Annabeth POV

Ethan Nakamura stood over Reyna with his gun pointed to her head.

Reyna was laying on the ground with her hands clutching her head. Ethan harshly struck the butt of his gun against her head, which left her disoriented.

I frantically looked around the room, but there weren't any weapons.

"Who are you and why are you signaling foreign channels?" Ethan asked gruffly.

I crawled closer towards Ethan and Reyna. I was currently behind Ethan, so I had the surprise advantage if we had to fight.

"I was ordered to," Reyna said shakily.

"I don't believe that for a second, you spy. Any last words that you would like to share with the universe before you get a bullet to the brain," Ethan said firmly.

Reyna visibly gulped as she brought her hands to a surrender position.

Through the moonlight shining through the windows, I could see the blood glistening on her palms. Gods, she was seriously hurt. This was not good.

I carefully stood up and quietly walked towards Ethan.

The atmosphere was tense as Ethan cocked his gun. He had a silencer on his gun, so even if he shot, there wouldn't be any sound.

That was the only good thing about this situation, and I was going to use it.

"Ethan," I acknowledged firmly.

Ethan whirled around immediately, but my arm was already in the air. I grabbed his wrist and used his momentum to push him back.

I kicked the gun out of his hand, and it skids across the floor.

Ethan was good at combat, and the fight was tough. We did end up making some noise as we both took hits.

Suddenly, my fist struck him across the jaw.

"Aww, you're going to pay for that," Ethan growled as he stormed forward.

I dodged his kick by ducking and then spun-kicked him in the knee. Ethan fell onto the floor with a thud while I ran towards his gun.

However, Ethan was faster than I thought.

I raised my gun at him, but Ethan was right in front of me. Both of our hands battled for the gun in between us.

"Who the hell are you?" he shrieked.

I winced as his arm twisted. The gun was pressing sharply into my palm. I glared at his face as I spun and elbowed him in the chest before kicking up.

Men have a serious weakness compared to women in combat.

Ethan groaned as his grip loosened. This leverage was all I need to pull the gun away from him and press it against his forehead.

"That's enough," I said firmly. "Turn around with your hands in the air."

Ethan obliged. The room was dark and cold as I forcefully walked him towards the radio. Reyna was sitting up against the wall.

Suddenly, Ethan spun around. I barely dodged the blade, which was an inch away from my face.

"Annabeth, watch out," Reyna exclaimed.

Ethan and I both paused as we stared at each other. My mask was still on, but my identity was revealed anyway.

"Annabeth Chase, well, this is gonna be fun," Ethan snarled.

He stomped forward with his knife, but my gun was already pointed. "Don't you dare take another step," I said boldly.

Of course, Ethan didn't listen. Maybe, he underestimated me or he thought that I didn't have the guts to shoot him. But, he was wrong.

His knife was dangerously close to my throat as I fired the gun.

I watched as the life drained from Ethan's eyes. His face held shock as he crumbled to the ground. Reyna and I both stared at his lifeless body.

The bullet must've pierced a hole through his stomach, aorta, and spine.

I carefully let out a breath as I walked towards Reyna.

"Reyna, are you okay? We need to get out of here as soon as possible," I said firmly. Reyna nodded in agreement.

"We first have to dispose or hide Ethan's body. We cannot have anyone suspect that we were here. The radio will take too long for me to hack, Annabeth," Reyna said.

Fortunately, she looked physically okay. Her head was still bleeding, but there didn't seem to be any serious internal damage.

She was fine, and we'd just have to stop the bleeding.

"Don't worry about that. We need to get out of here," I said.

I still had the hostage's cell phone that I found earlier in my pocket. Hopefully, that would be enough to send a message to Percy.

Reyna's movements were slow at first, but she quickly recovered, probably because of the adrenaline. We quickly carried Ethan's body to a storage closet and placed it in a black trash bin in the back corner. Hopefully, no one would find him anytime soon.

Then, we cleaned up the blood and disposed of the clothes in the same trashcan.

We double-checked the room before exiting through the same window that we came from. We managed to perform all of these actions within a few minutes.

We quickly yet quietly walked back to our alleyway in the southwest sector.

"Reyna, are you seriously okay?" I asked as we sat down.

"I'm fine, Annabeth. I cannot believe that I let down the mission," Reyna said angrily.

"It wasn't your fault. This was a huge risk from the get-go. However, this failed mission still came out positive," I said as I pulled out the cell phone.

Reyna took it from me and analyzed it.

