THE FOUR OF THEM SCRUNCHED down into their seats. Behind Mrs. Dodds came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Otherwise, they looked exactly like Mrs. Dodds. Same gnarled hands, paisley handbags, wrinkled velvet dresses. Triplet demon grandmothers.
They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two on the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves.
The bus pulled out of the station, and they headed through the slick streets of Manhattan. "She didn't stay dead long," Percy commented, trying to keep his voice from quivering in fear, "I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime."
"I said if you're lucky," Selena replied, "You're obviously not, Seaweed Brain."
"All three of them," Grover whimpered. "Di immortales!"
"It's okay," Annabeth tried to calm them, obviously thinking hard. "The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No fucking problem. We'll just slip out the windows."
"They don't open," Grover moaned.
"A back exit?" she suggested.
There wasn't one. Even if there had been, it wouldn't have helped. By that time, they were on Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.
"They won't attack us with witnesses around," Percy stated, "Will they?"
"Mortals don't have good eyes," Selena reminded him, "Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist."
"They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?"
She thought about it, "Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof?"
The bus went into the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of the rain.
Mrs. Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if she'd rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus, "I need to use the rest-room."
"So do I," said the second sister.
"So do I," the third sister added.
They all started coming down the aisle. Selena gulped nervously and reached for her dagger in her pocket, "I've got it, " Annabeth said. "Percy, take my hat."
"What?"
"You're the one they want. Turn invisible and go up the aisle. Let them pass you. Maybe you can get to the front and get away."
"But you guys-"
"There's an outside chance they might not notice us," Annabeth interrupted him, "You're a son of one of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering."
"I can't just leave you guys."
"Don't worry about us," Grover said. "Go!"
Percy's hands trembled. Selena reached over and squeezed them, "Hey, hey." His sea-green eyes locked onto hers, "You can do this. Everything is going to be okay." He nodded and Selena placed the hat on his head. He immediately disappeared, "Go, Percy."
She didn't want him to die and end their quest this early.
Selena watched as Mrs. Dodds stopped, sniffing, and her eyes moved over to an empty row of seats. Selena knew that Percy was there, and the Furies could smell him. Luckily, they kept walking.
But the moment their eyes landed on the two other Demi-gods and the satyr, all hell broke loose.
"Fuck."
The old ladies were not old ladies anymore. Their faces were still the same but their bodies had shriveled into leathery brown hag bodies with bat's wings and hands and feet like gargoyle claws. Their handbags had turned into fiery whips. The Furies surrounded Grover, Selena, and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing; "Where is it? Where?"
The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats. They saw something, all right. "He's not here!" Annabeth yelled. "He's gone!"
The Furies raised their whips. Annabeth drew her bronze knife and Selena grabbed her dagger from her jacket while Grover grabbed a tin can from his snack bag and prepared to throw it.
The bus jerked and everyone was thrown to the right. Selena reached out to grab the seat to steady herself, glancing past the Furies to see the driver fighting to gather control of the steering wheel.
Good job, Percy, you might just end up killing everyone on the bus now, Selena thought.
The bus slammed into the side of the tunnel, grinding metal, throwing sparks a mile behind them.They careened out of the Lincoln Tunnel and back into the rainstorm, people and monsters tossed around the bus, cars plowed aside like bowling pins.
Selena waved her dagger, trying to keep the Furies away from them. But her short range weapon was no use for their long, fiery whips.
She cried out as the end of the whip wrapped around her ankle, causing a searing pain as the Fury pulled back and she fell to the ground. Annabeth hooked her arms under Selena's armpits, trying to pull her back while Grover threw his tin cans.
The bus hit the brakes and the Furies fell backwards. It gave Selena time to unwrap the whip from her leg and brace herself as the bus crashed into the trees.
As the bus driver and passengers ran off the bus, Annabeth stepped over Selena, waving her knife and yelling in Ancient Greek, telling them to back off. Selena got back to her feet, putting more weight on her uninjured ankle, a tightened her grip on her dagger,
Near the doorway, Percy took off the invisible cap. "Hey!"
The Furies turned and bared their yellow fangs at him. Mrs. Dodds stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class. Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather.
"Percy, run!" Selena yelled,
What was he doing?
"Wait." Annabeth whispered, "This is good. We can get the drop on them.
Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled toward Percy like huge nasty lizards, "Perseus Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere farther south than Georgia. "You have offended the Gods. You shall die."
"I liked you better as a math teacher," Percy sassed and she growled,
Selena, Annabeth, and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening. Percy took the ballpoint pen out of his pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword.
The Furies hesitated. Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptide's blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again. "Submit now," she hissed. "And you will not suffer eternal torment."
"Nice try," He told her.
"Percy, look out!" Selena cried before Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around his sword hand while the Furies on either side lunged at Percy.
His hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but he managed not to drop Riptide. Percy stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backward into a seat. He turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust. Annabeth got Mrs. Dodds in a wrestler's hold and yanked her backward while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.
"Ow!" he yelled. "Ow! Hot! Hot!"
The Fury Percy hilt-slammed went to Percy again, talons ready, but Selena stabbed her in the heart with her dagger and she turned to dust.
Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on while Grover got Mrs. Dodds's legs tied up in her own whip. Finally, they both shoved her backward into the aisle. Mrs. Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down.
"Zeus will destroy you!" she promised, "Hades will have your soul!"
"Braccas meas vescimini!" Percy yelled and Selena let out a small laugh before thunder shook the bus.
"Get out!" Annabeth yelled at Percy, "Now!"
They rushed outside, Selena jumping from the stairs and Percy caught her before she could do any more damage to her ankle.
"Why'd you stay, Seaweed Brain?" Selena slapped his abdomen gently as he helped her away from the bus, "You die, and our quest is finished."
"Glad you care so much about my well-being." Percy grunted,
"Our bags!" Grover cried out, turning to face the bus, "We left our-"
BOOOOOM!
The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, but an angry wail from inside told them Mrs. Dodds was not yet dead.
"Run!" Annabeth said, wrapping Selena's arm around her shoulder to help her keep up, "She's calling for reinforcements! We have to get out of here!"
The four plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind them, and nothing but darkness ahead.