Estella didn't relax until Quebec City faded behind them.
"You were amazing," Jason told Piper.
Piper said something in French.
"What'd you say?" he asked.
"I said I only talked to Boreas. It wasn't so amazing. "
"Hey," he said, "you saved me from joining Khione's subzero hero collection. I owe you one. "
Estella felt uneasy sitting between Piper and Jason. Especially with the way they've been behaving toward each other. Estella was hoping that it was all in her head. Piper knew how Estella felt... didn't she?
But something else was bothering Estella.
Estella couldn't stop thinking about the was that Boreas had changed form, and why he'd let them go. It had something to do with Jason's past, those tattoos on his arm. Boreas assumed Jason was some sort of Roman, and Romans didn't mix with Greeks. Estella wanted to know more, maybe ask Jason what he knew, but he didn't seem to want to talk about it, so she stayed silent.
Until now, Estella had been able to dismiss Jason's feeling that he didn't belong at Camp Half-Blood. Obviously he was a demigod. Of course he belonged. But now ... what if he was something else? What if he really was an enemy? She couldn't stand that idea any more than she could stand Khione.
Leo passed them some sandwiches from his pack. He'd been quiet ever since they'd told him what happened in the throne room. "I still can't believe Khione," he said. "She looked so nice."
"Trust me, man," Jason said. "Snow may be pretty, but up close it's cold and nasty. We'll find you a better prom date."
Piper and Estella both smiled, but Leo didn't look pleased. He hadn't said much about his time in the palace, or why the Boreads had singled him out for smelling like fire. Estella got the feeling he was hiding something. Whatever it was, his mood seemed to be affecting Festus, who grumbled and steamed as he tried to keep himself warm in the cold Canadian air. Happy the Dragon was not so happy.
They ate their sandwiches as they flew. Estella had no idea how Leo had stocked up on supplies, but he'd even remembered to bring veggie rations for Piper, who was a vegetarian.
Nobody talked. Whatever they might find in Chicago, they all knew Boreas had only let them go because he figured they were already on a suicide mission.
The moon rose and stars turned overhead. Estella's eyes started to feel heavy. The encounter with Boreas and his children had scared her more than she wanted to admit. Now that she had a full stomach, her adrenaline was fading.
Estella started thinking about the coach. Boreas had mentioned he was still alive. She'd never liked Hedge, but he'd leaped off a cliff to save Leo, and he'd sacrificed himself to protect them on the skywalk. She now realized that all the times at school the coach had pushed her, yelled at her to run faster or do more push-ups, or even when he'd turned his back and let her and Piper fight their own battles with the mean girls, the old goat man had been trying to help them in his own irritating way—trying to prepare them for life as a demigods.
On the skywalk, Dylan the storm spirit had said something about the coach, too: how he'd been retired to Wilderness School because he was getting too old, like it was some sort of punishment. Estella wondered what that was about, and if it explained why the coach was always so grumpy. Whatever the truth, now that Estella knew Hedge was alive, she had a strong compulsion to save him.
Estella yawned, and before she knew it, she leaned forward against Piper's back and fell asleep.
•••
Estella woke up screaming, free falling from the sky.
Far below she saw city lights glimmering in the early dawn, and several hundred yards away the body of the bronze dragon spinning out of control, its wings limp, fire flickering in its mouth like a badly wired lightbulb.
A body shot past her—Leo, screaming and frantically grabbing at the clouds. "Not coooooool!"
Piper was screaming from just above her, eyes wide and as if she had just woken up too.
Somewhere above her, Jason yelled, "Piper, Estella, level out! Extend your arms and legs!"
It was hard to control her fear, but Estella did what he said and regained some balance. She fell spread-eagle like a skydiver, the wind underneath her like a solid block of ice. Then Jason was there, wrapping his arms around her waist, already have grabbed Piper.
Thank god, Estella thought. But part of her also thought: Great. Second time this week he's hugged me, and both times it's because I'm plummeting to my death.
"We have to get Leo!" Piper shouted.
Their fall slowed as Jason controlled the winds, but they still lurched up and down like the winds didn't want to cooperate.
"Gonna get rough," Jason warned. "Hold on!"
Estella locked her arms around him from one side as Piper held on tightly to his other side, and Jason shot toward the ground. Estella probably screamed, but the sound was ripped from her mouth. Her vision blurred.
And then, thump! They slammed into another warm body—Leo, still wriggling and cursing.
"Stop fighting!" Jason said. "It's me!"
"My dragon!" Leo yelled. "You gotta save Festus!"
Jason was already struggling to keep the four of them aloft, and Estella knew there was no way he could help a fifty-ton metal dragon. But before she could try to reason with Leo, she heard an explosion below them. A fireball rolled into the sky from behind a warehouse complex, and Leo sobbed, "Festus!"
Jason's face reddened with strain as he tried to maintain an air cushion beneath them, but intermittent slow-downs were the best he could manage. Rather than free-falling, it felt like they were bouncing down a giant staircase, a hundred feet at a time, which wasn't doing Estella's stomach any favors.
