Page 77 of Ramshackle
There’s a low chuckle beside me. “I’ve got you, little one.” And then I’m airborne, shooting almost to the ceiling before gliding down to the tub in a controlled descent.
I wrap one arm around Jackson while watching the scene below. Kellan finishes dumping Dane over the side and offers his hands to Aiden so he can step on. The betting guy, Silas, is being placed in the tub by a set of vines coming out of something on the floor. The rest, aside from Evie and Reid, are already inside.
I remove my arm from Jack once we’ve landed, but I keep close. How do you prepare for something you know is going to happen but have no reference for?
Kellan and Dane move to stand with us. Kell rubs the back of his head while his other hand rests on his hip. “Don’t worry about the shrinking. She’s done that to me a few times. You won’t even notice it. It’s the teleportation that sucks.”
Great.
The tub jolts beneath us, and I stumble. Jackson tucks me against him as everything moves back and forth, up and down, like we’re on a ship on the rough seas. Dane and Kellan are falling this way and that, catching themselves before they wind up on their hands and knees, but nowhere near stable like Jack’s been keeping me.
I look up, and Evie’s face fills my view as she peers down at us like a giant with her box of toys. What’s most disconcerting is the fact that she’s keeping us relatively stable, but the slightest movement she makes has a massive impact on us in the tub.
“Ready?” Reid’s stoic voice booms.
Silas is lying down like a starfish. I can’t tell if that’s in preparation for the teleport or to avoid falling from the tub’s movement. Harvey looks like a newborn foal on his shaking hands and knees, while the guy that’sstilleating is sitting inone of the corners with his legs crossed. Aiden’s leaning a hand against one wall, looking like he’s got the hang of balance, and Tinsley—with her gift of speed—is making a mockery of everyone else with her quick adjustments.
“Ready,” Evie replies, her voice just as loud.
My stomach drops as the world tilts, but then I blink and the training room has disappeared. Seagulls screech piercingly overhead. The smell of salt is thick, coating my tongue and clogging my lungs.
“That wasn’t so bad at this size,” Kellan remarks almost excitedly.
Dane coughs, covering his nose and grumbling, “Traveling in the tub probably helped, too. But being small makes everything else suck.”
I grit my teeth, slapping my hand over my mouth as my stomach roils from the overwhelming smell and motion sickness combined. That, and the nauseating reminders of where I’d been not long ago.
The beach.
Another island.
Panic jolts through my muscles like electricity, seizing my body with fear.
Fuck. Keep it together. If I mess this up now, Aiden won’t let me come again.
Jackson pulls my face into him, his arms wrapping around me tight. I can’t see anything but the black of his hoodie. The smell of dead leaves and crisp air battles for space in my lungs. My hands cling to the fabric. I take another breath of him. And another. Each one pushing the ocean air out and letting him in.
Then it’s gone completely, and I sigh in relief.
“You alright, beautiful?”
“Rae! Was it the teleporting?”
Jack releases me, and I turn to face Kellan and Dane while keeping one arm linked to him like a lifeline. “I’m fine.” I realize my senses are no longer being overwhelmed, and when I scan the tub, we’re the only ones still in it. Well, us and Aiden who’s walking over.
“What happened?” he asks.
“Nothing. Just a bit woozy from the trip,” I lie, not wanting to ruin the plan.
Aiden’s eyes narrow.
Please don’t call me out on it, for once.
“We need to hurry out of here and start the mission before we’re seen. I can have Evie shrink you back down, and you can ride in my pocket if you’re not up for this.” Aiden holds his hand out to me, and I stare at it.
What?!
“If anyone’s going to carry a miniature Raegan around, it should be me,” Kellan argues. “You’re on team offense, Aiden. And same goes for Dane. She’ll be safer with me.”
