SUNSPEAKER, percy jackson.

0𝟏𝟖. ranch of death

eighteen
ranch of death

GERYON HAD A COW-PRINTED TROLLEY with a set of longhorns stuck to the hood. It was like the kiddie trains at the zoo (she thinks at least, she hasn't been to the zoo since she was 5).

Nico climbed into the very back of the trolley, away from them. Eurytion crawled in next to him and Lennon made a move to in the back too. She didn't trust Eurytion one bit. But she saw the glare Nico threw her way and she knew she'd do more harm than good by sitting with them.

So, Lennon climbed into the middle two cars with the others and settled on keeping a close eye on Nico.

"We have a huge operation!" Geryon boasted as the trolley lurched forward. "Horses and cattle mostly, but all sorts of exotic varieties, too."

They came over a hill, and Annabeth gasped. "Hippalektryons? I thought they were extinct!"

At the bottom of the hill was a fenced-in pasture with a dozen of... Lennon didn't even know what they were. Each had the front half of a horse and the back half of a rooster. Their rear feet were huge yellow claws, and they had feathery tails and red wings. Lennon watched as two of them got into a fight.

"Rooster ponies," Tyson said in amazement. "Do they lay eggs?"

"Once a year!" Geryon grinned in the rearview mirror. "Very much in demand for omelets!"

"That's horrible!" Annabeth said. "They must be an endangered species!"

Geryon waved his hand. "Gold is gold, darling. And you haven't tasted the omelets."

"That's not right," Grover murmured, but Geryon just kept narrating the tour.

"Now, over here," he said, "we have our fire-breathing horses, which you may have seen on your way in. They're bred for war, naturally."

"What war?" Percy asked.

Geryon grinned slyly. "Oh, whichever one comes along. And over yonder, of course, are our prize red cows."

Sure enough, hundreds of cherry-colored cattle were grazing the side of the hill.

"So many," Grover said.

"Yes, well, Apollo is too busy to see them," Geryon explained, "so he subcontracts to us. We breed them vigorously because there's such a demand."

"For what?" Lennon narrowed her eyes at him. There was no way her father would knowingly allow this.

Geryon raised an eyebrow. "Meat, of course! Armies have to eat."

"You kill the sacred cows of the sun god for hamburger meat?" Grover said. "That's against the ancient laws!"

"Oh, don't get so worked up, satyr. They're just animals."

"Just animals!"

"Yes, and if Apollo cared, I'm sure he would tell us."

Lennon scoffed. "Does he even know?"

"Of course, he knows!"

Nico sat forward. "I don't care about any of this, Geryon. We had business to discuss, and this wasn't it!"

"All in good time, Mr. di Angelo. Look over here; some of my exotic game."

The following field was ringed in barbed wire. The whole area was crawling with giant scorpions.

"Triple G Ranch," Percy said, suddenly remembering. "Your mark was on the crates at camp. Quintus got his scorpions from you."

"Quintus..." Geryon mused. "Short gray hair, muscular, swordsman?"