I was just trying not to think about the person that I killed. Death was a part of our service. However, this was the first time that I killed someone who I knew.

"Annabeth, the location service has us in the middle of nowhere, Russia. However, the cellular data cannot be activated until we get this individual's apple password," Reyna informed.

She was pretty good at using her resources.

"Then, we'll have to pinpoint the hostage this phone belongs to. Obviously, it's one of the four individuals on the home screen," I said logically.

After all, the home screen was a picture of a nice family.

"Agreed. Hopefully, they're still here and still alive," Reyna said firmly.

I nodded as I rested my head back against the brick wall. This camp and the terrorists were awful, and I hated being here without being able to do anything.

Also, I missed Percy so much. And, my team, too.

I was confident that Seaweed Brain would find me even if I didn't signal him. However, it would take him much longer to do so.

I needed his help right now, so I had to message him.

Moreover, I wanted his comfort, strength, and love. After all, the people you love are the ones that keep you going when in tough situations.

And, I certainly loved Percy. Of course, he loved me more.

That's why I knew that he'd find me. However, I needed it to be sooner rather than later.

...

The sun was scorching down on everyone. I felt awful about watching the prisoners slave away trying to manufacture the bombs and weapons.

Reyna and I had to split up today.

She was guarding the prisoner grounds in the northwest while I was watching over the prisoners in the northeast.

Most prisoners were put to work every day, but there were a few that couldn't work simply because of age, injury, and space. Those hostages had to stay back on the grounds.

Reyna and I split up so that we'd find the desired individual faster.

However, I already had my eyes on the target.

He was a middle-aged man with a short physical appearance. He was only about 5 feet, but he looked tough and hard. According to his phone, his name was Gleeson Hedge.

His photos showed many sports teams in the US, which made me believe that he used to be a high school coach.

However, that was a long time ago.

Now, he and his wife were stuck here with their young son. The other member in their family picture was not in the camp, fortunately for him.

Regardless, I could only imagine how hard it is for all of their family members.

A young child didn't deserve to grow up in a terrorist camp.

I walked towards Gleeson Hedge, who was currently working on mantling a bomb. His rough hands were working quickly and confidently. That really proved how long he has been here.

"Gleeson Hedge, come with me," I ordered boldly.

I was still disguised as a soldier, and I had to act like one. There were dozens of soldiers with guns guarding the field, so I had to stay undercover.

Coach Hedge turned around to face me. I could see both courage and anticipation in his eyes, which made me admire him.

"Come with me," I ordered loudly again.

A few other prisoners and soldiers turned towards us. However, the soldiers didn't say anything, and the prisoners were simply too scared to talk.

Gleeson Hedge and I walked towards the southwest sector.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know what you want from me. I, I have a wife and a child who need me. Please," Gleeson said quietly.

I couldn't lose control right now, so I ignored his comments.

I guided him towards an empty alleyway with a bunch of trash and crates. This alleyway was even dirtier and hidden than the one that Reyna and I were staying at.

Coach Hedge was simply confused as he stood defensively.

I looked around the alleyway before removing my mask.

"Hello, Mr. Gleeson Hedge, my name is Annabeth Chase, and I work for the United States government," I spoke quietly and confidently.

Coach Hedge immediately sighed a breath of relief.

He didn't smile, but he did look relieved.

"Are you here to save everyone? These terrorists literally treat everyone like slaves, and it's awful," Mr. Hedge said. "At least, save my son," he begged.

"Sir, I'm here to save everyone and stop the bombs," I said firmly. "But, I need your help."

Coach Hedge had a determined look on his face as he spoke, "I am willing to do absolutely everything to save my family and the innocent victims here."

"Well, I have your phone and I need access to your cellular data," I said.

I briskly handed him the phone. I wanted this interaction to be quick so that he'd be safe and I wouldn't be caught.

"Absolutely, my password is Glee_Mellie01," he informed me.

Coach Hedge handed the phone back to me. I immediately added two contacts to the phone. I only had Percy's and Piper's phone numbers memorized.

I quickly messaged both of them with my location as Mr. Hedge watched.

Then, I pocketed Gleeson's cell phone for safekeeping. Plus, I'd probably need it again, especially if Percy or Piper texted back.

"Do you think that help is coming?" Gleeson asked firmly.

I could tell that he was sick of living like this, and he wanted his family to be safe and happy again.

I looked him straight in the eye.

I meant every word that came out of my mouth next.

"Trust is hard in my line of work, but I have complete faith in my team. Specifically, I have full trust and faith in Percy. He will be here to help," I expressed genuinely.