Chapter 1 I Do Target Practice with the Family （I’m the Target） #3
She shook her head, her eyes gleaming like she couldn’t believe her good luck. “That means you are absolute losers. Nobody cares if you’re here, there, or anywhere.”
Zuri cocked her head. “But you’re here in the off-season. Doesn’t that make you a loser, too?”
Beside me, Grant choked back a laugh.
Clarisse’s expression soured. “Still got some attitude? That’s good. We’ll see how long it lasts.”
She snapped her fingers. Two of her cronies reached over their shoulders.
They did not produce bouquets of flowers.
Instead, they unslung bows and pulled arrows from their quivers.
Harper’s mouth dropped open. “Oh. My. Mom. Are you going to hunt us?!”
Clarisse laughed. “No, you dolt. We’re simply going to offer gentle encouragement as you panic-sprint through the Wild Zone.”
One of her goons grinned. “Consider yourselves lucky, punks. We used to haze newbies by dunking their heads in toilets. But after Percy Jackson—”
“We don’t talk about Percy,” Clarisse snapped.
The boy with the knife finally finished cutting our bonds. I massaged my wrists, wondering if my hands would be that shade of blue forever.
“Where is this Wild Zone?” Grant asked.
“Right in front of you!” Clarisse gestured with a sweep of her hand.
Her torchbearers stepped to either side, lifting their firebrands to give us a better view. I’d been so focused on the heavily armed kids and their death threats, I hadn’t really paid much attention to our surroundings.
Now my heart sank into my socks.
We were in the woods, sure. We’d been walking through them for almost an hour.
But in front of us stretched a thick tangle of ancient trees and thorny underbrush that looked much older, darker, and more dangerous.
The trees seemed angry. Hungry. Hangry—like they’d been watered with steroids and the blood of demigods for centuries, and they were still thirsty for more.
The creepiest part was the medallions hanging from the lowest branches, like evil Christmas ornaments.
Hundreds of glass disks glinted in the torchlight—ovals with concentric rings of dark blue and light blue, with black dots in the middle.
I’d never seen anything like them before, but I immediately understood what they were.
Eyes. Warning markers that said, We are watching you. STAY OUT.
“Goat poop,” I mumbled.
We were in serious trouble. From the expressions of my fellow abductees, I could tell they were thinking the same thing.
“Fun fact,” Clarisse said cheerfully. “The Wild Zone is off-limits to demigods. A lot of campers don’t even know it exists. But if the patrol harpies catch you in there, or if anyone learns that you went in, you’ll be kicked out of camp permanently. Again, assuming you live.”
“What?!” I couldn’t keep the panic out of my voice.
Clarisse ate it up.
“That’s right! And your job tonight is to run all the way through it.” She glanced at the dark sky. “We’ll give you until daybreak to reach the cabins.”
Zuri narrowed her eyes. “But aren’t the cabins in the other direction?”
I groaned. “No. I’ve been making a mental grid.”
“A what?” asked Harper.
“Not important,” I said, but suddenly I understood why Clarisse and her goons had taken us on such a roundabout route through the forest. They’d been making a big loop around the Wild Zone, bringing us to the opposite side.
“The only way back to the cabins,” I said, “at least the only direct way—is straight through those hangry trees.”
“Look at Katie Kim,” Clarisse said, “actually knowing something!”
Benny peered into the underbrush. “What’s in there?”
Clarisse grinned. “No one knows! Oh, there’s lots of rumors, but it’s got to be off-limits for some good reason, right? I’ll expect a full report if you survive the trip.”
“Forget it,” said Zuri. “I’m not jumping through hoops for you.”
Clarisse shrugged. “Stay here, then. We’ll use you for target practice. Bows up!”
Her archer cronies nocked their arrows.
“Clarisse.” Harper tried to lock eyes with her. “You don’t want—”
“Nope!” She averted her gaze, not falling for his charmspeak again.
“But you don’t—”
“NOPE!” Clarisse hefted her spear. “Less charmspeak, more running, pretty boy.”
“Clarisse, this isn’t right!” Benny shouted. “We’re on the same side!”
“Besides, we’re family,” I tried. “Isn’t family the most—”
“Draw!” Clarisse barked.
The archers pulled back their bowstrings. I had no faith that they were bluffing.
“It’s okay, guys.” Grant put his hand on Benny’s shoulder, and then glanced reassuringly from Harper to Zuri to me. “We’ll be fine. Separately, we’re like this.” He wiggled his fingers like frantic spider legs. “But the five of us working together?” He curled his fingers into a fist.
“Aw.” Clarisse cocked her head. “That pep talk made me throw up a little in my mouth, but I like the effort.” She patted Grant hard on the cheek. “Keep it up, kid. You’ve got potential.”
She turned to me and gripped my chin. “And you—since you and Grant are part of our big happy Ares family, we’re gonna aim for you first. Now, get moving!” Then, in a louder voice, she added, “Take aim!”
My eyes widened. She wasn’t kidding. I grabbed Grant’s wrist, and we ran for our lives.