WE SPENT ONE MORE DAY ON THE AMTRAK. Personally, I thought that was one day too many. I was feeling miserable, and gross (we hadn't showed since Half-Blood Hill, after all), and like everyone was watching us. To say I was relieved to get off the train was an understatement. Sure, none of these things disappeared, but at least I wasn't trapped on a train with people who might call me a fugitive. 

"Let's try to contact Chiron," Annabeth said as we left the station. "I want to tell him about your talk with the river spirit."

"We can't use phones, right?" Percy said. 

"I'm not talking about phones." 

Oh, right. I'm an idiot, we're thirteen chapters in and I haven't even mentioned the phone rule. I don't know exactly how it works. Apparently, phones turn demigods into a sort of monster-beacon. They're already drawn to our scent whenever we're around. But using a phone, it's like taking that tasty demigod scene and blasting it for a mile around you. A big, flashing red, EAT ME! sign. 

We wandered through down town for about half an hour. The air was dry and hot. I kept stopping to down the canteen of water because I felt like I was about to shrivel up into a prune. The Rocky Mountains loomed over us from every direction. 

Finally, Annabeth found what she wanted. An empty do-it-yourself car wash. 

She lead us to the stall farthest from the street, where we'd be hidden from patrol cars. It wasn't even about our wanted status. Most kids don't hang out in a car wash without a car; most cops would decide we were up to no good (at which point they would definitely realize our wanted status.) 

"What exactly are we doing?" Percy asked.

"More importantly, does it involve using that thing for a shower?" I added as Grover took out the spray gun. 

He ignored me. "It's seventy-five cents. I've only got two quarts left. Annabeth?"

"Don't look at me," she said. "The dining car wiped me out." 

I was pretty much the same, since much of the money we had used was what I had saved in our bag. I had a few dollars, but we wanted to save those for something like food that would be weird to pay for in coins. Percy had some change, though, and he was able to hand Grover the last quarter he needed. 

"Excellent," Grover said. "We could do it with a spray bottle, of course, but the connection isn't as good, and my arm gets tired of pumping."

"What are you talking about?" Percy asked. I was guessing it wasn't to dose ourselves. 

He fed the quarters and set the knob to FINE MIST. "I-M'ing."

"Instant messaging?" I asked. "With water?"

"Iris-messaging," Annabeth corrected. "The rainbow goddess Iris carries messages for the gods. If you know how to ask, and she's not too busy, she'll do the same for half-bloods."

"You summon the goddess with a spray gun?" Percy asked. 

"It's for a rainbow," I guessed.

Last summer, I made extra cash washing people's cars. Whenever I got bored I would use the hose to make rainbows. It was easy – you just sprayed it out into the sunlight, where it would reflect through the mist of the water. 

Grove nodded. He pointed the nozzle in the air. In the late afternoon light, the mist turned into a glittering wave of color. 

Annabeth held her palm out to Percy. "Drachma, please."

He anded it over.

She raised the coin over her head. "O goddess, accept our offering."

Please, I added mentally. Annabeth threw the drachma into the rainbow. It disappeared in a golden shimmer, which I hoped was a good sign. 

"Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested. 

For a moment, nothing happened. 

Then, suddenly, the rainbow turned into a strawberry field. I could see the Long Island Sound in the distance. It was like we were standing on the porch of the Big House. Next to us was a sandy-haired guy in shorts and an orange tank top. He seemed to be staring at something intently at something down in the meadow. 

I realized who it was almost instantly. 

"Luke!" Percy called. 

He turned. His eyes widened when he saw us. The rainbow was like a window in the wall of reality. I could only see the parts on him that appeared in the rainbow, but it was as clear as if he was standing right there. 

"Percy! Attie!" Luke's face broke into a grin. "Is that Annabeth, too? Thank the gods! Are you guys okay?"

"We're...uh...fine," Annabeth stammered. She was madly trying to look presentable, straightening her dirty shirt and combing the loose hair out of her face. "We thought – Chiron – I mean –"

"He's with PB, down at the cabins." Luke's smile faded. I remembered them talking in my dream. "We're having some issues with the campers. Listen, is everything cool with you? Is Grover all right?"

