Even as I touched it, I knew what it was. The missing piece of the map. Juan and I had burned the original map as soon as we'd found the treasure, much to Diego's chagrin. He hadn't been angry though. After all, the treasure was laid out in the cave, and at the time, he'd never thought the curse was real. None of us had. All we knew was that the missing piece of the map, the one Euralie had given me, hadn't been essential to finding the actual treasure after all. It had just been the most important part of removing the curse.
"Burn the map!" Diego had laughed. “I’m going to kill you and take it all for myself. Who cares about the map now? Keep whatever little scrap that little voodoo fortune teller gave you. I don't need it!"
That's when he'd reached forward and picked up one of the gleaming gold pieces spilled all around the cavern. Truly, I was tempted to do the same. I'd never seen anything like what was in the room except in a movie. There were casks and chests full of gold coins and jewels. I saw gold plates and ruby encrusted cups, jade statues, and money from all over the world. Jean Lafitte had been an equal opportunity pirate, robbing unabashedly ships from all over the globe.
"C'mon," Juan whispered in my ear. "This is the time to get out of here."
He slipped a gold coin into his pocket. When he saw me looking, he said, "For luck."
We needed to get out of the cavern without Diego killing us. However, he seemed pretty distracted by the wealth all around us. He kept running his hands through it and laughing, giving us the perfect opportunity to steal away. Juan and I were able to climb up the ladder to the trapdoor without him noticing what we were doing. It was only when we shoved the trap door open that he looked up.
With a bellow of rage, he shot at us, but we were out the door and running into the wild, turbulent winds of the hurricane before he could stop us.
The little piece of paper that had caused the trouble in the first place had been forgotten, its importance unrecognized till now.
"Is that it?" Diego asked me.
I opened the parchment, really looking at it this time. It was so old I was afraid it would crumble. I looked down and saw some words written in what appeared to be French and then what had to be a name. I nodded at Diego.
"Say it," he demanded.
"Let go of her," I said.
Frustrated, he shoved Euralie towards me. She fell to the ground and then scrambled away.
"Say it," Diego said and this time I heard just a hint of pleading in his voice.
"Samedi," I whispered.
For a moment, nothing happened. Diego and I looked around, expecting something more.
"Maybe you didn't do it right," he said.
Before I could answer, the wind came howling into the clearing. It was so strong that it pushed me inside the dirt ring with Diego. A spark flew from the fire and lit the entire circle, surrounding us in a wall of flames.
Baron Samedi appeared outside the circle. A tall African American man, his face was painted like a skeleton. He wore black sunglasses but one of the lenses was missing, revealing a bright yellow eye. On his head perched a purple top hat that matched the vest he wore over his toned shirtless torso. The Baron's feet were bare and peeked out from the bottom of the black pants he wore. His arms rippled with muscle and has he moved through the fire to join us, I couldn't help but notice the aura of masculinity he radiated. He lowered the sunglasses and gave me a predatory stare before allowing a smile to lift the corners of his full lips.
"At last, we meet in person," he said. "I've been looking forward to this."
Diego fired the gun, but Baron Samedi turned and with a wave of his hand, the bullet fell to the ground. The gun hurled through the fire wall, landing safely outside the circle. Samedi opened his hand like a claw in Diego's direction and then slowly squeezed it shut. The action affected the other man painfully. He doubled over and sank to his knees, moaning. The Baron turned back to me.
"We have business to attend to," he said, reaching out to touch my hair. "We're gonna have a little fun now."
I couldn't tear my gaze away from his eyes. They were mesmerizing. I was positive that he could hear and see my innermost thoughts. Against my will, I felt myself move closer to him, an action that made him laugh.
"You are gonna be so sweet," he whispered. "I'll make you forget about your man trapped on the other side."
A thought of Juan flashed in my head, breaking the odd sway the Baron had on me.
"About that," I said. "I would like to help set everything right, maybe end the curse placed on the treasure and Diego."
"Now why would you want to do that, Cherie?" Samedi glanced at Diego who rolled on the ground in pain. "I've been having so much fun tormenting him, showing all the terrible sins of his past. Why would you want to take such pleasures away?"
"I believe it might be worth your while as I'm prepared to offer you a deal."
I saw his lips twitch in amusement at the word deal and a greedy expression grew on his face.
