Chapter 14
The Alligators and the Ghosts
One morning, the guests were anxious to take a tour of the swamp. They claimed they wanted to see the wildlife but in reality they were eager to see if the swamp was really haunted like everyone in New Orleans said it was. There was something about New Orleans and ghosts that made tourists unafraid.
I could hear Mr. Dumpty threatening to ask for a full refund if he didn’t see at least three ghosts while he was at Darkwood.
“Look here; I didn’t come all the way from New York to leave empty handed. I promised the guys at work that I’d bring back pictures of ghosts. It would be preferable if they were standing by a grave or tomb of some sort.”
“Yes sir, I do see your point about not wanting to leave Darkwood empty handed. I’m certain you won’t be disappointed by the tour,” Lucus desperately tried to appease Mr. Dumpty. From where I was standing, I could see little beads of sweat forming on the back of his neck and starting to drip onto his white t-shirt. It was barely nine am, and the sun was already threatening to scorch us to death.
“Finally a man who understands the importance of souvenirs,” Mr. Dumpty sounded wholly satisfied as he slurped from his water bottle.
“I’m sure we can manage to find a ghost or two that would love to get their picture taken.” From his tone, I could tell Lucus was trying to be as solemn as possible for Mr. Dumpty’s sake.
“Seriously, the swamp is going to be buzzing with flies, mosquitoes and who knows what other creepy things,” Sabrina whined dramatically.
“As long as you’ve got repellent on you’ll survive,” Henri calmly replied.
We had the honor of lugging around bottles of water, bug repellent, and parasols in case any of the guests needed the supplies. Although Sabrina had put on a brave face in front of Lucus, as soon as he was out of ear shot, she couldn’t resist complaining. Of course, she was ignoring me and directing her complaints to Mrs. Gopal who politely nodded in agreement.
Lucus led the group with Henri. Henri apparently had an air boat license, so he was going to do the driving, while Lucus was going to fill the guests in on the wildlife that made their homes in the area. It sounded rather boring, but hey, the tourists were paying customers. It had been a little over a week since Lucus had barged into my bedroom insisting that he needed me, but I still didn’t know what he had meant. Secretly, I was dying for more details, but knew if I dared to step within ten feet of him, Sabrina would probably throw me into the swamp. Things were still cold between us. When we were in our room together, we were like an old married couple, who had run out of things to say to one another. The only interaction we had involved shooting evil glances at one another from across any room we were in together.
As we walked deeper into the swampland we were greeted by moss draped cypress trees and the calls of snowy egrets. The moist air made my hideous uniform cling to my skin which prompted me to curse at the genius who thought it had been a good idea for us to wear them.
“Cool! Look, what is that?” Ben shouted hysterically as he pointed to a turtle resting on a log.
“That there is a snapping turtle,” advised Henri.
“A snapping turtle, does that mean the alligators are close?” Ben reasoned.
“They certainly are. May I present to you Lady LaPlante.” Henri pointed to a large air boat that was parked on the swamp water.
“Are you sure that boat is safe?” questioned Mrs. Scott as she eyed it in suspicion.
“It’s completely safe,” Lucus assured her. “It was purchased only a few months ago specifically for the tour, so it is entirely up to code.”
“If you say so dear,” Mrs. Scott still didn’t sound convinced as she got on board. The rest of them followed her lead, except for Sabrina.
“I get motion sickness on the water,” Sabrina annoyingly whined as she crossed her arms in defiance.
“In that case, would you like to head back to the house by yourself, or wait here until the tour is over?” Henri gave Sabrina an ultimatum.
“Head back by myself? I’ll get lost, why can’t Lucus take me?” she pouted.
“I’m a bit busy here Sabrina,” Lucus advised her evenly. “Stay for the tour. It will be entertaining.”
“Fine,” Sabrina muttered bitterly as she swatted mosquitoes off of her arms and stomped on board. Since all the other seats were taken, she had no choice but to sit beside me.
“Great.” She rolled her eyes.
“Trust me, it’s no picnic for me either,” I hissed.
“Whatever,” she turned to the side facing away from me.
The boat started moving, and the cameras began snapping. As Lucus was describing the various species of birds and fish that lived in the swamp, my eyes started getting uncontrollably heavy. Biology wasn’t exactly my favorite subject, and I’d already been to enough swamps to know the basic animals that lived there.
“Wake up, Arelia, an offer has already been made. You may be too late,” a familiar voice beckoned as a breeze blew through my hair. My eyes snapped open, and I looked at the faces around me. Luckily, the guests were too busy snapping pictures of the wildlife, and Sabrina was too absorbed with filming Lucus.
“Bade?” I whispered. “What do you want?”
