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I squirm out of Kingsley’s hold and run for the door. I make it to the deck to find my youngest daughter wrapped around the unicorn’s neck. The ship bucks, flinging me to the deck. Paxton flops down atop the unicorn’s back and tries her best to cling. Somehow, the unicorn is not going anywhere despite having hooves and standing on smooth steel.
Magic. Right. I should stop asking questions. Physics doesn’t exist here.
I fight my way back to my feet and gaze in horrified awe off to the side. The sea is raging around us. Snaps of lightning strike the water intermittently at varying distances away.
“Pax!” I shout while sprinting to her.
She doesn’t let go of the unicorn, so I end up clinging to her protectively.
“I’m okay, Ma.”
“You two should get off the deck. The weather’s too bad.”
Paxton shakes her head. “No. If it sinks, I don’t wanna be stuck downstairs.”
Sigh. She’s got the same fear as me. I rub her back. “We’re not going to sink.”
Kiddo makes a ‘thanks for trying to make me feel better’ face at me.
“Pax,” says Tammy from the bridge door. “If we made it to Thelmora, why doesn’t she seem happy?”
The unicorn shakes her head, making her mane swish side to side. Her huge, glowing blue eyes brim with fear.
“Because we made a wrong turn,” says Paxton above the wind. “This is the shadow world.”
“We did not make the turn wrong.” Maple zips out into view, her voice significantly louder than what ought to come from such a small body.
“Then what did?” I ask.
Thud.
The Bonnie Lass shifts hard to the side as if something massive and unseen in the depths below rammed into us. Tammy mostly falls, dangling by a two-handed grip on the bridge door. I go flying off Paxton and ram shoulder first into a giant metal box. Ouch.
“Uh oh,” says Tammy. “That can’t be good.”
Chapter Nineteen
From Bad to Worse
Understatement of the year award goes to Tammy Moon.
‘That’s not good’ indeed.
Seconds after something large rammed into the ship with enough force to shove it sideways, multiple black tentacles rise out of the water all around us. I’m calling them ‘tentacles,’ but they’d give California Redwoods a run for their money in a size competition.
Tammy drops a few f-bombs.
I’m going to let it slide. If any situations deserve an f-bomb or two, this is probably one of them.
Anthony races up the stairs from below decks, takes one look at the tentacles, and sighs. “Well, this just got complicated.”
Paxton looks as if she really wants to scream, but she’s too scared to make a noise.
“Now what?” Tammy pulls herself upright.
“Good question.” I also stand. “No one’s ever truly prepared for a giant squid.”
“I don’t think that’s a squid,” says Anthony.
