° ~ •. ♆ chapter thirty-three ♆ .• ~ °
"don't mind us, just taking care of an a-list celebrity"
Piper needed only a few words though 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." Piper's dad muttered as they picked him up off the ground. "Piper, what— there were monsters— there were monsters—"
Piper needed all three of them to help hold him, while Coach Hedge gathered their supplies. Fortunately, Hedge had put his pants and shoes back on, so they didn't have to explain the goat legs.
Tristan McLean looked terrible— pushed beyond the breaking point, crying like a heartbroken child. Mari had no idea what the giant did to him, but she didn't want to find out.
"It'll be ok, Dad." Piper said, her voice calm and soothing. "These people are my friends. We're going to help you. You're safe now."
He blinked, and looked up at the 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." Jason suggested. "Or heat exhaustion."
"We should get him to a hospital." the pilot said.
"It's ok." Piper said. "The airport is good."
"Yeah, the airport is good." the pilot immediately agreed. Then she frowned, as if uncertain why she'd changed her mind. "Isn't that Tristan McLean, the movie star?"
"No." Piper lied. "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."
Mari raised her eyebrow at Piper. She didn't know whether to be impressed or worried, but Piper just looked away.
Finally they got him on board, and the helicopter took off. The pilot kept getting questions over her radio, asking where she was going, but she ignored them. They veered away from the burning mountain and headed toward the Berkeley Hills.
"Piper." Her dad gripped 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 said, trying to reassure him. "Everything's going to be ok."
As Piper continued to comfort her father, Mari stuffed her hands into her pockets, feeling around for the paper that Aeolus had given her. She was afraid to take it out, like it was a cursed relic. The poster had said that she'd gone missing back in October. She had been missing for a whole two months. She wondered what her old life must have been like— who her friends were, what hobbies she used to do. They certainly couldn't have been this.
She thought about her mother, wondering if she knew that Mari was a demigod. She wondered how her mother was doing, dealing with the disappearance of her daughter for two months. She wondered if she was as broken and scared as Tristan McLean was, all hope of her survival fading away. Mari squeezed her eyes shut, worried she might cause a hurricane if she were to start crying.
Mari heard Piper telling her father about everything she'd done so far— her time at the Wilderness School, her cabin at Camp Half-Blood. She started telling him about things the rest of them had done— how Coach Hedge ate carnations and got knocked on his butt at Mount Diablo, how Leo could tame dragons and outsmart Cyclopes, and how Jason made wolves back down by speaking Latin and how good he was with a sword. Mari smiled softly as Piper told her dad how Mari could create water springs and talk to horses. Hearing Piper recount their adventures made Mari feel a little bit better.
"What is that?" Jason suddenly said.
Mari opened her eyes and saw Jason leaning so far out of the helicopter that she was worried he'd fall out. She looked down, but there wasn't much to see— just hills, woods, houses, little roads snaking through the canyons. A highway cut through a tunnel in the hill, connecting the East Bay with the inland towns.
"Where?" Piper asked.
"That road." he said. "The one that goes through the hills."
Piper picked up the com helmet the pilot had given her and relayed the question over the radio.
"She says it's Highway 24." Piper reported. "That's the Caldecott Tunnel. Why?"
Jason stared intently at the tunnel entrance, but he said nothing. It disappeared from view as they flew over downtown Oakland, but Jason still stared into the distance, his expression almost as unsettled as Piper's dad's.
"Monsters." her dad said, a tear tracing down his cheek. "I live in a world of monsters."
° ~ •. ♆ .• ~ °
Air traffic control didn't want to let an unscheduled helicopter land at the Oakland Airport— until Piper got on the radio. Then it turned out to be no problem.
They unloaded on the tarmac, and everyone looked at Piper.
"Well, what now?" Mari asked.
Piper hesitated before answering. "First thing, I— I have to get my dad home. I'm sorry guys."
Mari's expression fell. "Of course. He needs you right now. We can take it from here."
"Pipes, no." Her dad had been sitting in the helicopter doorway, a blanket around his shoulders. But he stumbled to his feet. "You have a mission. A quest. I can't—"
"I'll take care of him." said Coach Hedge.
