Voodoo Love (And the Curse of Jean Lafitte’s Treasure)

by Victoria Richards

  "Don't be stupid, Diego," the man said. "You are only complicating things. We were supposed to get the damn treasure so we could get out from underneath the Gulf Cartel's thumb. Every time you go changing the plan, you call more attention to us. People are watching. And what happened to Montoya, the man chasing you?"

  "You worry too much," Diego said. He tapped lightly on the trunk. "I've got everything under control. Montoya is going to come to us willingly. I've got something he wants. He'll make a trade. The last piece of the map for the girl."

  "How do you know he cares about her at all?"

  "Why would he have bothered to save her if he didn't? His reputation as a cold blooded thief is well known in our world. He doesn't give a damn about anything, but the fact that he saved this woman…well, that means he likes her. And that, my friend, is something we can use to our advantage."

  I blinked. Did Juan really care about me? I wanted to believe he did. Especially after last night…oh, who was I kidding? Men like Juan didn't waste time on cowards like me. For all I knew, he'd taken off into the bayou, in search of the cursed treasure of Jean Lafitte. I would have to figure a way out of this one on my own.

  Still I couldn't help but hold out hope that maybe, just maybe that Juan had a spark of feeling for me somewhere in that gorgeous body of his.

  I pressed my eye to a small hole in the trunk, trying to see the two men. Diego stood directly in my line of vision, but then he moved, revealing the other man. This guy was blonde, very blonde in fact, the kind of fair skinned individual who should never go outside without at least SPF 50 on. However, he didn't look like a cold blooded killer. I saw him glance at the trunk and I moved back, hoping he hadn't seen me.

  "Fine," the man said to Diego. "Fine. Let's just get this thing going. I'll meet up with you at the rendezvous point later."

  "Good. Keep your US Marshall buddies off our trail," Diego said.

  After a moment, I heard a car engine start up and then drive away. Diego popped the trunk of the car and the sudden light blinded me. I felt a hand on my arm.

  "Time to get out, Elizabeth," Diego said.

  He jerked me up to a sitting position and cut the ropes that had tied my hands together, unafraid that I would try and make a break for it. With a grin that made my stomach turn, he ran a hand down my leg. I shuddered, but the reaction only pleased him. He set about cutting the ropes from my feet, too.

  My hand brushed against a wine bottle in the trunk. Juan had stolen this car to get us into the bayou early yesterday afternoon. Apparently, the previous owner had just bought groceries because there were all sorts of food rolling around in the trunk with me--lettuce, a carton of melted ice cream, noodles, and wine. I'd never really thought about using food as a weapon, but I was desperate to get away from Diego. I grabbed the wine bottle and slammed it over his head. Red wine gushed out, covering my kidnapper who staggered back.

  I hopped out of the trunk, brandishing the broken wine bottle. Dimly I saw that the label read Cassagnoles of Spain. As he came at me, blood or wine dripping down his face, I kneed him in the groin, and took off running into the bayou.

  "What are you smiling at?" Euralie's voice brought me back to the present. She frowned and I quickly stood up.

  "Nothing," I said. "You ready?"

  With a nod, she headed down to her dock. The small pirogue Juan and I had used was still attached to it. Euralie heaved her bag into the boat and I carefully stepped in. Even in the early morning light, the little boat didn't feel any safer. I had the feeling that Euralie would have gladly capsized it and let an alligator chew on me for breakfast.

  "Where's your lover boy at?" Euralie asked, maneuvering the boat with the long pole. "I see there is still no sign of him. Maybe you weren't that great and bed."

  "I don't know," I admitted. "He sort of comes and goes."

  "Don't they all?" She gave me a grim smile. "That's the way of a spirit, even one like your boy. Being in our world requires a lot of energy. Satisfying your needs must have completely drained him."

  "Look, I don't know why you think I'm the whore of Babylon, but none of this is really my fault," I said. "You're the one who gave me that piece of the map. You're the one who couldn't guard the family treasure. Give me a break."

  "You're the one who got Eddie killed."

