Reconnected [Book 3]

2 - Reuniting

A sea of hastily assembled demigods parted for Adelia as she stalked through the forum. Some looked tense, some nervous. Some were bandaged from their recent battle with the giants, but no one was armed. No one attacked. She didn't know if it was because they hadn't been commanded too, or if it was due to her face which Leo had said was scary as hell.

Entire families had gathered to see the newcomers. Adelia saw couples with babies, toddlers clinging to their parents' legs, even some elderly folks in a combination of Roman robes and modern clothes. Were all of them demigods? She suspected so, though she'd never seen a place like this. At Camp Half-Blood, most demigods were teens. If they survived long enough to graduate from high school, they either stayed on as counselors or left to start lives as best they could in the mortal world. Here, it was an entire multigenerational community. it wasn't natural for demigods to live that long.

At the far end of the crowd, Adelia spotted Tyson the Cyclops and Percy's hellhound, Mrs. O'Leary—who had been the first scouting party from Camp Half-Blood to reach Camp Jupiter. They looked to be in good spirits. Tyson waved and grinned. He was wearing an SPQR banner like a giant bib. She had missed him.

Some part of Adelia mind registered how beautiful the city was—the smells from the bakeries, the gurgling fountains, the flowers blooming in the gardens. But that wasn't important to her

In front of her, the demigods made way for a girl in full Roman armor and a purple cape. Dark hair tumbled across her shoulders. Her eyes were as black as obsidian.

Reyna.

Jason had described her well. Even without that, Adelia would have singled her out as the leader. Medals decorated her armor. She carried herself with such confidence the other demigods backed away and averted their gaze. Adelia sucked on one of her teeth, ready for a fight.

Adelia recognized something else in her face, too—in the hard set of her mouth and the deliberate way she raised her chin like she was ready to accept any challenge. Reyna was forcing a look of courage, while holding back a mixture of hopefulness and worry and fear that she couldn't show in public.

Adelia knew that expression. She saw it every time she looked in a mirror, especially since he disappeared.

The two girls considered each other. Adelia's friends fanned out on either side, Annabeth right next to her each with varying expressions. The Romans murmured Jason's name, staring at him in awe.

Then someone else appeared from the crowd, and Adelia's vision tunneled.

Percy smiled at her—that sarcastic, troublemaker smile that had annoyed her for years but eventually had become endearing. His sea-green eyes were as gorgeous as she remembered. His dark hair was swept to one side, like he'd just come from a walk on the beach. He looked even better than he had six months ago—tanner and taller, leaner and more muscular. Gods have mercy on her, she had never seen a more handsome person in her life.

Adelia was too stunned to move, she felt her lips part and her eyes soften. She felt that if she got any closer to him, all the molecules in her body might combust. She'd secretly had a crush on him since they were twelve years old. Last summer, she'd fallen for him hard. They'd been a happy couple for four months—and then he'd disappeared. Thanks to Hera, stupid Queen of the Gods

During their separation, something had happened to Adelia's feelings. They'd grown painfully intense—like she'd been forced to withdraw from a life-saving medication. Now she wasn't sure which was more excruciating—living with that horrible absence, or being with him again. All she knew was that if he ever left her again, she might crumble.

The praetor Reyna straightened. With apparent reluctance, she turned toward Jason.

"Jason Grace, my former colleague..." She spoke the word colleague like it was a dangerous thing. "I welcome you home. And these, your friends—"