by Jana DeLeon
Maryse stared at him and narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”
“My buddy at the dealership said someone cut your brake lines on your truck. Your wreck was no accident.”
“And you’re just now telling me about this? Don’t you think that was information I needed before now?”
Luc had the decency to look embarrassed. “I’m sorry, Maryse, but I was a bit confused at first since your wreck happened before the reading of the will, so it didn’t add up. Then after I heard about the whole inheritance thing, I figured Harold or someone else found out ahead of time and took a snipe at you. Cutting brake lines is not exactly a clear-cut route to death. In fact, it’s probably not a good route at all.”
Maryse slowly nodded, understanding his point. “But an explosion is a whole different story.”
“Bet your ass it is,” Luc said and narrowed his eyes at Maryse. “So are you going to tell me what you’re involved in that’s going to get you killed?”
Maryse nodded. “It’s got to be the land. There’s a clause in the inheritance.”
“What clause?”
“The land inheritance has clauses tied to it that have to be fulfilled over the next week in order for the title to pass to me. One of the clauses is that I have to outlive Helena for seven days following her burial.”
“Jesus Christ!” Luc stared at her for a moment, then lowered his voice again. “Then Johnny’s right—you’ve got to get out of town for a while. I have family in places no one would ever find you. They can keep you protected for a week, easy.”
Maryse shook her head. “I can’t leave Mudbug. That’s another one of the clauses. If I leave, everything passes to Hank, and he’d lease the land as fast as possible.”
“He’d have to find a taker first,” Luc said. “Maybe in ten years or so development would be pushing this way, but right now? Even the chemical company couldn’t put together an expansion plan quickly. It would take years.”
“Yeah, but didn’t I tell you? Helena’s only just bothered to mention that the preserve is full of oil.”
Luc stared. “Good Lord, the woman’s practically signed your death warrant.”
“I don’t think that was her intention, but it’s certainly starting to look that way.”
Luc looked out the window for a moment, then shook his head and looked back at Maryse. “Well, this problem is way too big to be solved over lunch, but I guess the first thing we need to do is get you somewhere safe. You think the hotel is okay?”
Maryse shrugged. “Heck if I know. Mildred lives there, and the hotel is usually at least half-filled with salesmen and such for the chemical company. I should be okay there, but I hate putting Mildred in the middle of this mess.”
“I don’t like it either, but you have to stay somewhere that’s easy to watch, and the hotel is your best option in Mudbug. Are you going to tell Mildred what’s going on?”
“What other choice do I have? My house exploded. She’s going to wonder what happened, and Mildred’s too sharp for me to pass off some bullshit explanation.”
“And what about the Helena returning from the dead part?”
“Oh, no! I don’t need Mildred worried about my sanity, too. She doesn’t believe in this sort of thing and isn’t likely to start regardless of what I say. No, Helena has to remain mine, yours, and Sabine’s little secret.”
“Sabine?” Luc asked.
“My best friend. She owns the psychic shop in downtown.”
Luc’s face cleared in understanding. “Ah, psychic, huh? So I guess she has no trouble taking on a haunting.”
“Oh, she has plenty of trouble, especially with exactly who’s doing the haunting, but she’s doing some research to try and help us figure out some things—mainly how Helena can ascend or depart or whatever.”
“You might want to put a hold on that.”
“Why?”
“I would imagine that Helena knows plenty she still hasn’t told you. Not to mention she’s a much better choice for eavesdropping on suspects than either of us.” Luc sighed. “Unfortunately, until we figure out exactly what’s going on here, Helena is worth more to us dead.”
The fear on Mildred’s face was clear as day when Luc came hauling Maryse into the hotel. The hotel owner ran across the lobby, as only large women can run, and started to gather her up in a hug. Apparently, she remembered Maryse’s injuries and placed a hand on her arm instead. “Oh, my God, child, are you all right?”
“I’m fine, Mildred. Just a few cuts and my head’s pounding a bit again, but nothing to be concerned with.”
Mildred stared at Maryse as if she’d lost her mind, then looked over at Luc, whose expression apparently didn’t do anything to convince her to the contrary. She looked back at Maryse. “Nothing to be concerned with? Are you kidding me? That explosion at your cabin carried all the way to downtown. Why, when I heard it was your place, Johnny had to stop me from swiping his boat and heading over there myself. I swear I would have swam if I had to.”
Maryse smiled. “I know you would have. I’m surprised Johnny won the fight over his boat.”
Mildred flushed a bit. “Well, I couldn’t get the damned thing started or I would have gotten away with it. Then I came back into the hotel and was just about to grab my keys and head to the dock when Sabine called and told me to hold tight and prepare a room for you.” She gave Maryse a hard look. “What the hell is going on, Maryse?” She looked over at Luc. “And what is he doing taxiing you around?”
“It’s sort of a long story. Why don’t you put on a pot of coffee, and I’ll take a shower. Luc will fill you in on the high points in the meantime.”
