We managed to get off the arch in record time. We searched the perimeter for Percy but to no avail, until Grover bleated out. "PERRRRCCCYYY!" He raced over to the boy and tackled him in a hug. "We thought you'd gone to Hades the hard way!" Annabeth tried to look angry, but I could tell she was relived. I was as well, I didn't want anyone to die on this Quest.
"We can't leave you alone for five minutes! What happened?" Annabeth demanded.
"I sort of fell."
"You sort of fell!" I snapped. "You plummeted six hundred and thirty feet into the Mississippi River!"
"Gangway!" A cop shouted, and the crowd parted. A couple of paramedics ran past, a woman in a stretcher in between them. That was the woman from the observation deck. I tensed. The woman was talking to the paramedics, rambling on about what she saw.
"And then this huge dog, this huge fire-breathing Chihuahua-"
"Okay, ma'am." One of the paramedics said. "Just calm down. Your family is fine. The medication is starting to kick in."
"I'm not crazy! This boy jumped out of the hole and the monster disappeared." The woman then saw Percy."There he is! That's the boy!" I felt a hand grab my arm and I was pulled away. The four of us disappeared into the crowd.
"What's going on?" Annabeth demanded. "Was she talking about the Chihuahua on the elevator?" As we weaved through the people, Percy explained what had happened. The Chimera, Echidna, falling off the arch and the woman underwater who gave him a message.
"Whoa," said Grover. "We've got to get you to Santa Monica! You can't ignore a summons from your dad." before Annabeth or I could respond, we heard a reporter who was doing a piece.
"Percy Jackson. That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has learned that the boy who may have caused this explosion fits the description of a young man wanted by authorities for assisting in a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago. We have reason to believe that Percy was ordered by another girl to do so. These two are believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo of Percy Jackson and his acomplice." We ducked into an alley to avoid any eyes.
"First things first," I told Grover. "We've got to get out of town!"
"Definetly." I added. "Not only does Percy have a target on his back I'm pretty sure I've got one on mine too." We somehow made it back to th Amtrack Station without anyone spotting us. We caught it just as it was about to leave for Denver. I kept my eyes on St Louis as we were taken fom the station, the blue and red lights of the police fading into the distance.