ENTRAPPED ₂

77

"WHERE THE HELL DID YOU MEET A TITAN?" MADELEINE HISSED AT PERCY AS SOON AS SHE COULD GET HIM ALONE.

She had dragged him to the back of their little group, leaving Annabeth and Ethan to make small talk with Bob. Neither of them looked truly happy about this. Ethan kept casting looks back at Madeleine.

Percy scratched the back of his neck. "It was, umm... right before the summer that Beckendorf died. In the winter. Thalia, Nico, and I all got summoned to help Persephone."

"What?" Madeleine asked.

Percy held up his hand, indicating that she should save her questions until the end. "Anyway, we had to battle..." he lowered his voice, nodding at Bob. "I dumped him in the Lethe, and he lost his memory. He became so sweet afterwards, though, that I didn't have the heart to kill him. We renamed him and gave him to Hades, and that was that."

"He said you called him," Madeleine noted. "What's that about?"

Percy glanced at Annabeth, eyebrows scrunched. "When we took a break on that cliff, Annabeth mentioned the Underworld rivers. The Lethe got brought up, and she was asking me about that Titan I had dunked in it. And I said his name."

"And now he's here," Madeleine said. Personally, she wasn't sure how happy she was about this. She had a natural prejudice against all of the Titans, amnesiac or not. She knew from personal experience that amnesia didn't drastically change your personality unless you let it.

Plus, what if Bob's memories came back? Especially now that he was in Tartarus? Madeleine remembered how her own memories had slowly clicked back into place on their journey to Alaska and back. Why should Bob be any different?

He hadn't needed to help. Madeleine and Ethan would have had it under control. She was grateful that Bob had healed her friends' wounds, but she wanted to get away from him as soon as possible. She had already lost enough friends to the Titans.

"Why didn't you ever tell me this story?" Madeleine asked. She must've sounded snappy, because Percy flinched.

"You had a weird summer," he answered. "You had a lot going on. We both had a lot going on. And I didn't see you very often."

That was true. Madeleine couldn't hold him at fault for that. That summer had been a very mixed-up, anxious affair. She and Percy didn't have time to be together until Luke had been dead, because they were so focused on preserving the lives of others.

"Alright," Madeleine said. "But..."

Percy chewed his lip. "I know."

Madeleine drifted back over to Ethan. He was scowling at the Titan with the utmost loathing, which was about how Madeleine was feeling, too. The Titans represented almost everything the pair of them had ever lost. Facing one again was like a kick in the face.

Friendly Titans didn't exist. They just didn't. Madeleine remembered Prometheus, with his half-moon smile and bright eyes. She had killed him without remorse.

"Bob knows what he's doing," Percy promised them.

"You have interesting friends," Annabeth murmured in reply.

She hadn't spoken that loudly, but Bob turned and grinned. "Bob is interesting! Yes, thank you!"

Ethan tensed. Annabeth scowled. They exchanged a look, and Madeleine was not lost on what they were thinking: the Titan had good ears.

"So, Bob..." Annabeth said casually. "How did you get to Tartarus?"

"I jumped," he said, like it was obvious.