Changing the Future

Chapter 4

I wanted to scream or go and kill Smelly Gabe with my own bare hands. Who was he to get off abusing a seven-year-old boy? Percy had a smart mouth, but that does not earn him beatings from an abusive stepfather.

Before I had a chance to go back into the kitchen and slit the jerk's throat myself, the door opened, revealing Sally Jackson. Dark bags were under her eyes, and gray streaks were starting to become more prominent in her black hair. She set her keys and purse on the kitchen countertop, shooting her deadbeat husband a malicious glare before sighing in resignation and tying her hair back into a messy bun.

I followed Sally as she stood outside the bathroom, cringing silently at hearing her son shower. I guess she was afraid that Smelly Gabe had hurt him and he was realizing that the water could heal him. And she would've been right.

Sally reached into her pocket, and I knew with absolute certainly she was tracing the charm I had given her. I could see her weighing the pros and cons of using my gift, but one look between Smelly Gabe and the door to the bathroom, and she had made her decision.

She waited outside the bathroom door until Percy came out in his superhero pajamas, flinching as he was not expecting his mother to be right outside the door. "Mom?" he asked softly, trying to read her expression. "What's going on?"

"Pack a bag," she told Percy, giving the charm a final squeeze before setting her hands on his shoulder. "Be quick and quiet about it. We're leaving."

"For real?" Percy asked, his sea green eyes lighting up with hope.

"Yes, now hurry before Gabriel wakes up."

Before I could see how that dream ended, I was jerked awake by Connor Stoll, who had a way too playful smile on his face. My hands flew to my bag first and my bracelet second, both of which were still with me.

"Time to wake up, Andy," Connor chirped happily, before moving onto the next camper who had been on the floor next to me.

I wiped my eyes and got up, rolling up my sleeping bag into a pack and shoving it into my bag, earning myself some weird looks from some of the other campers. I brushed off their looks and helped the older kids help organize the rest of the cabin, because there was no way I was going to end up on kitchen duty for sloppiness.

Although the other kids would never know this, I felt right at home in the Hermes cabin, feeling as if I had gone back to Mrs. Stetson's orphanage and was cleaning up my room with Leah while she blasted some obscure indie-rock band that she loved.

I swept the floors while Noah helped the younger kids roll up their sleeping bags, Luke helped make the beds, and Connor and Travis Stoll tag-teamed dusting the whole place. The other kids hastily threw dirty laundry under beds, thinking that would be better than placing them in the hamper that was literally two feet away.

The conch horn sounded, and we all fell in line in order of seniority, meaning I was dead last. The morning rays made the dew on the grass sparkle like thousands of little diamonds, filling the whole valley with a beautiful golden glow. Cabin Seven, Apollo, glowed so brightly that I thought if someone were to look at the cabin without sunglasses, they'd be blinded instantly.

After breakfast, Noah told me that we were free to do whatever until after lunch, where we would have to go to Chiron's archery class and then arts and crafts for the rest of the afternoon. I smiled softly to myself as Noah informed the rest of us that we had a Capture the Flag game tonight, already thinking up of dozens of different battle strategies that would work in our benefit.

I decided to follow the Demeter cabin down to the strawberry fields and helped them cultivate the ripe strawberries while planting new seeds in their places. I smiled as I worked, once again feeling nostalgic for my garden back home, comfortable with planting and harvesting strawberries into huge baskets for the satyrs to take to the vans that led into the mortal world.