As they wobbled and zigzagged, Estella could make out details of the factory complex below—warehouses, smokestacks, barbed-wire fences, and parking lots lined with snow-covered vehicles. They were still high enough so that hitting the ground would flatten them into roadkill—or skykill—when Jason groaned, "I can't—"
And they dropped like stones.
They hit the roof of the largest warehouse and crashed through into darkness.
Estella fell directly on top of Piper, who cried out in pain. Estella groaned but she was in far better shape than Piper was.
Then they heard Jason's voice somewhere below, echoing through the building. "Piper! Estella! Where are the girls?"
"Ow, bro!" Leo groaned. "That's my back! I'm not a sofa! Stell, Piper, where'd you go?"
"Here," Estella yelled, while Piper let out a small whimper.
Estella heard shuffling and grunting, then feet pounding on metal steps.
Estella and Piper were on a metal catwalk that ringed the warehouse interior. Leo and Jason had landed on ground level, and were now coming up the stairs toward them. Estella looked at Piper's foot, and wave of nausea swept over her. Piper's toes weren't supposed to point that way, were they?
The hole they'd made in the roof was a ragged starburst twenty feet above. How they'd even survived that drop, she had no idea. Hanging from the ceiling, a few electric bulbs flickered dimly, but they didn't do much to light the enormous space. Next to Piper and Estella, the corrugated metal wall was emblazoned with a company logo, but it was almost completely spray-painted over with graffiti. Down in the shadowy warehouse, she could make out huge machines, robotic arms, half-finished trucks on an assembly line. The place looked like it had been abandoned for years.
Jason and Leo reached their side.
Leo started to ask, "You guys okay ... ?" Then he saw Piper's foot. "Oh no, you're not."
"Thanks for the reassurance," Piper groaned.
"You'll be fine," Jason said, though Estella could hear the worry in his voice. "Leo, you got any first aid supplies?"
"Yeah—yeah, sure." He dug around in his tool belt and pulled out a wad of gauze and a roll of duct tape—both of which seemed too big for the belt's pockets. Estella had noticed the tool belt yesterday morning, but she hadn't thought to ask Leo about it. It didn't look like anything special—just one of those wraparound leather aprons with a bunch of pockets, like a blacksmith or a carpenter might wear. And it seemed to be empty.
"How did you—" Piper tried to sit up, and winced. "How did pull that stuff from an empty belt?"
"Magic," Leo said. "Haven't figure it out completely, but I can summon just about any regular tool out of the pockets, plus some other helpful stuff." He reached into another pocket and pulled out a little tin box. "Breath mint?"
Jason snatched away the mints. "That's great, Leo. Now, can you fix her foot?"
"I'm a mechanic, man. Maybe if she was a car ..." He snapped his fingers. "Wait, what was that godly healing stuffthey fed you at camp—Rambo food?"
"Ambrosia, dummy," Piper said through gritted teeth. "There should be some in my bag, if it's not crushed."
Estella carefully pulled her backpack off her shoulders. She rummaged through the supplies, and found a Ziploc full of smashed pastry squares like lemon bars. She broke off a piece and fed it to her friend.
"More," Piper said.
Jason frowned, taking the ambrosia from Estella. "Piper, we shouldn't risk it. They said too much could burn you up. I think I should try to set your foot."
Piper's stomach fluttered. "Have you ever done that before?"
"Yeah ... I think so."
"Very reassuring," Estella commented.
Leo found an old piece of wood and broke it in half for a splint. Then he got the gauze and duct tape ready.
"Hold her leg still," Jason told him. "Piper, this is going to hurt."
Estella grabbed one of Piper's hand to comfort her.
When Jason set the foot, Piper flinched so hard she punched Leo in the arm with her other hand causing Estella to wince in sympathy, and Leo yelled almost as much as Piper did. Estella saw that Piper's foot was pointing the right way, her ankle splinted with plywood, gauze, and duct tape.
"Ow," Piper said.
"Jeez, beauty queen!" Leo rubbed his arm. "Glad my face wasn't there."
"Sorry," she said. "And don't call me 'beauty queen,' or I'll punch you again."
"You all did great." Jason found a canteen in Piper's pack and gave her some water.
"What happened to the dragon?" Estella asked while at the same time Piper said, "Where are we?"
Leo's expression turned sullen. "I don't know with Festus. He just jerked sideways like he hit an invisible wall and started to fall."
Leo pointed to the logo on the wall. "As far as where we are ..." It was hard to see through the graffiti, but Estella could make out a large red eye with the stenciled words: monocle motors, assembly plant 1.
"Closed car plant," Leo said. "I'm guessing we crash-landed in Detroit."
"How far is that from Chicago?" Piper asked.
Jason handed Piper the canteen. "Maybe three-fourths of the way from Quebec? The thing is, without the dragon, we're stuck traveling overland."
"No way," Leo said. "It isn't safe."
"He's right," Piper said. "Besides, I don't know if I can walk. And four people—Jason, you can't fly that many across country by yourself."
"No way," Jason said. "Leo, are you sure the dragon didn't malfunction? I mean, Festus is old, and—"
"And I might not have repaired him right?"
