by Rhys Rowlyn
Kneeling in front of her, I take her hand in mine. “Non, Giselle, do not fret. I am so thankful for everything you have done. I would never expect more. You have done more than anyone could ever expect.”
“Brother, you will know when you find her, and find her we will.” Phillipe squeezes my shoulder encouragingly.
“Rosaline was a bitter woman, and she hated our kind. I remember her cringing away from me when I needed blood. I tried to inject pleasure in the bite, but it didn’t matter. She still hated me. Her betrayal isn’t shocking in the least, but to hear I am to be bound to one of her blood is disheartening.” I pinch the bridge of my nose, shaking my head.
Giselle moves to sit beside me and takes my hand in hers. “Maybe it won’t be so bad. No one can help who their family is, and those girls were desperate.”
“What happened to them after they took us out of the picture?” Not that I really care, but curiosity gets the better of me.
“None had happy lives. Some married tyrants, and others’ husbands cheated or wouldn’t work. A few opened houses of ill repute, but all died horrible deaths. It was as if karma came for them. What they didn’t understand is the famille would have protected them and helped them have decent lives, but they were too selfish to figure that out.” Giselle shakes her head sadly, and I know things haven’t been easy for her. She had to keep twelve bodies hidden for centuries.
“How did you manage it? It couldn’t have been easy.”
Giselle’s gaze meets mine, and she nods. “Non, it wasn’t, I thought about burying you in a cemetery but didn’t know when you would awaken, and I couldn’t imagine how you would have handled being underground. The hardest time was when Simone and a few of the others found out where I had you hidden and paid someone to set the warehouse on fire. I sensed the fire immediately and luckily put it out before too much damage. I paid them a visit after that, each one, and put fear in all their hearts. I told them I did not care if I went feral, and if anything like that ever happened again, I was killing every one of them and I was going to make it brutal. I was never bothered again.”
Kneeling in front of Giselle, Cassie takes her hand and lays her head in Giselle’s lap. “Besides, after a while, I came along and have helped you babysit.”
“Yes, I was compelled to change Cassie. She’s been the sister I never had and made life much easier. Together we have kept the famille safe.” Giselle absently strokes Cassie’s hair, smiling tenderly.
As hard as it is to conceive everything I have learned, one thing is certain: I owe these two women a debt I will never be able to repay.
Fleur
“Mom, I’ll be there shortly. I have to finish this job.” Glancing over at Giselle, I give her a small smile.
“Yes, Fleur Rosaline Anders, I know you’re working, but it’s getting late, and I have an emergency and need you home,” my mother demands, from the other end of the phone.
Turning my back on Giselle, I answer her in a harsh whisper. “I’ll be there in an hour or so. Now I have to go so I can finish this.”
I hang up the phone, glaring at it. My mother is difficult on a good day, but lately she’s acting more unstable than usual.
“Family problems? Sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but if you need to leave, it’s fine. We can finish tomorrow.” Giselle leans back in her chair, cocking a brow in my direction.
“It’s fine. Everything is an emergency with my mother. I’m sure it’s fine. If something is truly wrong, my dad will call.” I wave a dismissive hand, concentrating on the computer in front of me.
“Oh okay, if you’re sure…”
“I am. Now, where were we? You are wanting to set up an announcement page for concerts on the webpage, correct?” I play around with different themes until I come up with one I believe would work best for the club.
The page features Shadows, the club’s name, at the top with the letters shadowed and headphones on the “w.” Lasers flash in the background, and a rolling billboard cuts across the screen to announce whatever she wishes. The club plays mostly EDM and regularly has popular DJs perform concerts.
“How does this look?” I turn the computer so she can see what I’ve come up with.
“Oh, that’s amazing. You’re a genius, Fleur.” She gushes at me, and I feel my cheeks warm.
“Thanks, and it’s not hard to upload upcoming events. All you have to do is go to your dashboard, go to this page, and plug in the information. Just make sure to keep it updated.” Moving the mouse around, I show her the steps.