“I’m just trying to warn you that an offer has already been made.”
“On what? Is there a poker game I wasn’t invited to or something?”
“This is no time for games, Arelia, if you don’t act now you may be too late,” he urged.
“I can’t do anything if you don’t tell me what you’re talking about.” I didn’t mean to sound rude, but it was true. I really had no clue what he was referring to.
“Damballa has been called upon to protect the swamp and guard the grave,” he explained.
In voodoo, Damballa was known as one of the most powerful spirits and could be called upon for protection. He was sort of like a father to all of the other spirits. From what I knew about him, anyone who called upon him was pretty serious about whatever they wanted to protect. “Who called him and why?”
“I cannot tell you that. It is not my place. Keep your eyes open, Arelia. Keep your eyes open.” With those words, I felt him leave.
“I see it, I see it!” Ben was in a wild frenzy. “I see an alligator!”
“Good work son.” Mr. Dumpty’s camera flashed in rapid succession as he tried to capture the full length of the twelve foot alligator.
“Can we get closer?” Ben begged frantically.
“A tiny bit, too close and we’re in trouble,” Henri warned.
“Awesome!” Ben had been waiting to see an alligator forever. This was an epic moment for him.
As we got closer to the alligator, it ignored us and concentrated on a pile of what looked like white powder close to the shore.
“What is that?” I asked Henri. I got up and tried to take a closer look.
“No, it can’t be… But how?” Henri sounded confused.
“What’s going on?” I turned to Lucus for an answer.
“It’s an offering to Damballa,” Lucus explained. “Someone is trying to protect that part of the swamp,” he pointed at the area beyond a cluster of cypress trees.
“Why?”
Lucus turned to me, “I’m not certain.”
“That’s so cool, are they dead?” Ben pointed to the white powder and six white hens that were placed against it. From my study sessions with Ms. Mae, I knew that a typical offering to Damballa was a pile of flour with an egg on top. He was a spirit who liked all of his offerings to be in white. Animal sacrifices were only performed if the asker was really looking for extra help or special favors.
“Oh my!” Mrs. Gopal was disgusted.
We got closer and saw the hens stringed together with vine and wrapped around the large pile of flour like Christmas tree ornaments. Their mouths hung open, and blood still flowed from the slits in their stomachs. The offering must have been fresh be
cause the hens weren’t rotting and the flour hadn’t been swept away by the water. Whoever had made the sacrifice must have done so right before we got there.
“That’s nasty,” Sabrina commented on the scene in front of us.
“Animal cruelty,” Mrs. Scott angrily added. “Who could have done something so ghastly?”
“They’re only props,” Henri lied. “We thought it would be educational for you folks to see a traditional voodoo altar. The designer did manage to exaggerate the nature of the altar a bit.”
“So those are fake hens?” asked Mr. Dumpty.
“Yeah, can’t you tell?” I felt my stomach churn as I looked at the poor hens. However, it was pointless to frighten or disgust the guests any further, so I played along with Henri’s lie. “They look so waxy.”
The guests relaxed knowing that there wasn’t a psychopathic hen murderer running around. Things got back to normal, and the tour continued as we ventured further into the swamp. That was, until the boat stopped.
“What’s going on here?” Mr. Dumpty demanded.
“Just a minor hiccup,” Henri assured him. He unsuccessfully tried to start up the boat again.
I wasn’t so sure. Around me, I felt a storm starting to form. “You don’t belong here,” whispered a voice. The sky darkened, and lightning struck. Damballa wasn’t going to allow us to go any deeper into the swamp.
“We can’t stay here,” I said to Lucus under my breath. “It’s not safe. We have to get the guests out of here as soon as possible.”
Lucus shifted his eyes from the sky to me finally making the connection between the words coming out of my mouth and the events that were taking place around us. “You’re right Arelia, but Henri can’t start the boat. We need your help.” He sounded slightly defeated.
“I’ll try, but I can’t make any promises.” I was fully aware that he wanted me to use my powers to start the boat.
“It’s the ghosts!” Ben was having the time of his life rather than being terrified that two seconds ago it had been broad daylight and now we were cloaked in near darkness.
“I can’t believe it’s going to rain.” Sabrina was unhappy that her hair was about to get wet.
“I don’t understand. This boat is supposed to be good as new.” Henri was still struggling to get the air boat running.
“I see it, I see!” Mr. Dumpty wildly started snapping pictures of the clump of cypress trees on the horizon.
“I see it too!” Mrs. Dumpty chirped in as the rest of the guests stared at the shadow moving amongst the cypress trees and turned their attention away from the altar. The shadow they saw was most likely a bird rather than a ghost. The dark sky and lightning were obviously making them see things that were not there.
