- Shadow has to decide the price he's willing to pay for his idyllic Lakeside life. As Laura and her new ally close in on her target, Wednesday has to persuade Czernobog that it's time to make peace with their enemies.
- While Derek kills himself and Shadow finds the missing Lakeview teenagers, Wednesday visits Chzernobog and says that he wants to negotiate a peace treaty between the Old and New Gods. Tech Boy escapes from his captivity and looks for Artifact One, while Laura considers whether to have sex with Doyle.—Gislef
- Laura and Doyle drive down the highway, Gungnir in the back. Leon flips a coin and tells Laura to call it, and she tells him to cut it out. She tells Doyle that she has more important things to talk about, like killing Wednesday with Gungnir. Doyle tells her to pull off at the next exit so he can teach her how to use Gungnir, and she does.
In Lakeview, Shadow goes through the town's ice festival. People greet him, and he goes to Marguerite's home. She comes out as he prepares to knock hat her door. When Shadow asks if they can talk, Marguerite tells him that she was just leaving and something happened.
Chad and his men are cutting down Derek, who hung himself. Shadow and Marguerite arrive, and Chad goes out and tells Marguerite to give him some to sort things out. Marguerite agrees and asks if he's okay, and Chad says that he isn't. Once they're alone, Chad tells Shadow that Derek killing himself doesn't make any sense because he hadn't missed any work or school, and was doing good in therapy. A deputy calls Chad in to see something, and inside the deputy shows him Alison's coat that they found in the back of Derek's closet.
In his conference room, Mr. World tells the comatose Tech Boy with the scanner attached to his head that he has to go on a business trip, and when he comes back the two of them will have some fun together. Once World leaves, Tech Boy stops feigning unconsciousness, removes the scanner from his head, and inserts his fingers into World's faceless minions. He kills one and asks the other if he can tell Tech Boy anything about Artifact One.
Shadow goes to Marguerite's apartment and says that they need to talk. She isn't interested, and says that she knew Derek as well as anyone in town. Marguerite says that she has to go to the office, and Julie reminded everyone that the kids have been waiting all year for the ice festival so they shouldn't cancel it because of Derek' suicide. Shadow doesn't believe Derek killed Alison, and mentions Marguerite's son Sandy.
Marguerite asks him what about Sandy, and Shadow says that he went to Florida and talked to Darren. He confirmed that Sandy didn't go to Darren, and figures that Sandy is missing like Alison. Marguerite glares at him, and Shadow tells her that she deserves the truth. She tells Shadow that truth doesn't let her handle the rest of life, and angrily tells Shadow not to preach to her about the truth. She storms out, slamming the door behind her.
Laura and Doyle go to an abandoned church, and Doyle trains Laura with Gungnir. He holds her to direct her in how to use Gungnir, then he steps back and she throws the spear but misses. As Laura picks up the spear, Doyle asks Laura if she has to kill Wednesday. Laura says that she has to or the New Gods will kill her, Salim, and Shadow. She tells Doyle that it's not his problem, and he gives her the coin and says that with it she can't miss. Laura finally takes it and Doyle emphasizes that it's a loan. Laura throws Gungnir again and makes a "lucky" throw.
Chzernobog comes home and finds Wednesday waiting for him, Wednesday says that Cordelia is on the roof and he let himself in. He says that his war campaign has been a failure, and the New Gods won before Chzernobog insists that there can never be a war, and they'll be forgotten. Wednesday tells him that the few that remain will remember their lives.
Angry, Chzernobog insists that there are the true gods and they need to protect their followers. Wednesday points out that they can't protect themselves, and asks Chzernobog to be his second in the peace talks. Chzernobog wonders if he's lost his balls.
Shadow sits in his kitchen, and listens to the tape Sandy made. The missing poster of Alison frosts over and frost over a nearby book. Shadow opens the book and finds a scrapbook of a missing child in Lakeview. He continues doing research and finds that more teenagers have gone missing, and discovers they've all disappeared in late December.
Later, Shadow goes to Derek's house where Chad is. He insists that they both know Derek was a children, and tells the sheriff about the pattern of disappearances. Shadow explains that he confirmed Sandy isn't in Florida, and Chad says that whatever happened with Derek has nothing to do with Alison. He points out that he has two dead children, and Shadow suggests that it might be a lot more. Chad takes Shadow's research, but tells him to get behind the police line.
Shadow goes to the ice festival with Marguerite. She admires Leon's ice sculpture, and Ann-Marie gives Shadow a cup of hot chocolate. He says that he was at Derek's, and Ann-Marie says that they can't let the tragedy ruin the festival. Ann-Marie tells Shadow that they're not just celebrating the end of winter, but their good fortune in surviving it.
A woman calls Ann-Marie over, and Shadow approaches an ice sculpture that looks like Ganesh from earlier. It's melting with a golden glow, and one drop becomes a coin like the one Shadow saw earlier at the lake car's trunk. Shadow takes it and realizes the trunk is significant, and goes to the lake.
At the car, Shadow carefully goes out to it over the melting ice and forces open the front door. He throws the switch to open the trunk, and finds Alison's body inside.
