Blade's Edge || Deception Book II ||

Chapter 35: Feline Fiasco Pt.1

"It's me," I whispered, sliding off Blackfire as the other black pegasus in the field stared at me, alarm in his liquid eyes. "Don't worry."

"Witchling," the pegasus snorted softly, and stilled, though wariness remained in his eyes. "Why are you here?"

"You don't need to know," I replied. "Just go get Percy. There's something in the water that needs his help."

Distrust flared in his eyes but he cocked his head, an ear twitching towards the sea, before turning back to me. "I don't know what you're planning, but whatever it is, leave my boss out of it."

I smiled sadly. "If only that were possible. For Percy's own sake, don't tell him I was here. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry for what you suffered on his ship and I'm glad you've found a home."

The pegasus snorted, tossing his head and glossy black mane before turning to face Blackfire who was standing stoically beside me. "Maybe your witchling isn't so bad."

I watched silently as the pegasus galloped off towards the cabins, the cool breeze whipping through my hair, and climbed back onto Blackfire who took off into the sky without a word.

A sudden rush of hot tears threatened to spill, and I blinked, forcing them back down.

What the heck was wrong with me these days? I reflected depressingly. I was starting to cry at literally everything. When our trail had led us past Las Vegas, I'd spotted an arcade with a huge zombie poster on the front window that had me in tears for the next hour. Then, we'd shadow-walked into an alley somewhere in Denver and I'd spotted fireworks in cabinet displays of store windows and fairy lights in the back. Just the sight of them had me crying, in the street in a foreign city. A few mortals walking by had stared at me strangely and an old lady had offered me a box of tissues before walking away.

Now, back at camp, in the middle of the night in secret, with the familiar waves of the sea lapping against the shore and the comforting sounds of owls hooting at night, hot emotions twisted through me. Two years ago . . . .

How far we'd come. And how much had changed.

I made the mistake of looking up at the sky, only to see the bright stars twinkling down at me the same way they'd shone the last time Luke and I had snuck off in the middle of the night or the way they had the two years we'd celebrated the Fourth of July together.

"Blackfire, fly," I ordered through my choked sob. "Just . . . anywhere. Leave camp. Just go."

"The Ophiotaurus," my pegasus reminded me gently. "Percy."

"I know," I managed. "But please, let's leave. Out of the stars."

I knew what I was asking was virtually impossible. No matter how far I travelled, I wouldn't be able to escape the stain in my heart.

But Blackfire flapped off into the sky, landing again somewhere on Long Island next to a rocky cliff and nudged me into a corner where I couldn't see the stars. I suppose it did the job.

I sat there, wrapped up in my own darkness, thoughts I wished I could banish swirling incessantly in my head until my eyes closed and I dropped into sleep for the first time in four days.

Thankfully, or unthankfully, no dreams disturbed my sleep. When I woke, a thick blackness, too dark to be the sky, greeted my eyes, and I realized that I was warm. "Blackfire?" I whispered.

"Clari," Blackfire nickered softly and snuffed at me, the feathery tent over my head disappearing as he flung out his wings, flapping them a couple of times before tucking them in. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," I replied through the lump of gratitude forming in my throat. "Thank you." I stood up, brushing the icy sand off my thick, fleece sweatpants, and blinked at the harsh rays of the sun as I stepped out of the cove of darkness I was in. "What time is it?"

"Sometime in the afternoon," Blackfire replied just as I glanced at the sun and gasped in shock.

"I was asleep for seven hours?"

"T-that's not a lot . . ."

"You should have woken me up in the morning!" I scolded my pegasus. "You know we have a job to do!"

"Yeah, but it's been four days since you slept," Blackfire neighed. "Bostress, stop rushing around as all you humans do. You need to take care of yourself too. Are you okay?"

No, I'm not, I thought, staring at the waves crashing against the rocky shore. I'm so tired and sick of this. Of everything. Of my mission, of my lies, of my emotions, of the gods, of my life. I wish it could just end.

"I'm fine," I replied as I grinned, flipping my hair as I hopped on my pegasus. "How can I not be, with you and Ava fussing over me?"

"Whatever you say, bostress."

If Blackfire saw through my lies, he ignored it, which I was thankful for. I didn't feel like talking, and it was a good thing that there wasn't an army of squabbling monsters following me. We landed on the top of the cliff overlooking Long Island Sound, and I speared my power out, searching for the magical tracker I'd spelled on the Ophiotaurus. It was swimming south, I realized narrowing my eyes at the mental map I made. As if . . . following something. Or someone.

Or someone. "Percy left, didn't he," I sighed aloud.

Before Blackfire could respond, I sensed shadows coagulating next to me and tensed, my hand shooting to my daggers, before frowning as Avalanche appeared next to me. "I thought I told you to watch Luke."

"Yeah, I just thought I'd let you know that Thorn hopped off in a black car this morning and drove off in the direction of Long Island. They arrived in Washington yesterday," Avalanche added at my blank look.

"Great," I muttered. "Okay. Blackfire, you can rest," I said, making split-second decisions in my mind as a new pathway formed. "Relax. Go eat some apples. Ava and I will take it from here. Thanks, boy," I added as my pegasus nuzzled my shoulder and launched himself off the cliff, spiralling away into the sky.

"Long Island, you say," I mused as I climbed on my wolf and we entered the shadow world, searching for the manticore's nasty aura. "Would we be lucky enough for him just going out for a scenic drive through the capital?"

"Yeah, nope," I muttered to myself as we emerged in a snow-covered field. And blinked as I turned around to see the Washington Monument. "We're in Washington," I realized. "I thought you said he headed off towards Long Island?"

"He was probably going to look for the demigods," Avalanche rumbled, nodding her furry head towards the white van parked at the curb. "Looks like they've arrived."

As I watched, two girls in all too familiar silvery clothes climbed out of the van, followed by another girl with spiky black hair. Even from this distance, I could see her startling electric blue eyes, and if that didn't give her parentage away, the crackling storm of her aura did.

"Thalia," I murmured. A satyr that could only be Grover followed, and the four of them started trudging their way through the snow towards one of the buildings lining the Mall.

Wait, I thought before I could follow them. Luke. Army. And . . . Thorn, I finished with a grimace as I spotted a man with grey hair, a buzzcut, and a black trench coat step out of a black sedan and speak into a walkie talkie before tailing the demigods.

"They're in the Museum of Natural History," Avalanche rumbled, her ears twitching towards a building across the street.

Before I could reply, I spotted footsteps appearing mysteriously in the snow, and blinked in momentary shock. What the heck? Was I seeing things? I rubbed my eyes and blinked again, before smacking myself on the head. "That must be Percy with Annabeth's cap," I muttered.

"Great, just great," I added as the footsteps veered away from the National Air and Space Museum to follow Thorn towards the history museum where Atlas, the army, schemes and lies, and the boy who I tried not to think too hard about was waiting.

"I guess I'm going back. Hopefully, no one dies today."