ã€ŠThe Hunter Trialsã€‹


 Chapter 1

    ¡°You¡¯ve run away from nine foster homes.¡±

    ¡°I can take care of myself.¡±

    ¡°Not yet, you can¡¯t. Not legally, anyway. Just give them a chance. They have a son, Peter, he¡¯s 16, your age. Please.¡±

    Chloe Chamberlin sat quietly in the dark, school office. Sitting on the desk in front of her sat an African-American woman. The woman, Mrs. Brown, steadily watched Chloe. She was thinking about the strange girl in front of her. Chloe had wavy blonde hair that fell down her shoulders and gorgeous eyes. Her eyes were turquoise blue, but clouded. Chloe bitterly watched Mrs. Brown¡¯s fingers tapping on the desk. Outside the door, Chloe could see through the window, stood Gary and Sarah Gardener. They were going to be her new foster parents. Mrs. Brown took ahold of her elbow and began to lead her to the door. Chloe flinched when Mrs. Brown touched her, reminding the older woman of the abuse that the girl had suffered in her last foster home. Mrs. Brown opened the office door, and she and Chloe stepped out. Sarah Gardener instantly turned to them. The woman was middle-aged and her eyes crinkled with laughter. Strawberry blonde hair caressed her cheeks and she smiled gently at Chloe. Gary Gardener was much like his wife. He had gray streaks running through his black hair and he wore jeans and a brown T-shirt. The Gardeners greeted Chloe, but didn¡¯t hug her. Mrs. Brown had warned them earlier, ¡°Give her a few months, she¡¯s not much for physical attention, but I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll enjoy living with you.¡±

    Chloe climbed into the back of the large Ford truck. Mrs. Gardener climbed into the passenger seat and turned to face Chloe. She smiled at the girl sadly, then turned back around when Chloe coldly faced away from her and turned to the window. They drove on in silence until they reached their driveway. Peter, and his best friend Josh, both sat outside in the grass, tossing a football to each other and keeping their eyes on Peter¡¯s younger sister, Julia, as she rolled around in the grass. Julia had pretty curls that fell down her back and bright blue eyes. Peter had brown hair and green eyes, with a constant grin on his face. He seemed to always be happy. Josh had black hair, green eyes and the stubby start of a beard.

    ¡®How old is he?¡¯ Chloe wondered.

    Mr. Gardener honked the horn as they pulled into the driveway, climbed out of the car and gently helped open Sam¡¯s door. Chloe slowly stepped from the car. She examined the boys as they ran up, laughing and grinning at her good-naturally. Three-year-old Julia nudged through them and ran up to Chloe, gurgling happily. She reached her arms up to Chloe and Chloe recoiled slightly from the happy toddler. Then, changing her mind, she leaned down and gently picked the girl up. Julia squealed with laughter and wrapped her arms around Chloe¡¯s neck. The family led the new girl into the house, explaining what and where everything was. Mrs. Gardener led Chloe to an empty room and told her it was hers. A clean, white bed was in the middle and a doorway led into the bathroom. A single bathtub was on one side and a glass shower was on the other. Chloe marveled at the beautiful furniture in the room and ran her fingers along the dresser at the foot of her bed. Mrs. Gardener watched her as she explored, Julia still in her arms. Finally, Chloe turned and followed Mrs. Gardener downstairs to the kitchen. Peter and Josh were swarming around the island, where Mr. Gardener was now toasting grilled cheeses. Chloe eyed the food warily, her mind flashing to the many times she had received food poisoning from her previous family. The people hadn¡¯t really wanted her, they wanted her abilities and believed they would receive them if she died. Mrs. Gardener, seeing her expression, quickly grabbed a grilled cheese, pushed it into Chloe¡¯s hands, and led her outside. She showed Chloe where the neighborhood ended, where it was safe to go and where it was not, as Chloe gingerly nibbled on the sandwich.

    * * *

    It has been two months since I arrived at the Gardener¡¯s home. They¡¯re nice enough. Mrs. Gardener likes me, and she¡¯s really friendly. Julia is adorable, I never thought I¡¯d say something like this about a little girl. Peter is also pretty nice. He usually wakes me up in the mornings by letting Julia inside and whispering, ¡°She wants to speak to you.¡± Kind of annoying but also funny. Peter¡¯s friend, Josh, is nice too. He always comes home with Peter after school. Tomorrow is my first day of school. We¡¯ll see how it goes.

    ¡°Knock knock.¡± Came a voice. Chloe quickly closed her journal and looked up as Mrs. Gardener leaned in. She smiled at Chloe and slowly walked into the room, Julia on her heels.

    ¡°Um¡­May I?¡± She motioned to the foot of the bed. Chloe quickly drew up her feet and nodded quietly. Mrs. Gardener sat down and regarded Chloe as the girl picked Julia up and put her down on her lap. Julia ran her fingers through Chloe¡¯s hair and leaned against her fondly.

    ¡°Are you doing okay?¡± Mrs. Gardener finally asked. Chloe looked up at her and after a moment of hesitation, she nodded. She was doing okay. She hadn¡¯t been poisoned yet, no sign of the Hunter yet and she was finally going to school after weeks of being on the run. Mrs. Gardener cleared her throat gently, Chloe wasn¡¯t much of a talker.

    ¡°So¡­Mr. Gardener and I are going out right now¡­Just some time alone¡­Peter, Josh and Julia will be here so you won¡¯t be alone at all. Do you think you¡¯ll be okay?¡±

    Chloe¡¯s face flashed with panic momentarily, but soon vanished and her expression was blank again. She shrugged, ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Mrs. Gardener watched her face, concerned. But she figured the girl wouldn¡¯t like any pressure. ¡°Alright then. I made macaroni and cheese for dinner, it¡¯ll be in the pot on the stove. There are brownies and chocolate milk in the fridge.¡±

    She was silent for a moment. Then she leaned forward and their eyes met, ¡°If you need anything. Anything, Chloe. Then call me immediately.¡± Chloe nodded and swallowed as Mrs. Gardener got up and vanished out the door. Julia curled up against Chloe and Chloe wrapped her arms around her. Oh no.

    Oh no.

    Oh no.

    Oh no.

    Mrs. Gardener couldn¡¯t leave her. Not right now. Not alone.

    Chloe moaned quietly into Julia¡¯s hair. Julia giggled, then slid off the bed and scrambled down the stairway. Chloe pulled herself to her feet and followed the girl downstairs. Peter and Josh were already standing at the door with Peter¡¯s parents. She stopped at the bottom of the staircase and watched as Mr. and Mrs. Gardener pulled on their shoes, waved at the kids, and left. There was a moment of silence as the kids all looked at each other. Then Peter and Josh ran into the kitchen and Chloe could hear clinks as they pulled out bowls for the Mac ¡¯n Cheese. Chloe took the responsibility of locking all the doors. She snuck through all the rooms and checked the windows and doors. Finally, after nearly an hour of making sure everything was safe, Chloe appeared back in the kitchen. Peter was helping Julia cut a brownie into bite sized pieces and Josh sat at the counter, watching. They both looked up at Chloe when she walked in.

    ¡°Where were you?¡± Josh joked, ¡°We thought you got tired and ran away.¡±

    Chloe shook her head distastefully, ¡°I was checking to see if everything was locked. I was being safe.¡±

    Peter glanced at her, ¡°This neighborhood¡¯s pretty safe.¡±

    Chloe shrugged and didn¡¯t speak again as she scooped herself some cold Macaroni and bit into a brownie that Julia nudged in her direction. She sat down quietly beside Josh at the counter and watched as Peter argued with Julia as the girl kept nudging her brownies to Chloe, who ate them quickly.

    ¡°So,¡± Josh started, ¡°I¡¯m thinking that we use tonight to watch a movie. Maybe something like Ant-Man or Pacific Rim.¡±

    ¡°Real Steel.¡± Chloe muttered. ¡°That¡¯s a good one.¡±

    Peter peered over at her, ¡°What¡¯s it about?¡±

    ¡°A dude who fights robots. The actor is Hugh Jackman.¡±

    But Josh shook his head, ¡°Nah, I don¡¯t like robots.¡±

    Chloe stuck out a pouty lip. Julia, who thought something was wrong, squealed angrily at Peter, ran over the Chloe and reached upwards. Chloe picked her up and turned back to Josh, ¡°Real Steel is a great movie.¡±

    Josh wagged a brownie in front of Chloe¡¯s face, ¡°You only want to watch it because of Hugh Jackman.¡±

    Chloe grabbed the brownie and popped it into her mouth, ¡°Exactly.¡±

    ***

    Perryn couldn¡¯t breath. He felt the darkness choking his breath, added to that, the pure fear of being seen. Cedrick stood at the opening of the alley, blocking Perryn¡¯s exit. He scanned the darkness, desperate to see a glimpse of the demigod he had just chased into it. Nixie, Cedrick¡¯s wicked wife, appeared at his side. She spoke,

    ¡°Leave him. We have found the whereabouts of Chamberlin. She lives with the Gardeners.¡±Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    Cedrick hissed angrily, his eyes raging. ¡°Then we will find her and kill her.¡±

    He turned and vanished into the night, Nixie on his heels. Perryn let out a long, relieved breath. But then drew in another short gasp when he realized who they had been talking about. Chloe Chamberlinwas one of the most powerful demigods in the world. And Perryn now knew where she lived. He stepped warily out of the alley, turned into a storefront a few yards away and asked the cashier for the Gardeners address.

    ¡°Its a small town.¡± The cashier said, a young girl of about 14, ¡°Everyone knows where everyone lives. Down the street, on your left is their street. Their house is the big white one, hard to miss.¡±

    Perryn thanked her, followed her directions and now stood in the driveway of the large house. All the cars in the driveway were gone, were they even home? The lights were also off, but Perryn saw a light flickering in an upstairs window. He snuck around the door to what he thought was the back door. It turned out to be the basement door, which was unlocked. Perryn inched inside, praying that they didn¡¯t have a dog. He crawled up a set of stairs to the kitchen. Cold brownies and an empty pot of something that looked cheesy sat on the stove. He turned up another set of stairs, following the sounds of what seemed to be the television. As he stepped up the last step, he froze. Something was watching him, he could feel eyes on him. Down the hallway, the door was open and he could see three small figures sitting in front of the television. Two boys and a very young girl, possibly a toddler. They looked innocent enough, if only¡ªwait.

