ENTRAPPED ₂

61

MADELEINE WOKE UP FEELING LIKE SHE WAS ON FIRE AND THE WALLS WERE CLOSING IN AROUND HER, IN THAT ORDER. For a moment, she just absolutely struggled to breathe.

She knew she was in the med bay on the Argo II. She had vague memories of the night before: Percy's Shrimpzilla, Frank in the water, Greek fire exploding, Zoe―no, Annabeth―pulling Madeleine back onto the ship. After that, everything was a blank.

"Hey, stranger."

Madeleine turned, reaching for her rings. She had learned a long time ago to always be alert when waking up, especially while on quests. When she saw the person talking to her, she wasn't privy on putting her rings down.

At first Madeleine was sure it was Silena Beauregard, and it took her a few moments to separate this girl from the dream of Drew. Then Madeleine saw Zoe's features: sharp eyes, full mouth, raised chin. Madeleine hadn't known very many daughters of Aphrodite, but Piper was the first that seemed to have the same shifting quality as her mother. It was the first time Madeleine had noticed, and it made her wonder if that was why Ethan and Drew liked Piper so much. When Madeleine had been gone, perhaps they had seen her features in Piper's upturned mouth, in the way she spoke.

It was just Piper, though. It wasn't Zoe or Silena or anyone else. It was just Piper, sitting at the edge of Madeleine's bed, holding her dagger like it was in control of her and not the other way around. Knowing what Madeleine knew about the weapon, that was probably correct.

"You're not going to stab me, are you?" Piper asked, tilting her head. She really was pretty. Madeleine was seeing less of Zoe now, but Piper had all of the things Madeleine had noticed: a full mouth, sharp eyes, an upturned chin. If Madeleine wasn't so attached to Ethan, she might be interested. But Madeleine had long since lived out her days of being in love with tragic girls.

"No," Madeleine said. She tucked her knives back into their rings and slid them onto her fingers, then struggled to sit up. Piper tried to wave her back down, but Madeleine ignored the other girl. There was a glass of nectar on her bedside table, and she sipped it until her pain levels faded completely, ignoring the fervent burning behind her ears. The drink tasted of Cokes on the beach with Lee, Drew, Ethan, and Clarisse at midnight. They always had fun running from the harpies.

Piper was watching Madeleine with something almost like sympathy.

"What?" Madeleine asked. Her voice came out harder than she intended; it was still a little rough from sleep.

"Nothing," Piper said. She finally set her dagger down on the table with the now-empty nectar glass and rubbed her hands across her knees, as if stressed. "So, I'm here because I'm pretty much useless."

"I'm never useless," Madeleine said bitterly. "Except now. That's cute. We're bonding." Her tone was dry. She rubbed her hands together. "What happened?"

Piper swallowed and glanced at the door, as if she would rather not be the one to deliver the bad news. Then she looked at Madeleine again, and something in her seemed to cave.

"Alright," she said. "I'm not sure if you remember, but Leo and Hazel managed to get the monster off of us with Greek fire. It disappeared. Um, Annabeth, Ethan, and Leo's stupid table managed to repair enough to hold the ship together, but it's in pretty bad shape. Jason has been putting out fires around the rigging."

Madeleine was so relieved she could have choked just to hear Ethan's name. He was okay, he was okay, he was okay. Thank the gods.

Still, Madeleine could tell there was more to be said. Piper still looked grim and worried, continuously glancing at the doorway like she was waiting for a bad omen to appear.