Blade's Edge || Deception Book II ||

Chapter 38: A Promise of Boba

"It's time."

I blinked, not registering the words whispered in my ear, then jolted upright from my bedroll so fast I smashed my head into the black pillar above me.

"Are you okay?" Luke blurted, reaching out to pull me from my alcove where I'd spent the night.

I groaned, gingerly prodding the top of my head where a bump was sure to form. "Just peachy."

"Why did you pick a spot only four feet high?"

I shrugged. "It feels safer than lying out in the open. It may have been a week, but sleeping in the ruins of this palace makes me feel like spiders are scuttling all over me. Any hidey-hole is better than none, even if I have to sacrifice my head."

Luke bit his lip, and I could tell he was fighting the urge to cackle. I felt a tug at my lips, but then recalled why I'd woken up in the first place.

A wave of cold, icy water poured over me, and I dropped my voice to a whisper, "Are they here?"

Luke shrugged, turning around to scan the inky shadows slowly creeping over the mountain. "It's sunset. If they're not here yet, it's only going to be a matter of time."

"I suppose we should go, then," I mumbled, dusting off my fleece leggings and strapping on my weapons. "Are-" I paused, suddenly overwhelmed with the thought of seeing Ally, Nicole, Alabaster, and Alex again after so long, after so many things had changed. Get a grip, I told myself. It's only been like a month.

One very long, very devastating month.

I shoved it down, forcing myself to focus, and tried again, "Are Alabaster and Nicole coming?"

Luke blinked, peering at my face, and seemed to understand the meaning behind my words because he shook his head slowly. "They're here, but just docked. I don't think they're coming. He wants to keep our demigod numbers hidden."

"Darn," I smirked, trying to lighten the darkening mood. "I wanna know what Nicole's been up to."

"Should I be worried?" Luke muttered as we headed towards what was supposed to be the throne room on this blasted mountain.

"Nope," I replied. "Not at all."

Luke made a doubtful sound but didn't reply, likely because we were one turn away from where Atlas, and his entourage of monsters, were waiting.

Silently, I ran through every single detail of the plan in my mind for when Percy, Thalia, Zoe, and Grover would show up, then the backup plan, then the backup plan for the backup plan, then the backup plan for the backup plan for the back-

"Ri," Luke said pointedly. "Pay attention."

"Oh, sorry," I apologized, yanked back to the real world and the titan glaring at me. "I was preoccupied with . . . the approaching party."

"Pay attention," Atlas snapped. "Tonight is critical, girl, and if you can't pull yourself together . . ."

The words hung ominously in the air, sending a shiver down my spine. If I didn't pull myself together, I'd have no tomorrow.

"Yes, sir," I muttered, bowing my head and forcing myself to pay attention to the conversation around me.

Relax, Clari, I told myself. You've been thinking your brain off ever since you got back from Washington. And planning. And plotting. And replanning.

Well, except for the time you spent with Luke, I thought, and couldn't help the glance I shot at him from the corner of my eye. Things had . . . gone back to normal, in a way, between us, but at the same time, that invisible wall felt thicker than ever.