𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 ― j. grace ³ ✓

fourteen

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THIS FEELING

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
[ J A S O N ]

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JASON FIRST SAW the angel at the ice cream cart.

The Argo II had anchored in the bay along with six or seven cruise ships. As usual, the mortals didn't pay the trireme any attention; but just to be safe, Jason and Nico hopped on a skiff from one of the tourist boats so they would look like part of the crowd when they came ashore.

At first glance, Split seemed like a cool place. Curving around the harbor was a long esplanade lined with palm trees. At the sidewalk cafés, European teenagers were hanging out, speaking a dozen different languages and enjoying the sunny afternoon. The air smelled of grilled meat and fresh-cut flowers.

Beyond the main boulevard, the city was a hodgepodge of medieval castle towers, Roman walls, limestone town houses with red-tiled roofs, and modern office buildings all crammed together. In the distance, gray-green hills marched toward a mountain ridge, which made Jason a little nervous. He kept glancing at that rocky escarpment, expecting the face of Gaea to appear in its shadows.

Nico and he were wandering along the esplanade when Jason spotted the guy with wings buying an ice cream bar from a street cart. The vendor lady looked bored as she counted the guy's change. Tourists navigated around the angel's huge wings without a second glance.

Jason nudged Nico. "Are you seeing this?"

"Yeah," Nico agreed. "Maybe we should buy some ice cream."

As they made their way toward the street cart, Jason worried that this winged dude might be a son of Boreas the north wind. At his side, the angel carried the same kind of jagged bronze sword the Boreads had, and Jason's last encounter with them hadn't gone so well.

But this guy seemed more chill than chilly. He wore a red tank top, Bermuda shorts, and huarache sandals. His wings were a combination of russet colors, like a bantam rooster or a lazy sunset. He had a deep tan and black hair almost as curly as Leo's.

"He's not a returned spirit," Nico murmured. "Or a creature of the Underworld."

"No," Jason agreed. "I doubt they would eat chocolate-covered ice cream bars."

"So what is he?" Nico wondered.

They got within thirty feet, and the winged dude looked directly at them. He smiled, gestured over his shoulder with his ice cream bar, and dissolved into the air.

Jason couldn't exactly see him, but he'd had enough experience controlling the wind that he could track the angel's path — a warm wisp of red and gold zipping across the street, spiraling down the sidewalk, and blowing postcards from the carousels in front of the tourist shops. The wind headed towards the end of the promenade, where a big fortresslike structure loomed.