    Where was Chamberlin?

    He found out soon enough.

    In the darkness, something tackled him. Hands twisted his wrists behind his back, slammed him into the wall and someone snarled into his ear. ¡°Who are you? How did you get into this house?¡±

    Perryn struggled to speak, he whispered, not wanting to make the mortals in the TV room aware of his presence, ¡°My name¡¯s Perryn Sanchez. I came through the basement door.¡±

    Chloe Chamberlin breathed a sigh of relief, ¡°I thought you were¡­.¡± Her voice faded, ¡°Why are you here?¡±

    Perryn frowned, who had she been waiting for? ¡°Well¡­you¡¯re Chloe Chamberlin, right?¡± She tensed up again, pushing his wrists harder against his back.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    Perryn tried to shift his weight slightly, ¡°Well, a lot of people are looking for you. For good and bad reasons.¡±

    Chloe growled, ¡°So..are you here for good or bad reasons?¡±

    Perryn didn¡¯t answer, so Chloe dragged him, backwards, towards a door. She opened it, revealing a laundry room with enough space for a twin bed including the machines. She shoved Perryn inside, after glancing back at the mortals, she followed, closed the door and locked it. There was no light and the only sound was the distant TV and the occasional snicker from one of the boys. In the darkness, Chloe pressed her back against the door, blocking Perryn¡¯s exit.

    ¡°I¡¯m a good person.¡± He started. ¡°I came to warn you that the Hunter knows where you live.¡±

    ¡°Darren?¡± She asked, but Perryn shook his head, even though he knew she couldn¡¯t see him in the darkness.

    ¡°No, Cedrick. He¡¯s with Nixie. Somehow Nixie found that you live with the Gardeners, so it¡¯s only a matter of time before they figure out where the Gardeners live.¡±

    ¡°How do you know where we live?¡± Chloe demanded, Perryn could hear suspicion creeping into her voice.

    ¡°I asked this girl at the dollar store.¡±

    ¡°So if its that easy for you to fi¡­wait¡­you said you came through the basement?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It was unlocked.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know we had a basement. I locked all the other doors and windows¡­¡±

    ¡°So the parents aren¡¯t here.¡± Perryn noted. ¡°That¡¯s not good.¡±

    A sudden crash downstairs made Chloe straighten up.

    ¡°Apparently they didn¡¯t know you had a basement either.¡± Perryn muttered.

    Chloe slowly turned her back to him and pushed her ear to the door. She heard voices before Julia started crying. A man¡¯s voice boomed, ¡°Who are you?¡±

    Chloe heard Peter and Josh mumble something.

    ¡°Where is Chloe Chamberlin?¡±

    They were now out in the hallway.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Peter said quietly.

    ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡± Cedrick snarled.

    ¡°No I¡¯m not. I don¡¯t know where she is.¡± Peter replied calmly.

    Chloe heard a shuffling as Cedrick and Nixie began to drag the boys down the stairs, there was no sound from Julia. Chloe heard Cedrick open the door and slam it shut. There was now an eerie silence in the house and no one moved. Finally, Chloe unlocked the door and pushed it open gently. Light flooded in and when Chloe turned to Perryn, he could finally see her face. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a large fishtail braid. Her eyes glinted blue and her lips were set in a thin line. Perryn stared at her, she didn¡¯t look at all like he had imagined her. She looked like an angry girl who was not to be messed with. Suddenly, a door down the hall flew open. Chloe, on instinct, slammed her fist into Perryn¡¯s chest, pushing him back into the closet, and she pulled the door shut quickly. But the next instant, a quiet whimper came from outside the door. Chloe opened the door to a crying Julia. Gently, Chloe leaned down and picked the girl up. Julia sobbed into her hair and Chloe gently whispered into her ear, soothing her quietly. Perryn swallowed as he stepped past Chloe, walked to the rail, and glanced over to the bottom of the stairs. Glass was shattered across the entire entrance. The window in the door was broken and the small curtain blew in a gentle wind, despite what had just happened. Chloe put Julia down and appeared next to Perryn. Then she turned sharply and vanished into a room. Perryn quietly followed her and swung the door open slowly. He could tell it was her room. The curtains had been pulled shut and nothing gave away that someone was living in the room. A cold air blew against Perryn¡¯s face when he pushed the door open and he shivered. Chloe glanced up at him as she jerked a backpack from the closet in a corner and stepped into the bathroom. Perryn leaned against the doorframe, respectively not entering as he watched her. She came out, her bag full and stepped past him. She inched down to the kitchen, stepping over the glass. Perryn picked Julia up and carried her across the glass area, Then he stared as Chloe grabbed food from the pantry, stuffing it into her bag as well. Then she took Julia from Perryn¡¯s arms, put her on her hips and slung her bag over her shoulder. She stepped over the glass and opened the front door warily. Perryn scrambled after her, ¡°Wait, you¡¯re leaving?¡±

    She nodded.

    ¡°But you¡¯re taking the girl. And what about the parents?¡±

    Perryn left the front door open as they started down the driveway. Chloe shrugged, ¡°He took Peter and Josh. I need to find them before he does something to them.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do with her?¡± Perryn asked, pointing to Julia.

    Chloe shrugged, ¡°Keep her with me for now.¡±

    Chloe started to walk faster, glancing around the street as she crossed it. Perryn trotted to follow her.

    ¡°I have friends who can help..¡± Perryn started.

    ¡°Yeah, so do I. But I¡¯m not going to call them. I¡¯m just going to do it by myself.¡±

    ¡°Uh¡­By yourself but with the baby and me?¡±

    Chloe stopped and turned to him, ¡°What do you mean? You¡¯re not coming with me!¡±

    Perryn frowned, ¡°Uh, yes I am.¡±

    Chloe scowled, ¡°No. You¡¯re. Not.¡± She seemed angry.

    Perryn shrugged, ¡°What do you want me to do? My mission is to help you escape from the hunter. If you go find those kids then you¡¯ll need backup to help you get out.¡±

    ¡°No, no, no. No. Listen to me, you¡¯re a random kid who walked into my house, messed up my new life that I finally figured out and now my new foster brother and his friend have been kidnapped. I¡¯m going to find them.¡±

    She suddenly pushed Julia into Perryn¡¯s arms, ¡°You know what? You take care of her. When the parents come around, you give her to them. Then make a run for it.¡±

    She turned and started to run away, Perryn stared after her for a moment in shocked silence. Then he scrambled after her, ¡°Hey! Wait, no!¡±

    He followed her as she vanished into the woods. He could barely see her, but he managed to catch a glimpse of her blonde hair in the moonlight every once in a while. He ran for what seemed like hours. Perryn¡¯s arm felt like spaghetti from holding Julia while running. The little girl had quietly wrapped her arms around Perryn¡¯s neck and had just sat along for the ride. Chloe slowed down eventually and Perryn caught up to her. Chloe stood before a pair of train tracks, her hair blowing in the wind and her ears perked up. She stopped just inside the bushes, wary to step out into the open. Perryn put Julia down and breathed heavily,

    ¡°Do you¡­really have to¡­be so¡­fast?¡± He gasped. Then finally he collapsed onto the tracks, ignoring the warning that flashed in Chloe¡¯s eyes. He stared up at her, still breathing heavily. Perryn pointed to Julia, ¡°That girl¡­is heavy.¡±

    Chloe smirked, ¡°She¡¯s three. You¡¯re just weak.¡±

    She slowly stepped from the bushes and onto the tracks, still as wary as ever. Then she began to cross it, glancing around continuously. Perryn sighed, ¡°Please wait. I¡¯ve been running for forever.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, so have I.¡± She replied coldly, not bothering to turn to him.

    ¡°Well, you weren¡¯t carrying a fat baby.¡± Perryn protested, rolling over onto his stomach. ¡°Its literally two o¡¯clock in the morning. I didn¡¯t have supper, I¡¯m tired and the weather dude said its going to rain. I don¡¯t feel like running in the rain.¡±

    Chloe stopped, ¡°The farther we let Cedrick get, the longer it¡¯s going to take to find them.¡±

    Perryn scoffed as he pushed himself to his feet, ¡°You obviously don¡¯t know anything about Cedrick then. He travels by portals. He¡¯s probably on the other side of the world by now.¡±

    Chloe turned to him, ¡°I know a lot about him. I know that he¡¯s been tracking me for six years, I know that he hunts demigods down, murders them or experiments on them, trying to steal their abilities. I know that he wants to steal my own abilities. I know that he killed my best friend¡¯s only siblings, drove her mum insane and chased her away from any demigod safe havens she could find. And because I was with her until we both turned 13, I was also chased from all demigod safe havens I could find. I have never lived with a single family for more than two months before Cedrick finds me and chases me off. I have never had a home. I have never had a family. I know a lot more about him than you do. So either shut up and follow quietly, or turn back and give this girl back to her family.¡±

    Perryn was quiet for a long time but before he could open his mouth to speak, Chloe raised her hand, silencing him. She listened warily, then she slowly knelt and put her ear to the tracks. A rumbling sound came from them, and Chloe felt heat radiating from the cold metal to her hands. She jerked backwards, sitting down in terror. Perryn knew what was happening before it came. Only a few meters to their right, a train appeared rushing towards them from around the corner. Julia started to scream and Perryn grabbed her, crossing the tracks to the other side and putting her down in the long grass. He whipped around in horror. Chloe sat in the tracks, watching the train approach in shock.

    ¡°Chloe!¡± Perryn yelled, ¡°Come here!¡±

    When she didn¡¯t move, Perryn lunged towards her, grabbing her shoulders and tackling her into the grass right as the train passed. Chloe was shaking underneath Perryn. He slowly lifted his head, staring at her. Her eyes were closed and she was trying to take deep breaths.

