Clockwork Twist : Missing (28 page)

Everyone went back to tending their own lines, while Skye and Jonas searched for the best catch. By the time the sun began to set, and with pointers from Jonas, everyone had managed to catch enough fish to feed a village for a day. The crew set sail back to shore, while some of the fish were prepared to be grilled along the way. The crew also boiled a pot of white, moist, Japanese-style rice on the stove in the hold, and brought out plenty of dark, sticky, sweet or salty sauces.

The huge, four-foot-long fish that Jonas and Skye managed to catch—with the help of most of the crew—and the rest of the other fish were packed in salt so that they would keep. When the cooked fish was ready to eat, everyone gathered together in the center of the deck and sat down to eat on whatever crates, barrels, or open decking they could find.

“Oh, I’m gonna be sore in the morning,” Skye muttered, rubbing at her arms. “First re-entry, and then fishing for whales. This man’s turning me into a bodybuilder!” she said, throwing a shove at Jonas’s shoulder. He laughed to himself but didn’t seem at all put out by the rough gesture.

“Damn it, she’ll flirt with everyone but me,” Vane grumbled, glaring at Skye.

“He’s cuter than you,” Skye said, hooking a thumb at Jonas before looking back to the meal in her bowl.

“Yeah…” Vane said, looking at Jonas thoughtfully. “He is, isn’t he?”

“Don’t,” Twist said sharply, pointing with a fork.

“What did I do?” Vane asked, looking affronted.

“If you put my face on, I’ll tear it off,” Jonas said, brandishing a fist but not looking directly at Vane.

In one flashing instant, Vane’s face vanished into an exact copy of Jonas’s. He stuck his tongue out at the real Jonas and then changed his face back to normal just as quickly, with a subtle shade of black smoke. Monti, Kima, Alistair and his friends, and the sailors all stared at the transformation in shock.

“Jonas, he just—” Twist said, pointing.

“Shut up!” Vane hissed at him, reaching out a hand to slap at his arm.

Twist jumped away in plenty of time, colliding with Jonas. Jonas wrapped one arm around Twist’s shoulders as they both laughed. Myra giggled too, watching Twist with a pleased smile. Skye shook her head and looked back to her meal.

“So where are you guys headed next?” Skye asked, glancing up to Twist. “I’ve got a couple weeks of vacation coming up,” she added with a wink.

“Well, not Japan,” Twist said with a sigh. “The idea that the place is filled with dragons and underground fairy clubs is too bizarre.”

“If you want to stay away from fairies, then stay out of the west too,” Vane offered, picking at his fish with two long, thin, pointed sticks.

“You know where I want to go?” Jonas asked wistfully, looking to Twist. Twist gave a curious tone. “Hawaii. Best surfing on the globe, this time of year.”

“Where is that?” Myra asked brightly.

“Its a big chain of tropical islands halfway from here to California,” Jonas said, gesturing at the Pacific Ocean. “Lots of nice beaches, great waves, big forests full of fantastic fruit trees, and hardly any people at all.”

“It sounds like paradise,” Twist said brightly.

“Oh, it does sound nice!” Myra said with a smile. “I like islands.”

“Wait, you surf?” Skye asked Jonas.

“Sure, he loves it,” Twist answered before Jonas could.

“All right, then that’s it,” Skye said decisively. “We’re going to Hawaii. Twist will get a tan, Myra will figure out which fruits he likes best, and Jonas will teach me to surf.”

“Oh, that does sound nice…” Arabel said wistfully. She looked at her brother with a wide smile. “Fresh pineapples…” she added lusciously.

“You would like a fruit that’s covered in thorns,” Jonas muttered. Arabel swatted at him with a hand, but his face took on a smile even as she did.

“How about me?” Storm asked sheepishly.

“Ask your mother,” Jonas said.

Kima’s head popped up suddenly, as if she hadn’t been paying much attention until now. “What’s happening?” she asked.

“Mom, can I go to Hawaii with Twist and Jonas?” Storm asked eagerly.

Kima looked to Jonas.

Jonas very nearly caught her gaze and gave a shrug. “Oh, why not? Come along with us, Kima. I think we all deserve a holiday.”

Kima seemed to consider this silently, still looking at Jonas after he’d looked away. Storm, meanwhile, watched for her reply with taut attention. Kima gave a shrug and a smile. Storm cheered as if he'd just won a magnificent prize.

“Me too?” Vane asked brightly.

Twist, Jonas, and Skye all looked at him with suspicion.

“I don’t know…” Twist toned uncertainly.

Vane gave a sigh and dropped his chin into a hand.

“There, there,” Storm said gently to him, patting his fluffy black tail. “I like you.” Vane looked down at the boy’s hand on his tail and then up to his bright-pink eyes.

“Really?” he asked softly.

“Sure!” Storm said with a smile. “I think you’re funny.”

“You’re a good boy,” Vane said, reaching up to ruffle Storm’s hair fondly.

“Right, chaps,” Alistair said, leaning closer to his friends who sat silently together, watching. “What we’ve got to do is come up with something to tell everyone back home. Because no one will believe a word of this,” he added with a gesture to everyone else on the boat.

Twist shook his head, smiling softly. He had to give Alistair credit for accepting all that he had. When things in his own life were at their strangest, Twist had found that he could only handle a finite amount of chaos before he had to start ignoring things just to carry on. Even so, he suddenly realized that he had survived.

He’d weathered the storm and made it home. He’d found his limits, and they were much wider apart than he’d expected them to be. He also now knew that crossing them wouldn’t kill him. With Myra to lighten his world and Jonas to stand beside him, the thought of facing more chaos again in the future didn’t frighten him at all. The world seemed to open before his eyes, and he watched his limits evaporate into the twilight sky.

~ oOo ~

Congratulations!

You've just made it to the end of the fourth book in the Clockwork Twist series, you intrepid darling, you. I don't know about you, but I'm awfully relieved that it all worked out in the end. Have a cup of tea and rest up, because Twist's journey is far from over! Don't bother unpacking just yet, because Twist, Myra, and Jonas will be off around the world once again with Book Five: Inquest, departing in 2016…

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The Clockwork Twist Series thus far:

Book One: Waking

Book Two: Trick

Book Three: Dreamer

Book Four: Missing

Book Five: Inquest (2016)