"Overseeing the exhibit, of course. Most of the artifacts on display are on loan from the Library of Antiquities."
Nickamedes was the head honcho at the Library of Antiquities, which was located on the Mythos Academy campus not too far away in Cypress Mountain, North Carolina. In addition to books, the massive library was famous for its priceless collection of artifacts. Hundreds and hundreds of glass cases filled the library's seven floors, containing items that had once belonged to everyone from gods and goddesses to their Champions to the Reapers they had battled.
I supposed it made sense that the Crius Coliseum had borrowed some artifacts from the library-that was probably the reason the Mythos students had been assigned to come here in the first place. So they'd be forced to look at and study the items they walked past and ignored on a daily basis at the library.
Nickamedes stared at me, not looking a bit happier to see me than I was to have run into him. His mouth twisted. "I see that you and your friends waited until the last possible second to come and complete your myth-history assignment, along with a great many of your classmates."
Morgan McDougall, Samson Sorensen, Savannah Warren. I'd spotted several kids I knew roaming through the coliseum. All seventeen or so, like me, Daphne, and Carson, and all second-year students at Mythos, trying to cram in a visit to the museum before winter classes.
"I've been busy," I muttered.
Nickamedes let out a disbelieving huff. "Right."
Anger filled me. I had been busy. Very busy, as a matter of fact. Not too long ago, I'd learned that the Reapers were searching for the Helheim Dagger, which was rumored to be one of the Thirteen Artifacts that had been used during the final battle of the Chaos War. All of the Thirteen Artifacts had a lot of power, since they'd seen action during the climactic fight. But what made the weapon so important-what truly scared me-was the fact that the dagger could be used to free Loki from the prison realm he was trapped in.
I was determined to find the dagger before the Reapers did, so during the holidays I'd read everything I could get my hands on about the weapon. Who might have made it, how it might have been used during the Chaos War, even what powers it might have. But all the books and articles I'd read didn't tell me what I really wanted to know: where my mom, Grace, had hidden the dagger before she'd been murdered-or how I was supposed to find it before the Reapers did.
Of course, I couldn't tell Nickamedes all that. He wouldn't believe I'd been doing something useful, something important, during the holiday break. No doubt Nickamedes thought I'd just been sitting around reading comic books and eating cookies like I did so many nights when I was working for him in the Library of Antiquities. Yeah, yeah, so maybe I wasn't all that dedicated when it came to my after-school job. Sue me for wanting to goof off and have a little fun before I had to face down another crazy Reaper who thought I was more powerful and important than I really was.
Still, despite the librarian's frosty attitude, I couldn't help glancing around the room, hoping I'd see a guy my age with him-a guy with the most beautiful eyes I'd ever seen and a sly, teasing grin to match.
"Is Logan here with you?" I couldn't keep the hope out of my voice.
Nickamedes had opened his mouth when a voice interrupted him.
"Right here, Gypsy girl." A low voice sent chills down my spine.
My heart pounding, I slowly turned around. Logan Quinn stood behind me.
Thick, wavy, ink black hair, intense ice blue eyes, a confident smile. My breath caught in my throat as I looked at Logan, and my heart sped up, beating with such force that I was sure he could hear it.
Logan wore jeans and a dark blue sweater topped by a black leather jacket. The clothes were designer, of course, since the Spartan was just as rich as all the other academy kids. But even if he'd been dressed in rags, I still would have noticed the lean strength of his body and his broad, muscled shoulders. Yeah, Logan totally rocked the bad-boy look, and he had the man-whore reputation to match. One of the rumors that kept going around the academy was