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Chapter Eleven
AQUARIANS ARE CREATIVE THINKERS
Kasper
“Ihaven’t had a Pop Tart in years,” I say.
“They’re easy when you’re in a hurry. You can just pop and go,” Janice says.
Her grandson, Colin, has pulled Maris away from me and towards the dining room table. After Janice found out we weren’t married, she insisted on us having separate rooms. It took almost ten hours to get here yesterday, and it didn’t make sense for us to turn down a comfy bed.
“Your eyes are like the deepest ocean,” Colin says to Maris.
“That’s because Mandy deserves to be beside the sea, soaking up the sun,” I shout, so he knows I can hear him.
Once my breakfast is ready, I make my way into the dining room and take a seat. They both watch me as I bite into the Pop Tart, which is far too hot, but I try not to show it.
Janice brings a plate of food and sits in one of the other chairs. “Five minutes, everyone. I’ve booked a canoe for an hour’s time.”
“I’m a pastry chef back home. I would love to whip you up some fresh croissants,” Colin says to Maris.
I look at Maris, hoping to get her attention, but she’s blushing at Colin’s attention. Irritation simmers under my skin. I’ve never been jealous before and I don’t even know her that well.
“Come on. We’re going to be late,” Janice says, checking the clock.
“I haven’t finished my coffee,” Colin says.
“Put it in a flask. I made an easy breakfast so we could set off.”
Janice drives us to Los Haitises National Park, and once we’ve arrived, I snag a guidebook from a departing tourist.
“What do you say to us taking two boats instead of one and having a race?” I suggest.
“That’s hardly fair unless you’re offering to pair up with my grandmother. She has forty years on Mandy,” Colin says. Of course he’d want to ditch his own blood relative.
“I got the last canoe for hire, unfortunately. We’ll have to enjoy each other’s company instead,” Janice says.
“It was so nice of you to do this for us,” Maris replies.
“It’s no problem,” Colin says.
He didn’t even do anything. His grandmother drove us, fed us, and gave us shelter. I bite my tongue. I don’t want to cause a rift when I plan to jump overboard.
I scan the guidebook for information on Aquarius. What I’m looking for is less than half a page and only touches on the zodiac. The picture is of tiny gems embedded into a large rock. This doesn’t look like it’s going to be obvious, and depending on the location, we might have to come back after dark.
We climb into the canoe, and I take the seat in front of Colin. Maris settles in front of me, and Janice is in front of her. I lean forward, placing the guidebook on Maris’s lap. She studies it before Janice takes it from her. “I know where it is, dear. You guys concentrate your strengths on getting this boat where it needs to be.”
“Yes ma’am,” I say.
“In time. Here we go,” Janice says. The National Park ranger pushes our canoe away from the edge and we’re off. “Dip and glide. Dip and glide.”
“I’m pretty sure we need to be paddling at the same side. How did you guys manage without us?” I ask.
“Oh, we didn’t come down the river. I got a guidebook, but Colin wouldn’t bring me unless I found a few more people to share the rowing.”
“Well, I feel used,” I joke.
“My youth is escaping me. A little trickery is needed if I’m going to get what I want before I die.”
