The Lamia

6-11

They got in the kayaks and paddled back to the little beach near Ryan's place. As they were carrying the boats back to his house, he seemed to be brooding about something.

Finally he said, "Is it over then? I mean, will I see you again, now that you know what I've been doing out there?"

"Ryan, it's not even close to over. I'm thinking I should go with you next time you go out at night. I need to see first hand what's going on out there. I need to help you find a way to stop it."

"Tonight. We'll go tonight, then." He sounded relieved, but she knew he still had concerns. They got to his house, stowed the kayaks and went inside.

"Dema, does the DEA know about you? I mean, the shaman thing? Are you going to have to tell them about me, too?"

"Ryan, they wouldn't believe me if I told them. I've had some close calls, but even then they never really suspected. Normal people are really locked in on just one reality. They see what they want to see, what they expect to see. If I tell them you've done it all from a kayak, they'll believe it. Trust me."

"You mean I could have told them who I was when I made those calls, and it would have been okay."

"Oh they might have hauled you in and questioned you, but they wouldn't have come close to guessing the selkie thing. If you told them about it they would only want to check you for drugs and send you to a psych. 

"You know how in the old comic books Clark Kent would rip open his shirt and change into Superman in a phone booth, time after time and no one ever noticed? That's actually a lot more real than the rest of it! You're smart to be careful, because you never know what people will think they saw. But you don't need to worry about it."

"I suppose you're right. I was brought up on Irish legends, and most of the selkie stories are rather tragic. I suppose that's what I wanted to avoid."

"In the old days people believed in witches enough to want to burn them, or try to take advantage of them in some way. It's a lot different now."

"I suppose you're right. But still, it's...complicated."

Dema chuckled. "I never met an Irishman who wasn't complicated. But even the Irish don't really believe their old stories any more." She looked up at him. "Most of them, that is."

It was Ryan's turn to chuckle. "Okay, I guess you've got me pegged. What's next?"

"I need to call the office and bring them up to date, tell them you're on our side and let them know what we're going to do." 

He looked at her with a bit of alarm, and she winked at him. "Sort of," she added, and he relaxed.