Eye of Hecate

Piper

I want to run for the elevator.

My second choice: attack the weird princess now, because I'm sure a fight is coming. The way the lady's face glowed when she heard Jason's name was bad enough. Now Her Highness is smiling like nothing happened, and Jason and Leo don't seem to think anything is wrong.

Ozzy and I exchange a look. I'm glad she's not falling for the princess's act. I still don't trust her completely, but at least I'm not alone. I notice Ozzy is fingering one of the many amulets she wears around her neck. It looks like a very fancy eye.

The princess gestures toward the cosmetics counter. "Shall we start with the potions?"

"Cool," Jason says.

"Guys," I interrupt, "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," Her Highness says. "I'm a saleswoman." Her diamonds sparkle, and her eyes glitter like a snake's—cold and dark. "Don't worry. We'll work our way down to the first floor, eh?"

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

I do my best to stare daggers at him: No, it's not okay!

Leo turns to Ozzy. "You're cool with this, right?"

Ozzy glaress back at him. "Actually, Leo-"

"Of course it's okay." Her Highness puts her hands on Leo's and Jason's shoulders and steers them toward the cosmetics. "Come along, boys."

Ozzy and I don't have much choice except to follow.

I hate department stores—mostly because I've gotten caught stealing from several of them. Well, not exactly caught, and not exactly stealing. I talked salesmen into giving me computers, new boots, a gold ring, once even a lawn mower, though I have no idea why I wanted one. I never kept the stuff. I just did it to get my dad's attention. Usually I talked my neighborhood UPS guy into taking the stuff back. But of course the salesmen I duped always came to their senses and called the police, who eventually tracked me down.

Anyway, I'm not thrilled to be back in a department store—especially one run by a crazy princess who glows in the dark.

Ozzy doesn't look happy either. She looks around with her eyes narrowed, as if she's looking for anything she can use to whack the princess upside the head, which I appreciate (and would actually pay to see).

"And here," the princess says, "is the finest assortment of magical mixtures anywhere."

The counter is crammed with bubbling beakers and smoking vials on tripods. Lining the display shelves are crystal flasks—some shaped like swans or honey bear dispensers. The liquids inside are every color, from glowing white to polka-dotted. And the smells—ugh! Some are pleasant, like fresh-baked cookies or roses, but they're mixed with the scents of burning tires, skunk spray, and gym lockers.

The princess points to a bloodred vial—a simple test tube with a cork stopper. "This one will heal any disease."

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

"Any disease, sweet boy. And this vial"—she points to a swan-shaped container with blue liquid inside. Without a second thought, Ozzy grabs the vial, opens it, and sniffs it.

She gives the princess a horrified look. "This'll kill you very painfully."

"Awesome," Jason says. His voice sounds dazed and sleepy.

"Jason," I say. "We've got a job to do. Remember?" I try to put power into my words, to snap him out of his trance with charmspeak, but my voice sounds shaky even to me. This princess woman scares me too much, makes my confidence crumble, just the way I felt back in the Aphrodite cabin with Drew.