Keeping Me (Spy Chronicles Book 2)(34)

I swallow hard. “I think I’d rather train.”

I hear laughter and see all the guys come in—Gage, Sebastian, and Brett. Hunter and Jaxon had to leave on an assignment. It’s weird how our numbers keep getting fewer and fewer.

“Who do you want to jump with?” Dad asks.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“Jumping from an airplane isn’t just about overcoming fear. It’s about trust. Who do you trust to pull the parachute open in time?” Dad asks.

I look over at the guys.

Gage is better now. He’s still a little pale, but he’s been slowly recovering. He is getting stronger every day. I don’t think it would be good for him to jump from a plane, to be honest.

Brett is also pale. There is even moisture on his forehead. And I remember what Dad said about him being scared of heights. There is no way I would force him to jump with me.

Which leaves me with Sebastian. To be honest, I’d choose him over anybody else in the world. But right now, with things being weird between us, maybe I should choose somebody else. But I realize I can’t. It has to be him.

“I trust all of them,” I say. “But if I’m jumping from a plane with anybody, it’s gonna be Sebastian.”

I can hear Brett sigh with relief even from where I’m standing.

“Why is that?” Dad asks.

“Because if Sebastian is there, I won’t be as nervous,” I say, which is surprisingly honest.

“And that is how teams are formed at Spy School,” Dad says. “It’s how you decide who you’re going to work with. By trust.”

“What if I said I wanted to jump alone?”

“Then you’d be on a solo team. Of which we have plenty. Sebastian jumped solo.”

“After many hours of training,” Bass says.

Just hours?

“Are you okay jumping with me, then?” I ask. “I mean, you wouldn’t rather I pick somebody else?”

“I want to jump with you,” he says.

“Okay, then,” I say, and then look at Dad. “So, I really have to do this, then?”

Dad nods.

“It’s actually kind of fun,” Bass says.

“Says the boy who isn’t afraid of anything,” I say.

“After today, you won’t be scared of jumping from a plane, either,” he says.

“You think after jumping from a plane once I won’t be scared anymore?”

“We’re not jumping once,” Sebastian says. “We’re jumping five times today.”

I look at my dad. “No. Dad, no. I can’t. I don’t even want to do it once.”

Dad narrows his eyes at Sebastian before turning to me. “How about this. Jump once. If you want to stop, then we will. But eventually you will have to go back up there. Besides, Sebastian is right. It’s fun. I think you’ll enjoy it.”

Enjoy jumping for an airplane?

He’s insane.





What is scarier?





And hour later, I am in an airplane, strapped to Sebastian. I look hesitantly over the edge of the plane and squeeze my eyes shut.

“Sebastian, I can't do this,” I tell him through the microphone.

“Yes, you can,” he says.

“Maybe I can, but I don't want to,” I say.

“I thought you wanted to graduate from Spy School.”

“I do. But what does jumping from a plane have to do with being a spy?”

“You’re facing your fear,” Bass says. “You're not just facing it. You're conquering it. Tell me, what is scarier than jumping from an airplane?”

I don't respond.

Because right now, looking over the edge, I can't think of anything scarier.

“Exactly,” Sebastian says. “Nothing bad is going to happen. We have the best equipment there is. And I'm with you. I promise I will protect you.”

Protect me while we’re plunging thousands of feet towards our death?

I lick my dry lips and nod my head. I know there is no way out of this. I have to do it. So, I might as well just suck it up. “Okay. Let's do it.”

“You're going to have to jump,” Bass says.

I take another breath. “Okay.”

“On the count of three. One—two—three.”

We jump on three.

The first thing I feel is a complete weightlessness that takes over my body. There is no sound. There is nothing. But just as quickly, everything comes rushing back. I want to scream, but I can't. I'm terrified.

Then I open my eyes.

We've been in New Zealand for over a month now, but I haven't quite gotten used to the beauty. I can see some snow on the mountains off in a distance. Today is a sunny day, which is a nice change from all the rain we've been getting lately. And I'm not scared anymore. It's actually kind of fun. Nice.

All of a sudden, our free falling is stopped and I feel a jerk as we pull up.

Sebastian pulled the parachute.

I'm glad that I'm here with him. There is nobody in the world I'd rather be with for this experience.

Maybe it’s because we knew each other as babies. Maybe it's because we already had a connection. I don’t understand that connection, but something about Sebastian is so... comforting. He makes me feel safe. I just worry that he will get called off on a different mission, like everybody else. I don't want him to leave.