Mildred pursed her lips, obviously wanting an answer right away but not about to argue the fact that Maryse could obviously use a shower. “Okay,” Mildred said finally. “I’ve got a new caramel blend I can put on and some butter cookies I just baked yesterday. You go on with your shower. Sabine brought some clothes by earlier to tide you over until you can buy some more.” She pointed a finger at Luc. “You can follow me to the kitchen and start explaining exactly what the hell happened and how you got in the middle of it.”
Maryse smiled at the look of dismay on Luc’s face. She knew he was probably itching to make phone calls or revisit the blast site or something that proved his cleverness or masculinity. Instead, he was stuck answering to Mildred over caramel coffee and butter cookies.
“Go ahead and tell her everything,” Maryse instructed.
Luc nodded and headed through the double doors that Mildred had indicated. The hotel owner pulled back her shoulders and followed him. Maryse took one final look at Luc’s retreating figure and sighed. Like she needed to feel any more attraction to Luc LeJeune. She’d spent the last couple of days trying desperately to ignore the sparks between them, and now here he was, looking out for her and seeing her ghost.
The first time she’d met him, Maryse had thought he was just another playboy with a roving eye, but apparently there was another side to Luc that he obviously didn’t let out for just everyone.
He’d shown Maryse that other side, but for the life of her, she had no idea why.
Luc watched the hotel from across the street and saw Maryse close the blinds to her hotel room window. Good. She should stay put for a while, and if she got any foolish ideas about leaving the hotel before he returned, Mildred had promised to handcuff her to the stair railing. She’d even showed him the handcuffs, which had given him a moment of pause.
He looked across the parking lot, half-expecting to see Helena strolling around like she hadn’t done anything wrong, but apparently the ghost had decided to lay low for a bit. He shook his head and walked toward his Jeep. He wasn’t happy about seeing Helena, but it did explain why Maryse had been acting so strangely. In fact, given everything she had going on, he was somewhat surprised she’d held things together as well as she had.
He took one final look at the hotel, satisfied that Maryse was in capable hands, and pulled his cell
phone out of his pocket as he climbed in his Jeep. He’d already had one text message today from his boss, and with everything that had happened, he hadn’t had an opportunity to call in without blowing his cover. But he couldn’t put off calling the office any longer. Wilson rarely called Luc when he was in the field. If he felt the need to leave a message, something must be up.
He dialed his office and his boss picked up on the first ring.
“Damn it, LeJeune!” Wilson shouted. “Where the hell have you been all day?”
Luc moved the phone a couple of inches from his ear until he was sure the yelling was over. “There was a situation with my suspect.”
“Spill it, LeJeune. I don’t have all day like you do.”
“Someone tried to kill her.”
“Are you positive?”
“Her house exploded.”
There was a couple of seconds pause, and Luc knew Wilson was rolling this piece of information around in his mind. “Well, I guess that might be hard to construe any other way. So I take it she wasn’t in the house?”
“On her way up to it when it blew. We just got back from the hospital.”
Wilson groaned. “Do not tell me you’re white knighting this woman around to doctor’s appointments and to have her hair done. Are you trying to look suspicious? As far as she’s concerned, you barely know her, LeJeune. Act like the stranger you’re supposed to be before someone makes you.”
“I’m not going to hair appointments, and I just happened to be in the vicinity when her cabin exploded so I took her to the emergency room. Any decent person would have done that—stranger or no.”
“Maybe, but be careful. Remember, I never wanted you on the assignment in the first place. Your grandparents lived entirely too close to Mudbug for my comfort. There’s still the possibility of you being recognized.”
“My grandparents moved almost five years ago,” Luc argued, “and I haven’t been there to visit since I was in high school. They preferred to come to the city to see me.”
“Family visiting preferences aside, you better stay low on this one or I’m going to yank you out.”
“I understand, but I’m wondering if all this is related to our case. There’s no way this was an amateur job. There’s not a single piece of that cabin left over two feet long.”
Wilson sighed. “Well, keep an eye on her for now, but I have to tell you, it’s looking more and more like the informant is that accountant that Agent Duhon is on. I’m expecting a break anytime. And when I get it…”
“I understand,” Luc said, and closed his phone. His time was running out. As soon as they had the informant, his business with Maryse was over and he would be expected back in New Orleans. And that left Maryse with no one to protect her but a fake psychic, a hotel owner with a pair of fuzzy handcuffs, and a ghost wearing bad polyester.
Luc gave her ten, fifteen minutes tops.
Maryse awoke the next morning with another pounding headache and immediately decided that head injury headaches were much, much worse than the drinking kind. Her poor body had seen more abuse in the last couple of days than it usually did in years. She groaned as she got out of bed and turned a tired eye to the alarm clock on the nightstand. Only six A.M. Habit, she knew, but if ever there was a day she’d have liked to sleep in, this would have been it.
