-and that there was the outline of a door up ahead.
Relief cooled my panic, and I let out a tense breath. As soon as I stepped through that door, I'd be safe. I'd run around the hotel, back to the lobby; find Professor Metis, Coach Ajax, or even Nickamedes; and tel them what was going on. Then they would track down the Reaper and deAll with him.
My eyes fixed on the door, I stepped around a wheelbarrow and ran right into Oliver.
Chapter 20
I hit the Spartan's chest and bounced off, shrieking. And I kept right on back-back-backing up until my body was flat against one of the plywood-covered windows.
My hand dropped to my waist, pushing up the bottom of my hoodie and fumbling for the scabbard that was strapped there.
After a second my fingers curled around Vic's hilt. If the Spartan tried anything, anything at All , I'd pul the sword and defend myself with it-or at least try to.
Oliver held out his hands and stepped toward me.
"Gwen, it's okay. I didn't mean to scare you. I just want to talk to you."
"Talk?" I snapped, keeping my back to the wAll , one hand on Vic's hilt as I edged away from him. "Talk about what?
How you tried to mow me down with your SUV earlier this week? Or maybe you'd like to talk about how you took a shot at me with your bow and arrow in the Library of Antiquities?"
Guilt fil ed his face. "Look, I can explain All that."
"ReAll y? Like you can explain the avalanche you caused yesterday? The one that almost buried me on this damn mountain forever? Because I'd reAll y, reAll y like to hear you explain that one."
Oliver frowned. "Avalanche? I didn't cause the avalanche, Gwen."
"I don't believe you. I don't believe a word that's coming out of your mouth. You're a Reaper of Chaos, and you're trying to kil me. That's All I need to know." Oliver stared at me, worry etching deep lines into his forehead. "I'm not a Reaper! Why would you even think that?"
"Oh, I don't know," I said in a sarcastic tone. "Maybe it has something to do with the fact that you've tried to kil me four times now."
"I wasn't trying to kil you," Oliver said. "Not with my car and not in the library. I was just trying to scare you a little." My eyebrows shot up in my face. "Scare me? Why?"
"Because of Kenzie," Oliver growled in a frustrated tone.
"And what you saw when you touched my notebook. Logan told us about your psychometry magic and how you can learn people's secrets just by touching stuff that belongs to them. You said something about my crush, and I knew that you knew about Kenzie. I didn't want you tel ing anyone, so I did All that other stuff to distract you. I wasn't reAll y trying to hurt you, Gwen. I swear."
His mouth twisted a little. "Logan would kil me if I ever hurt you on purpose. Hel , he'd kil me now if he realized what I've done so far."
Oliver looked and sounded sincere, but I didn't know if I believed him or not. A few weeks ago, I'd thought Jasmine had been brutAll y murdered, but it had All just been an il usion the crazy Valkyrie had created. Who was to say Oliver wasn't playing me the same way Jasmine had?
I tiptoed along the wAll , creeping closer to the door, until I was forced to step around another wheelbarrow. I put it between me and the Spartan. Now, my back was to the door, and I kept my gaze fixed on Oliver, just in case he tried to rush after me. I stil had my hand on Vic's hilt, although I doubted I would pul the sword now. I could run faster if I wasn't carrying him in my hand.
"I'm going to walk out that door and find Professor Metis," I told Oliver. "You can explain it All to her." I took one step back toward the door, then another, then another. More frustration fil ed the Spartan's face, and his hands curled into fists, but he didn't make a move to fol ow me. Maybe he was tel ing the truth, maybe he wasn't a Reaper, but I couldn't take a chance he wasn't.
Besides, he'd already copped to the fact that he'd come after me with his SUV and fired that arrow at my head. What kind of guy did stuff like that? Okay, okay, so maybe All the Mythos kids were a little twisted and violent that way, and maybe I was, too, since I'd just broken into the Spartan's room on a hunch. But I certainly didn't want to be trapped alone with him in the dark, with no one around to hear me scream.
Oliver opened his mouth, like he was going to say something.
Then his eyes widened. "Look out-" A crossbow bolt zipped by my ear and sank into the Spartan's left shoulder. Blood sprayed through the air.
Oliver screamed with pain and col apsed onto the concrete floor, clawing at the bolt. I whirled around.
A figure stood behind me. He must have slipped in through the door while I'd been talking to Oliver. Shadows cloaked his face, but I could clearly see the crossbow in his hand-the one that he'd just loaded with a fresh bolt. He gestured with the weapon, and I put my hands up and slowly backed around the wheelbarrow until I stood next to Oliver, who was writhing on the floor in pain.
"Stop," the shadowy figure commanded.
I gasped. I recognized that voice, knew exactly who it belonged to. But why would he be here? And why would he shoot Oliver?
Preston stepped into a slice of sunlight and leveled his crossbow at me. "You're not going anywhere, Gypsy." This time, my eyes were the ones that widened.
"Preston?" I asked. "What's going on? What are you doing?"
"I think it's rather obvious. I'm here to kil you." His handsome face twisted into a sneer. "Just like you kil ed my little sister. And my name's not Preston. Wel , not exactly.
Preston's my middle name, you see. Julian Preston Ashton."
"Your sister?" I whispered, ice fil ing up my stomach.
"Jasmine was your sister?"
Professor Metis had warned me that Jasmine's family blamed me for her death, that they might come after me.
Jasmine herself had told me that she and the rest of her family were Reapers. Now one of them had come to col ect.
"Don't you say her name!" Preston screamed. "Don't you dare say her name, you Gypsy bitch!"
Preston leveled the crossbow at my face, and for a second I thought he was going to pul the trigger. But then he calmed down and lowered the weapon a few inches-
aiming it at my heart instead. Not much of an improvement.
"Did you reAll y think you could kil my sister-kil an Ashton, kil a Reaper-and get away with it?" Preston snarled.
I swAll owed, but a hard lump of fear fil ed my throat.
"Jasmine-Jasmine tried to kil me first. I just defended myself."
I didn't say anything about the fact that Logan was reAll y the one who'd kil ed Jasmine, that the Spartan had been the one to put a spear through her chest. I didn't want to put him in danger, too.