“I’m putting Chi Chi in charge of that. He keeps harping on me about not trusting him enough.” She opens her desk drawer and hands me a check.
I pocket it without looking, knowing Giselle is one of my reliable customers. “I guess I need to go home and find out what the emergency is. Let me know if you need anything else.” Shaking Giselle’s hand, I gather my laptop and leave out the back exit, not wanting to go through the club.
Shadows is immensely popular, and many of my friends frequent it, but I’m more of a blues and jazz kind of girl. My friend Jenny says I’m an old soul, and I tend to agree with her.
Walking out onto the sidewalk, I see the line waiting to get into the club. It’s already after nine at night, and the area is getting busy. Giselle always asks for evening or night appointments, and I accommodate her as often as possible. One of the perks of owning my own business is I work when I want. Besides, Giselle is one of my best clients and has gotten me a ton of other business. If she needs me to come over at midnight, then I will. The lady runs a nightclub and keeps odd hours, but then, most folks in New Orleans do.
A cab van pulls to the curb, and the driver leans across the passenger’s seat. He has a baseball cap on, so his face is in the shadows. “Hey, lady, you need a ride?”
“No thanks.” I smile at the man and continue on my way.
My parents own an antiques shop up the street, and it is a nice night. I see no reason to spend money on a cab when I can walk the two blocks home.
“Are you sure? It’s getting late, and there have been some strange things happening lately.” The cab continues to follow me along the street, and something about the guy has my alarm bells going off.
“I’m good, but thanks.” Clutching my computer bag to my chest, I move to the inside of the sidewalk, closer to the buildings.
I pick up my pace until I’m practically running. I round a corner, and the cab is still following me on the street. A tall dark-haired man is standing in front of a building, and I race to his side.
“Phillipe, so glad to see you.” Looping my arm through his, I glance over my shoulder and watch the cab speed away.
My heart is pounding, and I am shaking. I latch onto Phillipe. He’s Giselle’s boyfriend, and I’ve met him a few times at the club. He’s always been genuinely nice, although he looks rather scary and he’s big. I’m tall and he makes me feel short, but right now I’m glad for his size and scariness.
“Fleur, are you all right? What is wrong?” He pats my hand, looking down at me with concern.
“Normally I don’t get freaked out, but something was off with that cab driver.” I point at the taillights of the retreating vehicle.
Phillipe watches the van speed away with narrowed eyes before smiling down at me. “I will walk you home, and maybe we’ll go a back way so he doesn’t see where you live, eh?”
His phone rings, and we stop on the corner for him to answer. “Oui, what? André is awake? Wonderful, of course I’ll be right there.”
“If you need to go, I can make it the rest of the way.” I move away from him, trying to disengage my arm, but he holds on tight.
“No, I’ll see you home. Your safety is important.” He leads me down an alley to the street that borders the back of my parents’ shop, and we don’t see any signs of the cab. I breathe a sigh of relief.
We reach the antiques shop without further incident, and Phillipe walks me to the back door but stops suddenly, his b
rows drawing together. “Interesting.”
“What?” I unlock the door, looking back at him.
“Nothing, I’m sure.”
“Thanks for walking me home. Would you like to come in for a coffee?” Stepping back, I open the door wider for him to enter.
“I don’t think I can.” He shakes his head, moving away from the building. “Another time. I have an urgent matter I must see to. Let me know if you have any more problems.”
“I will, and thanks again for the escort. Good night, Phillipe.”
“Au revoir, fair Fleur” He gives me a slight bow and takes his leave.
Smiling, I close the door and lock it. Phillipe seems to be from another era, and his manners are implicit. I turn on the light to the stairwell and make my way up to the apartment above the shop.
“Maman, I’m home.” I drop my bag onto the sofa, my gaze searching for my mother. Where could she be, and what could possibly be the big emergency?