"I'm listening," he said.
"I want to suggest a trade." I lowered my voice and leaned closer to the Baron. "Diego for the freedom of Jean Lafitte and one member of his crew."
"Which member?"
"Juan Montoya."
"Hmm…" the Baron rubbed his chin thoughtfully and looked at Diego. “Do you really think he's worth two of them?"
"He truly belongs on the Deadman's Ferry. It's for dark and lost souls, right?" I pointed to Diego. "They don't get much darker or lost than that guy right there."
"He would have to agree to the terms," the Baron said.
My heart sank a little, but I'd been expecting this. I nodded.
"And you'd have to give me a little something in exchange," he added. "Something to…sweeten the deal."
I didn't need an interpreter to understand the lustful look he shot me as he allowed his eyes to roam up and down my body.
"Fine," I said. I knew Juan wouldn't approve, but I had his freedom in my hands. I had to do everything I could to save the man I loved, even if that meant bargaining sexual favors with a voodoo spirit. Though I would probably never see Juan again, at least his soul would be free.
"Excellent!" Baron Samedi rubbed his hands together expectantly. "I love a good deal!"
I walked to Diego and squatted down next to him.
"Diego," I said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm afraid I can't remove the curse. It's too late."
"No!" he cried out, anguish in every pore of his wretched being.
"What the Baron wants is too much for any person to take. I don't think you can accept his terms," I said.
Diego looked at me, his eyes rimmed with red.
"I will do anything to put this curse behind me, to be whole again."
Behind me the Baron laughed. He clapped his hands and shouted, "Done! He accepts the terms and so do you, Elizabeth.”
Immediately, Diego stopped moaning. I could see the pain fading away and along with it went the terrible haunted expression that had surrounded him. He slowly got to his feet, looking very much like the man I'd feared two years ago. The slow grin he gave me was full of pure evil.
"Um, Baron, when do the terms take affect?" I asked, nervously backing away.
"Soon enough." The Baron muttered something under his breath and flung out his arm. Diego was tossed outside the ring of fire.
I could see the outlines of Eddie, Euralie, and Diego outside the circle, but wasn't sure what was going on. Baron Samedi obliged my curiosity by creating a small opening in the fire that allowed me to hear the conversation.
"What happened?" Eddie asked, picking up the gun. "Where is Elizabeth?"
"She removed the curse." Diego smiled. "I'm a free man."
"But what about her? Is she okay?"
"Who cares?" Diego gestured at the fire. "She caused me enough trouble. I hope she dies."
"What were the terms of the agreement?" Euralie asked. "Did you bother to find out or just accept them blindly?"
"I agreed to do whate
ver it takes to be rid of these visions, to stop seeing the horrors that have tormented me."
"So you're going to be Captain of the Deadman's Ferry?" Euralie crossed her arms and frowned. "That means you ferry lost souls to the other side when you die."
"I don't know what you are talking about. The curse has been lifted." Diego pulled out the gold coin from his pocket and tossed it into the fire. It landed inside the circle at the Baron's feet.
"Has it?" The question was asked by a voice I didn't recognize. It was female, and as I watched, I saw a young woman enter the clearing. A bullet wound in her temple dripped blood. "Do you remember me, Diego?"
So this was another one of his victims. Maybe the curse hadn't been lifted after all.
"Michelle," Eddie whispered. "Is that you?"
"What's left of me, my brother," she said. "I've come for Diego."
"No." Diego backed away. "No. How do you know her?"
"That's my sister." Eddie's voice was hollow. "She's the reason I hate you, the reason I've spent all these years trying to kill you."
"You killed me Diego," the woman said. "You shot me down in a fit of rage though you claimed to love me. I've come for you."
"Shoot him," Euralie said. "She can't collect his soul for the ferry if he's still alive."
Without a second thought, Eddie fired the gun.
Diego reeled back and fell to the ground dead.
"Thank you, brother," Michelle said. "I'm at peace now. You should be, too."
Without another word she faded away and the fiery curtain I'd been peeking through closed.
"Elizabeth." Baron Samedi said my name and I turned to face him. "We must seal the bargain now. He's crossed over to the ship, but there is still one last piece of business to finish."
"Alright." I stared, uncertain of what to do next and stunned by what had just occurred. Did I wait for him to attack me? Did I go to him willing? What was the protocol for sex with a spirit? How long would it take?
