Chapter Nineteen
Disclaimer: I do not own the PJO or HoO series by Rick Riodan, nor do I own Star Holder Commander's character Walker. I do own all of the other OCs mentioned.
Adrienne's POV
Jade had suggested this place called Thornton's Restaurant for breakfast. She said it was about a twenty minute walk from the condo complex, so we started the trek there.
We were pretty much all silent the whole walk, Jade in the front leading us. Keegan was behind her, and I behind him. James and Tristan were taking up the rear of our line. No one mentioned what Keegan had said to the creature, about coming back to take away someone else he loved, and then the trance he had been in while staring at the thing's dusty remains. It made me wonder just what all he had been through in his life.
I picked up bits and pieces of James and Tristan's conversation every once and a while, but not much. Not only were they talking pretty quietly, but it was hard to hear when you were walking and there was traffic all around you. There were also people shouting at each other at the back entrances of restaurants and shops as they were unloading trucks.
I could hear enough to know that we had a pretty big dilemma on our hands. We didn't have a car, we had no clue where we were supposed to go next, and we didn't know when Walker would show up to tell us.
Keegan was humming some kind of tune, and it caught my attention. It sounded like something mom used to hum all the time around the house or when she was at the studio working. It made me wonder if maybe that was one of the songs they used to sing at Camp, the times she and the rest of the Apollo cabin would get up on stage and sing songs.
She used to tell me all about Camp and her and dad's time there, how much fun they had and all the adventures they took together. It always made me want to have that with someone some day, have a friend or a partner that I was so close to that I could trust them with my life and have the best of times with.
I looked up from my feet just before slamming into Keegan. We had stopped at a crosswalk, and I could see the restaurant right across the street. There were already a bunch of cars in the lot, but no one had gone inside yet. Jade had told us that they didn't open until seven, and it was about 6:45 now.
We walk across when the lamp told us it was safe to, and quickly made it to the parking lot. There were some benches right outside the door so we sat down and waited.
About ten minutes later, an older man, probably about sixty-five or so, unlocked and opened the door. Upon seeing us, he smiled and gestured for us to come inside.
We all stood up and filed into the restaurant, and we were seated outside on the patio in a minute. As we were walking outside, I could see the other people that had been waiting in their cars begin to come inside.
The waitress left us with our menus and told us that our waiter would be with us shortly. We all looked down at our menus, not saying a word. It was kind of strange. Usually at meals, our family would be talking and laughing the whole time, while also managing to eat somehow.
"Do any of you remember if Walker said when he'd contact us again?" Tristan asks, not looking up from his menu.
I had decided that I was going to get the apple and cinnamon pancakes. I close my menu and look at him. "No, he just said that he had some stuff to take care of before he met up with us here," I say.
He closes his menu and props his chin on his hand. "Hm,"
"Well I hope he shows his face soon, because I want to get out of this city more than anything," Jade grumbles, hiding behind her menu.
We all look to her. I was a little worried, I mean, she just found out about two hours ago that her aunt is most likely dead. Who wouldn't be a little messed up after learning that?
Before anyone can say anything, the waiter comes over. He was a fairly nice looking guy. His eyes were a bright, ice blue, and his hair a pale blonde. His nose and cheeks were sprinkled with freckles. "Hey guys, I'm Danny and I'll be your wait—Jade?!"
Jade had lowered her menu and was staring at the waiter, her eyes like saucers. "Uh, hey Danny,"
"What are you doing here? I thought—"
"I was visiting my aunt with some friends. We're on a trip and needed a place to crash last night," She quickly interrupts.
"Oh, well it's good to see you again. You look good,"
I could see Jade's cheeks get a little pink. I looked across the table to see James looking absolutely livid. I wondered what had gotten into him.
"So what can I get for you guys?"
We all give our orders and Danny leaves, glancing back at Jade before going inside. When he was gone, all of us except for Keegan looked at her, waiting for an explanation. She was quite obviously avoiding our gazes.
"So who's Danny?" Keegan speaks up, surprising us all.
Jade glares at him. He stares right back at her, a completely unfazed look on his face. Once she realizes we weren't going to stop staring at her until she told us, she sighed.
"Fine. He was an old boyfriend from when I lived here last year,"
"Boyfriend? Jade, that guy looked like he was about seventeen,"
"Yea, so?"
James sputters. "But—he's too old for you!"
She sighs, as if she had heard this a million times already about Danny. "James, I'm fourteen, and as you said, he's seventeen. That's only a three year age gap,"
"But—"
"Dude, let it go," Tristan grumbles, bumping James's shoulder
James sighs, obviously unhappy to let the subject slide. A few minutes later and Danny had come back with our drinks. I could tell just by his movements that he was trying to show off for Jade.
She mostly just rolled her eyes the whole time we were eating. When we were finished eating, Danny came back and took our plates away, saying he'd be back to give us the check.
Five minutes passed, and he wasn't back. After about fifteen, we all started to get a little uneasy. For most people, this would just suggest that you had a bad waiter. For us though, it could mean anything. For all we knew, there could be a monster inside just waiting for us.
Five more minutes and Jade pushed away from the table. "I'm going inside to see what's taking so long,"
James rises as well, pausing for a second when Jade glares at him. Then he shakes his head and follows her inside, even though she clearly didn't want him to come.
Keegan, Tristan, and I remain at the table, awkwardly waiting in silence. I hated it when James left me behind, especially when it was with people who were older than me and looked at me as if I were a helpless little girl. I was anything but helpless.
"Do you think we should—" Before Keegan could finish, we heard a huge crash from inside the restaurant.
I moan and throw my head back, standing up. I had been afraid of this. Hadn't we already run into enough monsters for five hours? Couldn't we just get one little break from this?
Tristan and Keegan are on my heels as I throw open the door. We could hear people in the back towards the kitchen shouting. I dart down that way, going as fast as I could while taking out my stars.
I push open the swinging kitchen doors to see a giant mess. There were broken plates and glasses everywhere, as well as food. A couple of the stainless steel counters were dented. Then I looked closer and noticed a couple of bodies lying motionless on the ground. One of them was Danny, and his neck was bent in an unnatural angle.
"Gods, what did this?" Keegan breathes.
We hurry farther into the back where there were more crashes, but they weren't as loud as they had previously been. We burst into what appeared and felt like the freezer, to find James and Jade cornered by a giant, flying thing.
"My gods, it's the Griffin Vulture," Tristan says, looking up at the thing with wide eyes.
"Well, are you two just going to stand there while your friends are killed by this thing, or are you going to do something about it?" Keegan says, practically having to shout over the loud beating of the Griffin Vulture's wings.
I take my stance, and Tristan draws his sword. Keegan takes out a bow that I hadn't noticed before and aims an arrow. We were ready, and we were going to do whatever it took to keep James and Jade safe.
A/N:
Sorry if this chapter was a little lame, it was a tad rushed. I've been putting off writing all last week, and last night I finally started writing it.
But what did y'all think about Danny, and James's reaction to him? And I feel like I've used the Griffin Vulture before in one of my other stories, but I can't remember which one...
GUESS WHAT.
I PASSED MY DRIVER'S LICENSE TEST!
It was pretty nerve wracking, the minutes leading up to it. But the test itself wasn't so bad.
And I promise, I'll reply to reviews tomorrow, but I'm super tired right now and I'm going to go to bed after my mom gets home in a few minutes.
M/A:
"'Under a spell you're hypnotized
Darling how could you be so blind?
(Snap out of it)
Under a spell you're hypnotized
Darling how could you be so blind?'"
Snap Out of It by Arctic Monkeys
