Piper remembered Enceladus’s warning: I’ll show you how easily your rebellious spirit can be brought to earth. Had he managed to strike them down from so far away? It seemed impossible. If he were that powerful, why would he need her to betray her friends when he could just kill them himself? And how could the giant be keeping an eye on her in a snowstorm thousands of miles away?
Leo pointed to the logo on the wall. “As far as where we are …” It was hard to see through the graffiti, but Piper could make out a large red eye with the stenciled words: monocle motors, assembly plant 1.
“Closed car plant,” Leo said. “I’m guessing we crash-landed in Detroit. ”
Piper had heard about closed car plants in Detroit, so that made sense. But it seemed like a pretty depressing place to land. “How far is that from Chicago?”
Jason handed her the canteen. “Maybe three-fourths of the way from Quebec? The thing is, without the dragon, we’re stuck traveling overland. ”
“No way,” Leo said. “It isn’t safe. ”
Piper thought about the way the ground had pulled at her feet in the dream, and what King Boreas had said about the earth yielding up more horrors. “He’s right. Besides, I don’t know if I can walk. And three people—Jason, you can’t fly that many across country by yourself. ”
“No way,” Jason said. “Leo, are you sure the dragon didn’t malfunction? I mean, Festus is old, and—”
“And I might not have repaired him right?”
“I didn’t say that,” Jason protested. “It’s just—maybe you could fix it. ”
“I don’t know. ” Leo sounded crestfallen. He pulled a few screws out of his pockets and started fiddling with them. “I’d have to find where he landed, if he’s even in one piece. ”
“It was my fault. ” Piper said without thinking. She just couldn’t stand it anymore. The secret about her father was heating up inside her like too much ambrosia. If she kept lying to her friends, she felt like she’d burn to ashes.
“Piper,” Jason said gently, “you were asleep when Festus conked out. It couldn’t be your fault. ”
“Yeah, you’re just shaken up,” Leo agreed. He didn’t even try to make a joke at her expense. “You’re in pain. Just rest. ”
She wanted to tell them everything, but the words stuck in her throat. They were both being so kind to her. Yet if Enceladus was watching her somehow, saying the wrong thing could get her father killed.
Leo stood. “Look, um, Jason, why don’t you stay with her, bro? I’ll scout around for Festus. I think he fell outside the warehouse somewhere. If I can find him, maybe I can figure out what happened and fix him. ”
“It’s too dangerous,” Jason said. “You shouldn’t go by yourself. ”
“Ah, I got duct tape and breath mints. I’ll be f
ine,” Leo said, a little too quickly, and Piper realized he was a lot more shaken up than he was letting on. “You guys just don’t run off without me. ”
Leo reached into his magic tool belt, pulled out a flashlight, and headed down the stairs, leaving Piper and Jason alone.
Jason gave her a smile, though he looked kind of nervous. It was the exact expression he’d had on his face after he’d kissed her the first time, up on the Wilderness School dorm roof—that cute little scar on his lip curving into a crescent. The memory gave her a warm feeling. Then she remembered that the kiss had never really happened.
“You look better,” Jason offered.
Piper wasn’t sure if he meant her foot, or the fact that she wasn’t magically beautified anymore. Her jeans were tattered from the fall through the roof. Her boots were splattered with melted dirty snow. She didn’t know what her face looked like, but probably horrible.
Why did it matter? She’d never cared about things like that before. She wondered if it was her stupid mother, the goddess of love, messing with her thoughts. If Piper started getting urges to read fashion magazines, she was going to have to find Aphrodite and smack her.
She decided to focus on her ankle instead. As long as she didn’t move it, the pain wasn’t bad. “You did a good job,” she told Jason. “Where’d you learn first aid?”
He shrugged. “Same answer as always. I don’t know. ”
“But you’re starting to have some memories, aren’t you? Like that prophecy in Latin back at camp, or that dream about the wolf. ”
“It’s fuzzy,” he said. “Like déjà vu. Ever forgotten a word or a name, and you know it should be on the tip of your tongue, but it isn’t? It’s like that—only with my whole life. ”
Piper sort of knew what he meant. The last three months—a life she thought she’d had, a relationship with Jason—had turned out to be Mist.
A boyfriend you never really had, Enceladus had said. Is that more important than your own father?
She should’ve kept her mouth shut, but she voiced the question that had been on her mind since yesterday.
“That photo in your pocket,” she said. “Is that someone from your past?”
Jason pulled back.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “None of my business. Forget it. ”
“No—it’s okay. ” His features relaxed. “Just, I’m trying to figure things out. Her name’s Thalia. She’s my sister. I don’t remember any details. I’m not even sure how I know, but—um, why are you smiling?”
“Nothing. ” Piper tried to kill the smile. Not an old girlfriend. She felt ridiculously happy. “Um, it’s just—that’s great you remembered. Annabeth told me she became a Hunter of Artemis, right?”
Jason nodded. “I get the feeling I’m supposed to find her. Hera left me that memory for a reason. It’s got something to do with this quest. But … I also have the feeling it could be dangerous. I’m not sure I want to find out the truth. Is that crazy?”