I know, I know, I've been MIA for two months, but I hope this 6, 016 word chapter makes up for it.
I won't tell you my life story, but: I have been working on a lot of prompts that have kept me busy, and after I updated another one of my stories The Fiery Hero, I got to this one and got pounded by writers block. I've also been sick, so sick I had to switch from public to online school and go to a doctor. That's why it took me so long.
If you have read one of my other stories Day of the Dead, you'll recognize this. Some of this chapter is even taken directly from Day of the Dead.
Disclaimer: I am a good writer, but I can only hope to be as good as Rick Riordan.
WARNINGS: CHILD ABUSE, MURDER, SEXUAL ABUSE! MAJOR WANRING HERE- WILL HAVE WARNINGS BEFORE THE SCENES BEGIN
The screen flickered to life, revealing a red house in the center of long rolling fields. The house was immaculate; the painting was perfectly even and the windows were polished. Even the brown and black cat standing on the porch railing seemed to fit the image of a perfect house out in the country.
The seven were tempted to be reminded of Teresa's home, but the people outside did not look like perfectly groomed dolls. In fact, they looked normal.
The man was tall and buff with short black hair and brown eyes. He wore dusty overalls and a long sleeved red shirt. His face was tan and sweaty and covered in grime.
His wife was petite and had freckles splashed across her forehead and cheeks. She looked young, and her hair was long and black, undulating down her back. She wore a red sun dress and a hat to keep the bright sun out of her eyes.
Martin and Leo were standing in front of them, and Leo's eyes (far too dull and cracked to belong to Leo Valdez) darted around at the house and the yard and the fields. He kept his eyes fixed on the ground, refusing to meet the eye of his new foster parents.
"We'll take good care of him, Mr. Blake," the woman assured him.
"Thank you, Ms. Larrabee," Martin smiled. "I'll see you in two weeks, Leo. Make sure you keep on top of his medical things."
Ms. Larrabee nodded. "Of course. This is not our first rodeo."
Martin laughed. "Of course. After his past foster homes, I just worry about him."
"I understand that," Mr. Larrabee said. "We'll take care of him. By your next visit, he'll be an entirely new kid."
Martin smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. Until then, good luck."
Martin departed and headed for the tall gate at the edge of the property.
"Come on in," Mr. Larrabee instructed, and the adults led Leo into the house.
The minute the door shut, Mr. Larrabee barked, "Alexis!"
A girl with knotted brown hair rushed into the room; she wore a ripped magenta shirt and torn jeans; her eyes were green, and freckles dotted the skin beside her nose.
"Take him to meet the others," Mr. Larrabee commanded. "NOW!"
Leo rushed to follow Alexis, who grabbed his hand and led him outside.
"I'm Alexis," she smiled. "You?"
"Leo," he responded.
"Don't worry. Sir is a mean one, but the older ones protect the younger ones. How old are you? Eight? Nine?"
"Nine," Leo mumbled.
"Don't talk much, do you?" Alexis said. "That's okay. There are a few others like that."
Alexis opened the doors to the cellar and led Leo down the stairs, closing the doors behind them.
The basement was a wreck. Rusty chains dangled from the walls on either side of the room; dirty clothes and old bandages piled up in the corners. Personal belongings were scattered across the floor, and photographs filled the wall space.
Kids lounged all over the room. Leo counted heads: nine other kids, ten including himself.
"Newbie!" Alexis called.
One kid stood up and strolled over. He was African American and at least two feet taller than Leo; he was muscular, but he was also pale and shaky. Lack of food must've been making him weak; Sir didn't seem like the type to care about feeding the kids. He wore a ripped gray shirt he'd probably been wearing for months, and his jeans were threadbare.
"I'm Christopher," he greeted. "Seventeen."
A name tag popped up above his head, which was nice since the seven didn't think they could remember who all of these people were.
A red haired girl in a tattered green dress walked over.
"I'm Sarah; I turn sixteen in less than two months," she stated, proudly.
The next girl to approach them was a brown haired teen with dark eyes.
"I'm Katie, been thirteen for two weeks," she informed him.
A boy with black hair and blue eyes walked over.
"Max, eleven," he stated, simply and quietly.
"He doesn't talk much," Christopher whispered. "He's had a rough life."
Leo nodded, obviously able to relate.
"Janey, nine," a black haired girl greeted.
