t you remember where we live?” Papa said, gesturing at the house around them. “This is San Francisco. Why the hell would we think it weird for you to date someone who’s transgender?”

  “Oh,” Maria said. “Then I guess I don’t understand. What is the problem? And don’t tell me there isn’t one, because I can tell the way you sound angry every time I talk about Kevin on the phone.”

  “Well, for starters, how about your education?” Papa said. “You put it on hold to do some hands-on work down in Mexico, and you haven’t been back to complete it. We spent a lot of money to make sure you had this, and it’s like you’re flushing it down the toilet.”

  Kevin looked like he was about to say something, but Maria squeezed his hand and he got the hint. This was her battle to fight. He was the one that always said he didn’t need her fighting his battles for him, so it was only right that he returned the favor.

  He wouldn’t have had a chance to say much anyway, as right about then Merchant poked her head through the dining room door and, making sure she stayed out of the view of the cameras, motioned for Kevin to come join her in the living room. There was a noticeable look of relief in his eyes as he stood up and walked out.

  “The education I got down on the Baja Peninsula was just as valuable as anything I got in a classroom,” Maria said. She didn’t add, as she absently rubbed at the place where her prosthetic leg met her skin just below the knee, that the cost she’d paid for that particular vacation had been a hell of a lot more than just money.

  Mama looked away. “That’s not even the biggest problem, honey.”

  “Then what is?”

  “It’s just that Kevin is, well…”

  “I thought you said you didn’t care that he was trans.”

  “Damn it, Maria, we don’t care what’s between his legs,” Papa said. “What bothers us is that you’re sleeping with someone old enough to be, well, old enough to be me.”

  “Wait, his age? It’s his age that’s been bothering you this whole time?”

  “Of course it’s his age,” Mama said. “Maria, we know who he is. We know he’s kind of famous…”

  “More than kind of, Mama.”

  “But that’s not the point. What’s going on between you two, it’s just not natural.”

  “What’s so unnatural about it?” Maria asked. “It’s not even like he’s really that old. And he’s not old enough to be Papa.”

  “He’s close enough,” Papa said.

  Felix finally piped in. “Sis, he violates the Creepy Dating Rule. We’ve talked about this before with your other boyfriends.”

  “Oh Christ, seriously? How many times do I have to tell you that the Creepy Dating Rule isn’t actually a thing?”

  It was Mama’s turn to be confused. “What’s the Creepy Dating Rule?”

  “It’s nothing,” Maria said.

  “It’s not nothing. It comes from the internet,” Felix said.

  “So it’s nothing,” Maria said again.

  “Mama, the Creepy Dating Rule says that it’s not creepy for someone to date a person younger than you as long as that person is at least half your age plus seven.”

  “Who made that up?” Mama asked.

  “I told you. The internet.”

  “So, no one,” Maria said.

  Mama took a moment to do the math in her head. “He violates the rule.”

  “Told you,” Felix said.

  Kevin cleared his throat from the doorway. “Um, sorry. I really am. But we need to go, Maria.”

  “You haven’t even had pie yet!” Mama said.

  Maria, however, didn’t care whether or not she had pie. She was just delighted for the excuse to get the hell out of here. She stood up so fast that she almost tipped her chair over. “We’ll take our slices to go.”

  “Maria, don’t do this,” Papa said. “Don’t run away from this conversation. We’ve been waiting to have it for some time now.”

  “It’s going to have to wait longer. Sorry, but I’m sure this has to do with stuff for the show. Right?” she asked, turning to Kevin. “Show stuff?”

  “Um, right.”

  “And that’s what going to pay for the rest of my education,” Maria said, then, because the fact that they had ignored it all night pissed her off, “as well as my medical bills. Learning to walk again didn’t fucking pay for itself, you know.”

  Mama looked more taken aback at her swearing than anything else. Papa, however, looked genuinely hurt. “Now Maria, you know we offered to help. You were the one who…”

  “Gotta go,” Maria said, storming out of the room. Gary followed her while Charlene stayed in the dining room to get the reaction of her family. As soon as they were both with Kevin and Merchant in the living room, Merchant motioned for Gary to cut the shot. He turned off his camera and set it down while Maria grabbed her purse from where she’d left it near the front door, clearly ready to leave.