"I'm right here," Grover called. He held the nozzle out just enough that he could step into Luke's line of vision. "What kind of issues?"

Just then a big Lincoln Continental pulled into the stall next to us. The music was blasting so loud that the subwoofers were shaking the pavement and I could feet the beat in my chest. 

"Chiron had to – what's that noise?" Luke yelled. 

"I'll take care of it!" Annabeth yelled back. She looked relieved to have chance to leave. "Grover, come on."

Grover tried to protest, but all it got him was dragged away. He barely had time to hand the spray gun over to me without fumbling it. I readjusted so that I could still see Luke. Pretty sure I was out of frame, but personally that served me fine. I looked like...well, like I had dropped into a river a day ago. 

"Chiron had to break up a fight," Luke shouted over the music. "Things are pretty tense here. Word leaked out about the Zeus-Poseidon standoff. We're still not sure how – probably the same scumbag who summoned the hellhound. Now the campers are starting to take sides. It's shaping up like the Trojan War all over again. Aphrodite, Ares, and Apollo are backing Poseidon, more or less. Athena is backing Zeus." 

I almost asked who the Hermes kids were following, but I was took scared to hear the answer. Annabeth and some guy were arguing in the stall over. The music's volume decreased from teeth-rattling-from-a-mile-away to just ear-destroying-inside-the-car.

"So what's your status?" Luke asked me. "Chiron will be sorry he missed you."

"Oh, you know. The usual. Lots of monsters, lots of screaming," I tried to sound dismissive. "But we're making good progress, and I got this really sick scar."

I shifted my grip on the spray gun so I could show him my arm. I don't know why. Truth was, thinking about how cool a story it would be once this was all over was pretty much the only way I could keep myself from throwing up every time I looked at the scar and remembered I could have died. That I still could. Any second. 

That...was a scary thought. 

I guess Luke made the same realization. His face fell even harder. I quickly mumbled something about how it wasn't that bad to make him feel better, but I don't think it worked. Percy explained the rest of the trip, including his dreams. I only cut in again to tell him about the dream I'd had of PB and Chiron, since Percy didn't know about that (or, well, he knew of it but not...you get the idea.) 

"PB, of course..." Luke muttered. He seemed lost in thought for a moment. "I just hope she's not gotten into something bad."

So did I. I instinctively reached for my hand, before remembering I had lost my mood ring. 

"I wish I could be there," Luke said. "We can't help much from here, I'm aria, but listen...it had to be Hades who took the master bolt. He was there at Olympus at the winter solstice. I was chaperoning a field trip and we saw him." 

"That's true," Luke said. He looked troubled. "Still...Hades has the helm of darkness. How could anybody else sneak into the throne room and steal the the master bolt? You'd have to be invisible."

Or a really good thief, I thought, but I doubted that matched anyone's description. Most of the demigods I had seen were just kids. Kids with ADHD – not exactly the stealthiest. 

"Oh, hey," Luke protested, as if we'd accused him of something. "I didn't mean Annabeth. She and I have known each other forever. She would never...I mean, she's like a little sister to me."

I tilted my head, confused. Personally I hadn't gotten that implication at all (though Percy says that's just because I'm oblivious. Whatever. Maybe you're just paranoid.) 

In the stall next to us, the music stopped completely. A man screamed in terror, car doors slammed, and the Lincoln peeled out of the car wash. 

"You'd better go see what that was," Luke said. "Listen, are you wearing the flying shoes? I'll feel better if I know they've done you some good."

"Lots of good, actually," I said. "Grover –" 

I was about to tell him about Grover's awesome flying, when Percy interrupted. "Yeah, they've come in handy."

I narrowed my eyes at him. Percy was never good at lying. Especially when he felt really bad about it. I realized he had probably promised that he, personally would wear the magic sneakers. Realistically we could never get away with it. But it seemed to mean a lot to Luke, and Percy probably didn't want to upset him. 

