The Enchanted Life of Valentina Mejía

CONTENTS Cover Title Page Dedication Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-One Chapter Twenty-Two Chapter Twenty-Three Chapter Twenty-Four Chapter Twenty-Five Chapter Twenty-Six Chapter Twenty-Seven Chapter Twenty-Eight Chapter Twenty-Nine Chapter Thirty Chapter Thirty-One Chapter Thirty-Two Chapter Thirty-Three Chapter Thirty-Four Chapter Thirty-Five Chapter Thirty-Six Chapter Thirty-Seven Chapter Thirty-Eight Chapter Thirty-Nine Chapter Forty Chapter Forty-One Epilogue Acknowledgments About the Author Copyright Guide Cover Start of Content Title Page Dedication Epilogue Acknowledgments About the Author Copyright I II III V VI 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 
 
 Alexandra Alessandri
 The Enchanted Life of Valentina Mejía
 
 
 
 
 
 To my familia, who filled my childhood with stories of Colombia so I’d always remember
 
 
 ONE
 Three hours into their trek through the Andes, Valentina heard it. At first, she was sure it was another coati. The whining of the raccoonlike animal had been following them for a few miles. But now she thought she heard the distinct sound of heavy breathing.
 The skin on her arms erupted in goose bumps.
 “¿Escuchaste?” Papi whispered.
 “Maybe,” Valentina said, a little too loudly. “It’s probably the wind.”
 Papi brought a finger to his lips. “You’re going to scare it away.”
 Her brother, Julián, bounced on his heels, his eyes almost black beneath the shade of tall ferns and even taller trees, which blocked out most of the light in this patch of the jungle. They were far from their farm and the slopes cultivated with coffee beans.
 Valentina blew out a breath.
 She loved her dad’s eccentricities. She did. But the last thing she wanted to do on the first day of summer was track down a patasola. According to legends, the one-legged woman wandered through the countryside looking for victims. Usually, men. She lured them with beautiful singing or cries for help, and when they were within reach: bam! She caught them and sucked their blood.
 Kind of like a vampire, but cooler.
 One thing was listening to the stories in the comfort of Papi’s study, though, and another was trudging through the Colombian jungle in search of a creature that didn’t exist.
 “Sí, Vale,” her brother said. “Just ’cause you’d rather be drawing your stupid pictures doesn’t mean you have to ruin the fun for everyone.”
 Valentina opened her mouth to retort, but Papi hissed, “Stop it. Both of you. Don’t make me regret bringing you.”
 “This was your idea,” Valentina mumbled. “I would’ve much rather stayed home.”
 Papi frowned. “You know that’s not an option. You’re twelve—”
 “Almost thirteen,” Valentina corrected.
 “Too young. Now basta. Let’s go.” He pushed deeper into the trees without waiting for an answer.
 Julián stuck his tongue out at her, then bounded after their dad.
 It wasn’t fair. Papi insisted on treating her like a little kid. It’s not like she would’ve been alone, anyway. Doña Alicia, their housekeeper, would’ve been there.
 Why did Mami have to be called away for work this weekend? She had been sent with her team to el Nevado del Ruiz, near Manizales, because the volcano was threatening to erupt again. Mami, who was a geophysicist, was part of a group of scientists who were studying the recent eruptions and earthquakes happening across Colombia, especially since they were getting stronger and occurring more often. Valentina knew Mami’s job was important, but she wished she didn’t have to be dragged through the jungle, all because Papi didn’t trust her to stay home without him.
 If you asked him, though, the reason he’d brought them was so they could “get to know the magic running in the veins of this country.”
 As if magic really existed.
 Again the heavy breathing came, sending shivers down Valentina’s spine.
 “Wait!” she called, sprinting after her father and brother. She did not want to be left alone with whatever was out there.
 As she reached Julián, she pushed back the damp locks that had come loose from her ponytail. Sticky sweat dripped down her face, and her T-shirt clung to her skin. She’d give anything to be in her room, drawing in peace and feeling the sweet, cool breeze drifting through her open window. It was her favorite spot on the whole farm.
 She and her brother walked in silence behind Papi as he scouted the area, listening closely for any signs of the imaginary patasola.
 Nearby, a bird warbled. Valentina craned her neck until she found it perched on a bare branch a few feet away. She itched to stop and draw its bright red head and