"Brandon!" A brown haired boy-who looked a lot like Alexis, actually- called from where he was leaning against the wall. "Nine."
The next was a small boy with blonde hair and puppy dog brown eyes.
"Luke, eight," he chirped.
"And I'm Skylar," a small girl with long, tangle brown hair said. "Six!"
"Welcome to Hell on earth," Katie smiled, bitterly.
"Don't scare him, Katie," Christopher hissed.
"She's not wrong, this place is a real life horror story," Max grumbled.
Sarah shrugged. "Can't argue, but he didn't look like he came from a perfect home," she pointed out, gesturing to his appearance. "Judging by the eyes, you've been through a lot."
Leo nodded.
"Hey, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger!" Janey cried, sarcastically.
"Whoever said that obviously never went to Hell and back, only to land in it again. Three times!" Leo laughed.
Everyone chuckled.
"Sing it, brother!" Christopher cried.
The image changed.
"You should've had your chores done hours ago!" Mr. Larrabee snapped, punching the wall inches from Leo's head.
The seven jumped.
"Sir, I-"
"Lazy , pathetic loser!" The man sneered before catching Leo across the face with his knuckles.
"That monster!" Annabeth growled. "I hope Leo still remembers that address."
"If the guys handle Teresa, we'll handle Larrabee," Piper snarled.
Hazel nodded. "We're going to give that jerk a dose of his own medicine."
Frank, Jason, and Percy leaned away from their girlfriends.
"If they look like this when we go to fight the giants, we won't need to do much," Percy whispered. "The giants will run for their mommies the minute they see their expressions."
Jason nodded. "I'm not ashamed to admit it: girls are scary."
"Agreed," Frank murmured.
The image resumed.
Leo fell to the ground, catching himself with his arms, and he gazed up at the man in fear.
"I haven't told you what the punishment here is yet, have I?" Mr. Larrabee smiled in a nasty manner.
Leo was frozen with a deer caught in a headlights expression.
"Answer me!" Mr. Larrabee snapped.
"No, sir," Leo rushed to say, leaping about a foot in the air at the sudden shout.
"Get up," Mr. Larrabee growled, yanking Leo up by the collar of his shirt.
Mr. Larrabee dragged Leo through the house, laughing as the boy stumbled to keep up with him.
Mr. Larrabee tossed open the door to the cupboard under the stairs and tossed Leo inside.
"And stay in there!" Mr. Larrabee yelled, twisting the key in the lock before pocketing it.
The image flashed to the inside of the closet, where Leo was curled into a ball, sobbing.
The screen flashed to reveal a workshop in flames before switching back. The sudden change caused the remaining six to jump.
The screen flashed again, revealing the attic from Teresa's, before going back to the closet.
"Oh my gosh," Annabeth mumbled.
"What?" Frank demanded.
"Leo was trapped in the workshop, the attic... what if he's claustrophobic?"
The six chewed on that for several moments before Jason paled.
"Oh my gods, you're right," he whispered. "Remember when the Stoll brothers locked Leo in that closet, and he didn't talk to them for two months? Travis asked us to talk to him; I thought he was just being dramatic, but what if he's... what if the closet triggered a flashback?"
"It would explain why Leo was so upset with Travis and Connor," Piper agreed.
"Poor Leo," Hazel mumbled.
The screen resumed.
Yellow letters flashed across the screen:
Six days later.
Black words appeared below the yellow:
Leo has not been given food, only water. He has not been let out of the closet once.
Leo was curled into the farthest corner of the closet, and the door opened; light fell across his floor, shining on the pale boy.
Mr. Larrabee smirked. "Pathetic."
He tossed Leo a red T-shirt and jeans.
"I got those from your bag, freak. Change out of those disgusting clothes and get out here."
The door shut, but there was no click of the lock this time.
The image changed to that of the cellar, and Leo leaned against the wall as he descended the stairs, his body obviously weak from starvation.
"Leo, where have you been?" Christopher exclaimed, running over to help Leo walk. "We were beginning to think you'd either escaped or he killed you."
"Mostly the second one since there weren't any cops," Luke added.
"Closet," Leo muttered.
"Closet? For six days? What did you do?" Brandon asked.
"I didn't get my chores done on time," Leo answered.
"You got the closet for six days for that?" Alexis said in disbelief. "The longest time someone's been in the closet was Max for four days because he spit at Sir. This can only mean one thing."
"What?" Leo asked.
