Chance looked up at me, tears in his eyes. “If you're
trying to get me to kiss you again,” he whispered hoarsely,
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“it's working.”
Before I could respond, he pulled me in and kissed
me. Not roughly, as he had kissed me before the Veteri – not
pulling away, as he had done at my house. Just the simple
electric shock of his mouth on mine, our longings
intertwined.
And then he jerked back. “I'm sorry,” he said. “I
shouldn't have done that.”
“Would you just...” I was getting angry, now. “Listen,
Chance. If you don't feel anything for me, just tell me. I'm a
big girl. I can handle that. But what I can't handle is you
changing your mind every five seconds...”
“It's not that...” Chance began.
“Then what?”
“I do feel something for you!” Chance cried. “A lot
for you. I can’t stop thinking about you. That's the whole
problem.”
“Because it puts me in danger,” I said. “From this
magic...which may or not exist. Because I kissed you.”
“Not just because you kissed me. Because of
something else.” He pointed at my shorts pocket. “Take out
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the stone.”
I reached into my pocket, and then let out a yelp of
surprise. In my pocket there was not a stone at all, but a small
ancient book, thickly bound, the size of a pocket Bible. The
stone was gone. “What the...”
“The goddesss's own book,” he said. “Her magic, her
memories. Her power. Zeus’ powers. Billions of years old.
Dating back from the time when the myths walked the earth.
It had the power to hide itself in any shape. A tree. A flower.
A stone. It is so powerful that guards stand outside the caves
where it is hidden. A book so powerful that it could tear the
veil between Olympus and our world. Between gods and
mortals. A book that could control the world...”
I looked at him in shock.
“The god Zeus needed to keep it safe from the others
of Olympus,” Chance was talking faster now, as if frantic.
“And that's why he entrusted it to Vesta – goddess of the
flame and of the hearth. The most incorruptible and pure of
all the goddesses. The one who hid her dire powers of flame
and destruction, choosing instead to warm the homes and
hearts of those who were good to her. And only she can find
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the book. Only she can open it. The rest of us can't even
touch it, unless they are of Vesta’s line or service, but even
if they are, they can only hold onto it for a bit.”
I looked down at the book in horror. “You switched
it when I wasn't looking. You're playing a trick on me – and
it's a nasty trick to play on someone – messing with my head
like that!” Yet as I spoke, feeling the book in my hands, I felt
a strange sense of kinship with the book – as if it knew me.
As if it recognized me.
“Why don't you take it, if it's so powerful?” In my
anger, I thrust the book into Chance's hands. To my surprise,
he screamed with pain, his hands blistering and burning as
he dropped the book, which seemed to fly back into my
hands.
“Chance!” I cried, watching with amazement as his
burns healed within seconds. “I'm sorry – I didn't...”
“Do you believe me now?” He looked up at me.
“Look, I don't want it to be true any more than you do.
Because if it's true, now every single creature – god, man,
and beast – between here and Hades will come to you. And
if it's true...” Chance looked pained. “That means that you're
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the one I've been looking for. And that I've been looking for
you...been missing you... for a very – very long time.”
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Chapter 14
“What are you talking about?” I said. But as I spoke,
my mind flashed back to the strange thing Varun had said
when we first kissed. He, too, had spoken of missing me. Of
knowing me. Of recognizing me. Did Chance know me too?
“The goddess Vesta,” he said. “The fire goddess –
queen to my king. The only one who can touch the book
without getting burned. And you're touching it now.”
In horror I put the book back into my pocket.
“I don't want it,” I said. “I don't want to touch it.”
“But it wants you,” said Chance. “You feel it, don't
you?”
I nodded mutely.
“Listen,” said Chance. “We can't talk any more about
this now. It's not safe for you here – not now that you've got
the book. We need to get back to civilization. The forces –
Olympian and Hades alike – they're less powerful in places
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that have been modernized. You'll be safer in the hotel,
around people. The magic doesn't feel as real there – and so
it isn't. Magic requires belief, after all,” he gave a grim smile.
“I need to contact the truthsayer. She'll be able to tell you if
you're a goddess or even if you could be Vesta herself. ”
“I'm not,” I said quickly. “I mean – I'm pretty sure
I'm not.” Yet as I spoke, the feeling came back more strongly
than ever. Was
