-October 12th, 1774-
"You want us to what?" Percy repeated, rather stunned.
Paul Revere looked impatient. "I said, there's a British officer who wants out. He's deserting, and he needs our help. This is a great responsibility – a man's life is at stake, and none of our other spies have been as able or willing to help as you two have been. Also, as you will see, you two have the best excuse as to getting him out."
"Yes, but – " Percy began to protest.
Annabeth shoved her elbow into his side, effectively shutting him up as pain shot of his ribcage. "We would be honored to help the colonies in this way, sir," she told him.
Revere nodded, looking pleased. "Thank you, Miss Chase, Perseus. I will send you the necessary instructions in a few days, but as soon as you read them, you must burn them. Is that understood?"
They both nodded, Percy grimacing, and headed out the door of the print shop.
"Annabeth, what the hell are you thinking?" he exploded as they stepped into the cool breeze. Boston had entered autumn in a rush of colored leaves and cooler temperatures, and he shivered as the wind cut through his coat. "Helping a deserter could get both of us killed if we get found out!"
Annabeth walked quicker, her peach-colored lips pressing into a firm line. Percy refused to think how pretty she was when she was angry. "We knew this work could potentially have drastic consequences when we first agreed to it, Percy. Why would I change my mind now that we're simply being given more dangerous work?"
"Yes, but – " Percy started, frustrated, then stopped. "Alright, so say we take on the job -"
"I already agreed for us," Annabeth cut in, a grin turning up the corners of her mouth.
Percy ignored her comment. "Say we take the job – what did he mean, we'll have an advantage, or whatever he said? I don't understand."
Annabeth shrugged. "I suppose we'll find out, eh?"
•
-October 15th, 1774-
"Officer Valdez?" Percy gaped.
"That's me," Officer Valdez, a short, slender, yet muscular young man confirmed.
"But – you live at the Chases too," Percy stuttered.
Valdez smirked. "Does that somehow make me ineligible to desert? I mean, you're a spy, something I never would have expected, but – "
"No, no, I mean I understand, it's just – " Percy fumbled for words. "Why?"
Valdez's dancing brown eyes suddenly looked grim. "Let's just say I'm tired of serving a king who does nothing but create unnecessary rules and sits upon his golden pillows eating pastries while his people starve. The colonies will grow, and I believe one day we could rule the world."
Percy nodded, understanding Valdez's feelings. "I know we haven't really talked much, but I'm Perseus. You can call me Percy."
That mischievous grin popped back onto the other man's elfish face. "Leonardo, but you can call me Leo."
"Well, Leo, we'd better find Annabeth. She's the one who will make this happen without any of us getting killed," Percy told the other officer, chuckling.
The edges of Leo's mouth turned up wryly. "Don't want that to happen, do we now?"
Percy thought of the firing squad in the Boston Commons, where deserters and spies were shot on a weekly basis. "No," he murmured. "Not at all."
•
-October 19th, 1774-
"Officer Jackson, Officer Valdez, will you be joining us for supper tonight?" Mrs. Chase asked as the two young men walked in. The nights were coming earlier already, and it was quite dark out, though it was only six o'clock.
"Nah, we'll just headin' upstairs," Percy slurred. Tonight was the night to sneak Leo out of the city, and Annabeth had devised a complicated, but almost foolproof plan.
Almost being the key word.
"Yeah," Leo hiccupped, holding onto the doorway for support. "See you later, love." He kissed a scandalized Mrs. Chase on the cheek before swaggering upstairs.
The plan depended on Mrs. Chase believing they were severely drunk and asleep, so this was going well already.
As soon as they got to Leo's room, the drunk façade disappeared immediately. Percy quickly threw Leo the bag of farmer's clothes Annabeth had acquired a few days before. The other young man hastily changed, and Percy took the discarded uniform and put it back inside the bag. He knew it could come in handy for other members of the Observers for future spying projects.
"Ready?" he whispered, glancing at the clock. It should be one more minute, and then…
A rock clattered against the windowpane, and Percy locked eyes with Leo grimly. It was time.
Percy blew out their lantern and climbed onto the roof outside the window. They climbed down quickly, Percy's boots rapping against the cobblestones and Leo's softer farm boots making less noise.
