The Heroes of Olympus: The Demigod Diaries (6 page)

Thalia let loose a sob. A tear etched through the soot on her face.

“He sacrificed himself,” she said. “Why did he save us?”

I hugged my knapsack. I felt the diary and bronze dagger inside—the only remnants of Halcyon Green’s life.

My chest was tight, as if the leucrota was still standing on it. I’d criticized for Hal for being a coward, but in the end, he’d been braver than me. The gods had cursed him. He’d spent most of his life imprisoned with monsters. It would’ve been easy for him to let us die like all the other demigods before us. Yet he’d chosen to go out a hero.

I felt guilty that I couldn’t save the old man. I wished I could’ve talked to him longer. What had he seen in my future that scared him so much?

Your choices will change the world,
he’d warned.

I didn’t like the sound of it.

The sound of sirens brought me to my senses.

Being runaway minors, Thalia and I had learned to distrust the police and anybody else with authority. The mortals would want to question us, maybe put us in juvie hall or foster care. We couldn’t let that happen.

“Come on,” I told Thalia.

We ran through the streets of Richmond until we found a small park. We cleaned up in the public restrooms as best we could. Then we lay low until full dark.

We didn’t talk about what had happened. We wandered in a daze through neighborhoods and industrial areas. We had no plan, no glowing goat to follow anymore. We were bone tired, but neither of us felt like sleeping or stopping. I wanted to get as far as possible from that burning mansion.

It wasn’t the first time we’d barely escaped with our lives, but we’d never succeeded at the expense of another demigod’s life. I couldn’t shake my grief.

Promise,
Halcyon Green had written.

I promise, Hal
, I thought.
I will learn from your mistakes. If the gods ever treat me that badly, I will fight back.

Okay, I know that sounds like crazy talk. But I was feeling bitter and angry. If that makes the dudes up on Mount Olympus unhappy, tough. They can come down here and tell me to my face.

We stopped for a rest near an old warehouse. In the dim light of the moon, I could see a name painted on the side of the red brick building:
RICHMOND IRON WORKS
. Most of the windows were broken.

Thalia shivered. “We could head to our old camp,” she suggested. “On the James River. We’ve got plenty of supplies down there.”

I nodded apathetically. It would take at least a day to get there, but it was as good a plan as any.

I split my ham sandwich with Thalia. We ate in silence. The food tasted like cardboard. I’d just swallowed the last bite when I heard a faint metal
ping
from a nearby alley. My ears started tingling. We weren’t alone.

“Someone’s close by,” I said. “Not a regular mortal.”

Thalia tensed. “How can you be sure?”

I didn’t have an answer, but I rose to my feet. I pulled out Hal’s dagger, mostly for the glow of the Celestial bronze. Thalia grabbed her spear and summoned Aegis. This time I knew better than to look at the face of Medusa, but its presence still made my skin crawl. I didn’t know if this shield was
the
aegis, or a replica made for heroes—but either way, it radiated power. I understood why Amaltheia had wanted Thalia to claim it.

We crept along the wall of the warehouse.

We turned into a dark alleyway that dead-ended at a loading dock piled with old scrap metal.

I pointed at the platform.

Thalia frowned. She whispered, “Are you sure?”

I nodded. “Something’s down there. I sense it.”

Just then there was a loud
CLANG.
A sheet of corrugated tin quivered on the dock. Something—
someone
—was underneath.

We crept toward the loading bay until we stood over the pile of metal. Thalia readied her spear. I gestured for her to hold back. I reached for the piece of corrugated metal and mouthed,
One, two, three!

As soon as I lifted the sheet of tin, something flew at me—a blur of flannel and blond hair. A hammer hurtled straight at my face.

Things could’ve gone very wrong. Fortunately my reflexes were good from years of fighting.

I shouted, “Whoa!” and dodged the hammer, then grabbed the little girl’s wrist. The hammer went skidding across the pavement.

The little girl struggled. She couldn’t have been more than seven years old.

“No more monsters!” she screamed, kicking me in the legs. “Go away!”

“It’s okay!” I tried my best to hold her, but it was like holding a wildcat. Thalia looked too stunned to move. She still had her spear and shield ready.

“Thalia,” I said, “put your shield away! You’re scaring her!”

Thalia unfroze. She touched the shield and it shrank back into a bracelet. She dropped her spear.

“Hey, little girl,” she said, sounding more gentle than I’d ever heard. “It’s all right. We’re not going to hurt you. I’m Thalia. This is Luke.”

“Monsters!” she wailed.

“No,” I promised. The poor thing wasn’t fighting as hard, but she was shivering like crazy, terrified of us. “But we know about monsters,” I said. “We fight them too.”

I held her, more to comfort than restrain now. Eventually she stopped kicking. She felt cold. Her ribs were bony under her flannel pajamas. I wondered how long this little girl had gone without eating. She was even younger than I had been when I ran away.

