Ethereal

Chapter XIV

At the edge of the dump, we found a tow truck so old it might've been thrown away itself. But the engine started, and it had a full tank of gas, so we decided to borrow it.

Thalia drove. She didn't seem as stunned as Zoe or Percy or me.

"The skeletons are still out there," she reminded us. "We need to keep moving."

She navigated us through the desert, under clear blue skies, the sand so bright it hurt to look at. Zoe sat upfront with Thalia. Grover, Percy and I sat in the pickup bed, leaning against the tow winch. The air was cool and dry, but the nice weather just seemed like an insult after losing Bianca.

My hand closed around the little figurine that had cost her life. I still couldn't even tell what god it was supposed to be. Nico would know.

Oh, gods... what was I going to tell Nico?

I wanted to believe that Bianca was still alive somewhere. But I had a bad feeling that she was gone for good.

"It should've been me," I said. "I should've gone into the giant."

"Don't say that!" Grover panicked. "It's bad enough Annabeth is gone, and now Bianca. Do you think I could stand it if..." He sniffled. "Do you think anybody else would be my best joker?"

"Ah, Grover..."

He wiped under his eyes with an oily cloth that left his face grimy as he had on war paint. "I'm... I'm okay."

But he wasn't okay. Ever since the encounter in New Mexico—whatever had happened when that wild wind blew through—he seemed really fragile, even more emotional than usual. I was afraid to talk to him about it because he might start bawling.

At least there's one good thing about having a friend who gets freaked out more than you do. I realized I couldn't stay depressed. I had to set aside thinking about Bianca and keep us going forward, the way Thalia was doing. I wondered what she and Zoe were talking about in the front of the truck.

I shrugged off Percy's lion fur coat and handed it to him. "Here have this back,"

"You sure?" He replied hesitantly.

"Yes, take it please..." I replied without hesitation. "After... Please just take it."

"Ok," He responded softly, seeming as if he filled in my unspoken words.

I smiled in relief. 

After what just happened, I don't think I could take it if I lost another friend...

The tow truck ran out of gas at the edge of a river canyon and stalled to a halt. That was just as well because the road dead-ended.

Thalia got out and slammed the door. Immediately, one of the tires blew. "Great. What now?" She sighed.

I scanned the horizon. There wasn't much to see. Desert in all directions, occasional clumps of barren mountains plopped here and there. The canyon was the only thing interesting. The river itself wasn't very big, maybe fifty yards across, green water with a few rapids, but it carved a huge scar out of the desert. The rock cliffs dropped away below us.

"There's a path," Grover said. "We could get to the river."

I tried to see what he was talking about, and finally noticed a tiny ledge winding down the cliff face. "That's a goat path," Percy said as helpful as ever.

"So?" Grover asked confused.

"The rest of us aren't goats." Percy said pointedly.

"We can make it," Grover said. "I think."