ENTRAPPED ₂

11

ETHAN WASN'T IMMUNE TO CHARMSPEAK, BUT HE HAD TRAINED HIMSELF TO AVOID IT. If he could recognize it, and he usually could, it no longer had an impact on him.

It was a bet he had made with Madeleine. One day, when they had been sitting by the lake, Madeleine skipped a few rocks and told him about the Lotus Casino.

"I don't want to be like Luke," she had said. "I don't want anyone whispering in my ear. No gods, no Titans. I want to be my own person."

Ethan, who had worked very briefly with Luke after James's death, agreed. There was something wrong with Luke Castellan. His head wasn't his own.

He held out his pinkie. "Then we'll be our own people. No whispering."

She had looked at him and smiled that smile that was pure sunshine. "No whispering."

She linked her pinkie with his.

They had both turned to Drew Tanaka after that, and she had charmspoken them for the rest of the day until they could directly resist it. Madeleine and Ethan were both cynics, and they knew what it was like to be manipulated. Their willpower alone made up for any lack of magical power.

Here Madeleine was again, gone from the face of the earth and yet still managing to save Ethan's life. He would never be able to repay her.

The princess gestured to the cosmetics counter. "Shall we start with the potions?"

"Cool," Jason said.

"Guys," Piper interrupted, "we're here to get the storm spirits and Coach Hedge. If this―princess―is really our friend―"

"Oh, I'm better than a friend, my dear," Medea said. "I'm a saleswoman." Her diamonds sparkled, and her eyes glittered coldly. "Don't worry. We'll work our way down to the first floor, eh?"

Leo nodded eagerly. "Sure, yeah! That sounds okay. Right, Piper?"

Piper glared daggers at him. Ethan wanted to see how many times he could hit Leo before the boy realized he was being charmspoken.

"Of course it's okay." Medea put her hands on Leo's and Jason's shoulders and steered them toward the cosmetics. "Come along, boys."

Piper followed, leaving Ethan no choice but to bring up the rear. Gods, he hated these weak-willed idiots.

"And here," Medea narrated, "is the finest assortment of magical mixtures anywhere."

The counter was crowded with bubbling beakers and smoking vials on tripods. Lining the display shelves were crystals flasks, some shaped like swans or honey bears. The liquids inside were every color, from glowing white to patterned. The smells varied, too. Some were pleasant, like fresh-baked cookies or roses; but others smelt worse, like burning tires, skunk, and adolescent sweat.

Medea pointed to a bloodred vial, a simple test tube with a cork stopper. "This one will heal any disease."

"Even cancer?" Leo asked. "Leprosy? Hangnails?"

"Any disease, sweet boy. And this vial"―she pointed to a swan-shaped container with blue liquid inside―"will kill you very painfully."

"Awesome," Jason said. He sounded dazed and sleepy.

"Why don't you try it?" Ethan asked Medea.

She looked at him with a sort of viciousness you didn't get from monsters. "I was going to offer you the same thing."

Piper approached Jason. "Jason," she said. "We've got a job to do. Remember?" Ethan could hear a weak undercurrent of charmspeak in her voice, but she sounded too unsure of herself.