SAFE . . . reyna ramirez-arellano

33 - vroom vroom

THE SUN WAS going down as they flew north over the Richmond Bridge, and Briar couldn't believe the day had gone so quickly. Once again, nothing like long awaited reunions and a good fight to the death to make time fly.

Briar stared ahead of her, sitting in the copilot's seat, and at Leo flying the plane. He seemed like he knew what he was doing, even if there was a glint of uncertainty in his eyes. She felt like she was about to throw up, despite his apparent knowledge of piloting helicopters.

She couldn't believe that she was cruel enough to leave her girlfriend after finally seeing her again for the first time in months. At least, that's what Reyna had said. Briar felt a sinking feeling in her stomach that felt familiar. She remembered being a cruel person in her past. She probably could command anyone to do anything, because of her voice. She'd put Reyna to sleep with three words. She could probably rule the world.

The idea of that didn't feel alien, but it felt wrong. That was why Briar was saving Jun — Hera right now, and not going after Reyna and Coach Hedge.

"Going okay?" Briar asked Leo. She needed something else to focus on than her nausea and that she was powerful, and she probably shouldn't be feeling the disgust that she was feeling—

"Aces," Leo said, nearly sending her a finger gun before she slapped his arm. "Ow! You hit hard. So, what's the Wolf House, anyway?"

Jason knelt between their seats. "An abandoned mansion in the Sonoma Valley. A demigod built it — Jack London."

Leo's eyebrows furrowed. "He an actor?"

"Writer," Briar said. "Adventure stuff, right? Call of the Wild? White Fang?"

"Yeah," Jason said. "He was a son of Mercury — I mean, Hermes. He was an adventurer, traveled the world. He was even a hobo for a while. Then he made a fortune writing. He bought a big ranch in the country and decided to build this huge mansion — the Wolf House."

"Named that 'cause he wrote about wolves?" Leo guessed.

"Partially," Jason said. "But the site, and the reason he wrote about wolves — he was dropping hints about his personal experience. There're a lot of holes in his life story — how he was born, who his dad was, why he wandered around so much — stuff you can only explain if you know he was a demigod."

The bay slipped behind them, and the helicopter continued north. Ahead of them, yellow hills rolled out as far as Briar could see.

"So Jack London went to Camp Half-Blood," Leo guessed.

"No," Jason said. "No, he didn't."

"Bro, you're freaking me out with the mysterious talk. Are you remembering your past or not? And are you remembering anything, Briar?"

"A little bit," Briar shrugged. She should've been able to remember every bit of her past, instead of just strong emotions, but no. Fucking Jun — Hera.

"Pieces," Jason agreed. "Only pieces. None of it good. The Wolf House is on sacred ground. It's where London started his journey as a child — where he found out he was a demigod. That's why he returned there. He thought he could live there, claim that land, but it wasn't meant for him. The Wolf House was cursed. It burned in a fire a week before he and his wife were supposed to move in. A few years later, London died, and his ashes were buried on the site."

"So," Leo said, "how do you know all this?"

A shadow crossed Jason's face. Probably just a cloud, but Briar could swear the shape looked like an eagle.

"I started my journey there too," Jason said. "And Briar went there, a long time ago. It's a powerful place for demigods, a dangerous place. If Gaea can claim it, use its power to entomb Hera on the solstice and raise Porphyrion — that might be enough to awaken the earth goddess fully."