    ¡°You¡­okay?¡± Perryn asked slowly. Chloe finally opened her eyes.

    ¡°Yeah I¡¯m¡­¡± She blinked then quickly shoved Perryn away, ¡°Get off of me.¡±

    ¡°I saved your life. You¡¯re welcome.¡± Perryn grumbled. He turned and watched the long train as it continued to move past in a blur. When it passed, they slowly crossed again and began searching the long grass for Julia.

    ¡°Where is she?¡± Chloe demanded.

    ¡°I put her right here¡­She didn¡¯t get in front of the train, I was watching her through the openings between the train cars.¡± Perryn replied. They searched for a long time.

    ¡°It¡¯s no use.¡± Chloe said finally, ¡°We¡¯ll never find her in the dark.¡±

    ¡°We can stay here for tonight.¡± Perryn said, ¡°We ran far enough that it will take a while for the police to find you if they¡¯re looking for you even.¡±

    Chloe peered at him, ¡°Right now, they¡¯ll be looking for Peter, Josh and Julia. I¡¯m the last person on their minds. They¡¯ll probably think that I¡¯m once again just running away.¡± After a moment, she said, ¡°Before I¡¯m on the missing list, because the parents said they¡¯d be out for a while so they won¡¯t know we¡¯re gone, we need to get food from somewhere. Supplies. Stuff like that.¡±

    ¡°Money?¡± Perryn offered.

    But Chloe shook her head, ¡°I have that. Where is the nearest dollar store?¡± She seemed to be asking herself but Perryn answered for her

    ¡°The one I was at before I came to your house. It¡¯s probably a few miles walk from here.¡± Perryn said, he picked up the bag that Chloe had dropped when she had stepped onto the tracks, and moved back towards the town. After a moment, Chloe followed Perryn quietly.

 Chapter 2

    Chloe tromped through the forest. They were returning back to town, and she could see the lamplights of the street through the trees. Perryn walked behind her now, glancing over his shoulder every once in a while, as if expecting Julia to come running out of the bushes and to tackle his leg playfully. She never did. When they finally exited the woods, nothing seemed out of place. Chloe suspiciously glanced around the street as they crossed it. They found the general store, still open, and entered it. The same girl was still sitting at the counter, flipping through a magazine and chewing gum. She glanced up at us,

    ¡°Whatcha doin¡¯ Chamberlain? Did you run away again and now you¡¯re eloping?¡± She rolled her eyes at Perryn, ¡°I see you found the Gardener¡¯s house, but wasn¡¯t interested in any of the Gardeners.¡±

    Chloe glared at the girl, ¡°No, Drew. There¡¯s no eloping going on, I just need¡­¡± Her voice faded as she realized that what they needed to buy definitely made it seem as if they were running away.

    Chloe turned without a word, grabbed some canned food, chip bags, some warm hotdogs from a heating oven and water bottles. Then she grabbed a ninety nine cent backpack from a hook in the wall, and threw all this on the counter.

    The girl looked amused as she began scanning all the items, placing them quietly in the backpack. After Chloe paid, she made strict eye contact with the girl, ¡°If anyone comes. Like, let¡¯s say the police, or a tall dude with orange hair, then not a word is to be spilled. Got it?¡±

    The girl nodded, ¡°Sure.¡±

    Perryn ducked away from them as soon as Chloe began speaking to the girl. He inched towards the emergency phone in the wall and began to dial a number that he had had memorized for emergencies.

    ¡°Hello?¡± Came a boy¡¯s voice over the speaker.

    ¡°Philip?¡± Perryn asked, ¡°Where¡¯s Amber?¡±

    ¡°Uh. She¡¯s somewhere, I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s your girlfriend!¡± Perryn protested.

    ¡°That¡¯s true, she is. This brings up the question; Why are you calling my girlfriend? Is there something I should know about?¡±

    Perryn sighed, ¡°Just give the stupid phone to her, I don¡¯t have much time.¡±

    Philip¡¯s voice faded away and a girl¡¯s voice replaced his, ¡°Hey.¡± Her voice was cold and wary.

    ¡°Hey, Amber.¡±

    ¡°Oh, hi Perryn. Do you need something?¡±

    Perryn glanced backwards, Chloe was still talking with the girl, with her back to him.

    ¡°Yeah. I found Chamberlain. She¡¯s here with me now. Cedrick took the Gardener kid and some other kid, his friend I guess. But she¡¯s set on finding them. So, just meet us somewhere on the way, okay? Say, the train tracks in an hour or two.¡±

    ¡°An hour or two?¡± Amber demanded, ¡°You do realize that we¡¯re halfway across the world, right?¡±

    Perryn rolled his eyes, even though he knew she wouldn¡¯t see him, ¡°You¡¯re just in another state Amber. Catch the fastest flight out. Hurry, I don¡¯t know if I can distract her much longer¡ª¡°

    ¡°Distract who?¡± A voice interrupted.

    Perryn sighed into the phone, ¡°Scratch that Amber. I want you here as soon as possible. The general store in downtown. It¡¯s a tiny town and¡ª¡°

    ¡°Shut up!¡± Chloe interrupted, grabbing the phone from his hand, ¡°Who are you calling?¡±

    ¡°A friend.¡± Perryn said coolly, trying to take the phone from her hand. ¡°She can help us.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± He heard Amber¡¯s voice coming from the phone, ¡°I¡¯m a helpful person. Listen, we can help you find those two kids, and get rid of Cedrick. Because that¡¯s what we¡¯re trying to do, get rid of him anyway, but you know, if we find Cedrick we find those boys¡­¡±

    Perryn could see the wheels in Chloe¡¯s head turning as she thought over this.

    ¡°No.¡± She said simply, and hung up the phone.

    She then turned to Perryn angrily, ¡°I¡¯ll find them myself.¡±

    Then she turned, walked out of the general store door and vanished into the darkness.

    Slowly Perryn turned to the check-out counter, but the other girl was gone. He was alone.

    <ul>

    <li>* *</li>

    </ul>

    Chloe growled angrily. Of course that backstabbing traitor has friends. What was I thinking? I¡¯ve only known him for like four hours and I was already thinking he was my best friend. I should¡¯ve known that he¡¯d try to trick me into helping him destroy Cedrick. All I want is to have Peter and Josh back and to live a normal life with the Gardeners.

    She stomped along, now back in the woods. She didn¡¯t know where she would go but she knew she was going somewhere. A little while passed before she stumbled upon the tracks again. She glanced around before exiting from the bushes, crossing the tracks and walking into the long grass on the other side. As she continued walking into the grass, the dirt beneath her feet became mud and soon the field had turned into a small bog. She now grunted she waded along in the watery mud. Her legs were covered from her boots to her knees and she stumbled along, feeling the sticks that occasionally sprung up in the water and steering clear from any sharp objects. The bog began to smell and Chloe wrinkled her nose in disgust, not only was she covered in mud, but the mud was now starting to smell too. I really do look like a homeless girl¡­and probably smell like one to. Chloe thought grumpily.

    Suddenly, behind her, she heard a loud splash. Chloe instinctively dove sideways, then sat down in the murky water, pulling some of the long reeds of grass over her head.

    ¡°Good job, Leo. Real sneaky.¡± A female voice said.

    ¡°Sorry. I stepped on something that moved.¡± Came a male voice.

    Chloe started. That female voice sounded like the girl on the phone, the one that Perryn had been talking to.

    The girl sighed and through the grass, Chloe could see a few figures coming into view. With the full moon glaring off the water, their faces were illuminated. The girl who had spoken, probably Amber, had long, straight brown hair that fell down her shoulders. She had a thin face and cold, green eyes. Next to her, stood two boys who looked like identical twins. They both had wavy brown hair and laughing, green eyes. Both had permanent grins set on their faces. On the other side of the girl was another boy. He was considerably taller than her but also had brown hair and dark eyes. Beside him stood two girls, both with red hair. Continuing on the line was another boy with bleach blonde hair and bright blue eyes that glowed in the moonlight. And there, standing beside him, was Perryn. Good ol¡¯ traitorous Perryn.

    Chloe was frozen in her little hiding spot. She saw another figure, farther behind the first few, crouching and sneaking. It was a man, slightly illuminated in the darkness. He had stringy hair and a straw mustache. He was tall and lanky and his eyes seemed sunken and hollow. He watched the first group quietly, staying in the shadows. He looked past the group slowly and through the reeds, he and Chloe made silent eye contact. No one moved, the air was chill, probably because Chloe was soaked to the bone in mud, but no crickets chirped. No frogs bellowed out their belly sounds and no owls hooted greetings to one another. There was only the quiet swish of the grass reeds as they swayed in the wind. The man, upon seeing Chloe, began to grin slowly. His grin sent shivers down Chloe¡¯s spine and she immediately recognized him; Cedrick.

    Her mind began to think quickly, what could she do?

    The only thing in her mind that made reasonable sense was to run. Slowly she rose from her hiding spot. Instinctively, the twin closest to her, only about 10 feet, jerked sideways. He let out a curse as he glared at her, ¡°Dang! You know, I thought you were some weird¡­¡± His voice faded as he turned to Perryn, ¡°Isn¡¯t she the one we¡¯re looking for?¡±

    But Perryn didn¡¯t answer. He was watching Chloe¡¯s face and he saw something in her eyes he hadn¡¯t seen yet: Pure terror. She was looking past them, at something else. Slowly Perryn turned to see what she was looking at, but couldn¡¯t see anything in the darkness. He turned back to her, ¡°What is it?¡±

    She didn¡¯t answer either. Instead, she turned her back to them and began to run. She scrambled through the thick mud, trying to grab at any foothold she could find. A moment passed as she ran before a sudden splash came from behind them. They all turned sharply as Cedrick scrambled out of the shadows. He plowed through the water with his long legs, dead set on catching Chamberlain.

    Chloe ran scrambled through the water. The cold mud that caked her body limited her movements, her boots were now slippery whenever she found a rock or log to run across and her backpack weighed her down into the mud. She could hear Cedrick running up behind her and with a quick glance backwards she saw that the others were scrambling after him.

