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“That snake tried to bite me,” Ray complained.
“The snake can’t see you. He probably tried to bite the food you had.” I leaned back, nearly tipping the chair off its legs in the process. “I need to tell you something.”
Nana Pratt clapped her hands together. “You’re pregnant! Oh, won’t it be wonderful to have a baby in the house?”
My mouth dropped open. “I … I am 100 percent not pregnant.”
The elderly woman held her index finger an inch from her thumb. “Maybe twenty percent pregnant?”
I ran my hand down my face. “I’m not pregnant, Nana Pratt. I’m a goddess. That’s the secret I’ve been keeping from you.”
The ghosts stared at me, appearing perplexed.
“Is this one of those uplifting female things?” Ray asked. “Like you say you’re a goddess so we can agree with you and make you feel better?”
“Make me feel better about what?” I shook my head. “Never mind. No, Ray. I’m an actual goddess. An incarnation, which is an uncontrolled birth that happens spontaneously in nature—to human parents.”
Ray scratched his translucent head. “That can happen?”
“Yes, but it’s extremely rare.”
“I’ve never heard of a goddess called Lorelei,” Ray said.
“The goddess is Melinoe,” I explained.
“That’s a pretty name,” Nana Pratt said. “If you have a daughter, you should name her that.”
I closed my eyes and counted to ten in my head. “I’m not giving birth anytime soon, Nana Pratt.”
“What are your powers?” Ray asked. “Is that why you can help spirits cross over and communicate with us?”
Here came the hard part. “I can do far more than that.” I looked at Nana Pratt. “You know how I helped you control the putty knife?”
“Yes, that was very helpful, dear.”
“It’s because I’m the goddess of nightmares and ghosts. I can control both of those things.”
“Control,” Ray murmured.
“Yes, like a puppet master. Certain creatures are under my command, and that includes you.”
“That’s a lot of responsibility,” Ray said.
“One reason I don’t utilize my powers.”
“Did I really want to scrape all the wallpaper, or did you make me do that?” Nana Pratt asked.
“I wasn’t manipulating you; I promise.”
She nodded, seeming to accept my answer. “I think I need a minute to process this.” She winked out of existence.
I shifted my gaze to Ray. “How about you? Need a minute?”
“I’m good,” he said. “So, this is your big secret?”
“Yep.”
“And this is why you hide?”
