Chapter 11 I Chuck Things at Other Things #3
I couldn’t help noticing that, this time, she didn’t make any excuses about Grant lounging back at his mansion. Had she called his parents and been told he wasn’t there? Was that what her mood had been about this morning?
“Grant’s alive,” I said with a lift of my chin. “He’s a champion, right? A child of Ares.”
One corner of Clarisse’s mouth lifted. “True. Although why the rest of you could make it out of the Zone and he couldn’t is beyond me.”
I shoved my hand into my pocket, fingers grazing the ring nestled at the bottom. “Maybe he found something out there.”
Clarisse barked a laugh. “That’s an understatement.”
“I don’t mean a monster. Maybe he found some…I don’t know, ancient Greek artifact.” I prayed my tone was casual enough. “Connor Stoll was telling me rumors—”
“Connor Stoll.” Clarisse muttered his name like a curse. “That guy says a lot of things.” Then she narrowed her eyes, obviously thinking.
Shoot. She was onto me.
“Although…” she said, “that might be possible.”
I balked. “Really?”
“I’ve heard those rumors too—ghost stories around the campfire, really—about magic items left in the Wild Zone. Maybe as offerings. Or sacrifices.”
My blood chilled at the last word. “Sacrifices to what?”
“Yeah, well, that’s the question. But if Grant picked up something he shouldn’t have…”
I narrowed my eyes. Clarisse’s voice had a strange undertone…like hunger. “Is that why you sent us through there? Hoping we’d find artifacts?”
Clarisse shot me a withering look. “I never for a second thought those stories were true. I was just trying to scare all of you, and maybe…” She stopped herself, but her guilty expression helped me put together the pieces.
“Clarisse,” I said sternly, “where is Zeus’s Fist?”
Her grip tightened on her javelin. “In the western part of the woods.”
“The race starts there, and finishes at the dining pavilion….” I summoned my mental grid of the camp. There were a lot of blank areas I’d never explored, but one thing was clear. “So if you made a beeline from starting point to finish line, you’d have to run straight through the Wild Zone.”
Clarisse tried to feign shock, but she was a really bad actor. “Obviously the course goes around the Zone!”
“But you walked us to the far end and forced us to run through the Zone,” I said. “You were hoping we might find an illegal shortcut that could help Ares cabin win the baton race, weren’t you?”
She wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“YOU WERE!” My own ears rang from the roar of my voice.
Everyone on the javelin range looked at us.
Clarisse retreated a step. Zuri frowned at me, silently asking if I needed backing, but I held up a hand to keep her at bay.
“Clarisse.” I dropped my voice to a dangerous growl. “You are the most selfish, greedy, heartless person I have ever met. Grant is missing—probably in danger—and for what? So we can cheat in a race?”
Clarisse swallowed hard. “You’d better watch yourself, newbie. I’m the head counselor here.”
“You don’t act like it,” I shot back. “A good head counselor wouldn’t rest until all her campers were safe.” I pointed at her. “And a good Ares leader wouldn’t send unseasoned troops into danger for personal glory. You know Dad would agree with me.”
Clarisse’s mouth worked from side to side. “I do care what happened to Grant,” she said in a soft voice. “I’m not done looking for him.”
I crossed my arms. “Good. So tonight, let’s—”
“Not tonight,” Clarisse insisted. “We need time to formulate a plan.”
“I have a plan!” I stepped closer, getting in her face.
She was bigger, taller, and older than me, but I was enough of an Ares kid to know I had to press my advantage before she regained her confidence.
“I’m telling it to you right now. Tonight during the race, I’m searching the Wild Zone on my own. ”
Clarisse managed a laugh. “How? You said Grant had to save your butt last time. You can’t handle that place by yourself.”
“I can with this.” I fished the ring out of my pocket and let her get a glimpse of it, cupped in my palm. I hadn’t planned to, but her haughtiness in spite of everything was getting on my nerves.
“And FYI, I found it in the Wild Zone.” I let a little smugness of my own creep into my voice.
Clarisse stared at the ring like it was a pet scorpion. “Does it…? What does it do?”
“Makes me invisible. But I’m used to that.
” I slipped the ring back into my pocket.
“So tonight, I’m going to find Grant. And I’ll take the shortcut you wanted—which, yes, I did find—and win the race while I’m at it.
All you have to do is put me in the best position to take advantage of the cut-through. ”
I held Clarisse’s gaze and shifted my weight forward, ready to pounce if she started swinging.
Instead, she stepped back, scrutinizing my face as if she’d never noticed I had actual human features.
“Interesting,” she said. “So, you’ve got some Ares spirit in you after all.
Okay, kid. But if this goes bad…” She curled her lip.
“Well, don’t let it go bad. I’d hate to lose two campers in the same week. ”