Diana Racine 02 - Goddess of the Moon

her.”
    “Wait in line, buddy.”
    “As a friend, Lieutenant. Wish I were competition.”
    Lucier laughed and hung up. He leaned back in his chair and scratched his head. What the hell.
    * * * * *
    B y the time he arrived at Diana’s that evening, Jason had faxed hi s report and Diana had read it.
    “This is major strange,” she said, “especially about the name changes. Which got me thinking. ” She handed Lucier the pad of paper she had in front of her .
    “More crosswords ?”
    “No, research. Look at these names. Cybele, Selene, Maia and Dione. I went online and typed in the names. Are you ready? Cebele ― a fertility goddess, mother of the gods; Selene ― moon goddess, known for her countless love affairs; Maia ― impregnated by Zeus in the dead of night while all the other gods slept; Dione ― the mother of Aphrodite by the big guy again, Zeus. These women are all named for mythological figures.”
    “Jason figured that out, but it made no sense to me. Maia and Dione ― you’re not thinking Compton, a very Zeus-like character, did the dirty with his own daughters, are you?”
    “Nothing would surprise me anymore. Compton’s a megalomaniac. I wouldn’t put anything past him. Did you see Maia the other night? Not the most outgoing, is she? And the deal she pulled with those two hoodlums. She hates her father, and Selene, too. Again, why? There’s more here than meets the eye.”
    “There’s no indication that Compton did anything with those women. Selene isn’t a woman who ’ d share her man with his daughters.”
    “Selene ’ s e ither a sexual predator or she’s a big tease. I’ll go with my first impression. Selene and her sisters are all gorgeous and not as dumb as they wanted us to think . My father would call them stacked. Not a bad description either. Like the two girls, Brigid and Nona.” Diana tapped her pencil. “Oh, and I mentioned Nona is the goddess of pregnancy in Roman mythology, but Brigid is the goddess of childbirth. Now doesn’t that ring your bells even a little?”
    Lucier scanned her notes more carefully. “So we have disappearing people, satanic elements, stolen babies with IQs that will probably soar off the charts when they’re grown, lots of voluptuous women, and mythological gods and goddesses.” He fell back into the sofa’s cushions. “ This is way over my head. What do you think ?”
    “I don’t know, but it’s not good.”
    “I’d need a hell of a lot more to question Silas Compton than your mythology research.”
    Diana pointed to the names in the notebook. “Don’t you see? Mythology is all mixed up in this.”
    “That proves my point about your Brother Osiris. Another mythological name.”
    “Would you stop saying he’s mine. You know why he picked that particular name.”
    “Yeah, because he has no ― ”
    “Stop! Don’t say it. He had cancer, for G od ’s sakes. It’s not like he chose the name without reason. And the name Seth, Crane’s son and Selene’s brother ― the one who’s supposedly doing humanitarian work overseas? I remembered what Cash found at the beginning of this case and looked it up. Seth was the brother of Osiris, the one who killed him.”
    H eat prickle d Lucier ’s skin. R ubb ing his scalp , he said, “I want you to leave New Orleans and go to South Carolina to stay with your parents.”
    She jerked back and scowled. “Don’t be ridiculous. I wouldn’t miss what’s going to happen for the world.”
    “We don’t know what’s going to happen .”
    “That’s exactly why I wouldn’t miss it. Besides, Silas Compton called. He wants to set up a time when I can read the group.”
    Lucier’s breath caught. “I hope you said no.”
    “I did at first. Then he said he’d donate a million dollars to any hospital s or charities I chose.” She shrugged, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “I could n’t turn that down, could I?”

Chapter Thirty -One
    Temptation

    M aya sat at the dining room table reserved for the elders. N o point in being stubborn. She was starved, and she ate with unabashed relish. “Great food, as always,” she said. “Health y and plentiful.”
    “Why did you do it, Maia?” Seth asked, fixing his magnetic eyes on her. “You had to know what would happen.”
    Avoiding his gaze didn’t relieve the unnerving effect of his penetrating stare. Steeling herself, she faced him. “Those babies were kidnapped. How can you condone that?”
    “I don’t, but my father says we