"Really?" Luke grinned. "They fit and everything?"

I nodded. 

The water shut off. The mist started evaporate. 

"Well, take care of yourself out there in Denver," Luke called. His voice was getting fainter. "And tell Grover it'll be better this time! Nobody will get turned into a pine tree if he just –"

But the mist was gone, and his image faded into nothing. I was getting really tired of that happening. 

Annabeth and Grover came around the corner. They were laughing until they spotted us. Annabeth's smile faded, "What happened? What did Luke said."

"Not much," Percy said.

"Trouble at camp," I said at the same time, before I could think. When I did, I realized what a stupid move that was. Still, I was forced to explain, "Apparently people found out about the whole Zeus-Poseidon thing."

Annabeth's face paled. It didn't take much to figure out what that meant for her. 

"Come on," Percy said. He sounded as exhausted as I felt. "Let's fine some dinner."

♆

I MADE A PAINFUL REALIZATION. We had run out of food in my bag. Well, I mean, there were chips, but they had been crushed into dust between the multiple times I had fallen on my back. There was nothing to make a meal out of and, honestly, I was sick of surviving off four Doritos a day. 

So, a few minutes alter, we ended up in a diner. All around us, families were eating burgers and drinking malts and sodas. My stomach started trying to eat itself in protest of the sight. 

Finally the waitress came over to us. She studied us for a moment. "Well?"

Percy cleared his throat. "We, um, want to order dinner."

"You kids have money to pay for it?"

Grover's lower lip quivered. Annabeth looked like she would pass out. I tried to save the day, but I was only able to fish out five bucks, which maybe buy one of us a burger. And Grover was vegetarian. 

A rumble shook the whole building. I turned to see a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the curb. Everyone fell silent. The motorcycles headlight glared read. Its tank had flames painted on it, and a shotgun holster rented to their side – guns included. The seat was leather...or what I hope is leather...because it look uncomfortably like human skin. 

The rider fit the bike. He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knife strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and the sort of face you ran away from. The kind of guy that got type casted as serial killers in horror movies. 

I recognized him. He looked like an eviler version of Clarisse, or Veerle if she bulked up and hated everyone. Ares. 

As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind came with him. The other customers rose as one, then sat down again when he waved his hand dismissively at him. Everyone went back to their conversations. The waitress blinked, as if she just snapped of out a daze. She asked us again, "You kids have money to pay for it?"

Ares said, "It's on me."

He slide into our booth. It was way too small for him – Annabeth was crowded against the window in a booth Percy, Grover, and Attie sat in easily. (Don't ask why I wasn't sitting with Annabeth. I sat down first, and Percy and Grover sat next to me.) 

When the waitress took to long, Ares glared up at her and said, "Are you still here?"

He pointed at her, and she stiffened. She turned as if she'd been spun around, then marched back toward the kitchen. 

Ares looked at us. I bit my tongue. When he first showed up, I'd hoped he might be cool. I mean, not all bikers are evil, and Veerle had proven that being his kid didn't make you evil either. But at once I was hit with a wave of anger. 

It was the same feeling I got whenever Gabe cropped up with one of his insane demands that really only existed to get us in trouble: furious, but painfully aware I couldn't do anything but sit there and stew until I felt like I was going to explode. 

"So, you're old Seaweed's kids, huh?" Ares gave us a wicked grin. 

I dug my nails into the leather seat and forced myself to nod. 

"What's it to you?" Percy snapped. 

Annabeth's eyes flashed a warning. "Percy, this is –"

Ares raised his hand. 

"S'okay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's the boss. You know who I am, little cousins."

"Ares," I said flatly. 

I probably could have said more, but I felt like whatever came out of my mouth next was something Mom really wouldn't approve of. 

"You're Clarisse's dad," Percy added. 

Ares grinned and took off his shades. Instead of eyes, he had empty sockets filled with glowing flames. "That's right, punk. I heard you broke Clarisse's spear. And you –" He pointed in my direction. I looked around, hoping he wasn't actually talking to me. "– Veerle's told me about you."

