Chapter 11

Something bright was shining down on me. The sun, maybe? Was I outside?

I cracked open my eyelids ever so slightly and looked up. I definitely wasn't outside, and that wasn't the sun above me; it was a light, suspended from the ceiling.

When I moved my arms, I found that I was no longer tied up, and was laying on a hospital bed in a small room. It was quite comfortable, actually, until a throbbing pain came from my side.

That's when I remembered what happened before I blacked out, and realized that if Gabe Ugliano was still holding me captive, he was being pretty nice now. Except, of course, he had shot me…

Then I remembered the one person who was more important than my own safety: Annabeth. Where was she? Gabe Ugliano must have hurt her, too…

I shifted, my body in a panic, and pain flared up through me, making me gasp.

"There, there," said a sudden voice. It was soft and kind. "It's alright, Percy, don't move…"

That voice. I knew it from somewhere. I looked up, into familiar eyes - the eyes of my boss, General Corral.

"General…" I whispered, in a groggy voice. "W-What happened? Where's Annabeth -"

"You don't need to worry about her, she's alright," General Corral assured. "You just need to rest…"

I glanced down at the wound in my side. Though the bleeding had stopped, it was still extremely bloody, and General Corral had seemed to be cleaning it while I was asleep.

There was an empty chair next to my bed, and he took a seat in it. I watched him carefully. "As for what happened," he said, "My agents and I found you and Annabeth. She wasn't injured, but you were… well, you know… we brought you back here as quick as possible and lay you down."

"And what about Gabe Ugliano?"

"Don't you worry, he's safely locked away, thank goodness."

I turned away, avoiding General Corral's eyes and biting my lip. I knew what he was going to say… I had failed, gotten captured by the criminal himself, then shot so that I was completely helpless. The F.B.I. had done all the work, and I had done nothing.

I admitted this to the general before he even mentioned it. "I'm sorry," I told him. "I failed your mission… you know what happened…"

"Failed?" General Corral repeated incredulously. "If it weren't for you, Percy, and your friend Annabeth, we would never have found Gabe Ugliano's hideout! And you uncovered other secrets about him that we now know so he can pay for his crimes. You did everything!"

"But I got captured!" I protested. "And shot in the side."

"That was brave, what you handled," General Corral assured. "Annabeth told me everything. You spoke your mind to Gabe Ugliano, even when he had a knife in his hand… and when he shot you, you lived…"

I glanced down at myself. How did that happen?

"You're strong, Percy. And now that you know the truth about who killed your mother, you're stronger." General Corral's voice broke a bit when he talked about my mother. I found that strange.

"Yeah, um, sorry for not telling you earlier," I mumbled. "You know, that she was murdered."

"It's alright, Percy," General Corral promised. "You probably weren't even sure."

But now that I was, my heart sank. My mother's death was renewed in my mind once again. I suppose everyone feels guilty after death, but I still felt like I could have saved her, could have stopped Gabe Ugliano before he did anything to her…

Then I remembered that when it happened, I was only twelve. I didn't even know about the man who was hitting on my mother. But now, I was sixteen, and I had faced him… told him everything that I wanted to tell him (well, there was still a few other nasty comments I'd like to say) and didn't get myself killed. Though, almost.

"Didn't you feel like you accomplished something, Percy?" General Corral asked, almost reading my mind.

"Yeah… I guess," I replied. My side suddenly hurt a little less.

"So, do you need anything?" the F.B.I. general asked, getting up from his chair and striding around me.

"No, you can get back to your duties, if you need to…"

General Corral's face held a distant sadness. "I'm not leaving your side, Percy."

Well, alright, then, I thought awkwardly. I hadn't been expecting that.

And so, General Corral sat back down to resume cleaning my cuts, and I let my mind wander. I wished I could see Annabeth, but I supposed she was recovering from our kidnapping. Also, I wanted to somehow get a message to Leo to tell him that Gabe Ugliano had really killed his mother. Oh, that disgusting vermin…

As I watched General Corral, my mind kept going back to one thing - why he was being so protective of me, why he wasn't going back to his usual F.B.I. general duties and letting a real doctor take care of me. He must have been busy, what with convicting Gabe Ugliano of two murders...

There was something in his face, something he was obviously trying to hide… but I decided it better not to ask about it.

Once I was no longer covered in blood, General Corral let me sit up and offered me water. He watched me as I drank, then took the cup from me, swallowing hard. I couldn't take the suspense any more. "What is it, General?"

"Hmm?" General Corral asked, looking at me with his eyebrows raised. "What is what?"

"Why do you keep doing that?" I hope that didn't sound rude, but he was just acting so strange. "Darting your eyes around… swallowing…"

General Corral frowned. "What you notice, Percy, seems like perfect human nature."

Yeah, maybe I'm just getting ahead of myself, I thought… Then he did it again. "That," I told him. "You're hiding something."

"What could I possibly…" At that moment, General Corral sighed, seeming to give up. He walked over to me and sat down.

"Percy," he whispered. "I… I have something I need to tell you."

Nerves tickled my stomach. "What is it? Did… Did Annabeth not make it out or something? Is she… Is she -"

"No, no, nothing like that," General Corral interrupted. "She's fine, I promise. And before you ask," he added when I opened my mouth, "we captured Gabe Ugliano."

Then what could possibly be left that he wasn't telling me? I sat still and listened, curious as to what he was about to say.

"Percy… I'm your father."

I hadn't been expecting that.

"W-What?" I asked. "My father's dead… at least, that's what -"

"Your mother told you," General Corral finished. He placed a hand on mine and squeezed it. I looked down uncomfortably, then back up at him. "I am your father, Percy, it's just that -"

"Then where were you?" I snapped, kind of believing him. I mean, why would General Corral lie about something like that? "Where were you all these years?"

"I couldn't be with you and your mother," the F.B.I. general replied. "My work here… it was just too demanding and too dangerous. I wanted Sally and you to have a good, safe life."

"Then why did you recruit me in the F.B.I., after my mother died?"

"You were older, Percy." General Corral gave me a weak smile. "I'm truly sorry…"

But I was too confused, too lost in thought, to hear him. "But why didn't you tell me this before?" I wanted to know.

"I… I just never could," General Corral admitted. "It was even hard for me now. But I wanted to tell you today, because when I saw you injured, I just knew that I really cared for you and that you had to know the truth."

He squeezed my hand again, but I pulled away, still angry at him. I mean… his reasons made sense, but still… wasn't family more important than work? "Percy," he tried. "Percy, listen to me…"

"No," I snapped, turning away. "Just… Just leave me alone."

He looked at me sadly, then, sighing, walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Ooh, big reveal, right? I hope you're enjoying the story so far. Please review! - Key