CHAPTER ELEVEN - I KILL A ROCK

The only thing I could think about as we walked through the woods, was that it was nice to know that divine entities were out there; so I could blame my godly grandfather for almost blowing us up, rather than a freak force of nature.

I pulled on Grover's hand while Annabeth took care of Percy. We walked along the New Jersey bank of the Hudson, the sky polluted with the city's lights. I looked up, wishing I could see the stars. When I was younger, my dad – my real dad, in my own world – used to take me on camping trips in the middle of the Californian desert. You could see miles in every direction, and there were so many stars in the sky, you could see a cactus from hundreds of yards away because of the light. We would sleep in the bed of his truck, and I'd point out all of the constellations, telling him about the different Greek myths that went with them. It was easier then, because the myths were just that: fairy tales. I never thought I'd ever be in a situation where I would look up at the stars and think hey, I'll meet them someday.

Grover made the progress slow. He was shaking from the residual fright, and his pupils were slit, like how a goat's are. "Three Kindly Ones. All three at once."

I was quivering in my boots as well, but I couldn't let it show. Annabeth and I had to be the strong ones at that moment. "Come on!" Annabeth said to Percy. "The farther away we get, the better."

"All our money was back there," Percy reminded her. "Our food and clothes. Avalon is the only one who still has her supplies."

"She has them because she knew we were going to be attacked. If you hadn't decided to jump into the fight–"

"What did you want me to do? Let you get killed?" Percy demanded.

"You didn't need to protect me, Percy. I would've been fine."

"Sliced like sandwich bread," Grover added, "but fine."

Annabeth scowled. "Shut up, goat boy."

Grover brayed mournfully. "Tin cans...a perfectly good bag of tin cans."

I pulled him along gently. "I'll find you some more, don't worry."

We walked in silence for a while. I could hear Percy and Annabeth talking behind me, but I wanted to stay out of that conversation. It wasn't my place.

After another few minutes, Grover spoke up. "Annabeth said that you knew we were going to be attacked, and that's why you kept your backpack on your shoulder."

I nodded. "I wanted to give us at least some form of a fighting chance."

"But, if you knew, then why didn't you tell us to keep our packs with us? Or tell us about the Kindly Ones?"

"I've told you, Grover: if I try to give away the storyline, my tongue twists up and I can't speak. I said to Percy before the quest started, that I can't prevent any of the dangers that we're going to face. All I can do is be a part of the fights, when you need me."

"Dangers, as in plural? Are you saying that we're going to fight things worse than the Kindly Ones?" Grover asked.

"By now, don't you think that's a given? We're three powerful half-bloods and a satyr. As soon as we stepped over the border at camp, every monster's demigod radar within a ten-mile radius must've pinged."

Grover kicked a rock into the river. "That was really brave, by the way. Taking on Mrs. Dodds like that, with only a couple hours of training with that knife. You're a natural."

"Yeah, well. Where I come from, my dad taught me how to handle a switchblade, in case I ever got into trouble. Also some basic self-defense moves. He tried to get me to learn how to use a gun, but I'm not much of a gun person. That's actually why I got into archery, because it was another one of his hobbies when he was younger." My voice was thick by the time I finished speaking. I hadn't realized I was choking up until I felt a small tear roll down my cheek. I wiped it away before Grover could see.

"I'm sorry about your situation, Av. Really, I am. I can't imagine what it's like, not knowing if your parents are really your parents."

"I'll figure it out," I said, wanting the subject to drop.

Grover must've sensed my discomfort, because he patted his pockets, looking around for something. He pulled out his reed pipes, and immediately went to check them.

A shrill toot-toot-toot sounded. Annabeth stopped talking mid-sentence. Percy was looking over at Grover and I with an eyebrow raised.

"Hey, my reed pipes still work!" Grover said. "If I could just remember a 'find path' song, we could get out of these woods!"

He started playing a quick tune, but stopped once Percy walked right into a tree and fell to the ground.

I snorted as I made my way over to him and offered a hand. "Gods, Perce," I said as I helped him up. "You're even more uncoordinated than I am."

*

After walking for another half hour, we came across a deserted road that cut right through the woods. Across the road, there was a closed down gas station, a tattered billboard, and an open curio shop. The smell of fry oil and cooking burgers filled the air.

