So I was really confused. I thought the email feature had broken because every time I tried to update this it refused to acknowledge that it was updated.

Turns out they've enabled an email "opt-in" method where you have to opt-in to getting email updates every six months.

Which frankly I find a little silly but whatever. The wheezings of a dying website often do strange things. is in its geriatric stage after all.

Hope you enjoy the chapter.


Chapter 6


"What are we looking for?" Percy scanned at the crowds of people leaving the luggage area.

Hundreds of tiny suitcase wheels hissed and clacked against the smooth floors as the tired passengers searched for their rides with slouching figures and odd cantankerous expressions. He was tired of people bumping into him, and brushing him and just being all too close for his liking. He wanted to break free from this crowd and just find a perch he could watch from afar, not stand there searching for a brunette in a sea of brown hair, and caps and smelling a million different kinds of perfumes and BO's. Crackles of hatred for crowds in large spaces boiled to the surface as he held his breath involuntarily.

"A pretty brunette and a tall blonde." Annabeth was eagerly perched on her tiptoes to peer over the shoulders of the people waiting in front of her. The delight and anxious enthusiasm was bubbling all over her face in an adorable way.

At least she made the crowd bearable, he had to give her that.

"Is she short? Is she tall? Angular face? Any distinguishable birthmarks? Maybe a back hump and the incurable desire to sleep in bell towers? C'mon I need more than this to find her," Percy complained while only craning his neck.

Being a bit taller than Annabeth had its perks. For one, when she glared up at him she had to tilt her head back in a toddler-esque way that he knew peeved her off just a tiny bit more. Such a small victory, but against the impossible blonde it always felt like a hard one battle.

"She's my height, slimmer build, and straight hair," Annabeth snuffed. "She's literally like the most distinct looking- OH! PIPER!"

"ANNABETH!"

Annabeth was instantly smothered by a hug gripping, bun wearing, slender brunette who had a heavy backpack sagging off her shoulders and a carry on wheeled neon green luggage parked at her feet.

A trumpet. Percy immediately decided as he watched a few feet away in silence. Loud, yet melodious and sweet, and shining like a star. Piper would be a trumpet if I were to kill her.

"Shit, it's been AGES!" Piper declared. Gripping Annabeth's hands tightly with her own as her wide green eyes searched Annabeths. Or were they blue eyes?

"Yeah," Annabeth agreed a bit breathlessly, but with an unbreakable smile. "It's felt so long because of your stupid mobile connectivity issues."

"Right?" Piper groaned dramatically. "I've gifted Grandpa literally every technological advancement since the creation of the printing press and he still refuses to use them. Calls them dark magic."

Annabeth had a snappy reply to that. Percy could see it gearing up in her mouth as her lips puckered into a semi-smug grin but it died on her lips the moment another person joined their little conversation.

A man. Blonde, handsome, unearthly blue eyes that shone with a softness that rubbed Percy the wrong way. What was that softness? He'd seen it before. Shyness?

No, he was only shy in body language. His hunched stance, his slightly pursed lips, the way he semi crossed his arms as if defending himself. But his eyes were unwavering, locked on Annabeth as if he were preparing for a duel.

Pity.

Of course Percy knew that look. It was in the eye of every social worker who transported him, every teacher who learned his story, every passerby who threw him a dollar while he lay in the streets.

Pity? Annabeth Chase?

"Good to see you Beth," the man, who he assumed was Jason, said.

"My name's Annabeth," she muttered in return with a tartness to her words. "Hi, Jason."

Even her tone dripped with dislike.

Jason was… well, looking at him Percy first thought of a trophy. Shiny, pricey, pretty, but totally empty of any character. But he couldn't declare that as his final call. Jason might've been repressing his personality around Annabeth. They were clearly far from cozy and if they'd always been that awkward around each other then it would only be natural to shut down in such circumstances.

"We have news!" Piper was bouncing on the balls of her feet. A contagious grin split wide across her lips.

"Me too." Annabeth glanced back at Percy. And yet they still didn't notice his lingering presence.

It was as if all his time teaching himself to blend into crowds had gone too well and now he lay invisible to those unaccustomed to his face.

Before Percy could naturally step into the conversation, Piper fell back impishly and looped her arm around Jason. Her cheeks pinched up in an aggressively happy state.

