Deadline

by Judy McDonough

The next morning they ate breakfast at a cafe that had been in the French Quarter for over a century and enjoyed delicious beignets and cafe au lait. They browsed gift shops along Decatur Street and Jackson Square. Caroline spotted a voodoo shop, but Cade was very adamant about keeping her away from it. She joked about only wanting to find an April doll to stick pins in from time to time. He didn't have much of a sense of humor when it came to voodoo. Strangely enough, that only made Caroline even more curious about the mysterious culture. She dropped the issue—for now.

  After a couple of tours they landed back on Decatur Street to have muffuletta sandwiches for lunch. Caroline decided she was officially in love with New Orleans. The overall magic of the city had cast a spell on her, and she was head-over-heels.

  "Have you noticed your dad being stressed out?" Cade asked on the drive home. "I mean, any more than usual?"

  "Not really, why? I haven't exactly been around him long enough to know what he's like on a regular basis, though. What's up?"

  "Has he mentioned anything to you about people harassing him to sell his property?"

  Her heart sank. "No! Why? Is he going to sell?" She'd just discovered the beautiful wonderland that belonged to her family and looked forward to visiting on a regular basis, if not living there someday. Assuming, of course, she could talk Trevor into it.

  "I don't think he's going to sell if he can help it, but he's had a couple of different companies questioning him about it. Apparently, all the land around his property has been bought up by someone who has plans to build commercial properties and master planned communities. The Fontenot plantation is the only thing stopping the entire area from being a continuous flow of the same type of atmosphere."

  Awful news. Terrible. Caroline's mood darkened. "You don't think he'll sell, do you? I mean, you've known him longer than I have, but my impression of him is that he loves that house more than anything."

  "He told me, as long as he was alive, nobody would own that property but his family."

  That made her feel a little better. Eddie still had youth and good health on his side, as well as the family longevity he'd mentioned. She had no worries of him kicking the bucket anytime soon. "Whoever it is that's pressuring him to sell needs to be kicked in the pocketbook! This is historical property we're talking about here. It has extreme sentimental value. Does that not mean anything to people anymore?" She frowned.

  Cade smiled a crooked grin and looked at her from the corner of his eye. "You're cute, you know that?"

  "I'm serious. It makes me very angry to think that someone is trying to bully him into selling something that is sacred to him. What kind of selfish, inconsiderate, greedy punk would do such a thing? It's horrible."

  "I agree, sweet girl. I totally agree."

  Cade didn't speak for the remainder of the drive.

  Caroline drifted off to sleep and instantly began dreaming.

  Rachel walked, more like floated, toward Caroline from a distance, and she wore the same long white night dress she had on when she died. Caroline couldn't tell where they were. Rachel glowed very brightly, almost backlit, only Caroline could see her face rather than just a silhouette. Her long red hair gently flowed, but there was no breeze. She came closer, and her lips were moving, but Caroline couldn't hear what she was saying. She couldn't hear anything but complete silence.

  As she got even closer, Caroline tried to read her lips, and a whispering moan replaced the silence. She made out a few words. Rachel was distraught and seemed to be trying to warn her about something. . .or someone. She could only decipher, "Don't stay," "him," and maybe the word "hurt" in there somewhere, but what she said after that, Caroline had no idea. The background noises, and the haunting, overlapping whispers, didn't help.

  "Rachel, I can't understand you." Caroline shook her head. "What are you trying to tell me? I can't hear you." Rachel frowned and looked very sad. She stretched her left arm out reaching for Caroline, but her hand suddenly disappeared and Rachel became frightened. Then, as if someone yanked a rope wrapped around her waist, she flew backward, reaching out for Caroline with both arms now and disappeared into the light.

  Caroline gasped as she woke from the strange dream. Cade chuckled. "Welcome back. Did you have a nice nap?"

  As she caught her breath, she whispered, "No, not really. Where are we?"

  "We are about twenty miles from home. Are you okay? Rough dream? No snakes, I hope." He smiled at his little joke.

  "No, no snakes. Just a creepy ghost dream. It was really strange. I don't really even know how to describe it."

  "Do you want to try?"

  "No, not particularly." The dream was a warning, a red flag, a flashing buoy in a foggy harbor. The image of Rachel snatched backwards and disappearing completely unsettled Caroline. What was that supposed to mean? She hated cryptic dreams. Don't stay. Don't stay where, here in Louisiana? Don't stay in Chicago? Him. Him who? Trevor, Cade, Eddie? What if she meant George's ghost? What was the whole hand thing about, anyway? Caroline let out a frustrated sigh.

  Rachel's dreams all had a meaning, eventually leading Caroline to the journal. This dream had to have some significance, too. But what?

  When they pulled up in the drive Caroline hopped out of the car and up to the porch before Cade had completely gotten out of his seat. She had gone straight into the kitchen to get a glass of ice water. Cade brought in her bag and carried it up to her room.

  "Caroline," he called. "You need to come upstairs. Now."

  She rushed as quickly as she could manage up the stairs to the third floor bedroom. When she walked into her room, all the air vanished from her lungs."

  On her bed sat a rigid Trevor. . .glaring at Cade.

  Thirty-Five