by Emery, Lynn
“Are you through working tonight?” She whispered and wiggled her hips until he gasped her name twice.
“I… I gotta go back,” he managed to get out before licking one of her nipples before taking it into his mouth. Then he moaned, “Yes.”
LaShaun gasped a few times before she could speak. “Then we better make this a quickie.
Chase rested his head against the sofa back. “Do it.”
LaShaun rode him wildly, pausing to tease him with him kisses until he moaned for her to move again. Up and down, she savored the sensation of being in control. She ignored his pleas for her to go faster at one point. Going slow drove her to the point of madness. Nothing else mattered as waves of pleasure ruled them. When he was finally able to speak, Chase let out a long hissing breath.
“This is the best work break I’ve ever had,” Chase mumbled.
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” LaShaun quipped. She got up from his lap and motioned for him to follow her. “Let’s take a quick shower. We’re gonna have to heat that food up again.”
“I doubt it cooled off with the fire we had goin’ in here,” Chase joked with a grin.
They teased each other, enjoying the happiness of being in love. Twenty minutes later they were dressed and back in the kitchen. Chase wore a pair of sweat pants and t-shirt as he devoured the plate of food.
“This is what I call home. Loving on my soon-to-be wife and eating some down home cooking. I’m ready to catch me some bad guys and call it a day.” Chase winked at her.
LaShaun laughed as she rose from the table. “You’re feeling mighty powerful.”
“Did you really mean it about no wedding, honey?” Chase looked at her, his long legs stretched out.
“Actually, yeah. We could switch gears without too much trouble.” LaShaun shrugged and started washing the few dishes. She liked doing it by hand even though she had a high tech dishwasher.
“Sure. I guess Jessi won’t mind not being a flower girl. Katie will get over not watching her big brother get married. The people who love us will survive not watching us vow before God to be together forever…”
LaShaun spun around to face him, suds flying from her hands. “Stop already. I get it. I didn’t realize you were so romantic about the ceremony.”
“At first I thought, who needs it? But then I saw how happy it made Jessi, my sisters, and you. Oh, no,” Chase said and pointed a finger at her. “Don’t tell me you weren’t enjoying the whole idea of your special day dressed like a princess.”
“It’s our special day,” LaShaun replied softly and walked back to him. “I love you.”
“And I love you. Will you marry me?” Chase pressed his face against the cotton fabric of her pink t-shirt.
“I seem to recall you already asked and I answered.” She kissed the mass of dark softly curled hair on top of his head.
“Say it again so I’ll know it’s not a dream,” he replied and looked up at her.
“Yes,” LaShaun said.
“The wedding is on? I don’t want to be the one who has to tell my niece she won’t get dressed up and toss rose petals. Uh-uh. Not to mention my sisters and Adrianna.” Chase affected a shudder of fear.
“We’re going through with this production because you’re scared of the Broussard females?” LaShaun burst out laughing.
“Damn right,” Chase replied promptly. He was about to say more when his cell phone played a Cajun two-step tune. He crossed the kitchen to retrieve it from the counter top. He glanced at the display and answered. “Yeah, boss.”
LaShaun continued cleaning up the meal. By the time she’d scrubbed the cast iron pots clean of rice and catfish couvillion, Chase had hung up. She smiled at him, but his serious expression chilled the moment of loving warmth still in the kitchen.
“What’s happened?” LaShaun asked.
“Becky, girl that was with Greg, has disappeared. Her mother is down at the station pretty much out of her mind with worry. I could hear her screaming while M.J. was talking to me.”
LaShaun stood rooted to the floor as waves of terror crashed into her. “She slipped away to meet Greg tonight, Chase.”
Chase froze in the act of pulling on his favorite old scuffed leather work boots. “You know where they are right now?”
LaShaun closed her eyes. She swayed for a few seconds. “Resurrection fern,” she whispered.