  “So?” Maria asked Kevin. “Was I lying? Was it something to do with the show?”

  “No, you weren’t lying. But don’t you want to talk about…”

  “No, I don’t. Just tell me what’s going on so we can get out of here.”

  “One of Merchant’s contacts got a lead on something we can use for the show,” Kevin said.

  “Wait. Do you mean…?”

  “We’re finally going back out to sea. That is, assuming you think you’re ready.”

  Maria nodded that she was, trying not to make any outward show of the fact that she wasn’t ready at all. She was, in fact, terrified.

  3

  The miracle of modern television money, even from a relatively small network like TEC, turned what should have been the months-long process leading up to flying internationally into a speedy, well-oiled machine. Both Maria and Kevin carried their passports with them at all times, and given the time they already spent in another country, they were already up to date on all the required vaccinations, ranging from hepatitis to typhoid to yellow fever. Merchant likewise took care of all the travel arrangements as well as fees they would need to pay when they reached their destination, meaning that Maria didn’t even have to know exactly where they were going up until they were on a commercial flight to Ecuador. Even then, she still didn’t know exactly what they were supposed to do there, nor did she necessarily want to just yet. She’d rather decompress from that rather disastrous family gathering while psyching herself up for her return to the ocean.

  The plane ride had been a blessed moment of relief for both of them, as the television crew had gone down to Ecuador on a different flight, giving Maria and Kevin their first real moments of peace ever since Maria had woken up in a hospital in Mexico with her leg gone, amputated after it had been ripped apart by a hammerhead shark. For this ride, they were just a couple again. They weren’t world-famous marine biologist Kevin Hoyt. They weren’t “the Indiana Jones of the ocean,” as one news network had taken to calling her. They were just two people in love with each other.

  They slept for most of the flight, taking turns with one’s head draped on the other’s shoulder. Although Maria woke up with a horrible crick in her neck, she still felt like she’d had her first peaceful sleep in months.

  There seemed to be an unspoken agreement between the two of them that they wouldn’t discuss why they were going to Ecuador. Kevin appar
ently knew, but Maria wanted to hold off on anything that was even remotely related to Sea Avenger until she absolutely had no other choice. Months ago, back on the Baja Peninsula and before the Cortez Incident, as the media called it, she’d been the one who’d been all gung-ho about the idea of Kevin having his own reality TV show. Kevin had been reluctant, but he’d liked the idea of being able to bring real marine biology education to the people.

  Then Cortez had happened, and Maria’s life had been thrown upside down. Now she was the famous one, and while Kevin was still renowned throughout the world, the public had started to act like he was just her sidekick. This was not the life Maria had wanted. But it was either accept the fame and the TV show offer, or else not know how to pay for her medical bills.

  There was a limo waiting for them at the airport when they landed in Guayaquil. Kevin, still not saying exactly where they were going, explained that they could have continued by plane to their next destination, but Merchant had thought it would be better for the show if they approached by sea, meaning they needed to get to the docks. The limo wasn’t exactly the same as what movie stars might get, but the network had paid a decent chunk of cash to make sure they showed up in style. Once they were inside and the limo was on its way, Maria figured it was finally time to get everything sorted.

  “Okay, I suppose we’ve got to talk about it now. Why are we here?”

  “I told you, we’re going back out on the sea.”

  “That I know.”

  “Are you ready for this?”

  “That I don’t know.”

  She hadn’t talked about it much, but with Kevin, she never needed to. They’d grown to be able to anticipate each other’s wants and needs, as well as their fears. The truth was Maria was scared out of her mind about going back on the water. That was crazy, of course. Being a marine biologist had always been her dream, and a marine biologist that couldn’t let herself out onto the ocean was like a circus barker that was afraid of clowns. She’d been in therapy for months now, both to deal with the trauma of the event itself and to get past the constant creeping depression when she remembered that a physical part of her was now gone forever. Her therapist said she was making great strides. Maria wasn’t so sure.