Page 53 of Tik-Tok

The water grabbed onto the hull, whipping the ship into its rapid revolution. Spinning, spinning, spinning, drawing them closer to the center at an alarming rate. Sea water sprayed the deck, soaking them all. Wood creaked and groaned. The portal hummed louder and louder until it roared. The sound of perfect chaos.

And there was no escaping it.

Chapter Twenty

North

North stood inside Tik-Tok’s room, gripping the edge of his desk as the boat jostled side to side from the choppy waters. She wanted to go outside and slap him across the face for telling her to stay here. Though she understood why he had. If North chose to, she could easily walk out of the room, but she wouldn’t risk something happening to her—for his sake. There’d been fear in his eyes, an emotion that had reflected her own. If the portal separated her from the crew, how would Tik-Tok get the ship back, if she wasn’t there to control it? She’d made a promise to remain, and she wouldn’t break it until they sailed through the gateway and returned safe.

The boat jerked forward, and she felt it skim the waves as it rocked harder. North didn’t huddle in fear. Instead, she held Tik-Tok’s desk harder and kept her eyes wide open, preparing herself for the unknown.

Tik-Tok had mentioned Salt when he’d rushed into his quarters to check on her after she’d woken. Salt must have found them while she’d been unconscious from overusing her magic. Yet the portal had stayed open, still connected to her. If she hadn’t been so useless, she could have been out there on deck, helping to protect the crew from Tik-Tok’s enemy. It was a male he’d betrayed, but she was on Tik-Tok’s side regardless.

North’s magic pulsed inside her veins, her heart thrumming in sync with it. Her power expanded inside her, and she felt the portal, alive and looming, growing nearer, even though she couldn’t see the Nonestic Ocean as they crossed the barrier. Every fiber, every nerve, twitched while the ship sailed through the maelstrom, rattling, vibrating, as if the wood might crack in half.

North’s hair rose again around her head, her feet lifting up to her toes, the sound of waves thrashing pounding in her ears. She couldn’t tell if the cacophony was from outside the ship or inside her own head. Glass shattered, furniture scraped the floor, and her entire body vibrated.

As if the ocean itself had frozen within her, the movements ceased, her silver hair pooled back around her shoulders. She released her death-grip on the desk. Everything was still and quiet.

They’d gone through the gateway, and she was still here, in one piece. The portal stayed open, churning in a steady circular motion. She could feel her tenuous connection to the magic that kept it in existence. If she wanted it to close, all she needed to do was shut off the violet magic. But she left it on, and she would let that light continue to shine bright until they were ready to go home.

North sucked in a sharp breath as she peered around—fragments of broken glass were sprawled across the floor near the cabinets, Tik-Tok’s bed was now near the middle of his room, and papers from his desk had scattered everywhere. She rushed to the door and flung it open at the same time Tik-Tok seemed to be reaching for the handle from the outside.

His wild gaze locked on hers. “You’re safe.”

“I think so.” Her eyes widened when she took in the dark gray sky filled with black clouds. A putrid smell hit her senses, like rotting meat. She cupped her nose and mouth with her hand. “What is this place?”

“My father’s home.” He motioned at the air. “It fits him rather well.”

North brushed past Tik-Tok on the slick, debris-free deck, and made her way to the handrail.

Her lips parted as she peered down at the water. The sea was so blue it was almost black. The liquid rippled—small bubbles popped at the surface, oozing a deep brown. North was certain the foul odor was from the sea itself, which appeared to be a thicker consistency than water.

As she looked out farther, the dingy green shore stretched across the horizon. A dark forest filled the land, and black smoke curled up from the tops of the tall trees. She squinted to see if she could see anything between the slits of the trunks, but the ship was too far from shore.

Tik-Tok’s boots sounded behind her. He pressed up beside her, letting one arm dangle over the rail as he clutched his compass in the other. Holding it out, he watched as the arrow spun and spun, never slowing, until it did, right at the shore before spinning once more. “Now that we’re here, I don’t want to waste any time finding my father. It’s dangerous to stay too long.”

“I wish I could go with you.” She stared out at the portal, still swirling a few yards away, its purple light shimmering. Within the dark water, it appeared like a beacon, waiting for fae to be drawn in. The sea witch had told Tik-Tok that if the portal didn’t remain open, they would never return to Oz, and that thought made North’s heart beat harder—she didn’t want to let Tik-Tok and the crew—hercrew—down. She took a deep swallow, steeling herself.

“No, you don’t.” Tik-Tok clenched his jaw. “My father ruined my life. I know I’ve made vile choices in my past to seek revenge, but I can’t apologize for it.”

“Even for taking me from the Emerald City?” North arched a brow.

“Especially that.” He smirked.

North’s cheeks heated. But a part of her felt awful for it because the fae of Oz had all been worried, searching for her. At least Crow would have told them to halt the search after he’d spoken to her. Perhaps sometimes it was all right to be selfish, though.

“What about Salt? Are you worried about him?”

“Don’t worry about him.” Tik-Tok sighed. “As soon as we go back through the portal, he’ll be there, waiting. I may need you to use the ocean against him, so we can make a clean break.”

“I can do that.” North smiled at the thought of being useful instead of sitting back and doing nothing. As she realized what Tik-Tok would be doing next, a scowl formed on her face. “You’re not going alone, are you?”

“I am.” He nodded toward the ropes holding the rowboat.

A squelching sound came from somewhere within the sea’s depths, and she suppressed a shudder at what might be lurking below the surface. He couldn’t take the small boat without knowing what lay hidden in the murky waters. It could be nothing, but it could also besomething.

“You’re not rowing,” North said, her voice serious, leaving no room for argument. “Take Respen. He can whirl you to the shore and then to your father. It’s faster than walking the entire world to find him.”

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