“Well,” Jason said, “at least your mom overlooked me. ”
Piper knew that wasn’t exactly true. Looking at him, her heart did a little tap dance. Jason was dressed simply in jeans and a clean purple T-shirt, like he’d worn at the Grand Canyon. He had new track shoes on, and his hair was newly trimmed. His eyes were the same color as the sky. Aphrodite’s message was clear: This one needs no improvement.
And Piper agreed.
“Anyway,” she said uncomfortably, “how did we get here?”
“Oh, that would be Mellie,” Hedge said, chewing happily on his carnation. “Those winds shot us halfway across the country, I’d guess. We would’ve been smashed flat on impact, but Mellie’s last gift—a nice soft breeze—cushioned our fall. ”
“And she got fired for us,” Leo said. “Man, we suck. ”
“Ah, she’ll be fine,” Hedge said. “Besides, she couldn’t help herself. I’ve got that effect on nymphs. I’ll send her a message when we’re through with this quest and help her figure something out. That is one aura I could settle down with and raise a herd of baby goats. ”
“I’m going to be sick,” Piper said. “Anyone else want coffee?”
“Coffee!” Hedge’s grin was stained blue from the flower. “I love coffee!”
“Um,” Jason said, “but—money? Our packs?”
Piper looked down. Their packs were at their feet, and everything seemed to still be there. She reached into her coat pocket and felt two things she hadn’t expected. One was a wad of cash. The other was a glass vial—the amnesia potion. She left the vial in her pocket and brought out the money.
Leo whistled. “Allowance? Piper, your mom rocks!”
“Waitress!” Hedge called. “Six double espressos, and whatever these guys want. Put it on the girl’s tab. ”
It didn’t take them long to figure out where they were. The menus 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.
They didn’t have to wonder where Mount Diablo was, either. They could see it on the horizon, right at the end of the street. After the Rockies, Mount Diablo didn’t look very large, nor was it covered in snow. It seemed downright peaceful, its golden creases marbled with gray-green trees. But size was deceptive with mountains, Piper knew. It was probably much bigger up close. And appearances were deceptive too. Here they were—back in California—supposedly her home—with sunny skies, mild weather, laid-back people, and a plate of chocolate chip scones with coffee. And only a few miles away, somewhere on that peaceful mountain, a superpowerful, super-evil giant was about to have her father for lunch.
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 magically transferred it to his new outfit.
“What is that?” Piper asked.
Leo folded it up gingerly again and put it away. “Nothing. You don’t want to see my kindergarten artwork. ”
“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. ”
“How can you be sure?” Piper asked.
“Trust me,” Leo said. “Now—what’s our game plan?”
Coach Hedge belched. He’d already had three espressos and a plate of doughnuts, along with two napkins and another flower from the vase on the table. He would’ve eaten the silverware, except Piper had slapped his hand.
“Climb the mountain,” Hedge said. “Kill everything except Piper’s dad. Leave. ”
“Thank you, General Eisenhower,” Jason grumbled.
“Hey, I’m just saying!”
“Guys,” Piper said. “There’s more you need to know. ”
It was tricky, because she couldn’t mention her mom; but she told them she’d figured some things out in her dreams. She told them about their real enemy: Gaea.
“Gaea?” Leo shook his head. “Isn’t that Mother Nature? She’s supposed to have, like, flowers in her hair and birds singing around her and deer and rabbits doing her laundry. ”
“Leo, that’s Snow White,” Piper said.
“Okay, but—”
“Listen, cupcake. ” Coach Hedge dabbed the espresso out of his goatee. “Piper’s telling us some serious stuff, here. Gaea’s no softie. I’m not even sure I could take her. ”
Leo whistled. “Really?”
Hedge nodded. “This earth lady—she and her old man the sky were nasty customers. ”
“Ouranos,” Piper said. She couldn’t help looking up at the blue sky, wondering if it had eyes.
“Right,” Hedge said. “So Ouranos, he’s not the best dad. He throws their first kids, the Cyclopes, into Tartarus. That makes Gaea mad, but she bides her time. Then they have another set of kids—the twelve Titans—and Gaea is afraid they’ll get thrown into prison too. So she goes up to her son Kronos—”
“The big bad dude,” Leo said. “The one they defeated last summer. ”