Everyone turned to him. The satyr was the last person they'd expected to offer.
"You?" Piper asked.
"I'm a protector." Hedge said, crestfallen. "That's my job, not fighting."
Then he quickly straightened, and set his jaw. "Of course, I'm good at fighting too." He glared at them all, daring them to argue.
"Yes." Jason said.
"Terrifying." Leo agreed.
Mari nodded enthusiastically.
The coach grunted. "But I'm a protector, and I can do this. Your dad's right, Piper. You need to carry on with the quest."
"But..." Piper's eyes brimmed with tears. "Dad..."
He held out his arms, and she hugged him.
"Let's give them a minute." Jason said, and they went to take the pilot a few yards down the tarmac.
Mari went to follow when Piper called out, "Actually, Mari? Can you stay?" Her voice got quieter and broke. "I don't know if I can do this alone."
Mari nodded sympathetically. "Of course."
She walked back over to where the McLeans stood, standing next to Piper. Mr. McLean gave her a wary look. "She— is she also a—"
"A demigod?" Mari asked, and Tristan McLean nodded. "Yeah. I'm a daughter of—" she hesitated for a second. "Neptune. My father is Neptune."
Mari could see the surprise flash in Piper's eyes when she said Neptune, but Piper brushed it away quickly. "Mari's a good person. She's my best friend."
Mr. McLean nodded. "This— all of this. I can't believe it. I failed you."
"No, Dad!"
"The things they did, Piper, the visions they showed me..."
"Dad, listen." Piper took a glowing vial filled with pink liquid out of her pocket. "Aphrodite gave me this, for you. It takes away your recent memories. It'll make it like none of this ever happened."
He gazed at her, as if translating her words from a foreign language. "But you're a hero. I would forget that?"
"Yes." Piper whispered. Her tone was assuring, but Mari knew better. She was on the verge of breaking. "Yes, you would. It'll be like— like before."
"I love you, Piper." He said with a shaky breath. "I always have. I— I sent you away because I didn't want you exposed to my life. Not the way I grew up— the poverty, the hopelessness. Not the Hollywood insanity either. I thought— I thought I was protecting you." He managed a brittle laugh. "As if your life without me was better, or safer."
Mari felt awkward standing there. She wasn't supposed to hear any of this— this was supposed to be a private conversation between a father and his daughter alone. But Piper trusted her. So while she'd only heard a snippet of a more complicated affair, this mattered to Mari as much as it mattered to Piper.
Piper took his hand and offered him the vial. "Take it. Maybe someday we'll be ready to talk about this again. When you're ready."
"When I'm ready." He murmured. "You make it sound like— like I'm the one growing up. I'm supposed to be the parent." He took the vial. His eyes glimmered with a small desperate hope.
He looked to Mari with a weak smile. "Keep Piper safe for me, will you?"
Piper crossed her arms. "I can keep myself safe."
Mr. McLean laughed weakly. "I know. Just making sure. I love you, Pipes."
"I love you, too, Dad."
He drank the pink liquid. His eyes rolled up into his head, and he slumped forward. Piper and Mari caught him, and their friends ran up to help.
"Got him." Hedge said. The satyr stumbled, but he was strong enough to hold Tristan McLean upright. "I already asked our ranger friend to call up his plane. It's on the way now. Home address?"
Piper hesitated before going to her dad's pocket, where she pulled out a BlackBerry phone. It was strange to see something so normal after everything they'd been through.
"Everything's on here." Piper said. "Address, his chauffer's number. Just watch out for Jane."
Hedge's eyes lit up, like he sensed a possible fight. "Who's Jane?"
By the time Piper finished explaining, a sleek white Gulf-stream that Mari assumed was Mr. McLean's private jet was taxied next to the helicopter.
Hedge and the flight attendant got Piper's dad on board. Then Hedge came down one last time to say his good-byes. He gave Piper a hug and glared at the three of them. "You cupcakes take care of this girl, you hear? Or I'm gonna make you do push-ups."
Piper rolled her eyes. "I can take care of myself, you know."
"Oh, we know. But we're still gonna take care of you." Mari said.
