Free Fated by Courtney Cole Page A

of control and there isn’t time to elaborate. "
    Alarm filled me up and every bit of me became panicked. Ahmose never allowed himself to be flustered. Until now. I gulped. I started to shake and I knew it had less to do with being soaking wet and more to do with this unknown situation.
    "What do you mean? " I asked hesitantly.
    "Listen to me, Keeper, and listen well. I don’t have the time to repeat myself. Trust no one.
    Do you understand? " I stared at him in shock and he rasped again, impatient.
    "Do you understand? " he persisted, his voice harsh. I nodded.
    "Why are you telling me this? What is going on? " My voice was thin and I could hear the uncertainty in it. So could he and he shook his head.
    "I can’t explain. I wish that I could, but I have been rendered mute by the Moirae on this topic. I literally cannot speak of it. But there are things you still need to know. " He trailed off and studied me with his intense glittering eyes.
    "Such as? " I pressed.
    "I cannot say. But I can show you what I have seen ... what you don’t remember. "
    I sucked in my breath. "I don’t know that I want to do that. It makes everything too hard. "
    He hissed, a scary rasping noise that snapped my teeth together.
    "Come here. I care not about what you want. I know what you need. "
    I took one tentative step towards him and held my hand out. I could see my fingertips shake as I waited for him to grasp them. The second he curled his gnarled fingers around mine, I was immediately immersed in his memories.
    Just as though I was looking through his eyes, I stood in the middle of an ancient city. I glanced down at my feet and found his black robes swirled around his bare, crooked toes. I was standing on the edge of a circular arena with white marble columns all around me. I was in a coliseum of some sort. And I was not alone.
    In the middle of the ring, standing in the powdery dust, was a woman and a man. They stood calmly holding hands, clearly waiting for something. The woman had long, dark hair that flowed to the middle of her back and I grew instantly still. It was me. I knew it even before she turned her head and I saw her jade green eyes. She stared quietly at the man, who returned her stare with a dark, smoldering gaze. Gavin. I would know him anywhere. My heart stopped beating as I watched a third person approach them from the opposite side of the arena.
    The man was very large, very intimidating and had wild hair. Like Gavin and I, he was dressed as an ancient Greek. His toga was shimmering grayish silver and as he reached where Gavin and I stood, it glimmered in the light. As he spoke, his eyes flashed silver as well. I cringed. His voice was like thunder. It literally rattled my bones.
    "Cadmus, you killed Ares’ dragon. You served him loyally for years. You’ve been the King of Thebes. You have your lovely wife by your side. " The man paused to stare at us for a moment before continuing.
    "Yet you are unhappy. You wish to leave all that you know behind. "
    Gavin visibly tightened his grip on me and nodded solemnly.
    "We do. Our children have met with such tragedy. We do not wish to remain. Please allow it to be so, great Zeus. It is all we ask, now that you have so kindly accommodated our other wish. " I watched as I nodded quietly, in perfect agreement. Zeus? This couldn’t be real.
    Zeus, who looked exactly like every depiction that I’ve ever seen of him, seemed to consider the request for a moment before finally nodding.
    "Very well. Let it be so. You will not be bothered with troubles from our world again. "
    He lifted a heavy staff and pounded it into the dirt. It landed so hard that the earth trembled and great clouds of dust exploded into the air. I frantically tried to see through the haze but it took a few seconds to clear. When it settled, Gavin and I were no longer standing in the arena. In our places, two long snakes lay stretched out on the ground. I gasped.
    "Now it is so, " Zeus muttered and spun around,