Buried Treasure

Chapter Twenty One

"Look how beautiful it is up here" Annabeth smiled as they sat atop of the mast watching the sunset, hand in hand. Percy wasn't watching the sunset, instead he was staring at Annabeth. "I know you are." He said softly and in reward Annabeths smooth cheeks blushed a light pink. She turned her face to him and he cupped her cheek. His sea green eyes were soft and dazzling in the setting sun as he leaned in. Before his lips met hers a whispered "I love you." Escaped into a kiss.

Annabeth woke up feeling Percy move. Right away she noticed that he was in her cell and that she felt warm. She could smell his faint sea breeze scent linger around her. The jacket was still wrapped around her, covering whatever she was exposing. He was standing at the window looking out. Dark rings settled under his eyes. He hadn't slept. He had held her all night. She rubs her eyes and sleepily groans. Percy turned and walked back kneeling before her. "Are you alright?" He examined her raw wrists from the chains. She watched blinking behind a black right eye. Other than a few scrapes and bruises she was fine.

Annabeth noticed as Percy began to pick the mud and straw out of her hair the clothes at her cell door. It was a peasant shirt and simple trousers. Hanging clothes. She had seen her father do it many times before. Percy caught her eyeing them. "I'm not letting them hang you." He assured her and hands her the clothes. "It will be good to get out of that dress though. It's falling apart. I'll..turn around." He crawled back into his cell and keeps his back to her.

Holding the clothes, she managed to slip out of her dressed and reached behind her to undo the corset. It took a while to do it by herself. Percy heard a gasp of being able to breath again come from her. Worried he glanced over and saw the back of annabeths dress open, exposing her bare back and entire mark. The scarring went almost all the way down her spine. Percy quickly looked away blushing. He waited until he heard Annabeth say "alright you can look." Which he did. The clothes were ill fitting for someone as thin and small as Annabeth but she was working on tying them.

Percy was about to step into her cell when he heard the guards. In a second they were in the cells and went straight to annabeths. Panic set in. Two guards opened both their cells. Percy had already lunged. They wrestled and punched until Percy was pressed face down against the floor under the weight of the guards. Not able to move at all. Annabeth cried out as the two guards mangled her painfully into her binds and threw a sack over her head.

"Annabeth!" Percy tried to struggle under his guards to get to her. They forced Annabeth out of her cell, fighting against them the entire time. A cold blade was pressed to his throat. "Don't worry, you'll get your turn pirate." He spat.

The only thing Annabeth could think of was getting free of her ropes, that was until the sword was pressed against her throat. "Stop or we will make sure you're killed slowly and painfully." The voice threatened in her ear. Her movements stopped and she allowed the men to lead her forward in the dark. She knew the castle well but not this passage. Soon the terrane changed under neath her feet. She was on stone now. Stone she used to run around with her friends when she was younger. Stones of the courtyard.

She could hear voices. All around her. Then it changed again. She was walking up wooden stairs until she reached the flat landing. Her fate was sealed the moment she felt the noose wrap around her neck. Someone yanked off the sack and bright light blinded her for a moment.

Once her gray eyes adjusted she saw her father. Sitting on a throne in the courtyard. He looked as if he was enjoying this. Gathered around were towns people to witness the hanging. Her eyes never leaving her father as they read out her sentence. She kept her head up until the very last moment when the hangman grabbed the lever. She closed her eyes enjoying the last rays of the warm sun. Her lasts words before he pulled the lever were "I love you Percy."
She fell.