"Guess ours," she giggled. Sharing her intoxicating happiness with Jason in a twin expression. The sickeningly sweet 'gosh-darnit-we're-just-the-greatest-couple' kind of look that made Percy gag. If being in the middle of this crowd wasn't bad enough.

"Guess?" Annabeth sounded scared yet still confused. Even Percy could predict the next moves and actions of the perfects. Internally he sighed for the sake of Annabeth, and what this meant for the future. "Guess what? I'm terrible at guessing things."

In response, Piper held up her left hand and waggled her ring finger excitedly. A sparkling diamond guarded by rubies was implanted on a band of gold and fit snugly against her finger. Her bright white teeth shot a blinding smile at the reveal as another peal of laughter left her lips. The obviousness of her actions was statement enough, yet Annabeth stood there speechless. An expression of horror ripping up her face as she was obviously mentally scrambling for some words of congratulation.

Or maybe she was just kindly shuffling away the barrage of curse words that were surfacing in her mind.

"Annabeth?" Piper's face fell. "Do you not understand? Jason proposed. We're getting married!"

Still the blonde stood motionless. Her eyebrows furrowed deeper as she dared to send an almost accusatory glance in Jason's direction. If Percy didn't know any better, he might think Annabeth would pounce on the new fiance of her best friend with intent to sink her fangs into his neck.

"Oooooh," Percy loudly interjected as he strolled up to the group. Startling them straight as the perplexion only deepened. "I thought you were just showing off a ring, and my first thought was 'weird' but damn you guys are getting married!"

Jason's eyebrows sank down and Piper was giving him a defensive look. "Uhhh, who are you?"

"I'm Annabeth's ward Psychiatrist, Dr. Watson. I go with her when she's permitted to take little field trips to insure she isn't shocked back into a severe mental state. I'd also like to congratulate you for frying my patient's brain again. She was making so much progress." Percy laid out a winning smile and offered them a hand to shake as his words made their faces shift to aghast. They shied away from him in a very amusing manner and he couldn't help the playful glance he shot to Annabeth. A challenge for her to take control of the situation again.

"What?!" Piper looked between Annabeth and Percy for confirmation.

"Why do you like to complicate my life?" Annabeth sighed while shooting Percy yet another icy glare.

"I only have a few joys in this world left." Percy replied with his smirk falling into place. "And besides, you weren't saying anything."

"I was going to!"

"You were taking your sweet time Chase. You gave me an opportunity and I took it," Percy said with a laughing tone. "Can you blame me?"

"Ugh, why do I talk to you?"

"Because I saved your life, because I'm incredibly charming, because life would be boring and totally bleak without me. Should I care to go on?"

"Shut up."

"I don't hear you denying it." Percy's smirk rose with the colour on Annabeth's cheeks.

"I wouldn't waste my breath on such a Seaweed Brain," she scoffed, crossing her arms indignantly. Her lips pursed down into a poutish frown.

Percy's heart was beating faster. Must've been the thrill of talking to new people without the intent of murder.

"Well-"

"Okay, who are you? Annabeth, do you know this guy?" Piper intervened with a very bizarre and wary look thrown in Percy's direction. Still gripping Jason tightly as if she were about to fling her fiance at him. Or worse; announce her engagement for the second time.

"Yeah, the dork's with me." Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I really shouldn't have brought him. He tends to lean towards the dramatic side just to freak people out. Don't worry, he's had all his shots, and I'm pretty sure he's sane."

"It's never a guarantee." Percy reminded while sliding his hands into his pockets. Easing back into his icy ways before shooting the friends of Annabeth a completely calm smile.

It was a lie. Internally he was starting to crack.

New people. That's right. New people.

Warily his fingers wrapped around his gun. Wondering why he agreed to come today. Now there were two more people who knew his name, and could call out his face. Two more people who could positively identify him in a line up if it ever came to be.

What would happen to him when Annabeth was murdered? Would Piper and Jason point the finger at him?

Hidden under the fabric of his pocket, Percy clenched the gun a little tighter. Chastising himself for not thinking this through, for being an idiot entranced by a mystery, a complicated personality, a puzzle that he didn't need to solve. All Annabeth did was ask and he agreed without a second thought.

How had she so flawlessly stolen his common sense?