He moved towards me, but paused as I sucked in my breath, frightened.
"Perhaps a more appealing form is in order," he said.
I watched his features change until he had morphed into the form of Juan. He held out his arms and I stepped into them. I took a deep breath and felt his hands touch my hair, his lips slide to my neck. I could feel his breath whispering across my skin as he moved up to my mouth. Looking deep into my eyes, this creature that looked like Juan kissed me.
It was a strange sensation. I was expecting heat, but instead felt only coolness. It rushed through me, feeding a new desire that wasn't based on emotional feeling but pure lust. My hands had a mind of their own and began exploring the body I knew so intimately. Pleasure surged in my body, but it wasn't the hotly charged passion I'd experienced in the past. This was cold, almost detached, and yet, consuming.
The Baron began to slip his hands beneath my shirt, sending little ripples of sensation through me. I shivered and I heard him laugh in satisfaction. I opened my eyes and stared into his. Once again, I heard that strange little voice in my head that I'd heard off and on all day.
See how easy it is to just give in? Love could never be stronger than the bonds of lust.
I pulled away from the Baron. He narrowed his eyes and looked down at me.
"It's you. You're the voice who's been trying to sway me all day. You've been trying to put bad thoughts in my head, haven't you? You've been trying to sway the deal all day in your favor," I said.
The Baron shrugged. "It's all how fate would have it."
"I can't do this," I whispered.
"Why not?" The Baron's voice was curious. He shifted from Juan's features back to his own.
"He asked me not to. He said there's no honor in this. I love him," I said, feeling a stab of pain. "I can't go against his wishes."
"Shit!" The Baron cursed and stomped away, his back towards me. "There's the damn loophole."
"What do you mean? I thought the sex was supposed to be that part. I thought I was sacrificing love and that was what would make the bargain complete."
"No. Not sacrificing love is better." The Baron turned to me. "You won't give in, even though it means you might not see each other again. That's real love. That's what breaks the curse."
The fire died down. When I looked at the Baron, he'd disappeared. Only Euralie and Eddie remained in the clearing. But something was coming. I could feel it. The energy was shifting again, but the darkness I'd felt earlier was gone.
Two balls of lights drifted into the clearing. They materialized into the now familiar form of Jean Lafitte and my beloved Juan.
But something about them was different.
Lafitte looked like a ghost still, but Juan…he appeared more solid. Like a living person.
"Come here," he said. I ran to him and found myself swept up into his strong arms. "You did it. You broke the curse and set us free."
"I know, but what does this mean now?" I could feel tears stinging my eyes. "Are you moving on? Going to the next dimension or whatever?"
"I think I'll leave that to Jean," Juan said. He tilted my chin up so he could see my eyes. "Your love created a final gift from the Baron."
"What do you mean?" Hope surged in my heart.
"I'm alive."
Overwhelmed, I began to cry.
"Is she always such a blubbering fool?" Euralie's bored tone made me laugh. I turned to see her and Eddie embracing. I guess everyone had gotten what they wanted.
"Goodbye, mademoiselle. I go now to find my beloved, Marie," Lafitte said. He began to fade away. "Euralie, do with the treasure as you wish. It is yours."
We watched as his spirit lifted up and then faded into the night sky.
"Are you okay?" Eddie directed the question at me. I smiled at him and looked at Juan.
"Yes. I'm better than okay. I'm perfect."
"Well, we should get out of here," Eddie said. "No telling what else is lurking out in the bayou."
"I'm not leaving without the treasure." Euralie said.
Euralie and Eddie began grumbling about what to do. I hoped he knew he had his hands full with that one.
"I love you, Elizabeth," Juan whispered. "You are my good luck charm now."
As the wind brushed through the bayou soft and low, I felt that my heart couldn’t be any fuller. The man of my dreams stood next to me and no matter what adventure happened to us next, I would never lose sight of him again. Juan reached into his pocket and pulled out the gold coin. With a laugh, he tossed it into the bayou. He kissed me then, and I felt the depth of his love down to the very core of my soul. Only one thought remained crystal clear to me.
Not even death could keep us apart.
Paperback version
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Voodoo Love (And the Curse of Jean Lafitte’s Treasure) Page 11
