The rest of Thalia's week was the most boring of her life. She was confined to Reyna's apartment and didn't dare to go anywhere. It was partly because she was sure she would get stabbed if she left the room, and she didn't want to leave Reyna by herself.
Other than shifting slightly and making occasional groans, Reyna didn't wake up. Thalia didn't know if the woman needed to eat, drink, or even piss, and any attempt to break her slumber failed. Thalia was left to let her mind wander, and since she sure as hell wasn't going to be left with her thoughts, she spent half of the time sleeping.
Her injuries were slowly healing, and she eventually was able to sit up without terrible pain. The only thing Thalia had to eat was what Piper brought over while Thalia was asleep. Thalia ate only a couple nibbles to make sure it wasn't poisoned, and thankfully it wasn't. By the third day, she was sick of pizza and the plain taste of water.
There were times in Reyna's sleep when she would mutter about Hylla, and every time, Thalia would look back to the picture on the desk. When Thalia wasn't busy sleeping or watching the crackheads in the alley fight, she was watching Reyna's body seemingly sew itself back together before her eyes.
The cut on Reyna's head was completely sealed, and after two days, her knees were no longer swollen. The bruises had withered and her breathing was becoming less labored. The third day was when Thalia gently checked along the length of Reyna's leg and didn't feel any solid breaks or fractures. She kept on making sure to give Reyna a sip of that golden liquid at least three times a day.
Thalia sighed tiredly as she bit into what was probably her fortieth slice of pizza, peeking through the blinds. Two alley cats were fighting over some brown bag of fast food. It looked like there were still some scraps inside, and Thalia was tempted to go out and take it for herself. Her train of thought was then halted by the shifting and creaking of the nearby bed.
"Fuck," Reyna groaned groggily. Thalia whirled around and stared slack at the finally awoken woman. Reyna moaned, bringing both hands to her face. "Oh fuck."
Thalia wasn't sure what to say to her, so she decided on turning back around, eating her pizza while watching the gladiator match between strays. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Reyna shift and contort uncomfortably, trying to sit up. Reyna tensed and collapsed back against the bed. She whimpered in agony at her failed attempt to be free.
"Sup," Thalia greeted, still looking out the window. She finished off the crust and turned back to Reyna. "You look like hammered shit."
"Where are we?" Reyna intoned roughly. She barely managed to roll herself onto her stomach, her face burying itself in the pillow. "What happened?"
"We were attacked by the Bear Twins," Thalia recalled. "One squeezed you half to death, and the other one quite literally turned your leg all the way around. Your face and head also took a good bit of damage."
"Bear Twins... how?" Reyna asked. She achingly rolled closer to the edge of the bed and slowly hauled herself off of it. She used the bed to struggle up to her feet. Thalia helped her, and Reyna almost collapsed into the other woman.
"They followed your scent," Thalia clarified. "You probably shouldn't be standing."
"I'm fine," Reyna muttered. She pushed past Thalia and stumbled her way into the bathroom. The door slammed shut behind her, and Thalia heard hurls and retching a moment later. A sad sigh escaped her as she walked towards the bed and laid down in it. Reyna's episode stopped after a minute, with the toilet flushing to end it off.
Reyna wobbled back out of the bathroom after a few minutes and to the bed. She weakly grabbed a bottle of water and took a sip before spitting it out. Reyna took another sip and then stumbled towards the dresser. After pulling on shorts and a shirt, she stumbled to the bed again and collapsed back onto it next to Thalia.
"How did you fuck it up?" Reyna accused in a low growl.
"What are you talking about?" Thalia fired back, trying to deflect the question. Reyna lifted her head enough to glare at Thalia out of the corner of her eye.
"I'm not stupid enough to be ambushed by those two. So, what did you do that forced me to confront them?" Reyna interrogated scoldingly. Thalia glared back at her but didn't answer. She finally turned away to avoid her piercing daggers for eyes. "Do you understand what I mean about being careful?"
"I was being careful," Thalia snapped. "You were lounging around my motel room, and they followed you there."
"There's no way they found the exact room instantly," Reyna snapped back. She rolled onto her side and her glare on Thalia hardened. "So, what did you do?"
