The Last Olympian

there—to set up the final defense.”
    The doorman had disappeared from the lobby. His book was facedown on the desk and his chair was empty. The rest of the lobby, however, was jam-packed with wounded campers, Hunters, and satyrs.
    Connor and Travis Stoll met us by the elevators.
    “Is it true?” Connor asked. “About Silena?”
    I nodded. “She died a hero.”
    Travis shifted uncomfortably. “Um, I also heard—”
    “That’s it,” I insisted. “End of story.”
    “Right,” Travis mumbled. “Listen, we figure the Titan’s army will have trouble getting up the elevator. They’ll have to go up a few at a time. And the giants won’t be able to fit at all.”
    “That’s our biggest advantage,” I said. “Any way to disable the elevator?”
    “It’s magic,” Travis said. “Usually you need a key card, but the doorman vanished. That means the defenses are crumbling. Anyone can walk into the elevator now and head straight up.”
    “Then we have to keep them away from the doors,” I said. “We’ll bottle them up in the lobby.”
    “We need reinforcements,” Travis said. “They’ll just keep coming. Eventually they’ll overwhelm us.”
    “There are no reinforcements,” Connor complained.
    I looked outside at Mrs. O’Leary, who was breathing against the glass doors and smearing them with hellhound drool.
    “Maybe that’s not true,” I said.
    I went outside and put a hand on Mrs. O’Leary’s muzzle. Chiron had bandaged her paw, but she was still limping. Her fur was matted with mud, leaves, pizza slices, and dried monster blood.
    “Hey, girl.” I tried to sound upbeat. “I know you’re tired, but I’ve got one more big favor to ask you.” I leaned next to her and whispered in her ear.
    After Mrs. O’Leary shadow-traveled away, I rejoined Annabeth in the lobby. On the way to the elevator, we spotted Grover kneeling over a fat wounded satyr.
    “Leneus!” I said.
    The old satyr looked terrible. His lips were blue. There was a broken spear in his belly, and his furry goat legs were twisted at a painful angle.
    He tried to focus on us, but I don’t think he saw us.
    “Grover?” he murmured.
    “I’m here, Leneus.” Grover was blinking back tears, despite all the horrible things Leneus had said about him. “
    Did . . . did we win?”
    “Um . . . yes,” he lied. “Thanks to you, Leneus. We drove the enemy away.”
    “Told you,” the old satyr mumbled. “True leader. True . . .”
    He closed his eyes for the last time.
    Grover gulped. He put his hand on Leneus’s forehead and spoke an ancient blessing. The old satyr’s body melted, until all that was left was a tiny sapling in a pile of fresh soil.
    “A laurel,” Grover said in awe. “Oh, that lucky old goat.” He gathered up the sapling in his hands. “I . . . I should plant him. In Olympus, in the gardens.”
    “We’re going that way,” I said. “Come on.” Easy-listening music played as the elevator rose. I thought about the first time I’d visited Mount Olympus, back when I was twelve. Annabeth and Grover hadn’t been with me then. I was glad they were with me now. I had a feeling it might be our last adventure together.
    “Percy,” Annabeth said quietly. “You were right about Luke.” It was the first time she’d spoken since Silena Beauregard’s death. She kept her eyes fixed on the elevator numbers as they blinked into the magical numbers: 400, 450, 500.
    Grover and I exchanged glances.
    “Annabeth,” I said. “I’m sorry—”
    “You tried to tell me.” Her voice was shaky. “Luke is no good. I didn’t believe you until . . . until I heard how he’d used Silena. Now I know. I hope you’re happy.”
    “That doesn’t make me happy.”
    She put her head against the elevator wall and wouldn’t look at me.
    Grover cradled his laurel sapling in his hands. “Well . . . sure good to be together again. Arguing. Almost dying. Abject terror. Oh, look. It’s our floor.”
    The doors dinged and we stepped onto the aerial walkway.
    Depressing is not a word that usually describes Mount Olympus, but it looked that way now. No fires lit the braziers. The windows were dark. The streets were deserted and the doors were barred. The only movement was in the parks, which had been set up as field hospitals. Will Solace and the other Apollo campers scrambled around, caring for the wounded. Naiads and dryads tried to help, using nature magic songs to heal burns and poison.
    As Grover planted the laurel