I remembered the day in the forest. Veerle hadn't seemed too upset, but I had no idea what she might have told her dad about me. 

"It was an accident," I said quickly. "I wasn't trying to drown her or anything."

Ares scoffed. "Should'a done it on purpose. That kids needs learn to fight." 

"And Clarisse..."

"She was asking for it," Percy snapped. 

I elbowed him. Come on! 

Ares didn't seem too bothered, though. In the same dismissive tone, he said, "Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights, you know? What I'm here for – I heard you were in town. I got little proposition for you two."

Oh boy. A proposition. 

The waitress came back with heaping trays of food – cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, and chocolate shakes. Starving and with nothing else to busy my hands with (R.I.P mood ring. I got another, but still...), I went right for the food. 

Cheeseburgers, I thought. 

Grover could talk to those, my brain said. 

Ew, shut up.   

I bet they were friendly. 

I decided to stick to the onion rings and shake. 

While I was busy with my moral crisis, Ares handed the waitress a few gold drachmas. She looked nervously at the coins. When she started to protest, he pulled out his knife and started cleaning his fingernails. 

"Problem, sweetheart?" Ares asked, like he wasn't blatantly threatening her. 

The waitress swallowed, then left with the gold. The anger, that had dulled as I grew used to Ares, flared up again. I swallowed hard to keep from snapping at him. 

Percy did not. "You can't do that," he told Ares. "You can't just threaten people with a knife." 

Gabe would have knocked him flat. Ares just laughed. "Are you kidding? I love this country. Best place since Sparta. Don't you carry a weapon, punk? You should. Dangerous world out there. Which brings me to my proposition. I need you to do me a favor." 

"What favor could we do for a god?"

"Something a dog doesn't have time to do himself. It's nothing much. I left my shield at an abandoned water park here in town. I was on a little...date with my girlfriend –" How'd you get a girlfriend? I almost asked. Almost. " – We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me." 

"Why don't you go back and get it yourself?" 

The fire in Ares's eye sockets glowed a little hotter. I wondered if he was going to start shooting laser beams. I wouldn't be surprised. 

"Why don't I turn you into a prairie dog and run you over with my Harley? Because I don't feel like it. A god is giving you an opportunity to prove yourself, Percy Jackson. Will you prove yourself a coward?" He leaned forward. "Or maybe you only fight when there's a river to dive into, so your daddy can protect you."

I tensed. I could feel my eyes burning, like I was going to start crying, the way I always did when I got too frustrated. My first instinct was to defend myself. We had fought the Furies, the Minotaur, and the Medusa without the river. We didn't even know we could reach the Mississippi river when we fought Echidna. Guys like Ares, they weren't going to listen to explanations. They just want you to get upset. 

"We're not interested," Percy said. "We've already got a quest."

Ares's fire eyes flashed. Percy paled. "I know all about your quest, punk. When that item was first stolen, Zeus sent his best out looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis, and me, naturally. If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that powerful..." He licked his lips. "Well...if I couldn't find it, you got no hope. Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told him my suspicions about old Corpse Breath."

"You did?" I blurted out. I cleared my throat. "I mean, of course you did. You're the war guy." 

"It's the oldest trick the book," Ares said. "Framing somebody to start a war. I recognized it immediately. In a way, you got me to thank for your little quest."

"Thanks," Percy grumbled. 

If Ares noticed the sarcasm, he didn't acknowledge it. "Hey, I'm a generous guy. Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your friends."

I narrowed my eyes. On one hand, if it was just getting a shield, this was a great offer. On the other, this was feeling way too easy. Right as we were failing, Ares swoops in with an easy offer for help? In what world? 

"We're doing fine on our own," Percy said. 

"Yeah, right. No money. No wheels. No clue what you're up against. Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something about your mom." 

Wait, what? I glanced at Percy, trying to read his expression. There's no way Ares could be serious. What could he possibly tell us? 

"My mom?" Percy echoed. 

Ares grinned. "That got your attention. The water part is a mile west on Delaney. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride." 

