Piper just couldn't take it anymore. She'd spent every night this week waiting for her dad to come home. It was midnight on Friday and she couldn't find any sign of her dad's return. No phone call, no headlights dancing on her wall and no sound of his Maserati pulling in the driveway. Piper's dad was a movie star, so him coming home late was normal but he had told her he'd be back on Sunday. That was six days ago. Piper was worried and sick of being home alone so she went up to her room. She grabbed her faded dark red hoodie and slipped it on over her orange Camp Half-Blood T-shirt. On her way out the front door she put on her leather combat boots that her father gave her from the set of his last movie.
Piper walked around her town until she came across a diner. The open sign shining bright into the night. She opened the door and was greeted by the sound of jingling bells which pierced through the silence. A lady who like she was in her early forties walked up from behind the counter.
"I'll have a chocolate milkshake," Piper said in a low tone.
"Okay dear. Just give me a moment," the lady replied. Piper found an empty booth which was not hard considering the fact that it was past midnight and she was the only one there. As she waited for her milkshake, Piper looked around the diner. The checked tiled floors were sticky and old fashioned pictures decorated the walls. The light above her flickered every so often. Piper wondered why she had never seen this place before.
"Here you go sweetie," smiled the lady, putting the milkshake on the table.
"Thanks," mumbled Piper. Once the lady had walked away, she began drinking the milkshake. It had an interesting taste but Piper didn't care. When the lady returned with another milkshake Piper drank it eagerly. Soon there were two empty glass cups on the table. Piper rested her head on her arms. Her thoughts were starting to run together, something about her father, milkshakes and loneliness. Piper drifted into the comfort of sleep.
Piper felt someone grab her arm and lead her out of the diner. Her mind was too foggy to do anything but follow. It had started to rain and Piper could smell the wet pavement. She tried to open her mouth to say something but it was too hard. It was too dark to look at her captor or her surroundings.
After walking for a long time, she heard the click of a door closing behind her. She tried to walk up the stairs in front of her but her legs wouldn't cooperate. She fell. Her captor slapped her. Piper could tell by the rough hand that her captor was a man. She tried to get up but she fell again. This earned her another slap. Hot tears sprung to her eyes. The man grabbed her arm and dragged her up the stairs. Piper bit her lip to hold back her cries of pain. They had reached the top of the staircase but her captor continued to drag her.
"Where are you taking me?" Piper was finally able to ask.
"That's for me to know and you to find out," said the man gruffly. Piper felt a sharp pain in her skull and her world went black.