The Veiled Legacy | PJO - Book Two

eighteen

Jason would've died five times on the way to the front door if not for Leo.

First it was the motion-activated trapdoor on the sidewalk, then the lasers on the steps, then the nerve gas dispenser on the porch railing, the pressure-sensitive poison spikes in the welcome mat, and of course the exploding doorbell.

"Jason how stupid are you." Ariana would laugh every time Leo had to save him.

Jason glared at her. "Aren't you funny."

"I am." The girl grinned.

Leo deactivated all of them. It was like he could smell the traps, and he picked just the right tool out of his belt to disable them.

"You're amazing, man," Jason said.

Leo scowled as he examined the front-door lock.

"Yeah, amazing." he said. "Can't fix a dragon right, but I'm amazing."

Ariana frowned. She didn't like how Leo was blaming himself for Festus.

"Hey, that wasn't your -"

"Front door's already unlocked." Leo announced.

Piper stared at the door in disbelief. "It is? All those traps, and the door's unlocked?"

Ariana turned the knob. The door swung open easily. Leo stepped inside without hesitation.

Before Jason or Piper could follow, Ariana caught their arms. "He's going to need some time to get over Festus. Don't take it personally. And don't fucking upset him more."

Piper blinker. It was as if Ariana was lecturing two children.

"Yeah." Jason said. "Yeah, okay."

"Piper." Jason continued, "I know I was in a daze back in Chicago, but that stuff about your dad - if he's in trouble, I want to help. I don't care if it's a trap or not."

Her eyes were always different colours, but now they looked shattered, as if she'd seen something she just couldn't cope with. "Jason, you don't know what you're saying. Please - don't make me feel worse. Come on. We should stick together."

She ducked inside.

"Together." Jason said to himself.

"Yeah, we're doing great with that." Ariana told him patting his shoulder and entering the house.

Ariana's first impression of the house: dark.

"You should feel right at home, right?" Jason asked. "With is being dark and stuff?"

Ariana grinned at him.Though it was true she could feel the shadows besides her, they were more prominent. She was stronger here. "Look who's hilarious now."

From the echo of their footsteps she could tell the entry hall was enormous, even bigger than Boreas's penthouse, but the only illumination came from the yard lights outside.

A faint glow peeked through the breaks in the thick velvet curtains. The windows rose about ten feet tall.

Spaced between them along the walls were life-size metal statues. As Ariana's eyes adjusted, he saw sofas arranged in a U in the middle of the room, with a central coffee table and one large chair at the far end.

A massive chandelier glinted overhead. Along the back wall stood a row of closed doors.

'Where's the light switch?' Jasons voice echoed alarmingly through the room.

"Don't see one." Leo said.

"Fire?" Piper suggested.

Leo held out his hand, but nothing happened. "It's not working."