Eduardo and Kylie's European Vacation Episode 6: Barcelona
Written by Rosey Collins
Kylie was hanging a few damp clothes from a curtain rail when Eduardo came into their latest youth hostel room. She turned round and smiled at him.
'Hi, sweetie,' she said. 'I did some laundry while you were gone.'
'But not every single item of clothing we aren't wearing, right?' Eduardo said, with a watery smile.
'Who'd be stupid enough to do that?' Kylie grinned at him. Then, when he didn't grin back, she said, 'Are you okay?'
'Yeah, I'm okay.' He sat down on the bed. 'Just wondering why I did that.'
'Because you wanted to find out about your ancestor, wasn't it?'
'Not particularly. Not enough to go asking a bunch of dried-up old archive-keepers if I could go poking around in their drawers when I could've been with you.'
'I was much too busy to pay you any attention, sweetie,' said Kylie, as she smoothed out a hanging pair of jeans. 'Were the people at the archives really like that?'
'One or two of them,' said Eduardo, with a little laugh. 'Oh, I don't know. Everything I found out about him was pretty terrible, but he lived hundreds of years ago – I never thought I'd care much about what he did... not on a personal level, I mean. Why do I care, Ky?'
'Probably because you wanted some good news for Kevin,' said Kylie, going to sit on the bed next to him. 'You wanted to be able to tell him Captain Gaspar was a brave hero who discovered the chilli pepper for Europe or something.'
Eduardo laughed. 'Yeah, I sure wish I could tell him that.'
'As opposed to...?'
'Well, we already knew he was a soldier sent to subdue the indigenous people... the salvajes, as they called them. I think I even mentioned that once a while ago, didn't I?'
'Yeah,' said Kylie, 'you talked about your ancestry when Jandro raised those zombies on Day of the Dead a couple of years ago. You said he survived a shipwreck on the way over to the Americas somewhere near the Galapagos Islands. Captain Gaspar did, I mean, not Jandro.'
'I said all that, huh?' said Eduardo, surprised. 'I never knew if I really believed mi abuela about the wreck of the Esperanza, but I found out today that it's all true.'
'What does esperanza mean?' asked Kylie.
'A few things, like so many Spanish words. Hope, promise, prospect, expectation... from the same root as “aspiration”, probably. I guess they chose the name to mean everything like that. Anyway, there was this document about the sinking with a list of survivors, and they were pretty much everybody except some navigator, a couple of menial crew-members and a little Incan girl who I found out was on the voyage. That's the worst part: Captain Gaspar was one of a group of men responsible for kidnapping this girl so they could force her to show them the way to some kind of Incan treasure trove or something.'
'Wow,' said Kylie. 'I didn't know they used to do anything quite like that. What happened exactly?'
'The record of the whole thing put it more delicately than I just did,' said Eduardo. 'This girl was traído a España, it said – brought to Spain – but that has to mean kidnapped, doesn't it? This was a few years before the voyage, and she was given to the Princess Marguerita as a “gift”, which obviously means slave. Then she was taken on this sea voyage to South America... maybe stolen again, or traded if not... because she could read the writings of the Incas.'
'Something tells me you didn't get all of this from a few files that mention Captain Gaspar,' Kylie said gently. 'You kept looking to try to find out what happened to her, didn't you?'
'Zia,' said Eduardo. 'Her name was Zia. And yeah, I did. When I was leaving, a woman took one look at me and asked if I was all right, which was kind of unnerving. I seem to be wearing my heart on my sleeve lately. That's your fault, you know.'
'Hardly on your sleeve, babe,' said Kylie. 'Your inside pocket, maybe. So did you tell this woman about your feelings?'
He laughed. 'Not all of them. I just said I'd read a few words about Zia and I was sorry she seemed to've gone down with the ship, but then this woman said maybe she didn't die after all. She showed me a letter somebody wrote to Francisco Pizarro – you've probably heard of him – dated after the sinking, which mentioned a girl who might've been Zia. I said it could've been any other Incan girl, and she said she thought it was Zia for various reasons, and then she showed me indisputable proof that those three other members of the crew did survive after they were separated from the rest, and they eventually came back to Barcelona. So, she said, why shouldn't Zia have survived with them?'
'I'll bet she did,' said Kylie.
'There's no more record of her.'
'No, there wouldn't be, would there? She wouldn't have been considered important enough. Come to think of it, she could easily have survived the shipwreck with Gaspar and friends after all; it's just that nobody would've bothered keeping a record of her.'
'Oh yeah, I didn't think of that,' said Eduardo. 'Her name wasn't on anything very official. The closest thing was where she was listed as cargo.'
'Cargo, huh?' said Kylie. 'Tough times. But y'know, sweetie, we talked before about how the world used to be a hundred times crueller than it is even now; everyone, and I mean everyone has ancestors who did horrible things.'
'Yeah, I know,' said Eduardo. 'It's not really the family connection that bothers me – it's just that I didn't like reading about it. And it wasn't even in a book; it was lists and letters and reports and stuff, in people's actual handwriting, and it just made it seem more real... like it all happened yesterday.'
'Oh, you are a soft-centred soul,' said Kylie, cuddling up to him.
Eduardo smiled slightly. 'It definitely ain't good news for Kevin, anyway.'
'Are you gonna tell him about it?'
'Yeah, I will. He'll be interested, and he already knows Captain Gaspar was far from perfect.'
'Is it only Captain Gaspar you know anything about?' said Kylie. 'You don't seem to know about anybody named Rivera more than a few generations back.'
'I don't,' said Eduardo. 'When my grandmother told me these stories, my grandfather used to say I shouldn't be interested because family trees only count through the male line, but when I asked him about the male line he couldn't tell me anything.'
'And did you challenge his sexist attitude?'
'I didn't dare when I was, like, five. Anyway, there was no need; my grandmother went crazy and told him all about what he missed when she gave birth to my father, and if that didn't count then there was something very wrong.'
'I like the sound of her,' said Kylie.
'She was great,' said Eduardo, 'in a lot of ways. But I know she made stuff up. Okay, there are records of Captain Gaspar's sea voyage, but there are a lot of gaps in his story and she filled all of them with stuff she couldn't possibly know, like... well, I don't guess anyone ever did a portrait of him, and even if they did she couldn't have seen it, and yet she was adamant – absolutely adamant – that the infamous Gaspar nose came all the way down from him.'
'Infamous?' said Kylie. 'As in, a nose of ill repute? Baby, are we talking about your nose here?'
'Yeah. I have it; she had it; my father had it; Carlos has it; Kevin has it, Adela has it; her father had it...'
'You have a lovely nose!'
'Not everybody can carry it off,' said Eduardo, 'but even if you can, I don't think it could ever really be called “lovely”.'
'Oh!'
Eduardo looked at her and laughed. 'Why are you looking like somebody just slapped your face?'
'I didn't know anything about this! It's just so unexpected – I thought you liked your body.'
'I do, but I don't think it's perfect.'
'I do,' said Kylie, then she straddled his lap and began kissing his nose tenderly. 'I'm turned on by every last inch of you, mi chico amante.'
'Hi, sweetie,' she said. 'I did some laundry while you were gone.'
'But not every single item of clothing we aren't wearing, right?' Eduardo said, with a watery smile.
'Who'd be stupid enough to do that?' Kylie grinned at him. Then, when he didn't grin back, she said, 'Are you okay?'
'Yeah, I'm okay.' He sat down on the bed. 'Just wondering why I did that.'
'Because you wanted to find out about your ancestor, wasn't it?'
'Not particularly. Not enough to go asking a bunch of dried-up old archive-keepers if I could go poking around in their drawers when I could've been with you.'
'I was much too busy to pay you any attention, sweetie,' said Kylie, as she smoothed out a hanging pair of jeans. 'Were the people at the archives really like that?'
'One or two of them,' said Eduardo, with a little laugh. 'Oh, I don't know. Everything I found out about him was pretty terrible, but he lived hundreds of years ago – I never thought I'd care much about what he did... not on a personal level, I mean. Why do I care, Ky?'
'Probably because you wanted some good news for Kevin,' said Kylie, going to sit on the bed next to him. 'You wanted to be able to tell him Captain Gaspar was a brave hero who discovered the chilli pepper for Europe or something.'