Sabrina leapt up from her seat and threw her arms around Lucus. “I’m scared,” she whimpered. Lucus shot me a nervous look. His eyes were pleading that I help them get out of there.
“Everything will be fine, Sabrina,” he reassured her and gently unwrapped her arms from around him. It was an action that Sabrina did not approve of, especially since she knew that I was watching.
“Whatever.” She slumped back down into her seat and took out her Chanel compact to check her hair.
Lucus moved towards me and leaned in so that the guests wouldn’t hear. My heart picked up its pace as his fingers made contact with my forearm.
“Can you help?” he asked.
“I’ll try to get the boat moving, so we can hopefully escape the storm. I can’t actually stop the storm if it’s been conjured through sacrifice,” I admitted. “I need you to distract the guests and make sure no one sees what I’m doing. I don’t want the guests to think I’m some crazy person muttering to myself.”
He grinned. It was the first time I had seen him beam in a while. “I’ll do my best to protect your sanity. Thank you, Arelia.”
“Don’t thank me yet.” I headed to the back of the boat praying that Bade would listen to me and get us out of this mess alive.
While Lucus and Henri distracted the guests, I attempted to call Bade. Of course, he showed up whenever he wanted, but would he actually come when I called him and would he be willing to help me?
“Bade,” I called out in caution. “Are you there?”
No answer.
“Look, I’m sorry that I was rude to you when I first got here, but we could really use your help right now. Would you be able to push the boat back to the shore?”
No answer.
“Please.”
“I can help you, Arelia,” he finally spoke. “What is the price you are willing to pay?”
“Price? I don’t have anything to offer, Bade.”
“Silly Arelia, you know there is always a price to pay, something must be offered.”
“Okay fine, what do you want?” I asked.
“Bring me the fat man.”
“What, are you serious? You want Mr. Dumpty?”
“Yes, I want the fat man. He is too greedy and selfish; he must sacrifice himself for the good of the group.”
“Bade.” I tried to remain as cool as possible. “You know that’s not fair. You know that would be black magic. Human sacrifice is only used to bring back the dead, not make boats move. Do you see the difference between what I’m asking from you and what you’re expecting?”
He laughed, and a bitter chill came over me. “So you’ve been studying I see.”
“Yes, I have. Please try to be reasonable.”
“Okay fine,” he paused. “I want the egg.”
“You mean the egg on top of the flour?” He had to be kidding.
He responded in a perfectly rational voice. “Yes, I want that egg.”
“But the shore is almost a mile away, and who knows what’s lurking in these waters.” Even though the swamp water only came up to my knees, I knew it was infested with alligators and snakes, not to mention sand pockets.
“If you’re not interested, you don’t have to do it,” he taunted, knowing that I had no other choice.
“That altar isn’t for you, it’s for Damballa.” I tried to reason with him.
“He’s already accepted the offering, and that is why your boat has stopped and the sky has turned dark. You don’t belong in the swamp. If you want the boat to move, go to the egg and crack it open in my name.”
“Why do you need that egg? Who cares about a stupid egg?”
“Arelia, do you work for free?”
“No.”
“Then why should I?”
“Fine,” I reluctantly gave in. “I’ll go and crack the egg open in your name, but as soon as I do, you promise you’ll deliver the boat safely to shore?”
“You have my word, but you better hurry, there’s not much time.”
He was right. I could feel raindrops starting to slide off my skin and knew it would only be a matter of minutes before there was a full-fledged thunderstorm. Whoever wanted us out of the swamp had to be awfully powerful. Lucky for me, the guests were still busy snapping pictures of the shadows in the cypress trees, so they didn’t notice as I slipped into the murky water.
The water had turned icy along with the wind. Goosebumps invaded my body, as I tried to ignore everything else around me except for the egg. I needed to crack open that egg and nothing was going to stop me.
“Arelia, are you insane?” Sabrina had followed me into the water.
“Go back,” I snarled without even turning around. What did she want? We hadn’t spoken in over a week, why should I listen to her now?
“Just because we’re not speaking right now doesn’t mean I want you dead,” she pleaded. “Some alligator is going to snap your arm off, and Grand-mere Bea is going to blame it on me.”
“Listen to me ,Sabrina; I have to get that stupid egg.”
“No, you don’t.” Her voice took on a peculiar tone, as she clutched my wrists. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“What’s your problem?” At this point, I was frantic. I turned to
face her.
“You see, Arelia, you need to be cracked open, not the egg.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” My annoyance was quickly turning into confusion.
“You’ll see.” Her wicked laugh filled the air. “Guys, I got her!”
