“I don’t like what your dad said,” Kanesha admitted, over the chocolate I’d decided we’d both more than earned.

“Neither do I. I thought I had him at least part of the way convinced to not blow the planet up, but I guess I was wrong.”

I picked up another piece of candy and unwrapped it without really looking at it.

“Maybe I should make nice with him.”

I shook my head. “If he does it, it’s because he’s convinced humanity’s better off ending it all now than continuing. Liking you won’t help.”

And I was pretty sure he did like her, actually.

On our terms, not theirs. That could mean a lot of things, though. Maybe it wasn’t as ominous as it sounded.

Maybe he was just still mad with himself for falling for a rather obvious trick.

Me? I was worried about that. “But, I think our more immediate concern is Anansi having that artifact.”

“The spider.” Kanesha frowned. “Maybe I should talk to him. I have the right skin color.”

I grinned at her. “But he might want things we’re not willing to give.”

She grinned back. “Still. He’s more likely to listen to me.”

What would the spider god do with an artifact designed to drain power from a god? I assumed that was what it was, anyway. Loki hadn’t been all that precise.

He might have planned on hiding it somewhere very safe. I wasn’t going to count on it, though. “And maybe he’ll tell a mortal something he wouldn’t tell a god, but it’s not you I’m going to ask.”

“Oh?”

“We need somebody with no detectable ties to a god. That puts you out. And Monica.”

“Clara and Seb are both white.”

“Clara would be the better out of those two. I have a feeling he’d talk to a witch, and she’s had experience doing this sort of thing.”

“Or…I have an idea. Leave it with me?”

I trusted her, angel feather incident or no angel feather incident. And she was more likely to know somebody up for dealing with an African god than I was. “Alright.”

“He might just be keeping it safe, but more likely he’s planning a prank.”

I nodded. “And who knows who his target might be.”

“Exactly. I would hope somebody in his own pantheon, but…”

I hoped so too. If it was, we could stay out of it. It really wasn’t any of our business.

I thought, though, it might be more likely he and Coyote were about to get into it. In which case I was staying very far out of the way indeed.