"Sir has it out for you," Alexis sighed.
"That's comforting," Leo said, sarcastically.
"Here, Leo, sit down," Sarah advised, leading him over to lean against the wall. "Did you get food at all?"
"No, just water," Leo murmured, practically falling asleep sitting up.
Sarah sighed. "Get some rest. I doubt you got a decent moment of sleep in the closet."
Leo nodded before laying down and drifting off to sleep.
Jason, Piper, and Annabeth were reminded of when Leo was in the Infirmary before they'd departed on the Argo II. Someone from the Hephaestus cabin was always at Leo's side, usually more than one of them. No matter how much work or training had to be done, one or more of Leo's half siblings was always at his side.
This was like that. At least one of the others was sitting beside Leo at all times as the image sped up, acting on fast forward. This was obviously showing a passage of time.
One of the foster kids never left Leo's side. The others came and went; Alexis and Brandon sat beside Leo more often than not, but one girl didn't leave Leo's side for a second. The name tag that hovered above her head identified her as Janey.
"So what's the story, kid?" Janey asked.
Leo frowned. "Aren't you the same age as me?"
Janey frowned. "Well, yeah, but... I'm taller!"
Leo laughed. "Dude, Luke is almost taller than me, and he's two years younger!"
Janey shrugged. "Good point. Anyway, you don't have to tell me, but where were you before here?"
Leo smirked. "I'll tell you my story if you tell me yours."
Janey smiled. "Deal, but I asked you first."
Leo sighed. "Fine. My dad got my mom pregnant, and then, he didn't even stick around to see me born. My mom died in a machine shop fire a little under two years ago. My aunt blamed me for the fire, so I went to social services. My first foster mom was abusive. She locked me in an attic for about six months. My second foster mom was good, but the husband was an alcoholic, and he, uh... he killed her, and he tried to kill me. Then, I got sent here."
Janey pursed her lips. "Wow, three awful foster homes in a row. Fate or destiny or whatever... has it out for you."
Leo chuckled, but it sounded so fake. "Got that right. Your turn."
Janey sighed; she seemed to be thinking hard.
"Okay, my dad was a dead beat, too, and my mom died of stomach cancer three years ago. I had no living relatives, so I came here. This is my first foster home."
"And you've been here for three years?"
"Yep, social services doesn't think anything's wrong here because one, Sir is good at hiding all of the abuse. You'll see when your social worker comes. Two, none of us are stupid enough or daring enough to rat him out. One kid tried that; the cops didn't believe him. We never saw him again," Janey explained.
Leo sighed. "I may be stuck here until I'm eighteen, and there's nothing I can do about it."
"Exactly," Janey stated, glumly.
The cellar doors burst open, and Mrs. Larrabee called down:
"It's time for chores, brats. All of you, up here now, and I mean all of you. I will do a head count."
Leo rushed to stand and nearly collapsed, but Janey caught him.
"Leo, maybe we could explain to Ma'am-"
"You really think she's going to care?" Leo asked. "I could be a little weak or I could be dying, and she'd still tell me to get my butt up there. Come on; we don't want to get in trouble. I'm not going back in that closet again."
Janey sighed, but she helped Leo climb the stairs.
The image changed.
Leo and Janey were feeding the chickens.
"Leo?" Janey murmured.
"Yeah, Janey?"
"Do you ever think about just being free from social services?"
Leo shrugged. "Of course I do."
"Is there any hope that you'll find a good family?" Janey asked.
Leo sighed. "If I get out of here, I'm sure I'll find a good family, but I'll still run. Running keeps me one step ahead."
"Of what?"
"The past," Leo replied, but he didn't elaborate.
The image changed again.
"Sky, are you okay?" Leo yelled, kneeling over a hole in the ground.
"Oh, no," Annabeth muttered. "Sky's the youngest. She must've fallen in."
The other five demigods paled.
"Leo! Leo, I'm scared!" The small girl bawled.
Her voice was far away. Who knew how deep that hole went?
"It's okay, Sky! Janey will be back with the rope soon!"
"Leo, it's dark!" She sobbed.
"I know, Sky."
Leo looked up and glanced around at his surroundings, but Janey was no where in sight.
"Hey, Sky!" He shouted. "How about I tell you a story?"
Skylar sniffled from deep within the earth.
"Okay!" She called up, her voice wobbling in.