    ¡°Leave her alone!¡± came a girl¡¯s yell, ¡°She doesn¡¯t have whatever you want!¡±

    Finally after a short while of running through the bog, the ground became more solid and the field narrowed into a thin gravel pathway. Chloe ran faster across the gravel, but she knew that Cedrick would catch her eventually. As she ran, she tilted her head slightly the glare at him, ¡°I¡¯m not helping you with whatever you want!¡±

    ¡°I can give you your step-brother and his friend back,¡± Cedrick taunted, ¡°They¡¯re annoying me and I may just kill them if they continue. I¡¯ll also give the little girl back.¡±

    ¡°Julia?¡± Chloe demanded, ¡°You better not have done anything to her!¡±

    He was only a few feet behind her now¡­She needed a plan¡­There! A few meters in front was a bridge, probably over a lake. If Chloe could jump into the water, swim to the opposite shore in time¡­She knew that Cedrick couldn¡¯t swim and didn¡¯t like heights either. It just all depended on if there was a lake underneath the bridge or not. Chloe ran faster now, pulling ahead of Cedrick by a few meters immediately. She scrambled to the bridge, found a rail and pulled herself up. She glanced down, it was very high up, but there was water beneath her. She took a deep breath as Cedrick came closer.

    She could hear the others screaming, ¡°No! Don¡¯t jump! Wait!¡±The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    And then, she jumped.

    The water was so cold, her breath was instantly knocked out. It felt like she had hit a cement floor and her body went limp. Slowly, her backpack weighed her down and she sunk to the bottom of the lake. Her ears popped and this brought her back into reality. She pulled her backpack off and began to float to the surface. Her lungs burned but her limbs seemed numb, even as she kicked her feet, trying to reach the surface. Finally, she managed to pull her head above the surface and she gasped into the air. Glancing up, she could see Cedrick standing at the bridge, glaring down at her. Lined up beside him, all grinning, was Perryn¡¯s little group of friends. Chloe smugly grinned at Cedrick before turning and swimming towards the shore. She wearily walked onto the shore, and vanished into the woods beyond it.

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    Chloe woke up with daylight streaming through the trees. She had walked until she fell and slept right where she had fallen. Sh stretched out lazily. Her arms were still numb from the cold, but she rubbed her hands together to warm herself up. She checked her watch: 3 o¡¯ clock pm the next day. She sighed as she pulled herself to her feet and looked around. She seemed to be in a regular outcropping of trees, but she wasn¡¯t alone. Laying against a tree, a few bottles surrounding him, was a man. He was asleep and snoring gently. Chloe knew he was homeless and she quietly walked in the opposite direction, not wanting to wake him up. She then began jogging. She zig-zagged through the trees, knowing she would get out eventually. After about an hour of running through the woods, she exited into a small field surrounded by an electrical fence. She walked around the fence before she came to a house on the other side. She glanced at the house quietly, but then followed the driveway into the street. She didn¡¯t know where she was, but was determined to find out. She walked through the street until she came to what looked like a diner. She straightened her shirt, ran her fingers through her hair, and stepped inside. It was the regular bustle of a well to do diner and no one gave her a second look as she walked in. She quietly sat at the mini-bar and a waitress took her order. For a while, she just watched people, but then the waitress struck up a conversation with another woman and Chloe listened in.

    ¡°Did you hear about the house that was robbed? Just in the next town, horrible really. The parents went out for a little date night and what do they come home to? A broken front door, cold Mac & Cheese and every single one of their children, three teenagers and a little girl at that, had been kidnapped! Couldn¡¯t find a trace of them.¡±

    The other woman nodded at this, ¡°And one of them was a foster girl too. Some rumors going around that she was always a depressed girl, so she killed the two boys and the other little girl, hid their bodies and made a run for it!¡±

    But the waitress shook her head, ¡°These rumors¡­I don¡¯t believe one word of it! I think some sicko is going around and kidnapping children. This town and the next has always been safe. Why isn¡¯t it anymore?¡±

    The waitress then grabbed Chloe¡¯s food from a cook and placed it in front of her. Chloe quietly began eating as the women continued their conversation,

    ¡°But those poor kids. They must be so scared.¡±

    ¡°Unless they¡¯re dead.¡± A man suddenly interrupted as he sat down beside the other woman, ¡°Can I have my drink now?¡± He glared at the waitress. She nodded sheepishly and filled up his drink. The conversation had ended.

    Chloe then felt a presence behind her and tensed up instantly. Two hands grabbed her shoulders, pushing her down into her seat and pinning her against the counter. She growled as Perryn¡¯s voice reached her ears, ¡°That was a neat little jump you did last night. But he¡¯s still after you.¡±

    She shook him off and continued eating, trying to hear what the first couple were talking about.

    ¡°I think I¡¯ve seen the foster girl.¡± The man was saying in a low voice, ¡°And she¡¯s alone. Those rumors might just be true.¡± Slowly, the woman next to him, turned and looked straight at Chloe. Chloe froze as the woman pulled a piece of paper from her pocket. It was a picture, a picture of Josh, Peter and Julia all sitting together under a tree. In the tree, grinning at the camera good-naturally, was Chloe. She seemed frozen in shock as both the man and woman looked at her. Then she quietly pulled out a ten dollar bill from her pocket, placed it on the counter, and got up to leave.

    The man glared at her as she turned away from them. Behind her stood Perryn and the others. They quietly watched the man as he stood up to follow Chloe outside. As soon as they stepped outside, the man grabbed Chloe by the scruff of her neck, and pushed her into the nearest alley, ¡°Who do you think you are?¡± He growled into her face. His breath smelled of alcohol and licorice.

    Chloe squirmed in his grasp, ¡°I was leaving!¡± She protested. But the man shook his head, ¡°I ain¡¯t no idiot. I know that you are this here girl in this picture. Now, should I call the cops on ya?¡±

    Chloe slammed her foot into the man¡¯s gut. He doubled over in pain, releasing her shirt. She began to run to the other side of the alley. As she came out of it, two pairs of hands grabbed her and before she could move, her hands were tied to her back and a bag was pulled over her head. The world went black as she struggled in their grip, but slipped and slammed her head into something hard.

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    Chloe woke to voices coming around her. She was tied to a chair, the bag still over her head.

    ¡°Did you have to hit her in the head, William?¡± A girl¡¯s voice complained.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t hit her, Kate.¡± Came a male voice, probably William¡¯s, ¡°She slipped and hit her own head on the floor.¡±

    Kate sighed, ¡°Well she probably got a concussion, might be in a coma and won¡¯t remember a thing that has happened.¡±

    ¡°Well, maybe it¡¯s a good thing.¡± Came the famous Amber¡¯s voice, ¡°She won¡¯t remember that she doesn¡¯t like us.¡±

    ¡°Scratch that.¡± Chloe growled, ¡°I still hate you.¡±

    ¡°Oh look, she¡¯s awake.¡± Amber muttered, ¡°Yay.¡±

    Perryn¡¯s voice came close to her ear, ¡°If we untie you, will you run?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Chloe replied shortly.

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s that.¡± Amber said simply, ¡°All we can do is keep her tied up or she¡¯s going to run into trouble. If she wasn¡¯t the key to destroying the world, I wouldn¡¯t protect her.¡±

    ¡°The feeling¡¯s mutual.¡± Chloe growled.

    ¡°Well, at least take the bag off her head.¡± Came another female voice, ¡°I mean, we have to be polite and introduce ourselves.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t feel like being polite,¡± Amber grunted. But hands grabbed at the bag and pulled it off of her head. Chloe squinted in the light. She was in a room, illuminated by multiple lights, but there were no windows. Standing all around her, was Perryn¡¯s group of friends.

    The girl who had spoken last stepped forward excitedly, ¡°I¡¯m Rachel!¡± She pointed at the tall brown haired boy, ¡°That¡¯s Philip, he¡¯s my brother. Then this is Amber, ¡° She motioned to the girl with straight brown hair, ¡°But you already know that. You also know Perryn. Then this is William,¡± She nodded at the blonde boy, ¡°Don¡¯t call him Will, though. He doesn¡¯t like that. Then this is Leo and Robin,¡± She pointed at the two twins, ¡°They¡¯re Amber¡¯s twins. So technically they¡¯re all three triplets.¡± She pointed at the other red haired girl, ¡°And this is Kate.¡± Then she stood back, still grinning. Her smile made Chloe want to smile right back at her, but then she remembered she was still tied to the chair.

    ¡°Huh.¡± Was all she said, still watching Rachel steadily.

    ¡°Well, anyway.¡± Amber said, ¡°We don¡¯t like you. So don¡¯t get too attached on any of us.¡±

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry.¡± Chloe replied coldly, ¡°I wasn¡¯t planning on it.¡±

    Amber sniffed, ¡°I mean, show some respect will ya? We¡¯re saved your life, and we¡¯ll probably save it a bunch more times.¡±

    Chloe nodded bitterly, ¡°Oh, so slamming my head into the floor, tying a bag around my head and pinning me into a chair is your idea of life saving? Kind of messed up, if you ask me. I also never asked for your help. I¡¯m fine by myself.¡±

    Amber scowled, ¡°Yeah, no you¡¯re not. You have no survival instincts whatsoever.¡±

    Chloe¡¯s face froze over in a bitter, cold glare as she spoke, her voice dangerously quiet, ¡°I managed to outrun a tall lanky man with a backpack on in a big, jumped off a bridge into ice cold waters, survived, spent the rest of the night sleeping next to a drunk homeless man then fought off a huge man who would¡¯ve called the cops on me because now I¡¯m wanted for the murder of two teenage boys and a little girl. I¡¯m still alive. I¡¯d say that¡¯s survival instincts.¡±

    Rachel squealed happily, ¡°Oh, I like you! You might just put Amber in her place!¡±

    Amber grabbed Rachel¡¯s arm angrily, ¡°She¡¯s not staying.¡±

    My hands began to work at the rope that bound me to the chair. I wasn¡¯t sure that I could overpower them, but there was a possibility¡­I glanced around the room. In one corner, a pile of books caught my eyes. They were all piled up neatly, right above them, conveniently placed, was an open air vent. If I could just get into that vent¡­

    ¡°And I don¡¯t care if those other two die¡­¡± Amber was saying.