Piper gave the old satyr one more hug. "Thank you, Gleeson. Take care of him, please."
"I got this, McLean." he assured her. "They got root beer and veggie enchiladas on this flight, and one hundred percent linen napkins. I could get used to this!"
Trotting up the stairs, he lost one shoe, and his hoof was visible for just a second. The flight attendant's eye widened, but she looked away and pretended nothing was wrong. Mari figured she'd probably seen weirder things, working for a guy like Tristan McLean.
When the plane was heading down the runway, Piper started to cry. Mari ran over and hugged her, doing her best to comfort her. Jason and Leo stood uncomfortably nearby, Leo pulling out tissues from his toolbelt.
"Your dad's gonna be ok." Mari assured her. "You did great."
Piper sobbed into her shirt, and her crying slowed down. She took a couple deep breaths before breaking away from the hug.
"Thank you, guys." Piper said. "I— I—"
Before she could say anything else, the air next to Jason began to shimmer. Mari had no idea what it could be, but suddenly, a dark-haired girl in silver winter camouflage appeared, holding a bow.
Jason stumbled back in surprise. "Thalia!"
"Thank the gods." the Hunter said. The scene behind her was hard to make out, but Mari heard yelling, metal clashing on metal, and explosions.
"We've found her." Thalia said. "Where are you?"
"Oakland." he said. "Where are you?"
"The Wolf House! Oakland is good; you're not too far. We're holding off the giant's minions, but we can't hold them forever. Get here before sunset, or it's all over."
"Then it's not too late?" Piper cried with hope.
"Not yet." Thalia said grimly. "But Jason— it's worse than I realized. Porphyrion is rising. Hurry."
"But where is the Wolf House?" he pleaded.
"Our last trip." Thalia said, her image starting to flicker. "The park. Jack London. Remember?"
This made no sense to Mari, but apparently it had some sort of significance to Jason. He stumbled back, his face pale, and the Iris message disappeared.
"Bro, you all right?" Leo asked. "You know where she is?"
"Yes." Jason said. "Sonoma Valley. Not far. Not by air."
Piper turned to the ranger pilot, who'd been watching all this with an increasingly puzzled expression.
"Ma'am," Piper said with a smile. "You don't mind helping us one more time, do you?"
"I don't mind." the pilot agreed.
"We can't take a mortal into battle." Jason said. "It's too dangerous." He turned to Leo. "Do you think you could fly this thing?"
"Um..." Leo's expression didn't exactly reassure Mari. He put his hand on the side of the helicopter, concentrating hard. She didn't know what he was doing, but he did look a little crazy doing it.
"Bell 412HP utility helicopter." Leo said. "Composite four-blade main rotor, cruising speed twenty two knots, service ceiling twenty thousand feet. The tank is near full. Sure, I can fly it."
"Is this a new thing of yours?" Mari asked. "You can like, talk to machines now?"
Leo shrugged as Piper smiled at the ranger again. "You don't have a problem with us borrowing your copter, do you? We'll return it."
"I—" The pilot nearly choked on the words, but she got them out: "I don't have a problem with that."
Mari grimaced. "Great. More flying."
"Hey, it'll be just like old times." Leo grinned. "I'll be driving, you'll be terrified for your life, Jason's probably gonna pass out, and Piper's gonna hold us all together. This is gonna be great!"
° ~ •. ♆ .• ~ °
Mari was absolutely terrified for her life. She sat in the back with Jason while Piper sat in the copilot's seat. Leo was flipping switches and checking some screens on the dashboard, so she assumed he was doing just fine. The sun was going down as they flew north over the Richmond Bridge.
"Everything ok?" Mari asked.
"Aces." Leo responded. "So what's the Wolf House?"
Jason knelt between their seats. "An abandoned mansion in the Sonoma Valley. A demigod built it— Jack London."
Mari couldn't place the name. "He an actor or something?"
"Writer." Piper said. "Adventure stuff, right? Call of the Wild? White Fang? "
"Yeah." Jason said. "He was a son of Mercury— I mean, Hermes. He was an adventurer, traveled the world. He was even a hobo for a while. Then he made a fortune writing. He bought a big ranch in the country and decided to build this huge mansion— the Wolf House."
