Annabeth POV
Rushing Lieutenant Charles Beckendorf to the hospital wasn't that difficult, especially considering Clarisse's mad driving skills.
We were in a relatively small town, so there was only one main hospital.
Unfortunately, it was a solid 20 minutes away from the warehouse building that we infiltrated. The bad news was that our mission was technically a failure.
We didn't get Kronos.
However, we did found out from Atlas that BlodgeHarm and WiCKeD were planning a series of bombs all around the world. This was horrible news, and we had to stop it.
My busy thoughts were interrupted by coughing.
My attention snapped towards Beckendorf, who was coughing up blood. The blood splattered over the car's leather seat.
"Annabeth," Agent La Rue commanded.
"I know," I said as I climbed into the backseat. The seats were drenched in sweat, dirt, and blood as Beckendorf groaned in pain.
"Lieutenant, please hold on. We're almost there," I said firmly.
Agent La Rue was driving as fast as possible. Clarisse, Charles, and I were driving alone in this car. The others were following behind us.
Percy wanted to come with Charles since they were friends, but there wasn't any room. Beckendorf was a big man who took up the backseat.
And, we were in a hurry.
Suddenly, Clarisse took a sudden turn causing me to crash against the back seat on top of Beckendorf's legs. I got up quickly, but Beckendorf didn't seem affected. My bodyweight probably wasn't anything compared to the pain of his stab wound.
His right hand was shaking as he held it out.
I quickly took it. I could feel that Charles was dying, and we had to save him. This wasn't just a race against the clock. It was a race against death.
"Please, hang on, sir. We're almost at the hospital," I said again.
My other hand brushed his curly brown hair off of his forehead. His body was shivering and sweating at the same time.
"Annabeth," he whispered with a choke. "Tell Silena that I love her."
"Lieutenant, you're going to tell her yourself," I said firmly. I decided to distract him with a conversation.
"Kronos was having a meeting with his fellow terrorist leaders. How did you get into that building? We're you in captivity?" I asked.
Beckendorf groaned as a bump in the road vibrated the car.
"Um, I was in captivity elsewhere. But, I snuck out of my prison cell. When I saw Kronos, I knew that I had to follow and help rather than try to escape," Charles said with a shaky voice.
He winced in pain and arched his stomach.
"No, please, don't do that," I said as I continued to apply pressure on the wound. Despite the amount of pressure, he was still bleeding through the cloth. "Hang on," I whispered.
"Anyway, I snuck into their truck, but they found me. I guess that I was more of a hindrance than a help," Charles said with a wry chuckle.
"No, Beckendorf, you got yourself out of that situation," I said firmly. I was quite impressed that he escaped a BlodgeHarm and WiCKeD containment facility.
Technically, even Percy wasn't able to escape.
"We're only a few minutes away," Clarisse exclaimed. Agent La Rue obviously had a history with Charles Beckendorf. They had a friendly relationship for years during their service.
"Agent Chase," Beckendorf acknowledged.
"I'm not an agent yet, Lieutenant," I said jokingly to cheer him up. It didn't really work.
"I have hope, Annabeth, but I need to know that you'll tell Silena how I feel if I don't make it. I want to live and I have hope, but just in case," Beckendorf said.
I nodded in understanding.
"I promise that I'll tell her that you love her," I said in confirmation.
They say that your life flashes before your eyes when you're dying. I wanted to make an addendum to that.
I believe that the most important people flash in your mind before you die. For example, if I was dying, Percy would flash into my mind. I'd like to think that during Percy's explosion, his mind thought of me.
It would be the universe's last attempt at keeping the individual alive. After all, you would want to live for the people that mattered the most.
***
Beckendorf was rushed into surgery, which left us waiting in the emergency room.
As I said, this was a small town, so the hospital wasn't that busy. Plus, it was the middle of the night, so the emergency room was mostly empty. The agents and recruits were sitting in exhaustion and anticipation.
Agent Zhang had already sent word back to Lake Valor, and ex-fill was on its way to pick us up.
My eyes gazed at Percy who was situated on a hospital bed in the ER. Another ER doctor was currently stitching up Percy's hand, which had a nasty slice along the palm. His hand was bleeding a lot back at the warehouse, but it was better now.
Gods, I was just grateful that Percy was okay.
Percy winced every time a new stitch was applied to his palm. After all, the hands were one of the most sensitive parts of your body. The pain killers probably hadn't settled yet.
I decided to go towards him.
Percy said that he had to maintain his memory loss facade, but that didn't mean that I couldn't check on him. Percy's sea-green eyes locked onto mine as I walked over.
A genuinely reassuring smile graces his handsome features as I approached.
I made sure not to touch him. That would be too intimate for a simple colleague interaction even though we were so much more than that.
"How are you doing, Seaweed Brain?" I asked softly.
"I'm all right, Wise Girl. Really, I'm fine," Percy said. I watched him get the stitches while he watched me. The physician finished after a few minutes.
"Thanks, doctor," Percy said.
The doctor nodded with a smile. He was a middle-aged man with sandy hair.
"It seems that your girlfriend was all the painkillers that you needed. You were less flinchy and way more cooperative after she came," the doctor said with a chuckle.
Percy's face reddened.
"We're not actually together, doctor, but thank you for your help," I said firmly.