I wrinkled my nose. I was never a fan of fast food, even when I was just a little girl. When my family would go to In-N-Out, I would always get a veggie burger. The only time I would splurge was the French fries. I loved In-N-Out's French fries. I guess it was a West-Coast thing.

I looked up at the sign of the building. Even though I knew what it said, I couldn't read it, because of the dyslexia I had oh-so wonderfully aquired. The neon red lights were definitely not helping. I could make out something like: ATNYU MES GDERAN GOMEN MEPROUIM.

"What the heck does that say?" Percy asked.

"I don't know," Annabeth said.

I looked over at Grover, who was reading the sign.

"Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium," I translated, clipping each word at the end.

Percy didn't notice my tone of voice. "You could read that?" he asked.

I shook my head no.

Percy looked like he was going to ask something else, but Annabeth cut him off. "We're supposed to go in there, aren't we?"

I didn't want to, but my head nodded against my will. Stupid rules.

Percy didn't need to be told twice. Without even looking, he crossed the street until he was standing right outside of the shop.

"Hey..." Grover warned

"The lights are on inside," Annabeth said. "Maybe it's open."

"Snack bar," Percy said. His eyes were glazed over from hunger.

Annabeth sighed wistfully. "Snack bar."

Despite my dislike for hamburgers and other fast food, I followed the two until I was standing next to them. "Maybe they'll have some zucchini sticks," I said hopefully. Every atom in my body was telling me to run, but my stomach overpowered them.

"Are you three crazy?" Grover asked. "This place is weird. Av, surely you feel it too."

I waved him off. My body was acting of its own accord by then. It was like I was sitting in the cockpit of a plane that was on autopilot, and I had no idea how to fly a plane. I could watch where I was going, and what I was doing, but taking control of the plane could mean catastrophe.

Grover walked up to a stone statue of a satyr. "Bla-ha-ha! Looks like my Uncle Ferdinand!"

We stopped at the front door. I was blinded by hunger. There weren't any food rations in my backpack, just the ambrosia and nectar. Percy raised a fist to rap against the door.

"Don't knock," Grover pleaded. "I smell monsters."

"Your nose is clogged up from the Furies," Annabeth protested. "All I smell is burgers. Aren't you hungry?"

Grover bleated again. "Meat! I'm a vegetarian."

"You eat cheese enchiladas and aluminum cans," Percy told him.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Since when do cheese enchiladas and tin cans have meat in them?"

Grover pulled on my jacket sleeve. "Come on," he said. "Let's leave. These statues are...looking at me."

I was just thinking that maybe he was right, and was about to tell our friends so, when the door creaked open.

A woman stood in the threshold of the building. She wore a black widower's gown that covered everything but her hands, which were old, but well-manicured. A black veil covered her head and face. I could make out her eyes, but nothing else. I felt a little uneasy looking at this woman, because her eyes glinted underneath the veil, almost wickedly.

She said, "Children, it is too late to be out alone. Where are your parents?" Her accent was thick and Mediterranean.

Instinctively, I shuffled closer to Grover. "I can't remember what happens," I whispered, as quietly as I possibly could. I knew that Grover could hear me, though. I was hoping that Percy and Annabeth would distract the woman from our whispered conversation. "That happens sometimes, when something big is about to happen and I'm not allowed to change it, like the lightning strike on Mrs. Jackson's car. Be on alert, I'm sure it'll come back to me right before something goes down."

Grover nodded subtly. We turned back to the woman, who was talking with Percy. "Oh, my dears," she said. "You must come in, poor children. I am Aunty Em. Go straight through to the back of the warehouse, please. There is a dining area."

We thanked her and went inside.

I heard Annabeth say to Percy, "Circus caravan?"

"Always have a strategy, right?" he muttered back.

"Your head is full of kelp."

Grover and I followed them through the warehouse. Percy and Annabeth glided forward, as if in a trance. Grover held back, whimpering. I felt as if my body was at war with itself: my stomach was howling in protest, wanting nothing more than to devour everything in sight, while my mind was telling me to wait, and analyze the situation. As much as I tried to will myself to stop walking, my hunger won the battle.

We found the dining area at the back of the warehouse. It was an old-fashioned fast food counter. I could make out a grill, a soda fountain, and a pretzel heater before Aunty Em obscured my vision.

"Please, sit down," she said.

