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THE WARNING had barely left Hazel's mouth when an arrow sank into the mainmast, six inches from my face.
The crew scattered for cover, but I stood there, staring at the arrow that had almost pierced my nose the hard way. It didn't make sense. I had a feeling whoever fired it wasn't trying to hit me.
"Angelique, duck!" Jason whispered harshly.
But no other missiles rained down.
Frank studied the angle of the bolt in the mast and pointed toward the top of the cliffs.
"Up there," he said. "Single shooter. See him?"
The sun was in my eyes, but I spotted a tiny figure standing at the top of the ledge. His bronze armor glinted.
"Who the heck is he?" Leo demanded. "Why is he firing at us?"
"There's a note," I said, my brows furrowed. A parchment scroll was tied to the arrow shaft.
As I reached for it, Leo muttered underneath his breath: "Sure, don't check if it's safe."
I ignored him, and unfurled the roll. Then I read out loud. "First line: Stand and deliver."
"What does that mean?" Coach Hedge complained. "We are standing. Well, crouching, anyway. And if that guy is expecting a pizza delivery, forget it!"
"There's more," I said, reading further. "This is a robbery. Send two of your party to the top of the cliff with all your valuables. No more than two. Leave the magic horse. No flying. No tricks. Just climb."
"Climb what?" Piper asked.
Nico pointed. "There."
A narrow set of steps was carved into the cliff, leading to the top. The turtle, the dead-end channel, the cliff... I just knew this was not the first time the letter writer had ambushed a ship here.
I cleared my throat and kept reading aloud: "I do mean all your valuables. Otherwise my turtle and I will destroy you. You have five minutes."
"Use the catapults!" cried the coach.
"P.S.," I read, "Don't even think about using your catapults."
"Curse it!" said the coach. "This guy is good."
"Is the note signed?" Nico asked.
I shook my head. I knew this story, even before I realized I was a child of the gods, I had read this myth, something about a robber who worked with a giant turtle. But of course, it sat in the back of my memory, just out of reach.
Leo studied the cliff top and muttered under his breath. "That's not a good trajectory. Even if I could arm the catapult before that guy pincushioned us with arrows, I don't think I could make the shot. That's hundreds of feet, almost straight up."
