But the longer they remained there, quietly finishing their meal, the more they seemed to fit in. As Crow said, humans behaved differently, and silence wasn’t that unusual.
I didn’t have my sister Jean’s ability to know when something really bad was going to happen, nor did I have Myra’s family gift for being in the right place at the right time.
But that didn’t mean I should ignore my instincts.
The gods had been acting strange, well, stranger, around me.
And there was something up with those people in the corner booth.
Maria swung by the corner booth folks. She smiled and laughed.
Like someone had flipped a switch, they smiled and laughed, too, suddenly breaking their silence, breaking their spell.
My gut still said something was up, but now they just looked like regular people out for lunch. Maybe people on their way to or from something that had them contemplative and silent. Like a funeral. Or a training conference.
That seemed to fit. They didn’t look like friends, more like work associates.
I dug into another taco while the group settled their bill, worked out who was pitching in for the tip, and gathered jackets and purses.
They strolled out the door, and I watched them through the window. They split into male-female pairs, got into two cars, and pulled out of the lot, heading south.
South toward Ordinary. South toward a lot of towns, really, including Coos Bay. Maybe they were headed to an illicit garage sale.
“You stole my fries,” Crow slid into the seat opposite. He picked up his burger and took a huge bite.
“Quality control test,” I said. “Did you see those people drive off?”
“I did.” He took another huge bite.
“Did you get any weird feelings off them?”
He shook his head and started in on the fries. “Looked like regular humans to me. Why? Did you?”
“Nothing I could put my finger on.”
He chewed thoughtfully. “They’re just human.”
“Yeah, but humans cause trouble too.”
“Don’t I know it?” He popped his fingertips one by one into his mouth to clear them of ketchup and salt, then dragged the same fingers over his napkin. “You’re worried.”
I shrugged. “That’s part of my job.”Part of my life.
“You don’t need to worry. You’ve got a wedding coming up. A dress to choose. Let some of the rest of us worry instead.”
I frowned. “Is that why all you gods are acting so strange? You’re worried?”
“We’ve always been strange. And I’m not worried about a bunch of humans who like to eat without a lot of chit chat.” He pointed at his mouth, my plate, and made some exaggerated chewing motions before demolishing his meal.
I finished mine, too, and just as he’d promised, he picked up the tab.
Not too much later, we walked out of the diner. I was full, in a much better mood, and an entire blackberry pie the richer.
“Want me to drop you off somewhere?” I asked.
“That’d be great. What are you doing the rest of the day until the dress thing?” He ducked into my Jeep, and I sat behind the wheel.
“First, I’m going to get rid of you so I can do my job. And then, none of your business.” I put the Jeep in gear. “You know what you’renotdoing the rest of the day?” I asked.