Eduardo laughed. 'Yeah, I sure wish I could tell him that.'
'As opposed to...?'
'Well, we already knew he was a soldier sent to subdue the indigenous people... the salvajes, as they called them. I think I even mentioned that once a while ago, didn't I?'
'Yeah,' said Kylie, 'you talked about your ancestry when Jandro raised those zombies on Day of the Dead a couple of years ago. You said he survived a shipwreck on the way over to the Americas somewhere near the Galapagos Islands. Captain Gaspar did, I mean, not Jandro.'
'I said all that, huh?' said Eduardo, surprised. 'I never knew if I really believed mi abuela about the wreck of the Esperanza, but I found out today that it's all true.'
'What does esperanza mean?' asked Kylie.
'A few things, like so many Spanish words. Hope, promise, prospect, expectation... from the same root as “aspiration”, probably. I guess they chose the name to mean everything like that. Anyway, there was this document about the sinking with a list of survivors, and they were pretty much everybody except some navigator, a couple of menial crew-members and a little Incan girl who I found out was on the voyage. That's the worst part: Captain Gaspar was one of a group of men responsible for kidnapping this girl so they could force her to show them the way to some kind of Incan treasure trove or something.'
'Wow,' said Kylie. 'I didn't know they used to do anything quite like that. What happened exactly?'
'The record of the whole thing put it more delicately than I just did,' said Eduardo. 'This girl was traído a España, it said – brought to Spain – but that has to mean kidnapped, doesn't it? This was a few years before the voyage, and she was given to the Princess Marguerita as a “gift”, which obviously means slave. Then she was taken on this sea voyage to South America... maybe stolen again, or traded if not... because she could read the writings of the Incas.'
'Something tells me you didn't get all of this from a few files that mention Captain Gaspar,' Kylie said gently. 'You kept looking to try to find out what happened to her, didn't you?'
'Zia,' said Eduardo. 'Her name was Zia. And yeah, I did. When I was leaving, a woman took one look at me and asked if I was all right, which was kind of unnerving. I seem to be wearing my heart on my sleeve lately. That's your fault, you know.'
'Hardly on your sleeve, babe,' said Kylie. 'Your inside pocket, maybe. So did you tell this woman about your feelings?'
He laughed. 'Not all of them. I just said I'd read a few words about Zia and I was sorry she seemed to've gone down with the ship, but then this woman said maybe she didn't die after all. She showed me a letter somebody wrote to Francisco Pizarro – you've probably heard of him – dated after the sinking, which mentioned a girl who might've been Zia. I said it could've been any other Incan girl, and she said she thought it was Zia for various reasons, and then she showed me indisputable proof that those three other members of the crew did survive after they were separated from the rest, and they eventually came back to Barcelona. So, she said, why shouldn't Zia have survived with them?'
'I'll bet she did,' said Kylie.
'There's no more record of her.'
'No, there wouldn't be, would there? She wouldn't have been considered important enough. Come to think of it, she could easily have survived the shipwreck with Gaspar and friends after all; it's just that nobody would've bothered keeping a record of her.'
'Oh yeah, I didn't think of that,' said Eduardo. 'Her name wasn't on anything very official. The closest thing was where she was listed as cargo.'
'Cargo, huh?' said Kylie. 'Tough times. But y'know, sweetie, we talked before about how the world used to be a hundred times crueller than it is even now; everyone, and I mean everyone has ancestors who did horrible things.'
'Yeah, I know,' said Eduardo. 'It's not really the family connection that bothers me – it's just that I didn't like reading about it. And it wasn't even in a book; it was lists and letters and reports and stuff, in people's actual handwriting, and it just made it seem more real... like it all happened yesterday.'
'Oh, you are a soft-centred soul,' said Kylie, cuddling up to him.
Eduardo smiled slightly. 'It definitely ain't good news for Kevin, anyway.'
'Are you gonna tell him about it?'
'Yeah, I will. He'll be interested, and he already knows Captain Gaspar was far from perfect.'
'Is it only Captain Gaspar you know anything about?' said Kylie. 'You don't seem to know about anybody named Rivera more than a few generations back.'
'I don't,' said Eduardo. 'When my grandmother told me these stories, my grandfather used to say I shouldn't be interested because family trees only count through the male line, but when I asked him about the male line he couldn't tell me anything.'
'And did you challenge his sexist attitude?'
'I didn't dare when I was, like, five. Anyway, there was no need; my grandmother went crazy and told him all about what he missed when she gave birth to my father, and if that didn't count then there was something very wrong.'
'I like the sound of her,' said Kylie.
'She was great,' said Eduardo, 'in a lot of ways. But I know she made stuff up. Okay, there are records of Captain Gaspar's sea voyage, but there are a lot of gaps in his story and she filled all of them with stuff she couldn't possibly know, like... well, I don't guess anyone ever did a portrait of him, and even if they did she couldn't have seen it, and yet she was adamant – absolutely adamant – that the infamous Gaspar nose came all the way down from him.'
'Infamous?' said Kylie. 'As in, a nose of ill repute? Baby, are we talking about your nose here?'
'Yeah. I have it; she had it; my father had it; Carlos has it; Kevin has it, Adela has it; her father had it...'
'You have a lovely nose!'
'Not everybody can carry it off,' said Eduardo, 'but even if you can, I don't think it could ever really be called “lovely”.'
'Oh!'
Eduardo looked at her and laughed. 'Why are you looking like somebody just slapped your face?'
'I didn't know anything about this! It's just so unexpected – I thought you liked your body.'
'I do, but I don't think it's perfect.'
'I do,' said Kylie, then she straddled his lap and began kissing his nose tenderly. 'I'm turned on by every last inch of you, mi chico amante.'
In the morning, Eduardo woke rather abruptly and looked skittishly around the room. When his eyes fell upon Kylie's sleeping form, he calmed himself and smiled tenderly at her, but moments later he was slinking out of bed and looking furtively around as he dressed in a hurry.
Kylie snuffled, yawned and stretched, felt for Eduardo and finally opened her eyes when she didn't find him next to her.
'Up and dressed so soon?' she said sleepily.
'Yeah, well, it's morning,' said Eduardo.
'The limp sausage problem really worrying you this time, is it?'
Eduardo stared at her, aghast.
'I'm talking about breakfast,' she said.
'Oh.'
'Oh, don't look so wounded! I am talking about breakfast!'
'I know,' said Eduardo. 'I'm sorry. It's just... well, you know.'
'No, I don't,' said Kylie, as she dragged herself out of bed and sat on the edge. 'So you don't feel like having sex right now – it's no big deal.' She paused, then added, 'Are you sick or something? Let me feel your head.'
'Which one?' said Eduardo. Kylie took a moment to digest this, then they both laughed before Eduardo went on, 'I'm not sick... unless I'm going crazy. The thing is, I really feel like there's someone here in the room with us.'
'How, in the world that we inhabit, would that mean you're going crazy?' said Kylie.
'Well... you don't seem to think there's anybody here but us.'
'That doesn't mean anything. We're neither of us used to the atmosphere here – you're just probably more sensitive to whatever's affecting it.'
'Much more. If you were feeling what I'm feeling, you'd be in more of a hurry to get dressed.'
Kylie smiled all the way down to her core and said, 'Sweetie, if there is a ghost in here, it's already seen and heard everything we have to show it.'
As Eduardo looked at her, his anxious expression melted away and he rushed to put his arms around her, saying, 'That smile has to be the sexiest thing that ever existed, querida.'
'Hey now,' said Kylie, as he kissed her face and neck, 'don't start anything you can't finish.'
'I think I might be able to finish after all,' said Eduardo.
'I wouldn't bet on it,' said Kylie, pushing him gently away. 'I kind of do want to get dressed now.'
'Does that mean you can feel it too?'
'Not really.' She stood up and began to put on her clothes. 'I mean, only by power of suggestion... and it seems that's enough to put me off.'
Eduardo sighed heavily and said, 'This is a serious problem. We got three more nights here, right?'
'Does that seem like a long time to you?'
'Yes. Doesn't it to you?'
'We've abstained for more than three nights before.'
'Only when one of us was sick or menstruating. Or maybe when we had a huge case on at work.'
'True,' said Kylie. 'All right, it does seem a long time to me. You know what it does to me when you speak Spanish, and you've been doing that a lot lately.'