"What interrupted your date," Percy said. I glared at him hard, hoping I could somehow will him into realizing he was seriously pushing it. "Something scare you off?"

Ares bared his teeth. "You're lucky you met me, punk, and not one of the other Olympians. They're not as forgiving of rudeness as I am. I'll meet you back here when you're done. Don't disappoint me."

Then he was gone. I blinked, confused. It wasn't like he disappeared or he walked away or something. That I feel like I would have noticed. He was just gone, like he'd never been there in the first place. Even his motorcycle was gone. 

"Not good," Grover said. "Grover sought you two out. This is not good."

I chewed on one of the onion rings. When was anything good for us? The anger Ares had caused drained away with his disappearance, but there were feelings still left over. I eyes were still burning and my throat ached from holding back sobs. It was embarrassing. I wasn't sad. I was angry, and bitter, and frustrated with everyone around me. So why had I wanted to burst into tears? Why couldn't I shout at someone or make some snarky, clever comment without choking up? 

"It's probably some kind of trick. Forget Ares. Let's just go," Percy said. 

"We can't," Annabeth said. "Look, I hate Ares as much as anybody, but you don't ignore the gods unless you want serious bad fortune. He wasn't kidding about turning you into a rodent."

Yeah. I could tell that. 

"I don't get it," I muttered. "Why does he need us? We're just..."

Kids? Demigods? Mega Grade-A Losers? Take your pick. 

"Maybe it's a problem that requires brains," Annabeth said. "Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes."

"And...we're the wisdom? Percy and me?" 

Despite feeling like garbage, I couldn't help but smirk as Annabeth blushed and muttered something about how she wasn't talking about us. I flicked a balled up straw paper at her. 

"I'm kidding, Annie, obviously you're the wisdom," I said. 

Annabeth gave me an incredulously look. "Annie?"

"Oooo, so only you get to make nicknames. I see how it is." 

I pretended to be offended, because to be honest I hadn't meant to call her 'Annie.' At some point she had become my friend, and friends have nicknames. I wasn't going to tell her that, though. She'd probably kick me into the sun. 

"This water park," Percy butted in. Oh, right. The point. "He acted almost scared. What would make a war god run away like that?"

"An irrational fear of small, cute, and not at all harmful animals?" I suggested. 

Yeah. That's definitely not it. 

♆

IT WAS ABOUT SUN SET WHEN HE FOUND THE WATER PARK. Once upon a time, it was called WATERLAND. Except now some of the letters were missing, so it read WAT R A D. 

The main gate was padlocked and topped with barbed wire (You know. Typical for water parks!) It had massive slides and pools, just like every park, but there was no water. Old tickets and advertisements were fluttering across the pavement. It looked like it was full of ghosts and tetanus, neither of which made me more inclined to go walking around it in the dark. 

"If Ares brings his girlfriend here for a date," Percy said, "I'd hate to see what she looks like." 

Something in the back of my brain told me that was a really bad thing to say. Or maybe it was Annabeth looking at Percy like he'd just stuck his foot into a bear trap. 

"Percy. Be more respectful," she warned. 

"Why? I thought you hated Ares."

"He still a god. And his girlfriend is very temperamental." 

"You don't want to insult her looks," Grover added. 

I dug through my memory for what goddess that would be. Unfortunately, I did this by squinting at the sign, so instead of useful information my brain kept going WELCOME TO WAT RAD! Which is not the name of any goddess...as far as I'm aware. 

"Who is she? Echidna?" Percy quipped. 

"No, Aphrodite," Grover said. He sounded almost...dreamy. 

"Goddess of love," Annabeth added. 

Oh. Yeah, now that they said that out loud, it was really obvious. Stupid WAT RAD. Then, what with my sudden influx of information, I paused. 

"Isn't she married to Hephaestus?" I asked. 

"What's your point?"

"It's that..." I realized what I was about to say. Like Camp Half-Blood wasn't evidence enough the Gods didn't care about cheating. My face heated up as I muttered, "Wrong?"

