Bayou Treasure

by Georgia Tribell

  Each time she found more of Black’s merchandise she felt both elated and jaded. With every new find, she was that much nearer to freeing her family and one step closer to losing her freedom.

  Marie shut her mind to those disturbing thoughts and concentrated on gathering the items and stowing them in the briefcase. Then she returned the drawer and its contents to their original state—minus Black’s goods.

  Marie was signing the appraisal form, her gift to the clients for the inconvenience, when Kit Mathews returned.

  “Finished already?”

  “Yes, and as I stated on the phone, I have the appraisal paperwork here. There’s no problem with your piece so I’m leaving the appraisal with you. I advise you to put it away in a safe place. If you ever file an insurance claim or sell the piece, it will help to have this.” Marie handed over the papers and walked to the window, giving Kit Mathews a few moments to read over the appraisal. As she stood waiting for the other woman to finish, she pulled back the curtain and looked out onto the street where her car was parked.

  “I wasn’t aware the desk was worth so much.” Marie could hear the sound of wonder in Kit’s voice.

  “Yes, it’s an exceptional piece. I knew when I purchased it how valuable it was. Mr. Perkins insisted on buying it from me, telling me he had a client who would love it.”

  “That would be me, but I think I’ll start checking your store out first from now on.”

  “I wouldn’t want to take Mr. Perkins’ customers away.” Howard was mad enough at her for dinner the other night, she didn’t need to add client nabbing to the list.

  “That’s admirable of you, but I feel I can trust you. After all, most dealers in your position would have never mentioned they’d found a reproduction in their stock. You, on the other hand, have gone out of your way to make sure no one received an imitation.”

  Great, even more guilt. “Thank you.” The words stuck in her throat. The woman thought Marie was being above board when in actuality, she was operating well below, more like in the area of an oceanic trench. Unable to look at Kit, Marie continued to peer out the window.

  “Is something wrong?”

  Marie started when Kit’s voice came from directly behind her. She dropped the curtain and moved away from the window to gather her items. “No.”

  Kit pulled the curtain aside and looked out. “The man across the street, is he bothering you?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “Then what exactly is he doing?”

  “Trailing me.” Marie’s voice was barely a whisper.

  “Should we call the police?” Kit’s voice was filled with concern.

  “No.” Panic filled Marie, causing the word to sound sharp. If the police came, then they would start asking questions and LD would start talking and before she knew it, they would be taking her away handcuffed. Fear clutched at her stomach. Who would protect Tammie and Timothy then? “I couldn’t do that to him. Truly he’s harmless. I’d just like to get away from here without him following me.”

  “What is he, an old boyfriend?”

  “Something like that.”

  Kit dropped the curtain back into place and turned to face her. “I like you, Ms. Bernard, so I’m going to let you call me Kit, and I’m going to help you.”

  Marie smiled. “Call me Marie and I’ll take you up on that offer.”

  * * * * *

  LD looked at his watch for the thousandth time in the last forty-five minutes. It felt like hours since Marie waved and sashayed into the club.

  There were valid reasons as to why he didn’t walk across the street, enter the club and demand to see her, but the more time that passed, the less valid those reasons became. Inhaling deeply, LD started down the mental list of why he shouldn’t follow his gut instinct. First, there was his career. If he told Alan Conrad he was here working on the Black case, he might as well turn in his badge. He could argue he was at the nightclub for fun, but Alan did not approve of his agents hanging out in places like that for entertainment.

  Then there was his father. Despite what he’d said to Howard last night and what he liked to admit to himself, he didn’t take joy in sullying the family name. The way his luck was running, the strip joint was probably filled with reporters. Wouldn’t that be peachy, with his father’s reelection campaign scheduled to start in a month?

  A group of men, approximately ten years younger than he, stopped outside the club’s door. It opened and a woman appeared wearing a corset, fishnet stockings, heels and a thin wrap. She leaned out and said something to the men causing raunchy laughter to fill the air before they followed her inside. Then LD’s imagination took over.