Chapter 6
Moonlight barely touched the darkness of the early morning hours. LaShaun walked slowly through the woods. She watched every movement of the leaves and tuned into the sounds. They had arrived at the scene around midnight. Chase, M.J. and other deputies had spread out in the opposite direction. After two hours, they’d been too busy to notice that LaShaun had headed north. The scent of wet foliage tugged her to Blood River. Birds and squirrels scrambled through the trees or scurried in the thick shrubs. LaShaun heard plenty of sounds, but none of it connected to a human. Her cell phone hummed against her hip. She pulled it out of her jeans pocket and glanced down. Chase had texted “where r u?????” LaShaun paused to answer him so he wouldn’t worry. “i’m ok knife and gun with me.”
LaShaun had taken time to get her favorite weapons. The denim jacket she wore had three inside pockets. She’d sewn them just the right size. One long one held the sterling silver knife she inherited from an ancestor. In the other pocket was the small derringer pistol loaded with silver bullets. They would kill human or demon if the need arose. LaShaun wasn’t sure which one she might face in the shadows that moved between sunset and dawn.
Most folks assumed demons and spirits only did their dirty work in the dark. Big mistake. The most powerful supernatural forces could move at any time, though darkness did appeal to them more. LaShaun sensed that the missing teenage girl had no clue about the danger she was in. Like most parents, Becky’s mother and father blamed “hanging with a bad crowd.” They chose to ignore one fact, Becky had seemed more than willing to follow where Greg and the others led.
LaShaun’s cell phone hummed again insistently, but she ignored it. She saw ahead with her third eye. LaShaun walked quickly through the brush without making a lot of noise. She wasn’t worried that Becky would hear her and bolt. In her vision, LaShaun could see that the girl was preoccupied. Unlike what most people thought, having paranormal abilities didn’t mean all was revealed; or even if revealed that LaShaun would understand what she saw. LaShaun moved cautiously since she didn’t know if Becky was alone.
Moments later LaShaun arrived at a huge oak tree. Massive branches as thick as trunks of other smaller trees curved to the ground. Spanish moss draped several branches farther up. Resurrection Fern grew along others. Humming an odd discordant tune, Becky sat on the grass brushing her fingers through the greenery. Her voice would rise high and then dip into hissing. LaShaun stepped behind another large oak tree and listened for a few moments. Her cell phone buzzed again, vibrating insistently as though to communicate Chase’s agitation that she wouldn’t answer. So she did. A short text, “found her”. He texted back that he would follow the GPS tracking app on her phone. LaShaun slid her phone back into her pocket and started to show herself but paused. Becky had stopped humming. A breeze picked up, but only seemed to center around the tree where LaShaun stood. Then she heard a whispering voice near her ear.
“I have returned. This girl and others are mine. These young ones are quite a delight. Why not join us?” the voice said.
The last word was drawn out to a long hissing sound that grew louder. The familiarity of the lilting male voice sent a jolt through LaShaun like dozens of electrified needles. She strode quickly toward the still seated teenager. Becky had a serene yet vacant expression on her smooth young face.
“Rebecca Saucier, you stand up right now young lady. You’ve put your family through a horrible night of worry,” LaShaun said sharply. The hissing sound intensified as though a nest of giant snakes had arrived.
Becky blinked a few times as though she had trouble focusing.
Then she slowly looked around until her gaze found LaShaun. She smiled. “Don’t be ridiculous. There was no need for them to worry. Besides, what I do is none of their damned business.”
“You’re going home now,” LaShaun barked at her. “You’re going to listen to me, and you’re going to listen to your parents from now on.”
Becky, still smiling, stood. The lovely white dress she wore had leaves and a small twig stuck to the lace hem. She put her hands behind her back. “Fine, but only because I’m ready to leave anyway. I’ll come back here whenever I want to. No one can stop me.”
LaShaun examined the ground as she walked around Becky in a circle. Becky moved in a circle as well so that she always faced LaShaun. The girl showed no fear, not even a faint trace of anxiety. The white dress looked delicately beautiful, a style from a different era. She looked like a bride from the nineteenth century.
LaShaun took a step toward Becky. “Whatever they told you, whatever he told you is a lie.” His promises come with a terrible price.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking. You’re just a crazy lady wandering around in the woods,” Becky said in a musical childish tone.
“I know your name,” LaShaun murmured and then stepped back.
“Who sent you?” Becky blurted out. The smile disappeared.