Piper and Agent Frank were coming over, so I wanted to stop any conversation that could break Percy's facade. Percy nodded in agreement as the doctor left.
"Glad that you're all right, Agent Jackson," Frank said brightly.
Percy nodded. A nurse had come over to clean Percy's hand and wrap it in a bandage. Piper helped the nurse with the easy procedure.
No one was in a particularly good mood considering how quickly the mission went sour. WiCKeD and BlodgeHarm were planning an apocalypse (ie bombs). Lake Valor had to stop them.
However, because of this conspiracy, the terrorists were always one step ahead of us.
If we wanted a chance at beating Kronos, we needed a way to trust the people at Lake Valor. Or, we needed a way to identify and dissolve the untrustworthy members.
My eyes locked onto Percy's eyes again.
We were both thinking about the same thing.
I slightly understood why Percy was pretending to have memory loss.
He found out about this conspiracy on his last mission. The terrorists were torturing him for information. However, if he had memory loss, then he wouldn't have any information to give.
Furthermore, Percy could come back to Lake Valor without any threat of persecution from the traitors and spies that were at Lake Valor already.
Of course, I needed an actual explanation from Percy later.
Percy's nodded in reassurance as his sea-green eyes sparkled. I softly smiled back at him. Despite our lives, loved how Percy and I could make each other feel better.
***
Lake Valor ex-fill brought us all back home by the morning.
While Chiron told us all to go home and rest, most of us stayed at the Lake Valor clinic. Dr. Solace was working on Beckendorf, who was alive and stable.
It was good news for all of us.
I guess the mission wasn't a complete fail. We managed to capture Atlas (who could now provide valuable intel), we saved Lieutenant Charles Beckendorf.
I had called Agent Beauregard and told her to come to the clinic immediately.
Silena started crying as soon as she saw Beckendorf laying on the hospital bed. Charles was unconscious, but she didn't care. She was happy to see her fiance alive.
Dr. Solace firmly told her to stay away while he worked on Beckendorf's IVs and medications.
Piper smiled as she watched Silena cry in happiness. I could tell that Piper was thinking about her relationship with Jason.
We were all exhausted, and it showed in our faces.
Percy already had dark bags under his eyes as he watched his friend, Beckendorf, lay in bed.
My attention turned back to Silena. She could reunite with her fiance, and hopefully, she wouldn't need to work with BlodgeHarm and WiCKeD anymore.
Suddenly, Silena went towards Percy.
Percy instinctually took a defensive position. He knew that Silena was forced to be a spy. Regardless, it would be hard for him to trust Silena any time soon.
"I'm so sorry, Percy. I'm so sorry," Silena sobbed as she hugged him. "I helped them capture you, and yet, you saved my love."
Percy simply stood there in shock. Everyone was staring at their interaction in surprise, including myself.
Silena just admitted to everyone that she was a traitor.
Of course, she was kind of justified.
Percy's arms shook. He winced at the pain in his right hand from the vibration. However, Percy didn't hug Silena back. Even if he wanted to reassure her, his facade prevented it.
"Wait, Silena, you helped them capture Percy. Now, he lost his memory," Agent Frank said seriously.
Everyone was staring at Silena in shock and confusion.
"I, I had to do it," Silena said as she pulled away from Percy.
"They said that they would kill Charles if I didn't. However, I'll tell you everything that I know," Silena continued as she turned to Chiron.
Chiron's eyes flitted between Silena, Charles, and Percy. His gaze lingered on Percy, and I could see the pain in Chiron's eyes. He liked Percy a lot, and now, he was finding out that the cause of Percy's "memory loss" was more complex than an explosion during combat.
Chiron straightened himself and nodded at Silena.
"Agent Beauregard, you will explain everything, but now is not the time. Also, not in front of everyone here," Chiron said firmly.
I agreed with his decision. Everyone did.
Currently, only our team and Dr. Solace was here. Essentially, everyone here was trustworthy. But, we realized from this mission that the walls of Lake Valor were not even trustworthy.
Also, Silena still had the chip on her arm.
My gaze went towards Percy, who was standing quietly. Some people were still looking at him in sorrow and pity. I knew that Percy hated being treated like that.
However, faking memory loss was Percy's own decision.
"Guys, I think that we should go and get some rest. We can reconvene after Charles wakes up," I said firmly to everyone.
"I completely agree. Please go home. I will call you in a few hours to debrief and go over everything," Chiron exclaimed boldly.
Everyone nodded and started to leave, except Silena.
"Annabeth, let's go back to our apartment?" Piper asked in a tired voice. I looked at Percy (who hadn't moved yet) before turning back to Piper.
Piper nodded in understanding. We both could see that Percy wasn't okay right now. Of course, I knew more information than Piper did.
"I get it, Annabeth. Take care of him," Piper said softly.
"Thanks, Piper," I said before watching her leave the clinic.
I walked towards Percy and stood in front of him. His eyes met mine as he waited for me to say something.
"Let's go home, Percy," I said with a reassuring smile.
Percy gently smiled back and nodded. I knew that we'd have a very important conversation now, but it would happen in the safety of his home.
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I hope that y'all are enjoying this story. (Spoiler: in the books, Beckendorf dies. I wasn't going to let that happen here).
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