"Aurora Avalon Solace, second oldest daughter of Nico and Will Solace, and Megara Stoll, twin of Anastasia Maria Solace, younger sister of Echo Lark Solace and older half-sister of Riley Arthur Stoll." I introduced myself, "And this is my sword that's pointed at your delicate little throat, so I'd be very careful answering my questions."

The creature nodded, eyes narrowed at me.

"Now, first question, where's my sister?"

The creature hissed lightly.

I pressed the tip against its throat, "Didnt I just tell you to be careful how you answer? Lets try again, where is my sister Anastasia?"

The monsters gave flicked to a closet.

I nodded, "Closet, Freddy."

Freddy the skeleton went over and opened it.

Ana tumbled out, "Thank goodness, it was getting a little stuffy in there. Soundproof, too."

"Glad you're okay." I said dryly, "Now, second question, have you seen Echo Solace, Gareth Valdez, and Riley Stoll?"

The monster hesitated.

I tilted my head, "Have you seen a group of three legacies, who go by Echo, Gareth, and Riley? Gareth is the oldest, Riley the youngest?"

The monster nodded slowly, "But not the last names."

Ana's wondered if Echo and Gareth had decided on fake names to keep ahead of their enemies.

I nodded my agreement with that thought, "What did they go by?"

"Echo Payne, Gareth Onyx, and Riley Steele." The monster growled.

I nodded, "Thanks a bunch, I do have to kill you so that you cant tell anyone else what you've just told me. You understand, right?"

The monster looked more resigned, "Just not the throat."

I dipped my head and ran it through so that it would die quickly, then stepped back as it disintegrated. "First lead we've had in two years."

Ana nodded, "We better get home. Papa will have dinner ready. We'll have to hope Mel covered for us well enough."

"Would have been faster if you hadn't gotten grabbed." I folded my arms.

"Wouldn't have been grabbed if you hadn't run ahead. Besides, it worked out for the best. We now have a lead to give Papa." She flipped her ponytail back over her shoulder. "We could argue all day, but we need to get back."

I sighed, "Right. Thanks guys." I dismissed the skeletons and grabbed Ana's hand. I pulled us through the shadows and into the kitchen of our home.

Papa was waiting, looking furious. Mr. and Mrs. Valdez were there, looking uncomfortable.

"What the Hell were you thinking?" Papa growled.

I bit my lip, "I was thinking that I got a lead on Echo and the others. The first in two years."

Calypso gasped, stepping forward slightly, "You…"

Papa still looked angry, "You directly disobeyed me!"

"Papa, please! Echo and Gareth and Riley passed through Morgan County, Colorado less than a week ago!" Ana broke in before he could start yelling.

I nodded, "They're going by different names. Echo Payne, Gareth Onyx, and Riley Steele."

"You could have been kidnapped!" Papa yelled, "What would your Dad and I do if we lost you two as well?!"

I swallowed hard, determined not to be brought to tears by his broken gaze, the tremble in his voice, the fear in the tears in his eyes.

He slowly shook his head, "You're grounded."

I felt my eyes widen, "What? But I just got the first lead in who knows how long!"

"By directly disobeying me!" He gave her a glare that warned her not to argue further. "I will look into it, but you are grounded. Your father and I will discuss the details of your punishment later."

I opened my mouth to argue again, but Ana gripped my wrist and sent me an image of the clock.

Dang. It was nine here. Stupid time zones. No wonder the Valdez were over. No wonder Papa was so angry.

Ana squeezed once more, "We're sorry, Papa. Really."

He nodded slightly, "You better eat before you go to bed." His voice was passive, guarded.

He went into the living room with Leo and Calypso, probably to talk over the news.

I went to the fridge and grabbed a bowl of pasta, not bothering to heat it up, "This sucks. Why can't we help?"

"Probably because it does involve Echo." Ana replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "And you know why. You're just asking because you're upset about being in trouble. Besides, is it anything we don't deserve. We got separated and it could have ended very badly. I know you take me so that you aren't going alone…but…I'm not skilled enough in fighting to help you. I'm done, Aury."

I looked at her, feeling somewhat betrayed, "Stace, I need you to come with me. Have my back, how much more trouble would I get in if Dad or Papa found out I was going alone? And what if I get hurt? I need you there."

"You'll have to find someone else to go with you, or something else to do to help. I'm sorry, Aury, but that's the way it is. You know I hate being in trouble, and what we've been doing is asking for trouble. You're the lady of death, I'm…like…the opposite."

"Life? That's actually pretty accurate. Have you told Dad and Papa about your…gift?"

Ana shook her head, "Not exactly. They knew I could sense when people were pregnant, but I don't think they know about the whole…sensing lives thing. It's getting…stronger." She shook her head, "I'm starting to be able to sense their health. I can tell how many people are in a building."

I didn't respond, I knew her gifts scared her. That my gifts scared her. We were two sides of one coin, life and death. The newest oracle had told them so.

As if oracles weren't scary enough.

