The Fire Keeper (The Storm Runner 2)

“Yeah, like you guys telling me where you’re going,” Hondo said. “And don’t even try to act all innocent, comrade.”

“Xib’alb’a,” Ren volunteered.

“Living the dream,” Hondo muttered. “And why, exactly, are you going to hell?”

I groaned. “Just tell him everything, why don’t you.”

Hondo knuckle-rubbed his scruffy cheek. “You’re definitely going to need a hero like me on this quest.”

“I’d feel a lot better if Hondo was around,” Ren said. “He totally saved you guys l

ast time.”

Hondo smiled wide and pointed at Ren. “I like her.”

I knew there was no talking him out of it. No way would he give up the chance to fight. I mean, he lived for combat, and I could tell he was going stir-crazy on the island. He’d already held wrestling matches with anyone dumb enough to fight him, and—big surprise—he beat them all. Yeah, you could say his training was paying off big-time.

“Wait,” I said. “Aren’t you supposed to be leading a tour about now?”

“Uh, yeah, but the golf cart isn’t exactly built for speed, and I sort of had a blowout.”

“You were supposed to change the tires!”

Hondo rubbed his chin. “Worse, I left a bunch of Canadians alone in the jungle. You think they’ll give us a bad review on TripAdvisor?”

Ren let out a small laugh. I just sighed.

“So, about the book…” Brooks said.

“You heard Hondo,” I said. “It’s totally boring.” Man, she wasn’t going to let this go. My cheeks were getting hotter by the second, and things were getting more complicated. Not only did I have to find a gateway through hell, rescue my dad, and figure out who had sent the mud person, I had to keep the book out of Brooks’s hands.

“Besides,” I added, “we should be focused on getting off this island.”

“And I’m here to help one hundred and fifty percent,” Hondo said. I swear he was practically dancing in place.

“You mean one hundred,” Ren said.

“Huh?”

“You said one-fifty, and that’s not really possible.”

“Yeah, well, lots of things aren’t possible.” Hondo rolled his eyes at me. “I’m rethinking whether I like her.”

A minute later, we’d filled Hondo in on everything that had happened. He just shook his head and repeated certain words, like Bugs? Mapping? Mud freak? When we got to the part about Ren bringing monsters from her dreams, he held his hand up and asked her, “Hang on. Can you bring stuff other than monsters? Like, say, a winning lottery ticket, or a ninja sword, or something like that?”

Ren sighed. “I don’t think so, but I never tried.”

“I could teach you some mind techniques I’ve been studying,” he said. “I bet it would help unlock your unconscious so you could manifest whatever you wanted. See? You guys need me. So, what’s the vote? Are Ren and I coming with? I vote definitely yes.”

“Me too,” Ren said, high-fiving Hondo like they were football buddies. Whatever.

“Four to one, Zane.” Brooks quirked an eyebrow.

Everyone (Rosie included) stared at me with expectant eyes, telling me I’d already lost.

My cheesy uncle flexed a bicep, winked at it, and said, “Well then, vámonos. Let’s get this hell tour started.”

Time passes differently in other realms like Xib’alb’a, the Old World, and the Empty. What was three hours there could be more like a whole day in the real world—or three seconds. I had to get through the underworld as quickly as possible to (a) reach my dad in time and (b) avoid worrying my mom.