How Fates Can Twist

Chapter 10

TW: manipulation and emotional abuse

Annabeth's POV

As the sun was setting, the two dracaena guards walked into the jail holding trays of dinner. Annabeth had been shocked when Luke said they brought him meals everyday. It wasn't the norm for monsters to try to keep demigods alive after finding them, which meant something bigger must be going on here. There had to be a reason they were captured and not dead.

The rest of the demigods seemed to care more about escaping this place than what they were doing here in the first place, so Annabeth put her thoughts aside for the moment. One of the dracaena dropped a tray into her cell with little grace, some of the beans on it spilling onto the concrete floor. She pulled it towards herself instantly as if she was ravished and dug in with one hand as the other slid her fork under the bars and into Luke's reach.

He grabbed it, his own already in his hand, and worked quickly at the lock in front of him while the dracaena were still facing away, plopping trays into Hazel and Frank's cells. A son of Hermes is what he had told them, good with locks. She hoped that proved to be true.

After Luke had explained his plan to them earlier, Hazel still wasn't sold. She'd insisted that they didn't know him or where his loyalties lied, not to mention how off this entire situation felt. Annabeth knew Hazel had very valid points, but there was something in her that wanted to trust him. Not trusted . She simply wanted to. It was the same shudder she had felt earlier when she first heard his name, an uneasy feeling that made her want to run but never let go at the same time. Frank and her had convinced Hazel to go along with his plan.

Luke's eyes met Annabeth's as he fumbled with the forks and she could tell he needed more time. She shook her hands at her two friends to get their attention, pointing towards the lock-picking in progress. Percy would have gotten the message immediately were he here, but the romans gave her confused stares. She had to flap her hands around frantically for a few more seconds till it clicked in their heads, like a bad game of charades.

"Excuse me?" Frank called out right as the dracaena were about to turn and see Luke. Their heads whipped back around to the voice.

"Is this lactose free?" he asked, pointing to the food. "I'm lactose intolerant, and I really don't think you want that issue on your hands."

The monsters exchanged befuddled looks for a moment, clearly unfamiliar with the human concept of lactose intolerance. Annabeth had to stifle a laugh. She couldn't believe that was the first thing he thought of when in need of a distraction.

"Yessss?" hissed one the dracaena. That's all it got to say before the thud of a metal tray bashing into a skull filled the room. Then another, and both of the creatures were on the ground. Luke stood over them, food tray in hand.

"Nice save," he said as he grabbed the keys from the bodies and unlocked all of the demigods' cells.

"Thanks," Frank murmured. "But we seriously do need to start making sure the food is lactose free when we stop to eat at places."

Annabeth finally released that laugh. "Or a nice bathroom."

Hazel looked slightly taken aback at the conversation, but more so, she was giving Luke the death stare. Annabeth couldn't figure out if Hazel was just over-protective of her friends or if there was some serious red flag that the daughter of Athena was missing. She didn't have time to decide right now, though. Someone was bound to have heard the commotion and they needed to put the next piece of their plan into play before another monster came bounding into the room.

"Frank, Hazel, you guys go down to the engine room and shut off the power, then hide. Annabeth and I will wait till the deck is clear then prep a lifeboat for us to leave on," Luke ordered. Annabeth didn't like being told what to do, but this was Luke. She... she had known him. How, she had no clue. But he was so familiar to her, like the tune of a song she couldn't quite place.

Her straining to remember was put on hold when he grabbed her arm and began pulling her down a hallway. He weaved around a few corners, then up a set of stairs and into a storage space. It was as if he knew the layout of the ship, which shouldn't be possible if he had been dragged straight from the deck to the jail like the other three had. She hadn't asked him how he'd arrived in that cell before agreeing to his plan, but maybe she should have. She may as well ask that now that they were simply waiting.

"How-"

"Listen," Luke cut her off, his voice a quiet but urgent whisper. "I know you remember me. I'm not sure who those roman demigods are or what you're doing with them, but we can leave right now, just the two of us. There's a lifeboat right outside this door, we can go before they even reach the engine room-"

"I'm not leaving my friends," Annabeth said abruptly. What would make him think she'd even consider that? Had he not seen the way they all exchanged looks before making a decision, the way they were a team? Didn't he understand they had a quest to complete? She wasn't sure what sort of history she had with this man, but she was certain that she never had and never would betray her friends for him.

Luke just laughed.

"You think they're your friends? You think they'll care about you when it comes down to it? That they'll stick around after your little quest is done, when they don't need you anymore? You know that's not how it works, Annabeth."

She didn't like the way he said that, as if it was a simple lesson a child should know. And she certainly didn't like how it made her think. Of course Hazel and Frank were her friends, right? They'd had each others' backs since they met, which was just over a week ago. It wasn't a lot of time, but a week could be long enough to form a bond, especially for demigods whose lives were constantly in danger.

"There you go, trying to convince yourself otherwise. I can see it on your face. You always do that. Tell me, does it work? Or does it just leave you alone again and again?" Luke said, stepping towards her.

Annabeth felt her chest seize up. Was she really just trying to convince herself of a lie? She had always assumed her thoughts were explaining the logical reasoning, but what if they weren't?

You always do that. She couldn't remember her life in clear images, but she could feel wounds in her heart. So many. How many times has this happened to her?

Alone again and again. Percy wasn't here. He had left without a word. Was he going to come back?

Annabeth felt a hot tear run down her cheek. She tried to turn away from Luke. Something told her that letting him get near her while she was vulnerable like this wasn't a good idea, but she was too troubled at the moment to put much effort into it.

She felt Luke's hand brush the tear from her cheek. A chill spread across her skin. She wanted to get away from him.

"I just don't want to see you hurt again, Annie. Come with me. We can go wherever you want."

There was a twinge in her heart. His words were soft. And she knew him. She could sense she'd known him a long time, and that had to count for something.

"Wherever I want?" she asked, her voice thin. She couldn't deny the idea was alluring. Not worrying about the gods' plans, the Legion's strict schedule, or the quest before her would grant her freedom to search for her memories. But Percy...

Percy had left without so much as a goodbye. He may not ever be coming back. She couldn't count on him showing up, and she certainly couldn't count on him staying around. Even though it was just a logical conclusion, it hurt, and she wanted to run from that pain in any way possible.

"Wherever you want."