"Awesome," Percy muttered. I looked over at him and Annabeth. Their eyes were clouded, silly smiles plastered on their faces.

"Um," Grover raised his hand cautiously, "we don't have a whole lot of money, ma'am."

Percy made to elbow him in the ribs, but Aunty Em spoke before he could. "No, no children. No money. This is a special case, yes? It is my treat, for such nice orphans."

"Thank you, ma'am," Annabeth said.

Aunty Em's shoulders tensed and her hands curled into fists. I quirked an eyebrow at that, trying to wrack my brain to think of who this woman could possibly be, but she relaxed before I could draw my conclusion, and my train of thought was lost.

"Quite all right, Annabeth," she said. "You have such beautiful gray eyes, child." I frowned. How could Aunty Em possibly know Annabeth's name?

The four of us sat down at one of the steel tables while our hostess went behind the counter to make the food. I shifted my weight uneasily. The uncomfortable bench wasn't helping me think. Grover kept glancing at Percy and Annabeth nervously, but they weren't paying any attention to us.

In almost no time at all, Aunty Em reappeared with giant plastic trays piled high with food.

While Percy and Annabeth reached for the cheeseburgers and the milkshakes, Grover and I stayed back. My stomach was screaming in protest and my eyesight was honing in on the food, but I forced myself to keep from eating.

Aunty Em's shoulders slumped, like she was disappointed. "Not a hamburger fan, Avalon? That's okay, I made these as well," she said, and pulled out a tray from behind the mounds of French fries. Zucchini sticks!

Forgetting my wariness, I devoured the fried vegetables. Grover picked at them and the French fries, but he wasn't very enthused. In the back of my mind, a little voice was telling me to not fall for the hospitality, to keep on my toes, but I ignored it.

Grover nudged his knee against mine. "What's that hissing noise?" he asked me.

I strained my ears. Annabeth shook her head, indicating that she couldn't hear anything, but I caught it; a very faint hissing, like a cat or a reptile.

"Hissing?" Aunty Em asked. "Perhaps you hear the deep-fryer oil. You have keen ears, Grover."

"I take vitamins. For my ears."

"That's admirable," she said. "But please, relax."

I didn't relax. I leaned forward, my eyes roving around the warehouse. "I hear it too," I muttered. Aunty Em's head whipped to her right, looking at me. "Do you have a cat, perhaps? Maybe it's hungry."

Our hostess chuckled. "No cat, Avalon dear. Just me and my statues."

The hair on my arms bristled. I didn't like the way she said that. I shared a nervous look with Grover, whose hand was starting to inch towards the wax paper from my zucchini sticks.

Percy had finished his burger, and his eyes started to droop. I elbowed him hard in the side. That woke him up. After giving me a glare, he turned to Aunty Em. "So, you sell gnomes," he said.

"Oh, yes," Aunty Em laced her fingers together and set her chin on top of her hands. "And animals. And people. Anything for the garden. Custom orders. Statuary is very popular, you know."

Percy made a face, like he wanted to say that statuary was, in fact, not very popular, but he restrained himself. "A lot of business on this road?" he asked instead.

Aunty Em sighed sadly. "Not so much, no. Since the highway was built...most cars, they do not go this way now. I must cherish every customer I get."

Percy turned in his seat to look behind him. I followed his gaze, and saw a statue of a little girl holding an Easter basket. Her face was contorted in terror.

"Ah," Aunty Em said. "You notice some of my creations do not turn out well. They are marred. They do not sell. The face is the hardest to get right. Always the face."

An idea pricked in my mind of who this woman was. "You make these statues yourself?" I asked cautiously.

"Oh, yes. Once upon a time, I had two sisters to help me in the business, but they have passed on, and Aunty Em is alone. I have only my statues. This is why I make them, you see. They are my company." She was very convincing. I had to catch myself before I felt too deeply for this woman.

"Two sisters?" I asked. Annabeth's voice mirrored mine. She gave me a look, one that clearly said: this isn't good.

"It's a terrible story," Aunty Em said. "Not one for children, really. You see, girls, a bad woman was jealous of me, long ago, when I was young. I had a...a boyfriend, you know, and this bad woman was determined to break us apart. She caused a terrible accident. My sisters stayed by me. They shared my bad fortune as long as they could, but eventually they passed on. They faded away. I alone have survived, but at a price. Such a price."

