Book Cult (New and Improved)

Leo XLVIII

"Leo XLVIII," Mitchell read.

AT FIRST, LEO THOUGHT ROCKS WERE pelting the windshield. Then he realized it was sleet. Frost built up around the edges of the glass, and slushy waves of ice blotted out his view.

"Another snow storm?" Annabeth frowned. "Is Boreas working for Gaea?" 

"It's possible." Athena said. "Or he could be following Aelous' orders. He was instructed by her to kill Leonidas and the others earlier."

The goddess of wisdom glanced at Leo to see his reaction. She smiled to herself when he winced.

Leo scowled. She's calling me that just to mess with me. I just know it.

"An ice storm?" Piper shouted over the engine and the wind. "Is it supposed to be this cold in Sonoma?"

"Not this bad." Annabeth frowned. It has to be Boreas. There's no way a freak snow storm would come out of nowhere like this.

Leo wasn't sure, but something about this storm seemed conscious, malevolent—like it was intentionally slamming them.

Thalia paled. "Can the helicopter handle that?"

Leo frowned. "Uh..." He rocked his chair back.

The daughter of Zeus grimaced. "Great."

Jason woke up quickly. He crawled forward, grabbing their seats for balance. "We've got to be getting close."

...Suddenly it wasn't so easy to drive the chopper. Its movements turned sluggish and jerky...The helicopter probably hadn't been prepped for cold-weather flying. The controls refused to respond, and they started to lose altitude.

"Not again!" Thalia squeezed her eyes shut. "How does this happen to the same three people?"

"We're lucky, I guess." Leo responded, brushing his hair back.

"There!" Jason shouted.

A small valley opened up before them, with the murky shape of a building in the middle. Leo aimed the helicopter straight for it...

He set down the helicopter in an icy field about fifty yards from the house and killed the engine. He was about to relax when he heard a whistling sound and saw a dark shape hurtling toward them out of the mist.

"Out!" Leo screamed.

They leaped from the helicopter and barely cleared the rotors before a massive BOOM shook the ground, knocking Leo off his feet and splattering ice all over him.

"So much for returning that." Apollo chuckled.

"I hope the pilot doesn't lose her job for this..." Hestia said to herself, tending to the hearth.

"What a waste of machinery." Hephaestus sighed.

"Poor Bella." Leo shook his head sadly.

"You all right?" Jason ran up to him, Piper at his side. They both looked fine except for being speckled with snow and mud.

"First it's hot and now it's snowing..." Aphrodite frowned. "I'll have to rethink their entire outfits." I could get Piper something cute like overalls. Oooo, but I really like her in that dress... Maybe keep the dress but add lined tights? Yeah! I could find some matching boots too! But they would have to be durable enough to climb a mountain... and I need a fire-proof outfit for Leo... and accessories Gleeson wouldn't eat...