"So how do we get in?" Percy asked, saving me more embarrassment. 

"Maia!" Grover's shoes sprouted wings. 

He flew over the fence – somersaulting in midair, which we agreed was him showing off and not accidentally losing balance – and landed on the other side. Then he turned to us. 

"You guys coming?"

Yeah. Just let me get my flying shoes – oh wait. I don't have those. I grumbled as we were forced to climb over the fence the old fashion way. We took turns holding down the barbed wire for each other. 

As we walked through the park, I kept my eyes peeled. Nothing jumped out at us, but that didn't mean much. Maybe this was the one monster that knew the meaning of stealth. We found a souvenir shop that had been left open. 

It looked like it had been abandoned in a hurry, because all the merchandise was still there. Snow globes, pencils, postcards, and racks of –

"Clothes!" Annabeth cried. "Fresh clothes."

To my surprise, it was Percy who tried to stop Annabeth from committing a crime. It didn't work. She grabbed an entire row of stuff off the racks and disappeared into the changing room. I didn't complain. Between the clothes we left in and what had remained in my bag, we'd had exactly two outfits each – all in some state of disrepair and most only fitting me. 

When Annabeth returned, she looked like a walking Waterland advertisement. A few seconds later and we had joined her. 

It might just the fact that I had been stuck in the same grimy clothes for the last week, but the Waterland stuff was actually comfortable. The material was thick and, while I was pretty sure the printing would peal off within a few hours, it seemed sturdy. 

Maybe all their budget went into clothes. 

We continued searching for the Tunnel of Love. There was a tension in the air, like the entire park was just waiting to explode. It was so bad that, when Percy spoke up next to me, I flinched as if a monster had jumped out of the darkness. 

"So Ares and Aphrodite. They have a thing?"

"That's old gossip, Percy," Annabeth said. "Three-thousand-year-old gossip."

"Yeah, but...Aphrodite's the goddess of love and beauty and stuff. And Ares is..." I paused to think of the least offensive wording. "Kinda jerk. Why would she want to cheat with him?" 

Annabeth glanced nervously at me. I didn't turn into any rodent, though. It wasn't like I was wrong. Even Ares agreed (You think I would be able to write this chapter if he didn't? Apparently that's his "charm.") 

"Hephaestus. The blacksmith. He was crippled when he was a baby, thrown off Mount Olympus by Zeus," Annabeth explained. "He isn't exactly handsome. Clever with his hands, and all, but Aphrodite isn't into brains and talent, you know?"

"She likes bikers," Percy said. 

"Whatever."

"Hephaestus knows?"

"Oh, sure," Annabeth said. "He caught them together once. I mean, literally caught them, in a golden net, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. Hephaestus is always trying to embarrass them. That's why they meet in out-of-the-way places, like..."

She stopped, looking straight ahead. "Like that."

We were stood in front of an empty pool. A massive empty pool, about fifty yards across. And not a single drop of water in sight. Note to self: don't fall in. I'd probably break my arm, and even with the nectar and ambrosia in my bag I wasn't interested in that. 

Bronze statues of Cupid lined the rim, wings spread and bows reading to fire. On the opposite side from us, a tunnel opened un, probably where the water flowed into when the pool was full. The sign about read THRILL RIDE O' LOVE: THIS IS NOT YOUR PARENTS' TUNNEL OF LOVE!

Grover crept toward the edge. "Guys, look." 

At the bottom of the pool was a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a canopy over the top and a little hearts painted all over it. In the left seat, glinting in the fading light, was Ares's shield. 

"That's easy," I said. 

"Too easy," Percy agreed. "So, we just walk down there and get it?"

Annabeth ran her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue. "There's a Greek letter carved here. Eta. I wonder..."

"Grover," Percy asked. "You smell any monsters?"

He sniffed the wind. "Nothing."

"Nothing – like in-the-Arch-and-you-didn't-smell-Echidna nothing, or really nothing?"

"Hey," I interrupted. "That was underground, remember? Then...well, we didn't know she was a monster, either." 