"Um, once there was a princess named Sky. She could fly, and she was a fantastic person and leader. She loved to help others, and she was the reason her people didn't tear each other apart. She kept the peace, and she helped everyone in any way she could.
"One day, a bad woman came, and she had magic, very similar to Sky, but this woman used her powers for evil. Sky had to defeat her before this woman destroyed her kingdom!
"Sky gathered six of her best friends. They all had magic. One could control water; one could hypnotize people; one could turn into any animal he wanted; one could control and attract metal, kind of like a magnet; one was super smart, like ridiculously clever and intelligent; one could control fire."
"Is anybody else noticing that Leo predicted the future?" Percy whispered.
"Maybe Leo's a distant descendent of Apollo or something," Piper suggested.
"Doesn't that possibly make him related to Octavian?" Frank asked. "If Apollo was in his Roman form?"
Silence fell.
"Let's not mention this to Leo," Jason settled on.
Nods of agreement occurred from every person in the room.
"These people banded together to defeat this bad woman, who did everything should could tell stop them! She sent monsters after them!"
"Monsters?" Sky said, curiously, sounding much calmer than before.
"Yep, big, bad ones. Dragons, two headed dogs, ginormous bats, sea serpents! Basically, if you can think of a monster, she sent it.
"But they defeated them all! In fact, Princess Sky defeated the most! Then, a big battle occurred- Sky, her friends, and her kingdom against this bad woman!"
"Who won?" Sky called.
"We're here!" Janey panted, pulling to a stop beside Leo and handing a rope to Christopher.
"I'm tell you later, Sky! Right now, we're coming to get you!" Leo yelled as Christopher tossed the rope into the hole.
"It doesn't reach!" Sky sobbed after a minute.
"What do we do now?" Christopher asked, his voice squeaking.
"Christopher, you are the oldest! You cannot afford to PANIC!" Janey shouted.
"You're panicking!" Christopher pointed out.
"But I'm only ten. You're seventeen!"
"Both of you, shut up," Leo hissed. "You're scaring Sky."
Both of the kids fell silent as Leo turned back to the hole in the earth.
"Sky, how short is the rope? A foot? A couple of feet?" He called.
"About three feet too short!" Skylar responded.
"That's good," Leo muttered before pulling up the rope and tying the end around his waist.
"Leo, what are you doing?" Janey demanded.
"We can't leave her down there! Other than Sky, I'm the only one small enough to fit in the hole. Even Luke's shoulders are too broad. Christopher, you're going to lower me in head first. I'll grab Sky, and then, you'll pull us up."
"That's dangerous!" Christopher said. "If the rope breaks, you'll fall on top of Sky, and then, you'll be hurt, and you could..." He trailed off.
Leo sighed. "Try not to think about it like that."
Christopher nodded and watched as Leo lowered himself to his knees. Christopher snatched up the other end of the rope and held as tightly as he could.
Leo took a deep breath before sticking his head into the hole and slipping inside while Christopher gripped the rope.
Leo was lowered into the hole until they could no longer see him.
After what seemed like an eternity, Leo's voice carried out of the hole:
"I've got her! Pull us up!"
Christopher tugged on the rope, and Janey helped him heave the boy and girl out of the earth.
Both were covered in dirt and dust, and they had a few cuts, but other than that, they were unharmed.
"Let's head back," Leo suggested as he untied the rope from his waist. "The others will be getting worried."
Christopher and Janey nodded, so Leo lifted an emotionally and physically exhausted Sky into his arms, and they started walking back to the cellar.
"Leo?" Sky mumbled, her head resting on Leo's shoulder.
"Yeah, Sky?" Leo asked.
"How did the story end?"
Leo smiled. "Sky and her friends won. The bad woman was defeated, and she never bothered them again. Peace and serenity returned to the kingdom, and Sky was more appreciated and admired than ever."
"And they all lived happily ever after," Sky muttered before she began to snore, softly.
"Yeah, Sky," Leo whispered to her sleeping form. "I promise, Sky. You're going to get a happily ever after. I'll make sure of it."
The screen went black.
"If that rope broke..." Annabeth trailed off in horror.
"Leo and Sky would've died," Percy finished.
The others nodded.
"Well, Leo's a natural born hero," Jason sighed. "We already knew that. We've always known that. The question is... what happened after? Did Leo run away? Did social services take them out?"
As if Hera had heard Jason, the screen flickered to life and letters were typed across the page.