    Chloe knew she was talking about Peter and Josh, but decided to ignore it. Finally, one of her wrists slipped out of the rope. Her other hand then pulled out, but she waited before they were all looking away before casually putting her hands in her lap. Then, in one swift motion, Chloe stood up, grabbed the chair she had been sitting on, and threw it at Perryn, Philip and William, who all stood together. Get the big guys out of the way and the little ones will be a piece of cake. She thought as she shoved Leo and Robin, who dove at her, sideways, against the other pile of boys who had fallen back at the chair attack. Chloe scrambled to the pile of the books. The last thing she saw before diving into the air vent and crawling away, was Amber¡¯s face. Surprisingly, Amber looked impressed and she made no move to stop Chloe as she vanished. She crawled through the air vent, again lost. Finally, she stopped, sighing. ¡°What am I doing?¡± She asked out loud. Then she began to crawl backwards, back the way she had come from. Then she came back to the entrance of the air vent, kicked it back open, and jumped down. They stood there, quietly talking. Slowly, they turned to look at her.

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you.¡± Chloe said steadily, ¡°But only if you help me.¡±

    Amber pursed her lips, ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯ve been trying to tell you!¡±

    ¡°Well. It didn¡¯t come out so clear.¡± Chloe replied coldly. Then she glanced at Leo and Robin, ¡°And uh. I¡¯m sorry I threw you across the room.¡±

    Leo grunted but Robin shrugged good naturally. William stared at her incredulously, ¡°And what about hitting us with a chair?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t regret that. You tied me up with that chair.¡± Chloe replied shortly.

    William frowned at this but Chloe ignored it. Then Rachel and Kate scrambled forward, grabbed both of Chloe¡¯s arms and said, ¡°Well. You can¡¯t look like a homeless girl when you¡¯re running around with us!¡± Then they opened a random door that had been hidden in the shadows and pulled Chloe out into a long hallway. It was dimly lit, and they dragged her along as they ran down it. Then they found another door, opened it, and stepped inside. Inside was a large room. It was grandly furnished much like a palace room. A wardrobe stood against the wall and Kate threw it open, ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± She said, ¡°You must like something comfy but something that you can fight and run in, right?¡±

    Chloe didn¡¯t answer as she gazed around the room in amazement.

    Nearly an hour passed before the girls came out of the room. Chloe had taken a shower (multiple ones, just to get the bog mud off) and now wore a black blouse, tucked into thin green pants and, despite Kate¡¯s complains that it wouldn¡¯t match, a green flannel over the blouse. Her hair was washed, now a bleach blonde instead of dark brown. Kate had originally thought her hair was brown because of the bog mud in it, and was very surprised when Chloe came out of the shower with white blonde hair.

    The others also seemed surprised when she walked in to the original room they had met in. Amber marched up to her, grabbed her shoulders and looked her up and down, ¡°Hey, look at that. You have blonde hair. Didn¡¯t see that coming. I can actually see your face now, and you don¡¯t look homeless anymore.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to take it that¡¯s your way of complimenting.¡± Chloe replied, ¡°Thank you.¡±Then she turned to Perryn, who sat in the corner with the other boys, they were playing cards.

    ¡°What is this place? It looks like a mental asylum.¡±

    He shrugged, ¡°Probably was at one point. Don¡¯t really know. But it¡¯s close to the Gardeners house so if you want to drop by and visit¡­¡± He didn¡¯t finish, but he didn¡¯t need to.

    Chloe blinked, ¡°I mean, if I don¡¯t want them to hate me, I guess I have to.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll take you!¡± Kate said happily. The boys began to pack up their cards and the girls once again dragged Chloe through multiple corridors and out a door. The door opened into a gravel path and Chloe could see the sun was setting. After the boys exited from the building, they began walking down the gravel path coolly. They followed the gravel until the sun was completely gone. When they came to the town that Chloe had lived in with the Gardeners, they slowed slightly to a stop. Chloe nudged through the little group until she stood at the front of the group. She stared in quiet horror at the town. Every single building, except the general store, had been burned down. In the black charred remains of the town, the general store looked like a bright lamp shining in darkness. Slowly Chloe stepped towards the remains. No one behind her moved as she approached the general store. She nudged her way through the debris of the other buildings. Boards, ash and random pieces of paper or plastic lay strewn across the street. Chloe stopped in the middle of the street, turned around, and looked at the others. They stood on the other side, just quietly watching her. Amber made a shooing motion but Chloe stared at her incredulously, ¡°You want me to go alone!?¡± Chloe hissed.

    ¡°Yes!¡± Amber hissed in return, ¡°You said you have amazing survival instincts!¡±

    ¡°Okay, but since we¡¯re considered ¡®friends¡¯ right now, if I go down, then you go down with me!¡± Chloe whispered.

    ¡°You¡¯re literally walking through ash. You¡¯re going to be okay!¡± Perryn snapped.

    ¡°I think you¡¯re all just scared.¡± Chloe replied. She turned to continue on her way but froze when her foot stepped on a certain loose board. The board cracked underneath her weight and she knew that there was nothing underneath the board itself. She scrambled back, but the board completely snapped in half and the ash and dust swallowed her as she fell into the earth.

    There was a moment of silence on the other side of the street.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to be okay. It¡¯s just ash!¡± Rachel mocked, turning and glaring at a shocked Perryn.

    ¡°Must¡¯ve been the sewer.¡± Amber said,

    ¡°So much for taking a shower.¡±

 Chapter 3

    Chloe shivered in the cold. She wasn¡¯t wet, but wherever she was, it was ice cold. She could hear voices coming from above her¡­or were they coming from below her? Maybe from behind? She couldn¡¯t tell. It was pitch black around her, am I dreaming? She thought. She was laying down on something hard and cold, her foot bent unnaturally beneath her. As she sat up and pulled her legs out from under her, shocking pain sliced through her leg like a million tiny needles. She gasped, nope. Definitely not dreaming.

    ¡°Chloe!¡±

    ¡°Chloe?¡±

    ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    She could hear the different voices, but her head was spinning from pain and she couldn¡¯t tell from where they were coming from.

    ¡°I can¡¯t see her¡­¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t see anything, it¡¯s so dark down there¡­¡±

    ¡°If she¡¯s not answering¡ª¡±

    ¡°¡ªCould be a practical joke. Not funny, Chloe!¡±

    She recognized the voices of Amber, Leo and Perryn yelling from somewhere.

    ¡°You ever seen that movie IT?¡± Leo suddenly asked.

    ¡°Leo!¡±

    ¡°What!? I¡¯m serious. Something could be eating her as we speak.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going down.¡± Perryn¡¯s voice rang out among them.

    ¡°Oh yeah, you go be her Prince Charming and we¡¯ll just watch.¡±

    ¡°Shut up. You¡¯re all so afraid of a clown. She could be hurt.¡±

    She is. Chloe thought grumpily. She couldn¡¯t seem to speak, and was just gathering her thoughts when a loud crash resounded from beside her. She froze as she heard the quiet padding of feet approaching. Something came close to her shoulder and sniffed, much like a dog. It growled low and deep as it circled her in the darkness, sniffing her face, her legs and her hair. Something sharp ran down her arm, like someone running the blade of a knife gently along her skin. The sharpness slowly reached up her arm, pressing against her neck. It wasn¡¯t a knife, but it was as sharp as one. Then, faster than she could cry out, something grabbed both her feet and began to drag her away. Quickly, quietly. Her back ran along the cold floor, and despite her shock, she managed to let out a little yelp as the creature kept dragging her, away from the voices.

    ¡°Did you hear that?¡±

    ¡°Like a dragging sound¡­¡±

    ¡°A yelp¡­¡±

    ¡°I told you! IT lives down there! And yet, you didn¡¯t listen.¡±

    As she kept moving, the world continued to spin, the voices faded completely, and she fell into unconsciousness.

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    When she woke up, she was spinning. Literally. Hanging upside down, Chloe could feel her body spinning before she opened her eyes. When she opened her eyes, a blur of light met her. As she began slowing down, the blur of light became a series of small light bulbs and candles. When she stopped completely, she surveyed her upside down surroundings. She was definitely still in the sewer, form the algae on the walls and the stench. Light bulbs hung from the roof on little chains, candles lay all around the floor, and the roof was decently empty other than the lights. One single, metal door was on the other side of the room, facing her. Her leg was in torture. She glanced up and saw that both her feet were tied by a crude rope, attached to a pipe that protruded from curved sewer ceiling. She grunted in anguish as the pain in her leg worsened as she stopped spinning and all her weight hung from the ropes. She couldn¡¯t see her captor anywhere, in fact, she seemed utterly alone. That is, until she heard the voices. Silent, deadly voices that drifted from all around her, like the way she would imagine snakes talking; dragging out the s¡¯s, gasping in breaths, even thought they didn¡¯t say anything that seemed to make any sense. Chloe didn¡¯t like the voices, they sent shivers down her spine. She heard one word, that kept coming out clear in between the voices: No.

    She grunted as she began to swing from the rope, trying to break free in any way, but she stopped quickly, her foot felt like if any more pressure was attached, then it would completely snap away from her body. Chloe groaned in disgust as she imagined her foot snapping away from the rest of her body.

    Then more voices joined the other voices, but these seemed more humanlike. Chloe instantly recognized Amber¡¯s voice among them,

    ¡°Okay. This is the last door. If she¡¯s not in here, then we¡¯re done for.¡±

    ¡°How many times do I have to repeat myself. We won¡¯t find her because she has been eaten.¡±

    Chloe closed her eyes as a wave of nausea came over her, but then forced them open again, she didn¡¯t want to look dead to her friends. Then she couldn¡¯t help it, no, she had to close her eyes. It helped with her spinning world and the nausea.

    She heard a slow creak and a thump as the door across the room slowly opened. Chloe opened her eyes to see the others standing in the doorway, looking straight at her.