Annabeth was standing on the ground, her blond hair tied back under a cloak with a hood that hid her eyes. She was wearing breeches and an too-big overcoat, leather boots laced up to her knees. "Now, onto the tavern," she whispered, turning. Leo and Percy nodded, and the three disappeared into the night.
•
They finally reached the tavern on the outskirts of town, close to the Neck. It was owned by a Loyalist who went by the name of Atlas, but his daughter mainly ran it for her constantly-drunk father.
Percy caught his breath as Annabeth knocked softly on the back door three times. He had known the girl, Calypso, when he first came to the colonies, and though he had tried to rescue her from her father's alcohol tainted, almost slave-like imprisonment of his daughter, it hadn't ended well.
The door was opened by a stunning young woman. She had waist-length caramel hair, woven into a long braid. Her deep brown, almond shaped eyes were luminous in the moonlight, and she wore a creamy-white dress under a stained apron.
Percy gulped. Annabeth elbowed him serenely.
"I assume this is Officer Valdez?" the girl asked, her silky voice quiet. She wiped her hands on her apron, a waft of cinnamon fragrance coasting along Percy's senses as she moved.
"Uh… yes, my lady," Leo choked, bowing. "Leo Valdez. Pleased to make your acquaintance."
"Likewise, I'm sure," Calypso answered, her voice sounding doubtful. "Come in, all three of you. My father is asleep, and hopefully will not be awake for a while."
They quietly filed into the dark building, Calypso leading the way with a candle. They passed a drunken, overweight man, snoring with a bottle in his hand. He jerked in his sleep, and Percy noticed Calypso wincing slightly. He felt a sinking feeling in his heart – apparently the conditions Calypso lived in hadn't gotten any better since his previous attempt to free her.
The girl led them around a corner and through a small door in the back lean-to. Percy followed her, beckoning Leo and Annabeth to come as well. They crossed a muddy courtyard before entering a dark stable.
"Here," Calypso said, setting down the candle and closing the doors. As she turned, her braid moved from her shoulder, revealing a dark bruise on her milky collarbone.
Leo moved towards her, all traces of star-struck boy gone. The young man stood in front of her with fire in his eyes. "Who… who did this to you?"
Calypso whipped around, hiding the bruise with her hair once again. "It doesn't matter," she whispered, pressing her lips together.
Leo's face hardened in the flickering light, and Percy suddenly realized the joking soldier he had met before had more than one side to him. "I – I know I don't even know you," he said, his voice husky, "but you are risking your life for me. Come away with me – we can go somewhere where you won't have to endure this abuse any longer."
Calypso looked away, and Percy glanced at Annabeth, who had yet to say a word. The dark hood obscured most of her face, but he could see her lips were pressed together in a firm white line. "Officer Jackson tried to help me before. It didn't work."
Leo spun around, his dark eyes on fire. "You knew?" he hissed. "You knew about this and stopped trying to help?"
Percy took a step back. "I – I tried to help, and it just got her hurt worse. Right after I came over from England. And then training started and I began working with the Observers – look, I'm not excusing myself. I should have come back, it was just – "
Calypso reached out and touched his arm, her luminous eyes soft. "'Twas not your fault, Perseus." She looked like she was going to say more, but a coarse shout came from the house across the courtyard. Her face flooding with alarm, Calypso turned to Leo. "You have to go."
"I'm not leaving without you," Leo answered stubbornly.
"You must," she insisted, quickly bringing an already-saddled horse from the stall nearest to them. The mare whickered softly, and another shout came, getting closer. She turned to Percy and Annabeth. "You also. If anyone sees you here – "
Leo climbed up and held out his hand to Calypso. "You can come with me," he said, his voice choked. "You don't have to live like this."
She pressed her lips together in a small smile, the tears in her eyes sparkling in the light. "I thank you, Leo Valdez. But I cannot." The four could hear someone making their way across the large courtyard. "Now go. There's a door in the back."
Leo dug his heels into the horse, and Percy watched silently as he trotted to the back of the stable. The three of them saw him begin moving faster, and a whispered promise before galloping quietly into the woods: "I'm coming back for you, Calypso. I swear it on the River Styx."
Hey everyone! I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, one, for not updating in like almost two months, and then the update you have is short and crappy and ugh. I'm sorry. But I promise during summer you will have so many chapters you won't know what to do. School is insanely busy and it's pretty hard to find time to write, but it won't always be this way! :)
Thanks for reading, and please leave a review! :)
WM