Forever (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale 5)

Nix nodded at Mina. “Those two are unoccupied.” Next to him, there were two hammocks folded up, waiting to be stretched out and hung on far hooks for an occupant.

Mina grabbed the heavy cloth and hooked the ring on a post, then unwound it till she found the other ring. It took a few tries to get the hammock opened enough to where she could sit in it and lay back without falling out. From her position in the hammock, she could see Ever and Nix as they whispered softly to each other.

“Hey, Nix,” Mina called. “Did you ever know a sea witch by the name of Taz Clara?”

Nix shivered and looked away. “No. And thank goodness. I’ve never even run into her, since I never left the Fae plane growing up. I’ve heard stories about her, though. She’s one of the most powerful and dangerous sea witches out there. You’ve heard the phrase, be careful what you wish for? Well, that phrase came into existence because of her.”

“Please don’t tell me you’re actually thinking of looking for her.” Ever grimaced.

Mina stayed quiet and decided not to answer. It seemed like Nix wasn’t the person to ask to help with her personal quest.

“I was just wondering,” Mina added when he wouldn’t stop staring at her. After his pointed stare finally dropped away, Mina relaxed in her bed. She had quite a few hours before she’d head to the pier to see if Nan had gotten her message.

If she hadn’t made it, Mina would have to wait until morning. She’d rather do that on the ship than to traipse about San Francisco, though. She didn’t want any nasty surprises from Teague or his fun friends, as in Claire or Temple.

Unlike last night, the soft swaying of the ship on the water and the heat were actually making Mina sleepy right then. Maybe the stress was wearing her down, but she had the time, so she decided to close her eyes for just a few minutes.

Chapter 28

They were in a car. Mina couldn’t see much in her dream, but she could see that Brody was driving, and it was daylight. Nan set down her cell phone and looked over at Brody.

“You wouldn’t believe who that was.”

“Mina?” he asked hopefully.

Nan started to tear up and nodded. “Yes! After weeks of nothing, we finally hear from her.”

“Does she want us to come back? Is it safe to bring Charlie home?” Brody glanced at Nan and then refocused on the road.

Nan peeked into the back seat where Charlie was fast asleep in what looked like a bed of comics. Mina could just make out a white bag with golden arches.

“No Brody, it’s not safe. It’s was a warning. He’s coming for us.”

“Well, what do we do? She must have given us some instructions other than that.”

Nan bit her lip and pulled out a map out of the glove compartment. “She studied it for a second. We need to get off of this exit here and take this interstate south. If we hurry, we can get there by tomorrow night.”

“Are you sure about this, Nan?” he reached out to cup her cheek. “You trust this message? It could be a trap.” The look he gave her was one of affection, and Mina only felt the slightest bit hurt.

Nan covered Brody’s hand against her face and threaded her fingers through his, bringing it down to her lap. “Positive. That was Mina. She even spoke in code. Not very good code, but there were enough clues that only she would have known. We’re going to San Francisco.”

“That’s hours away!”

“Then we better start driving.”

Brody adjusted the rearview mirror. “You’re sure we’re no longer safe?”

“Not on our own anymore. We need Mina.”

“Then we’ll go.” Gravel crunched under his tires as he pulled the car over. He waited for traffic to pass and then did a U-turn.

Nan gazed fondly at sleeping Charlie. “Did you hear that, bud?” she whispered. “We’re going to find your sister.”

***

Mina woke up to the swaying of the boat. Ever and Nix had left, and she was the only one sleeping. She carefully crawled out of the hammock and placed her feet on the floor. If she could believe her dreams, then Nan had gotten her message, and they were on their way. But how long before they made it here? It would help if she had a clue whether the dream was of the future or the past. She rubbed her temples to try to make sense of it.

Her stomach growled, and she realized it had been a while since she had eaten real food. She went above deck and saw that most of the sirens were diving off the ship into the water. Kino appeared to be hosting a contest.