Will shot up into a sitting position, his blue eyes wide. He was covered in sweat and panting slightly.
"Hey, it's okay," Andy told him. "We're safe. You were having a nightmare."
"Yeah, nightmare," Will muttered, rubbing a hand over his face. "Gods, I feel terrible."
"Do you remember what it was about?" Andy asked. "My dad tells me it makes you feel better if you tell someone about it."
"I don't remember," Will said, going to the door of the van and opening it. Weak morning light filled the van. He breathed the fresh air deeply. "Where's Cletus?"
"Finding breakfast," Andy said. "We wanted to get to Adirondack by lunchtime, so we need to head out soon. Do you think you'll be up to driving?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine," he said. "I just need coffee."
"I'm not allowed to drink coffee," Andy said wistfully.
"Why not?" Will asked.
"Uh, long story," Andy said uncomfortably. Will left for the bathroom, leaving Andy by herself in the car.
Cletus hurried into sight, clutching a bag. "Did you get coffee?" Andy asked him.
"You can't have coffee," Cletus said sternly.
"No, but Will wants some," Andy said. "What's in the bag?"
"Cinnamon rolls," Cletus said. "Look, do we really have time to stop for coffee?"
"There's always drive-thru at Starbucks," Andy shrugged, biting into the warm, gooey cinnamon roll.
The van pulled out of the hotel parking lot at seven in the morning. Will said that they had about four hours before they reached the part boundary. After that, they had to rely on Kivese's promised guide.
"What if she can't send one?" Cletus fretted. "Or what if we miss him, or he gets killed? The park's huge, we'll never find her cousin!"
"Cletus, shut up," Andy grumbled. She felt worse for the wear after having spent all last night sleeping on the hard floor of the van and then having to wake up to take the early morning watch. "We won't miss it. Sam'll come through."
Will looked at her strangely. He had perked up since he'd gotten coffee, but clearly the lack of sleep last night had taken its toll. He stopped in Albany, to stretch their legs and get some sodas, but Andy could see it was an excuse for him to try and wake up.
Andy picked up a brochure about Adirondack Park while they were in Albany. She struggled to read it, her dyslexia acting up. She hadn't said it last night, but she was extremely jealous at how easy it had been for Will to read.
"It says... that the Park is surrounded by a buelin," Andy read.
"Eh, that says blue line," Cletus translated.
"What, like a blue line painted on the ground?" Will asked.
"No, it's sort of a park boundary," Andy said. "But it's called a blue line. Something about maps or whatever. Now, the highway goes straight into the park, no trouble. But once we're inside, maybe we should take one of the smaller roads. Go slower. See if we can spot that guide."
"Great, which road?" Will asked, suppressing a yawn.
"Well, 28 seems to lead straight into the park, so let's try that one," Andy said. "You know, I'm surprised nothing's attacked us yet."
"Yeah, or tried to buy strawberries off us," Cletus agreed.
"Tell you the truth, it's kind of making me uncomfortable," Will said. "I mean, sure it's great while it lasts. But it's almost like we're being lulled into a false sense of security."
Andy nodded. She wondered if they'd found Percy yet back at the camp. Somehow, she didn't think so.
"You know, the scenery really is lovely," Cletus remarked into the long pause. It was certainly true, tall dark trees grew up on either side of the road, ruffling their branches like a bird would its feathers in the wind. They had lunch at a small place just outside the park. Despite his lack of sleep, Will had managed to fulfill their goal of getting there before noon.
When they'd finished eating, the three of them stood outside next to the van. Waiting. Waiting for what? Or rather, who?
"Well, we'd best revert to the plan of 28," Will said. Andy frowned; she was beginning to suspect that Will didn't think Sam would keep her promise to guide them.
The park really was beautiful. It was summer, and the leaves were dark, rich green. The sky was cloudless and bright. Andy could see deer moving among the trees and tourists would pull over to the side of the road to photograph them. There were families sitting at rest stops having picnics; Andy watched them through the window of the car and felt lonely.
In sheer desperation, Will pulled the van off the road onto a scenic overlook.
"Look, there's got to be hundreds of people in the park today," he said. "I'm not so sure we can rely on Kivese's guide."
"Did you hear that?" Cletus asked suddenly. They were quiet for a moment, and Andy could just hear a faint whimper.
"It sounds like something's hurt," Will said, scanning the underbrush.
"No, it's not hurt," Cletus said, shaking his head. "I can't sense its distress."
"There!" Will said suddenly, keeping his voice down. He pointed his bow into the thick undergrowth. Andy squinted into the shadows and saw a flash of red fur.
A fox crept out from the ferns and sat down at the edge of the road. His paws were black, like they'd been dipped in paint, and his whiskers were the same. The fox twitched those dark whiskers at them and examined them with clever dark eyes.
"Have you ever seen a wild fox this close to a human?" Will asked wonderingly.
"I've never seen a wild fox," Andy said.
"He says we're to follow him," Cletus told them. "He says we are very close now." The fox winked its clever, mischievous eyes as he stood and turned around. He flicked his white-tipped tail at them, as though beckoning for them to follow, then stepped lightly back into the underbrush.
The three of them checked to make sure they had their weapons (Cletus picked up a thick stick and held it at the ready) before following. The brochure had said that bears lived in the woods; Andy though it would be a poor way to die if she was killed by a bear after having escaped magical, mythical monsters and angry goddesses.
The fox plunged straight into the forest, occasionally looking back as though checking that they were all following him. Andy estimated that they had walked more than two miles when the fox suddenly vanished.
"Where'd he go?" Will asked, casting around and using his bow to poke the undergrowth.
"You don't think... this might be a trap?" Cletus asked. Andy suddenly grew tense, looking around suspiciously. Will and Cletus also stiffened and became wary.
"No," Andy said. "Sam... Kivese wouldn't have."
"Maybe the fox wasn't from Kivese," Cletus said. That certainly wasn't a comforting thought.
"Let's keep going," Will said, forging ahead in the direction the fox had been going. Andy and Cletus followed, weapons at the ready. They'd barely gone four feet before Will suddenly stopped and Andy ran into him.
"What's up?" she asked, peering around him.
"Di immortales," Cletus remarked, looking ahead of them.
The darker, thicker oak and maple trees suddenly stopped and the thick, knee deep undergrowth also ceased. It was as though a line had been drawn where the normal forest stopped. On the other side of this line lay a bright, green forest of thin birch trees. It was almost as though an entirely different forest had been plopped down in the middle of Adirondack National Park.
A narrow gully led into the strange wood. Without a word, Andy started up the gully with Will and Cletus close behind, weapons still ready.
A/N: Another straightforward chapter. No footnotes.