appear, but what now? If she couldn’t persuade them to leave, any bloodshed would be her fault. In the back of her mind, she could almost hear Gaea laughing.
“Listen to Piper.” Hazel pointed at Jason’s sword. The gold blade seemed to grow heavy in his hand. It clunked to the table and Jason sank back into his chair.
Percy growled in a very un-Percy-like way.
Annabeth reached toward him as if to restrain him, but Hazel waved her off.
“Listen, eidolons,” Hazel said sternly, “you do not belong here. I may not command you, but Piper does. Obey her.”
She turned toward Piper, her expression clear:
Piper mustered all her courage. She looked straight at Jason—straight into the eyes of the thing that was controlling him. “You will leave those bodies,” Piper repeated, even more forcefully.
Jason’s face tightened. His forehead beaded with sweat.
“You will vow on the River Styx never to return to this ship,” Piper continued, “and never to possess any member of this crew.”
Leo and Percy both hissed in protest.
“You will promise on the River Styx,” Piper insisted.
A moment of tension—she could feel their wills fighting against hers. Then all three eidolons spoke in unison:
“You are dead,” Piper said.
“Now, leave.”
All three boys slumped forward. Percy fell face-first into his pizza.
“Percy!” Annabeth grabbed him.
Piper and Hazel caught Jason’s arms as he slipped out of his chair.
Leo wasn’t so lucky. He fell toward Frank, who made no attempt to intercept him. Leo hit the floor.
“Ow!” he groaned.
“Are you all right?” Hazel asked.
Leo pulled himself up. He had a piece of spaghetti in the shape of a
“It worked,” Piper said, feeling pretty sure she was right. “I don’t think they’ll be back.”
Jason blinked. “Does that mean I can stop getting head injuries now?”
Piper laughed, exhaling all her nervousness. “Come on, Lightning Boy. Let’s get you some fresh air.”
Piper and Jason walked back and forth along the deck. Jason was still wobbly, so Piper encouraged him to wrap his arm around her for support.
Leo stood at the helm, conferring with Festus through the intercom; he knew from experience to give Jason and Piper some space. Since the satellite TV was up again, Coach Hedge was in his cabin happily catching up on his mixed martial arts cage matches. Percy’s pegasus Blackjack had flown off somewhere. The other demigods were settling in for the night.
The
Piper remembered last winter, flying Festus the dragon over the city of Quebec. She had never seen anything so beautiful, or felt so happy to have Jason’s arms around her—but this was even better.
The night was warm. The ship sailed along more smoothly than a dragon. Best of all, they were flying away from Camp Jupiter as fast as they possibly could. No matter how dangerous the ancient lands were, Piper couldn’t wait to get there. She hoped Jason was right that the Romans wouldn’t follow them across the Atlantic.
Jason stopped amidships and leaned against the rail. The moonlight turned his blond hair silver.
“Thanks, Pipes,” he said. “You saved me again.”
He put his arm around her waist. She thought about the day they’d fallen into the Grand Canyon—the first time she’d learned that Jason could control the air. He’d held her so tightly, she could feel his heartbeat. Then they’d stopped falling and floated in midair. Best. Boyfriend. Ever.
She wanted to kiss him now, but something held her back.
“I don’t know if Percy will trust me anymore,” she said. “Not after I let his horse knock him out.”
Jason laughed. “Don’t worry about that. Percy’s a nice guy, but I get the feeling he needs a knock on the head every once in a while.”
“You could have killed him.”
Jason’s smile faded. “That wasn’t me.”
“But I almost
She blinked, cursing herself for crying.
