Goddess in Time Read Online Free Page A

are. My best friend dating my worst enemy is pretty awful, but I have more important things at stake at the moment. I can grill him later. In the end, the bigger picture wins out.
    I flip open Offerings to the Gods without hesitation. “Don’t think I’m letting this go indefinitely.”
    Troy smirks and then bends his head over the book. “What does it say? What are the offerings?”
    I quickly flip through the yellowed pages. It’s really short, maybe two dozen pages altogether—barely worth the binding—so it doesn’t take me long to skim the key points.
    “It’s pretty straightforward,” I explain. “The three offerings are a gold feather, a silver seashell, and a ruby pomegranate seed.”
    “That’s it?” Troy frowns. “Does that sound too easy?”
    “The items aren’t the tricky part,” I say as I close the book. “Their locations are.”
    “I have a feeling I’m not going to like this.”
    “You won’t.” I twirl the volume under my finger. “The golden feather must come from Zeus’s eagle, the silver seashell from Poseidon’s throne room, and the ruby pomegranate seed from Hades’s palace.”
    “That means . . .”
    I nod. “I have to visit their homes.”
    Troy is stunned silent.
    The homes of the three god kings—also known as Mount Olympus, the seafloor, and the underworld—are not exactly open to visitors. They’re not exactly easy to access, either. Most hematheos go their whole lives without ever visiting any of the palaces, let alone all three. This is not my idea of a fun summer vacation, but a girl has to do what a girl has to do.
    Troy sighs as I slip the tiny book into my back pocket.
    We get up to leave just as Phoebe and Griffin walk in the door. A gift bag dangles from Phoebe’s hand. They’re stuck here for the summer, just like us: Phoebe because Headmaster Petrolas is her new stepdad, and Griffin because he has nowhere else to go.
    I throw Troy a quick scowl—he’d better keep his trap shut about what we’re doing. These two don’t need to be involved. No one else does.
    “Hey, guys,” Phoebe says, swinging the gift bag. “What’s up?”
    “Hey,” I say back.
    Griffin waves. “Hi, Nic. Troy.”
    Troy stares at the floor.
    Phoebe frowns at me. “I thought you hated libraries?”
    “I do,” I reply. “We were just . . .” I glance at Troy, who shrugs helplessly. “Working on something. What are you guys doing here?”
    She holds up the bag. “I got Mrs. Philipoulos a thank-you treat from the bakery. For helping with my dad’s trial record.”
    “We’re going for a run after,” Griffin says. “What are you working on?”
    “Did you read the record yet?” I ask Phoebe, hoping that will divert them from what Troy and I are doing, even though I already know the answer. If she’d read it, she would have told me.
    “No.” She looks down at her running shoes. “I will. Soon.”
    Griffin wraps an arm around her shoulder.
    “When the time is right,” I say. Then, patting her on the arm as I walk past, I add, “We’ll let you get on with your gift giving.”
    “And your running,” Troy adds.
    He hurries out in front of me, throwing Phoebe and Griffin a quick wave as he escapes out into the hall. I turn and follow him before they can ask any questions. Now that I know what needs to be done, I’m eager to get started. And without an audience.
    “I don’t like it, Nic,” Troy says, pacing in my room.
    “I’m not asking you to like it,” I reply. “I’m not even asking you to be here.”
    He flashes me an angry glare.
    “Well, I am here,” he says. “And I’m staying. I’m not letting you do this alone.”
    “Then enough with the warnings and disapproving looks.” I shove both books onto the top shelf in my closet. Just because we know what we have to do doesn’t mean we might not need them again. The gods are brilliant at surprise twists. “Or I’ll neofacture a gag and some handcuffs.”
    For a second, he looks like he wants