The Demigod Business

Chapter 7

Annabeth

"Miles!" Harold cried when he opened the door.

"Dad!"

Miles fell into his father's embrace. The two of them clutched each other as though nothing else in the world existed. A small part of Annabeth wished she had had the same kind of relationship with her father when she was Miles' age, but that was in the past. She and her father had moved on and had a good relationship now.

Harold peered at Miles' hairline and the dried blood. "What happened?"

"He was attacked," Annabeth said. "But we got there in time to save him and kill the monster."

Harold held Miles tighter. "So he's safe now?"

Annabeth exchanged a glance with Percy behind her, and he shook his head. No use worrying them when Annabeth was fairly certain Miles was no longer a target. "Yes. No one's coming after him anymore. But he deserves some answers."

"Dad, what was that thing? Why did it come after me?" Miles asked.

Harold sighed. "I'll explain everything. Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

Harold ushered Miles inside, but before closing the door, he looked at Annabeth and Percy. "Thank you for saving him."

Annabeth smiled. "It's what we do. Here—" she handed him a slip of paper with her phone number on it. "I didn't tell him that I'm his sister, but if he ever needs help—or needs to talk to someone—use that number. Just, not often. Phone signals can attract monsters."

Harold nodded and tucked the paper into his pocket. "Thank you, Annabeth. And you, Percy."

Percy gave a mock salute and Annabeth smiled. "Like I said, it's what we do."

They descended the front steps and headed back to Percy's car. A little ways down the street, the same Chevy Impala they'd seen the night before was idling by the curb, waiting for them. It belonged to the two men they'd saved, who'd apparently been on this case longer than just today.

"How much do we tell them?" Percy asked once they were on their way to a local motel.

Annabeth chewed her lip. "We should see how much they know first. Obviously, they can see through the Mist. But they don't know how to kill monsters."

Percy nodded, staring at the road. "First sign of trouble, we run. I've got a weird feeling about them."

"Me too," Annabeth admitted. "But I want to hear their story. Something tells me they could be useful."

Once they parked at the motel, Percy reached out his hand and Annabeth took it, lacing their fingers together. For good measure, she made sure her dagger was easily accessible at her belt. She also handed Percy a small bottle of water—they'd taken to always making sure they had water nearby for him. Whether it would be used as a weapon or to heal him from something gone wrong, the odds were pretty evenly 50/50.

They followed the two men into their motel room, Annabeth scanning for exits as they did—the front door and the window. The window would hurt, but it was doable.

The tall one pulled the curtains shut so no one could look into the room from the parking lot. The shorter one dumped a duffel bag onto one of the beds, opening it to reveal countless guns and blades. Annabeth tightened her grip on Percy's hand. They sat at a table near the window, as far away from the beds as they could get.

"Who are you two?" the tall one asked. "Why were you at the pool? How did you know to protect Miles?"

"I'm Percy and this is Annabeth," Percy said. "And I think we at least deserve your names before we get into all that."