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“Just a moment, darling.” Clive turned off the engine, stepped out of the station wagon, and came to the back, opening the tailgate and sitting on the edge of the cargo area with me. He took my hand in his. “Do you understand what I’m saying right now?”

“Sure.”

His lips tipped up on a shake of his head. “How about now?”

I leaned forward and rested my hand on his forehead. “Are you okay? Why do you keep asking me the same question?”

“Remarkable,” Bracken breathed.

I glanced over my shoulder at him. “What is?”

Clive squeezed my hand to get my attention again. “Love, we’ve been speaking to you in different languages and every time, you’ve responded in that language.”

I shook my head, glancing at all the people staring back at me. “I don’t speak any other languages. You know that. I mean, I know my way around a Mexican restaurant’s menu, but that’s about it.”

He leaned in and kissed me. “We’ve spoken to you in Greek, Romanian, French, German, Welsh, Spanish, and Chinese. You’ve understood us and replied in kind. When we switch languages, so do you.”

“No. I’m hearing English. I’m responding in English. I don’t know any of those other languages.”

His thumb rubbed the back of my hand, trying to soothe my mounting panic. “We’ll figure it out.”

“It’s started,” Stheno said.

We all turned to her.

“This place,” she muttered. “You said the woman was yelling at you in Greek, then she slapped you and started speaking in English, right?”

I nodded.

Stheno rubbed her forehead. “I just asked you that question in Ancient Greek, a language that hasn’t been spoken in about fifteen hundred years.”

My heart raced. What was happening to me?

“Was the woman a goddess?” Bracken asked.

Stheno nodded. “I think so. I have no idea which one, but someone gave you one hell of a gift.”

Clive pulled me closer so he could wrap an arm around me. “You were worried this would be like Budapest, that you wouldn’t be able to communicate with the dead in the Underworld. Someone gifted you with all the languages in the world. Stheno’s right. That is a ridiculously valuable gift.”

“It seems,” Bracken began, “that more than just your friend Meg is involved with you being here. Someone very powerful wants to make sure you succeed.”

“Or at least that she can speak to someone,” Coco said. She glanced at Stheno and then back at me. “It doesn’t make sense, though. If they’re going to give Sam language, why not just give her Greek? I can’t imagine there are a lot of people in the Underworld speaking Romanian or Chinese.”

“Don’t bother with logic,” Stheno grumbled. “They rarely use it. Someone decided to gift her with comprehension and overshot by a lot, while not making it entirely useful.”

“What do you mean?” Coco asked.

“Sam, speak French,” Stheno demanded.

I thought about it a minute. “Bonjour.”

Stheno snorted a laugh, while Vlad looked out the window. “That was pathetic,” she said.

Bracken had turned completely around, kneeling on the seat so he could face me. “I disagree. This is an extraordinary boon. You don’t need to translate in your head or search for the right word. You hear and read everything in your native language and are able to respond in a vast array of languages like you’ve been speaking them all your life. It’s remarkable.” He smiled, his eyes alight. “Congratulations. My only question is if the gift will remain after our quest.”

This is a good thing, darling, Clive said to me. You have a goddess on your side.

On one hand, sure. On the other, what had they been waiting thousands of years for me to do and what would happen if I failed?