'Tiene que hacerse, querida,' said Eduardo.
'Oh, Eduardo, don't tease me,' Kylie tittered. 'Y'know, I have no idea what that meant.'
'It has to be done, querida – nothing very sexy.'
'It all sounds sexy coming from you, baby.'
'Yeah?' said Eduardo. 'So what am I gonna be saying today?'
'Oh, well,' said Kylie, 'things like... may I squeeze your tomatoes, por favor?'
He laughed. 'Who am I gonna be saying that to?'
'Whoever sells the nicest-looking tomatoes at the big, famous food market that's around here.'
'Ah,' said Eduardo, 'la Boqueria.'
'Mmm, sexy as hell,' said Kylie, giving him that smile again.
Eduardo smiled back and said, 'Sure you don't feel like it?'
'Hmm... fairly,' Kylie said pensively. 'What do you think?'
Eduardo looked away from her and around the room, and suddenly he began to look unsettled. He put an arm around Kylie and steered her towards the door, saying, 'I think I want to get out of here.'
Kylie snuffled, yawned and stretched, felt for Eduardo and finally opened her eyes when she didn't find him next to her.
'Up and dressed so soon?' she said sleepily.
'Yeah, well, it's morning,' said Eduardo.
'The limp sausage problem really worrying you this time, is it?'
Eduardo stared at her, aghast.
'I'm talking about breakfast,' she said.
'Oh.'
'Oh, don't look so wounded! I am talking about breakfast!'
'I know,' said Eduardo. 'I'm sorry. It's just... well, you know.'
'No, I don't,' said Kylie, as she dragged herself out of bed and sat on the edge. 'So you don't feel like having sex right now – it's no big deal.' She paused, then added, 'Are you sick or something? Let me feel your head.'
'Which one?' said Eduardo. Kylie took a moment to digest this, then they both laughed before Eduardo went on, 'I'm not sick... unless I'm going crazy. The thing is, I really feel like there's someone here in the room with us.'
'How, in the world that we inhabit, would that mean you're going crazy?' said Kylie.
'Well... you don't seem to think there's anybody here but us.'
'That doesn't mean anything. We're neither of us used to the atmosphere here – you're just probably more sensitive to whatever's affecting it.'
'Much more. If you were feeling what I'm feeling, you'd be in more of a hurry to get dressed.'
Kylie smiled all the way down to her core and said, 'Sweetie, if there is a ghost in here, it's already seen and heard everything we have to show it.'
As Eduardo looked at her, his anxious expression melted away and he rushed to put his arms around her, saying, 'That smile has to be the sexiest thing that ever existed, querida.'
'Hey now,' said Kylie, as he kissed her face and neck, 'don't start anything you can't finish.'
'I think I might be able to finish after all,' said Eduardo.
'I wouldn't bet on it,' said Kylie, pushing him gently away. 'I kind of do want to get dressed now.'
'Does that mean you can feel it too?'
'Not really.' She stood up and began to put on her clothes. 'I mean, only by power of suggestion... and it seems that's enough to put me off.'
Eduardo sighed heavily and said, 'This is a serious problem. We got three more nights here, right?'
'Does that seem like a long time to you?'
'Yes. Doesn't it to you?'
'We've abstained for more than three nights before.'
'Only when one of us was sick or menstruating. Or maybe when we had a huge case on at work.'
'True,' said Kylie. 'All right, it does seem a long time to me. You know what it does to me when you speak Spanish, and you've been doing that a lot lately.'
'Tiene que hacerse, querida,' said Eduardo.
'Oh, Eduardo, don't tease me,' Kylie tittered. 'Y'know, I have no idea what that meant.'
'It has to be done, querida – nothing very sexy.'
'It all sounds sexy coming from you, baby.'
'Yeah?' said Eduardo. 'So what am I gonna be saying today?'
'Oh, well,' said Kylie, 'things like... may I squeeze your tomatoes, por favor?'
He laughed. 'Who am I gonna be saying that to?'
'Whoever sells the nicest-looking tomatoes at the big, famous food market that's around here.'
'Ah,' said Eduardo, 'la Boqueria.'
'Mmm, sexy as hell,' said Kylie, giving him that smile again.
Eduardo smiled back and said, 'Sure you don't feel like it?'
'Hmm... fairly,' Kylie said pensively. 'What do you think?'
Eduardo looked away from her and around the room, and suddenly he began to look unsettled. He put an arm around Kylie and steered her towards the door, saying, 'I think I want to get out of here.'
Some while later, in a large and busy marketplace, Kylie was laden with shopping bags, waiting for Eduardo and a stallholder to finish exchanging money and a large, whole fish.
'The plan is that you're gonna cook this stuff, right?' said Eduardo, as the stallholder wrapped up the fish.
'Of course,' said Kylie.
'So you're gonna scale and fillet that thing?'
'Not if you want to do it, sweetie.'
'What are you – oh, gracias, señor – what are you planning on doing with the head?'
'Too bad Pagan's not here – he'd love it,' said Kylie, as they wandered off through the market stalls. 'But under the circumstances, I think I'll try making it into soup.'
'That sounds completely gross.'
'More for me, then. Yummy, nutritious fish-head soup. I can hardly wait.'
'Does that include the eyes?' asked Eduardo.
'Oh, I don't know about that,' said Kylie. 'Maybe you wouldn't mind taking them down to that eco-friendly garbage area at the youth hostel for me, baby.'
Eduardo laughed. 'To hell with that. You can't make me.'
'Yeah, you're right,' said Kylie. 'I can't even threaten to withhold sex, since neither of us seems to feel like it in that room, especially you.'
'You know what?' said Eduardo. 'Since you brought it up, I don't think it's just the room. I'm still feeling kind of weird... like someone's following us or something.'
'Really?' Kylie looked alarmed. 'God, maybe this is serious! Maybe we should call Egon when we get back to the hostel.'
'What the hell for? He won't be able to do anything. We don't even really have anything to tell him.'
'But I don't want you feeling uncomfortable, sweetie. I want you to enjoy yourself.'
'So do I,' said Eduardo, 'but what can Egon do about it?'
'Yeah, well...'
'Whoa!'
'What?'
'Do you see that guy?' said Eduardo. 'I think he could be my ghost.'
'Where?' said Kylie, looking eagerly around.
'There.' Eduardo pointed. 'I mean, the guy has a sword, and no one seems to've noticed. In fact, no one's looking at him at all. Do you see him?'
Kylie squinted in the direction Eduardo was pointing. 'Oh... I might've just caught a glimpse of him. He just walked off, right?'
'Yeah, he did.' Eduardo looked nervously around. 'I don't see him now.'
'Do you see that little girl?'
'Where?'
'Where you just told me you saw your ghost. She's crying.'
'Oh yeah, I see her,' said Eduardo. 'Why doesn't somebody help her? Is she a ghost too? Oh my God – it's Zia!'
'I don't think so,' said Kylie. 'She doesn't look Incan; she's wearing Nikes. I guess no one's helping her because they're all hoping somebody else will.'
'Better be us, then,' said Eduardo, and they approached the girl. 'You talk to her – she'll know not to talk to strange men.'
'I wouldn't call you that strange,' said Kylie, digging him in the ribs. 'Anyway, you know I don't speak Spanish.'
'Just get a conversation started, then,' said Eduardo. 'Ask her if she's lost. Estás perdido.'
Kylie stepped towards the little girl, crouched down beside her and said, clumsily but kindly, 'Estás perdido?'
'Sí, señorita!' said the girl, clutching desperately at Kylie the moment she registered her. 'He perdido a mi madre. Ese hombre nos separó.'
Kylie looked up at Eduardo. 'Did she just say something about a man separating her from her mother?'
'Yes,' said Eduardo. He looked at the girl. 'Como paso?'
'No lo sé!'
'No te preocupes,' he said reassuringly. 'Encontraré un policía.'
Eduardo wandered off, leaving Kylie with the child sobbing on her shoulder, and returned some minutes later with a pair of police officers. The child attached herself firmly to the female officer while the male officer talked to Eduardo at length, and occasionally put a question to the child. At last, the officers left with her, so Kylie linked up with Eduardo.
'So, a man separated her from her mother,' she said, 'and she couldn't tell you how it happened.'