“Maman?” I yell again, going into the kitchen when I hear her voice coming from the roof.
“Up here.”
I climb the narrow flight of stairs and enter her garden, my mother’s pride and joy. She is pruning a rosebush.
I give her a kiss on the cheek as she continues to work on the poor plant. “So, what’s the big emergency?”
“What do you mean?” She looks up from her pruning with raised brows.
“Maman, you called saying I needed to get home asap. So what did you need?” I put my hands on my hips, glaring at her.
“Oh, that. Well, your father couldn’t get the internet to work, but then it started, so it’s all good.” She waves her pruning shears in the air, rolling her eyes.
“Seriously? I was with a paying client. Mother, I can’t be at your beck and call while I’m working.” I can’t believe her attitude about my job. She acts as if it’s only a hobby and doesn’t pay me very well. It’s time to see about moving out. I’ve been needing to for a while but hate the idea of leaving my dad.
“Who was your client? The nightclub owner? You need to find better clients.” She sets the gardening aside, putting her shears on the table and slipping off her gloves. She walks toward the stairway and continues to ignore my huff of outrage.
Following close at her heels, I continue to my argument. “Maman, I don’t know what your problem is with Giselle. It’s not like you’re a prude, and so what if she owns a nightclub? Your friend Maxine owned one for years. Besides, she pays top dollar, and her website needs updates constantly, so it’s a consistent paycheck.”
“I’ll not talk about my issues with her and her partner.” She holds her hand up when I try to interrupt as we enter the kitchen. “All I’m saying is you need to meet with her during daylight hours. I don’t like you being there after dark.”
“Maman, that’s crazy. I work when my clients are available. Besides, we live in New Orleans, a city that doesn’t sleep.” I take a seat at the table, picking up the saltshaker, then sprinkle some on the table. I push the shaker into the salt, making it stand on the grains.
I smile when it balances on its edge. My dad taught me that trick when I was a little girl, and it took me years to perfect it. I was so happy to finally master it, and Dad was so proud, he took me out for ice cream.
“You’re cleaning that up.” Maman ruffles my hair like I’m ten, but she’s smiling. I guess she’s gotten over her snit about who my clients are.
My mother and I usually get along, but lately she’s become overbearing and protective, more so than when I was a teenager. Last month there were a couple of murders and a girl came up missing, but we’ve lived in the city all our lives, so her behavior is strange. New Orleans is not immune to crime. It’s the nature of the beast. I’m of a mind to be aware of my surroundings, but I can’t live in fear. That’s no way to live.
“Where’s Dad?” I right the saltshaker and head to the sink to wet a dishtowel so I can clean my mess.
“It’s poker night.” She opens the refrigerator, takes out some ham, and holds it up for me to see. I nod, and she starts making sandwiches.
My phone rings and I see it’s Giselle, so I leave the room to answer the call. Maman is finally in a decent mood. No sense in riling her up if I don’t have to.
“Hi, Giselle, is there a problem with the webpage?” I go into my bedroom and close the door.
“No, it’s fine. Phillipe told me you had a scare, and I was calling to make sure you were all right.”
Aww, she’s so sweet. I really like them. “Oh, I’m fine. It was probably nothing, but I was really glad to see Phillipe when I did. There was something about the driver that freaked me out, and like I said, it may have just been me being paranoid.”
“No, chérie, always follow your gut instinct. If it tells you to run, then you should run.”
I sit on my bed, and a shiver goes down my spine when I think about the driver. Something tells me it wouldn’t have been good if I’d have gotten into that cab.
I rub my temple, feeling a headache coming on. “Do you think I should call the cops? I mean, I don’t know what I would tell them. You can’t arrest someone because they’re creepy.”
“No, I don’t believe you can at this point. I’ll keep my eyes open around the club and be on the lookout for anyone suspicious. Hopefully, it was just an overzealous cab driver. Anyway, I wanted to check on you, and from now on if you are leaving the club at night, we will make sure you have an escort.”