  I was silent a moment, not sure how to defend that one. My feelings for Eddie were complicated. I realized he'd been the man outside the trunk talking to Diego. He'd been some sort of co-conspirator. But Jean Lafitte had taken my memory of that away, and for the last few years, I'd nurtured a deep trust in Eddie. He'd been the one who rescued me from the water. Why? He could have just let me drown. I didn't know what his intentions really were, but I wanted to find out.

  "Euralie, you knew Eddie before this whole thing happened," I said. "How did you meet?"

  She was silent a moment and I almost thought she wasn't going to answer me.

  "By accident. I was dealing cards in the French Quarter. Sometimes folks don't like what they hear. A customer started to tear up my table. Eddie happened to be nearby and stopped the man before he could hurt me." Euralie's eye took on a far off gaze. "We just struck a chord with one another, I guess."

  "How long had he been working with Diego Martes?"

  Her gaze grew frosty, but she didn't look at me.

  "A long time. Eddie had a rough life growing up. Diego's family played a part in that though I don't know the details. Whatever happened, it made Eddie want to be in law enforcement, but somewhere along the way he realized he'd have to play dirty, have to get dirty, in order to take down the Martes family," she said. "So he walked a real fine line and looked for ways to hurt his enemies from both sides of the fence. Revenge consumed him and nothing would stand in his way."

  "I see." I had a hard time picturing affable Eddie as a double agent, but I suppose anything was possible.

  "I told Eddie about Jean Lafitte's treasure, never dreaming he'd use it to lure Diego into a trap. He didn’t believe me about the curse, tried to tell me that I was crazy and superstitious."

  "Why would Eddie put you in danger?"

  "He didn't think he was. He'd never told Diego about our relationship either."

  "So Diego, who has no respect for women, thought he could have you and the treasure." I remembered this. Diego had been insane over Euralie, wanting to dominate her. When she resisted, it just made it all the more exciting to him. With the power of his family name and the dirty money they laundered, he swooped in and bought out her club, making her feel like property. "Why didn't Eddie stop him?"

  "He couldn't. To do so would have endangered him with Diego and the US Marshalls."

  "And yet, he still came to see you these past two years."

  "But it was you, he married. I prayed to La Sirene, begged her to give me her charms and powers to convince him that the past wasn't important. But he couldn't let go of his need to get revenge against Diego. You were the closest link he had to the man."

  Wow. In all that time, I'd never guessed that the end game had been revenge.

  We both stopped talking, lost in our thoughts for what seemed like hours. The silence of the bayou surrounded us and with it came a deep sense of foreboding. I admit that I don't know much about life in the swamp, but I doubt it is rarely completely quiet. Birds are always calling to each other, interrupted only the splash of fish's tail. There was none of that. Nature had gone still, and I noticed we were in a small little stream of water. The trees leaned over us, a canopy of moss and hanging vines, surrounding us with a dank, earthy smell.

  "We are almost there," Euralie said.

  "Where?" I could see nothing still, but trees and water.

  "The island."

  Sure enough we banked on a small area of land. I stepped onto the moist ground, a vague feeling of déjà vu coming back to me.

  "This is where Marie Laveau and the Baron sealed the deal," I said.

  "Shhh…don't say his name." Euralie looked around
, nervous. "Now that you have your memory back, his name must be there, too."

  Actually, it wasn't. I remembered looking at the paper with all it winding little lines and there had been something written in it. However, I'd given it to Juan without really studying it. I'd never known the real name of the Baron. Juan and Jean Lafitte just assumed I had.

  Which meant I was kind of useless out here.

  "Surely, you know the name as keeper of the treasure?" I said.

  Euralie frowned and gave me a look that made it clear that she thought there weren't many creatures dumber than myself on the planet.

  "I can't say it. I'm the guardian. It's part of the curse. Otherwise, some greedy relative of mine would have taken it a long time ago," Euralie said. "I'm just as bound to it as anyone else."

  "Why not get someone else to say it for you?"

  "What the hell do you think I’m doing?"