'You're really starting to pick up the language, huh?'
'Just a word here and there... the ones everyone knows like hombre and madre, and the ones from the same roots as English. I couldn't get anything you were saying to those police officers, though.'
'What that kid said to them was the most interesting part,' said Eduardo. 'She described the guy I saw, right down to the sword. I lied and said I hadn't seem him. Do you think that was okay?'
'Given that he's almost definitely a ghost,' said Kylie, 'I think that's fine.'
'So what are we gonna do about it?'
'First off, we're going to get this food back to the youth hostel kitchen before it goes bad.'
'Oh, right, 'cause that'll stop any more little girls from getting lost.'
'It might,' said Kylie. 'It's your ghost, remember? It's following you.'
'Maybe it's not the same one. Or maybe her hombre even isn't even a ghost.'
'Sure he is, if he had a sword, and you saw him when nobody else could. I'm not even a hundred percent sure that I saw him. Okay, we can't be certain about anything, but it's a reasonable theory and we do have to get this fish on ice.'
'All right,' said Eduardo, 'so assuming her man is my ghost, and he follows me back to the youth hostel, what do we do then?'
'I think we'll have to play that one by ear, babe,' said Kylie. 'After we put away the food. Then if nothing untoward happens, we can make sandwiches out of our expensive bread and go check out the Gothic Quarter. When we get back, I'll make my fish dish for dinner.'
'If nothing untoward happens to us,' said Eduardo, 'does that mean it's all still happening here?'
'How can we know?' said Kylie. 'Come on, babe, don't worry. Let's just get on with the rest of our trip and see if anything else happens.'
'The plan is that you're gonna cook this stuff, right?' said Eduardo, as the stallholder wrapped up the fish.
'Of course,' said Kylie.
'So you're gonna scale and fillet that thing?'
'Not if you want to do it, sweetie.'
'What are you – oh, gracias, señor – what are you planning on doing with the head?'
'Too bad Pagan's not here – he'd love it,' said Kylie, as they wandered off through the market stalls. 'But under the circumstances, I think I'll try making it into soup.'
'That sounds completely gross.'
'More for me, then. Yummy, nutritious fish-head soup. I can hardly wait.'
'Does that include the eyes?' asked Eduardo.
'Oh, I don't know about that,' said Kylie. 'Maybe you wouldn't mind taking them down to that eco-friendly garbage area at the youth hostel for me, baby.'
Eduardo laughed. 'To hell with that. You can't make me.'
'Yeah, you're right,' said Kylie. 'I can't even threaten to withhold sex, since neither of us seems to feel like it in that room, especially you.'
'You know what?' said Eduardo. 'Since you brought it up, I don't think it's just the room. I'm still feeling kind of weird... like someone's following us or something.'
'Really?' Kylie looked alarmed. 'God, maybe this is serious! Maybe we should call Egon when we get back to the hostel.'
'What the hell for? He won't be able to do anything. We don't even really have anything to tell him.'
'But I don't want you feeling uncomfortable, sweetie. I want you to enjoy yourself.'
'So do I,' said Eduardo, 'but what can Egon do about it?'
'Yeah, well...'
'Whoa!'
'What?'
'Do you see that guy?' said Eduardo. 'I think he could be my ghost.'
'Where?' said Kylie, looking eagerly around.
'There.' Eduardo pointed. 'I mean, the guy has a sword, and no one seems to've noticed. In fact, no one's looking at him at all. Do you see him?'
Kylie squinted in the direction Eduardo was pointing. 'Oh... I might've just caught a glimpse of him. He just walked off, right?'
'Yeah, he did.' Eduardo looked nervously around. 'I don't see him now.'
'Do you see that little girl?'
'Where?'
'Where you just told me you saw your ghost. She's crying.'
'Oh yeah, I see her,' said Eduardo. 'Why doesn't somebody help her? Is she a ghost too? Oh my God – it's Zia!'
'I don't think so,' said Kylie. 'She doesn't look Incan; she's wearing Nikes. I guess no one's helping her because they're all hoping somebody else will.'
'Better be us, then,' said Eduardo, and they approached the girl. 'You talk to her – she'll know not to talk to strange men.'
'I wouldn't call you that strange,' said Kylie, digging him in the ribs. 'Anyway, you know I don't speak Spanish.'
'Just get a conversation started, then,' said Eduardo. 'Ask her if she's lost. Estás perdido.'
Kylie stepped towards the little girl, crouched down beside her and said, clumsily but kindly, 'Estás perdido?'
'Sí, señorita!' said the girl, clutching desperately at Kylie the moment she registered her. 'He perdido a mi madre. Ese hombre nos separó.'
Kylie looked up at Eduardo. 'Did she just say something about a man separating her from her mother?'
'Yes,' said Eduardo. He looked at the girl. 'Como paso?'
'No lo sé!'
'No te preocupes,' he said reassuringly. 'Encontraré un policía.'
Eduardo wandered off, leaving Kylie with the child sobbing on her shoulder, and returned some minutes later with a pair of police officers. The child attached herself firmly to the female officer while the male officer talked to Eduardo at length, and occasionally put a question to the child. At last, the officers left with her, so Kylie linked up with Eduardo.
'So, a man separated her from her mother,' she said, 'and she couldn't tell you how it happened.'
'You're really starting to pick up the language, huh?'
'Just a word here and there... the ones everyone knows like hombre and madre, and the ones from the same roots as English. I couldn't get anything you were saying to those police officers, though.'
'What that kid said to them was the most interesting part,' said Eduardo. 'She described the guy I saw, right down to the sword. I lied and said I hadn't seem him. Do you think that was okay?'
'Given that he's almost definitely a ghost,' said Kylie, 'I think that's fine.'
'So what are we gonna do about it?'
'First off, we're going to get this food back to the youth hostel kitchen before it goes bad.'
'Oh, right, 'cause that'll stop any more little girls from getting lost.'
'It might,' said Kylie. 'It's your ghost, remember? It's following you.'
'Maybe it's not the same one. Or maybe her hombre even isn't even a ghost.'
'Sure he is, if he had a sword, and you saw him when nobody else could. I'm not even a hundred percent sure that I saw him. Okay, we can't be certain about anything, but it's a reasonable theory and we do have to get this fish on ice.'
'All right,' said Eduardo, 'so assuming her man is my ghost, and he follows me back to the youth hostel, what do we do then?'
'I think we'll have to play that one by ear, babe,' said Kylie. 'After we put away the food. Then if nothing untoward happens, we can make sandwiches out of our expensive bread and go check out the Gothic Quarter. When we get back, I'll make my fish dish for dinner.'
'If nothing untoward happens to us,' said Eduardo, 'does that mean it's all still happening here?'
'How can we know?' said Kylie. 'Come on, babe, don't worry. Let's just get on with the rest of our trip and see if anything else happens.'
Their wander around the Gothic Quarter of the city ended with a visit to the sixty-foot Columbus Monument by the harbour and Eduardo translating from yet another one of Kylie's guidebooks.
'It's a hundred and ninety-seven feet tall,' he reported. 'A lot of people think Chris is pointing west toward the New World, and a lot of other people think he's pointing east toward his home city of Genoa.' He looked up from the book. 'Those people can't have much sense of direction, then.'
'Oh yeah?' said Kylie. 'Which way do you think he's pointing?'
'Oh, well,' said Eduardo, 'south-south-east – it's obvious.'
'Aha. Is it obvious because it's in that book?'
'Yes.'
'So what is he pointing to?'
'Nothing in particular,' said Eduardo. 'Just kind of out to sea.'
'Well, there's no disputing that,' said Kylie, with a glance towards the harbour. 'Who are all those people on the pedestal?'
'Some people I never heard of,' said Eduardo. 'Oh, except Ferdinand and Isabella. Just people who had something to do with Columbus's voyage. Those kind of angel people higher up represent the four realms of Spain, and underneath them are some griffins, as you can see.'
'Griffins rule,' said Kylie.
'Yup. Griffins are awesome. So, is this all interesting?' Eduardo asked doubtfully. 'Do I have to tell you about the eight bronze panels depicting scenes to do with the voyage?'
'Oh, I don't think so,' said Kylie. 'Let's go up to the viewing platform now.'
Eduardo purchased their entry into the elevator, and minutes later they were standing almost at the top of the monument, looking out on Barcelona.