I sat down at the table, "But…if you don't help me…how am I supposed to get back at them?"

"Some things are more important than revenge, Aury." Ana said in a surprisingly sharp voice. "Like our family. We're already broken as it is. Just…drop it, Rory."

I sat down, feeling defeated.

—

"Echo, wake up, it's time to move."

I rubbed my eyes, and looked up at Gareth, "Past time more like." I said once I saw how dark it was outside.

"Riley's knee was bugging him, so I wanted to take care of that before we started moving. He's okay now." Gareth explained.

I nodded, getting up and gathering my stuff, "We better hurry. We've stayed here too long."

"Gypsy is scouting a route."

I nodded.

Gypsy was a half-blood daughter of Hermes that we had helped out a month ago, and she had been helping us in return ever since. She trusted Gareth, which was pretty big for her. She didn't seem to trust anyone. She had finally warmed up to me about a week into traveling with us. She was good at finding the right routes.

Gareth led the way outside, where Riley was keeping watch.

I kissed Riley's forehead, "Hey, little brother."

"Hey, we ready to go?" He asked, taking my hand.

Gareth nodded, "Yeah." He muttered a spell, then started off down a path of sorts.

We followed.

When we had first started this never-ending game of Hide and Seek, we had been guided by a phoenix that I could see. But sometime around the sixth month, we finally got ahead of our pursuers and the phoenix stopped showing up. Now it only appeared when we were in serious trouble, so I was grateful whenever we could go somewhere without me seeing it.

We caught up to Gypsy quickly, which was unusual.

She was just standing in a sort of clearing, staring blankly into the woods.

"Gyps?" Gareth whispered, going over and touching her shoulder.

She jumped and seemed to notice us finally, but she looked shaken, and her gaze was pulled back toward the spot in the woods. "I have to go."

"So…"

"No…I have to leave you guys. I've put you in danger." Gypsy said, "Something has changed. I'm the best one to find out what. I'll find you again when I do. Meet in Nebraska, one month, I'll find you."

"Whoa, Gypsy, slow down." Gareth caught her hand, "What happened?"

She glanced at all of us, "My father appeared."

Riley murmured an "uh-oh" and squeezed my hand.

Gypsy nodded sharply, "I have to leave. He didn't know I was traveling with you, for some reason. But he said he would be watching over my travels, so I have to leave."

I closed my eyes, silently sending a prayer to both my grandfathers to keep us safe. For some reason, I didn't think my prayers were going through. It had been forever since I had been able to do any sort of offering. Could it really be bad if any of the gods knew where they were?

Gareth was talking quietly with Gypsy, but stopped, "Echo? What do you think?"

I opened my eyes, and felt a fist close around my stomach, "I think we need to move. The phoenix is back."

Riley and Gareth looked alarmed.

Gypsy fixed her gaze on me, "Run safely, Echo." Then she kissed Gareth's cheek and dashed off, quickly disappearing into the forest.

I pulled Riley in the other direction, toward the phoenix.

Gareth reluctantly followed.

—

"Nico, it's still the first bit of information we've had in…so long."

"They disobeyed us getting it." Nico replied firmly. "If we don't stick to our rules, then they'll try and get away with worse things."

Will sighed, "I know, I just…it's like there's hope…they were alive…and I know that we knew that already…but…"

Nico could see his husband was trying desperately to hold it all together. There was relief and frustration and a whole mix of emotions that had both of them spinning. So, he nuzzled his face into Will's neck, "Rory's getting reckless. She…gods help us, she reminds me of me."

Will nodded, "Bit more cheerful."

Nico gently bit Will's neck as punishment.

"Watch it, you just bit at my carotid artery."Will turned his head and managed to catch Nico's lips in a brief kiss. "So, what do we ground them from? Activities outside the house? It's not like they have any technology that we could take away. We could give them more chores."

Nico sighed, "Straight to school, straight home. They're twelve, they shouldn't be running around the country."

"Um…you realize that half of the half-bloods we know were running around the country at twelve years old?"

"They aren't half-bloods." Nico argued.

"Technically they are. All of our kids. Because they had half-blood parents. So, they're technically double-quarter-blood but that the same thing." Will ranted in a good-natured tone.

Nico sighed, "When did we get so old?"

"Hey now."

"Seriously, Will, I was twenty-three when Echo was born. Now…I'm thirty-seven. We're both about to hit forty and we lost two years with our daughter…"

They were both quiet, thinking about Echo, wondering where she was. They had taught her to pray to the gods, but considering their fathers were on the lookout for her prayers and they hadn't heard anything, and even Hermes admitted that he hadn't seen any trace of his grandson, it was hard to think that she was out there in her right mind.

"Have you talked to Travis lately?"

Nico nodded, "Teachers lounge, he's unabashedly determined to be hopeful for their return. He still isn't sleeping regularly, but he keeps things running. He mentioned something about finding a clue to who it might have been that took the kids. But, you know the Stolls."

"Secretive bunch," Will pulled the covers up so that they at least covered his legs, and Nico pulled them over his own.

