Chapter Nine

“I'll wait for you here,” Pan said as he parked the car outside the gates of Hermopolis. “You shouldn't have any trouble getting back to the island. But if you do, text me.”

“All right. Thanks,” I said as I got out of the car.

“Vervain,” he called after me.

I ducked my head back in.

“Thank you.”

I grinned at him. “Of course, Pan. You're like family.”

Odin's words rang through my mind as I said that, and it became harder to hold my smile. So I hurried off to the tracing chamber with Blue. When we were under the arbor of grapes, Blue took my hand. I met his jade stare and felt a shiver of something that might have been. Nothing important, just a little shiver. An acknowledgment that we might have been more than friends, but we'd gone down different paths, and were both happier for it.

“Ready?” Blue asked.

“Ready,” I said.

Then Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec God of War and the Sun traced us into the territory of Quetzalcoatl, the God of Wind and Wisdom. Also known as the Feathered Serpent.

I'd been to Quetzalcoatl's territory once before and then only briefly. But it all came rushing back to me when I appeared on a cliff with Blue. A lush jungle spread out before us, growing at the foot of a vast mountain range.

Blue stepped to the edge of the cliff and shouted, “Quetzalcoatl! It's Huitzilopochtli! I have brought Vervain with me. We need to talk. It's urgent.”

He didn't keep calling for the Aztec God even though we had to wait for a few minutes. Blue just stood there, watching the sky. I watched it too. The arrival of the Feathered Serpent was not something I wanted to miss.

I gasped. Even though I'd seen Quetzalcoatl fly before, it was still a magnificent sight. I wasn't afraid of him, so I could enjoy it, but I could imagine why it had terrified Eztli and sent her running from her home, into the unknown. Seeing a giant snake fly was scary on its own, but this snake was lime green, and wasn't it a rule among snakes that the brighter the scales, the more deadly the venom? I didn't know if Quetzalcoatl was venomous, but I did know that he was deadly.

In addition to the undulating green snake body, Quetzalcoatl's massive head bore a crest of vibrant feathers in emerald, ruby, and citrine. The same feathers tipped his tail. But he didn't have wings. The God of the Wind didn't need wings to fly.

Or maybe he did.

Quetzalcoatl's spectacular flight suddenly went awry. His undulations became spastic, and he dropped several feet before recovering. Feathers splayed as he fought to keep airborne. Blue cursed, but there was nothing he could do as the man who used to be his best friend—so close, the Aztec myths called them brothers—faltered in midair.

Blue couldn't do anything, but I could .

Running for the edge of the cliff, I transformed into a golden dragon, my fear for Quetzalcoatl speeding the shift so that my last step was done with a giant claw that sent stones skittering down the cliff. With a roar of delight—couldn't be helped. My dragon was always happy to be released—I launched into the air and shot for the falling snake. By the time I reached Quetzalcoatl, he was dropping like a stone, and I had to dive to snatch him up.

The snake went limp in my talons. I wasn't sure if it was in deference to a larger snake or in relief, but I was relieved. I flew back to the cliff, deposited Quetzalcoatl upon it, and then hovered above him as he shifted into his man form. When there was room on the cliff for me, I also transformed, doing so in the air. I couldn't return to my normal body because then I'd be naked—all of my clothes had been shredded during the first transformation. Instead, I went with my weredragon form—a winged, horned, and claw-tipped body covered in golden scales. I also had gold dragon eyes in this form. Yeah, all kinds of gold. For a dragon, that was like being your own treasure.

Once I was of a size that could be supported on the shelf of stone, I landed. Blue was hugging Quetzalcoatl, whose teal eyes had gone wide. I wasn't sure if he was wide-eyed from the shock of his near-accident or Blue hugging him. Their relationship had been strained ever since Blue had learned of Quetzalcoatl chasing Eztli out of her village. And no, Blue hadn't known about it.

Quetzalcoatl stepped back and stared from Blue to me. He was as magnificent in his man form as he was in his beast body. His scales were gone, replaced by bronzed skin that made his bright eyes glow and turned his orange-red hair into flames. With only a loincloth of leather and feathers covering his bits, Quetzalcoatl's muscular body was displayed, and I had to fight to keep my stare on his face. Those striking Aztec features eased my battle. It certainly wasn't a hardship to look at that face .

“Huitzilopochtli,” Quetzalcoatl said. “I thought you . . .”

Blue sighed. “I'm still mad at you, but seeing you fall made me realize how petty that is. I'm sorry, Quetzalcoatl. You did something terrible a very long time ago. One thing. I did many horrid things over centuries, and I've been forgiven for them. I shouldn't have withheld forgiveness from you. You've apologized to both of us. It was wrong of me to accept that apology only partially. I've withheld my friendship from you and that was cruel. To both of us.”

“Then this terrible day has brought one good thing. My heart is eased by your forgiveness.” Quetzalcoatl held his hand out, and Blue clasped forearms with him. Then Quetzalcoatl looked at me. “Vervain.” His stare slid over me. “You are resplendent.”

“Thanks,” I grinned, probably showing off my fangs. “This is my weredragon body. My woman body would be naked, so . . . yeah.”

He chuckled. “Thank you for your assistance. The fall wouldn't have killed me, but it wouldn't have been pleasant either.”