"They were kicking in hotel rooms, and I heard a woman scream for help. You told me what they would do to her. Of course, I was going to help! I wasn't just going to stand by or use the time to escape!" Thalia defended with a raised voice, standing up to face the demigod.
"And that's exactly how you keep fucking it up!" Reyna incriminated harshly. She stood to face Thalia, hobbling on her one good leg. "You need to learn how to save your damn self for once!"
"Is that what happened to Hylla?!" Thalia shot back hotly. Reyna looked like she had been punched between the eyes. "Were you too busy saving your own skin to save your sister?"
"You shut your fucking mouth," Reyna seethed venomously. She grabbed Thalia by her shirt collar. "Don't you ever talk about her again!"
"I can look at myself in the mirror and say I am doing my damnedest to honor Jason's memory. Can you say the same about Hylla? Would she be proud of-"
A sharp fist connected with Thalia's jaw, snapping her head sideways. She was then slammed into the wall, and two hands wrapped around her neck. Reyna lifted her up and squeezed tightly.
"I told you not to talk about her," Reyna snarled dangerously. Thalia gasped for breath as her gaze stared down at the woman. Reyna's eyes almost seemed to be glowing. The demigod finally relinquished her grip after a long, tense moment. Thalia dropped to her knees, desperately sucking in precious air. A foot slammed into her stomach a second later, releasing the freshly captured oxygen from Thalia's lungs.
Thalia gasped and doubled over, collapsing against Reyna's legs. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she fought to get more air in her chest. Reyna knelt by her and whispered in her ear, "You don't know a damn, fucking thing, Thalia Grace. Quit acting like you do."
"Fuck you," Thalia feebly wheezed. Reyna stood back up and rammed her foot into Thalia's jaw. Thalia's head snapped back against the wall, and she crumpled to the hardwood floor. A foot stomped on to her temple, and everything went dark.
Thalia groaned as her eyes unveiled the world. She blinked a few times, trying to dispel the tired confusion and scanned her surroundings. It took her a moment to realize that her hands were bound by rope behind her back. There was a wadded rag in her mouth and some kind of bag over her head. Thalia rolled onto her back and kicked forward. Her foot hit something solid, and pain shot through her toes.
Thalia did everything in her power to keep her composure. She listened in on her surroundings and heard the rumbles and soft roaring of a car's engine. She was in a car, most likely the trunk. What had happened? Did Reyna dump her in the alley and leave her to be taken?
Thalia now thought she might have gone too far with what she said. At the same time, Reyna couldn't just get away with talking so much shit. It was total bullshit that she could just insult Thalia at each and every turn, but then get upset when it got thrown back to her. Reyna already dragged Jason's name through the mud. Maybe, she shouldn't have done that if she didn't want the same thing happening to her sister.
The car rolled to a stop, and the trunk popped open. The bag was torn from Thalia's head, and her eyes adjusted to light shining from behind Reyna. Instead of wearing the leather jacket, Reyna was wearing a tattered and torn regular jacket. There was dried blood on the sleeves, along with stains of some white powder. Her black jeans were cut and torn in places as well.
"Just keep your mouth shut," Reyna ordered. She reached out, and Thalia kicked at her hands. There was a small crack as Thalia's foot made contact with Reyna's hand. "Stop fighting, damn you!"
Reyna turned away and gripped her hand tightly. She examined her pointer finger before massaging it gently. Thalia tried to speak through the gag, but it was no use. Reyna's hand shot out to quickly grab onto Thalia's shirt, and all Thalia could do was glare belligerently with narrowed eyes. She hadn't seen Reyna move at all.
"Stop fighting. Now," Reyna ordered again. She dragged Thalia up out of the trunk and shoved her forward. Thalia fell to her knees roughly and looked back pleadingly at Reyna. "Get up."
Thalia slowly complied after a long moment and watched as Reyna pulled on a bandanna to cover the lower half of her face. She threw on her hood and then gripped Thalia's arms in a vice. Something cold was tucked hastily into the back of Thalia's waistband, and what she guessed was a knife was placed into her hands.
"I'm tired of you wasting time and fucking this up. You're following my plan now, got it?" Reyna demanded. Thalia didn't make any movement to show she understood. Her heart was racing. What was Reyna going to do to her? "There's a bounty on the person who killed Ethan."
