"What does this ring look like?" I asked. "Do you have a photo of it? And what's so special about it?"
These were the standard questions I asked every time someone wanted me to find a lost item. It helped if, you know, I actually knew exactly what I was looking for, instead of just some vague description like a ring or my cell phone or my favorite black bra. Most of the time, though, I ended up working blind, so to speak, since few people ever thought to take photos of the things they cherished, like jewelry. So I was pleasantly surprised when Vivian pulled her cell phone out of her purse and started scrolling through the pictures on it.
"Here," she said. "Here it is."
She turned the phone around so I could see the picture, and I leaned forward to get a better look. In the photo, Vivian had her arm around Savannah, and the two of them were smiling. Vivian was hugging the Amazon, and I could see a band on her right ring finger. It was a simple enough ring, made out of solid gold, although the band formed two small faces, one turned left and crying, the other turned right and laughing.
"The way you were talking about the ring, I figured it would have diamonds or something all over it, but that's a cool design. What is it?"
Centuries ago, the gods and goddesses on both sides of the Chaos War had rewarded their Champions and warriors with gold, silver, and jewels for their loyal service. Over the years, the warriors had kept the gravy train of wealthy going, investing and whatnot, which is why the Mythos students had parents who were so loaded and could afford to give their kids the very best of everything. Most of the kids at the academy, especially the girls, had more bling than Hollywood movie stars.
"Thanks," Vivian said. "The design is theater masks from ancient times. Sometimes they're called Janus masks, after the Roman god. I have the ring because I'm in the drama club, just like my mom was when she went to Mythos."
She blushed and dropped her head, almost like she thought I was going to make fun of her for telling me so much about herself. Daphne was right. Vivian was even more of a shy, insecure geek than I was. I wondered how someone so quiet could survive at a place like Mythos, where finding new ways to be mean and vicious was considered an art form.
"Well, I think it's cool you're in the drama club," I said. "I like comic books, myself. You know, superheroes, villains, that sort of thing. I like how the good guys always win at the end of the story."
"Cool."
Vivian gave me a small smile, which I returned.
"So what happens now?" she asked. "Do I pay you before you find the ring? Or after?"
"I charge a retainer of a hundred bucks," I said. "You can give that to me tomorrow afternoon, when I come over to your dorm room and start looking for the ring. If I find it, you owe me another hundred bucks. But if I can't find it, I give you the hundred bucks back. Does that sound fair?"
She nodded, then frowned. "But I already looked in my dorm room. I looked everywhere for the ring. Trust me. I pretty much tore my room apart searching for it."
"I'm sure you did," I said. "But I have my own special way of tracking down stuff. So I need to look in your room first, okay?"
I didn't tell her about my psychometry or about how I planned to walk around her room tomorrow, touch stuff, and see what kind of vibes I got off her things. I'd learned it was better to keep information like that on a need-to-know basis, especially now that I was Nike's Champion. Grandma Frost had told me that being a Champion was like having a target painted on your back, and I was already feeling shaky enough, thanks to the Reaper attack.
Vivian frowned. "Well, okay, I guess it couldn't hurt to look in my room again."
"Great," I said. "When do you want me to come over?"
We made plans to meet in her dorm, Valhalla Hall, after sixth period tomorrow. Then, Vivian gave me another shy smile and headed back to the table she'd been sitting at with Savannah and Talia. The three friends packed up their books and left the library, although Savannah stopped long enough to give me a nasty look on her way out the door. I sighed. I wished the Amazon would just chill about the whole Logan situation already.
But there was nothing I could do that would get Savannah to give me a break, and I had more important matters to think about anyway-namely, where the Helheim Dagger might be hidden. So I unfolded the Reaper girl's map and started studying it again, wondering if I'd overlooked anything that might lead me to the dagger.
Chapter 12
Finally, at about eight thirty, students started filing out of the library for the night. The latest juicy gossip had been spread, the frantic texts had been sent, and it was time to get some rest before everyone did the same thing again tomorrow.
Nickamedes was still sulking in his office, which meant that I could finally leave the checkout counter and search for the dagger. And I knew just the place to start.
The library seemed to be deserted, and even Raven had closed down her coffee cart and left for the night, but I decided to be as incognito as possible. So I grabbed a metal cart full of books that needed to be shelved and pushed it back into the stacks. The wheels squeak-squeak-squeaked with every turn I made, but since all the wheels on all the stupid carts squeaked, I figured the sound would help me blend in. It would have been strange if the wheels hadn't screeched.
For the next ten minutes, I pushed the cart back and forth in the stacks, shelving all the books that needed to be put away, before steering the cart over to a set of stairs that led up to the second floor. I looked around again, but I didn't see or hear anything. Of course, that didn't mean much in the library, which in my experience was one of the most dangerous places on campus. I grabbed the last book off the cart and climbed the stairs, like the slender volume belonged in the stacks up there instead of downstairs in the main collection. Actually, it did go in the archives on the second floor.
If there was one word that described the statues ringing the second floor balcony, it was impressive. All of the gods and goddesses stood thirty feet tall and were carved out of marble so white and smooth that it just gleamed. I felt very small and very shabby in comparison to the elegant carvings. My sneakers slapped softly against the floor as I hurried along the balcony, and every few steps I paused and looked around, listening for any footsteps or rustles of clothing behind me.
Nothing. I heard and saw nothing.
Finally, I reached the statue of Sigyn. To my surprise, the Norse goddess stood in the spot right next to Nike's statue. How had I not noticed that before? Then again, on the rare occasions that I did venture up to the second floor, I always came to see Nike, not any other goddess.