“Don’t experiment with evil, Becky. At first it feels so good, right? You feel strong and free from everyone telling you what to do, when to do it, and how you should live. Then horrible things start to happen. Like your friend Elliot. He’s dead.” LaShaun recited a prayer Monmon Odette had taught her, the same prayer from a Rousselle family journal written in 1801.
“Elliot’s not dead. Look up. That plant is brown and looks dead, doesn’t it? Under the right conditions it comes back to life, green and vital.” Becky pointed to a high thick branch of the oak tree. “Resurrection fern is what they call it. Water, that’s all it takes because it’s not really dead.”
“You listen to me,” LaShaun snapped and grabbed her arm. “Elliot was a human being, not a plant. He was your friend. His parents had his funeral three days ago. That’s reality.”
“No. No. You’re the one full of lies.” Becky shook her head.
“You don’t think his mother wanted him to be alive? She had to see him lying in the hospital morgue. If she even thought he was still breathing, Mrs. Dubois would never have let the coroner…”
“Stop it,” Becky shouted.
“Cut him up doing an autopsy,” LaShaun continued fiercely.
“LaShaun, what’s wrong?” Chase called out as he ran toward them.
“You’ll pay for touching me, bitch,” Becky spat at LaShaun. Her hazel eyes seemed lit with the fire of her rage. “You don’t know who you’re fucking with. I’m chosen.”
“You silly fool,” LaShaun shouted back at her.
“Becky!” a woman yelled. “Becky, are you okay?”
“Ma’am, stop.” A female deputy tried to pull the woman back. Mrs. Saucier moved faster. She brushed past Chase, making a wide arc around him so he couldn’t stop her either.
“What the hell…” Chase shot forward and managed to grab the woman’s checked flannel shirt and pull her back.
“This woman has my daughter. You should be manhandling her. That’s my child she’s attacking!” The woman shrieked and struggled to get free.
“Calm down,” Chase replied in a steady voice. “LaShaun isn’t trying to hurt your kid.”
“Mama, she slapped me. She wants to hurt me,” Becky wailed. “Help me, mama!”
“You let go of my child or I swear I’ll…” Becky’s mother fought against the hold Chase had on her.
Four more deputies arrived along with a tall dark-haired man. M.J. marched through the growing crowd and took in the scene before her. She looked at Mrs. Saucier. “LaShaun helped in the search. You need to settle down.”
“Jody, stop it. Just stop,” a dark-haired man said. Chase let her go only when the man was close enough to take his place. Mike Saucier put an arm around his wife’s shoulders.
“That’s the Rousselle woman, Mike. God only knows what she’s gotten Becky into.” Jody pointed a finger at LaShaun.
“Please, don’t make things worse,” Mike Saucier said in a shaky voice. Still he grimaced when he looked at LaShaun.
Becky glared at LaShaun in triumph. She raised a hand to strike her and LaShaun shoved her back. The teenager fell to the ground in a melodramatic fashion with a shriek. She cried hard and curled into a ball. Her mother shouted profane threats toward LaShaun. Finally between M.J. and the other deputies, the Saucier family was hustled yards away. Deputy Dave Godchaux, Chase’s election opponent, seemed able to get the parents to listen after a few minutes. LaShaun couldn’t hear them, but Jody’s dark glances shot in her direction said a lot. Mike Saucier finally helped herd his wife and daughter down the path toward the road a quarter of a mile away. After a moment Dave strode over to them. M.J. gave directions to a group of deputies to step carefully and look for any possible evidence. Three deputies began walking an arm’s length apart, their heads down scanning the ground.
“Everybody move back but step carefully,” M.J. said. “Just move away from this area. It’s a long shot because we’re not even sure which way she came.”
“Don’t know what we’re lookin’ for, Sheriff,” a thin older deputy said in a thick Cajun accent. “Ain’t no crime far as I see. That little gal run off on her own.”
“Not much to see in the dark either,” Chase put in.
Still they tried a preliminary search using the beams of their powerful flashlights. M.J. wiped sweat from her forehead with a bandanna. “All we need,” she grumbled.