'Awesome view,' said Kylie.
'It should be,' said Eduardo. 'So, are you much into Columbus? Is this blowing you away?'
'Actually, it kind of is,' said Kylie. 'I guess someone else would've discovered the Americas for Europe someday, but they didn't. He did. We owe him our lives.'
'You mean our lives as we know them, or the fact that we exist at all?'
'That we exist at all. There's no chance... well, practically no chance all the right people would've met each other to create the same bloodlines. And no chance at all for you, since your Captain Gaspar's supposed to have procreated with an Incan woman.'
'Did I say that?' asked Eduardo.
'Via your grandmother, yes.'
'That could be a steaming pile of horse crap. Having said that, though, those conquistadores didn't bring women over, did they? Not like the pilgrims on the Mayflower and stuff.'
'There you go, then, it must be true.'
'Ky,' said Eduardo, 'has it occurred to you that Captain Gaspar might be my ghost?'
'Actually, it has,' said Kylie, in a more serious tone.
'I've been thinking it since la Boqueria, when my first instinct was to think that little girl was Zia.'
'Yeah, well, it probably is him.'
Eduardo raised his eyebrows. 'Probably?'
'Ghosts haunting their descendants is a well-documented phenomenon, and there've been plenty of cases like this, where someone was paying a visit somewhere and then suddenly, boom, there's the ghost of their ancestor breathing down their neck.'
'Well, that's just peachy,' said Eduardo, and sighed heavily.
'Hey, c'mon,' said Kylie, rubbing his arm soothingly. 'It's better than no explanation at all, isn't it?'
'Yeah, maybe. But y'know, I very probably have other ancestors from Barcelona – it could be one of them.'
'Other ancestors who separate little girls from their mothers?'
Eduardo didn't reply, and Kylie was alarmed to see him lean dejectedly against the platform rail and drop his head.
'Hey,' said Kylie, cuddling up to him and coaxing him to look up, and when he did she kissed him tenderly. 'We can leave tomorrow... no, tonight, if you want.'
'Wouldn't that be complicated and expensive and inconvenient?'
'Well... yeah, kinda.' She paused. 'Okay, very.'
'Then we stay,' said Eduardo. 'I mean, thanks... that means a lot... but if anything messes up your plans, it's not gonna be me.'
'All right,' said Kylie, 'but please cheer up, okay? I didn't mean to make you feel bad about him being a kidnapper; I just meant, it seems to make sense that he is your ghost. And I hope you know you don't owe him any bad feeling. The terrible things he did have nothing to do with you. You're amazing,' she finished, and kissed him again.
'It's a hundred and ninety-seven feet tall,' he reported. 'A lot of people think Chris is pointing west toward the New World, and a lot of other people think he's pointing east toward his home city of Genoa.' He looked up from the book. 'Those people can't have much sense of direction, then.'
'Oh yeah?' said Kylie. 'Which way do you think he's pointing?'
'Oh, well,' said Eduardo, 'south-south-east – it's obvious.'
'Aha. Is it obvious because it's in that book?'
'Yes.'
'So what is he pointing to?'
'Nothing in particular,' said Eduardo. 'Just kind of out to sea.'
'Well, there's no disputing that,' said Kylie, with a glance towards the harbour. 'Who are all those people on the pedestal?'
'Some people I never heard of,' said Eduardo. 'Oh, except Ferdinand and Isabella. Just people who had something to do with Columbus's voyage. Those kind of angel people higher up represent the four realms of Spain, and underneath them are some griffins, as you can see.'
'Griffins rule,' said Kylie.
'Yup. Griffins are awesome. So, is this all interesting?' Eduardo asked doubtfully. 'Do I have to tell you about the eight bronze panels depicting scenes to do with the voyage?'
'Oh, I don't think so,' said Kylie. 'Let's go up to the viewing platform now.'
Eduardo purchased their entry into the elevator, and minutes later they were standing almost at the top of the monument, looking out on Barcelona.
'Awesome view,' said Kylie.
'It should be,' said Eduardo. 'So, are you much into Columbus? Is this blowing you away?'
'Actually, it kind of is,' said Kylie. 'I guess someone else would've discovered the Americas for Europe someday, but they didn't. He did. We owe him our lives.'
'You mean our lives as we know them, or the fact that we exist at all?'
'That we exist at all. There's no chance... well, practically no chance all the right people would've met each other to create the same bloodlines. And no chance at all for you, since your Captain Gaspar's supposed to have procreated with an Incan woman.'
'Did I say that?' asked Eduardo.
'Via your grandmother, yes.'
'That could be a steaming pile of horse crap. Having said that, though, those conquistadores didn't bring women over, did they? Not like the pilgrims on the Mayflower and stuff.'
'There you go, then, it must be true.'
'Ky,' said Eduardo, 'has it occurred to you that Captain Gaspar might be my ghost?'
'Actually, it has,' said Kylie, in a more serious tone.
'I've been thinking it since la Boqueria, when my first instinct was to think that little girl was Zia.'
'Yeah, well, it probably is him.'
Eduardo raised his eyebrows. 'Probably?'
'Ghosts haunting their descendants is a well-documented phenomenon, and there've been plenty of cases like this, where someone was paying a visit somewhere and then suddenly, boom, there's the ghost of their ancestor breathing down their neck.'
'Well, that's just peachy,' said Eduardo, and sighed heavily.
'Hey, c'mon,' said Kylie, rubbing his arm soothingly. 'It's better than no explanation at all, isn't it?'
'Yeah, maybe. But y'know, I very probably have other ancestors from Barcelona – it could be one of them.'
'Other ancestors who separate little girls from their mothers?'
Eduardo didn't reply, and Kylie was alarmed to see him lean dejectedly against the platform rail and drop his head.
'Hey,' said Kylie, cuddling up to him and coaxing him to look up, and when he did she kissed him tenderly. 'We can leave tomorrow... no, tonight, if you want.'
'Wouldn't that be complicated and expensive and inconvenient?'
'Well... yeah, kinda.' She paused. 'Okay, very.'
'Then we stay,' said Eduardo. 'I mean, thanks... that means a lot... but if anything messes up your plans, it's not gonna be me.'
'All right,' said Kylie, 'but please cheer up, okay? I didn't mean to make you feel bad about him being a kidnapper; I just meant, it seems to make sense that he is your ghost. And I hope you know you don't owe him any bad feeling. The terrible things he did have nothing to do with you. You're amazing,' she finished, and kissed him again.
Later, in the youth hostel kitchen, Kylie was sweating and grumbling over her fish, which she was trying to scale with the back of a blunt knife, while other people organised their much quicker and easier dinners around her. They had all left her alone when Eduardo came in; he almost laughed when he saw her, but one look at her face prevented him.
'It's only a dead fish, Ky,' he said. 'Don't let it get to you.'
'It's an expensive dead fish,' said Kylie, 'and by the time I'm through with it, it will've lost whatever attributes it had from being caught this morning. Never get seduced by the atmosphere of a quaint, old-fashioned market.'
'I didn't.'
She scowled. 'You don't have to rub it in.'
'Kylie, querida,' said Eduardo, 'why don't you put the knife down for a minute and take a breath?'
Kylie took a moment to fume over the fish, then she did indeed put down the knife and take a breath. When she had let the breath out, she smiled at Eduardo and said, 'How are you feeling now, sweetie?'
'Okay,' said Eduardo. 'The news was just on in the rec room, and nothing else seems to've happened at the market. Or nothing newsworthy, anyway.'
'That's really, really great,' said Kylie, 'but how are you? You're hiding how you're feeling so I won't feel guilty about making you come here, aren't you?'
'No. You didn't make me do anything. You asked me what I wanted to do, and the one thing I could think of was trying to find out more about Captain Gaspar. And anyway, neither of us can really blame ourselves for any of this because there is absolutely no way we could've predicted it.'
'Yeah, well, you know what?' said Kylie. 'I feel like crap. This trip was supposed to be perfect, and there's been so much about it that isn't.'
'Not that much,' said Eduardo. 'We met a ghost in Haworth who annoyed us for like five minutes, and the rest of the day was great. Nothing happened in Orkney, we just had a slight time slip situation in London, and meeting up with your mother in Paris turned out not as bad as you thought – that's what you told me – and we had a blast in Logroño, didn't we?'
