"Great," Danielle muttered. "That'll help my little freak out."
She read the book anyway, against her better judgment. Luckily, she found herself exhausted and was soon fast asleep.
***
Danielle woke with a start to the sound of a baby crying.
She lurched up on top of her sleeping bag, looking around frantically. In her disoriented state, she at first couldn't tell where the sound came from and her anxiety level exploded. The candle had gone out and the kitchen was washed in an eerie pale glow from the moonlight streaming in the open windows.
Danielle jumped up and began stumbling around the downstairs trying to determine where the noise came from. Trying to still her racing heart. Trying to fight back the automatic response of tears at hearing a crying infant.
Finally, the sound led her out the back door. It was coming from the trees in the backyard. Danielle was frantic as she stumbled through the dark yard toward the sound of the distressed child.
SLAM
With a start, Danielle whirled around toward the back porch.
SLAM
The back door had flown shut with a violent crash. One by one, the windows in the back of the house began crashing shut. The sound of the baby crying ceased, and Danielle stood trembling in the back yard.
***
Eventually, Danielle found an old discarded tool on the back porch and pried open the back door. She was furious after it took a half hour to break into the house, having no idea why the doors and windows had slammed shut or why they wouldn't open. She also half convinced herself she'd imagined the baby crying all together and decided she might be losing her shit.
Once she was inside again, she cautiously made her way through the house in the dark, re opening the windows. Then she settled back onto her sleeping bag. Just as she was drifting off to sleep once more, the sound of a crying baby drifted out over the night.
She pulled her pillow over her head and tried to ignore it, fighting back the tears.
***
The sound of the old house roaring back to life when the electric powered back on woke Danielle again just after sunrise. She sat up and blearily rubbed her eyes. Madonna was blasting out of her stereo, but her sleep-deprived mood sharply contrasted the bubbly music. She rose, showered and dressed grumbling the whole time.
After she grabbed a quick breakfast, she stomped out the back door, determined to find the source of the noise from the night before with the light of day to assist her. There were several outbuildings she hadn't been in yet. She explored two sheds, an old outhouse, a carriage house, and a decrepit cabin she assumed to be old slave quarters. They were all basically falling down, and littered with forgotten, abandoned items. She saw no indication that anyone had been in any of them recently.
There was also a large area of the yard where only traces of a foundation remained. It looked like what had once been some sort of large building had long ago burnt and the remains became covered by tall grass and wild flowers.
She continued to the back of the yard until she encountered the dense line of trees. She hesitated, peering into the cool darkness behind the trees. A sudden gust of wind reached out from amidst the trees and she shivered. She considered returning to the house, but something compelled her to step into the forest.
Danielle slowly made her way through the foliage, wary of poisonous plants and eyes peeled for snakes. Her head spun and she quickly became disoriented. Just as she began to realize she might be dangerously lost in the trees, another small clearing opened before her and in it was placed a tiny dilapidated cottage. Though the cottage's windows were broken out, and the door was ajar, Danielle had the strange sense that somebody was in there. She crept quietly through the clearing to the cottage door.
"Hello?" Danielle said barely above a whisper. She pushed the door gently, and a fetid smell wafted out, rolling her stomach. "Oh, God," she moaned, clamping her hand over her nose and mouth. She knew she had to investigate further and a streak of protectiveness over her property lessened her fear and propelled her into the cottage.
Inside the cottage was like another world, and one she'd never seen before. Candles burnt everywhere, lining the baseboards, on shelves, on tables about the small room, in windowsills. There were bottles everywhere, containing what appeared to be liquids of varying colors, powders and herbs. A small stove was on in a corner, and a pot on the stove boiled. As Danielle peered around open mouthed, the source of the smell became apparent. Animal heads and other parts dangled from the ceiling, some of them still dripping with blood. A sheen of cold sweat formed on Danielle's forehead and she doubled over, fighting her own urge to vomit.
"WHATCHU DOIN' HEAH?" came a deeply accented female voice.