    ¡°Oh. Hi guys¡­ It¡¯s about time you got here, I feel like throwing up.¡± Chloe muttered.

    ¡°You look like you¡¯re about to throw up.¡± Amber said, stepping towards her, ¡°Exactly how long have you been hanging there? We¡¯ve been looking for like two hours. That could be unhealthy.¡±

    ¡°So the faster you get me down, the better chance I have of not dying.¡± Chloe replied shortly.

    Leo pulled out a dagger as he crossed the room to her, he looked disappointed.

    ¡°What?¡± Chloe asked, ¡°Are you depressed that I wasn¡¯t eaten by the IT clown?¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Leo coughed, ¡°You heard that?¡±

    He glanced up at her feet, tied to the ceiling, ¡°Yeah, I can¡¯t reach that. Sorry. Philip? You¡¯re the tallest, come here.¡±

    Instead of just Philip though, everyone scrambled towards them. William circled her quietly, and he was the first to ask, ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Chloe replied simply.

    ¡°That means she¡¯s not okay.¡± Kate said, ¡°You know, all girls say ¡®I¡¯m fine¡¯ when they¡¯re not.¡±

    ¡°I think William was asking about physically Kate, not emotionally.¡± Rachel sighed.

    Philip reached up with the dagger and began cutting at the ropes. Chloe winced as he grabbed her foot to hold her still. Amber saw this.

    ¡°Yeah. No. You¡¯re not okay. But I guess falling down a sewer isn¡¯t so great, huh?¡±

    ¡°I hate you.¡± Chloe sighed.

    The ropes around her ankles suddenly loosened and Chloe yelped as she fell to the floor. At the last split second, she twisted and fell onto her back instead of her head.

    ¡°Whoops. Sorry.¡± Philip said sheepishly as Kate glared at him. As Chloe sat up, everyone instantly scrambled to pull her to her feet. As she stood wobbly on her legs, she leaned slightly more on the other, trying to get weight of the painful one. She pushed Kate away as Kate began to complain about how her hair was dirty again, her clothes were once again ruined and she was now injured,

    ¡°You can¡¯t go anywhere without ruining a shirt, can you? And I¡¯d expect, with white blonde hair, that you would die if you made it dirty. I can¡¯t believe it!¡± Kate kept rambling on as they started to the door.

    ¡°Wait.¡± Robin said suddenly, stopping in his tracks. ¡°How did you get here?¡±

    Chloe shrugged, ¡°I don¡¯t know. I just remember falling, hitting the ground. Then I heard you all debating on whether I had been eaten by a clown yet, and then I think I passed out. And then woke up here. Hanging upside down.¡±

    ¡°Well, then let¡¯s get out of here before whatever brought you here comes back.¡±

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    It took a while to get back. A few hours at least, but eventually they found the entrance to the sewer where Chloe had fallen through. They climbed to the top and were met with darkness once again. The town was the same as before, completely burned except for the general store. Now, Amber and Kate both helped Chloe to walk. She leaned on them as they began to limp to the general store.

    ¡°If we need to make a quick escape¡­¡± Chloe started.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Kate replied, ¡°We¡¯re not leaving you.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Chloe grunted, ¡°You didn¡¯t let me finish. If we need to make a quick escape, then I¡¯m leaving you guys and locking myself in the general store bathroom, if Cedrick comes then he¡¯ll get you, but he won¡¯t be able to go through the lock. That door can be jammed so hard¡­¡±

    ¡°Shut up.¡± Amber said simply, ¡°I think the pain from your leg is getting to your head so you¡¯re just spouting out nonsense. For the good of us all, just stop talking.¡±

    And then, to everyone¡¯s great shock, Chloe clamped her mouth shut and didn¡¯t speak again.

    They entered the general store.

    At the counter, stood the same girl, Drew. She watched quietly as they approached, popping gum in her mouth and drumming her fingers on the counter.

    ¡°Looks like the eloping didn¡¯t work out. You fell in the sewer Chamberlain? Yeah I saw that. You didn¡¯t run into Big Blue, did you?¡±

    ¡°For the last time, there was no eloping going on¡­¡± Perryn started, ¡°And who¡¯s Big Blue?¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    But Leo suddenly burst into laughter, not allowing Drew to speak, ¡°Wait, so she thought you¡­¡± He looked at Perryn, then pointed at Chloe, ¡°Were eloping?¡± Ha! As if.¡±

    ¡°Okay, shut up, garbage boy. I was talking.¡± Drew snapped.

    Leo stopped laughing, ¡°Garbage Boy? What!?¡±

    Chloe sighed quietly, ¡°You know, I¡¯m still dying over here.¡±

    Drew pointed down one isle, ¡°Medical stuff down there. Anyway, Big Blue is the animal that guards the sewers. He¡¯s like the chupacabra except bigger.¡±

    Chloe grunted as Amber brought back a first aid kit from the isle. Then she limped behind the counter, and sat down in the chair behind Drew.

    ¡°It¡¯s a myth though. He¡¯s not real.¡± Chloe said coldly.

    ¡°Yes, he is! Why did you take so long to get out Chloe? He was the one who took you to that secret chamber and hung you upside down.¡±

    Chloe peered up at Drew, ¡°How did you know that I¡­¡±

    ¡°I know everything.¡± Drew said smugly. Chloe shook her head in disgust when a thought suddenly hit her. She had never told Drew her first name. She had always told her to call her Chamberlain or sometimes even Foster Girl, as a bunch of the neighborhood kids already called her. Amber glanced around, not seeming to be fazed by anything that Drew was saying,

    ¡°So. Why is everything burnt except the general store? And can I raid the fridges?¡±

    Drew sighed, then glanced down at Chloe. She tapped her fingers against Chloe¡¯s leg as Chloe was bandaging it up. Chloe winced in pain and Kate scowled at Drew.

    ¡°Yes, Amber, dear. You really did choose a poor party to hang out with, Chloe.¡±

    ¡°Stop.¡± Chloe snapped suddenly, glaring up at her, ¡°I never told you my name, and neither did Amber. You also couldn¡¯t see that I fell into the sewer because it¡¯s pitch black outside. How do you¡­¡±

    Drew slammed her fist down on the counter, silencing Chloe. Then she turned to Amber, ¡°This isn¡¯t just a general store. This is a portal.¡±

    ¡°To¡­what?¡± Amber asked quietly. She didn¡¯t really like the way the girl was bossing everyone around, nor did she like the way Chloe flinched every time Drew made a movement.

    Drew waved her hands in the air mindlessly, ¡°Anywhere and everywhere. You just tell me where you want to go and I can take you there.¡±

    Suddenly, behind Drew, Chloe straitened up sharply. She began to look panicked as she looked around the room.

    ¡°Um. Okay.¡± Was all Amber said, she was watching Chloe quietly, what was wrong?

    Then it clicked. Drew¡¯s place was a portal for anyone and everything. Anyone, meaning Cedrick. No wonder Chloe looked so afraid. If Cedrick came out of nowhere, anywhere out of a portal, there would be no place she could go. She couldn¡¯t run away, she couldn¡¯t hide. And here they all were, on the doorstep of his headquarters.

    ¡°So we can go anywhere, right?¡± William was asking, ¡°So like, a walk-in-clinic so that we can get Chloe to at least walk a little?¡±

    ¡°Chloe, you can¡¯t walk?¡± Drew asked, turning to look at her slowly.

    Chloe didn¡¯t answer, instead, she surged forward suddenly, grabbing Drew by the neck and pinning her down onto the counter.

    ¡°Whoa!¡± Leo yelped as they fell backwards, ¡°Listen Chlo Chlo. I don¡¯t like her either but I¡¯m not looking to kill her.¡±

    ¡°First of all,¡± Chloe said, ¡°Don¡¯t call me that.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you see?¡± Amber asked, ¡°She knows where Cedrick is. We¡¯re wondering how he got away from the Gardeners so quickly, he went through here. Wonder how he got behind us when we were following Chloe? He came out of here.¡± Amber turned to Drew, scowling, ¡°She works for him.¡±

    Drew grinned up at them, ¡°You¡¯re smart. But you have one thing wrong, I don¡¯t work for him. I work for everybody and¡ª¡±

    ¡°¡ªanybody. Yeah, we get it.¡± Chloe snapped, ¡°So get us to Cedrick¡¯s headquarters. Or his prison or whatever, why didn¡¯t you tell me that he came by here?¡±

    ¡°In my defense, you didn¡¯t ask. You just came in here, took all my supplies, made a run for it and then you suddenly come back with a mini army.¡± She motioned towards the others, ¡°And please, your nails are digging into my neck. If you kill me then you¡¯ll never find out where he is. But I will tell you if you let me go.¡±

    Chloe hesitated, but only for a moment before she released Drew. Drew sighed as she rubbed her neck, ¡°Gosh, you can really move when you fancy the day. I did not see that coming.¡±

    She turned and pushed Chloe back into the seat, then she walked past her and towards the back door. Finally she stopped when she got there, ¡°You want to go to Cedrick¡¯s headquarters? Well then, here it is.¡±

    ¡°But the Gardeners¡­¡± Chloe muttered. Her words began to sound slurred, and her eyes glazed over. The pain in her leg was becoming unbearable.

    ¡°The Gardeners can wait.¡± Amber said, ¡°We have to get to Cedrick. They¡¯ll be happier if we brought their kids back to them too.¡±

    They started towards the back door, no one bothered to help Chloe. She watched helplessly as they walked towards the door, seeming to forget about her.

    Finally, Drew opened the door. There was nothing beyond it that they could see, only darkness, but Drew motioned towards it anyway. One by one, they stepped inside the doorway, vanishing into the black darkness behind it. When Robin, the last one in line, vanished into the doorway, Drew shut it and turned to Chloe.

    ¡°Good job, Chamberlain. We didn¡¯t think you could do it.¡±

    Chloe slowly lowered herself back into her seat, scowling at Drew, ¡°I told you I would do it. You have those demigods now, so give me back the mortals.¡±

    Drew nodded, then she closed her eyes momentarily, concentrating and opened the door again. This time, instead of darkness, it opened to a simple closet. Out of the closet stepped Josh, Peter and Julia, looking slightly dazed and confused.

