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CHAPTER NINE (the tunnel of love )
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I HONESTLY CAN'T tell you the exact order of events after that. All I knew was that smoke was coming off the top of the Arch, where we had last seen Percy. Grover, Annabeth and I did our best to avoid appearing in the background of the news reports, but also stayed close in case we heard any mention of him. I couldn't help but grow anxious at the thought that something had happened to him, and my mind immediately reminded me of Thalia's own fate. No, I tried to shake the thought away. He can still be alive.
Every emergency vehicle in St Louis was surrounding the Arch. Police helicopters circled overhead. It was so crowded that it made it easier to slip away undetected, but harder to find Percy in between people. Uniformed officers and news reporters were everywhere. The sound of the ambulance sirens rang in my ears, adding more fuel to my nerves.
A news lady was talking for the camera: "Probably not a terrorist attack, we're told, but it's still very early in the investigation. The damage, as you can see, is very serious. We're trying to get to some of the survivors, to question them about eyewitness reports of someone falling from the Arch."
My eyes widened when I heard her words. Despite how little I knew of Percy, if there's one thing I knew for sure, is that there was a massive possibility he had been that someone.
Annabeth seemed to share my concerns, since she looked back at Grover and I with a frown. "This is not good."
"Grover," I called. "Can't you smell him?"
He shook his head. At the same time, he lifted his nose to smell the air to at least make an attempt. He looked ready to give up after a few seconds of not smelling anything, but then his shoulders perked up. Annabeth and I looked at each other, seeing this as a good sign. Grover was too focused on not losing the scent and blindly walked off with Annabeth and I following behind him.
". . .an adolescent boy," another reporter was saying as we kept walking. "Channel Five has learned that surveillance cameras show an adolescent boy going wild on the observation deck, somehow setting off this freak explosion. Hard to believe, John, but that's what we're hearing. Again, no confirmed fatalities. . ."