The day before had been long and intense, first Luc filling Mildred in on the basics, with Sabine joining them for most of the conversation. Then Maryse had made her appearance, and it was all she could do to keep Mildred and Sabine from bundling her up and hauling her out of town, regardless of land, oil, inheritance, or anything else. She’d finally convinced them to leave it alone for the night at least, but she could tell that no one was happy going to bed with no plan of action.
She shuffled into the bathroom to survey the damage and groaned. It wasn’t a pretty sight and definitely wasn’t going to help her “stay in Mudbug” argument. Even Jasper, who was drinking out of the toilet despite a perfectly good bowl of water in the bedroom, paused for a moment and stared.
The bruises on her arms and legs from the truck wreck were purple with that nasty-looking yellow around the edges. The cuts were not deep and wouldn’t scar, but they dotted her hands like bright red freckles. Fortunately, in all of this, she’d remembered to protect her face, but the stress and lack of sleep were showing there. The bags under her eyes were so dark they looked like she was ready to play a quarter in the NFL, and to top it all off, they were puffy, probably from all the yelling she did yesterday mixed with the intermittent tears last night.
She looked like a hybrid raccoon strung out on acid.
Although she knew her appearance should be the least of her concerns at the moment, Maryse also knew that unless she managed to pull off a semblance of control, she’d never convince Mildred and Sabine she should stay in Mudbug. Or if she did, they’d never want her to leave the hotel, and that just wasn’t an option since it put Mildred at risk.
And then there was Luc.
A whole other problem and definitely an enigma. She knew he was more than a little troubled, especially with Helena in the mix, but if he had any thoughts or opinions on the situation, he’d held them in last night, instead choosing to listen for a change. Which made Maryse more than a little nervous. What was going on in that head of his? His revelation about seeing Helena had thrown her for a loop but also made her feel closer to him, something she’d definitely been trying to avoid.
Realizing she wasn’t going to solve all her problems or get a decent cup of coffee standing in front of the bathroom mirror, she shrugged off the T-shirt Mildred had loaned her to sleep in and made a quick pass through the shower. Sabine, in her infinite wisdom, had started off Maryse’s replacement wardrobe with loose-fitting sweats and T-shirts from Wal-Mart.
Given the bruises and the overall soreness, Maryse was happy with Sabine’s choices. The sweats were a light, thin fabric and wouldn’t be hot at all, and they were much less restrictive than the jeans Maryse usually wore. Probably wouldn’t stand up very well to a day in the bayou, but at the moment, it appeared her days in the bayou were coming to a screeching halt. She fluffed her damp hair, pulled on her tennis shoes, then headed to Mildred’s office, hoping the woman had taken mercy on her and picked up some donuts.
Mildred was in her office, but she wasn’t alone. Sabine sat across the desk from her, and surprisingly enough, Luc occupied the other chair. Conversation ceased the moment Maryse entered the room, and she immediately knew that the three had been plotting some way to “take care” of her. She looked from face to face, but no one met her gaze. It seemed that the floor was far more interesting.
“It’s a little early for a booster club meeting, isn’t it?” Maryse asked. “And don’t even bother making excuses. Sabine hasn’t been out of bed before eight o’clock since high school.”
Apparently, they hadn’t prepared for her to wake so early, and no one had a ready excuse for their treason. Mildred cast a guilty look at Sabine, and Sabine and Luc stared at the wall past Mildred’s shoulder. Maryse raised her eyebrows and stared at them one at a time, waiting for a response. “Cat got your tongues?” she finally asked.
“Now, Maryse,” Mildred said, obviously going to take a shot at the peacemaker role. “We’re just worried about you is all. This whole situation has gotten out of hand. And don’t tell me you can handle it yourself. It’s just too big for one person.”
Maryse turned her back to them and poured a cup of coffee, making note that the coffeepot was the old one that Mildred had claimed was broken. Not that it surprised her.
She stalled for another couple of seconds, not yet ready reply. The truth was Mildred was right. This situation was too big for her to handle alone. But the last thing she wanted to do was involve people she cared about in her mess—people she considered family. Which left only Luc, and Maryse was too scared to have the sexy zoologist that close too her. She didn’t need her attraction to him confusing things even more.
She stirred some sugar in her coffee and turned back to them with a sigh, easing herself into a chair next to Mildred’s desk. “Look, I appreciate what y’all are trying to do, really, I do. But don’t you see that I can’t risk anyone else being involved? I’ve already lost too much. I can’t afford to lose anything else. Surely you understand that.”
They all looked at her for a moment, but no one said a word. Finally, Sabine blurted out, “I’ve lost a lot, too. You’re the only family I have left, Maryse. Don’t ask me to leave you alone, or you’re going to piss me off.” Sabine stared defiantly at Maryse, and Maryse knew it was hopeless. This was one of those areas where she and Sabine were cut from the same cloth.
Hurt one, you hurt the other.
And Maryse was forced to admit that if the situation were reversed, it would take her own death to peel her off protecting her friend. She shook her head at the impossibility of the situation, not having a clue how to proceed. “Well, did you geniuses come up with any way to get me out of this?”
