American Gods

Marguerite Olsen invites Shadow to her house for dinner. Shadow feels the day is passing slowly until he receives a telephone call from an exhausted Wednesday. Seemingly depressed, Wednesday reminisces about his friend and fellow god Thor, who “put a gun in his mouth and blew his head off in Philadelphia in 1932” (251). Though Wednesday doubts the potential success of his plan, the new gods have offered to negotiate peace. Wednesday will travel to Kansas City by himself. Shadow spends the rest of the day reading the minutes of old council meetings. He is shocked to read the name Hinzelmann regarding plans to build an artificial lake. At dinner, Shadow is surprised to see Sam. He keeps up the pretense that his name is Mike Ainsel, assuring her quietly that he will explain later. After dinner, Sam and Shadow go for a drink. He calms her and assures her that he has not killed people. Sam is a willing believer in many outlandish, impossible things. Her sincerity prompts Shadow to tell her about the war between the old and new gods, who live among humans. He explains that Laura killed Wood and Stone, not him, and Sam accepts his story.