Piper still looked a little dumbstruck, and Jason had given up on trying to find anything to say at that point. There was a moment of careful silence as they stood uselessly in a circle surrounded by people. The heavy warmth of the building, and the general scramble of words muddled and churned into an echoing background noise was getting more and more prominent as their silence persisted. Percy was suddenly regretting intervening at all.

"Well then, shall we?" Annabeth chirpily took Piper's luggage from her and led the way towards the exit. Walking with the confidence of someone who knew she held enough leadership for people to follow her. Even if it was just friends.

They followed the flow of people in a single file line to get out. Momentarily suffocating at the doorways with the bottlenecked crowd, before being relieved on the other side. Percy simply never lost sight of Annabeth's bouncing curls as they departed from the luggage pickup and into the main exit terminal.

"So you made a friend," Piper finally said to Annabeth as they marched through the automatic doors and into the shade speckled sunlight. The air was motionless and mercilessly cold that afternoon. It felt twice as biting after being in the warmth of the building for so long.

It was only a matter of time until the snow came, then the cold would be worth it.

"What if I'm just a very good stalker?" Percy posed the question in a serious contemplative way.

"Sure, I made a friend." Annabeth answered curtly while she shot a glare in Percy's direction. He smirked. Finally releasing his gun in his pocket to smooth down his jacket.

It'll be fine. I just have to fade from their lives before the next assassin shows up.

"You made a friend!" Piper screeched with an element of genuine happiness. "Ugh, proudest day of my LIFE!"

"I just gave up on trying to get rid of him," Annabeth jabbed with an exaggerated eye roll.

"Ooooh, who's being all jokey now," Percy pointed out with a wider grin. Annabeth bumped him with a scoff, but again, he could always see her hidden smiles. It made him fizzle.

It'll be fine.

"What else happened while I was away?" Piper peered at her curiously. Obviously avoiding eye contact with Percy as she gave her undivided attention to the blonde.

"Well, someone broke into my house and I chased him down the street, I almost died twice, and I got drunk and vomited all over the sidewalk." Annabeth listed out nonchalantly. Reaching into her purse a moment later to grab her keys and flick the doors unlocked with a press of a button. The car chirped and winked at them like a flirty squirrel.

"What?!" Piper gaped. "You got drunk?"

"Yeah, someone was just in her house illegally, and she could've lost her life on two separate occasions, but getting drunk is the real mindblower here obviously." Percy snuffed with a sarcastic tone.

"Annabeth's never gotten drunk." Piper deadpanned. Her look of awe still stuck to her face at the admittance. "I've been trying for years to get her to loosen up enough to have a few drinks."

"Oh," was the only reply Percy could think to come up with on the spot. Shoving his hands into his pockets again thoughtfully as he glanced at Annabeth with a touch of a question. His curiosity leaped like a hungry flame. Remembering the hundreds of blurry nights he had spent trying to bury the memory of his mother's eyes. Each drop of the liquid courage helped numb that pain, so he never put the bottle down. He couldn't put the bottle down. When he finally did, all he wanted was to have it in his hand again.

But Annabeth never drank? Not once?

But she handled alcohol so well. Percy recalled. For most of the night.

There was a falsehood murking about. Percy could feel it. Annabeth had shots that night, and she tipped them back faster than a cowboy could draw his pistol. Everything from the way she held a glass to how she swallowed liquor reeked of experience but here Piper was claiming otherwise.

"What made you drink?" Piper returned her attention back to Annabeth in a very vibrant and clingy way.

"I just wanted to try things." Annabeth shrugged like it was no big deal. "I was sick of the same old routine. That's it. Anyways, how was Grandpa Tom? Is he still all mentally there?"

It was a smooth transition, and an even smoother cover up.

Later, he bided his time. I can ask her later.

.:oOo:.

Piper and Jason seemed to be a bit conscious of Percy's presence. He attributed it to his freaking them out the moment they met. Perhaps they'd get over it in time, although it didn't really matter. There was no reason in trying to secure a friendship with them anyways.

Perhaps he would fake a business trip. Go to cabo, or trinidad or south africa. Wait a month or two until she was killed then come back to secure his alibi and tie off any loose ends before disappearing again for good.

