The Jacksons (completed): Book 2 - Percy Jackson Fanfiction

~ Chapter Thirty-Six: ADAM

Chapter Thirty-Six:

ADAM

My throat burnt. My lungs were on fire.

Smoke can do more damage than flames, I remembered. And I remembered why.

When the fire broke out, I panicked. Immensely. A phobia of mine was fire. Because it just reminded me.

*

I was thirteen. My mother was on the sofa in the living room. She'd been smoking.

I was in the the kitchen with the TV on but I wasn't paying loads of attention. The room had the acrid stench of cigarettes, floating from the living room.

Finally I'd had enough. Storming in, I began to yell, "Mum, you -"

But her entire couch was alight. I jumped back, fear in my throat; my mother was dead.

I was about to join her.

The room was engulfed in flames. They shot across the carpet. I didn't think; I thrust my palms outwards and closed my eyes.

Freezing water jetted from my palms and doused the fire immediately. It sprayed further, until eventually they were out.

My breath caught in my throat. My mother's body was there. She'd barely been touched.

Smoke can do more damage than flames.

The door opened. A woman stood in the doorway, her arms open.

"Come here," she said softly. 

I don't know why but I just collapsed against her. I didn't know her. But she hugged me and stroked my hair. Then she gently pulled away.

"My name is Piper McLean," she said. "We don't have much time."

She had the most beautiful soothing voice. She smiled.

"I'm from the BPA." She moved towards my mum. "What's her name?"

"I don't care," I said. I laughed a little. "I'm glad she's dead. That sounds awful."

"She's not dead, Adam. I'm sorry. But I should think that she survived this."

*

Someone came in. A man.

"Mr Grimshaw. You almost escaped me."

The oily-haired man in the trenchcoat smiled broadly at me. "My whole facility of research was destroyed," he said. "Thirteen soldiers died. At least a dozen of your demigods were blown to pieces."

I tried sitting up. Thick leather straps held me down.

"What do you want with me?" I demanded.

He began to answer, then someone else walked in. I couldn't spin round to see who but I recognised her voice.

"Chadwick," Zarah said through clenched teeth. "Flaming Nero Jackson just got picked up by his sister on a flying piggin' horse!"

She walked close to the greasy man and scowled. "I've had enough of your pathetic plots. The entire facility has been blown to peaces. Your lucky this building - this crappy block of prison cells that are actually useless - managed to go unscathed!"

"Patience, Zarah," Chadwick ordered.

"Oh, please!" Electricity could be heard crackling in Zarah's hands. "What kind of idiot are you, Chadwick? You've been scheming for months and everything's been as fruitless as it was from the beginning. Drake's dead, the Bornes have escaped and Kheo? Well, I couldn't resist it - I killed her. It was easy. Her body burned, I believe."