Azrael stumbled back, staring at the goddess with wide eyes.
“Az?” I grabbed his arm, noted how shaken he was, then glared at Modja. “What did you do to him?”
Modja held up her hands. “Nothing, I swear. I just spoke from my heart to his.”
“She's right,” Azrael whispered. “I can't base my decision on laws alone. And yet, this god must be found and dealt with. If not, we will all look weak, not just me.”
“Deal with him then,” Modja said. “But deal justly and kindly. Treat him as you would your child.”
Azrael looked at me.
I shrugged. “I can't say that I wouldn't have done the same to protect the ones I love.”
“What the fuck is happening right now?” Hermes demanded. “That beaver knows who took my snakes. We need to find him. Period. I don't care what you do to him after we find him as long as we get a name out of him—the trickster's name.”
“He's right,” Odin said. “We're putting the cart before the horse. Leave off on the punishment talk. We need to find this god first. Then we can decide what to do with him.”
I frowned, glancing at Modja. Her impassioned words had been moving, but they'd also taken us off course. What did I know about her beyond her name and magic? Nothing.
As the group got back to the topic of finding the beaver, I went to Torrent and pulled him aside, taking him into the stairwell that led down to the over-day rooms and the tracing wall.
After I shut the door, I asked, “Can you look into Modjadji, please?”
“Already did, V.” Torrent grinned. “As soon as Ty introduced her, I investigated. She's a rain goddess, as she said. Mother to the Balobedu Tribe in South Africa. She sends a gentle rain to nourish the crops of her people but also floods and storms to their enemies.”
I nodded. “That tracks. It explains why she's so passionateabout gods protecting their charges.”
“Yeah. And why she advised Az to treat that beaver god like his child. She's a mother goddess. It's in her nature.”
“A South African goddess,” I murmured. “And the trickster posed as a Nigerian god. The connection is noteworthy.”
“Yes, I agree. It's a little suspicious. But maybe that's what the trickster wants us to think.”
I grimaced. “You're right. The very fact that he chose to hide as a Nigerian god should exonerate all African deities. He's probably Norse.” I snorted. “Or Christian. Actually, that would make complete sense. We started with them and were led away. Maybe the trickster started with the Ark and kept Jerry's tablets because he's an Angel.”
“Or a Demon.”
“No. No way. Luke's people chose to follow him. I can't imagine any of them turning on him now.”
“But if they're crazy and they think they're actually helping, maybe they don't see it as a betrayal.”
“Dang it. I hadn't thought of that.”
“Or it could be the complete opposite,” Torrent said brightly. “The trickster could have taken the guise of someone close to him, knowing that you wouldn't expect that. Maybe it was his way of protecting his pantheon.”
“Ugh!” I tossed my hands into the air. “So, we're back to suspecting everyone.”
“Yes,” Torrent said. “Everyone who isn't one of us. And yes, that includes this rain goddess.”
“Damn it!”
“That being said, she used her magic tostopthe rain.Credit must be given for that.”
“Unless she did it to throw us off her scent and get in good with Ty.”
Torrent sighed. “Intrigue. It's always been too complicated for me.”
“Because you're a good man, Torr.” I patted his arm. “Intrigue is always difficult for good people to unravel. You just can't think like a bad guy.”