Danielle spun around to face the person who'd just stormed in the door.
A tall beautiful woman stood fuming in the doorway. Her midnight colored skin glistened with the summer heat. Heavy braids were piled atop her head under a silken shawl that was artfully tied around her hair. Her sweptback hairdo revealed an impossibly long neck above a perfectly proportioned body. She was barefoot and the folds of her purple dress nearly swept the floor. She wore odd jewelry, had strange tattoos on her face and her black eyes glinted dangerously. Danielle was momentarily mesmerized by the beautiful witchy woman and felt embarrassed to have intruded. But then she snapped out of it, realizing in fact this was HER property and this woman shouldn't be here.
"What do you mean what am I doing here?" Danielle demanded harshly, raising her defenses. "What are YOU doing here?"
The woman's eyes narrowed to slits. "You run on out of here, you hear? You don't belong here; you don't got no business here. This be MY house, you just get OUT!" The woman's deep Creole accent was alluring, even though she advanced menacingly as she shrieked at Danielle. Danielle forced herself to snap out of it.
"Listen, you need to settle down," Danielle stated. "This is NOT your house, and you are here illegally. Furthermore, I need to know where the baby is. I heard a baby out here crying last night. You can't have a baby here," Danielle griped, motioning around at the room in disgust.
The strange woman thundered across the room, sweeping past Danielle, and grabbed a bottle of some sort of white powder. The woman began shrieking as she flung the powder toward Danielle:
"Tous les actes de la négativité
triple reviendra maintenant au thee.
Toutes les mauvaises celui que vous essayez d'envoyer ma façon
sur votre propre personne battante tiendra.
Toutes les actions, les pensées et les paroles de haine
devenir votre destin décidé propre.
Par tout le haut élevé un, mondes et sage
par les océans avec jour et des cieux bleus profonds
jour et nuit, et les pouvoirs trois
c'est ma volonté, ainsi grain qu'il est!"
Danielle stumbled backward, tripping over her own feet to get away from the banshee woman and out of the evil cottage. As soon as she was out the door, the spell over Danielle seemed to lift, and she turned and ran from the Voodoo woman. Danielle crashed back through the trees somehow instinctively finding her way back to the plantation house. Once inside her kitchen with the door tightly shut behind her, she peeked out the window to see if she'd been followed and saw only a peaceful, empty yard.
***
"Alright Jackson, just see what you can find out, thank you," said Danielle, ending her call to Jackson Anders. He'd been excited to hear from her and check how all was fairing in the land of the Deep South. She didn't mention the Voodoo woman and her odd French shrieking. Danielle knew bits and pieces of the French language but not enough to know what the woman had been saying. She feared Jackson might think her crazy if she told him she was afraid she'd just been cursed. Instead she asked him to find out any and all information about the plantation, why her parents owned it, and why they'd never told her about it.
As soon as she put her cell phone down, she heard a pounding on t
he front door that nearly sent her jumping out of her skin. She rushed to the door and threw it open, expecting to see the woman from the woods again.
However the person standing there was the furthest thing from a Voodoo queen. He was every bit of six feet five inches of solid, golden tanned, smooth skinned, and rippling muscled perfection. A mess of wavy brown hair framed a chiseled face. Everything about him said calm, cool, and collected except his wild, sparkling, dark eyes. He wore cowboy boots, a tattered pair of brown work pants, and nothing else. Her mouth dropped open at the sight of him, and his full lips spread like a slow fire across his face.
"Mornin' Ms. Mantagne," said the most beautiful creature she'd ever laid eyes on.
The only response she could manage was some eye blinking, and a rather embarrassing mutter-moan that made no actual sense. The man snickered. Finally Danielle took a deep breath and pulled her sorry self together. "I, uh… Good morning. And… Who are you? How do you know my name?"
"May I come in?" the man said, answering her question with a question.
She eyed him skeptically. On one hand, she felt compelled to start shedding clothing on the spot. On the other hand, given the run in she'd just had in the woods, she couldn't rule out the possibility that this gorgeous creature might be an ax murderer. "After you tell me who you are... And how you know my name," she repeated firmly.