Kylie smiled. 'You're sweet.'
'Remind me where we're going next.'
'Rome,' said Kylie, returning to the fish with a more measured approach. 'We're getting a ferry.'
'Oh yeah, I remember – so I can tread the path of my ancestor.'
'Oh God,' said Kylie, but Eduardo laughed, so she did as well.
'Does this ferry take us all the way to Rome?'
'No, it docks in some place that connects to Rome by train – I've forgotten the name of it now. But anyway.' She stood back and looked contemplatively at the fish she was preparing. 'I think I'm finally getting somewhere with this thing now. I wonder if I can make us a nice dinner with it.'
Eduardo went over to her, put his arms around her, kissed the top of her head and said, 'Everything you do is a hell of a lot better than “nice”, mi querida.'
'It's only a dead fish, Ky,' he said. 'Don't let it get to you.'
'It's an expensive dead fish,' said Kylie, 'and by the time I'm through with it, it will've lost whatever attributes it had from being caught this morning. Never get seduced by the atmosphere of a quaint, old-fashioned market.'
'I didn't.'
She scowled. 'You don't have to rub it in.'
'Kylie, querida,' said Eduardo, 'why don't you put the knife down for a minute and take a breath?'
Kylie took a moment to fume over the fish, then she did indeed put down the knife and take a breath. When she had let the breath out, she smiled at Eduardo and said, 'How are you feeling now, sweetie?'
'Okay,' said Eduardo. 'The news was just on in the rec room, and nothing else seems to've happened at the market. Or nothing newsworthy, anyway.'
'That's really, really great,' said Kylie, 'but how are you? You're hiding how you're feeling so I won't feel guilty about making you come here, aren't you?'
'No. You didn't make me do anything. You asked me what I wanted to do, and the one thing I could think of was trying to find out more about Captain Gaspar. And anyway, neither of us can really blame ourselves for any of this because there is absolutely no way we could've predicted it.'
'Yeah, well, you know what?' said Kylie. 'I feel like crap. This trip was supposed to be perfect, and there's been so much about it that isn't.'
'Not that much,' said Eduardo. 'We met a ghost in Haworth who annoyed us for like five minutes, and the rest of the day was great. Nothing happened in Orkney, we just had a slight time slip situation in London, and meeting up with your mother in Paris turned out not as bad as you thought – that's what you told me – and we had a blast in Logroño, didn't we?'
Kylie smiled. 'You're sweet.'
'Remind me where we're going next.'
'Rome,' said Kylie, returning to the fish with a more measured approach. 'We're getting a ferry.'
'Oh yeah, I remember – so I can tread the path of my ancestor.'
'Oh God,' said Kylie, but Eduardo laughed, so she did as well.
'Does this ferry take us all the way to Rome?'
'No, it docks in some place that connects to Rome by train – I've forgotten the name of it now. But anyway.' She stood back and looked contemplatively at the fish she was preparing. 'I think I'm finally getting somewhere with this thing now. I wonder if I can make us a nice dinner with it.'
Eduardo went over to her, put his arms around her, kissed the top of her head and said, 'Everything you do is a hell of a lot better than “nice”, mi querida.'
When it was quite dark, Eduardo and Kylie made their way into their room with their arms around each other, kissing deeply and tenderly. He kicked the door shut behind them and began whispering soft Spanish into her ear as she pulled him towards the bed by his belt buckle, undoing it as they went. They were lying on the bed and just beginning to undress each other when Eduardo drew back abruptly and said, 'Oh, Kylie, stop!'
'What?' she said, taking a few moments to drag herself out of the moment. When she was there, she said, 'Do you mean he's here?'
'He's more than just here,' said Eduardo, trying to back away from her, but having to fight himself.
Kylie's eyes widened. 'Oh God, you don't mean...?'
'No!' he yelled. 'No, no, no, no, no! No la toques!'
Kylie watched through the darkness with increasing alarm as Eduardo battled with himself, protesting in streams of Spanish until suddenly a glow enveloped him, then subsided. Moments later, a muscular figure was dominating the room.
'Sal de aquí!' Eduardo spat at him.
'No puedo!' the figure shot back.
'Eduardo!' said Kylie. 'What's happening?'
Eduardo turned sharply to look at her, then crossed the room in a bound, got onto the bed and enveloped her in his arms.
'I told him to leave,' he said. 'He says he can't.'
'Can't, huh?' said Kylie. She looked at the figure. 'Habla inglés?'
The figure shrugged and said, 'A little.'
'When you say a little,' said Kylie, 'what do you mean? Can we talk?'
'Talk for what?' the ghost demanded.
'You can start by telling me who you are.'
'Qué?'
'Who... are... you?'
He frowned at her for a moment, then said, 'My name is Captain Gaspar.'
'I thought so,' said Kylie. 'What are you doing here?'
'I don't know,' said Gaspar. 'I don't know!'
'Have you been here long?'
'I don't know this either.' He looked at her through narrowed eyes. 'You speak strange.'
'We're from the New World,' said Kylie. 'This is Eduardo. He's one of your descendants.'
'Descendants?' said Gaspar. 'Descendiente? The New World? Tell me about him! Is he rich?' He looked at Eduardo. 'Eres rico?'
Eduardo's arms were still locked around Kylie's torso. She gave him a moment to answer. When he didn't, she said, 'Not very.'
Gaspar let out a bull-like sound, and muttered, 'Por qué lo hice?'
'Eduardo...?' Kylie whispered.
'Why did I do it,' Eduardo murmured, barely audibly.
Kylie looked at Gaspar. 'Do what? Go on that sea voyage? Do whatever you did to subdue the natives? Kidnap poor little Zia? Is that all you wanted – riches?'
'Zia was the key to the Cities of Gold,' said Gaspar. 'Nothing in this world... not love, honour or patriotism... nothing compares to the splendour of gold.'
'You think so, huh?' said Kylie. 'I can't agree with you. Eduardo and I are so much in love, it hurts. I wouldn't give that up for anything.'
Gaspar stared at her for some seconds. Then he said, quietly, 'I felt this.' He looked at Eduardo, who shrank from his gaze.
'Know what I think?' said Kylie. 'I think you can leave here... and stop hurting people... if you can realise that you got something better than what you wanted. Anyone who had any part in bringing Eduardo into existence should be proud. And Kevin... his nephew. If you knew that kid, you would be so proud.'
'Nephew,' said Gaspar, frowning in concentration as he mulled over Kylie's long speech. 'Sobrino. Then your Eduardo has... a brother?'
Kylie frowned. 'It could be a sister for all you know.'
'Bah,' said Gaspar, turning away.
'But it is a brother, as it happens,' Kylie said hastily.
Gaspar looked at her. 'Brothers by the name of Gaspar? My name?'
'Um, yes.'
'And they are great men?'
'Depends on what you mean by great,' said Kylie. 'I can't tell you how wonderful Eduardo is, and his brother Carlos is... um... a very effective law enforcer. And he loves his son a whole lot.'
'You do not speak sincere,' Gaspar said suspiciously. 'Not about this Carlos.'
'I'm telling the truth,' said Kylie. 'Carlos is far from perfect, but he's not a bad man, and he's been getting better lately.'
'And his son... how you said it... Kevin,' said Gaspar. 'He is better still?'
'That's a definite yes,' said Kylie.
'So it should be,' said Gaspar. 'In the end, a son must do more than his father. So Esteban's father said to him... I knew this after my death. I thought it meant... bah, I don't know.'
'Who the hell is Esteban?' said Kylie.
'He loved little Zia,' said Gaspar. 'They grew up. They were happy. Just like you with the son of my sons.'
'Oh,' said Kylie. 'Well, that's great news about Zia. And as for what Esteban's father said... you thought if it applied to you, it must mean riches, didn't you? Gold.'
'Gold, yes,' agreed Gaspar. 'We all went for gold. And Mendoza got it!' he snarled. 'If I had a cannon pointed right at Mendoza...!' Then suddenly he calmed himself. 'But I got none of the gold. I thought I did all that I did for nothing.'
'But you were wrong,' said Kylie.
Gaspar nodded once, and with that, he disappeared in a shimmering haze. Kylie and Eduardo remained motionless for several seconds. Then Kylie turned in Eduardo's arms and said, 'Oh, sweetie, you're shaking!'