“It might have killed you,” Blue said. “If you had hit a rock and lost your head, you would have died, Quetzalcoatl.”

Quetzalcoatl blinked. Looked toward the edge. Faced me. “Holy shit.”

I laughed. “Don't think about it.”

“Just don't do it again,” Blue added.

Quetzalcoatl pulled me into a hug. “Thank you, Vervain. You saved my life.”

“It's all right. I'm glad I was here.” I pulled back and looked at his bare chest. “But I can't help noticing there's something missing. Perhaps the reason for your failed flight?”

Quetzalcoatl grimaced. “Your arrival is well-timed in many ways.” His hand went to his chest. “Someone has stolen the Wind Jewel.” He looked at Blue. “I didn't think my magic was so dependent on it. I thought I'd still be able to fly without the jewel, and I did. For a few miles. But then.” He waved limply at the sky. “I don't know how I'll get home.”

“I can take you back, but maybe you should come with us for now,” I said. “If I take you home, you won't be able to leave easily, and we could use your help anyway.”

“My help?” Quetzalcoatl frowned. “I'm sorry, Vervain, but I must hunt whoever took my breastplate.”

“We are hunting the same thief,” Blue said. “It's why we came. He stole a staff from Hermes and left a clue that led us to you.”

“A clue? What kind of thief leaves clues?”

“One who's also a trickster,” I said. “We've dealt with the god before. He likes to play games, but his last game ended up helping us. I'm not sure if his motives are as pure this time, but I am sure that he's leading us through another round of Follow the Clues .”

“A trickster,” Quetzalcoatl murmured. “There are very few people who have access to my territory and none of them are tricksters.”

“This god has gotten into many places he shouldn't have been able to,” I said. “I don't think he is any of the people who have access to your territory. Although, it wouldn't hurt to be wary of them for now. Uh, and, before we go, could we inspect your home for traces of him? Or rather, no traces of him.”

“No traces? ”

“He stole magic from another god,” I said. “The magic of Unseen. It's a type of invisibility magic that covers all traces of a person, including their scent. It makes him nearly impossible to track.”

“That's why I couldn't find a scent trail in my home!” Quetzalcoatl growled.

Right. Snakes could track too.

“It must be the trickster,” Blue said. “There was no scent trail at Hermes's home. The clue led us here, and there's no scent here either.”

“Yes, it has to be the trickster who stole the . . . what did you call it? A wind jewel?”

“Yes, the Wind Jewel,” Quetzalcoatl confirmed. “Its full name is The Spirally Voluted Wind Jewel.”

“Let's just call it Wind Jewel,” I said dryly.

Quetzalcoatl grinned. “I've forgotten how funny you are.”

“Well, it's been a while since we've hung out.”

“It has.” Quetzalcoatl grinned wider and stepped closer to me.

Blue stepped between us. “Seven husbands, brother. She has seven husbands.”

“That sounds like an open marriage,” Quetzalcoatl said.

“It's not.”

Quetzalcoatl looked at me for confirmation.

“He's right,” I said. “It's not. We're faithful to each other.” Then I grinned. “But I'm really flattered that you hoped it was.”

Quetzalcoatl chuckled. “Maybe I have a touch of hero worship for the woman who saved me. ”

“Now that's a first,” I said. “I'll take it.”

“All right, enough,” Blue said, his annoyance surprising me.

I lifted my brows at him. “We're just teasing, Blue.”

“Blue?” Quetzalcoatl asked. “Oh, that's right. You have a nickname for him. Maybe you could give me a nickname too, Godhunter?”

“Hmmm.” I thought about it. “I got Blue's from the English translation of his name.”

“My name means 'Feathered Serpent.'”

“Yeah. Not nearly as long as Blue's. And I don't want to call you feather or snake.”

Quetzalcoatl made a face. “No. quetzal is a bird and coatl is a snake. But I don't like either of those.”

“No. You've got a hard name to shorten. We can't call you que because that means 'what' in Spanish.”

He chuckled. “That's kind of funny. I like it.”

“You want to be called what ?” Blue asked in horror.

“Sure. It's a joke and a nickname in one. My life could use more humor. It's been . . .” He looked away. “I don't get a lot of visitors.”

Lonely. The Feathered Snake had been lonely. Probably because his best friend had been mad at him. Poor guy.

“I'm sorry, Quetzalcoatl,” Blue said.

“I'm sorry too, Blue ,” Quetzalcoatl, recently dubbed Que, said, emphasizing Blue's nickname. “As I've said before, I did what I thought you wanted. How is she, by the way?”

“Eztli? ”

Que nodded.

Blue grinned. “She's wonderful. Strong, brilliant, beautiful. She makes every day an adventure. I've never been so happy.”

Que smiled. “Then I'm happy for you. And sorry for separating you for so long.”

“That wasn't you.” Blue shook his head. “You didn't help, but I could have gone after her. And I think it was good that I didn't. I think we found each other again right when we were supposed to.”

“It's funny how fate works,” I said.

Blue smiled softly at me. “Indeed.”

I cleared my throat. “So, uh, before we leave, we should still take a look around your house, Que. And you'll need to pack some things if you want to come with us. Maybe put on some pants.”

Quetzalcoatl looked down at himself. “Why?”

I gaped at him.

He burst out laughing. “I can be funny too, Vervain. I have to live up to my nickname.”