𐌙/𐌍 Ᏽ𐌵𐌀𐌋𐌄 & 𐌕𐋅𐌄 Ᏽ𐌐𐌄𐌀𐌕 𐌌𐌙𐌕𐋅𐌔 ¹

Chapter 14

Fourteen
𖧷

I Have A Dam Problem

  At the edge of the dump, we found a tow truck so old it might've been thrown away itself. But the engine started, and it had a full tank of gas, so we decided to borrow it.

  Thalia offered to drive, but I denied the offer before she could actually cause a crash on the road. Zoe was too distracted to drive, Percy only knew how to drive his mom's car, Grover didn't know how to drive, so I was the last one to be able to drive.

  "The skeletons are still out there," Thalia reminded us. "We need to keep moving."

  We kept going by the desert, Zoe kept mumbling something I didn't quite catch right, but it was about Gummy being on the dashboard. Thalia, Grover and Percy stayed in the pickup bed, leaning against the tow wench. The air was cool and dry, but the nice weather just seemed like an insult after losing Bianca.

  The small figurine sat on the dashboard with Gummy. I didn't know what it was, but I was sure Nico would recognize it right away.

  Oh, gods… what was I going to tell Nico?

  I wanted to believe that Bianca was still alive somewhere. But I had a bad feeling that she was gone for good.

  The tow truck ran out of gas at the edge of a river canyon. That was just as well, because the road dead-ended.

  Thalia got out and slammed the door. Immediately, one of the tires blew. "Great. What now?"

  I scanned the horizon. There wasn't much to see. Desert in all directions, occasional clumps of barren mountains plopped here and there. The canyon was the only thing interesting. The river itself wasn't very big, maybe fifty yards across, green water with a few rapids, but it carved a huge scar out of the desert. The rock cliffs dropped away below us.

  "There's a path," Grover said. "We could get to the river."

  I tried to see what he was talking about, and finally noticed a tiny ledge winding down the cliff face. "That's a goat path," I said.

  "So?" he asked.

  "The rest of us aren't goats."

  "We can make it," Grover said. "I think."

  I thought about that. I'd done cliffs before, but I didn't like them. Then I looked over at Thalia and saw how pale she'd gotten. Her problem with heights… she'd never be able to do it.

  "No," I said. "I, uh, think we should go farther upstream."

  Grover said, "But—"

  "Come on," I said. "A walk won't hurt us. You can handle it."

  I glanced at Thalia. Her eyes said a quick Thank you.

  We followed the river about half a mile before coming to an easier slope that led down to the water. On the shore was a canoe rental operation that was closed for the season, but I left a stack of golden drachmas on the counter and a note saying IOU two canoes.

  "We need to go upstream," Zoe said. It was the first time I'd heard her speak properly since the junkyard, and I was worried about how bad she sounded, like somebody with the flu. "The rapids are too swift."