    ¡°Might want to get them home before they remember anything.¡± Drew said, ¡°And get that foot fixed.¡±

    Chloe grabbed Julia¡¯s hand and pulled her along behind her as she limped out of the general store. Peter and Josh followed mindlessly.

    They walked down the street until they came to the Gardener¡¯s neighborhood. When they came to the driveway, Chloe stopped. She turned to Peter and Josh solemnly, ¡°You guys gonna be okay?¡± She asked.

    ¡°I mean¡­how did we get out here?¡± Peter asked lazily, glancing around him.

    ¡°Just¡­tell your parents that I really liked living with y¡¯all.¡± Chloe said sadly as she pulled them towards the now fixed doorway and rang the doorbell. She put Julia down on the porch, turned and vanished into the night.

    <ul>

    <li>* *</li>

    </ul>

    Perryn looked around. They all seemed to be in a cell, in a large room. The room was lined with cells all around it and glancing into these cells, Perryn could very clearly see other people and creatures.

    ¡°Good job.¡± One man said, in a cell directly across from them, ¡°You fell for the trap.¡±

    ¡°What¡­trap?¡± Amber asked nervously, slowly stepping closer to Philip and clutching his arm as she glanced around the cell.

    ¡°Cedrick¡¯s trap.¡± The man continued, ¡°He has demigods in his clutches who work for him. They pretend to be afraid of him, running away and hiding from him. But slowly, they bring in his prisoners. Emotionally connecting to you until you trust them enough to go anywhere with them blindly.¡±

    Perryn stared at him, ¡°You mean¡­Chloe? No. She wouldn¡¯t do that. She was actually in¡­¡± His voice faded in disbelief when a door on the right of the cells flew open and Cedrick walked in. Behind him, walking in single file, were four teenagers. In the front of them, scowling darkly, was Chloe Chamberlain. Behind her walked a girl, slightly shorter and with black hair and bright blue eyes. Behind her walked two boys. One was tall and a little hunky. He had blonde hair and brown eyes. Behind him, the other boy was slightly skinnier and shorter but had blonde hair and green eyes.

    ¡°I knew you couldn¡¯t be trusted.¡± Amber growled as Chloe walked past them.

    She stopped and turned to Amber, her eyes flashing wickedly, ¡°I never said you could trust me. You just assumed you could.¡±

    She smirked, ¡°I also tried to warn you before walking through that door.¡± She lowered her voice, not allowing Cedrick to hear her, ¡°But you didn¡¯t listen. Maybe start listening to people a little better, huh?¡±

    She turned sharply as Cedrick walked towards them and stepped sideways, away from him. Cedrick peered in at them, then grinned, ¡°I gotta say Chamberlain¡­You ran into some trouble along the way. Almost starved, was attacked by a large drunk and was tied up by Big Blue.¡±

    Chloe rolled her eyes at this, but Cedrick continued, ¡°Your town was also burned down. I¡¯m sorry about that by the way, it was an accident. But anyway, I¡¯m impressed. You managed to bring them in all the same. Good job too,¡± He turned to her, ¡°You waited to have all of them together and didn¡¯t just bring me this one.¡± He reached in and poked Perryn¡¯s chest. Cedrick sighed as he walked towards the door, ¡°I might keep you a little longer.¡±

    Then he went out and closed the door behind him.

    ¡°Traitor.¡± William said simply. Chloe shrugged, ¡°Eh. I went through a lot of trouble to find you. I¡¯m happy with the outcome.¡±

    The black haired girl, who had been studying them, now spoke up, ¡°Who are they? They don¡¯t seem that special.¡±

    ¡°Demigods.¡± Chloe said simply.

    The girl cocked her head, ¡°Oh. Fun.¡± She bounced towards them, ¡°Anyway. Introductions should be in order, because y¡¯all will be staying a while. I¡¯ll start. I¡¯m Elizabeth, I¡¯m a demigod too, daughter of Jupiter and so on and so forth. This is Henry,¡± She nodded at the hunky teenager, ¡°Son of Ares. But he¡¯s a real kitten. Then there¡¯s Tanner,¡± She pointed at the last kid, ¡°Son of Athena.¡± She grinned at them good naturally.

    ¡°I thought¡­Cedrick killed demigods.¡± Rachel said quietly.

    ¡°Oh, he does.¡± Elizabeth said, ¡°Except for us who cooperate and do what he wants, then we stay alive.¡±

    ¡°Ah. So, just do whatever he says which means befriend some demigods, your own kind, and then get them stuck in prison?¡± Kate asked, glaring at Chloe.

    Chloe blinked at her, ¡°I liked you for a while Kate, but you¡¯re too innocent and trusting. This should be good for you.¡±

    ¡°Unless I die! Then it won¡¯t be good for me.¡± Kate protested.

    Chloe shrugged, ¡°If you do what he says then you won¡¯t die.¡±

    ¡°So¡­cooperate?¡± Philip asked, ¡°Yeah¡­uh¡­we don¡¯t do that.¡±

    ¡°Then you will die.¡±

    <ul>

    <li>* *</li>

    </ul>

    A few hours passed as they sat quietly in their cell. Chloe, Elizabeth, Tanner and Henry sat in the middle of the room, drinking, eating and playing cards. They talked in low voices and occasionally glanced over at the others.

    ¡°We should never have helped her.¡± Amber muttered quietly, ¡°Nothing makes sense.¡±

    ¡°Everything makes sense, though.¡± Leo said, ¡°Drew and Chloe worked for Cedrick. They trapped us, brought us here. The General store is somehow protected by a spell so when Cedrick ¡®accidentally¡¯ burned the rest of the town, it didn¡¯t burn. Big Blue is Cedrick¡¯s monster or something working for him and got mistaken and kidnapped Chloe instead of one of us¡­¡±

    ¡°Something along those lines!¡± Elizabeth called from the middle of the room, ¡°Might want to lower your voice when you¡¯re having a private conversation. One of the cons of being a daughter of Jupiter is having great hearing¡­Not sure why, but I do¡­You know what? I¡¯ll just shut up now.¡±

    Amber scowled in their direction, then stood up to walk to the edge of the cell, ¡°You guys don¡¯t regret anything? You don¡¯t regret putting your friends in cells?¡±

    ¡°Nope.¡± Elizabeth said simply, glancing over at Amber mindlessly, ¡°I mean, Chloe¡¯s the only one who ever brings in demigods. The rest of us just bring in random people or creatures that Cedrick hates.¡±

    Amber frowned, ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Why he wants to kill animals or why Chloe is the only one who brings in demigods?¡±

    ¡°Well, both I suppose.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Well, I don¡¯t know about the animals, he¡¯s just heartless I guess. But Chloe¡¯s the best out there. She brings in the most people plus she does it quietly, so it¡¯s not as if people will immediately think you¡¯ve been kidnapped, it¡¯s so subtly done¡­ Yeah I idolize Chloe.¡± She giggled as Chloe raised an eyebrow in her direction.

    ¡°Why do you work for Cedrick?¡± Kate suddenly asked, ¡°I mean, he kills people. He kills demigods, innocent demigods. So why do you work for him?¡±

    Elizabeth¡¯s laughter faded. She cleared her throat, but turned her eyes back to her cards and didn¡¯t speak again.

    ¡°We all owe him something.¡± Henry said simply, ¡°And with that comes the fear of him killing us.¡±

    William now stomped to the front of the cell, glaring at Henry, ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me. You could overthrow him in a heartbeat if you wanted to! I mean¡­look at you! You¡¯re this big fellow, you could easily kill him.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t think we¡¯ve tried?¡± Tanner asked bitterly, ¡°Liz was the first to try to kill Cedrick. Somehow he found out though, and Liz was caught. Then Chloe tried, and yet somehow he figured out again and was prepared with an entire army, literally an army, of soldiers. If Chamberlain can¡¯t kill him then no one else can.¡± Tanner scowled around the room, ¡°Someone keeps telling him our plans and I plan on finding out who.¡±

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you just let us go?¡± Amber asked, ¡°We can all fight against him.¡±

    Slowly Chloe, who hadn¡¯t spoken a word since the conversation had started, stood up and walked over to them. She stopped in front of Amber, and their eyes met, ¡°If I were to let you go right now, you had a knife, and Henry stood on one side of you and I stood on the other, which one would you kill?¡±

    Amber didn¡¯t answer, she just stared back at Chloe blankly. Chloe nodded, ¡°Exactly. Of course you¡¯d go to the person who ¡®betrayed¡¯ you because you want revenge and that¡¯s how people go about things nowadays.¡± She flicked one of her cards in at Amber, who picked it up; it was the Queen of Spades, ¡°Death is something common now. You ever killed someone before Amber?¡±

    Amber shook her head simply.

    ¡°Yeah well. Most people think that to kill someone, you just have to be heartless. I mean, you don¡¯t know that person so it doesn¡¯t affect you. But there are other people out there who do care for that person.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s your point?¡± Amber demanded finally.

    ¡°My point is, killing Cedrick isn¡¯t so easy. And not just because of the army that protects him. If you¡¯ve never killed a person before, how do you know you can kill Cedrick?¡±

 Chapter 4

    The night continued without conversation. Chloe and Henry were the only ones who remained eventually. The room was mostly dark, with a small lantern glowing in the center where Chloe and Henry spoke in low voices over a large paper spread over a table. Occasionally, Chloe would scratch something on the paper with a pen as they continued to talk about it. The other prisoners were soon asleep, just random people, like Elizabeth had said. Some were mythical creatures; centaurs, snake men and even a troll. These ¡®people¡¯ all fell asleep, but the demigods just couldn¡¯t find it in themselves to sleep. They sat in a row, against the cell door, watching Chloe and Henry.