"Okay, I'm sorry." Percy took a deep breath. "I'm going down there." 

"I'll go with you." Grover's tone said the opposite. Even with Percy's apology, I think what happened in St. Louis was getting to him. 

"No," Percy said. "I want you to stay up top with the flying shoes. You're the Red Baron, a flying ace, remember? I'll be counting on you for backup, in case something goes wrong."

"Yeah. Eyes in the sky." I wrapped my arm around Grover's shoulder. The praise must have worked, because he puffed up his chest a little. "I'll stay up here with Grover. You know. Extra back up. In case something goes wrong."

Okay. So I didn't want to climb down into the bowl. Sue me. 

"Cool," Percy agreed. "Annabeth, come with me –"

"Are you kidding?" Annabeth stared at him like he'd lost his mind. His cheeks were bright red.

"What's the problem now?" Percy demanded. 

"Me, go with you to the...the 'Thrill Ride of Love'? How embossing is that? What if someone saw me?" 

"Yeah, the cupids will be really unimpressed with your choice in boys," I said. 

"Shut up!" Percy gave me a slight shove. By now his face was just as red. 

I, being the kind and loving sister that I am, covered my face with my hand so they couldn't see me snickering. Percy grumbled about how he'd do it himself, but as he made his way down the side of the pool, Annabeth followed. 

Grover and I watched their descent. As they approached the boat, my gaze kept getting pulled to the nearest cupid. Man, those things were creepy...

Percy grabbed the shield. For a moment it looked like they were in the clear. There was an eruption of noise. The grinding of gears, so loud I thought something was about to explode. Next to me, the cupid began to move. Its bow nearly clipped my head as I stumbled away from it. 

All around the rim, the cupids began to draw their bows. I thought they were going to aim at Percy and Annabeth, but instead they shot over and across the pool. Silky cable trailed after them. Between those main threads, smaller ones began to weave their way between them. 

Percy and Annabeth tried to run for the edge. I tried to hold one of the sections open, but as soon as I touched the wire the threads started to wrap around my hands. I was forced to pull away or be caught there. Grover's attempts didn't go any better.

The Cupid's heads popped open. Out came video cameras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, blinding us with their light. A loudspeaking voice boomed: "Life to Olympus in one minute...fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight..."

It continued to count down. 

"Hephaestus!" Annabeth screamed. "I'm so stupid! Eta is 'H'. He made this trap to catch his wife with Ares. Now we're going to broadcasted live to Olympus and look like absolute fools!"

Whoops. I suddenly felt bad for teasing her. 

But being filmed near Percy wasn't the worst part. When they almost reached the rim, the mirrors opened like hatches. A thousand of tiny metallic things poured out. I couldn't tell what they were, Annabeth screamed like she was about to be murdered. 

That was when I realized what they were. Spiders. Wind-up spiders. 

I panicked as I tried to figure something to do. Annabeth was losing it. She fell backwards, shrieking and screaming incoherently as Percy hauled her towards the boat. It protected them a little bit, but the spiders kept swarming, and I had no idea when they might start attacking. That wasn't even accounting for the fact that Annabeth was terrified.

The count down kept going. 

When I tugged on the ropes again, they stayed still. I guess they were fully in place. Despite my and Grover's best effort's, they wouldn't budge. It was like trying to lift a metal beam – they were stick solidly in place. 

Down below, Percy and Annabeth were being wrapped up in tiny spider webs. 

This wasn't going to work. My brain started going into over drive. The count down was still going. 

What had Annabeth said? Something, something, broadcasted live to Olympus, something, something, absolute fools. Hephaestus had set this all up to embarrass Ares and Aphrodite. What if...

This was either my stupidest idea or my greatest one. 

"Two, one, zero!"

The cameras snapped on and I waved a hand in front of them. There wasn't much space to get right in front of it, but it must have been rigged up to sense movement because it turned right towards me. 

In my best announcer voice, I declared, "Hello Olympus! Welcome to WAT RAD – I mean Waterland! We're here with...oh wait."

