“There.” The scrawled signature was easy to read: Claire Benoit.
“She lied to us,” I stated the obvious.
Ava had wandered over to look. “She’s a liar.” There was something strange in her voice. I didn’t know if she’d been getting worse, or if I’d just thought differently of her once I knew she’d been spelled, but the intensity of her zombie-like behavior had seemed to increase. There was something in her voice now that was more like my roommate.
“Ava?” I asked tentatively. I thought I caught a flicker of response in her eyes, but then she looked down and shambled away.
Chloe ran her finger over the painted name. “Claire—the woman who was attacked, right? Was it just an act?”
“She’s working for the other side.”
The girl looked around. “Then why is the painting here? If she knew the Voodoo Queen well enough to give her a painting, maybe she was on her side.”
Something didn’t add up. Claire Benoit was connected to all of them—the White Lady, the Voodoo Queen, and Li Grand Zombi—and yet she somehow knew Merlin’s face well enough to paint it as Baron Samedi’s.
I shook my head. It didn’t matter. My only choice was to leave Ava as she was, or to help Michel so he would take the spell off her.
It took me longer than it should have to make that decision.
I turned to the red-haired man and his young companion. “Will you help me?”
Bel’s eyes were like smoldering embers. “With the bones of three powerful witches, this creature is in possession of a very dangerous weapon. Of course we’ll help you,” he replied gallantly as he made a flourish with his arms. The ball of fire disappeared.
Chloe was staring at him like he’d grown another head. “Um, yeah, what he said.”
I put my phone away in my bag. “Thank you. We have a couple of hours before the sun sets, and there’s something I need to do first. Will you meet me at the cemetery when it’s time? And can you keep Ava with you? Thanks.” I didn’t wait for them to actually agree. Picking up my things, I hurried out the door and down the street.
I slipped into the third open doorway I found and hid behind a rack draped with Mardi Gras beads and carnival masks. Watching the street through the eyehole of one of the masks, I didn’t have to wait long. Bel was striding down the street, looking up and down—obviously looking for me. Chloe grabbed him by the arm. Shaking her off, he spat out what looked like some very colorful language as he hailed a cab. Ava followed them into the vehicle.
“Can I help you, chère?
I whirled around. An older man in a wife-beater shirt and brown cap was frowning down at me. It took me a moment to realize I was running my hands across the purple and gold beads, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth . . ..
Even though he was staring at me, I couldn’t stop myself from running my hand over the necklaces one last time to complete another set of three. Once I finished, I had control over my body again.
The man’s face hardened. “Are you going to buy something or not?”
I nodded. “Sorry, yes.” While my body had been on auto-pilot, my mind had decided on something. “I’d like three of these necklaces please.”
I paid for the garish beads, declining the bag the man offered as I shoved them into the pocket of my sweater. My fingers brushed against the little Voodoo doll. It was strangely comforting.
Needing somewhere to go to work, I made my way down to Decatur, near the river, where the striped green and white awning of a coffee shop beckoned. I ordered some beignets and orange juice and found an empty table as far from the street as possible. The place was busy; the customers created a living wall that hid me from the world.
Taking a bite of one of the square, puffy donuts, and coughing a little as some of the powdered sugar went down my throat, I popped open the laptop on the table. I started searching the files on the hard drive, but the Crone’s
“She lied to us,” I stated the obvious.
Ava had wandered over to look. “She’s a liar.” There was something strange in her voice. I didn’t know if she’d been getting worse, or if I’d just thought differently of her once I knew she’d been spelled, but the intensity of her zombie-like behavior had seemed to increase. There was something in her voice now that was more like my roommate.
“Ava?” I asked tentatively. I thought I caught a flicker of response in her eyes, but then she looked down and shambled away.
Chloe ran her finger over the painted name. “Claire—the woman who was attacked, right? Was it just an act?”
“She’s working for the other side.”
The girl looked around. “Then why is the painting here? If she knew the Voodoo Queen well enough to give her a painting, maybe she was on her side.”
Something didn’t add up. Claire Benoit was connected to all of them—the White Lady, the Voodoo Queen, and Li Grand Zombi—and yet she somehow knew Merlin’s face well enough to paint it as Baron Samedi’s.
I shook my head. It didn’t matter. My only choice was to leave Ava as she was, or to help Michel so he would take the spell off her.
It took me longer than it should have to make that decision.
I turned to the red-haired man and his young companion. “Will you help me?”
Bel’s eyes were like smoldering embers. “With the bones of three powerful witches, this creature is in possession of a very dangerous weapon. Of course we’ll help you,” he replied gallantly as he made a flourish with his arms. The ball of fire disappeared.
Chloe was staring at him like he’d grown another head. “Um, yeah, what he said.”
I put my phone away in my bag. “Thank you. We have a couple of hours before the sun sets, and there’s something I need to do first. Will you meet me at the cemetery when it’s time? And can you keep Ava with you? Thanks.” I didn’t wait for them to actually agree. Picking up my things, I hurried out the door and down the street.
I slipped into the third open doorway I found and hid behind a rack draped with Mardi Gras beads and carnival masks. Watching the street through the eyehole of one of the masks, I didn’t have to wait long. Bel was striding down the street, looking up and down—obviously looking for me. Chloe grabbed him by the arm. Shaking her off, he spat out what looked like some very colorful language as he hailed a cab. Ava followed them into the vehicle.
“Can I help you, chère?
I whirled around. An older man in a wife-beater shirt and brown cap was frowning down at me. It took me a moment to realize I was running my hands across the purple and gold beads, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth . . ..
Even though he was staring at me, I couldn’t stop myself from running my hand over the necklaces one last time to complete another set of three. Once I finished, I had control over my body again.
The man’s face hardened. “Are you going to buy something or not?”
I nodded. “Sorry, yes.” While my body had been on auto-pilot, my mind had decided on something. “I’d like three of these necklaces please.”
I paid for the garish beads, declining the bag the man offered as I shoved them into the pocket of my sweater. My fingers brushed against the little Voodoo doll. It was strangely comforting.
Needing somewhere to go to work, I made my way down to Decatur, near the river, where the striped green and white awning of a coffee shop beckoned. I ordered some beignets and orange juice and found an empty table as far from the street as possible. The place was busy; the customers created a living wall that hid me from the world.
Taking a bite of one of the square, puffy donuts, and coughing a little as some of the powdered sugar went down my throat, I popped open the laptop on the table. I started searching the files on the hard drive, but the Crone’s
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