Haunted || Leo Valdez

26 - Leo Possesses a Tree Harvester

Rebecca hoped the taxi could've taken them all the way to the top.

No such luck. The cab made lurching, grinding sounds as it climbed the mountain road, and halfway up they found the ranger's station closed, a chain blocking the way.

"Far as I can go," the cabbie said. "You sure about this? Gonna be a long walk back, and my car's acting funny. I can't wait for you."

"We're sure." Leo was the first one out. Rebecca followed him out and saw what was wrong with the cab. The wheels were sinking into the road like it was made of quicksand. Not fast—just enough to make the driver think he had a transmission problem or a bad axle—but it clearly wasn't the case.

The road was hard-packed dirt. There was no explanation as to why it happened, but already Rebecca's shoes were starting to sink. While Jason, Piper, and Hedge got out, Leo paid the cabbie. He was generous, but since it was Aphrodite's money, Rebecca figured, why not?

"Keep the change," Leo said. "And get out of here. Quick."

The driver didn't argue. Soon all they could see was his dust trail.

The view from the mountain was amazing. The whole inland valley around Mount Diablo was a patchwork of towns—grids of tree-lined streets and nice middle-class suburbs, shops, and schools. All these normal people living normal lives—the kind Rebecca had never known.

"That's Concord," Jason said, pointing to the north. "Walnut Creek below us. To the south, Danville, past those hills. And that way ..."

He pointed west, where a ridge of golden hills held back a layer of fog, like the rim of a bowl. Rebecca held her breath. He knew. "That's the Berkeley Hills. The East Bay. Past that, San Francisco."

"Jason?" Piper touched his arm. "You remember something? You've been here?"

"Yes ... no." He gave her an anguished look. "It just seems important."

"That's Titan land," Rebecca said.

Coach Hedge nodded toward the west. "Bad place, Jason. Trust me, this is as close to 'Frisco as we want to get."

But Jason looked toward the foggy basin with such longing that Rebecca felt guilty. Maybe she should've told him the moment she recognized him. It would've made it easier for him, and he wouldn't feel so anguished whenever he tried to remember something. They also could've figured out where Hera was the moment he had his dream about her. At the very least, it could've been one less secret Rebecca had to keep from him.

"Hey, guys," Leo said. "Let's keep moving."

Rebecca tried to take a step forward, but she'd sunk two or three inches into the dirt. She yanked her foot out and cursed. "Gaea is stronger here. She's messing with us."

Hedge popped his hooves free from his shoes, then handed the shoes to Leo. "Keep those for me, Valdez. They're nice."

Leo snorted. "Yes, sir, Coach. Would you like them polished?"

"That's varsity thinking, Valdez." Hedge nodded approvingly. "But first, we'd better hike up this mountain while we still can."

"How do we know where the giant is?" Piper asked.

Jason pointed toward the peak. Drifting across the summit was a plume of smoke. From a distance, Rebecca had thought it was a cloud, but it wasn't. Something was burning.

"Smoke equals fire," Jason said. "We'd better hurry."

Rebecca was used to running for long distances. Sometimes she had to in order to get away from a monster. She'd also gone through plenty of forced runs at Wilderness. But climbing a mountain when the earth was trying to swallow her feet was like jogging on a flypaper treadmill.