Although, even that seemed like a gross waste of energy just to convince two people he wasn't part of a murder scheme. In truth his fake identity would probably be more protection then his real one. And again; Percy didn't foresee becoming anyone memorable to these people.

Piper was vivacious and funny but completely readable and predictable. She was a person who had her whole life and emotions together, and where was the fun in that? She was, as far as Percy was concerned, unrelatable. His existence was composed of secrets while she wore her life on her arm like a badge.

Jason was smart, and quick but had a humor of a particular taste and didn't need to be readable in order for Percy to understand him. He was basic. A person who could've been one of hundreds, and a guy who really didn't understand a good chunk of the world but had a firm grasp on the few things he did know.

Not to say that he wasn't amiable and nice, he was just not as perceptive as Annabeth. Percy figured this was the reason she couldn't find it in herself to try and be friends with him. A certain level of understanding was a must when it came to Annabeth Chase.

Would you set sail without knowing the patterns of the ocean? The life and fury contained in it?

For a while, Percy just watched them, interested in the new dynamic presented. How the little personality quirks shifted and changed in Annabeth, showcasing more of her real personality as she interacted with the only person close to her. It was like turning a new page over in her book and discovering an entire new paragraph about her.

Like how her natural smile was actually wider than the ones he'd seen. How her sharp honesty wasn't reserved for people she was suspicious of. Like how she made sharp jokes at Jason's expense in such a way that it was funny for everyone but him.

It was good.

Percy felt better.

This is what he was comfortable doing. He was good at watching. Becoming familiar with his victims made it easier to personalize their deaths. From watching someone close enough, he could find the wells embedded in their personality that were filled with quirks, and memories and likes vs dislikes. Double meanings behind words became clearer as he pieced together carbon copies of their existence in his mind. He would build another image of them and walk around it mentally. Pinpointing their weak spots, finding the best way to bring them down in a discreet manner. Watching was the way he got to know people, not talking.

Well at least not normally.

Naturally Percy wasn't going to kill Piper and Jason. Not now at least, it wasn't needed. It was just a thing he did out of habit. Even the people he had met under regular circumstances, at the bar or in grocery stores, had deaths planned by him. He constructed perfect murders for everyone around him, regardless of status, age, or how well he knew them. Plans were his way of perfecting his practice. Plans were how he got to the top of this sick game of kill and duck. Plans were soothing to make because he knew he always had a way out with them.

All that took the plans to be carried out were employers. Money.

Annabeth never really had a solid plan. Percy realized. Rubbing the back of his neck, he checked his brain once more. Maybe that's why I failed…

She was congratulating Piper on her engagement for the seventh time that evening, trying to make up for her less-than-optimal reaction the first time. Her hair was pulled up in that classic messy ponytail while she sat perched on the edge of her grey sofa, resting a cup of tea on her knees with her hands wrapped tightly around the girth of the mug. Her face exhibited all the signs of joy and pleasure at Piper's announcement, but her eyes lacked the luster.

Looking at her from the opposite sofa, Percy was struck again with how familiar she was to him again. Every curve, every angle, every sudden expression and general flow in motion felt more known. She wasn't new to him anymore, but she wasn't an old song either. She was like a movie on its second run. The main bones had been observed, it was just the little details he missed the first time around that he was digging up.

No. I didn't fail because I didn't have a plan for her. He twisted his shirt. Mindlessly rising to his feet to wander down the hall. I failed because I couldn't make a plan for her.

She was the ocean. Oceans don't die in ordinary ways. He couldn't find a way to kill her that would ever sit right with him.

Morally speaking, none of his deaths should sit right. They should squirm and burrow and suck out his life as he agonized over each of their faces, but no. Objects can die without coming back to bite him. Objects were easy to kill. Or at least… they used to be. Perhaps his dilemma lay in his choice to peg her as the Ocean in the first place. Ocean's were hardly singular objects.

Percy paced down the hall with his mind fuller than it had ever been. Hisses from his socked feet brushing over the smooth hardwood echoed on the pictureless walls and clashed with his distracted brain mumblings. Annabeth's face was hovering just shy of his mind's eye as he flicked on the bathroom light.

But the ocean needed a special way of leaving this world.

A way Percy didn't have the creativity to conjure. That was his problem.

It was someone else's problem soon. They could deal with her impossible ways, they could find the perfect murder for her, they could finish what Percy couldn't.

