Hurricane ~ L. Valdez

1.18 - Idiots, Idiots, Idiots

      "Excuse me, what?" I exclaimed, as Jason and Leo went to look at fur coats. Idiots.

   "You want them shopping for their deaths?" Piper asked, cornering the princess.

   "Mmm." The princess blew dust off a display case of swords absentmindedly.

      "I'm a seer, my dear. I know your little secret." I turned to glance at Piper, confused, but she avoided my eyed. "But we don't want to dwell on that, do we?" The princess continued. "The boys are having such fun."

      I glanced over to Leo, who laughed as he tried on a hat that looked like it was made from enchanted raccoon fur. It moved as he walked. It was slightly disturbing but my eyes softened at the look on Leo's face. But then my instincts kicked in, and I remembered that he was under a spell.

      Piper glared at the princess. "Who are you?"

      "I told you, my dear. I'm the Princess of Colchis." I tried to remember anything Annie had taught me about Colchis, but my mind drew a blank. Great timing.

      "Where's Colchis?" Piper asked.

      "Where was Colchis, you mean." The princess said, almost looking sad. "My father ruled the far shores of the Black Sea, as far to the east as a Greek ship could sail in those days. But Colchis is no more—lost eons ago."

      "Eons?" Piper asked, and I looked at the woman skeptically. She couldn't be saying- she didn't look older than fifty. "How old are you?"

      The princess laughed. "A lady should avoid asking or answering that question. Let's just say the, ah, immigration process to enter your country took quite a while. My patron finally brought me through. She made all this possible." The princess swept her hand around the department store, gesturing around her.

       "Your patron..."

      "Oh, yes. She doesn't bring just anyone through, mind you—only those who have special talents, such as me. And really, she insists on so little—a store entrance that must be underground so she can, ah, monitor my clientele; and a favor now and then. In exchange for a new life? Really, it was the best bargain I'd made in centuries."

      Every alarm bell in my head was going off, and I knew we had to get out of there as soon as possible.

      "Hey, check it out!" My brother yelled from across the room. From a rack labeled DISTRESSED CLOTHING, he held up a purple T-shirt,identical to his old one, that was clawed to bits. Jason frowned."Why does this look so familiar?"

       "Jason, it's like yours," Piper said calmly.

      "Now we really have to get the heck out of here." I said. Jason didn't respond, so he was either ignoring me, or the enchantment wasn't letting his ears work properly.

      "Nonsense,"the princess said. "The boys aren't done, are they? And yes, my dear. Those shirts are very popular—trade-ins from previous customers. It suits you."

      Leo picked up an orange Camp Half-Blood shirt with a hole through the middle. That was not a good sign.

      Next to it was a dented bronze breastplate that looked like it was corroded with some type of acid, and a Roman toga that was slashed to pieces and stained with something that looked suspiciously like dried blood.

      "Your Highness," Piper spoke up from next to me. She looked two seconds away from a mental breakdown, and I'm sure I looked no better. "Why don't you tell the boys how you betrayed your family? I'm sure they'd like to hear that story." The princess didn't respond, but the boys turned around.