  Finding a table close to the stage, the rowdy group seated themselves. Over the noise of the crowd, a deep seductive beat could be heard. As the pulse builds the crowd grows quiet. The lights go out, pitching them into total darkness. The unmistakable sound of a saxophone, dark and sultry, joins the primal rhythm of the drums. Anticipation courses through the crowd as all eyes are pulled to the small circle of light at center stage. Then in a bright blinding flash, Marie appears where once there was only a pinpoint of light. The crowd erupts as the tassels on her costume start to spin.

  That’s it. She’s not staying in there one more second, LD thought, as he pushed off the car and crossed the street. The reasons that kept him out of the strip joint were suddenly insignificant. All that mattered was getting Marie out of there. Now. He would deal with the consequences later. The woman was insane and she was leading him down the same merry path.

  The dark cool interior engulfed him as he entered the establishment. Instinctively, he walked to the bar and took a stool, all the while scanning the room. When the bartender approached, he ordered a local beer and then went back to searching the crowd for Marie. The wall-size mirror behind the bar gave him a clear view of the room behind him.

  Table by table, client by client, he searched the room. Each group he dismissed intensified the underlying fear that she was in trouble. When she was safely back in his clutches, he’d decide what to do with her. At the moment, he oscillated between strangling her for being so careless with her safety, and holding onto her forever. Movement in the mirror caught his attention. Glancing up, he saw two large men approaching him from behind.

  He was instantly reminded of the police officers on horses. Although these two men were not quite as big as the horses, he was sure they were much more deadly. They oozed streetwise toughness that was only acquired by experience. A door opened at the other end of the bar and two women walked out. And then he knew, she’d done it again. Somehow the woman, who was quickly driving him mad, had out maneuvered him.

  Again.

  It was getting downright embarrassing. He watched as Marie slipped out the front door, then the woman escorting her turned and walked toward him. LD watched as she crossed the room and slid onto the barstool next to him. She ordered a beer and a ginger ale. The bartender replaced his unfinished beer with a fresh one and placed the soda in front of the woman.

  LD stood. “Thanks for the drink, but I was just leaving.”

  Large green eyes met his gaze and didn’t waver. “I don’t think so.”

  “Look lady, I’m with the FBI and…”

  “I know who you are, Agent Carmouche. I’m also aware of who you work for and who your father is.”

  So much for going undetected. “Then you’ll understand when I say this is official business.”

  “Yes. And you’ll understand when I ask to see your badge so I can call the local police and verify what you’re telling me.”

  The last thing he needed was for another person to call and verify his badge. He wasn’t ready to be summoned back to the home office. “There’s no reason to do that.”

  “When a woman tells me a man is following her and you’re that man, it becomes my reason.”

  “I don’t have time for this.” Every second he wasted here meant Marie was getting farther ahead of him. If he stayed any longe
r, he’d lose her all together. The two men behind him stepped closer.

  “You can either stay here for the next thirty minutes, Agent Carmouche, as my guest, or I’ll call the police now and let them handle this. That should take at least half an hour, if not longer.”

  “I’m not a threat to Ms. Bernard.”

  “Ms. Bernard assured me you were harmless. If I thought you were a threat, we wouldn’t be sharing this drink.” She cut her eyes toward the two men and LD got the message, she’d let them do her talking.

  LD figured there were three ways out of this situation. The most obvious solution was he could fight his way past the two bruisers, but that would not end pretty for any of them. There was the less physical option of talking with the NOPD like Kit offered, but he was in no hurry to have another in-depth conversation with them. That brought him to his last choice, sharing a drink with the owner. She was a woman who only days ago would have captivated his attention. Now, he thought she was overstated and wouldn’t hold a candle to Marie’s simple sophistication. Taking his seat once again, LD took a long swig from his beer and pondered those thoughts.

