DON'T BLAME ME! (p. jackson) (#2) (ON HOLD)

- three

THEIR FOOTSTEPS REVERBERATED ON THE STEPS OUTSIDE.

the front door blew open, and annabeth and rachel, and rose burst in, piper's arms around annabeth and rose. piper's head lolled like she was unconscious... because she was.

"what happened?" jason rushed over. "what's wrong with her?"

"hera's cabin," annabeth gasped, like they'd run all the way (they had— well, as best as they could while dragging piper's weight). "vision. bad."

rachel looked up, tears streaming down her face. "i think i killed her."

rose rolled her eyes. "you didn't kill her. help me get her on the couch."

chiron rushed in as they laid her on the couch, and rose sat cross legged in front of it as annabeth grabbed the medical kit.

piper was still breathing, but she wouldn't wake up. she seemed to be in some kind of coma.

"we've got to heal her," jason insisted. "there's a way, right?"

rose closed her eyes and placed a hand on piper's forehead. "her mind is in a fragile state, but she'll be okay. i can only do so much since i'm not an apollo healer, but i'll do my best."

"rachel, what happened?" chiron asked.

"i wish i knew," she said. "as soon as i got to camp, i had a premonition about hera's cabin. i went inside. the three of them came in while i was there. we talked, and then—i just blanked out. annabeth said i spoke in a different voice."

"a prophecy?" chiron asked.

"no. the spirit of delphi comes from within. i know how that feels. this was like long distance, a power trying to speak through me."

annabeth ran in with a leather pouch and handed it to rose. "chiron, what happened back there—i've never seen anything like it. i've heard rachel's prophecy voice. this was different. she sounded like an older woman. she grabbed piper's shoulders and told her—"

"to free her from a prison?" jason guessed as rose rustled through the back.

annabeth stared at him. "how did you know that?"

rose made a three-fingered gesture over her heart, like a ward against evil.

"jason, tell them," chiron said.

rose trickled drops from a medicine vial into piper's mouth while jason explained what had happened when the room froze—the dark misty woman who had claimed to be jason's patron. when he was done, no one spoke.

"so does this happen often?" he asked. "supernatural phone calls from convicts demanding you bust them out of jail?"

"your patron," annabeth said. "not your godly parent?"

"no, she said patron. she also said my dad had given her my life."

annabeth frowned. "i've never of heard anything like that before. you said the storm spirit on the skywalk—he claimed to be working for some mistress who was giving him orders, right? could it be this woman you saw, messing with your mind?"

"i don't think so," jason said. "if she were my enemy, why would she be asking for my help? she's imprisoned. she's worried about some enemy getting more powerful. something about a king rising from the earth on the solstice—"

"if it's kronos again i will actually kill myself," rose said from the floor.

the centaur looked miserable. at last he said, "it is not kronos. that threat is ended. but..."

"but what?" annabeth asked.

"piper needs rest. we should discuss this later."

"or now," jason said. "sir, mr. chiron, you told me the greatest threat was coming. the last chapter. you can't possibly mean something worse than an army of titans, right?"