"I'm going to tell them you're the one who did it, and they are going to bring us straight to Bryce," Reyna whispered. "When we get there, I will distract him. Free your hands, pull the gun, and fire. And do not fuck this up. Am I understood?"
"Are you fucking insane? That plan is fucked! What the fuck are you doing?! Trying to get me killed?!" Thalia tried to scream at her partner, but the gag in her mouth kept her from forming coherent words.
"What part of keep your fucking mouth shut do you not understand?" Reyna growled. She gripped Thalia's hair and slammed her head on to the trunk of the car. Thalia whimpered painfully as her nose cracked. She was roughly thrown to the asphalt of the back alley. "Shut the fuck up and do what I told you."
Reyna picked Thalia up and began guiding her forward. The two walked down the alley, and when they stepped on to the sidewalk, Thalia saw they were in junkie central. There was a large warehouse to their right, and that was where Reyna started to drag Thalia.
Men and women lined the streets, slumped against the wall. They were all zoned out, entranced and waiting impatiently for their next fix. Thalia wanted to ask Reyna why Bryce would bother being in a place littered with these kinds of degenerates. Why was he not with his gangs? Or was this where his headquarters was?
No one paid attention to the two of them, too juiced and out of it to even notice. Thalia's gaze flickered up, and she saw three armed men standing guard outside of the warehouse. All of them seemed to have on bulletproof vests, and they held automatic weapons.
Thalia stopped walking, and her heart was primed and ready to explode. Reyna growled and shoved her forward. Thalia stumbled sloppily and fell to her knees. She turned and tried to run. Reyna caught her and slammed her against the wall.
"What did I tell you?" Reyna snapped angrily. She grabbed Thalia's jaw and looked ready to lose her temper. Thalia stared in terror. This was not what she had in mind when she went to the crossroads. Reyna was fucking insane, and Thalia needed to get out of there. "Stop fighting me. My plan will work."
Thalia shook her head in distressed denial and tried to scream for help. The grip on her jaw tightened immensely. Thalia lashed out with a kick to Reyna's injured leg. Reyna cried out and stumbled backward, losing her grip on the bound captive. Thalia threw herself into the other woman, and they crashed into a parked car.
Reyna gasped in pain and moved her hand to feel and massage her ribs. Thalia scrambled to her feet and tried to take off sprinting. She was quickly slammed to the street a moment later. Reyna rolled her over and pinned her with a knee to her gut and a forearm to the throat.
"You. Fucking. Bitch," Reyna wheezed. Her breath was labored, and Thalia was realizing that Reyna wasn't as healed as she originally thought. "You. Fucking. Idiot. What did I tell you?"
Reyna pressed her forearm deeper into Thalia's windpipe. Thalia barely even gasped as her oxygen was slowly being cut off. Reyna released the pressure after only a moment, turning her head to the side at a newcomer.
"What do we have here?" a man drawled in amusement as he raised his gun and focused on them. Reyna glared down at Thalia with seething, hateful eyes. Then, she looked back up at the man.
"Bounty," Reyna hissed. "I found the fucker who killed Ethan."
"Is that so?" the man asked delightfully. Reyna nodded in confirmation, barely containing her building ire. Thalia saw another man approach them from Reyna's other side. Reyna turned her head to glance at him before looking back at the first one. "Got proof?"
"I do," Reyna growled. She turned to face the man that had spoken. Thalia saw the other man raise his gun, brandishing the butt stock. She tried to call a warning, but before she could, the butt of the rifle cracked into the side of Reyna's skull.
Reyna collapsed against Thalia in a heap, and Thalia's heart was ready to jump out through her chest. She tried to squirm away from under the deadweight that kept her pinned. The man dragged Reyna off of Thalia and then pinned her with a foot.
Thalia was too terrified to scramble away now. All she could do was gawk hopelessly. Was this Reyna's grand fucking plan?! Get knocked out and allow Thalia to be dragged right to Bryce Lawrence: one of the cruelest gangsters in the city. What the fuck was Thalia going to do!?
"You think this one killed Ethan and was just trying to distract us?" the other man asked as he nudged Reyna's listless body. The one that stood over Thalia studied her with a sneer. "Fuck, doesn't really matter. Let's bring these two broads to Mr. Lawrence. If it turns out they're lying, maybe we'll get to have some fun tonight."