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“They’re … um …” Annabeth started to say.

“We’re orphans,” I said.

“Orphans?” the woman said. The word sounded alien in her mouth. “But, my dears! Surely not!”

“We got separated from our caravan,” I said. “Our circus caravan. The ringmaster told us to meet him at the gas station if we got lost, but he may have forgotten, or maybe he meant a different gas station. Anyway, we’re lost. Is that food I smell?”

.

He looked us over. “How did you die, then?”

I nudged Grover.

“Oh,” he said. “Um … drowned … in the bathtub.”

“All three of you?” Charon asked.

We nodded.

.

“I’m not saying hello to a pink poodle,” I said. “For-get it.”

“Percy,” Annabeth said. “I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle.”

The poodle growled.

I said hello to the poodle.

.

“I don’t know. Just a feeling. Annabeth, come with me-”

“Are you kidding?” She looked at me as if I’d just dropped from the moon. Her cheeks were bright red.

“What’s the problem now?” I demanded.

“Me, go with you to the … the ‘Thrill Ride of Love’? How embarrassing is that? What if somebody saw me?”

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