"There's one thing that I don't understand." Nico said, getting himself comfortable with Will as his pillow.

"What's that?"

Nico took the hand that was resting lightly on his chest, "Why hasn't Echo used either of the skeleton fighter charms we gave her?"

"You're assuming she still has them." Will reminded him. "And that she was wearing them."

"She was. I remember. She rarely ever wore different earrings."

"Well, if she does have them, then maybe there hasn't been a fight that has needed her to use either of them. If she doesn't, then…there's your answer." Will yawned.

"Did you hear that that Linus kid has been officially announced missing?"

"Weren't he and Melina Jackson dating?"

"Not yet, but they were definitely flirting. Not in an obnoxious way, but more like playful banter and always hanging out together." Nico chewed the inside of his cheek for a couple moments, "Melina's been acting strange for days. Percy was telling us that she had been acting out, saying that Linus was in danger and that she had to help him. They forced her to stay."

Will shook his head, "Not a good idea."

"Not particularly. Now that he's been announced missing…"

"Percy's afraid she'll go looking for him."

"He's more afraid of what will happen to her when she does. She won't even talk to Annabeth, apparently. Called her a hypocrite."

Will gave Nico a quizzical look.

"Mel's seventeen, Annabeth told her that she wasn't about to be running around the country searching for a missing guy no matter how much she liked him."

Will snorted, "I could have told her how that would backfire. She was sixteen when she did the same thing."

"Exactly, so now Percy and Nolan are playing referees. But apparently Nolan did tell Percy that they should have let Melina go." Nico could tell by Will's hand that his husband was falling asleep. He was so used to this routine, talking about stuff until Will accidentally drifted off, then listening to the sound of Will's heartbeat, feel the steady rise and fall of his chest.

"Probably because now she'll just leave without their permission…" Will drifted off as he said it.

But it caught in Nico's mind.

Melina was incredibly intelligent, she had a perfect balance of both of her parents. But one thing she had inherited from Percy was the way she made friends. Friends that would cover for her, if she were planning to go find Linus. And of course, her and her brother would have planned her search together, Nolan was an excellent planner and they were very close. As close as the twins.

Percy had said that Melina was going to Kelsey Monaghan's house for a sleepover and driving herself home in the morning.

Nico had seen her walking away from school alone.

He grabbed his phone and called Percy.

"Hello?" Percy sounded like he had been laughing.

"It's Nico, you better ask Nolan about Melina's sleepover."

Percy paused, "Why? Nolan, come here." He called the last part away from the phone.

"Because she called Annabeth a hypocrite, Percy."

Percy was silent, then he let out a string of curses in ancient Greek, "What is she thinking?"

"What was Annabeth thinking when she scoured the country looking for you? Come on, Percy. She's just like you two. She never gives up on the people she cares about. We're lucky she hasn't gone searching for Echo, Gareth, and Riley. The only reason she didn't was because Linus and Nolan convinced her not to. She's determined." Nico said, shaking his head.

Percy swore again, "I better go."

"Let me know what happened in the morning."

"Okay." He hung up.

Nico set his phone aside, and slipped out of Will's embrace to go check on the twins. He just needed to see that they were there.

Ana was either asleep or trying to sleep.

Rory was at her desk, bent over her books and notebooks. "Papa?" She didn't even glance to see if it was actually him.

He went in, grabbing the extra chair and pulling it over by the desk, "Aurora."

"I'm angry. So angry." A tear hit her notebook.

"About?"

"Why Echo?" She asked, "All she wanted was to see us happy, and they took her. They took her. I want to hurt them."

Nico put an arm around her and pulled her head to his shoulder, "I know. I do too. But you aren't going to hurt them by being reckless and endangering yourself like you did this afternoon. Hurting them, finding your sister and the others…that has to be something that is done safely. Otherwise you stand to lose more than what you would gain. Do you understand?"

"What am I supposed to do? Just sit around and wait? I can't." She clenched her fists.

Nico smoothed her hair, "You want to help."

"Please, Papa. Please. I want to hurt them."

Nico remembered his father telling him how children of Hades had trouble letting go of grudges. He knew he had struggled with it, for a long time. He didn't know how to help Aurora, though. "How did Ana do on your trip?"

Aurora didn't answer right away, she pulled away and glanced at his face. "Are you going to get mad?"

Nico knew it was bad when she had to ask that. He took a deep breath, calming himself, "What happened?"

Rory looked at the ground, "We got separated and monster took her. I got her back, though. She was fine."

Nico closed his eyes, "Rory…"

"I know. Reckless." She turned back to her desk. "I just…miss Echo. And Declan."

Nico nodded. He picked her up and carried her to her bed, "It'll be better in the morning. Promise. I'll make your favorite."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, "Love you, Papa."

"Love you too, darling." He tucked her in, then went and turned off her desk lamp, and went back to cuddle with Will.

AN: Someone asked if the people who kidnapped Echo were the same as those who kidnapped Cassie. They aren't. Hope you guys are excited for this next part of the series!