“Good job, Sabrina!” Lucus was pleased.
“What the hell is going on?” I shouted to Lucus.
“You need to be cracked open, Arelia,” he responded. “Doesn’t she?”
He turned to the guests.
“She sure does.” They replied in perfect harmony. One by one they got off of the boat and made their way through the dark water. Before I knew it, they had me surrounded. I tried to run, but my feet were glued to the ground. I stood there frozen, unaware of my fate.
“Get her!” Mr. Dumpty commanded as the guests moved closer. I could smell their determination.
Mrs. Scott’s normally kind eyes had a look of vengeance in them. “I’m sorry dear, but I have grand kids. I can’t stay stuck in this swamp on your account.”
“Mrs. Scott, please. I’ll do whatever you want, just let me go.”
“Hush dear, you’re going to be sacrificed, and that’s the end of the story. Didn’t your mother ever teach you to respect the elderly?”
“You crazy old bitch!” I spat back. “Get away from me!” I screamed. “Sabrina, help me!”
“I can’t Arelia. It’s too late, isn’t it?” She turned to Lucus.
“Yes it is, my love.” He pulled her closer and gave her a long kiss. What? No. This couldn’t be right.
“Bring her to the altar!” Lucus commanded.
My eyes jerked open. A dream. It had all been a stupid dream. My body was shaking, as beads of sweat poured down my forehead. It had felt so real. Pale moonlight illuminated Sabrina’s face, as she slept and snored away without a care in the world. I decided that I needed fresh air, so I got out of bed and made my way downstairs. Ms. Mae had taught me that all dreams had a meaning. All I got from my dream was that the guests were insane, Lucus and Sabrina must be hooking up, and I had no idea what I had gotten myself into. Maybe Ivan had been right, and I wasn’t strong enough to be a voodoo queen. Something told me that he knew a lot more than he was letting on, but what?
I was still shaking uncontrollably as I got to the bottom of the stairs. The house was silent except for someone playing the piano in the ballroom. Figuring it must be a guest, I decided to see who it was. The music was beautiful but at the same time undeniably haunting and melancholy. To my surprise, the mystery pianist was Ivan. He was so immersed in the music that he didn’t even notice me enter the ballroom. Moonlight glistened off his hair and even at a distance I could tell that his brow was crumpled in concentration.
After a few minutes, he sensed that someone was watching him and stopped. “What are you doing up?” he asked.
“Couldn’t sleep,” I said quietly, not wanting to get into another argument with him. It seemed that whenever Ivan and I were placed in the same room, we always wound up quarrelling. I had been careful to avoid him after the incident in the garden. It wasn’t exactly professional or anything to be constantly at battle with your coworker.
“So what are you doing here?” He got up from behind the piano and walked across the room.
“I just heard the music and wanted to know who was playing. It’s not a big deal or anything,” I shrugged. I turned my back on him and headed to the kitchen.
“You had a nightmare, didn’t you?” he asked coming up behind me.
I wanted to tell him that it was none of his business, but I was supposed to be playing nice. “Yeah, maybe.”
It was distinct, but I heard a soft gasp escape from Ivan’s lips. “So what was it about?”
“Nothing you’d be interested in.” I wanted him to stop hounding me with questions, but at the same time I was so freaked out by the scene that I had dreamt, I really wanted to talk about it.
“Try me.” His tone was more menacing than it was curious.
I grabbed a glass and filled it up with water. “Fine, it was about the swamp. The dream was about the swamp. I think that maybe there is something out there.”
Ivan’s face grew tense as he crossed his arms and shifted his weight from one foot to the other.
“Yeah, well then you better stay away from there. What else happened?” He pressed on intently.
“What do you care?”
“You know, I bought one of those “interpret your dream” books from Amazon.com, and I’m wondering how much I’ve learned and all. Thought it would be a good opportunity to test out my skills. So what else happened?” He repeated his initial question.
“I don’t remember,” I covered the truth.
“Sure you do.” He came closer. His grey eyes were probing me for answers. They made me tremendously uncomfortable.
“Look, I said I don’t remember.” I regretted saying anything at all.
It became clear to Ivan that no matter how hard he insisted that I remember, I wasn’t going to tell him anything.
“Fine, I believe you.” He finally stepped back.
“Goodnight, Ivan.” I rushed out of the kitchen and back into my room before he could follow me and ask me any more questions. Somehow, I knew that he was connected to the dream I had, but that was just a hunch. I couldn’t prove it. He wasn’t even in the dream or anything, so I couldn’t run around making any accusations. The only person who could help me understand was Ms. Mae, and it was too late to go barging in on her at this hour. It would have to wait until tomorrow.