  "Wait a second. I thought we were releasing Jean Lafitte, tricking Diego, and freeing Juan. You know, being supernatural bad asses."

  "And why can't I be a rich supernatural bad ass, too?"

  I saw her point. Was this the time to tell her that I hadn't caught the voodoo spirit's name though? Probably not. I pulled my purse closer to me, wishing it could offer some sort of protection against the wrath I knew would be coming.

  The locator beacon. It dawned on me that Juan had put the piece of the map we needed inside it. That's why he'd made me get it in the first place. Hopefully, it was still in my purse and not rolling around in Ellen Elderbee's car.

  "About time you got here," a familiar voice called out to us.

  To my shock, Eddie stepped out from behind a tree. His blue eyes twinkled and his lips formed the old familiar smile that I'd come to trust, to even love a little bit. But even though relief ran through me that he was alive, I knew something wasn't right with Eddie.

  I guess my first clue was the way his smile faded at the sight of his beloved Euralie's boat passenger. Me.

  My second clue was when he lifted the gun in his hand, aimed it in my direction, and spoke the words that chilled my heart.

  "I never wanted to kill you, Elizabeth. Now I have no choice."

  Episode 5- The Sacrifice

  "Eddie, I hate to be one of those nagging wives who is always complaining about their husbands, but I really think that you should reconsider that whole thing you just said about having to kill me," I stammered.

  For a second, Eddie stared at me, a cunning and cold blooded gleam in his eye. Then he cracked a smile and lowered the gun.

  "Really Elizabeth?" He shook his head, clearly chagrined. "Did you really think I would kill you?"

  "Well, you were pointing a gun at me and I know that you've been lying about more than one thing these past two years. At this point, I figure anyone could be an enemy." I eyed the gun nervously.

  "Eddie!" Euralie shoved past me and ran to him. I watched my husband swoop her up into his arms, trying to ignore the odd pang of jealousy that stabbed at my heart. "You're alive!"

  "Shh…it's okay, Euralie," Eddie soothed as she started to cry. "I'm alright."

  "What happened? They told me you were dead."

  "They?"

  "Yeah." Euralie pointed at me. "Her and her ghost boyfriend."

  Eddie frowned and put her down on the ground.

  "I didn't imagine seeing Montoya then?" he asked. "I wasn't sure if that was real."

  "Oh, it was real alright," I said. "How did you survive that gun shot? I saw Diego shoot you."

  "I've known Diego a long time. The moment I heard he'd been spotted in the area, I put my Kevlar vest on and was prepared for anything. I knew he'd never shoot you, Elizabeth, but since he views me as a traitor, I figured I'd better not take any chances." Eddie unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt, revealing the dark vest underneath. "Working for the Marshalls does have its advantages."

  "So you really do work for them?"

  Eddie shifted his gaze from me, a sure sign that he was either lying or about to.

  "Sort of."

  "Well, do you or don't you?" I demanded. "I mean, who the hell are you really?"

  "Your memory--"

  "I have it back now. So don't even try to make me think that I'm misunderstanding the situation. Quite a few things make more sense to me now. What I want to know is how come you were the one to save me from the life raft two years ago? What were you hoping to gain?" My voice echoed in the little clearing, letting out some of the anger I'd been holding in check for the last few hours.

  "Revenge," Eddie said. "I wanted Diego Martes dead, but you and the assassin I hired to do the job kept screwing it up.

  "Whoa. Wait a second. The assassin you hired?" I glanced at Euralie who appeared as shocked by this news as I was. "You hired Juan? He showed me a vision of that night in Laveau's Lounge from his perspective, but he never mentioned you. But you were there, weren't you?"

  "Yes, and Juan didn't know who hired him. He's the kind of guy that prefers to get paid, do the job, and walk away. No strings attached," Eddie said. "Perfect for my needs, really. I wanted Diego to never even see death coming."

  "I think I need to sit down." I collapsed onto a nearby tree stump, trying to keep everything straight in my head.

  My husband was a double agent. My lover was a dead assassin cursed to the Deadman's Ferry. A crazed mad man was convinced that I could undo the curse placed on him, and I might have to have sex with a notorious voodoo spirit who liked to play tricks on people.

