The House of Hades (Heroes of Olympus Book 4)

corn silk off his shoulder. ‘Can we get out of here now?’
    Hazel put her hand on Frank’s shoulder. ‘Are you okay, really? You bartered for our lives. What did Triptolemus make you do?’
    Frank tried to hold it together. He scolded himself for feeling so weak. He could face an army of monsters, but as soon as Hazel showed him kindness he wanted to breakdown and cry. ‘Those cow monsters … the
katoblepones
that poisoned you … I had to destroy them.’
    ‘That was brave,’ Nico said. ‘There must have been, what, six or seven left in that herd.’
    ‘No.’ Frank cleared his throat. ‘All of them. I killed
all
of them in the city.’
    Nico and Hazel stared at him in stunned silence. Frank was afraid they might doubt him, or start to laugh. How many monsters had he killed on that bridge – two hundred? Three hundred?
    But he saw in their eyes that they believed him. They were children of the Underworld. Maybe they could sense the death and carnage he’d unleashed.
    Hazel kissed his cheek. She had to stand on her tiptoes to do it now. Her eyes were incredibly sad, as if she realized something had changed in Frank – something much more important than the physical growth spurt.
    Frank knew it too. He would never be the same. He just wasn’t sure if that was a good thing.
    ‘Well,’ Nico said, breaking the tension, ‘does anyone know what barley looks like?’

XXI
     

ANNABETH
     
    A NNABETH DECIDED THE MONSTERS wouldn’t kill her. Neither would the poisonous atmosphere, nor the treacherous landscape with its pits, cliffs and jagged rocks.
    Nope. Most likely she would die from an overload of
weirdness
that would make her brain explode.
    First, she and Percy had had to drink fire to stay alive. Then they were attacked by a gaggle of vampires, led by a cheerleader Annabeth had killed two years ago. Finally, they were rescued by a Titan janitor named Bob who had Einstein hair, silver eyes and wicked broom skills.
    Sure. Why not?
    They followed Bob through the wasteland, tracing the route of the Phlegethon as they approached the storm front of darkness. Every so often they stopped to drink firewater, which kept them alive, but Annabeth wasn’t happy about it. Her throat felt like she was constantly gargling with battery acid.
    Her only comfort was Percy. Every so often he would glance over and smile, or squeeze her hand. He had to be just as scared and miserable as she was, and she loved him for trying to make her feel better.
    ‘Bob knows what he’s doing,’ Percy promised.
    ‘You have interesting friends,’ Annabeth murmured.
    ‘Bob is interesting!’ The Titan turned and grinned. ‘Yes, thank you!’
    The big guy had good ears. Annabeth would have to remember that.
    ‘So, Bob …’ She tried to sound casual and friendly, which wasn’t easy with a throat scorched by firewater. ‘How did you get to Tartarus?’
    ‘I jumped,’ he said, like it was obvious.
    ‘You jumped into Tartarus,’ she said, ‘because Percy said your name?’
    ‘He needed me.’ Those silver eyes gleamed in the darkness. ‘It is okay. I was tired of sweeping the palace. Come along! We are almost at a rest stop.’
    A rest stop.
    Annabeth couldn’t imagine what those words meant in Tartarus. She remembered all the times she, Luke and Thalia had relied on highway rest stops when they were homeless demigods, trying to survive.
    Wherever Bob was taking them, she hoped it had clean restrooms and a snack machine. She repressed the giggles. Yes, she was definitely losing it.
    Annabeth hobbled along, trying to ignore the rumble in her stomach. She stared at Bob’s back as he led them towardsthe wall of darkness, now only a few hundred yards away. His blue janitor’s coveralls were ripped between the shoulder blades, as if someone had tried to stab him. Cleaning rags stuck out of his pocket. A squirt bottle swung from his belt, the blue liquid inside sloshing hypnotically.
    Annabeth remembered Percy’s story about meeting the Titan. Thalia Grace, Nico di Angelo and Percy had worked together to defeat Bob on the banks of the Lethe. After wiping his memory, they didn’t have the heart to kill him. He became so gentle and sweet and cooperative that they left him at the palace of Hades, where Persephone promised he would be looked after.
    Apparently, the Underworld king and queen thought ‘looking after’ someone meant giving him a broom and having him sweep up their messes. Annabeth wondered how even Hades