But it wasn’t just for their own survival that the gods had offered to help me. My father had forged a friendship with the gods of our town that hinged on mutual respect. He hadn’t spoken much about how the Reeds before him had interacted with gods, other than to say they had always carried out their duties. But I’d gotten the impression that past Reeds hadn’t seen the use in socializing much with the gods.
Back in those days, generations ago, the town was really nothing more than a small collection of buildings along the dirt road that followed the coastline dotted with fishing boats and cabins built into the hills. There wasn’t much for a Reed to do but to occasionally hike out to a god’s place and make sure they weren’t using their powers while inside the town’s boundaries.
Dad had changed that. He had been not just the police chief, he had also been a man the gods could turn to with questions, troubles, and opinions.
He had become their friend, no matter what Odin wanted to call it.
“Yes,” Odin agreed, bringing me back into the conversation. “Especially when we seem to be worried about you.”
“Are you?”
“Worried?”
I waited.
“You are more than your ability, Delaney. I understand that. Many of the gods do. But just as many gods and creatures and mortals in town see you as your job. As the law. As the police chief. That is a dangerous position to hold. One of extreme expectations. One that could put you in the line of fire when those expectations are not met.”
A chill washed over my skin. Hera, who had gone by the mortal name Herri and run a bar here in town, had picked up her power to help me find Cooper too. Unlike Crow, she had left town for one year as required by the contract.
She had told me that there was a war coming. She had told me it was headed toward Ordinary. I’d been looking over my shoulder for three months. Other than the constant rain, Ordinary had seemed normal enough.
Until all the god powers had been stolen.
“What line of fire? If you know something about the war headed our way, I want to know.”
“War?” his eyebrows shot down. “Is that what you think?”
Hera had also told me to choose my allies carefully. That people might not be who I thought they were. I studied Odin and went with my gut. I trusted him.
“Hera mentioned a war headed our way. Do you know anything about that?”
He rubbed one calloused thumb over the corner of his mouth, his gaze on the floor. “Through the ages there have always been wars among gods. Just because we vacation doesn’t mean we give up our basic instincts. But war. Here.” He was silent for several minutes.
I listened to the cars hushing by the shop, wet pavement making tires louder than engines.
“What does your blood tell you, Delaney?”
His words flashed like fire across my skin, then sank deep into my bones where they pulsed. My blood. Reed blood. Protectors of Ordinary.
We were connected to this land, connected to all the forces and creatures and gods who walked upon it. Our roots ran deep, into the soil, the sand, the salt. And I knew, in that quick instant that something was coming for Ordinary. A storm. War.
But all I said was, “I don’t know.”
“You had better. And soon. Your father didn’t listen to the blood.” He shook his head. “You understand that, don’t you?”
I swallowed. What did our blood have to do with Dad, with a possible war? “What happened?”
“He chose sides. Too late.”
Crow stomped into the room. “All right. I’m ready.”
He wore a quilted canvas jacket and had shoved a gray beanie over his dark hair.
He was also wearing an umbrella on his head.
Neither Odin nor I moved. A hundred questions were spinning through my mind. Too late for what? Choose what sides? I wanted to ask Odin what he knew. It should have been second nature for me to grill him. I was a cop. I knew how to ask questions and get answers.
Also: umbrella hat?