  It was a lot to take in.

  "How long have you had your memory back?" Eddie asked.

  "Only a few hours."

  "Really?"

  I didn't like the doubt I heard in his voice.

  "Yeah. Really. I haven't been faking my memory loss if that's what you are implying," I snapped. "You're the one who's a liar."

  "Watch it, girl," Euralie hissed. I just knew she was itching to smack me. I almost wanted her to so I'd have an excuse to hit something.

  "Oh, back off," I snipped. "You're no better than he is, with all your hoodoo secrets. Bet you didn't tell him about La Sirene."

  She glowered at me while Eddie looked faintly amused. What man doesn't like to watch a cat fight?

  "Ladies." Eddie stepped between us. "Let's keep our cool, okay? We still have a few things to sort out. For instance, Elizabeth what happened to the missing piece of the map?"

  "It's in the locator wrist beacon that was used to find me in the life raft. Juan pulled it apart and put the paper inside."

  "You're kidding? You mean, we've had it the whole time?"

  "It's in my purse right now." I patted my bag. "And I don't know what you mean by saying we. I didn't know what was in it. Which reminds me, did you know about this curse thing?"

  I looked over his shoulder at Euralie. "I assume you told him what happens to people when they touch the treasure."

  "He knows about it," Euralie told me grudgingly.

  "Elizabeth, you don't buy into all that cursed treasure crap?" Eddie gave a small laugh. "You always seemed so rooted in the here and now."

  "After what I've seen in the last twenty four hours, I'd believe just about anything."

  As if to prove my point, the air swirled around us. The cypress trees shook with wind and a swirling light surrounded the clearing before coming together to form the shadowy figure of a man.

  "Juan," I breathed the word softly, surprised at the quick flutter my heart did. He studied us for a moment, sizing up the situation, giving Eddie a look of pure distrust.

  "What. The. Hell." Eddie spoke each word as if it were its own sentence. If I hadn't already come to terms with what Juan was, I probably would have done the same thing. "How did you do that?"

  "I’m dead," Juan said.

  "That is just…crazy," Eddie took a step towards him. Then he stopped and looked back at me. "And how long have you known about this?"

  "I told you last night at dinner that I'd seen him."

  "Yeah
. But I didn't think you meant that he was a ghost."

  "I might have left that part out, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't listen to me when I tell you things."

  Eddie shot me a look of frustration and ran a hand through his hair. I knew that gesture. He was fighting back the urge to really shout at me.

  "Look, the dead thing is beside the point," Juan said and we turned our attention to him. "We need to focus on removing this curse from the treasure and getting Diego out of the way for good. This treasure is his obsession now, and it will drive him until he gets his way."

  "What are we supposed to do?" Eddie asked.

  "I think the plans have already been made." He gave Euralie and me a pointed look. "I wasn't included in them, though."

  Stone-faced, Euralie saved me from answering.

  "We must draw the circle and prepare the ritual for the voodoo loa that made the original curse. The bargain must be made with him."

  Juan frowned. "What bargain?"

  "The bargain that will set you and Jean Lafitte free. The bargain that will end this madness."

  Euralie certainly had a way with words when she wanted.

  "What does Elizabeth have to do?" Juan walked over to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "Lafitte told me she was the key."

  "She will have to summon the most powerful loa in the underworld, the great trickster of the crossroads," Euralie said.

  "The Baron," I whispered.

  Everything grew still, almost as if the bayou were holding its breath.

  "Don't say it," Euralie commanded. "Don't even give warning that we are planning to call him. It gives him too much time to plot."

  "Euralie, what is going on?" Eddie asked, concern in his voice.

  "Don't you worry none," she said, her voice softer than I'd ever heard it. "I'll catch you up in a minute. Elizabeth, why don't you take your man further in the island to talk things over."

  I took her advice and grabbed Juan's hand, pulling him away from the murky water of the swamp. As we headed into the thick brush, Euralie called out, "Don't you touch none of that treasure, girl."