I’ll tell you what happened.
It was my fault. I fell for the reverend Jimmy Dean when I was
fourteen. He used me and John was the result. Your grandmother
killed Jimmy for what he did. We’re Catholics so an abortion was
out of the question.
“I married Jules Bastille. Jules gave
John to his brother Ramone and his wife to raise. Jules wanted
nothing to do with another man’s son. Then you were born. Jules and
Ramone’s wife died four years later in a car accident. He was
taking her to the hospital for X-rays. I married Ramone and wound
up with John in my house. Seems I couldn’t get rid of that boy. You
left some years afterwards. Then John Dean ran into trouble with
the law and I threw him out. Lenea went with him. That was the last
I saw of either one. Then you showed up on my doorstep and here we
are.”
There was silence while Marie stared at
Shelley.
“I’m going to make a brew. I can help
her but it will take time.”
Marie left for the kitchen and Karma
followed.
“Mom, Lenea threatened to kill me last
night after we killed John. I don’t want to fight her. One of use
will die.”
“You may have no choice. I taught her
more than I taught you. Your gift is closer to a witch’s. I
honestly didn’t know how to train you. Lenea is a born Voodoo
priestess.”
Marie mixed herbs in a pot adding
leaves and bones that hung on a wall. She retrieved a brown liquid
from a cupboard and added that as well.
“Boiled cow urine,” she
said.
She sprinkled in a little yellow
powder.
“Dried ear wax from a pig,” she
said.
“Mom, you’re joking right?”
Marie gave her a look but didn’t
answer.
She put the mixture on the stove to
boil.
She added more bones.
“The bones of a fox.”
She added another bone that appeared to
be from a human finger.
“Jimmy Dean’s middle finger. He had the
nerve to give mother the finger when she told him she didn’t
approve of his conduct. You know after he impregnated me. Mother
could be vicious where family was concerned.”
Marie stirred the brew.
Karma watched as she tasted some from
the spoon.
“Eew.”
Karma almost lost her
breakfast.
Marie could see her reaction and
said,
“If you do upchuck a meal do it in the
pot. It could use a little more fibre.”
Karma ran to the washroom, hand over
mouth. She could hear Marie chuckle as she fled the
kitchen.
Karma sat in the living room while
Marie spoon fed broth to Shelley. It was a laborious process: it
was obvious the woman didn’t want the brew.
“You know what they say; you are what
you eat,” said Marie.
Then added,
“And sometimes it’s not what you’re
eating but what’s eating you.”
She gave Karma a knowing
glance.
“You know what Lenea did to her don’t
you?”
“No mom, other than a
spell.”
“The spell was a mere formality. She
gave this woman a brew that is slowly embalming her. Her blood is
turning to vinegar. The drug deadens the nerves as well so she
couldn’t feel pain. Your spells interfered with the process but
didn’t stop it. You do have talent in a different way than Lenea
and I. We couldn’t have done what you did.”
On the second day of being spoon fed
Shelley, Marie chanted in the woman’s ear. Colour came back to
Shelley’s skin and she started to rock back and forth. Finally she
pushed the spoon away and said a single word.
“No.”
“She’ll be all right,” said
Marie.
Chapter 23
Days earlier Lenea was in a car not far
away watching John Dean kick the crap out of Harry Tanner. It
happened so quickly she didn’t have time to respond. Tanner pulled
a gun from under his car and shot John to death.
Lenea was able to spell Tanner because
she had something very special of his. Before John had met with
Tanner the first time she and John had found his mother’s grave. In
the dead of night she had three of Joe Sharky’s men dig up her
remains. She retrieved only the skull then they covered the grave
again. No one would be any the wiser.
Lenea
It was my fault. I fell for the reverend Jimmy Dean when I was
fourteen. He used me and John was the result. Your grandmother
killed Jimmy for what he did. We’re Catholics so an abortion was
out of the question.
“I married Jules Bastille. Jules gave
John to his brother Ramone and his wife to raise. Jules wanted
nothing to do with another man’s son. Then you were born. Jules and
Ramone’s wife died four years later in a car accident. He was
taking her to the hospital for X-rays. I married Ramone and wound
up with John in my house. Seems I couldn’t get rid of that boy. You
left some years afterwards. Then John Dean ran into trouble with
the law and I threw him out. Lenea went with him. That was the last
I saw of either one. Then you showed up on my doorstep and here we
are.”
There was silence while Marie stared at
Shelley.
“I’m going to make a brew. I can help
her but it will take time.”
Marie left for the kitchen and Karma
followed.
“Mom, Lenea threatened to kill me last
night after we killed John. I don’t want to fight her. One of use
will die.”
“You may have no choice. I taught her
more than I taught you. Your gift is closer to a witch’s. I
honestly didn’t know how to train you. Lenea is a born Voodoo
priestess.”
Marie mixed herbs in a pot adding
leaves and bones that hung on a wall. She retrieved a brown liquid
from a cupboard and added that as well.
“Boiled cow urine,” she
said.
She sprinkled in a little yellow
powder.
“Dried ear wax from a pig,” she
said.
“Mom, you’re joking right?”
Marie gave her a look but didn’t
answer.
She put the mixture on the stove to
boil.
She added more bones.
“The bones of a fox.”
She added another bone that appeared to
be from a human finger.
“Jimmy Dean’s middle finger. He had the
nerve to give mother the finger when she told him she didn’t
approve of his conduct. You know after he impregnated me. Mother
could be vicious where family was concerned.”
Marie stirred the brew.
Karma watched as she tasted some from
the spoon.
“Eew.”
Karma almost lost her
breakfast.
Marie could see her reaction and
said,
“If you do upchuck a meal do it in the
pot. It could use a little more fibre.”
Karma ran to the washroom, hand over
mouth. She could hear Marie chuckle as she fled the
kitchen.
Karma sat in the living room while
Marie spoon fed broth to Shelley. It was a laborious process: it
was obvious the woman didn’t want the brew.
“You know what they say; you are what
you eat,” said Marie.
Then added,
“And sometimes it’s not what you’re
eating but what’s eating you.”
She gave Karma a knowing
glance.
“You know what Lenea did to her don’t
you?”
“No mom, other than a
spell.”
“The spell was a mere formality. She
gave this woman a brew that is slowly embalming her. Her blood is
turning to vinegar. The drug deadens the nerves as well so she
couldn’t feel pain. Your spells interfered with the process but
didn’t stop it. You do have talent in a different way than Lenea
and I. We couldn’t have done what you did.”
On the second day of being spoon fed
Shelley, Marie chanted in the woman’s ear. Colour came back to
Shelley’s skin and she started to rock back and forth. Finally she
pushed the spoon away and said a single word.
“No.”
“She’ll be all right,” said
Marie.
Chapter 23
Days earlier Lenea was in a car not far
away watching John Dean kick the crap out of Harry Tanner. It
happened so quickly she didn’t have time to respond. Tanner pulled
a gun from under his car and shot John to death.
Lenea was able to spell Tanner because
she had something very special of his. Before John had met with
Tanner the first time she and John had found his mother’s grave. In
the dead of night she had three of Joe Sharky’s men dig up her
remains. She retrieved only the skull then they covered the grave
again. No one would be any the wiser.
Lenea
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