𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐄 - j. grace, ocxoc ¹ ✓

xxvi. doves in the ground !

XXVI.      DELILAH SONG-JACKSON   !
⋆ ★
doves in the ground

           Borrowing the helicopter was easy but getting Piper's dad on board was not. Between the two of them, Piper and Delilah needed only a few words through Leo's improvised bullhorn to convince the pilot to land on the mountain. The Park Service copter was big enough for medical evacuations or search and rescue, and when Piper told the very nice ranger pilot lady that it would be a great idea to fly them to the Oakland Airport, she readily agreed.

"No," her dad muttered, as they picked him up off the ground. "Piper, what—there were monsters—there were monsters—"

The boys helped in supporting Piper's dad to stand, while Coach Hedge gathered their supplies. Fortunately Hedge had put his pants and shoes back on, so none of them had to explain the goat legs.

Seeing Piper's dad in the state he was in—pushed beyond the breaking point, crying like a little boy. None of them knew what the giant had done to him exactly, how the monsters had shattered his spirit, but Delilah didn't think she could stand to find out.

"It'll be okay, Dad," Piper said, making her voice as soothing as possible. "These people are my friends. We're going to help you. You're safe now."

He blinked, and looked up at helicopter rotors. "Blades. They had a machine with so many blades. They had six arms . . ."

When they got him to the bay doors, the pilot came over to help. "What's wrong with him?" she asked.

"Smoke inhalation," Delilah suggested. "Or heat exhaustion."

"We should get him to a hospital," the pilot said.

"It's okay," Piper said. "The airport is good."

"Yeah, the airport is good," the pilot agreed immediately. Then she frowned, as if uncertain why she'd changed her mind. "Isn't he Tristan McLean, the movie star?"

"No," Piper said. "He only looks like him. Forget it."

"Yeah," the pilot said. "Only looks like him. I—" She blinked, confused. "I forgot what I was saying. Let's get going."

"You're okay," Delilah rubbed circles into Piper's back. Neither of them want to twist people's minds, convince them of things they didn't believe. It felt so bossy, so wrong—like something Drew would do back at camp, or Medea in her evil department store. And how would it help Piper's father? Piper couldn't convince him he would be okay, or that nothing had happened. His trauma was just too deep.

Finally they got him on board, and the helicopter took off. The pilot kept getting questions over her radio, asking her where she was going, but she ignored them. They veered away from the burning mountain and headed toward the Berkeley Hills.

"Piper." Her dad grasped her hand and held on like he was afraid he'd fall. "It's you? They told me—they told me you would die. They said . . . horrible things would happen."

"It's me, Dad." Piper assured him. "Everything's going to be okay."

"They were monsters," he said. "Real monsters. Earth spirits, right out of Grandpa Tom's stories—and the Earth Mother was angry with me. And the giant, Tsul'kälû, breathing fire—" He focused on Piper again, his eyes like broken glass, reflecting a crazy kind of light. "They said you were a demigod. Your mother was . . ."

"Aphrodite," Piper said. "Goddess of love."

"I—I—" He took a shaky breath, then seemed to forget how to exhale.