Love or Fate Read Online Free

whistling an ugly off-key tune. I couldn’t stop shivering. And the three-headed dog-beast before us was drooling. “This can’t be our fate, this can’t be our fate,” I kept saying over and over again. Wehadn’t come this far through earth, and high school, and everything else only to become doggy dinner. Where was Daddy?
    The thing, the three-headed thing, had three sets of fangs, and each set looked sharper than the next. Its eyes were bright red like white-hot fire pokers. It lumbered toward us.
    I closed my own eyes tight and thought about how much I loved my sisters and how I really wasn’t always so nice and how if I survived this, I should, no, I would be a better person. I thought about Apollo’s sweet smile and his funny laugh and about all our childhood adventures. And although it was probably wrong, I thought about that silly mortal Dylan and that goofy uniform he wore and his sparkling eyes.
    And then, just like that, I realized the growling had stopped. It had been replaced by a wet, panting sound. Slowly I opened my eyes. Era was still clinging to my pants. But Polly…Polly was—was—was… petting it.
    “His name is Cerberus,” she said. “It says so here on his tags.” She was rattling these giant metal charms under his middle chin. The beast seemed to be almost smiling.
    “What? I don’t care what its name is,” I said. “I’m just glad it’s not going to devour us. It’s notgoing to devour us, right?” I ventured a hopeful look in Polly’s direction.
    “No, silly. He never was. He’s just a little lonely.” Polly was nuzzling him under two of his chins. “They put him here all alone—I suppose to guard these gates so that no one escapes. The poor thing doesn’t have any company. He doesn’t get any love; I can see it in his eyes.”
    “Well, no wonder. I’d say he hasn’t had a bath in decades,” said Era as she picked herself off the ground and wrinkled her nose. She was one to talk. That Harpy on the boat had picked and teased her wild hair something awful. Her camisole was ripped and muddy, her face covered in dust. I suspected I looked only a touch better.
    Era took a few steps toward “Cerberus” and tentatively rubbed him behind one of his six giant ears. His single tail, which looked far more like a dragon’s than a puppy’s, wagged frantically. It was so large and powerful, it kicked up another dust storm, which whirled around us, getting thicker and thicker. I could no longer see my sisters or Cerberus, even—the air was too dark with dirt.
    And then the wind just died in an instant and everything fell to the ground, calm and still. The dust began to clear. And when it did, I saw three figures in front of us. Three slender figures, theirhands on their hips, their chins held high. And I smelled a scent worse than the stinky cheese cavern. It was the scent of evil.
    It was Alek, Tizzie, and Meg. It was the Furies.
    They started to laugh that piercing evil laugh, the one they do in unison, the one that could puncture a dog’s eardrum. Sure enough, Cerberus went howling into a corner near the gates, his thunderous spiny tail between his legs.
     
    Welcome, oh, welcome to our humble abode.
    This is of course Tartarus, as the gates have told.
    We’re delighted and gleeful to now take you in.
    In fact, we’re so happy, let’s start the violin.
     
    A violin appeared out of nowhere, hanging effortlessly in the air. The bow slammed across the strings, pulling and yanking them every which way, causing a wrenching, screeching noise. Polly, Era, and I covered our ears, but it was no use; the “music” only got louder. It was as if the hideous noise was playing inside our heads.
     
    This is your home for the rest of eternity.
    Say farewell to your days of fun and modernity.
    You will be our slaves, you’re flat out of luck.
    There is no one to help you! You’re eternally stuck!
     
    The three evil ones were dressed head to toe in black. They looked like their old