It was hard not to wonder if all Connor's animosity towards me earlier had been misplaced attraction, like a boy pulling the pigtails of the girl he likes.

Maybe that was wishful thinking on my part, but certainly this had not felt like simple lust-fueled rutting. I may have made mistakes in my love life – sadly, Benny wasn’t the only one - but one thing I've never done is jump into bed with a guy.

I liked to get to know someone before making horribly bad decisions about them. I had known Connor for less than twenty-four hours. In fact, I glanced at my watch, it hadn't been much more than twelve.

That wasn’t like me.

And although the tension of the situation had contributed, as had our mutual overflowing of emotion for Saorise and the need to find comfort somewhere, I was sure there was more to it than that. There was something about Connor. Though very different in nature, my connection with him had been as immediate as the one I had made with his sister all those years ago. The results had been stratospheric.

We lay now, side by side on the bed, holding hands in the silence, sharing in our sorrow over a lost friend and sister.

"We should go," said Connor, finally. “It’s been a couple hours now, and I think they’ve probably stopped searching by now. My brothers will be worried.”

"Agreed," I nodded.

Hastily, we dressed - still in silence but a comfortable one. As we reached the door of the practice, Connor stopped me and kissed me.

"What was that for?"

"I didn't want you to think it was just about... you know."

I nodded and managed a smile. "I didn't. And it wasn't for me either. Although, the 'you know' was pretty amazing."

"Best 'you know' I've ever had. Woman or Selkie.”

He turned to the door as I pondered the oddest compliment I had ever received. I'd never had to measure up to Selkies before but it was nice to know that I compared favorably.

He walked out first, scanning the area before coming back and calling me to join him.

As we walked back to Battery Park, I wondered if what had happened between us was ever likely to be repeated. I hoped so, partly because it being a one-off seemed to cheapen it. And also because it had been incredible and my legs were still wobbly.

"You took your time," said Patch, when we arrived back. "I'm guessing you found something."

Connor brought his two brothers up to speed on what had happened, explained that we had had to hide from our pursuers, and pointedly refrained from mentioning what we had done whilst hiding. He then went on to talk more about where Saorise was being held.

"It's what we feared; a Twisted Club."

From the looks on the faces of Patch and Declan, they knew exactly what he was talking about and it was bad.

“A Twisted Club?” I said, my guts churning as my brain supplied all sorts of possible meanings, each worse than the last.

"They have always been around in some form," Patch explained. "Used to be called freak shows, menageries - they've gone by many names over the centuries. Places where humans can come and look at magical creatures caged up, so they can laugh and gawp and throw peanuts at them. Of course, back in the day, our kind used to be locked up alongside those humans who didn't fit in; the deformed, the unusual - elephant men, bearded ladies etc. Now, it's become politically incorrect to showcase unfortunate humans, but underground Twisted Clubs still showcase fantastic creatures in secret. They're forced to do tricks, dance…” he cleared his throat and then pressed on, “or worse. They set up shop for a few months at a time and then move on, catering to only the richest and most depraved clientele."

"Freak shows,” I managed to mutter, nausea coating my insides like an oil slick. “It’s disgusting. So, let’s call the police. We can--”

“No way,” all three males snapped back in unison.

Patch held up a hand and sighed. “Look, even if people this wealthy weren’t above the law most times, the second authorities get a bead on our kind or those like us, we’re toast. First, it’s in the name of science, then, it’s in the name of god, then, it’s in the name of war. I can promise you, if Saorise is in danger now, she’ll be worse off and so will we all be if we let the police know. Trust us on this.”

I nodded slowly, saddened by what I knew was the truth of his words. Humans could fuck up just about anything if you let us.

“How do you think they caught Saorise?"

Patch looked at Connor impatiently. "Can I tell her now?"

Connor looked at me and nodded. I would have been pretty furious if he hadn't, all things considered.

"A Selkie's skin is more than their disguise," Patch explained. "If you steal our skin, then you, in essence, have control over us. Back in olden times, men used to steal the skins of Selkie women to force them into marriage."

"And the Selkie couldn't do anything to stop it?" I asked, aghast.

"Very little. To fight against that control takes an extremely strong Selkie."

Realization dawned over me. "Like Saorise."

Patch nodded. "She must’ve managed to escape and went to you. The reason she couldn't tell you where she had come from was because those who took her still had power over her. And the reason that there was no sign of a break-in at your apartment is likely because they only had to come to the door and tell her to open it. At that close proximity, she wouldn't have been able to refuse."

"I knew that the dream message to you was not what she was actually seeing because you saw a flipper," said Connor. "I knew that whoever had taken her would not have allowed her back her skin for long because once she was back inside it and regained her strength, it would be a bloody battle to get it from her again."

"Sending that message," Patch went on, "will have been an incredible effort for her – again, going against the will of her captors. I doubt she will be able to do it again. It may have taken a physical toll."

"But if she doesn't have her skin, then... what's her place in this show?" I asked. "Without that, surely she's just a girl."

"They would likely let her wear it long enough to put on a show under tight constraints and then take it away again. She would still be a sight to behold underwater the rest of the time," explained Patch. "Of course, we can't breathe underwater - nor can seals - but we swim with more speed and grace than any human."

"To a degree," chipped in Declan, "it's just about humans wanting to see something that looks like them but isn't. The fact that Saorise isn't human gives them license to treat a naked woman like an animal. And some of your kind get off on that."

Right now, I was ready to disown all of 'my kind'. The thought of Saorise in the hands of these terrible people made me sick to my stomach.

"I wish we could go and rescue her now."

"We all do," said Declan. And I noticed that, as we had been speaking, he had been clenching and unclenching his fists in impotent frustration. The toll this wait took on Saorise's twin was an extreme one. "The only good thing is that she’s worth far more alive than she is dead, and she’s new. They will want to give her some time to get used to her surroundings for risk of her dying in captivity, which is always a risk with magical types.”

"Twisted Clubs open at night," said Connor, decisively. "That's when they'll be busiest - when everyone will be watching. We'll never get her away by night. Four thirty AM or so is our best shot. After they've closed and anyone still left cleaning up will be exhausted after the night's work."

“Outside of business hours…I wish I’d waited. I just couldn’t bear the thought of not knowing.” Connor raked a hand over his jaw and shook his head.

"You do know that I'm coming with you, right?" I didn't ask if I was allowed to come, I just asked if they understood that it was happening one way or the other.

"I think we all sort of assumed," said Patch, with a curt nod.

"I can be useful."

"We expect it," said Connor. Just because we had been intimate did not mean that he would accept half measures when it came to helping Saorise, and that was fine with me.

"So, what now?"

Connor looked at his watch. It was early afternoon. "Get some food, try to get some sleep, if you can. We'll pick you up from your apartment at four AM."

I nodded, then chewed on my lower lip for a second.

"Look. I don't know where you guys are staying or how you sleep, but I've got space at mine if you'd like? We could order take out."