With twinkling eyes the man responded cordially. "My name is Auréle Toussaint Plourde. I was aware that you were coming and I'd recognize a Mantagne anywhere. I'm the groundskeeper here. Been here for years, employed by your wonderful folks. Now that they're passed, I'd appreciate you kindly to let me know where I stand."
I'd appreciate you kindly too, Danielle thought, anytime, sugar.
She cleared her throat, embarrassed as though he may somehow have access to her ornery thoughts. Something about the way he penetrated her with his eyes and very slight smile made her feel he in fact did know what she was thinking and she shivered involuntarily. She took a look around what she could see of the front yard, which looked like a jungle save the driveway area she'd had cleared the day before. She pondered him for a moment, thinking he must be the world's worst grounds keeper. But, she forgave him on the spot, stepped aside and allowed him to come in.
"Alright then, Auréle, I've certainly got jobs for you, but not to be rude, you're gonna really have to bump it up a notch, alright?"
Auréle omitted a rumble of musical laughter and she shivered again.
"Follow me upstairs, I've got some stuff we can start on right away. While we're walking, tell me the story about the psychopath out in the woods."
***
Auréle masterfully made Danielle feel comfortable. For the first time since her accident, she forgot her scarred face. Auréle had an almost illicit way of gazing at her that made her wanton. She avoided his eyes in a desperate attempt to be professional and productive. Plus, the incident in the woods was a real problem and she no longer knew if she was even safe alone here.
"Her name's Toinette Chaput," Auréle explained. "She's lived out there all her life. She's part of the culture around here. Don't worry, she's harmless."
Danielle arched her eyebrows, regarding him incredulously. "Oh really? I'm pretty sure she just put a curse on me, Auréle!"
Auréle leaned close to her. He smelled like Honeysuckle and summer sunshine. She felt dizzy. "That Voodoo stuff… It can only hurt you if you let it, Ms. Mantagne."
She was transfixed looking into his eyes. "Call me Danielle," she whispered. He smiled again. Her body jolted with electricity and she internally screamed at herself to cut this out.
"Listen, if you know her, how 'bout you tell her she has to leave? That way I don't have to really fire her up and bring the cops out here. I'm just, I'm not comfortable with that stuff going on out there. And does she have a baby? I heard a baby crying last night! TOTALLY freaked me out!"
For one brief millisecond, Auréle's smile fell. If she wasn't completely obsessed with him on sight, she may not have even noticed it. But he recovered and answered in his sweet Southern drawl. "No, no baby out there. You must've been dreamin' ma'am."
She rolled her eyes. "No, not dreaming. There was a baby out there."
"And about makin' her leave. Well now, I have to say I don't really recommend that. For one thing, if you don't bother her, then most likely she won't bother you. And I don't reckon the law's gonna make her leave now. Squatter's rights."
"I'm sorry, what? She most likely won't bother me? And squatter's rights? You're kidding, right?"
"Listen, Danielle. I don't know about what you heard last night, and honestly, I haven't talked to Toinette in years. If you're really worried or frightened, I'd be happy to stay out in the slave quarters tonight if you like, see what goes on."
"Oh you can stay here in the house," Danielle said enthusiastically. She instantly blushed. Never in her life had she been so obvious. Though, she didn't have much in the way of basis for comparison. In her own defense, she had been genuinely terrified last night and again today and was grateful that he offered to stay.
Together, Auréle and Danielle made a good team. They worked tirelessly alongside each other cleaning and preparing the house to live once more. When she turned on her stereo to a local country music station, she was surprised when he didn't know any of the songs. "Not really my cup of tea," he explained mysteriously.
"Oh? Well what do you like? You can change the station."
Auréle glanced at the stereo with an odd expression. "I don't think that contraption would play what I'm accustomed to."