Something in his gut jolted at the thought but he pressed it down.

Water. Cool clear, water.

Who was he to go against another man's wishes? He was the assassin. Far from a pillar of good morality. Why should he stop her murder? If someone wanted her dead then what business of his was it? Sure she was mysterious, sure he didn't have all the answers but his curiosity was hardly a reason to meddle any further. Assassins don't get to make messes beyond the crime scene of their victims. Being a sinner meant trying to limit as many enemies as he could. He didn't need to give Mr. BigMoney a reason to hate him.

I need to cut ties. Get out of here. He decided as he washed his hands in a slow meticulous manner. Catching his own eyes in the mirror as he toyed with the idea carefully. Unembellished plans of a spontaneous getaway started to form in his mind. Percy dried his hands on the plush grey towels hung from a ring. Claim I'm moving for work and never make contact again.

At least it was a start.

"Hey Percy," Piper greeted him from the hallway as he flicked off the light in the bathroom. Her voice hushed and her eyes set intensely on him. The dimness of the blank hallway gave her this hauntingly serious aura as she strode towards him like a dog herding a sheep. "Mind if we talk for a moment?"

"Uh hey," Percy said awkwardly. Something about the use of his real name made his hair stand on end, but he patted down the jittery feeling enough to look at least half normal.

"I just wanna know what you're doing." Piper cocked her head at him curiously. Her eyes raked up and down his body, reading his unspoken language. The sharpness in his gaze had emptied of any friendliness she had attempted earlier.

Sorry sweetheart, I don't give away secrets so easily.

"Doing what? Washing my hands?" Percy asked with a perched brow. Mimicking her crossed arms as they watched each other from a safe distance. A noticeable tension in the air that mounted with every ticking second. A venomous defense was in this girl's eyes, and Percy didn't like it.

"With Annabeth," Piper clarified. "What are you trying to get out of her?"

"Why would you assume I'm trying to get anything out of her?" Percy questioned in a very skeptical tone.

"You don't seem like the chum who wants to be 'just friends'," she said with a dark look. "And I don't think you're exactly a match for her, so I'd stand down if I were you."

"That's never been my intention with Annabeth," he answered truthfully with a somewhat mirthless scoff. "And even though I don't want anything else with her, I don't take orders from strangers."

"Well try anything and I won't hesitate to cut you a new one." Piper's brow creased in what was supposed to be a very serious look of disdain. Her stance was rigid, and her chin lowered in an almost pre-fight way.

Percy sighed and shook his head. "Is that supposed to be a threat?" he asked with a chuckle.

"It is a threat." Piper scowled.

"Listen beauty queen, I'm not scared to make enemies." Percy laid it out flat with an unapologetic look but a slippery smile. Letting his hands fall into his jean pockets casually as he raked his eyes over her this time. Finding her fierce loyalty and protective instincts for her best friend kind of cute in a childish sort of way. "So threaten all you want, and even carry out a few threats, I don't care. Annabeth's competent and I don't think she needs a babysitter to look after who's around her."

"I just don't want to see her hurt again." Piper's eyes fell to the floor. The defensive hardness locked in her gaze wavered for a moment as a memory slipped by her mind.

"Like her ex-fiance, right?" Percy muttered with an indifferent tone.

Piper reacted as if she had been stung by a very empowering wasp.

"You- what- you know about him?!"

"I don't know much about him, or exactly what happened." Percy shrugged again. "I just know she had a fiance, and things didn't work out."

"But… she told you?" Piper was still in this state of shock Percy found hard to comprehend.

"She also told me about her mom, and her dad." Percy added to the brunette's bewilderment.

"She what?!"

"She's not a pickle jar." Percy shifted uncomfortably. He allowed his eyes to wander around the darkness of the hall a second time as he wished himself away from this conversation. "It's not like she never opens up."

"Obviously you don't know Annabeth that well." Piper wrote off with a snort. "Annabeth doesn't just tell people things about her childhood."

"Obviously you don't know Annabeth that well," Percy nipped back, a burning defiance rising in his chest. "If you did, you wouldn't be that surprised that she did tell me all those things."

Her eyebrows dipped into the danger zone as her mouth twisted down in a look of utter shock and distaste.