    ¡°Something¡­something¡¯s wrong.¡± Kate said suddenly. It was around midnight and no one had spoken in nearly two hours. Chloe looked up at her sharply, scowling at the sound of her voice. Kate looked around the room, her ears perked and her eyes flashing. She scrambled to her feet, ¡°I¡¯m serious!¡± She cried, ¡°Something¡¯s really wrong. I can feel it!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, well. Don¡¯t get yourself worked up about it.¡± Henry said, ¡°We¡¯ll know if something¡¯s wrong.¡±

    Kate recoiled slightly, clutching Rachel¡¯s arm as she took a few steps back. Rachel blinked at her, ¡°What are you doing?¡± She whispered.

    But Kate shook her head, her eyes wide in terror, ¡°I can feel it.¡± She whispered, ¡°I¡¯m not kidding. Something¡¯s coming. Something big. It feels like¡­the sewers¡­¡±

    ¡°It feels like the sewers? How does that¡­¡± Then Rachel¡¯s voice cut out. When they had entered the sewers to find Chloe, they had all felt the same thing; a deep, sinking feeling. They had smelled that smell of rotten flesh and fish.

    Now they were all looking around the room fearfully. Henry ignored them, but Chloe kept glancing in their direction. Finally, she sighed, dropped the pen and stood to her feet. She frowned in their direction then moved towards the door. She opened the door and looked out, then she walked along the row of cells, glancing in at every prisoner. Then, after inspecting the entire room she turned to Kate, ¡°There¡¯s nothing here.¡±

    ¡°It feels like the sewers.¡± Kate repeated, this time directed at Chloe.

    Chloe instantly knew what she meant, but her face showed no sign of panic. Instead she turned back to Henry momentarily before heading to the door and vanishing out of it.

    When she was gone, Henry tilted his head towards them and scowled darkly.

    ¡°You¡¯re more trouble than most prisoners.¡± His scowl faded and he grinned, ¡°I kind of like it. Brings some excitement to this whole operation.¡±

    Suddenly the door opened again, and Chloe strode in. She didn¡¯t even glance at them as she made her way towards Henry. She muttered something to him, leaning against the table that stood next to Henry. Her voice was low and they couldn¡¯t hear anything that she was saying.

    ¡°Do you know what happened with Blue?¡± Chloe breathed to Henry. He nodded as he turned back to the table, beginning to roll up the map.

    ¡°I think Cedrick told her to do that. Big Blue wasn¡¯t mistaken, she never is.¡±

    Henry peered at her, ¡°You¡¯re saying Cedrick deliberately tried to kill you?¡±

    Chloe shrugged, ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m saying necessarily. But it is a little suspicious. And now, this room feels and smells like Blue.¡±

    Henry straightened sharply, ¡°You think Cedrick sent her to get us?¡±

    Chloe nodded, ¡°He knows that we know about what he does. He wants to get rid of us.¡±

    ¡°We need to get out of here.¡± Henry breathed.

    Chloe swallowed, ¡°I was outside. He has every single door guarded. We can only go through to the store.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll get the others.¡± Henry muttered as he scrambled towards the door.

    Chloe turned to the demigods and she walked towards them. She glowered at Amber, ¡°I¡¯ll let you out.¡±

    Leo whooped from the back but Chloe silenced him with a glare, ¡°But under one condition¡­¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s always a catch, huh?¡± Amber asked.

    ¡°Quiet, Amber.¡± William hissed.

    ¡°If I let you out, then you¡¯re not leaving us.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Amber frowned at this, confused.

    Chloe reached in through the bars and grabbed her collar, pulling her close against the bars, ¡°You help us if you have too. You listen to what we say. No more tricks.¡±

    ¡°Tricks?¡± Amber demanded, ¡°You¡¯re the one who put us in here.¡±

    William grabbed her and shoved her backwards, ¡°We agree!¡±

    Amber glared at him but he shrugged, ¡°We¡¯ll rot in here.¡±

    The door opened and Henry dragged in a sleepy Tanner and Elizabeth. Behind Tanner walked a new girl. She was only around sixteen years old, and was clutching Tanner¡¯s shirt as she glanced around the room.

    ¡°I was dreaming about ice cream!¡± Elizabeth protested.

    ¡°We¡¯ll get ice cream when we get out.¡± Henry mumbled as he pulled them towards the demigods¡¯ cell. Chloe knelt beside the lock on the door, pulled a hairpin from her braid and began to pick the lock. She soon had the door open, and the demigods slowly stepped out, each one stepping warily past her, as if waiting for her to attack them. The young girl bound towards them, a surprising grin on her face. She walked straight up to Kate and began to speak, but a sound interrupted her. It was a hissing roar. Chloe recognized the sound as Big Blue¡¯s call.

    Elizabeth straightened sharply from her dazed state, ¡°Was that¡­?¡± She never finished the thought. Chloe lunged into the open cell silently. She drummed her fingers against the stone wall, then pushed against a few of the stones. The stones entered the wall and a crack started to form.

    Another shrill scream pierced the air. The others rushed in behind her, ¡°Hurry!¡± Elizabeth whimpered.

    The crack in the wall grew bigger and small pebbles began to crumble from the opening. Finally the wall completely opened to a door that looked like the bathroom door in the General store. Chloe grabbed the handle and tried to turn it, but a moment later she turned to Tanner, ¡°It¡¯s locked.¡± She breathed.

    ¡°You just picked a freaking prison cell lock, can¡¯t you do a bathroom door?¡± Leo demanded.

    ¡°The cell locks aren¡¯t very secure because there are guards everywhere, but outside of this door there aren¡¯t any guards except Drew, and she sucks at combat. So they had to make the lock complex.¡±

    Tanner pushed himself towards the door and knelt in front of it.

    ¡°Close the cell door.¡± Chloe hissed.

    Still trusting, Amber grabbed the door and pulled it shut, just as the wall at the entrance door exploded. A large creature, about the size of an elephant scrambled through the opening. It was a large bright blue snake-like creature. It almost looked like a wingless dragon. Amber screamed as they all fell to the back of the cell. Big Blue slithered towards them, breathing heavily. Her Navy blue eyes strangely matched Chloe¡¯s. Her eyes steadily passed over them, stopping on Tanner and watching as he picked open the door. He threw it open instantly. On the other side was the general store, Drew stood at the counter lazily flipping through a magazine, she didn¡¯t notice them until Chloe shoved them all through the door and Tanner slammed the door shut. Drew turned around slowly and faced them, ¡°What are you doing Chamberlain¡­?¡± She asked, her hand slowly reaching behind her back.

    Elizabeth lunged towards her, slamming her into the cashier desk and pinning her arms to her sides. Drew started to protest but Elizabeth dragged her towards a closet door, pushed her inside and locked the door. Drew slammed on the door, yelling to be let out, ¡°I¡¯ll tell Cedrick about this!¡± She screamed.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He already knows.¡± Elizabeth replied.

    Henry coolly walked past Elizabeth towards the fridge area, ¡°Want some ice cream?¡± He asked.

    Leo blinked at him, ¡°Won¡¯t Cedrick be coming?¡±

    But Henry shook his head as he opened a fridge and pulled out a tub of Ben and Jerry¡¯s ice cream, ¡°It¡¯ll take him a while to get through the portal. Like in, a week or two because he doesn¡¯t know the code.¡±

    But they declined his offer, even as Elizabeth and Tanner joined him in raiding the fridge. The younger girl now turned to Kate again, ¡°Hello! I¡¯m Lydia. So y¡¯all are the prisoners that Chloe brought in? Huh. Cool!¡±

    Kate shook her hand gently, ¡°You seemed like the friendliest one in the group.¡± Lydia added sheepishly as she glanced towards Amber, who was scowling at her.

    ¡°Lydia is Tanner¡¯s younger sister.¡± Chloe said as she pulled open the wrapper of a candy bar and began to eat it.

    ¡°Okay.¡± Philip said, ¡°Will someone please tell us what¡¯s going on?¡±

    Henry peered at him, ¡°I think that¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve heard you speak.¡± He muttered.

    ¡°There¡¯s not much to know.¡± Elizabeth said, ¡°We work for Cedrick-¡°

    ¡°Worked.¡± Chloe corrected.

    ¡°Worked for Cedrick. But now we¡¯re here, saving your butts.¡±

    ¡°So¡­the whole foster thing was a joke?¡± Amber asked Chloe.

    Chloe shrugged, ¡°I mean to them it wasn¡¯t. But now they won¡¯t remember a thing. They won¡¯t remember they ever had a ¡®foster¡¯ child.¡±

    ¡°So what? You¡¯re just a wandering teenager who happens to be dangerous?¡± Leo asked.

    Chloe choked on the candy bar and Tanner snickered from behind the counter, where he was eating his ice cream, ¡°We¡¯re not teenagers.¡± He said simply.

    Amber frowned at him, ¡°What¡­do you mean?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m twenty-one. Elizabeth¡¯s nineteen. Henry and Tanner are both twenty-three. And well yeah, Lydia is sixteen. So she¡¯s technically still a teenager.¡± Chloe explained.

    Amber gawked at her, ¡°What!? But you look so¡­.young.¡±

    ¡°Twenty-one is young.¡± Elizabeth muttered.

    ¡°On the good side, when I¡¯m sixty I¡¯ll look forty.¡± Chloe shrugged, ¡°Why? How old are you?¡±

    Amber hesitated, ¡°19.¡± She said sheepishly.

    ¡°So you¡¯re only two years younger than me.¡± Chloe said simply, pulling a soda from a fridge and beginning to chug. She threw the empty can into the small trash can under the cashier desk, then proceeded to pull three cheeseburgers from the warming drawer. She unwrapped all three and basically engulfed them.

    Amber stared at her aghast, but Chloe¡¯s friends didn¡¯t seem bothered, maybe this was normal?

    ¡°It¡¯s been three days.¡± Chloe said, taking another bite of the cheeseburger, ¡°You should really eat something.¡±

    ¡°Three days?¡± William demanded, ¡°I thought we were only in there for a few hours!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, no.¡± Elizabeth said, ¡°Cedrick¡¯s lair does that to you, gets you confused on time and so on and so forth. You¡¯ve been in there for a bit.¡±

    Amber sighed, ¡°All this time we thought we were helping you. But it¡¯s been a trap this whole time.¡±