I turned to look down at the boat, where Annabeth and Percy were still attempting to fight off spiders. 

"Yeah, that's not Ares and Aphrodite. Whomp whomp." I frowned at the camera. A little dramatic? Yeah. But figured this would work best if I hammed it up. "Yeah that's just my brother. That's embarrassing. I mean, pretty much anyone could capture him."

I figured they would be too busy getting almost murdered, but Percy still took the time to shout: "Hey!"

Sorry, man. I wasn't just trying to insult Percy, I promise. Hephaestus wanted to embarrass some other gods. If he was embarrassed himself, maybe he would shut everything down. 

Was it risky? Yeah. Probably. Note to readers: don't insult the gods. I'm pretty sure the only reasons I didn't get turned into a little furry animal was the fact the other gods might call Hephaestus a poor sport about it. 

But I was sort of desperate at the moment. 

"And, oh boy, is that a net? Again?" I studied the net with my best imitation of a teacher reading a particularly unimpressive creative writing project they don't want to be mean about. "I mean...if it works, it works. Why fix it?"

Teacher speak for "this is uncreative." 

To my surprise, that actually worked. The cupid cams clicked off. The spiders were still scuttling about down in the pool, and they weren't disappearing, but they also weren't flooding in. Great! Not so great was the fact that net didn't disappear. Maybe that was Hephaestus's retaliation – leaving them to die. 

"I've got an idea!" Percy shouted up, probably to keep us from doing anything that screwed up that up. 

I was about to ask when I heard a faint rumbling. Seconds later, water exploded out of the pipes. Spiders were swept away and the boat Percy and Annabeth sat in began to raise. I thought he was trying to turn them into mince meat against the net, but then the boat suddenly turned on its own. It shot through the opening into the rest of the ride. 

Oh. Well, I suppose that was one way to do it. Maybe we were in the clear.  

"Wait!" Grover's eyes widened. "The ride – it's closed down."

We were not in the clear. I hate when that happens. 

We sprinted around the side of the tunnel. The ride was shorter than expected. We got to the end just as the boat came barreling out of the tunnel, pushed by several tons of water. The end, where they would usually have landed in an exit pool, was the massive Gates of Love. Chained shut. Two boats were already there, shattered against the gate. 

I could see the two shouting at each other. Fantastic! This is exactly how you should be using your time. 

Except, I guess that shouting was some kind of planning. Right as the boat crashed into the others, Percy and Annabeth jumped. It launched them over the gate – and the pool. Right towards the asphalt on the other side. 

Grover launched off. He was able to catch them, but it was only enough to slow their momentum slightly. I ran to catch them. I had a moment to think you know there's no way I'm catching them. Then Percy kicked me in the face, which was followed by getting body slammed into the pavement by several pounds of flailing idiot. 

Oh, and also a giant metal shield. That I took straight to the ribs. 

I shoved the three off me and stumbled to my feet, grumbling, "Last time I try to save you." 

(Spoiler alert: this was not the last time I tried to save them.) 

Looking up, I could see that the Cupids had turned back on and swiveled to still be trained strait on us. My face burnt. I'm pretty sure there was a bruise forming on my forehead where Percy kicked me. My palms were screamed from where they'd been scraped on the asphalt. I wanted to storm over there and rip those stupid cupids off their stands. 

But then they shut off once more. We stood in the dark. 

"We need to have a little talk with Ares," Percy declared. 

Author's Note: This was a fun chapter to write. Especially the Ares scene. It was a chance to give a glimpse into Attie's personality because it sort of parallels and emphasizes stuff from early chapters. 

Attie is someone who is really insecure about her emotions. Between being bullied for being "sensitive" and repressing her feelings to avoid pissing off Gabe, she sort of naturally doesn't share them. If she does, it's not seriously, in case other people don't care. It even bleeds into her narration and how she talks about certain stuff, despite it being written years later when she has more confidence. 

I have more to say on this, but UGH. This chapter is already long, I can't just info dump in the author's notes. Especially when it's a plot point in the next book.