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chapter nine
❝ The belonging you seek is not behind you— it's ahead.❞
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It didn't take the group long to figure out where they were. The menu said 'Café Verve, Walnut Creek, CA.' And according to the waitress it was 9 A.M on December 21, the winter solstice, which gave them three hours until Enceladus's deadline, and also meant that they were all kinds of fucked if they didn't hurry the fuck up.
They didn't have to wonder where Mount Diablo was, either. She could see it on the horizon, right at the end of the street. After the Rockies, Mount Diablo didn't look very large, and it wasn't covered in snow. It seemed downright peaceful, its golden creases marbled with gray-green trees. But Lucena had been on enough mountains that she knew their size was deceptive. It was most likely way bigger up close. And appearances were deceptive too.
Here they were— in California— the place that looked scarily similar to where she'd seen Lennox in her dream. But there was no way he was actually there, they weren't that lucky. It was beautiful too— with sunny skies, mild weather, laid-back people, and a plate of chocolate chip cones with coffee.
But only a few miles away, a super-evil daddy-kidnapping fuckhead of a giant was about to eat her friend's dad for dinner.
Lucena truly hated her life right now.
Leo pulled something out of his pocket— the old crayon drawing Aeolus had given him. Aphrodite must've thought it was important if she'd transferred it to his new outfit.
"What is that?" Piper asked.
Leo folded it up gingerly and put it away. "Nothing. You don't want to see my kindergarten artwork."
"How can you be sure?" Piper asked.
"It's more than that," Jason guessed. "Aeolus said it was the key to our success."
Leo shook his head. "Not today. He was talking about... later."
