I sighed and slammed the phone down. Slapping the side of the payphone for good measure I stepped back to where the others were waiting. "No answer," I shook my head. "I left a message, but I suppose we should get going anyways. He may be out for work or doing errands or something." They seemed to accept that. Not convinced myself, we gathered our things as the bus rolled to a stop. I couldn't shake the tight knot feeling in the back of my stomach.
When we boarded the bus I slung my bag onto the luggage rack above and settled into the seat. Annabeth sat beside me and Percy in front of us with Lucas, Stephen and Alisha across the aisle. I leaned my forehead against the window and watched as the lines on the pavement moved past. This has to be the most embarrassing rescue mission ever. I had expected it to be a few hours at most, just slip in, easily convince them that they are in danger and need to come with us, and be back at Camp before dinner. Note to self, nothing is as easy as it seems-especially when you are a demigod. Maybe I'm too young for this, or not trained enough. But Chiron appointed me to this, and if he thinks I can, then there should be no reason I shouldn't be able to. After all, hasn't he been doing this sort of thing for centuries?
Annabeth placed a hand on my knee. "Don't worry about it. This may not be as planned, but everything will turn out alright. By this time tomorrow, we'll be back. Your dad can help us tonight and then we can be on our way in the morning. None of this is your fault," she added, leaning forward to look into my face. I simply shrugged and turned back to the window.
The rhythm of the bus engine and my frustration soon had me nodding off to sleep.
In the dream Luke was lounging in a lawn chair on the upper deck of his cruise ship, the Andromeda. A fruity drink rested on the table beside him. The sun reflecting off the pool on the deck and the ocean water surrounding the ship were blinding, even in the dream. When two dracaenas drug a fighting man onto deck he didn't so much as flinch. I, on the other hand, gasped and felt my legs tremble. My father's arms were pinned to his side. Luke pushed his sunglasses onto his forehead.
"Hello, Mr. Hancock. It is such a pleasure to finally meet you. Caitlin speaks of you all the time. I apologize for the conditions of our meeting, but I absolutely need you at this moment. You see..." he began pacing. "Caitlin is being incredibly stubborn right now. She refuses to join us, to change the world. But I am sure that with the right motivation she will come to reason."
"You leave her alone." Dad's voice was strong and coated with anger as he glared at Luke, either from the sun or out of spite I couldn't tell.
Luke grimaced, "I just can't do that, you see. She is too valuable, with all of that untapped potential. She is going to be very powerful one day. I am sure you must be so proud of her."
"Do not go near her." He struggled against the monsters gripping his arms. "You and your animals leave my daughter alone! Leave her out of this! Let her come home with me!" When Dad's thrashing became too wild for his liking, Luke dismissed him with a flick of the wrist.
"Sorry, Mr. Hancock, I wish we could have met under different circumstances. And I'm sure you'll see Caitlin again soon; after all, she should be coming to play hero at any time."
Hello, everybody! I know it has been months since I last updated, please forgive me. I have lost track of this with everything else that has been going on in my life. This is a short chapter; sorry for anyone who was expecting more. I hope you enjoy. My plan is to update again in the near future. Happy Valentines Day! 3