The ice breaks and the car falls into the water. Shadow falls into the water and sees all of the other sacrificed cars... and the ghosts of the children in them float out of the trunks and surround Shadow. One of them points to the surface, and Shadow swims up and sees the Orishas
At the church, Doyle lights candles He tells Laura that she'll be fine killing Wednesday, since she has the coin. Laura suggests that they have sex the night before she might die, so she can feel wanted. She asks Doyle if he can help her out, and he comes over to her. They start to kiss, but then Laura says that she used to do it a lot when she was anxious or bored, and it's not good. Laura insists that it has nothing do with him. The last time she had sex when she was alive, and it was with Robbie so it's not good.
Doyle tells Laura that she needs a plan for after Wednesday and she' not dead. Laura says that she just wants to be free of the "cage" of religion" Doyle tells her that she's overdramatic, and suggests that they go bowling, get tattoos, or go skydiving. Laura admits that she's never been skydiving, and Doyle says that they'll do it after she kills Wednesday.
Shadow returns home early from the store and calls to Marguerite. He finds her in the hot tub drinking, and says that he can focus on her. Shadow gets into the hot tub with Marguerite and kisses her, and their baby daughter cries in the house. He offers to go get it, and Marguerite grabs him and shoves him beneath the water. Coming up from the water, Shadow finds himself naked and in a bathtub.
Chzernobog goes up to the roof with his hammer, and wonders to his dead sister Zorya if he should become the Dark One, says that he needs her to guide him, and a shooting star passes overhead. Chzernobog calls to his sister, believing the star is a sign from her. He sees a billboard for Shard, grabs his hammer, and smashes it down on the roof.
Cordelia has joined Wednesday, and wonders what's going on as the building shakes. Wednesday tells her to let Chzernobog work it out as the building shakes again. Cordelia point out that they visit Wednesday's friends, eat their food, and they calm down. She wonders what Wednesday will do if it doesn't work out the next time. Chzernobog comes in and says that they'll leave in the morning, grabs a bottle of alcohol, and goes to his room.
After he dresses, Shadow goes to the living room, and finds Ann-Marie sitting beside the fire place. There are weapons on the wall, and Ann-Marie tells Shadow that a hot bath is the key to staving off hypothermia. She put a blanket around him, sits him down, and gives him a hot drink.
Ann-Marie tells Shadow that he won the clunker competition, and the car went through the ice just when Shadow guessed. Shadow figures that Ann-Marie killed all the children, and framed Derek for killing Alison because of Shadow. Ann-Marie explains that the children are a necessary sacrifice, in accordance with Norse tradition, to bring fortune to Lakeview. She insists that she provides shelter, and Shadow doesn't need to burden anyone with the knowledge.
Shadow says that he's not going to let Ann-Marie keep killing children. She isn't surprised, and tells Shadow that she owed Wednesday a debt and he came to collect. Ann-Marie says that the people made sacrifices in her name, and now she has to deliver. Chad comes in, gun dawn. Ann-Marie clubs Shadow with a poker, then advances on Chad.
Chad shoots her without effect, and Ann-Marie starts choking him. Shadow recovers, grabs a knife from the wall, and cuts Ann-Marie's throat. The blood starts a fire wherever it lands, and Shadow takes Chad out a the fire burns down the house, as Ann-Marie dies. Outside, Chad wonders what happened. Shadow doesn't say anything, and the two men watch the house burn.
Wednesday goes to the Adler Planetarium to negotiate a truce with World. He talks to Cordelia about the tars, saying that they're a frontier to the future and a map to the past. Wednesday figures the planetarium is a perfect place to put a things to an end, and puts a necklace on Cordelia's wrist. Chzernobog comes in and says World and his minions are there.
World and his minions come in, and Wednesday tells the New God that he's come to a realization that war and bloodshed demeans godhood. World tell him that they'll dictate the terms, and they'll grant the Old Gods their lives and the freedom to disappear wherever they want. The alternative is that humanity will forget the Old Gods and they will all die. The Old Gods can accept the New Gods' offer and fade away in peace, or the New Gods will kill ever Old God that stands in their way.
Wednesday says nothing, and Chzernobog wonder what he's afraid of. Chzernobog says that he's not afraid anymore, and will fight until the bitter end with or without Wednesday. He'll call on the Old Gods to join him and walks away. Wednesday tells World that the peace talks are over for that day, and World and his minions leave. Cordelia and Chzernobog leaver as well
The next day, Marguerite is in her home packing and looks at a photo of her and a baby sandy. Shadow comes in and sees that Marguerite is leaving, and she says that about two years ago a drunken Darren called her and said that Sandy wasn't with him. When Marguerite told Darren that he would never see the kids, Sandy overheard her and when he disappeared, Marguerite chose to believe he went to Darren because she had to.
Shadow asks Marguerite where she's going, and she says that she has a job in Milwaukee. Shadow suggested that he go with Marguerite, then realizes that she plans to goes alone. Marguerite suggests that they might see each other if Shadow ever comes to Milwaukee, and tells him to keep her car.
As Wednesday, Cordelia, and Chzernobog leave the planetarium, Laura walks up holding the coin and throws Gungnir into Wednesday's chest. Cordelia knocks Laura out of the way of Chzernobog's hammer swing, and Doyle arrives and attacks Chzernobog. Laura tosses Doyle the coin, and he avoids the hammer blow and teleports away. Gungnir hits Wednesday, knocking him back into the planetarium. He stares at the spear sizzling in his chest, and dies.
Shadow is packing when he senses that his father is dead. Two crows land on a branch outside his window.
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