Janey and Leo were best friends, and Alexis and Brandon were Leo's second and third favorite siblings.
Percy frowned. "Why is that important?"
As an answer, the screen flashed black before another memory began playing.
The screen began as black.
(SCENE INCLUDES A NONGRAPHIC MURDER! MURDER PART IS UNDERLINED. SKIP IF YOU WISH)
"Leo," a voice hissed. "Leo, wake up."
The screen was still dark, but they could make out the hazy image of Alexis. The screen wasn't pitch black, and they could tell that the foster siblings were in the cellar, but the lights were off.
"How did you..." Leo whispered.
"He must be asking how she got out of her chains," Frank said, but his voice was hard. "They were chained up like animals."
"There's no time," she hissed. "Look, Brandon and I are going to get help. We need you and Janey to stay here and take care of the little ones and try to distract the Bastard. With luck, we'll be back before he even notices we're gone. With the police."
"But what if he catches you?" Janey asked, Brandon having woke her up.
Alexis shook her head with a smile on her grimy face. "Brandon and I have been planning this for months. It's fool proof. We'll see you guys soon, okay? If anyone asks, you didn't see anything."
And Alexis and Brandon were gone, out the cellar doors, which they'd picked with a bobby pin.
"Why do I have the feeling something's going to go horribly wrong?" Piper muttered.
Not even ten minutes later, the cellar doors banged open, and Mr. Larrabee stomped down the stairs, awakening everyone in the room.
Unchaining Leo and Janey, he yanked them up by the hair and dragged them out of the basement.
"Sir, they haven't done anything wrong!" Christopher shouted, but Mr. Larrabee ignored him.
Leo and Janey were yanked into the house and thrown to the kitchen floor; Mr. Larrabee stomped on Leo's back, causing him to hiss in pain.
Jason growled an almost animalistic snarl. The Romans and Percy all had the wolf snarls they'd learned from Lupa set deep into their features.
Leo looked up, and the image repositioned to show Alexis and Brandon standing on the other side of the room.
Leo was dragged up by his curls while Janey remained on the floor.
"These little bastards tried to escape," Mr. Larrabee hissed, shaking Leo and ripping out some of his hair. "And I know that you two had something to do with it."
Leo took a deep breath and lied right through his teeth. "We didn't know anything, Sir."
SLAP! Leo's face swung to the side.
"Don't lie to me, brat! And honestly, I think that not stopping the perpetrators is more evil than committing the crime. "
A fist connected with Leo's ribs.
"STOP!" Alexis pleaded. "He didn't do anything."
"That's why I'm punishing him."
He tossed Leo to the floor and started beating Janey, too, and Leo clawed, punched, and even bit him, trying to get him to stop, but Mr. Larrabee tossed Leo aside, almost like a person swatting a fly from the air.
Janey slipped into unconscious pretty soon. Mr. Larrabee had been aiming for her face, and he must've smacked her too many times in the head.
Mr. Larrabee kicked Leo, but he stopped there. Then, he stormed over to Alexis and dragged her to a kitchen chair, where he forced her to sit down.
"You are my property!" He sneered. "And trying to run away was a bad thing to do. You and that boy are a disease, and diseases must be stopped before they spread."
Sir grabbed a knife out of the knife block and stabbed Alexis.
Hazel sobbed, and Frank tried to comfort her, but he was dealing with his own tears.
Annabeth had her hands covering her eyes, and she laid her head on Percy's shoulder while Percy buried his face in her hair.
Jason had turned Piper away from the screen at the sight of the knife, and the couple embraced.
None of them looked at the screen, but they could still hear the screams and cries of the three conscious children.
Finally, the screams stopped, but none of the demigods would turn around. They all had the feeling that it wasn't over.
Brandon's screams soon started, but his stopped much sooner than his sister's.
The six slowly turned toward the screen, and they stared at the unmoving bodies and the bloody floor.
Mr Larrabee turned towards Leo, who hugged Janey to his chest in order to protect her from the knife that had killed two of his best friends.
The six gulped, and they clung to each other even more.
"Take the girl back to the cellar. Come right back here, or I'll kill her too."
Leo nodded and dragged Janey to the basement, where he set her down gently beside her chains. The others were awake by now, staring at him as he sat Janey down.
"Leo, what happened?" Max asked in concern.
Leo didn't respond. Trembling like mad, he climbed the stairs and shut the door behind him.
