The Lost Hero

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

GOLD!!

JASON WOULD HAVE DIED FIVE TIMES on the way to the front door if not for Leo and Vivian.

First it was the motion-activated trapdoor on the sidewalk, then the lasers on the steps, then the nerve gas dispenser on the porch railing, the pressure-sensitive poison spikes in the welcome mat, and of course the exploding doorbell.

Leo deactivated all of them and Vivian created Vine walls so they wouldn't get hit by the traps. It was like they could smell the traps, and Leo picked just the right tool out of his belt to disable them and just as the traps were going to kill them Vivian created a wall.

"You're amazing," Jason said.

Leo and Vivian scowled as they examined the front door lock. "Yeah, amazing," he said. "Can't fix a dragon right, but I'm amazing."

"Hey, that wasn't your—"

"Front door's already unlocked," Vivian announced.

Piper stared at the door in disbelief. "It is? All those traps, and the door's unlocked?"

Leo turned the knob. The door swung open easily. He stepped inside without hesitation. Vivian followed.

Before Jason could follow, Piper caught his arm. "They're going to need some time to get over Festus. Don't take it personally."

"Yeah," Jason said. "Yeah, okay."

But still Jason felt terrible. Back in Medea's store, he'd said some pretty harsh stuff to Leo—stuff a friend shouldn't say, not to mention the fact he'd almost skewered Leo with a sword. If it hadn't been for Piper and Vivian, they'd both be dead. And Piper hadn't gotten out of that encounter easily, either.

Piper," he said, "I know I was in a daze back in Chicago, but that stuff about your dad—if he's in trouble, I want to help. I don't care if it's a trap or not."

Her eyes were always different colors, but now they looked shattered, as if she'd seen something she just couldn't cope with. "Jason, you don't know what you're saying. Please—don't make me feel worse. Come on. We should stick together."

She ducked inside.

"Together," Jason said to himself. "Yeah, we're doing great with that."

Vivian's first impression of the house: Dark.

From the echo of her footsteps she could tell the entry hall was enormous, even bigger than Boreas's penthouse; but the only illumination came from the yard lights outside. A faint glow peeked through the breaks in the thick velvet curtains. The windows rose about ten feet tall. Spaced between them along the walls were life-size metal statues. As Vivian's eyes adjusted, she saw sofas arranged in a U in the middle of the room, with a central coffee table and one large chair at the far end. A massive chandelier glinted overhead. Along the back wall stood a row of closed doors.

"Where's the light switch?" Jason's voice echoed alarmingly through the room.

"Don't see one," Leo said.

"Fire?" Piper suggested.

Leo and Vivian held out their hands, but nothing happened. "It's not working."

"Nada," Vivian said.

"Your fire is out? Why?" Piper asked.

"Well, if I knew that—" Leo said.

"Okay, okay," Piper said. "What do we do—explore?"

Vivian shook her head. "After all those traps outside? Bad idea."