Despite her fear, she looked at me with large eyes. They were startlingly gray, beautiful and intelligent. A demigod—no doubt about it. I got the feeling she was powerful—or she would be, if she survived.

“You’re like me?” she asked, still suspicious, but she sounded a little hopeful, too.

“Yeah,” I promised. “We’re…” I hesitated, not sure if she understood what she was, or if she’d ever heard the word
demigod
. I didn’t want to scare her even worse. “Well, it’s hard to explain, but we’re monster fighters. Where’s your family?”

The little girl’s expression turned hard and angry. Her chin trembled. “My family hates me. They don’t want me. I ran away.”

My heart felt like it was cracking into pieces. She had such pain in her voice—familiar pain. I looked at Thalia, and we made a silent decision right there. We would take care of this kid. After what had happened with Halcyon Green…well, it seemed like fate. We’d watched one demigod die for us. Now we’d found this little girl. It was almost like a second chance.

Thalia knelt next to me. She put her hand on the little girl’s shoulder. “What’s your name, kiddo?”

“Annabeth.”

I couldn’t help smiling. I’d never heard that name before, but it was pretty, and it seemed to fit her. “Nice name,” I told her. “I tell you what, Annabeth. You’re pretty fierce. We could use a fighter like you.”

Her eyes widened. “You could?”

“Oh, yeah,” I said earnestly. Then a sudden thought struck me. I reached for Hal’s dagger and pulled it from my belt.
It will protect its owner,
Hal had said. He had gotten it from the little girl he had saved. Now fate had given us the chance to save another little girl.

“How’d you like a real monster-slaying weapon?” I asked her. “This is Celestial bronze. Works a lot better than a hammer.”

Annabeth took the dagger and studied it in awe. I know…she was seven years old at most. What was I thinking giving her a weapon? But she was a demigod. We have to defend ourselves. Hercules was only a baby when he strangled two snakes in his cradle. By the time I was nine, I’d fought for my life a dozen times. Annabeth could use a weapon.

“Knives are only for the bravest and quickest fighters,” I told her. My voice caught as I remembered Hal Green, and how he’d died to save us. “They don’t have the reach or power of a sword, but they’re easy to conceal and they can find weak spots in your enemy’s armor. It takes a clever warrior to use a knife. I have a feeling you’re pretty clever.”

Annabeth beamed at me, and for that instant, all my problems seemed to melt. I felt as if I’d done one thing right. I swore to myself I would never let this girl come to harm.

“I am clever!” she said.

Thalia laughed and tousled Annabeth’s hair. Just like that—we had a new companion.

“We’d better get going, Annabeth,” Thalia said. “We have a safe house on the James River. We’ll get you some clothes and food.”

Annabeth’s smile wavered. For a moment, she got that wild look in her eyes again. “You’re…you’re not going to take me back to my family? Promise?”

I swallowed the lump out of my throat. Annabeth was so young, but she’d learned a hard lesson, just like Thalia and I had. Our parents had failed us. The gods were harsh and cruel and aloof. Demigods had only each other.

I put my hand on Annabeth’s shoulder. “You’re part of
our
family now. And I promise I’m not going to fail you like our families did us. Deal?”

“Deal!” she said happily, clutching her new dagger.

Thalia picked up her spear. She smiled at me with approval. “Now, come on. We can’t stay put for long!”

So here I am on guard duty, writing in Halcyon Green’s diary—
my
diary, now.

We’re camping in the woods south of Richmond. Tomorrow, we’ll press on to the James River and restock our supplies. After that…I don’t know. I keep thinking about Hal Green’s predictions. An ominous feeling weighs on my chest. There’s something dark in my future. It may be a long way off, but it feels like a thunderstorm on the horizon, supercharging the air. I just hope I have the strength to take care of my friends.

Looking at Thalia and Annabeth asleep by the fire, I’m amazed how peaceful their faces are. If I’m going to be the “dad” of this bunch, I’ve got to be worthy of their trust. None of us has had good luck with our dads. I have to be better than that. I may be only fourteen, but that’s no excuse. I have to keep my new family together.

I look toward the north. I imagine how long it would take to get to my mom’s house in Westport, Connecticut, from here. I wonder what my mom is doing right now. She was in such a bad state of mind when I left.…

But I can’t feel guilty about leaving her. I
had
to. If I ever meet my dad, we’re going to have a conversation about that.

For now, I’ll just have to survive day to day. I’ll write in this diary as I have the chance, though I doubt anyone will ever read it.

Thalia is stirring. It’s her turn on guard duty. Wow, my hand hurts. I haven’t written this much in forever. I’d better sleep, and hope for no dreams.

Luke Castellan—signing off for now.

Let your knowledge of Greek and Roman gods guide you to a secret message!

The chart below lists the names of Greek and Roman gods. Your challenge: Match the proper Greek and Roman names to the descriptions in the chart on the opposite page.

When you’re done, replace the letter assigned to each Greek god with his or her Roman counterpart’s assigned number to reveal a hidden message!

Where do Luke, Thalia, and Annabeth find a home?