The Lightning Thief: Apollo's Daughter

Cerberus

Percy's POV

It was Annabeth and Skyler's idea. They loaded us into the back of a Vegas taxi as if we actually had money. "Los Angeles, please." Skyler said, looking at the map Luke had given us as she climbed into the seat by the window.

The cabbie chewed his cigar and sized us up. "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front."

"Do you accept casino debit cards?" Annabeth asked. 

He shrugged. "Some of 'em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe 'em through first."

Skyler handed him her green LotusCash card. He looked at it skeptically. "Swipe it," She invited. He did. His meter machine started rattling, the lights flashing. Finally, an infinity symbol came up next to the dollar sign. The cigar fell out of the driver's mouth. He looked back at us, his eyes wide. 

"Where to in Los Angeles... uh, Your Highness?"

"Hollywood." She said, sitting up a little straighter. You could just tell she liked the "Your Highness" thing. "Get us there fast, and you can keep the change." Maybe she shouldn't have told him that. The cab's speedometer never dipped below ninety-five the whole way through the Mojave Desert.  

Skyler's POV

On the road, we had plenty of time to talk. And I mean plenty. I told Annabeth about my last dream back near Aunty Em's, trying to keep our conversation out of the ears of the cabbie and the two boys next to us.

"What do you think it means? I mean it could be nothing...right?" I asked, fidgeting with my charm bracelet as I looked at the grey-eyed girl next to me.

"All dreams mean something, Skye. You know that. We just need to figure out what this one means..." Annabeth muttered, looking deep in thought as she stared blankly at the headrest of the driver's seat.

"It was my arrow, Annie. There was no doubt about it. What if it was some kind of prophecy? And his eyes-- the way they changed-- The way the voice spoke-" I began to panic the more I thought about the dream. What if I was destined to kill Luke?

"Skyler. Calm down. Everything will be alright. Luke is back at camp, safe. He can take care of himself." She said, trying to reassure me...but what she didn't know is that I knew what Luke had done. I knew Luke had stolen the bolt.

"A plan where you can be my Queen in the new world. A world without gods."

Lukes words played through my mind but I quickly shook them away. I turned my own attention to Annabeth who was listening to the boys' conversation on the other side of the backseat. She looked pale as she listened. "But if I'd already retrieved the bolt," Percy said, "why would I be traveling to the Underworld?" 

"To threaten Hades," Grover suggested. "To bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom back."

 Percy let out a low whistle. "You have evil thoughts for a goat."

"Why, thank you."

Wasteland rolled by. We passed a sign that said CALIFORNIA STATE LINE, 12 MILES. I got the feeling I was missing one simple, critical piece of information still. Something bigger than any of us knew. It was like when I stared at a common word I should know, but I couldn't make sense of it because one or two letters were floating around in circles

We sped through the last of our journey with the cabbie... The others talked more but I couldn't get the image of Luke's lifeless eyes out of my mind.