Modern Goddess: Trapped by Thor (Book One) Read Online Free PDF

the
presence of mind to notice when others were doing the same. It was
the other side of my power. Not only did details live and come
alive for me, I stood for that effect in other people. Every time a
scientist or an artist found themselves drawn into the lines of
data or the fine play of shadow on a canvas, a part of me was
there.
    So, paradoxically, I shared a moment with
him as I walked past – not that the great big, blond-bearded lug
would notice. Axes, wine, women, and victory were all he resonated
with.
    As I walked the rest of the way home, I
tried to forget Thor's admonishment that I shunned my own kind. The
more I tried to suppress it, the more it rose in my mind. I could
remember the exact quality of his tone, the exact feeling of his
words as I heard them.
    I was happy in solitude – that was the
correct answer. This was my life, and it was how I lived it. For
every god of power and victory, there was a god of weakness and
defeat. Then there were all the in-between gods – like me – who
were neither. If I chose to spend the night with a cat on my lap
and a small china bowl of boysenberry-swirl ice cream, that was my
prerogative.
    I became lost in thought, and I walked
straight into someone again. This time I didn't bounce back like
I’d struck an immovable object. I walked into this man as though he
were nothing more than paper flapping in the wind.
    He stumbled forward but managed to keep his
balance.
    “ Oh my gosh,” I stuttered,
putting out a hand to stable the man, “I’m sorry, sir.”
    He looked up at me with a set of watery
eyes, and I realized he wasn't a sir at all – he was Tolus, God of
Barely Enough. “Oh. It's you.”
    Tolus nodded lowly. “I’m sorry for being in
your way,” he said, sounding unmistakably genuine.
    “ Not at all – I was the one who
wasn't looking where I was going. My fault.” I let go of his arm
when it was clear he wasn't going to fall over – yet. The
continually sickened, weakened look of his body hardly gave you
confidence he could bear something as simple as standing for long.
“Please forgive me,” I added with a smile.
    It was getting old-hat for Tolus to be
walked into by gods today, but I was eager to be more polite to the
guy than Thor had been. Not all gods were arrogant jerks.
    Tolus nodded and teetered on the spot as if
he were about to fall over. Thankfully he didn't, and he returned
his head to an even level, patting a thin hand down his dirty
shirt. He was wearing an old pair of beige pants and a frayed grey
shirt. He still had his scraggly beard and dark hair and those
watery, watery eyes. “Please, do not worry. I forgive you.” He
managed a smile.
    I couldn't help but smile back – and I
knew for sure that both our smiles were qualitatively different
from the harsh grin that usually spread across Thor/Jupiter/Zeus’
arrogant visage. Ours were genuine, light, friendly.
    Tolus nodded a second time then stepped
back gently. “I should not take up any more of your
time.”
    I was the one who’d walked into him and
interrupted his time, and yet he was the one apologizing for it. I
shook my head. “It's not your fault at all. You aren't wasting my
time. I was off to get some food,” I said the word food carefully,
looking at Tolus’ starved form. If there was anything this guy
needed, it was food. That and a shower, a new set of clothes,
sleep, some money, some sunlight, some friends, and a place to
stay. He was the God of Barely Enough – there was a lot he could do
with.
    I hardly fraternized with the gods I dealt
with through the Integration Office while I was on Earth. To me,
being on Earth meant living amongst the humans and doing precisely
what they did: getting take out, painting your picket fence white,
and planting roses in your garden. But Thor's accusation came to
mind: my willingness to integrate with the humans led to the
appearance I was shunning the company of my own kind.
    I bit my lips. “What are you doing? I was
about