I watched the news with a half-interest, far more interested in petting my dog, Snow White. To all extents and purposes, she was a normal dog. To those who really know her, she's a guard dog.

Snow White used to be a guide dog for our blind neighbor. When he died, Snow adopted us. With the arrival of Snow five years ago, I was finally told that I was a daughter of Demeter, that my entire family (excluding my dad and two sisters) was a step-family, and that when the time was right I'd go to Camp Half-blood. Until then, Snow White would protect us.

Of course, that all changed when the newscast broke down and the emergency warning sign popped up.

"Warning:" the words on the screen read, while static erupted from the TV. "The neighborhood of Spring Hills is being attacked by a serial killer. The said neighborhood is going through a shut down while the police sort his out. If this man is signed, contact 911 at once."

I only caught a glimpse of the man's face before the screen went black, but I could tell who it was immediately.

Moriarty. Jim Moriarty.

I issues a curse in Greek. "Snow White, go into protection mode. I'll tell the others." I ran down the hallways, bursting into my parent's room where sat my two sisters, Elly and Ivy, my step-mom, my dad, and my step-brother Kyle.

"Moriarty is in the neighborhood." I told them. "I fear he's coming for us. If so, we have a few seconds at best until..."

The doorbell rang.

"That happens." I said, my heart sinking. "Crap."

I don't think my dad could have bought it unless he knew that I wouldn't joke about this kind of stuff. "Five seconds to pack. Is Snow White guarding?"

"Yes."

"Hellhounds don't have anything against this man, even the smaller ones." Ivy shared. "Besides, isn't Moriarty supposed to be in London, terrorizing people there?"

The doorbell rang again. I could almost hear the creepy, unsettling music rising in anticipation.

"Yeah... no." I said, gesturing towards the door. "Is anybody going to stop him, or...?"

"Five seconds are up." Dad muttered, giving each of us a bracelet with a different charm on it. "I enrolled you four into fencing for s reason. We're going to jump out of this window and high-tail it for the Austin airport and board the first flight to Long Island Sound. The lady there knows us, she'll get us here no matter what. Ready? Go." He jumped out of the apartment window and hit the grass below, issuing some colorful curses that were not in Ancient Greek.

One by one, we jumped out of the window. Once we were down. We saw the reason for his colorful curses.

Leaning there against the fence was Moriarty himself.

He was everything I expected, and so much more. I was quite speechless as my eyes widened and I mentally calculated just how long it would take before we were just six more bodies on the floor.

Then he spoke. "Well, well, well, what do we have here."

It was not a question, but a statement, an amused statement in the form of a question that anybody except Moriarty would ask. I hated the stuffing out of him.

Kyle, brave Kyle, cleared his throat. "You're in the way."

"So are you." Moriarty noticed. Drawing his gun, he calmly shot Kyle in the head, showing no emotions in his black eyes as my step-brother crumbled to the ground.

Moriarty's aim was impeccable, hardened by years of training. If we tried to run, he could peck us off without a care in the world.

"Selene." My dad spoke cautiously, drawing closer to me. "As much as I hate the underground..."

I understood what he was implying, as did my other two siblings and my step-mom as we crowded together in a clump. Bending to my will, the grass shot up and swallowed us, sending us through underground travel as we were passed from roots to roots. After what was maybe five minutes, we popped up next to a tree outside the Austin airport, running straight through to security.

"Excuse me." The lady in charge of our line said. "Don't you have any bags, or a passage report?"

My dad leaned in and whispered in her ear. Immediately, she nodded and let us through. We made out way to the private jet line, dad leading us.

"She'll be flying us." Dad said in a hushed voice. "Straight to Camp Half-blood. Wear some hats, keep on the low-down, mingle with the crowd. Of course, if he spots us we're done for, but at least we can hide."

"What makes you think he's here?" Elly asked softly.

"I know his antics. I know the people he sponsors. I know that he never shows up unprepared. He probably has already figured out a way to kill each and every one of us."

"Thanks for the pep talk." I murmured sarcastically before stealing a few hats while the owner of the shop's back was turned and handing them out to my family.

Surprisingly, there were quite a few people at the private jet line, so we didn't have to be isolated.

We were just getting comfy and sure of ourselves when the man behind us turned around. "Hello." Whispered Moriarty.

A scream sounded from somewhere behind us. With a nimble turn, Moriarty shot the woman in the head.

Immediately, chaos erupted in the waiting area. As if telepathically, Ivy and I rushed over to the other side to evacuate people who were evidently glued to their seat.

"It's Moriarty, the serial killer." I warned them. "Go, now! Before it's too late! He can kill people by simply glancing at them."

Fear seemed to amplify this possibility, and the people fled. We rushed back to find our step-mother dead and the rest of our family running for the exit. Moriarty was strolling along, seeming to take up twice the space with every step.

Once we boarded the jet, we immediately closed the doors. The lady from earlier was piloting as we lifted off the ground even before we were all buckled in. Dad issued cuss after cuss.

The trip that normally would have taken five hours took roughly two, seeing how she was spending and probably breaking all of the air traffic rules. Finally, the jet temporarily landed just inside a tree border - just long enough for us to get out - then it flew away.

Ivy took a deep breath. "We made it... just barely."

"No you didn't." A familiar singsong voice laughed.

We turned incredulously to see Moriarty himself, leaning against the tree - inside the border.

"I'm a son of Chaos, idiots." He smirked. "I have shadow travel."

"What are you going to do?" Elly asked.

He gestured towards the dining hall. "I'm going to talk to you." He said simply. "And you're going to kill yourself."