Mr. Larrabee hadn't moved since Leo left. He was simply gazing at the dead kids without a hint of remorse in his eyes.
"Get the trash bags out of the cupboard."
Leo did.
"Now grab two and put one of the kids in each."
Leo, choking back sobs, did as he was told. By the end, his hands were soaked in blood.
"Put them by the door."
Sobbing, Leo dragged the bodies to the front door.
"Now, I want you to bleach this floor. Clean up every last drop of blood and come get me when you're done."
The image fast forwarded until the floor was spotless, but the sun had not begun to peak over the hills yet.
(SCENE INCLUDES NONGRAPHIC SEXUAL ABUSE. THIS PART OF THE SCENE IS BOLDED)
"S-Sir," Leo called, knocking on the bathroom door.
"Come in."
Leo stepped inside and kept his eyes trained on the floor when he saw that Mr. Larrabee was taking a bath.
"I-I finished."
"Good. Come here."
Leo crossed the floor and stood beside the tub.
Sir guided him onto his knees and had Leo wash the blood off his skin.
Trash cans appeared in their laps, and Hazel, Jason, Percy, and Piper vomited into them. The rest barely held onto their stomachs.
"Thank you, Leo."
He grabbed Leo's hand and guided it lower.
Leo jolted back, but the... the monster trapped his hand.
"Shh, Leo, you don't want Janey to end up like Alexis and Bradon, do you?"
Leo stopped struggling.
"That's what I thought."
Leo looked to the ceiling and whispered, "Please."
No help came, and the screen went black.
When the screen flickered to life, it showed Leo standing beside a six foot deep hole, holding a shovel and standing beside two trash bags.
Mr. Larrabee forced Leo to throw in the trash bags that held the bodies of Alexis and Brandon.
Leo bleached the floors, getting rid of any blood that may have seeped through the bags. He threw his and Mr. Larrabee's clothes into the hole with the bags before filling it with dirt once more.
Sir smiled at him. "Alright, Leo, no chores for you or the others today. And as long as you're a good boy for me, you and the others can receive more food and less beatings. If you're a bad boy, well, I'm afraid I'll have to punish Janey for your crimes. Keep that in mind."
Sir took him to the cellar and locked the door behind him.
"Leo!" Christopher gasped, running to meet him. Their chains had been unlocked.
"What happened?" Sarah asked.
"Where are Alexis and Bradon?" Janey asked.
"Gone," Leo whispered.
"You mean they escaped?" Luke said in wonder.
Leo shook his head. "Gone," he repeated before going over to his area and curling up on his side, facing the wall.
Sarah understood, and the others soon followed. Crying could be heard all through the night.
"What did Leo do to anyone?" Piper mumbled.
"He didn't do anything," Percy mumbled, "and that's why this is so hard."
"How are we going to talk to Leo about this?" Hazel asked. "I mean, we can't just bring it up out of no where."
"I don't know how we're going to do it yet," Jason muttered, "but we have to. We're not pushing Leo off anymore. He's always been there for us. The least we can do is be there for him, whether he wants us there or not."
Sounds of agreement filled the room.
Mr. Larrabee pushed Leo onto the bed and climbed on top of him.
Jason growled and the scent of ozone filled the air.
The image repositioned itself. Mr. Larrabee and Leo were no longer within view of the image, but the door was.
It slowly creaked open, and Janey peaked inside.
And then, Janey was screeching like a banshee, leaping onto Mr. Larrabee's back and calling him every name in the book.
"Go, Janey!" Hazel cheered.
"Get the jerk!" Percy agreed.
Janey put up a good fight for a solid three minutes before Mr. Larrabee suddenly whirled her around and shoved her into the wall. She wasn't hurt, but she was dazed.
Janey was dragged into the kitchen and forced to sit in the same chair as Alexis and Brandon. He raised the knife.
"NO!" The six shouted.
"Sir, stop!" Leo cried, grabbing his arm. "Please, I'll do anything you want! Just don't hurt Janey. Please..."
Mr. Larrabee laughed. The man placed the knife against Leo's chin, making him gasp in fear.
"Don't you dare hurt him," Piper snarled, pouring every ounce of Charmspeak into her voice. "If you hurt him, I'll hunt you down and strangle you with your own intestines. Then, I'll-"
"You think she realizes he can't hear her?" Jason whispered to Percy.