  * * * * *

  “Four o’clock this afternoon, I’ll be there.” Marie disconnected the cell phone. With shaking hands, she dropped it back into her purse. The sudden release of tension left her feeling drowsy. Leaning her head against the headrest, she closed her eyes and switched on the radio. Making that appointment was not nearly as tough as she thought it would be. This was the last house she needed to search, but the one she dreaded the most. After today, it was only a matter of returning Black his items and getting on with her life.

  Marie opened her eyes at the sound of an approaching car. She slid down in the seat, making herself less visible as the dark sports car passed. After leaving the club, she’d driven across town, in the opposite direction than she needed to travel and pulled into this hotel parking garage. She figured it was as good a place as any to hide.

  The car disappeared around the corner and her eyelids drifted close again. She needed a few minutes to relax. Her next destination would require every bit of nerve and acting skill she possessed. She only prayed LD didn’t find her before she finished.

  As her psyche cleared, random images flipped through her mind’s eye, turning like pages of a photo album. Concentrating, she focused on one vision containing LD, as the hit and miss flow of pictures stopped.

  He stood in a crowd wearing a tux. Marie smiled. He looked so handsome, so full of life. Then another person appeared in the scene. It was her. Marie held her breath, unwilling to lose the picture. Never before had she been visible in one of her visions. She watched in fascination as LD laughed at something her fuzzy image said before lifting her hand to gently kiss it. Then his face turned sad. He dropped her hand and started to walk away.

  Marie saw herself calling out for him to return, but he didn’t. She tried frantically to reach him, but she couldn’t. Something was dragging her away. Then suddenly, his body jerked once before he fell over.

  “No!” Marie’s shout filled the car as the shrill ringing of a telephone sounded. She retrieved both phones from her purse and answered one. “Hello.”

  “I really like the way you outfoxed LD today. I’m beginning to think you’re a natural at this type of work. I could use a partner, you know.”

  “Not interested. You were following me?” Marie’s voice was tight.

  “I like keeping an eye on those who work for me. Especially those new to the organization.”

  “I don’t work for you,” Marie hissed.

  “That’s a matter of viewpoint. Are you all right sitting over there all alone in your car? You do know parking garages are not a safe place for a woman alone.”

  Marie sat up straight and looked around the garage. She couldn’t see anyone, but with all the shadows, cars and pillars, there were a thousand places a person could hide. “You’re here?”

  “You might be able to lose LD, but not me. I need to thank you for providing me with such great entertainment. It’s fun watching LD fight his internal battles. Does he do what he’s sworn to do and uphold the law or does he do what his heart wants him to do? I do believe even Shakespeare would have enjoyed this tragedy.”

  She’d seen that look on LD’s face also, but it didn’t amuse her. Instead, it shamed her because she was the one causing the battles and yet she did nothing to stop it. “What do you want?”

  “I was curious as to how this morning went.”

  “It was successful.”

  “You’re ahead of schedule. Good, good. I knew you were a hard worker. Remember, the clock’s ticking.”

  Her hands shook so violently she dropped the phone twice before getting it into her purse. When this madness started, she’d believed she could do what was required. As long as her brother and sister were safe, it didn’t matter who else got hurt.

  It never crossed her mind the person who got hurt might be LD.

  Chapter Ten

  “The little woman has you running in circles already. Better get used to it.” Rob chuckled as he placed a small box on the table between them.

  Opening the package, LD surveyed the contents and then closed the lid. “Thanks for coming. Did you have any problems getting these?”

  “No, but if Alan finds out I authorized the use of those for you—well, we’ll both be looking for new employment.” Rob absently toyed with the label on his beer bottle, a nervous little habit that LD often witnessed.

  “Alan doesn’t know I’m here?”

  “Not yet, but I think you should call him, let him know what’s going on.”

  “No.”

