8
" Let us find the dam snack bar," Zoe said. " We should eat while we can." Grover cracked a smile. " The dam snack bar?" Zoe blinked. " Yes. What is funny?" " Nothing," Grover said, trying to keep a straight face. " I could use some dam frenchfries." Even Thalia smiled at that. " And I need to use the dam restroom." Maybe it was the fact that we were so tired and strung out emotionally, but I startedcracking up, and Thalia and Grover joined in, while Zoe just looked at us. " I do notunderstand." " I want to use the dam water fountain," Grover said." And…" Thalia tried to catch her breath. " I want to buy a dam T-shirt." I busted up, and I probably would've kept laughing all day, but then I heard a noise:" Moooo." The smile melted off my face. I wondered if the noise was just in my head, but Groverhad stopped laughing too. He was looking around, confused. " Did I just hear a cow?" " A dam cow?" Thalia laughed. "
10
" Zoe—" I said." Stars," she whispered. " I can see the stars again, my lady." A tear trickled down Artemis's cheek. " Yes, my brave one. They are beautiful tonight." " Stars," Zoe repeated. Her eyes fixed on the night sky. And she did not move again.Thalia lowered her head. Annabeth gulped down a sob, and her father put his hands on her shoulders. I watched as Artemis cupped her hand above Zoe's mouth and spoke a few words in Ancient Greek. A silvery wisp of smoke exhaled from Zoe's lips and was caught in the hand of the goddess. Zoe's body shimmered and disappeared.Artemis stood, said a kind of blessing, breathed into her cupped hand and released the silver dust to the sky. It flew up, sparkling, and vanished.For a moment I didn't see anything different. Then Annabeth gasped. Looking up in the sky, I saw that the stars were brighter now. They made a pattern I had never noticed before—a gleaming constellation that looked a lot like a girl's figure—a girl with a bow, running across the sky." Let the world honor you, my Huntress," Artemis said. " Live forever in the stars. "
14
" If I order an appetizer is there any chance I can get it quickly? I'm two and a half months pregnant with a Bradford," she said, not mentioning it was twins because the thought was actually starting to scare her and she hadn't told Trevor yet and didn't want him finding out this way. She just hoped the woman understood because she was close to crying. Judging by the slightly startled look on the woman's face she did.The waitress shook her head. " No, you're right. You probably won't be able to survive the wait," she said, sending Trevor, who was still trying to get the woman to leave, a glare. " I'll bring you out a bowl of clam chowder followed by chicken fingers, they'll only take a few minutes to prepare. Will that work?" Zoe nodded solemnly. " You are my hero." " I'll put a rush on your food," the waitress said before walking away." Bless you," Zoe said, fighting the urge to kiss the woman. "
20
" Stately and commanding, the house I found on Sacramento Street, in Lower Pacific Heights, was an architectural jewel; tour buses drove down the street several times a day and the guides pointed out our Victorian “painted lady” not just for its curb appeal but also for its lucky survival of the earthquake. Meticulously renovated, the house had a layout that I was sure would work perfectly: a three-room suite on the lower level with a bathroom and laundry room for my mother, living space on the next level, and, on the top floor, bedrooms for Zoë and me. The master bedroom was large enough to double as my office. Moreover, it seemed symbolic that we should find a three-story nineteenth-century Victorian, whose original intention was to house multiple generations. My mother couldn’t have been more pleased. She started calling our experiment “our year in Provence.” In the face of naysayers, I chose to embrace the reaction of a friend who was living in Beijing: “How Chinese of you!” she said upon hearing the news. When I told my mother, she was delighted. “What have the Chinese got on us?” she declared. And I agreed. The Chinese revere their elderly. If they could live happily with multiple generations under one roof, so could we. "
