been messed up so badly from the accident that the casket had been closed at her funeral. Hence, all my heartshattering, soul-twisting guilt. I couldn't help but think that if I hadn't picked up that hairbrush, then my mom wouldn't have been out so late-and she would have never been killed.
I missed my mom like crazy, and I knew Grandma Frost did too, since it had always been just the three of us. That's why I risked the wrath of the professors and the other Powers That Were at Mythos to sneak off campus to come see her and that's why Grandma let me. Because we both wanted to spend as much time with each other as we could, just in case one of us was ever taken away as suddenly and cruelly as my mom had been-
The timer sounded, interrupting my dark, guilty thoughts and saving me from answering her question. Grandma got up and slid the cookies out of the oven. The smells of melted sugar, sweet strawberries, and dark chocolate blasted into the kitchen, making everything feel warm, safe, and cozy. I didn't even wait for the cookies to cool before I snatched two off the baking sheet, broke them apart, and stuffed the pieces into my mouth. Yum. So good.
'Now you be sure and give some of these to Daphne,' Grandma reminded me in a gentle voice, filling up my usual tin with the cookies. 'I know she'll want some, too.'
'Okay.' That's what I said, but since I was still chewing, it sounded more like 'Mmm-kay.'
By the time Grandma had finished packing up the cookies, it was after five, which meant that I needed to leave so I could ride the bus back up to the academy. Nickamedes would be on my ass if I was even a minute late for my shift. In addition to going to classes and weapons training, I also had to work several hours a week at the Library of Antiquities as sort of an after-school job. Fun, fun.
I slid the container of cookies into my messenger bag, on top of the stack of comic books I was currently reading, then slung the strap over my head and across my chest.
'Love you, Grandma.' I leaned down and kissed her wrinkled cheek.
'I love you too, pumpkin,' she said, patting my hand one final time. 'You be careful. It's a wicked old world out there.'
I paused, wondering if Grandma Frost was having another one of her psychic flashes, if she was trying to warn me about something, but her violet eyes were calm, clear, and focused. Then again, I didn't really need Grandma to warn me. Thanks to my time at Mythos, I knew exactly what kind of scary things were out there-things like Reapers of Chaos, Nemean prowlers, and most especially, Loki.
'I will,' I promised her. 'I'll be careful.'
With a third, still-warm cookie in my hand, I left Grandma Frost's house. The sun had given up trying to break through the clouds, and it had gotten even darker and colder while I'd been inside. I shoved the rest of the cookie into my mouth and stuck my hands deep into my jacket pockets, wishing I'd thought to wear gloves today. Of course, I supposed I could have worn gloves around the clock, to cut down on the flashes I got off other people and objects. But I already felt like enough of a freak as it was. Wearing elbow-length gloves all the time would
I walked to the end of the block, looked both ways to make sure the coast was clear, and stepped out into the street heading for the bus stop on the opposite side.
I didn't even see the car until it was right on top of me.
It was a big, black, expensive SUV with a shiny silver grille-and it was racing right toward me.
I froze in the middle of the street, not quite believing what I was seeing, not quite believing that the driver hadn't spotted me, that he wasn't going to blow the horn and slam on his brakes at any moment. Where had he come from? The street had been completely empty a second ago.
The SUV kept coming and coming, and the wheels kept churning and churning, gulping down all the pavement that separated us. The tinted windshield loomed up in my vision until it was all that I could see-a hungry black maw that was going to swallow me up whole, and then spit out my bloody, broken bones.
It seemed like forever, but after a second, my brain kicked in, screaming
The SUV roared past me, so close I felt the rush of air from its passing brush the back of my jacket. The vehicle zoomed down the street, zipped around the corner at the end of the block, and disappeared from view. The driver never slowed down-not even for a second.
With my mouth open, heart hammering, arms trembling, and legs shaking, I stared down the empty street and wondered whether or not the whole thing had been an accident-or something far more sinister.
Chapter 4
Heart still racing, I staggered onto the sidewalk and huddled against the steps of the home at the end of the block. I thought about sprinting back to my Grandma Frost's house and telling her what had happened, but there was nothing she could do. The SUV was probably long gone, and I hadn't gotten a look at the license plate.
The bus made my decision for me. Just as I'd taken a few tentative steps back to Grandma's house, the vehicle pulled up to the curb and the door opened. I bit my lip. As much as I wanted to run back to the safety of Grandma Frost's house, I didn't want to be late for my shift at the library either. Nickamedes already watched me like a hawk. I didn't want him to know the real reason I was late all the time. I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't see my grandma whenever I wanted to.
So I sighed and trudged onto the bus. I peered out the window the whole ride back up to Cypress Mountain, but I didn't see the black SUV that had almost mowed me down. No, that's not quite right. I saw lots of black cars-I just couldn't tell if the person who'd nearly plowed into me was driving any of them.
But what worried me most was the fact that I couldn't figure out whether or not it had been an accident.
The bus finally reached the top of Cypress Mountain and rumbled to a stop across from Mythos Academy. I got off, sprinted across the street, and slipped through the academy's iron gates, which were still closed and locked. For once, I was glad the sphinxes were there, perched on top of the wall and glaring down at me. Sure, the statues made me uneasy, but they were also supposed to keep the academy safe from Reapers. The sphinxes would keep whomever was after me from following me onto campus. At least, I hoped they would. But even that hope was better than nothing.
I stood there inside the gate, breathing hard and staring out at the street, wondering if I'd see a black SUV roll by. But the only vehicle in sight was the bus, which slowly lumbered away from the curb to start its trip back down to the city.
Maybe it had just been a careless driver after all. I hoped so-oh, how I hoped so.
'Come on, Gwen,' I whispered to myself. 'Get a grip.'
It might have just been my imagination, but it seemed like the dull, brown, dried-up leaves in the trees above my head whispered back, even though I knew it was just the winter wind whipping through the branches.
Right?
* * *
Still nervous, I stuck my hands into my jacket pockets and hurried past the dorms and up the hill. If Mythos Academy had a black, beating heart, it would be the upper quad. Five main buildings ringed the area-English- history, mathscience, the dining hall, the gym, and the library-all sitting at the edges of the quad, like the five points of a star.
Normally, in between and after the day's classes, students gathered on the quad to gossip, text on their cell phones, and see who was hooking up with whom. Not now, though. Since it was so cold, everyone was inside already, studying in the library, hanging out in their dorm rooms, or eating dinner in the dining hall. Usually, the emptiness of the quad wouldn't have bothered me, but tonight, it did.
The sun had already vanished for the day, letting the night's shadows ooze over everything, like black pools