  “Why?” Rob peeled a strip of label off the bottle then rolled it into a small paper ball. He was obviously nervous about something.

  “I screwed up in Boston.”

  “So?”

  “Alan informed me I was off the Black case. He feels I’m too emotionally involved.” LD could see the surprised look on Rob’s face.

  “You think he’d drag you back to the home office?”

  “In a heartbeat.”

  “Maybe he’s only trying to protect you.” Rob’s voice was low, barely audible over the bar’s crowd.

  Anger flooded through LD, causing his words to sound sharp. “Is that what everyone thinks? That I need protecting?”

  “No. No one thinks you need protecting. They don’t want to see you hurt again, not like you were after Laura.”

  Laura. Up until a few days ago, thoughts of her consumed his every waking moment and most sleeping ones. Not anymore, now his focus was solely on Marie. This time he wouldn’t make the same deadly mistake. No one was going to make him leave New Orleans before this case was settled and Marie was safe. No one.

  “Why haven’t you tipped off the local authorities? They should at least be told Black is in town.”

  Rob’s words snapped LD back to the here and now. Why hadn’t he called in the local authorities?

  “Never mind.” Rob continued. “I know why. You’re not calling because they would haul your lady in for questioning. Possibly book her for smuggling diamonds into the country.”

  LD flinched. Rob’s words hit too close to home. “There’s no proof she’s guilty of anything.”

  “You saw Black leave her store yesterday morning.”

  “I saw a man who closely resembles Black leave her store.”

  “Okay, so you don’t have a positive ID on the man. What about the diamonds you found? That’s enough to bring her in and hold her.”

  “No proof that she knows there was anything in the desk.” LD watched as Rob took a deep drink. Rob was buying time and planning another line of attack.

  “Okay, let’s think this through logically. If she’s not Black’s partner or in business for herself, then that only leaves one thing—Black’s using her.”

  “That’s the only conclusion that makes sense.” LD was relieved to hear his own thoughts stated by another.

  “But what
’s his leverage?”

  “Family.” The answer was so simple if you knew Marie the way he did. “Black is using her family against her.”

  “Blackmail is another possibility.”

  LD shook his head. “She wouldn’t help him if it was only that. Black has to be threatening her family.”

  “You sure sound confident about that, considering you’ve only known the woman a week.”

  A week? For LD it felt like a lifetime, but he heard the doubt in Rob’s voice. “Trust me on this, she’d do anything to protect her family.”

  “Okay, you know the lady better than I do. I hope you’re right about this, but I still think you should call Alan and get us some extra hands down here.”

  LD shook his head. “No one knows I’m working on this, got it? I’m not turning Marie’s protection over to anyone else.”

  “Not even me?”

  The silence between the two friends was tense when LD didn’t answer immediately. “Are you still willing to help?”

  “I’m going to regret this I’m sure, but yeah, I’m in.”

  LD relaxed for the first time since picking Rob up. His friend’s concern about the situation was obvious. For the first time in years, he hadn’t been confident Rob would support him. “Thanks. Do you still have those contacts in town?”

  “Some are dead, some in jail, but there are still a few out and about.”

  “Good. Find them. I want Marie’s brother and sister put under twenty-four-hour surveillance.”

  “It’ll cost you.”

  “That’s not a problem.” LD pushed a folder across the table. “Here’s the info I have on Marie, Timothy and Tammie. I would have put someone on it sooner but my going around town asking questions would have stirred up too much interest.”

  “Not a problem, I’ll get the surveillance started tonight. Who’s going to watch Marie?”

  “The two of us.”

  An hour later, LD strolled down the gravel path behind his parents’ house, past dormant flowerbeds toward the small cottage situated at the back of the property. This time of year, his mother’s backyard was a profusion of greens and browns, a place where a young boy could fight imaginary Indians. Come spring, this same path would look like Monet’s Garden at Giverny come to life and became a magical place where a small boy could dream about the future.