“Thanks, Giselle, that means so much. I appreciate you calling, and like I said, I’m fine.” I don’t know what my mother has against Giselle, but I don’t know of another client who would take such a minor incident so seriously.
“Good night, Fleur.”
“Good night, Giselle.” I hang up the phone and go back into the kitchen.
Two ham sandwiches and a small bag of chips are waiting for me. I join Maman at the table, my stomach growling.
“Who was that calling this late?”
“No one, just a client.” It technically isn’t a lie. I mean, Giselle is my client.
Maman throws her half-eaten sandwich onto her plate. “It was that nightclub owner, wasn’t it? Why is she bothering you while you’re at home?”
My eyes widen in shock at her irrational anger over Giselle calling. It makes no sense. “She’s my client, and I have flexible hours. Had I not been available, she simply would have left me a voicemail. It’s the nature of my business. I don’t know what your problem is.”
“Urghhh…” She pushes her chair back so hard, it falls to the floor, and something in the living room crashes.
We still, staring at each other, then run into the living room to see what happened. In the middle of the floor lies the picture of my great-grandmother Lucille. Glass is shattered all around the old photo.
Maman surveys the damage. “What in the world?”
“Wow, did we have an earthquake, or do we have ghosts?” I grin at my mother, and she shakes her head. “I’ll grab the broom and dustpan.” I look at the wall and notice the hook that was holding the picture is still intact. Something must have happened with the frame.
Oh well, we do live in one of the supposedly most haunted cities in America. Maybe we’ve inherited a spirit. Hah, as if that could happen. I roll my eyes at myself, chuckling.
André
“What is that awful noise?” Grimacing, I hold my ears to block the sound coming from the building in front of us.
It has been a week since I entered this new time, and so many things have changed. I spent the first couple of days in front of a computer, learning about everything that has happened, and Giles gave me a “phone,” which wasn’t even an idea when I was last around.
I have played with it for the last few days and can at least accept calls. Texting is a mystery to me, but Cassie is determined I am going to learn, constantly sending me messages.
Giles hands me a pair of earplugs, so I promptly put them in. “Music,” he says.
Giles bursts out laughing, slapping my shoulder, and opens the door. “It is, and you’re part owner of the club it is coming from.”
I enter a large darkened room with strange lights flashing around. There is a bar on one side and a man on stage, dancing around. People are jumping up and down and throwing their arms in the air.
“Why are they moving like that?”
“It’s considered dancing.”
I narrow my eyes at him and wonder if he’s lying. I plan to use my new computer and look it up when I return to the house. An aroma hits my senses like none I’ve ever scented, which is coming from the back of the club. I shove people aside as I plow my way through the crowd to make my way toward a back hallway.
Giles grabs my arm, trying to stop me. “Hey, mate, what’s up?”
“Don’t you smell that? It’s irresistible.” I shake him off and race down the hallway, throwing open the door to Giselle’s office.
A woman with bright red hair lifts surprised green eyes up to stare at me. She is sitting behind the desk with a computer in front of her, and I stop suddenly.
Giles runs into my back. He knocks me forward, but I don’t take my eyes off the woman in front of me.
“André, Giles, what’s going on?” Giselle steps in front of me, waving her hand in front of my face.
“Mate,” I whisper so only she can hear.
She glances over her shoulder with wide eyes. “Fleur? Merde, that’s crazy.”
I barely hear her and remove the earplugs now that I’m away from the awful noise in the other room.
“Giselle, do you need me to step out?” The woman stands, preparing to leave.
I growl softly, unable to stop myself. The thought of her leaving is unacceptable.
“Oh no, Fleur. This is André Dubois, Phillipe’s cousin, and you’ve met Giles before.” Giselle places a restraining hand on my chest. “Calm down, you’ll scare her off,” she whispers.
“Hi, Fleur,” Giles says. “It’s good to see you again. Are you all right after your scare the other evening?”
