beyond belief would only give him more power over me.
I refused to let him hold all of the cards. Who did he think he
was? He expected me to be all predictable by breaking down. That’s
what he wanted. He wanted to me to break down and shatter into a
million pieces. Well tonight he wasn’t going to get the
satisfaction. I would eat. I would smile but I would not cry. All
the many, many layers of mascara on my lashes would stay firmly in
place.
“ Have a seat,” he said, as
he pulled out a chair for me from under one of the
tables.
Reluctantly, I sat down and was
immediately taken aback by the fact that there were golden knives,
forks and spoons in front of me. I picked up a knife and held it to
the light. “Who lives like this?” I asked in wonder. “Who actually
uses golden utensils?”
“ Prince Charming,” said
Ivan, as he pulled up a seat beside me. “Here, drink up.” He handed
me a flute of champagne, which I gladly accepted. Anything to
distract me from the surreal events that were taking place around
me. “So what are you in the mood for?” he asked.
I let out a frustrated sigh. “His name
is Lucus and I’ll have the Creole Onion Soup, snail’s bourguignon
and some fried oysters too.” I randomly picked items off of the
menu. I figured since I was in one of the most luxurious hotels of
all time, circa 1853 New Orleans, rather than a grimy slave cabin,
I might as well try the food first and then continue to fight with
Ivan afterwards.
“ Why are you always so
hungry, queen?” asked Ivan, as he watched me gobble down a
snail.
I looked at him. “Is it a crime to be
hungry?”
“ No, but I know your type of
hunger. The type that is never satisfied because you’re afraid that
one day there’s going to be no more food.”
I let out a low sigh. “No, you’re
wrong. If you ever bothered enjoying something instead of being
bitter all the time, you’d see that sometimes you have to
appreciate the little things and savor them. You haven’t even tried
a snail. Yummy- look, buttery goodness,” I said, as I held up a
snail in front of his lips.
He didn’t crack a smile. He simply
shook his head and continued to drink his champagne.
We ate in utter silence and with every
delicious bite I could feel myself slipping further and further
into darkness. For a split second I remembered that my actual body
was still sitting in a spiritual bath in Darkwood; how long would
it stay there? I needed to find my way back home, and
fast.
Chapter 15
After-Dinner Drinks and
Dancing
“ I had dinner with you, now
let me go,” I said, as soon as I finished the last fried
oyster.
Ivan stood up and took my hand. “I’m in
the mood for some after-dinner drinks and dancing. Are you thirsty,
queen?”
“ After-dinner
drinks?”
“ Yeah. It’ll be super fun, I
promise,” he grinned and his grey eyes gleamed
mischievously.
I knew he was purposely dragging out
the whole thing. I felt like kicking him and running away, but that
wasn’t exactly a very mature plan, and plus where would I go? I had
no supplies here and Erzulie was forcing me to work with other
spirits. Who would I call? A hopeful part of me prayed that Ivan
was just bored and maybe this was his way of passing a rainy night.
I knew I was beyond immature for thinking that but I was kind of
out of options. At least agreeing to drinks would give me time to
think and strategize. I needed to come up with a plan, and
fast.
“ Okay,” I nodded, as I
followed him out of the dining room and down an opulent,
smoke-filled hall.
“ Here we are,” said Ivan, as
we entered an enormous octagon-shaped barroom. Even though I was
horrid at math, I estimated the room to be seventy feet wide and
almost twenty feet high. In other words, it was massive and
intimidating. As I examined the looming Ionic columns that circled
the area, I felt so small and tiny; almost like a minuscule ant
that could be squished at any second.
“ Welcome to
I refused to let him hold all of the cards. Who did he think he
was? He expected me to be all predictable by breaking down. That’s
what he wanted. He wanted to me to break down and shatter into a
million pieces. Well tonight he wasn’t going to get the
satisfaction. I would eat. I would smile but I would not cry. All
the many, many layers of mascara on my lashes would stay firmly in
place.
“ Have a seat,” he said, as
he pulled out a chair for me from under one of the
tables.
Reluctantly, I sat down and was
immediately taken aback by the fact that there were golden knives,
forks and spoons in front of me. I picked up a knife and held it to
the light. “Who lives like this?” I asked in wonder. “Who actually
uses golden utensils?”
“ Prince Charming,” said
Ivan, as he pulled up a seat beside me. “Here, drink up.” He handed
me a flute of champagne, which I gladly accepted. Anything to
distract me from the surreal events that were taking place around
me. “So what are you in the mood for?” he asked.
I let out a frustrated sigh. “His name
is Lucus and I’ll have the Creole Onion Soup, snail’s bourguignon
and some fried oysters too.” I randomly picked items off of the
menu. I figured since I was in one of the most luxurious hotels of
all time, circa 1853 New Orleans, rather than a grimy slave cabin,
I might as well try the food first and then continue to fight with
Ivan afterwards.
“ Why are you always so
hungry, queen?” asked Ivan, as he watched me gobble down a
snail.
I looked at him. “Is it a crime to be
hungry?”
“ No, but I know your type of
hunger. The type that is never satisfied because you’re afraid that
one day there’s going to be no more food.”
I let out a low sigh. “No, you’re
wrong. If you ever bothered enjoying something instead of being
bitter all the time, you’d see that sometimes you have to
appreciate the little things and savor them. You haven’t even tried
a snail. Yummy- look, buttery goodness,” I said, as I held up a
snail in front of his lips.
He didn’t crack a smile. He simply
shook his head and continued to drink his champagne.
We ate in utter silence and with every
delicious bite I could feel myself slipping further and further
into darkness. For a split second I remembered that my actual body
was still sitting in a spiritual bath in Darkwood; how long would
it stay there? I needed to find my way back home, and
fast.
Chapter 15
After-Dinner Drinks and
Dancing
“ I had dinner with you, now
let me go,” I said, as soon as I finished the last fried
oyster.
Ivan stood up and took my hand. “I’m in
the mood for some after-dinner drinks and dancing. Are you thirsty,
queen?”
“ After-dinner
drinks?”
“ Yeah. It’ll be super fun, I
promise,” he grinned and his grey eyes gleamed
mischievously.
I knew he was purposely dragging out
the whole thing. I felt like kicking him and running away, but that
wasn’t exactly a very mature plan, and plus where would I go? I had
no supplies here and Erzulie was forcing me to work with other
spirits. Who would I call? A hopeful part of me prayed that Ivan
was just bored and maybe this was his way of passing a rainy night.
I knew I was beyond immature for thinking that but I was kind of
out of options. At least agreeing to drinks would give me time to
think and strategize. I needed to come up with a plan, and
fast.
“ Okay,” I nodded, as I
followed him out of the dining room and down an opulent,
smoke-filled hall.
“ Here we are,” said Ivan, as
we entered an enormous octagon-shaped barroom. Even though I was
horrid at math, I estimated the room to be seventy feet wide and
almost twenty feet high. In other words, it was massive and
intimidating. As I examined the looming Ionic columns that circled
the area, I felt so small and tiny; almost like a minuscule ant
that could be squished at any second.
“ Welcome to
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