“I don’t think getting your woman involved was a good idea, Broussard,” Dave said gazing at Chase. His twin bushy black eyebrows went up.
“LaShaun is my fiancée,” Chase snapped back.
Dave turned to M.J. “That Schaffer guy is in town, too. He’s still sniffing around after Louisiana spooky stuff. I say we concentrate on real police work. Reporters will definitely make a big deal outta this.”
“Right after you make a beeline to tell them,” Chase muttered.
“Let’s make sure Greg Graham wasn’t involved,” M.J. said quickly and shot a warning look at Chase.
“Is Becky his girlfriend? That would explain her slipping away to see him. Their parents were advised to keep them apart,” LaShaun said.
“Why is she involved in this case? She shouldn’t have knowledge that might be material to an on-going investigation.” Dave shot a glance at Chase and then back to M.J. “I convinced the Sauciers not to discuss this incident with anybody. But reporters will be jumping for joy to find out the local voodoo woman is hooked up in another murder. I say we…”
Chase pointed a forefinger at Dave’s nose. “If you insult LaShaun again I’ll turn you upside down and use your head to dig a hole in the dirt.”
LaShaun moved quickly to pull him away from Dave. His muscular bulk made that task impossible. She didn’t even succeed in moving Chase an inch. “Those are just words. Don’t let him push your buttons.”
“More proof you’re not the man to take over the sheriff’s office, Broussard. Hot-headed and too willing to make the wrong choices. Your fiancée has been involved in weird killings since she got back to town. You think the voters will look past her and just see your smiling face? That slick campaign talk won’t work.” Dave’s voice held the edge of more insults he could have said, but held back.
“You slimy son-of-a…”
“Chase!” M.J. shouted.
Dave sprang back. He swung a fist that gave Chase a glancing blow. Chase called Dave a couple of colorful names. Two male voices grew animated. LaShaun turned to see them pointing. One raised a hand, no doubt to record video. LaShaun used all of her force to push Chase in the opposite direction away from Dave. The older man huffed and puffed in rage, but didn’t try to follow.
“You chose one helluva ti
me to pick a beef, Dave,” M.J. said in a voice tight with anger. She kept her voice low. Then she spun around to face the two deputies who had observed the action with amusement. They lost their grins under her hot scrutiny. “Get those damn reporters far away from here. You two, keep looking, and Dave will help,” she barked at the remaining men. They nodded and went back to work.
Dave opened his mouth to object, but when M.J. glared at him he backed up. He cleared his throat then strutted off with a take charge attitude. “Keep sweeping the area guys. Not likely we’ll find anything useful, but we need to be thorough.”
“Lord,” M.J. said. She rolled her eyes as she watched him.
Chase took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m okay. I’m okay.”
“You’re supposed to respectfully disagree, not beat the crap out of each other,” LaShaun said.
“He had that coming, and more. Dave’s been dropping slick little remarks for weeks around the station. I’m sick of him and his phony ass Mr. Church-Going Good Guy act.” Chase seemed to be getting worked up again.
M.J. marched over to them. “Great, just damn freakin’ perfect. Two senior Vermilion Parish deputies who also happen to be running for sheriff get into a brawl, and with reporters sitting ringside.”
“Yeah, right. Sorry.” Chase’s scowl in Dave’s direction implied he had no regrets.
“Go talk to the girl and her parents. Try to remember we’re working a case, not having a bar fight,” M.J. growled at him.
“Okay.” Chase glanced briefly at LaShaun and then left.
LaShaun turned to M.J. when he was a few yards away. “Any chance those reporters didn’t see what happened?”
“No such luck. I want to shove this job off on Chase as soon as possible. I’d appreciate if he didn’t screw up my plans by losing the election,” M.J. said firmly.
“You’re preaching to the choir, so give him this lecture, Madame Sheriff,” LaShaun replied with a shrug.
She stared ahead. About a third of a mile through a stand of trees, the Saucier family stood near a circle of sheriff department cruisers. Dave draped a blanket around Becky. LaShaun tried tuning out the activity around her, to use her extra senses as a sort of feeler. But the adrenalin and tension from everyone was like static that drowned out the psychic signals.