"I didn't say that," Jason protested. "It's just—maybe you could fix it."
"I don't know." Leo sounded crestfallen. He pulled a few screws out of his pockets and started fiddling with them. "I'd have to find where he landed, if he's even in one piece."
"It was my fault." Piper said suddenly.
"Piper," Estella says, "it wasn't your faulty. How could it have been?"
"Yeah, you're just shaken up," Leo agreed. He didn't even try to make a joke at her expense. "You're in pain. Just rest."
Leo stood. "Look, um, Jason, why don't you stay with the girls, bro? I'll scout around for Festus. I think he fell outside the warehouse somewhere. If I can find him, maybe I can figure out what happened and fix him."
"It's too dangerous," Jason said. "You shouldn't go by yourself."
"I could go with you," Estella offered.
"Ah, I got duct tape and breath mints. I'll be fine," Leo said, a little too quickly, and Estella realized he was a lot more shaken up than he was letting on. "You guys just don't run off without me."
Leo reached into his magic tool belt, pulled out a flashlight, and headed down the stairs, leaving Piper, Estella and Jason there.
The three sat there awkwardly.
"You did a good job with Piper's foot," Estella said. "Where'd you learn first aid?"
He shrugged. "Same answer as always. I don't know."
"But you're starting to have some memories, aren't you? Like that prophecy in Latin back at camp, or that dream about the wolf," Piper spoke up.
"It's fuzzy," Jason said. "Like déjà vu. Ever forgotten a word or a name, and you know it should be on the tip of your tongue, but it isn't? It's like that—only with my whole life."
Estella sort of knew what he meant. The last three months—a life she thought she'd had, a relationship with Jason—had turned out to be Mist.
Estella should've kept her mouth shut, but she voiced the question that had been on her mind since yesterday.
"That photo in your pocket," she said. "Is that someone from your past?"
Piper gave her a curious look.
Jason pulled back.
"I'm sorry," Estella said, a furious blush on her face. "None of my business. Forget it."
"No—it's okay." His features relaxed. "Just, I'm trying to figure things out. Her name's Thalia. She's my sister. I don't remember any details. I'm not even sure how I know, but—um, why are you smiling?"
"Nothing." Estella tried to kill the smile, as Piper nudged her teasingly. Not an old girlfriend. She felt ridiculously happy. "So she's your sister?"
Jason nodded. "I get the feeling I'm supposed to find her. Hera left me that memory for a reason. It's got something to do with this quest. But ... I also have the feeling it could be dangerous. I'm not sure I want to find out the truth. Is that crazy?"
"No," Piper said. "Not at all."
Estella stared at the logo on the wall: monocle motors, the single red eye. Something about that logo bothered her.
"Guys," Piper said. "Speaking of the truth, I need to tell you something—something about my dad—"
She didn't get the chance. Somewhere below, metal clanged against metal, like a door slamming shut. The sound echoed through the warehouse.
Jason stood. He took out his coin and flipped it, snatching his golden sword out of the air. He peered over the railing. "Leo?" he called.
No answer.
He crouched next to Estella and Piper. "I don't like this."
"He could be in trouble," Piper said. "Go check."
"I can't leave you guys here."
Estella knew where his train of thought was. One of them was injured and the other one was hella weak.
"We'll be be fine," Piper said. She drew her dagger Katoptris. "Anyone gets close, I'll skewer them."
"And I have a knife too so uh we're good," Estella added awkwardly.
Jason hesitated. "I'll leave you the pack. If I'm not back in five minutes—"
"Panic?" Piper suggested.
"Get going, Sparky," Estella said with a a smile, before I skewer you."
"Sparky?"
Even offended, Jason looked absolutely adorable. It wasn't fair. Then he made his way to the stairs and disappeared into the dark.
Estella counted her breaths, trying to gauge how much time had passed. She lost track at around forty-three. Then something in the warehouse went bang!
The echo died. Estella's heart pounded, but she didn't call out. Her instincts told her it might not be a good idea.
She stared at Piper's splinted ankle. She wouldn't be able to run mad Estella isn't about to leave without her. Then she looked up again at the Monocle Motors sign.
Piper's hand went to her backpack. She took out the ambrosia squares.
"Piper?" Estella questioned.
Boom. The sound was closer this time, directly below them. Piper dug out a whole square of ambrosia and stuffed it in her mouth.
"Piper, what the hell—"
Piper cut through the duct tape with her dagger and heard heavy steps on the stairs—like metal boots.
Had it been five minutes? Longer? The steps didn't sound like Jason, but maybe he was carrying Leo.
"Jason?" Piper called out, gripping her dagger.
"Yeah," he said from the darkness. "On my way up."
Definitely Jason's voice.
Estella helped Piper to her feet.
The steps came closer.
"It's okay," Jason's voice promised.
At the top of the stairs, a face appeared out of the darkness—a hideous black grin, a smashed nose, and a single bloodshot eye in the middle of his forehead.
"It's fine," the Cyclops said, in a perfect imitation of Jason's voice. "You're just in time for dinner."