"You want to tell her that?" Percy asked.
Jason shook his head. "No, thank you."
Piper's rant lasted at least five minutes before she finally sighed and sat down, the fire having gone out of her.
The image resumed.
Mr. Larrabee didn't stab him or even cut Leo; he just dragged the knife across Leo's skin, barely grazing it.
The knife was placed on the counter, and Mr. Larrabee reached for the zipper of his pants.
The screen went black before flickering back to life.
The screen displayed Janey and Leo in the kitchen; Mr. Larrabee was gone, and Janey was rocking Leo, singing a lullaby.
"Thank you," Leo whispered.
"For what?"
"For staying."
Janey smiled, sadly. "Leo, you know what we need to do."
Leo met her eyes. "But... how? He killed Alexis and Brandon."
"There was one fault in their plan. And if we don't make the same mistake, we'll get out of here. They got caught climbing the fence after turning off the electricity," Janey told him. "But..."
She reached into her pocket and withdrew a ring of keys.
Leo grinned. "Let's do this."
The screen flashed to display a gate, which Janey was unlocking with a bronze key.
Janey and Leo didn't stop running until they reached town, and luckily for them, the police station was right outside the dense forest.
"HELP!" Janey shouted as she ran inside. "We need help!"
"Woah, kids," one man said as every police officer in the room turned their head. "What's wrong?"
Janey started speaking so fast that no one could understand a word she said.
"All right, you two, come with me. I'll listen to you, but you have to slow down," the man told them as he lead them into an interrogation room. "I'm Officer Burnten, but you can call me Ethan. What happened?"
Janey told them entire story- about the abuse, the murder, what Sir did to Leo.
The officer couldn't have looked more stunned if Janey's head had turned around on her neck.
"Kids, that's quite an outlandish story-"
"We can prove it!" Leo told him. "We can take you to the Place and show you. I know where they're buried, and... and the other kids are still there."
Ethan picked up his coat and said, "Well, come on."
"Hey, Stewart," he called as he stepped out. "I have reason to believe that six kids are in immediate danger; am I allowed to enter without a warrant?"
"If there's evidence that suggests immediate danger, yes," Stewart answered from behind a desk.
Ethan nodded. "I think these two are enough."
Leo and Janey lead Ethan to the Place, and when they arrived at the gate, Leo handed Ethan the key and watched him unlock it.
Ethan walked in, followed by the two kids, who hid behind Ethan the whole way to the cellar door.
Janey unlocked it and opened the doors.
"Guys!" She called down. "Come up here!"
Six kids hesitantly climbed the stairs and stared at the officer.
"Mister!" Skylar piped up. "Are you gonna take us away?"
Ethan nodded. "I am. But first, I gotta arrest them. Stay here, okay?"
The image sped up, slightly, and it passed in blurs of soundless color. Leo had obviously been in a state of shock, resulting in the fuzzy memory.
Ethan arrested the abusers, who cussed at Janey and Leo all the way to the police cruiser. Back up arrived, and the eight kids had to be taken in three cars; the last thing Leo saw as they drove away were people in blue coats starting to dig where Alexis and Brandon were buried.
The screen went white, and black letters spelled several statements across the screen.
The kids were allowed to attend a close casket funeral for their friends before they were buried beside their parents; they both died of drug overdoses shortly after their kids were put into the system.
Then, it was time to say goodbye.
Kids were sent all over the country. Christopher went to Arizona; Sarah, to Texas; Lily, to Arkansas; Max, to Florida; Luke, to Massachusetts; and Skylar to Oregon.
Janey was getting sent to Pennsylvania, and Leo, to Ohio.
The screen went black.
Percy sighed. "After all that, they got seperated."
"The world is a cruel place," Hazel murmured.
"Tell me about it," Annabeth snorted.
"Poor Leo," Piper murmured.
Jason nodded, staring at Leo's unconscious form.
"I'm so sorry," Jason whispered.
The other five demigods didn't have to ask. They knew what he meant because they were thinking the same thing.
For those of you that have read Day of the Dead, I did change Bradon's name to Brandon. I kept typing Brandon instead of Bradon, so I just changed the name.
Also, don't worry. Leo will have good homes. In fact, (spoiler) next chapter will be a good home.
Now the question is.. why did Leo run away from it? Until the chapter's up, I'll leave you guys to your guessing.
See you next chapter, which will hopefully be sooner.