"Me?! Not know her?! We're practically sisters! You have no idea what-"

"Whatever," Percy broke her off cooly with a wave of his hand and an even colder serene look. "I'm not going to hurt Annabeth. I'm never going to, either."

Someone else however will gladly kill her…

"That's what her fiance said-"

"I'm not her fiance. I'm just her friend." Percy deadpanned with his eyes locked intensely on the brunette. Feeling a flicker of amusement at how her eyes had a weaker version of Annabeth's flame-like defiance in them. He could see why she was Annabeth's best friend.

Piper's death could never be set up as a suicide. He figured quietly.

She would need something loud and dramatic. Something that looked like an accident of her own doing perhaps.

A car crash.

Fiery and flaming and explosive so that every piece of evidence was scattered into ash. Setting up such a dastardly event would be almost simple too. He knew the basic structure, and mechanics of cars. He knew how to make it look accidental.

But he wasn't going to kill her. He had no reason to. Not yet at least. He didn't even know why he was talking to her. Technically speaking, he could just turn and walk away, and there would be no lasting consequences.

"Just know that I don't trust you," Piper hissed. Crossing her arms indignantly again.

"Duly noted," Percy replied icily, but with a tinge of amusement that only seemed to rile her up more. "I don't plan on trying to gain your trust regardless of how close you are to Annabeth."

She looked like she wanted to argue on it when a piercing ring danced up from Percy's pocket. Their eyes fell to his jeans with opposite emotions. Hers with curiosity, his with dread.

Fuck.

With a pit of stress digging into his chest, Percy pulled out the little flip phone and started for the front of the house in quick, slightly heavy steps. Slipping past Piper with ease and making it by the living room in a matter of seconds.

'Work' he mouthed to Annabeth after she shot him a perplexed look. Her face melted into sympathy before he was outside in the biting cold, pulling on his coat and gloves as he went. Silently he fell into the darkness and launched himself off the porch. With six wide steps across the crunch of stiff frozen grass and dead leaves he was on the grey roughness of the street. Standing beneath a yellow tinged streetlamp, his breath smoking in front of him in thin otherworldly clouds. Repulsion set in shortly after. He didn't want to take this call, he didn't like dealing with this narcissist.

"Yeah?" he pressed it to his ear with a wince. His heart hardened when there was a crackling fizz that took over the line in a winded burst. A static white noise Percy didn't understand for a moment or two. Long distance call, he figured. Ethan Nakumura was probably sitting in a hot tub littered with flower petals and overlooking the alps. The man had a taste for the refined.

"So, you lost the client," he spoke after a lengthy moment. It had been awhile since Percy had heard his mellow voice. "Did you not know two hundred thousand was on the line?"

"I keep the right to deny any 'client'." Percy reminded curtly. Pushing his free hand into the pocket while simultaneously cursing the wind. It was damn cold. Where was all the snow?

"Why?" Ethan moaned in exasperation.

"It's a risky kill," he said simply. "I'd rather be out two hundred grand than sitting in a cell block going crazy."

"And you think it ain't risky for me?" Ethan growled. "I stick my neck out to get you the best clients, don't I? You're considered the best assassin because you get the best clients because I'm the best agent for you. Isn't that the case? Dude, work with me. Just kill the damn girl. She's a dolt who stuck her nose in the wrong part of her lover's life. Just end it man. You've done it a hundred times before."

Percy bristled. A deep swelling no resonated from inside him. Annabeth was not some dumb chick who messed with the wrong things. Mr. BigMoney dude was a vile human being who didn't deserve her. HE was the one who- who…

Percy paused his flow of thoughts. Dropping his eyes to his hand to stare at the agitated fist he had just made. A suspiciously strong reaction to something he didn't care about. He didn't. Truly.

I don't care. He repeated to himself. It doesn't matter.

Breathing was choking him. A sense of a lie was caught in his radar but he refused to acknowledge it. Instead he looked to the sky, a layer of dusky orange clouds filled with light pollution was domed over it. Choking it out as well.

Are you sad?

The question only lingered for a brief second.

Something was off. Maybe it was a vague smell on the breeze, or an awkward looking shadow. Maybe Percy's brain was just on overdrive but he couldn't quite shake the sudden feeling.

Something was off.

"It doesn't matter," Percy finally said. "I already told the client I wouldn't."

