attitudes. We used the haipies mostly for cleaning the camp, but they did pretty

well in midtown traffic too.

 

The doors slid open. A bunch of campers climbed out, some of them looking a

little green from the long drive. I was glad so many had come: Pollux, Silena

Beauregard, the Stoll brothers, Michael Yew, Jake Mason, Katie Gardner, and

Annabeth, along with most of their siblings. Chiron came out of the van last.

His horse half was compacted into his magic wheelchair, so he used the handicap

lift. The Ares cabin wasn't here, but I tried not to get too angry about that.

Clarisse was a stubborn idiot. End of story.

 

I did a head count: forty campers in all.

 

Not many to fight a war, but it was still the largest group of half-bloods I'd

ever seen gathered in one place outside camp. Everyone looked nervous, and I

understood why. We were probably sending out so much demigod aura that every

monster in the northeastern United States knew we were here.

 

As I looked at their faces — all these campers I'd known for so many summers — a

nagging voice whispered in my mind: One of them is a spy.

 

But I couldn't dwell on that. They were my friends. I needed them.

 

Then I remembered Kronos's evil smile. You can't count on friends. They will

always let you down.