The Thief // pjo

Chapter Twelve // I Get Answers But Also Don't Get Answers

    Well, Percy and I definitely related

    Why?

    Because we can totally be overly dramatic without overselling it anytime we wanted.

    He threw a whole spiel on the news about his stupid stepdad and then gave his number to the public to call him for their rewards of a free major appliance.

    And then, to make it even better, the whole thing was so moving that the police and reporters passed around a hat and got us enough money to buy four tickets to New York. And I don't think I have ever been more scared for my life from the moment we got onto the plane to the moment we got out of the airport.

    We split up at a taxi stand.

    At first, Annabeth and Grover said that they should take me to camp, but my brother was adamant that I had to go with him.

    So I gave Grover and Annabeth rub-cracking hugs and climbed into the cab with Percy.

    I must have dozed because one minute, I was staring out the window and taking in the sights of New York, and the next second, Percy was shaking me away. The taxi stopped in front of the Empire State Building.

    We had to have looked like a couple of homeless kids, walking in there with clothes that probably needed to be disposed of paired with our bruised and battered faces.

    Percy led me to the front desk and demanded, "Six hundredth floor."

    He looked up from his familiar wizard novel and gave us a face before saying, "No such floor, kiddo."

    "I need an audience with Zeus."

    He gave us a dim smile, "Sorry?"

    "You heard him," I shot back at him, crossing my arms, suddenly tired of everything and everyone.

    He gave me an unimpressed look, "No appointment, no audience, kiddo. Lord Zeus doesn't see anyone unannounced."

    "Oh, I think he'll make an exception..." I pulled the bag from Percy's back, unzipping it and showing him the Bolt inside.

    The guard's face went pale, "That isn't..."

    "Yes, it is," Percy snipped a little at him. "You want me to take it out and—"

    "No! No!" He jumped up, scrambling to grab a keycard, which he passed to Percy. "Insert this in the security slot. Make sure nobody else is in the elevator with you."

    I gave him a tired, annoyed, but thankful grin, "Gracias."

    He bobbed his head, watching us vanish into the pristine elevators.

    Percy did as he was told as I leaned against the wall, sliding down until my head could rest on my knees.

    There was a ding, and I sighed, "Perc...help me up..."

    "You can do it."

    I gave him a glare before he snickered and helped me to my feet.

    We stepped out, and I nearly passed out right then and there.

    We were standing on a narrow stone walkway in the middle of the freaking sky.

    I couldn't look down because if I did, I might die.

    So instead, I focused on the other crazy sight before me.

    It was a set of marble steps that wound up the spine of a cloud, climbing into the sky. At the top of the cloud were the peak of a mountain with many multileveled palaces, all made from snowy white marble, with terraces, and all the fires in bronze braziers you could imagine. Roads were all wound up around the mountain, where they led to the biggest palace.