The Mercury Idol

The Rat Tail Inn, a secluded, unremarkable place that few guests remember and even fewer people know about, has just had its first scandal. Amory Kipp, town drunk and general nuisance, has been murdered in his room. Unfortunately for the killer, royal detective Blaise Gideon had chosen to spend the night and assumes control of the case. Before she can even get the investigation started, two of the suspects reveal themselves as pioneers in a new field: archaeology. The married pair of academics is on the hunt for the legendary artifact known as the Mercury Idol, an item considered to be a gift from the gods. The Idol, if deeming an individual worthy, would allegedly grant them the power of a god.

The archaeologists believe Amory Kipp was looking for the Idol and was killed for it. Desperate, Blaise makes an agreement with them. If they help her find the killer, she'll help them find the Idol. Skeptical at first, Blaise soon finds there might be some truth to the stories of the Idol. With mounting evidence of the supernatural, local wildlife going crazy, and seemingly no one being who they claimed, Blaise must solve the case before sunrise when all the guests check out or, worse, before there's a new god in town.