Page 66 of Totally Shipped
In my dream, I’m giving birth to the baby, but I’m out at sea, back on the Mary-Mo.
“Daisy, Daisy.”
“Is it time to push?”
“Daisy!”
Keyara was shouting at me. Why was Key in charge? Where were the guys?
“DAISY!”
I wake with a jerk. Oh, right. Not in labor, and still on the island.
“What’s up, Key?” I ask as I rub my eyes.
“You’ve got to look outside.”
I haul myself to my feet with a groan. My legs ache, my back aches. Being pregnant and not having a bed to sleep in is no joke.
Outside, it’s like someone has thrown a bucket of inky-purple paint all over the sky. The wind is whipping up as well.
“The sky, Daisy…”
“Yeah, it looks a little rough, doesn’t it, darling.”
“No, you don’t understand. The sky.”
As I squint at the horizon, I wonder if it’s my imagination, or whether I am really seeing waterspouts.
“You know, Key, I think this might be a good time to practice our cyclone drill.”
Why does this have to happen when the guys aren’t here!
Key is immediately in action, pulling on her battered jelly shoes, then piling our cooking things into the shelter and grabbing water bottles.
I pocket the fire starter and fill a woven basket with food. Two minutes later we’re ready, just as sheets of rain start pounding us.
“COME ON!” Key yells. Now she reallyisthe one in charge.
The wind is so loud and the trees bend and creak. This really could be a cyclone; I really flipping hope not.
Key and I plunge into the jungle; the ground is already getting sodden and my boots sink into the soft loam. We can’t panic—if we panic, one of us might get hurt. We just need to carefully make our way to the retreat. It doesn’t take many yards until I’m breathless and panting. The baby started taking up my lung space two weeks back. I see a long stick leaning against a tree and use it as a cane.
It’s dark under the jungle canopy, and rain pours off the leaves like overhead hoses on full blast. I wipe the wet from my face and check in on Key. She’s grim, but determined, and gives me a thumbs up.
One step after another we plow forward. I’m a little worried we’ll lose our way; everything looks so different right now. I stop by a massive tree trunk. The path splits around it.
“This way,” Keyara yells, tugging on my shirt and pointing to the left.
“Are you sure?”
She nods. Flipping fiddlesticks, I follow Key’s directions and trust her sense of direction.
We keep walking. I’m beyond exhausted, and my back hurts so much. I didn’t think the cave was this far from the beach.
“I have to stop,” I gasp.
“We have to go!” Key tugs me.