Auréle entertained her with stories and local legends throughout the day. He asked her questions about herself and seemed fascinated by her, which was titillating. Any questions she asked of him however were answered noncommittally or with an obvious subject change, so she didn't pry. He told her the plantation had been in the Mantagne family for generations. But her great, great grandmother, a woman her parents had never spoken of to her, had been tragically killed there. That was when the plantation had been abandoned and forgotten by the Mantagne family and they ran as far away as they could.
"Wow! I can't believe this. So that's why they never told me about my great, great grandmother? Her tragic death? What happened?"
Auréle's eyes suddenly clouded over with haunted shadows. His voice became hushed. "Best not talk about that now, Danielle," he whispered. Disturbed by his sudden change in demeanor, she decided to leave it alone.
They worked on all day and into the night, and she felt she'd known Auréle every day of her life. She was also in a delicate state by midnight, barely able to tolerate his closeness anymore and still behave like a woman with decency or sanity. So, she informed him that since they'd gotten bedrooms cleaned and ready, he was welcome to one down the hall from her. She told him to make himself at home; she was going to take a bath and then hit the hay.
Alone at last, Danielle was excited to have a bath in the giant upstairs bathroom with a gothic claw foot tub, no light other than a dozen lit candles, and open windows and doors onto the balcony outside. Though she was in the middle of nowhere, something about the breeze on her skin from open windows as she soaked in the bubbles and the full exposure to the night was alluring. She released her hair from its twist on top of her head and let it fall into the water. She sank completely into the bubbles, soaking her aching muscles in the rose scented water. She stayed under until her lungs burned and then popped out of the water.
And there stood Toinette, at the foot of the tub glaring angrily at her.
Danielle screamed.
***
"Danielle! Danielle! Shhhh, you're ok, you're fine, I've got you!" cooed Auréle. Danielle had scrambled out of the tub and scurried across the tiled floor, screaming like a woman unhinged. When she glanced over her shoulder, the room was empty but she was hysterical. Auréle had come running. He grabbed her towel and attempted to cover her as he dropped down next to her, taking hold of her, trying to
bring her back to reality.
Finally her screams diminished to a childlike mewling. "Oh my God, oh my God," she cried. "She was in here. And then she just… Wasn't. I swear, Auréle!" Danielle choked on bitter sobs.
"I believe you, Danielle. I believe you. You're safe now, OK, we'll talk about it later, OK once you've calmed down. I won't leave you, don't be afraid," he said earnestly.
She became aware of her exposed flesh. With tear sparkled eyes she stared up at him and took the towel to better cover herself. He stared back into her eyes, with heat in his gaze. A moment that seemed like an eternity passed between them and then he delicately traced her scarred cheek. "What happened?" he asked quietly with a childlike frankness that touched her.
"I was in an accident," she answered, another tear slipping down her cheek.
"Please, don't cry," he pleaded. Then he bent and gently placed his lips on her cheek, stopping the track of her tear.
With a deep sigh, Danielle reached her arms around his neck and pulled him against her. Her towel fell away as he gently prodded her mouth with firm lips. His kiss sent a violent shock through her and she trembled as it grew deeper, deliciously invasive as he explored her mouth with his tongue. A miniscule moan escaped her. "Are you cold? You're trembling," he said, breaking away. She shook her head vehemently, instantly despairing that the kiss had ended. He cupped the back of her head and pulled her mouth once more to his.
His body barely touched her, but she was acutely aware of the muscles of his shoulders beneath her arms and the icy cold feel of the tiled floor beneath her wet body. The extent to which she was shaking then was embarrassing, but she'd already lost control of her own body in her intense need for him. Never had she felt this heat before, she couldn't comprehend what was happening. She arched her back and her taunt nipples grazed his bare chest but he ever so slightly pulled away, teasing her. She could feel his smile even as he kissed her, feel him physically urging her to lose herself. It wasn't until she felt near tears again that he leapt off the floor, effortlessly lifting her into his arms as he rose. He practically flew out of the bathroom, carrying her to the room he had chosen.
Sinsperationally Yours Page 22
