Free The Goddess Hunt by Aimée Carter Page B

head of th [he t="e stick shift snapped off. The car was a piece of shit anyway. “That’s impossible. He said he loves me, and I trust him not to lie to me. Unlike someone else I know.”
    I glared at him, but his expression didn’t change. With a huff, I climbed out of the car, cursing as the seat belt caught on my jeans. After my few failed attempts to untangle myself, James reached over and gently undid it for me.
    “Don’t be mad,” he said. “Please. After what happened to Persephone—I want to make sure you don’t have to go through the same thing, all right? That’s all.”
    I wasn’t an idiot. I knew part of Henry would always be in love with Persephone. After all, he’d lost the will to continue after she’d given up her immortality to die and spend eternity with a mortal, and he wouldn’t have felt that way if his entire existence hadn’t revolved around her. But I could give him the one thing she never had—requited love.
    “If you really are happy and you two love each other equally, then great,” said James. “Good luck to you both. But if you don’t—if you wake up one day and realize you’re forcing yourself to love him because you think it’s the right thing to do, not because he makes you happier than you’ve ever been—then I want to make sure you know you have a choice. And if you ever want to leave, all you have to do is say the word, and I’ll go with you.”
    I stormed toward the front doors of the manor, yanking hard. “Great, so if I ever decide that Henry’s life isn’t worth it, I’ll be sure to let you know. Help me with these, will you?”
    James didn’t say a word as he joined me and opened the heavy doors as if they were made of feathers. I slipped inside and forced a smile, expecting to see Henry waiting for me in the magnificent entrance hall made of mirrors and marble. But the foyer was empty.
    “Where is everyone?” I said, my smile fading.
    “Waiting for you, I suspect.” James stepped in after me, and the door slammed behind us, echoing through the hall. “You didn’t think we were going to stay here, did you?”
    “I didn’t know there was anywhere else to stay.”
    He draped his arm over my shoulders, but when I shrugged it off, he shoved his hands in his pockets instead. “Of course there’s someplace else. Follow me.”
    James led me to the center of the foyer, where a crystal circle shimmered with a rainbow of colors in the center of the white marble floor. When I tried to continue to the other side of the hall, he grabbed my hand and stopped me.
    “This is our stop,” he said, looking down.
    I stared at the crystal beneath my feet, and finally I saw it. A strange, shimmering aura seemed to emanate from where we stood, and I jumped out of the circle. “What is that?”
    “Henry didn’t tell you?” said James, and I shook my head. “It’s a portal between the surface and the Underworld. Totally safe, I promise. They’re like shortcuts so we don’t have to take the long way around.”
    “The long way around?”
    “If you know where to look, you can find an opening into the Underworld and travel through various caves and that kind of thing,” he said. “Dark, gloomy, timeconsuming, and trouble if you’re skittish about having millions of pounds of rock pressing down on you.”
    “There’s nothing underneath the surface except lava and dirt,” I said, ignoring the thought of being buried alive. “Every eight-year-old knows that.”
    “We’re gods. We’re excellent at covering our tracks,” said James with a boyish grin, and this time, when he offered me his hand, I took it and stepped back into the circle.
    “What else are you good at?” I grumbled. “Turning water into wine?”
    “That’s Xander’s specialty,” he said. “I’m surprised he hasn’t turned the Dead Sea into one big keg party by now. Must be too salty for him. As for me, I can find anything or anyone or anyplace you want. Didn’t you notice we never