Eduardo shook his head. 'That was... he was...'
'It must've taken a lot out of you. I've never seen a possessed person fight like that. I tried to stop Achira from infecting Egon, but I couldn't.'
'You realise what he tried to do, don't you?' said Eduardo. 'You know I would never let anybody do that to you. Especially in my body. And you still deigned to reason it all out with him and help him cross over. I mean... that's what happened, right?'
'Yes, I think so. I assume so.'
'He deserves to wander about the earth lost and confused until there's no more earth left,' Eduardo said darkly.
'Maybe you're right,' said Kylie, 'but then, we don't know where he's gone. It could be someplace worse, right? Anyway, I just wanted to get rid of him. But it's too late, I guess; he's going to be a weight on your heart at least until we leave here, isn't he?'
'I can forget about what he did to Zia,' said Eduardo, 'especially now that I know she lived to grow up and she was happy... so I guess I must be glad he told us that. And whatever else he did in his lifetime, like you said, it's no worse than what everybody else's ancestors were doing. But what he did today... and what he tried to do tonight... I'll never forget it, Ky.'
'I'm so sorry.'
'I know you feel bad for me. I hope you're not apologising.'
'Maybe things will look better in the cold light of day.'
'I hope so,' said Eduardo, 'and in the meantime, I still want to make love, if you do. The way I feel about you right now... I don't know how else to express it.'
'Of course I still want to,' said Kylie, and kissed him softly, caressing him with soothing hands.
'What?' she said, taking a few moments to drag herself out of the moment. When she was there, she said, 'Do you mean he's here?'
'He's more than just here,' said Eduardo, trying to back away from her, but having to fight himself.
Kylie's eyes widened. 'Oh God, you don't mean...?'
'No!' he yelled. 'No, no, no, no, no! No la toques!'
Kylie watched through the darkness with increasing alarm as Eduardo battled with himself, protesting in streams of Spanish until suddenly a glow enveloped him, then subsided. Moments later, a muscular figure was dominating the room.
'Sal de aquí!' Eduardo spat at him.
'No puedo!' the figure shot back.
'Eduardo!' said Kylie. 'What's happening?'
Eduardo turned sharply to look at her, then crossed the room in a bound, got onto the bed and enveloped her in his arms.
'I told him to leave,' he said. 'He says he can't.'
'Can't, huh?' said Kylie. She looked at the figure. 'Habla inglés?'
The figure shrugged and said, 'A little.'
'When you say a little,' said Kylie, 'what do you mean? Can we talk?'
'Talk for what?' the ghost demanded.
'You can start by telling me who you are.'
'Qué?'
'Who... are... you?'
He frowned at her for a moment, then said, 'My name is Captain Gaspar.'
'I thought so,' said Kylie. 'What are you doing here?'
'I don't know,' said Gaspar. 'I don't know!'
'Have you been here long?'
'I don't know this either.' He looked at her through narrowed eyes. 'You speak strange.'
'We're from the New World,' said Kylie. 'This is Eduardo. He's one of your descendants.'
'Descendants?' said Gaspar. 'Descendiente? The New World? Tell me about him! Is he rich?' He looked at Eduardo. 'Eres rico?'
Eduardo's arms were still locked around Kylie's torso. She gave him a moment to answer. When he didn't, she said, 'Not very.'
Gaspar let out a bull-like sound, and muttered, 'Por qué lo hice?'
'Eduardo...?' Kylie whispered.
'Why did I do it,' Eduardo murmured, barely audibly.
Kylie looked at Gaspar. 'Do what? Go on that sea voyage? Do whatever you did to subdue the natives? Kidnap poor little Zia? Is that all you wanted – riches?'
'Zia was the key to the Cities of Gold,' said Gaspar. 'Nothing in this world... not love, honour or patriotism... nothing compares to the splendour of gold.'
'You think so, huh?' said Kylie. 'I can't agree with you. Eduardo and I are so much in love, it hurts. I wouldn't give that up for anything.'
Gaspar stared at her for some seconds. Then he said, quietly, 'I felt this.' He looked at Eduardo, who shrank from his gaze.
'Know what I think?' said Kylie. 'I think you can leave here... and stop hurting people... if you can realise that you got something better than what you wanted. Anyone who had any part in bringing Eduardo into existence should be proud. And Kevin... his nephew. If you knew that kid, you would be so proud.'
'Nephew,' said Gaspar, frowning in concentration as he mulled over Kylie's long speech. 'Sobrino. Then your Eduardo has... a brother?'
Kylie frowned. 'It could be a sister for all you know.'
'Bah,' said Gaspar, turning away.
'But it is a brother, as it happens,' Kylie said hastily.
Gaspar looked at her. 'Brothers by the name of Gaspar? My name?'
'Um, yes.'
'And they are great men?'
'Depends on what you mean by great,' said Kylie. 'I can't tell you how wonderful Eduardo is, and his brother Carlos is... um... a very effective law enforcer. And he loves his son a whole lot.'
'You do not speak sincere,' Gaspar said suspiciously. 'Not about this Carlos.'
'I'm telling the truth,' said Kylie. 'Carlos is far from perfect, but he's not a bad man, and he's been getting better lately.'
'And his son... how you said it... Kevin,' said Gaspar. 'He is better still?'
'That's a definite yes,' said Kylie.
'So it should be,' said Gaspar. 'In the end, a son must do more than his father. So Esteban's father said to him... I knew this after my death. I thought it meant... bah, I don't know.'
'Who the hell is Esteban?' said Kylie.
'He loved little Zia,' said Gaspar. 'They grew up. They were happy. Just like you with the son of my sons.'
'Oh,' said Kylie. 'Well, that's great news about Zia. And as for what Esteban's father said... you thought if it applied to you, it must mean riches, didn't you? Gold.'
'Gold, yes,' agreed Gaspar. 'We all went for gold. And Mendoza got it!' he snarled. 'If I had a cannon pointed right at Mendoza...!' Then suddenly he calmed himself. 'But I got none of the gold. I thought I did all that I did for nothing.'
'But you were wrong,' said Kylie.
Gaspar nodded once, and with that, he disappeared in a shimmering haze. Kylie and Eduardo remained motionless for several seconds. Then Kylie turned in Eduardo's arms and said, 'Oh, sweetie, you're shaking!'
Eduardo shook his head. 'That was... he was...'
'It must've taken a lot out of you. I've never seen a possessed person fight like that. I tried to stop Achira from infecting Egon, but I couldn't.'
'You realise what he tried to do, don't you?' said Eduardo. 'You know I would never let anybody do that to you. Especially in my body. And you still deigned to reason it all out with him and help him cross over. I mean... that's what happened, right?'
'Yes, I think so. I assume so.'
'He deserves to wander about the earth lost and confused until there's no more earth left,' Eduardo said darkly.
'Maybe you're right,' said Kylie, 'but then, we don't know where he's gone. It could be someplace worse, right? Anyway, I just wanted to get rid of him. But it's too late, I guess; he's going to be a weight on your heart at least until we leave here, isn't he?'
'I can forget about what he did to Zia,' said Eduardo, 'especially now that I know she lived to grow up and she was happy... so I guess I must be glad he told us that. And whatever else he did in his lifetime, like you said, it's no worse than what everybody else's ancestors were doing. But what he did today... and what he tried to do tonight... I'll never forget it, Ky.'
'I'm so sorry.'
'I know you feel bad for me. I hope you're not apologising.'
'Maybe things will look better in the cold light of day.'
'I hope so,' said Eduardo, 'and in the meantime, I still want to make love, if you do. The way I feel about you right now... I don't know how else to express it.'
'Of course I still want to,' said Kylie, and kissed him softly, caressing him with soothing hands.
When Eduardo returned from taking a shower in the morning, Kylie at once pounced on him with, 'Are you sure you're feeling okay now?'
'Of course,' said Eduardo. 'Y'know, babe, you're not normally this worried about my feelings.'
'I just can't forget the way you looked last night... and the way you felt.'
He grinned at her. 'I got the impression I felt pretty good.'
Kylie rolled her eyes. 'I meant before that!'
'I remember the way I felt too, Ky,' Eduardo said more soberly, 'and it was very unpleasant. But you were right about the cold light of day. I feel better now, and I'm mostly just looking forward to spending more time with you. Where are we going today?'