My brain exploded, causing me to jump. Oh, gods. Oh no. How could I have been so stupid?

Aunty Em saw my little spasm. "Avalon, dear," she said. "Are you alright?"

I mumbled something about bad nerves. "Percy," I said, shaking his shoulder. "Maybe we should go."

Annabeth nodded. "I mean, the ringmaster will be waiting."

But Percy stayed glued to his seat. His eyes had a faraway look in them.

"Such beautiful gray eyes," Aunty Em told Annabeth again. "My, yes, it has been a long time since I've seen gray eyes like those."

Aunty Em reached out, to either stroke or strangle Annabeth, I wasn't sure. But Annabeth didn't give her the chance. She shot out of her seat, as if she had been electrocuted.

"We really should go."

"Yes!" Grover stood up. "The ringmaster is waiting! Right!"

I pulled on Percy's arm desperately, but he resisted me. "Percy, we'll get in trouble. We've already been gone for too long." I tried to make my voice stern, but it was shaking uncontrollably.

"Please, dears," Aunty Em said. "I so rarely get to be with children. Before you go, won't you at least sit for a pose?"

Annabeth hesitated, just for a millisecond. "A pose?"

"A photograph," Aunty Em explained. "I will use it to model a new statue set. Children are so popular, you see. Everyone loves children."

"Oh," I squeaked out. "You see, we would love to..."

"But I don't think we can, ma'am," Annabeth finished for me. "Come on, Percy–"

"Sure we can," Percy said. I resisted the urge to smack someone, whether it be him or myself. "It's just a photo, guys. What's the harm?"

"Yes, what's the harm?" Our hostess said.

Annabeth gave me a desperate look. I motioned for her to hang on, but in reality, I was shaking worse than I had against the Furies. I stuffed my hands into my pockets to keep from giving myself away to the monster.

So we followed Aunty Em, back through the warehouse, to the front garden. She directed us to a small bench that was next to the stone satyr that creeped Grover out.

"Now," she said. "I'll just position you correctly. The young women in the middle, I think, and the two gentlemen on either side."

Percy sat beside me on my left, with Annabeth on my right. Out of instinct, simply wanting the comfort of knowing she was there, I grabbed Annabeth's hand, squeezing it tightly. I expected her to pull away, but she was just as frightened as I was.

"Not much light for a photo," Percy mused.

"Oh, enough," Aunty Em said. "Enough for us to see each other, yes?"

"Where's your camera?" I demanded.

She ignored me, instead stepping back and looking at us through her hands, as if to see how we would look on someone's lawn.

From Annabeth's other side, Grover looked over at the cement satyr. "That sure does look like Uncle Ferdinand."

I hissed at Grover, "that's because it is!"

His eyes went wide with realization, but before he could do anything, Aunty Em spoke again. "Grover, Avalon," she chastised, "look this way, dears."

"Percy–" Annabeth said.

I gripped her hand tighter. "Annabeth, you need to get out of here," I whispered. "She's going to come after you first."

All she did was give my hand another squeeze.

"I will just be a moment," Aunty Em said. "You know, I can't see you very well in this cursed veil..."

"Percy!" I hissed into his ear. He looked at me, annoyed. "Something is very wrong."

"Wrong?" the woman inquired. Her beautiful hands reached up to undo her headscarf. "Not at all, dear. I have such noble company tonight. What could be wrong?"

"Annabeth, now!" I shouted.

"Look away from her!" Annabeth took out her Yankees cap and vanished. While she pushed Grover down, I tackled Percy.

We were right at Medusa's feet. I saw Percy look up, taking in her gnarled appearance. He started to look higher, but I shoved him away from the monster.

"Run!" Grover bleated. I heard him yell "Maia!" and soon I could hear the fluttering of little wings.

Medusa advanced towards Percy, who was still fighting the trance she had put on him. "Such a pity to destroy a handsome young face," she cooed. "Stay with me, Percy. All you have to do is look up."

"Don't do it!" I screamed.

Medusa snarled, but she kept talking to Percy in that soothing voice. "The Gray-Eyed One did this to me, Percy. Annabeth's mother, the cursed Athena, turned me from a beautiful woman into this."

"Don't listen to her!" I heard Annabeth's voice, somewhere inside the statuary. "Run, Percy! Avalon, get out of there!"