"Just kill her anyways," Ethan urged. "He doesn't care who, just as long as it's done. He'll pay whoever does it."

"No," Percy said. "I won't."

"Fine. Just don't expect another client for a while. I'm on holiday."

"You're always on a holiday." Percy pointed out.

"Because I'm good at getting clients for you. Only for your ungrateful ass to turn them down."

"This is the first time I've turned down anyone you've put in front of me."

Percy could see the silhouette of Annabeth fall across the small lawn, framed by the square of light flooding from the window. Lifting his eyes, he found her questioning look peering at him through the glass. An upturn in her eyebrows and an impatience in the way she held her shoulders tight.

His chest bubbled. He waved.

Unexpectedly, she sent him a contented grin. Sparking an unfamiliar spit of fire from the depths of his heart for a breathless moment. He wasn't in control of the automatic smile he sent back to her.

When she turned away from him, to her two friends again, he fell against the lamp post weak with confusion.

What the hell was that?

Something was buzzing in his heart. Something tiny and enraged and electric. Like an itty bitty dragon that was throwing a royal temper tantrum. Born from her expression and fed with uncertainty.

Surely it wasn't because of that pathetic interaction. It must've been because something was off, because something was off. That was it. Her being at the window just reminded him that he should be keeping one eye and one ear open at all times.

"Are you even listening to me?!" Ethan scoffed right in his ear.

Percy snapped his attention back. Ignoring the flush of heat on his face as he absentmindedly crossed the street. Glancing up and down, scouring for movement."Yeah, yeah. You get me clients. I should be grateful. All that jazz."

"No. I was saying that if you impede on my generosity again I'm liable to get a new partner. Capiche?"

"Generosity?" Percy scoffed. Stopping dead in his tracks. "You get paid the same amount I do. I do ninety percent of the work! Without you I could've gotten four hundred thousand for knocking off Miss Chase."

"Without me, you wouldn't have clients offering you big cash in the first place," Ethan said. "You need me."

Water. Cool. Clear. Water.

How dare this little man try to push him around further. How dare he. Trying to force him to kill Annabeth? Percy's headspace descended on him with a cold boil.

"Don't toy," he warned darkly. "At the end of the day I know how to make sure no one will ever find your corpse. I'd hate to go hunting for a new agent, and I wouldn't leave any strings hanging if you get my drift."

For a heart beat, the line was silent. Quieter than the nippy breeze. Quieter than the hum from the distant highway. A silence the dead know all too well.

"You wouldn't," Ethan said tonelessly.

"I know your name Ethan Nakamura," Percy reminded. "But you don't know mine. You're traceable. I'm not. You're lucky I give you fifty percent of the cut. So let's get something straight here; when I say no I mean it and you will not question it. Capiche?"

Percy glanced back across the street to Annabeth's house. A throb in his chest.

"You're an ass," Ethan said.

"An ass who gets us paid."

He didn't feel like talking to his brat agent anymore so he left it at that. Snapping shut his flip phone with a satisfying click, he pocketed it just as quickly. A few loose curses surfaced on the tip of his tongue as his mind rolled over the nerve of that guy. Honestly, did he think Percy would be afraid of his pathetic threat of leaving him?

"As if," Percy mumbled to himself. Jamming his hands in his pocket, he felt the familiar icy surface of his gun glance off his knuckles. Oddly soothing him from that noiseless tension building in the back of his skull.

Just as he was about to cross back over to Annabeth's house and let himself fall into the warmth again, something tickled his senses again. That eerie sensation that he was missing something crucial. Something potent.

It wasn't the street, that was as lifeless as the grave. The movement was the bare flicker of stiff grass locked in frost. The row of houses were well lit but empty as far as could be perceived. The sky was empty save for the cloud cover.

But… There.

It was a glimmer.

The slightest shine of a reflection coming from the roof next to Annabeth's. Percy squinted. A knot in his throat when he made out the lumpy figure lying vertically on the shingles.

A man.

Sniper rifle in hand with the aim pointed straight into Annabeth's house. Dressed in full gear intimidating enough to sway a grizzly bear. The lenses of his night vision goggles glared back at Percy with a slight twinkle.

And so the Ocean dies tonight.


Finally we get into some juicy gorish bits.