"Named that 'cause he wrote about wolves?" Leo guessed.
"Partially." Jason said. "But this site, and the reason he wrote about wolves— he was dropping hints about his personal experience. There're a lot of holes in his life story— how he was born, who his dad was, why he wandered around so much— stuff you can only explain if you know he was a demigod."
The bay slipped behind them, and the helicopter continued north. Ahead of them, yellow hills rolled out as far as Mari could see.
"So Jack London went to Camp Half-Blood." Piper guessed.
"No." Jason said. "No, he didn't."
"Ok, now you're being weird with all the mystery talk." Leo said. "Are you remembering your past?"
"Pieces." Jason said. "Only pieces. None of it good. The Wolf House is on sacred ground. It's where London started his journey as a child— where he found out he was a demigod. That's why he returned there. He thought he could live there, claim that land, but it wasn't meant for him. The Wolf House was cursed. It burned in a fire a week before he and his wife were supposed to move in. A few years later, London died, and his ashes were buried on the site."
"So how do you know all this?" Piper asked.
A shadow crossed Jason's face. Definitely not a cloud, and Mari could swear the shadow was the shape of an eagle.
"I started my journey there too." Jason said. "It's a powerful place for demigods, a dangerous place. If Gaea can claim it, use its power to entomb Hera on the solstice and raise Porphyrion— that might be enough to awaken the earth goddess fully."
Mari sat there in silence. She could see some weather ahead— a spot of darkness like a cloudbank or a storm, just like at the Grand Canyon. And they were headed straight for it.
"Fifteen minutes out." Leo said. "If you want to get some rest, now's a good time."
"Wait," Mari said holding up her hands. "Before anyone goes to sleep, I need to tell you guys something."
Mari reached into her pocket for the missing poster, her hand brushing against the paper. For a second, Mari wanted to whip her hand out of her pocket and dismiss anything she wanted to say, but she knew she had to talk about it with someone.
"When I woke up on the bus, I had no memory of who I was before then. But after we met with Aeolus, I learned everything about myself in an instant. He gave me this..."
Mari took the poster out of her pocket for everyone to see. Piper and Jason looked at the paper, their eyes widening in shock.
"What does it say?" Leo asked, his eyes still trained on the path ahead.
"It says that Mari is a missing child," Piper said quietly. "She has been since October."
Leo turned around instantly, horror written across his face. "You're telling us that you've been a missing person for two months?"
The helicopter suddenly dipped lower and Leo turned around again, scrambling to fix his mistake.
"Yeah." Mari said. "It was a big surprise to me too. But you know what the craziest part is? When we were in the sewers in Chicago, I had this terrifying dream where I watched myself getting killed. I think I watched a replay of the moment I went missing."
"Woah, woah, hold on." Leo said. "You said you got killed? Are we... are we making you up—"
"That's stupid, I'm right here." Mari said. "I was saved... by... oh my god. It all makes sense now!"
"What?" Piper asked.
"Save me, Mari, as I saved you." Mari remembered. "Hera saved me, so of course she wanted me on the quest! This is my way of paying her back!"
"Lemme get this straight," Leo said. "Hera saved you from getting kidnapped... by kidnapping you."
"That sounds like something she'd do." Piper remarked.
The three of them laughed together before Mari noticed Jason's silence. She looked over to see him hunched over, his face contorted in confusion, fear, and concern.
"Hey, Jason, are you ok?" Mari asked. "You think you got kidnapped by Hera too?"
"No, I— I swear I thought I knew about this." Jason said, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "I remember hearing about this... and seeing the poster... Gods, why can't I—"
Piper looked back in concern. "Jason, what are you talking about?"
"There was a woman... she came to... camp... carrying posters, and she was telling us about her missing daughter." Jason stuttered. "She told us her daughter was... was one of us, that we could find her..."
"What?" Mari asked, bewildered. " 'Camp?' Jason, what else do you remember? Who's us?"
"I— I don't know! I almost had it, I just need to—" Jason was suddenly interrupted by a loud ripping noise.
"What was that?" Piper asked.
Before anyone could respond, the helicopter began to violently shake as it slowly started descending.