The Secret Fire Read Online Free PDF

who’d been a victim of the urn. Then Pyrrha surprised Tyler with a gift—a small vial of green liquid. Even though Tyler had insisted that he’d recovered from the effects of having hope drained from his soul, Pyrrha had sensed that some sadness still lingered. Tyler drank the elixir and he was back to his old, snarky self. That’s when I really knew that it wasn’t a magic trick. Pyrrha was the real deal.
    Just when we reached the fountain, Tyler’s phone buzzed. “Is it Ricardo?” I asked, my heart skipping a beat.
    â€œIt’s Dad,” he said, reading the screen. “He says, ‘Glad you’re having fun. I’m working on a project at the office. Call tomorrow when you’re on your way home.’”
    It was a huge relief to know that Dad wasn’t worried. We were in the clear for one more night. But I wished that we’d hear from Jax.
    Tyler texted back, Thanks. Then he stared at the fountain. “Okay, so I’ll go into the portal and tell Zeus what’s going on.”
    â€œAnd then what?”
    â€œI still don’t know,” he said. “Hopefully he’ll help us. Maybe he’ll come back with me and deal with Ricardo face-to-face. But in any case, I’ll meet you here as soon as I can.”
    He didn’t seem one bit nervous. He was acting like this was an ordinary outing—like he was going into a Starbucks to get a latte. But he was about to step into a world populated by mythological creatures! “What if it’s not that easy?” I asked. “Zeus is the king of the gods. What if he’s too busy to help? Or doesn’t care about finding Ricardo anymore?”
    Tyler scratched his chin. “Well, if he doesn’t care about Ricardo, he might still care about Pyrrha. I’ll tell him that she’s in danger. I’ll tell him that she’s been kidnapped.”
    â€œYou’re going to lie to Zeus?” My stomach was clenching again. Technically, Pyrrha hadn’t been taken hostage. She’d volunteered to jump into Ricardo’s car.
    â€œDo you want to save Jax or not?” he snapped.
    I didn’t need to answer that question.
    He handed me the car keys. “Just in case,” he said.
    â€œJust in case what?”
    â€œIn case I don’t make it back.”
    I gulped. Then I took the keys. He didn’t bother rolling up his jeans, or taking off his shoes. And he didn’t look around to see if anyone was watching. He stepped into the fountain.
    â€œHey,” I said. “Now that I think about it, shouldn’t we both go?” I didn’t want to go, but I didn’t want to be left alone, either. “I mean, what if you need my help . . . over there?”
    Over there. In another dimension. This was crazy. Should I bring a suitcase? Should I bring an extra inhaler, in case I’m allergic to Pegasus dander? Who knows what kind of pollen floats around in eternity?
    â€œYou’d better take this, too.” He handed me his phone. “I doubt the gods have cell towers.” I laughed, but I was so nervous, it came out as a strangled squeak. I clutched the phone and keys in one hand. My other hand was still cupping the urn of Love. “If I don’t come back, you’ll be the only person who will know what happened to Jax,” Tyler said. “And what happened to me.”
    We looked at each other. Tyler and I had never been super close. He wasn’t the kind of older brother who’d held my hand when I was a toddler. Or who’d included me in any of his activities. He’d ignored me, much of the time. Though we lived in the same house, we’d lived very separate lives. But the events of thesummer had brought us closer. Because of the urn of Hope, Tyler had almost died and that had been the worst thing I’d ever experienced. But now here we were, talking about the possibility of never seeing each other again.
    Having me