'Oh, well... I thought we could get a bus to the Montserrat mountain range a little way outside the city. It's supposed to be really pretty there, and there's a historic abbey that you can get up to by rail. I really want to see the hovels that the reclusive monks used to live in – is that weird?'
'No,' said Eduardo. 'I'd kinda like to see that myself.'
'Then we got a couple more days here,' said Kylie, 'and we get our boat to Rome at the end of the second one. There's still lots of stuff I want to see in this city, like Montjuïc and everything on it, and the Picasso museum.'
'Picasso, huh?' said Eduardo. 'Does that mean you're gonna pretend to understand the principles of cubism?'
'I do understand the principles of cubism, actually,' said Kylie. 'Or at least, I know what they are in theory. Anyway, babe, what about you? Is there anything else you want to do while we're here?'
'Like what?' said Eduardo. 'The last thing I wanted to do didn't turn out so good.'
Kylie sighed. 'I really wish it'd turned out better.'
'I know. But it could've been worse. At least I know that Zia survived, and not only that, she grew up and was happy with this Esteban dude. Y'know, I don't remember anyone named Esteban officially on board the Esperanza, but it was a long list of names – I guess I just didn't retain it.'
'He must've been a child, like, a cabin boy or something? I mean, he might've been an older teenager and considered an adult, but Gaspar said they grew up, didn't he? Esteban and Zia?'
'Oh yeah. I don't remember any mention of a cabin boy, but...' He tailed off with a shrug.
'There's no point speculating,' said Kylie. 'We'll never know. Unless you want to try the archives again.'
'I don't think so,' said Eduardo. 'Let's just leave the past where it belongs, shall we?'
'But you're curious, though, right? Okay, you're not going to try to find out, but are you really not going to think about them and wonder about them at all?'
'I don't know. Maybe a little, sometimes. It seems like there's a whole story there that we've barely begun to understand. He was talking about things that meant nothing to me, and... and what made Esteban's father say that? Why was it so important that Gaspar's ghost got to know about it?'
'Yeah, well,' said Kylie, 'I'm wondering what Esteban's mother ever said to him.'
Eduardo laughed. 'Who the hell cares, right?'
'Well, exactly! A son must do more than his father, but what are the women supposed to do?'
'Give birth to the sons for the fathers, I guess.'
'Yep, that's about it.'
'We know better now,' said Eduardo. 'I like what he said... it fits in pretty good with my family, at least... but we could adapt it, couldn't we? In the end, a child must do more than its parent.'
Kylie smiled. 'Doesn't have quite the same ring to it, huh?'
'A daughter must do more than her mother? Mind you, most of the mothers I've known have been pretty awesome.'
'Oh yeah, that's what it is: men and boys are more likely to be jerks, so it only applies to them.'
'Now that's sexist,' Eduardo said sternly.
'Well, looking at history...'
'You can't have it both ways, Ky. Probably countless women have been total jerks – it just wasn't documented because they weren't considered important.'
'Yeah, you're right,' said Kylie. 'Anyway, I sure feel like I need to do more than my mother, if we're just talking in terms of being a decent human being here.'
'We are,' said Eduardo. 'I'd be ashamed if I didn't do more than my father in that respect.'
'It's a sobering thought. All of us must have come from someone like Captain Gaspar at some point... thousands of them, probably, through male and female lines.... and every time, there's a little change for the better. Or at least, what people consider to be better at the time.'
'What most people do now is definitely better than kidnapping little girls,' said Eduardo. 'I think even Captain Gaspar would admit to that.'
'Yeah,' said Kylie, 'now he would... maybe. But I don't know if we completely changed his mind about love being better than gold.'
Eduardo let out a long, heartfelt sigh, and for a moment he looked pensive. Then he said, 'And the dude actually did have my nose!'
'Of course,' said Eduardo. 'Y'know, babe, you're not normally this worried about my feelings.'
'I just can't forget the way you looked last night... and the way you felt.'
He grinned at her. 'I got the impression I felt pretty good.'
Kylie rolled her eyes. 'I meant before that!'
'I remember the way I felt too, Ky,' Eduardo said more soberly, 'and it was very unpleasant. But you were right about the cold light of day. I feel better now, and I'm mostly just looking forward to spending more time with you. Where are we going today?'
'Oh, well... I thought we could get a bus to the Montserrat mountain range a little way outside the city. It's supposed to be really pretty there, and there's a historic abbey that you can get up to by rail. I really want to see the hovels that the reclusive monks used to live in – is that weird?'
'No,' said Eduardo. 'I'd kinda like to see that myself.'
'Then we got a couple more days here,' said Kylie, 'and we get our boat to Rome at the end of the second one. There's still lots of stuff I want to see in this city, like Montjuïc and everything on it, and the Picasso museum.'
'Picasso, huh?' said Eduardo. 'Does that mean you're gonna pretend to understand the principles of cubism?'
'I do understand the principles of cubism, actually,' said Kylie. 'Or at least, I know what they are in theory. Anyway, babe, what about you? Is there anything else you want to do while we're here?'
'Like what?' said Eduardo. 'The last thing I wanted to do didn't turn out so good.'
Kylie sighed. 'I really wish it'd turned out better.'
'I know. But it could've been worse. At least I know that Zia survived, and not only that, she grew up and was happy with this Esteban dude. Y'know, I don't remember anyone named Esteban officially on board the Esperanza, but it was a long list of names – I guess I just didn't retain it.'
'He must've been a child, like, a cabin boy or something? I mean, he might've been an older teenager and considered an adult, but Gaspar said they grew up, didn't he? Esteban and Zia?'
'Oh yeah. I don't remember any mention of a cabin boy, but...' He tailed off with a shrug.
'There's no point speculating,' said Kylie. 'We'll never know. Unless you want to try the archives again.'
'I don't think so,' said Eduardo. 'Let's just leave the past where it belongs, shall we?'
'But you're curious, though, right? Okay, you're not going to try to find out, but are you really not going to think about them and wonder about them at all?'
'I don't know. Maybe a little, sometimes. It seems like there's a whole story there that we've barely begun to understand. He was talking about things that meant nothing to me, and... and what made Esteban's father say that? Why was it so important that Gaspar's ghost got to know about it?'
'Yeah, well,' said Kylie, 'I'm wondering what Esteban's mother ever said to him.'
Eduardo laughed. 'Who the hell cares, right?'
'Well, exactly! A son must do more than his father, but what are the women supposed to do?'
'Give birth to the sons for the fathers, I guess.'
'Yep, that's about it.'
'We know better now,' said Eduardo. 'I like what he said... it fits in pretty good with my family, at least... but we could adapt it, couldn't we? In the end, a child must do more than its parent.'
Kylie smiled. 'Doesn't have quite the same ring to it, huh?'
'A daughter must do more than her mother? Mind you, most of the mothers I've known have been pretty awesome.'
'Oh yeah, that's what it is: men and boys are more likely to be jerks, so it only applies to them.'
'Now that's sexist,' Eduardo said sternly.
'Well, looking at history...'
'You can't have it both ways, Ky. Probably countless women have been total jerks – it just wasn't documented because they weren't considered important.'
'Yeah, you're right,' said Kylie. 'Anyway, I sure feel like I need to do more than my mother, if we're just talking in terms of being a decent human being here.'
'We are,' said Eduardo. 'I'd be ashamed if I didn't do more than my father in that respect.'
'It's a sobering thought. All of us must have come from someone like Captain Gaspar at some point... thousands of them, probably, through male and female lines.... and every time, there's a little change for the better. Or at least, what people consider to be better at the time.'
'What most people do now is definitely better than kidnapping little girls,' said Eduardo. 'I think even Captain Gaspar would admit to that.'
'Yeah,' said Kylie, 'now he would... maybe. But I don't know if we completely changed his mind about love being better than gold.'
Eduardo let out a long, heartfelt sigh, and for a moment he looked pensive. Then he said, 'And the dude actually did have my nose!'
Disclaimer: The Mysterious Cities of Gold © Studio Pierrot and DIC Entertainment, 1982. While the history and geography in this fanfiction series is generally as accurate as I can make it, any and all information pertaining to Captain Gaspar is entirely fictional and inspired by the aforementioned television series.
