If Looks Could Kill *Percy Jackson and the Olympians*

Chapter Twenty-Three

When I woke up, Percy was fast asleep with his head on my lap. Giggling, I pulled out my phone that I had snuck into my bag when I was packing and turned on the power.

 Even if I wasn’t supposed to use it, this was a photo-op I couldn’t simply ignore. As soon as the shot was taken, I turned off my phone.

 “Shouldn’t you leave that off?” I nearly jumped, but it was only Devin, who was apparently watching me the whole time.

 “Can’t monsters find us easier if we use cell phones?” he asked.

 “Can you blame me?” I defended. He paused and put his hand on his chin as if pondering something. After a while he spoke again.

 “Nah, I really can’t.” I almost laughed, but didn’t in case I woke up Percy. Devin smiled gently. In fact, his smile was so gentle it didn’t even look real.

 “You okay?” I asked.

 “Yeah, just thinking,” he said quietly.

“What about?”

 He paused and looked at me, then out the window.

“I’m thinking about Eleanor….my girlfriend.”

 I felt my eyes widen. “So…you’re going to tell me now?”

He nodded sadly.

 “Where is she?”

 Devin grimaced. “Probably Elysium. She’s dead….”

 If possible, my eyes got bigger. “Oh…gods, Devin. I’m…sorry.” I felt so bad about yelling at him now...

 “How did it happen?”

 Devin’s brown eyes got sad. “Well…we were walking to archery practice one day…and the whole camp started yelling. Apparently a hydra was attacking the borders of camp. Eleanor and I went running to help. We were the only ones there besides Luke, who was trying to protect Thalia’s tree with everything he had.”

 “Eleanor and I fought for about ten minutes until Luke cut off two of the heads. Everyone thought it was dead, obviously forgetting the myth momentarily, until it came back with four more heads. We fought longer. Eventually, the hydra broke my bow and was about to crush me underfoot when Ellie pushed me out of the way. She died in my place. I knew it was her, because I saw her own broken bow lying in the grass next to the hydra’s foot.”

Devin was crying hard now, but kept speaking. I had one hand over my mouth.

 “Luke killed the monster and ran for Chiron. I knelt next to Eleanor and she told me that I would make an amazing hero one day, that my mom would claim me. She also told me she loved me, and she would wait for me in Elysium. Then, she died in my arms.”

Devin bowed his head, crying hard. I felt my own tears prick my eyes.

“Devin, I’m so sorry,” I said quietly, wrapping one arm around his shaking shoulders.

“Sometimes, I feel her with me, Violet. Sometimes, I can hear her voice in my head, telling me what to do in a fight. And sometimes,” he said, looking up into my blue eyes, “I can see her face. Mostly her blue eyes, as cerulean blue as the sky. You have the same eyes as her, Violet.”

I swallowed. “So that’s why you looked panicked when you first met me, why you freaked out when I started archery. Who was she the daughter of?”

“Apollo,” said Devin gruffly, “And frankly, I don’t think Apollo likes me very much since she died. I think he thinks I caused her death. He loved Ellie so much….Everyone who met her had no choice but to love her…I have no idea why she was with me….”