“I don’t know what to think. That’s why I’m talking to you.”
“Okay, then: physical shifting. I’ve never seen it, but there’s a lot of anecdotal evidence. There’s a whole book on it called Human Animals by a guy named Hamel. Makes interesting reading. Obviously, if factual, just like your smart friend says, we have no idea of how it’s done. Had I not seen what you and I saw that time, I’d be prepared to discount it, too, but having seen it, I conclude that the world is not what it appears to the senses and is wider than what can fit in a lab. Why do you think it’s after your kid?”
“I have no idea. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“Not to you, maybe, but traditional people think on wavelengths that are closed to us high-tech folks. Your mom still around?”
“Yeah, she is. Why?”
“What does she think of all this?”
“I haven’t filled her in.”
“Why not?”
“I was hoping you’d say I should load with silver bullets and it’d be cool. Or garlic.”
“Yeah, well, a being who can manipulate the fabric of space and matter is unlikely to be swattable by a bullet made of any particular element. You’re still afraid to take the plunge, aren’t you? I recall you were reluctant to go the whole way back then. Your precious ontological cherry.”
A nervous laugh from Paz. It was cool in the bedroom, but he felt the sweat start on his forehead and flanks. “Guilty. I’m not designed for this shit. I just want everything to be regular, as my kid says. Why me? I whine.”
“Yeah, the great question. You’re not religious, are you?”
“Not if I can help it. Why?”
“Because it answers the ‘why me’ question pretty good. And the religious can pray their way past a lot of this unseen-world stuff. My advice is, talk to your mom.”
“Yeah, I’m on that already, as a matter of fact.”
“And…?”
“I don’t know, Jane. I guess I’m…I guess I’ve been unwilling to totally, you know, accept the reality of…”
“You’re scared shitless.”
He could not restrain a laugh but was successful in keeping it from blossoming into full hysterics. “Yeah, you could put it like that.”
“That’s good, actually,” Jane said. “If you weren’t frightened, you’d be fucking doomed. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”
“But we’re not talking about God here, are we?”
“Aren’t we? It’s always a mistake to try to put him in a box and say this is holy and this is not. As soon as we worship any good thing that’s not ourselves we’re worshipping him. You and I are on what they used to call the left-hand path. We have the illusion we know where we’re going, and how proud we are of our navigational skills. And then, well, what do you know! We end up in this tight little place with no way out except for one little tiny crack, but we can’t pass through it unless we admit we’re not God Almighty and in total control. That’s when we experience that ripping existential terror. If I were you I would visit the bathroom frequently.”
“Oh, thanks, Jane, speaking of tight little places-I feel so much better. Listen, you wouldn’t consider coming down here and holding my hand, you being so experienced in this kind of shit?”
She hooted. “Oh, no, thank you! After what happened that time, I think I can say that my zombie jamboree days are over: this rough magic I here abjure. I’m a proper Catholic lady now, I take my kid and my dad to mass every Sunday, and I even have a little hat. Oh, and you’ll find this amusing. The church we go to is called Mary Star of the Sea-you remember the way you were chanting that when the witching hour hit…?”
“Yes, despite trying to forget,” said Paz quickly.
“Yeah, me, too. Anyway, you can tell your mom that every week, in a church consecrated to her, I light a candle to Yemaya. And, Jimmy? When the time comes, just let it all go, let it bore right down to the deepest level. Love is magic, too. She’s not going to let anything bad happen to you.”
“If you say so. Well, Jane, thanks for the advice. Maybe our paths will cross again, in this world or the next.”
A low laugh. “I bet we will. And good luck. I’ll pray for you.”
Paz said good-bye and broke the connection and thought about boring down to the deepest level. Without replacing the receiver he rang his sister at home and had a short and somewhat technical conversation with her, after which he was pretty sure that he knew why Gabriel Hurtado was in Miami. So, one problem solved. He dropped the phone into its cradle and was not extremely surprised when the phone rang ten seconds later and his mother’s voice came over the line. She got right to the point.
“It’s time for you to be asiento, ” she said. “You have to start tonight.”
Paz took in a breath to say no to this proposal. Asiento, the ritual that prepared a person to act as a “seat” for a god.
Mrs. Paz said, “It’s necessary if you want to protect Amelia. The santeros have met, and they all agree. You have to be made to the saints. Soon. Now.”
He spoke then and heard his voice expressing consent. This did not surprise him either.
“I’ll come by in an hour,” she said.
“What should I bring?”
“Nothing,” she said. “It’s not a vacation.”
His wife was the surprised one when he informed her that he would be out of reach for a full week.
They were out on the back patio when he told her, having cleverly delayed the moment until she was about to leave for work. Just beyond them arose squeals of delight and the sound of splashing water. Jenny had set up the inflatable pool and was entertaining Amelia.
“That’s crazy,” said the wife.
“Are you speaking as a psychiatrist or was that a figure of speech?”
“Jimmy, you don’t even believe in that stuff.” Here a sharp look. “Or do you?”
“Let’s say my beliefs are in flux. I know you’ve forgotten the way you were a little while ago, and about what stopped it, which is real convenient for you, but I seem to be engaged in something here and I can’t let it go so easy.”
“And what about Amy? I can’t take a week off work so you can ‘engage’ in some ritual to make your mother happy.”
“You won’t have to. Jenny will take care of her. See, it’s all been mystically arranged.” He gave her a big smile, which she did not return.
“Don’t be ridiculous! That girl can barely take care of herself. What if she seizes again?”
“I thought we were supposed to hire the handicapped.”
“And the Colombians?”
“You’re covered there. I’ll have Tito put a patrol car out on the street twenty-four/seven while I’m away. And if you’re uncomfortable with that, I’m sure my mom would volunteer to move in for the week.”
She could not keep the look of horror from her face. “We’ll talk about this later,” she said and climbed onto her bicycle. As he watched her depart Paz could not help chuckling. Manipulative swine that he was, he understood that Lola would give her daughter to a brain-dead quadriplegic before she’d let Margarita Paz move in for a week. He walked back to where the girls were sporting.
“That looks like fun,” he said.
“It is,” said Amelia. “Are you going to come in the water with us?” Paz glanced at Jenny, who was wearing an electric-blue thong bikini of Lola’s that Lola herself had not dared in years, exhibiting as much youthful scrumptiousness as anyone could desire. For about twelve seconds Paz contemplated what would happen, all unwillingly, should he roll about in the tiny pool in contact with that. Not.
“I don’t think so, baby,” he said. “Maybe later. Jenny, could I talk to you for a second?”
