As Ms. Mae closed the door behind her, I wanted to beg her to stay and demand that she answer my questions. Sadly that would only cause more drama, which I didn’t need right now. What I did need was a long, hot soak in what I imagined would be a very luxurious bathtub. At home, Grand-mere Bea and I only had a cramped shower that was barely big enough to stretch your arms out in. However, I knew the power of a hot bath from the times I slept over at Sabrina’s house. When your long-lost aunt reveals that the voodoo spirit of love has blessed you with powers and it’s confirmed that you are some kind of voodoo queen, all you really feel like doing is taking a hot bath.
“I really need to get a beauty nap in before we have to get ready.” Sabrina yawned as she put on her silk sleep mask and crawled into the cream-colored duvet.
“I’m going to go take a bath,” I announced loudly to an already snoring Sabrina.
As I made my way down the hall, I passed a row of white doors that all looked strikingly similar. Finally, I got to the end of the hall and took a right, where I saw a door with a bathroom sign on it. Walking into the bathroom was like walking into an entirely different world. The deep bathtub was set in marble and framed by wine-red silk drapes. Thick square candles were set out on the ledges of the tub, and a crystal chandelier hung directly above. Silk-covered chairs were placed in front of the ornately designed square mirror and a wide array of bath soaps sat on top of the marble counter. To my right there was a shelf that held a stack of large cotton towels.
Since I was alone, I decided to call Grand-mere Bea and ask her what the hell was going on. The phone rang a few times before she picked up.
“Hello.”
“Hey Grand-mere it’s me, we made it to Darkwood.”
“What a relief, Arelia. Did you get a chance to grab some lunch?” She was making small talk, but the quiver in her voice was a dead giveaway that she knew what was coming.
“So I met Ms. Mae.” There was no point in beating around the bush. I needed some solid answers.
“Did you, now. How is she?”
“How is she? I have a long-lost great-aunt that works at Darkwood, I found out that you used to work here too, and I’m supposedly blessed by Erzulie. I’m kind of confused, that’s how I am.”
“Calm down, Arelia,” Grand-mere ordered firmly.
“How am I supposed to calm down when I have no idea what’s going on!”
“Please, let me explain,” she pleaded feebly.
“I’m listening.”
“You know that all I’ve ever wanted to do is protect you. I didn’t physically give birth to you, but I’m certain that no one can ever love you more than I do.”
“I know that you love me,” I felt myself relaxing somewhat. “I love you too, but what’s with all the secrets?”
“I didn’t approve of what Mae did. She shouldn’t have made an offering to Erzulie on your behalf. She knew that Erzulie would bless you.”
“How could she have known that?” Grand-mere sounded a bit paranoid.
“The LaRue women are powerful voodoo queens. Mae has always embraced it. I respect it, but I know that there always must be boundaries. The spirits are not to be messed with, and neither is any type of dark magic. I left Darkwood when your momma was born; I wanted her to live a normal life. I’ve raised you to respect the spirits, but to always keep a safe distance.”
“Look, I know what Ms. Mae did was wrong, but it was also wrong of you not to tell me.”
“You’ve always known. How could you have not?”
She had a point. “I don’t know. I always thought that I was crazy, not blessed. I never wanted any of this either, but there isn’t much either of can do now is there?”
“Yes. You can come home, Arelia, and put an end to all of this right now,” she pleaded.
“I can’t. I’m here already, and the pay is too good. We need the money really badly. Besides, I’ll do what I’ve done all my life- ignore them.”
“You don’t understand, Arelia.” She sounded helplessly defeated.
“Then explain it to me,” I demanded.
“I know at Darkwood you will embrace your powers, and once you do you’ll always have certain responsibilities.”
“With all due respect, Grand-mere Bea, I’m sixteen, you don’t have to protect me anymore. I’ll be fine.”
“Promise, Arelia, that at the first sign of danger, you’ll come home.”
“From the looks of it, the only danger here is the LaPlantes having too much money, I’ll be fine.”
“Things aren’t always what they seem, and once your heart gets involved, there ain’t no way you can turn back.” She was giving me one of her ominous speeches again.
“I promise I’ll be careful, just don’t keep things from me anymore. Is there anything else you’ve been hiding from me?”
“No more secrets,” Grand-mere Bea softly responded.
I knew she was lying. I detected that she was hiding something more from me, but arguing about it over the phone wasn’t going to force her to spit it out if she didn’t really want to. I would find out the truth for myself. Right now, all I needed to do was convince grand-mere that I was safe. She was the only family that I had, and I couldn’t afford to alienate her.
After we said our good-byes, I toyed with the bathtub taps until I found the perfect water temperature. As the tub was filling up, I threw in some strawberry bubble bath and proceeded to rip off my sweat-drenched tank top. I peeled off my jeans, which in retrospect, were an awful idea to wear considering the summer heat. I shook my hair free from the too-tight ponytail and sank into the soothing bubbles. The warm water embraced my skin and the bubbles were a welcome change from the cheap soap I was accustomed to. I felt my eyes closing and my body getting heavy.
“Feels lovely, doesn’t it?” whispered a delicate voice.
I looked frantically around the bathroom. “Who’s there?” I knew it had to be a spirit. I felt it.
“We met a long time ago, but you don’t seem to remember me, do you?” The voice sounded slightly insulted. “Let me refresh your memory.”
“Erzulie!” I gasped as a voluptuous caramel-skinned woman appeared before me. Her long dark hair was wrapped around a flowered headdress, and her pink gown was adorned with fine jewels. Around her neck there hung strands of colorful beads varying in length, and both her arms were covered in thick, gold bracelets. I know that I should have been scared, but I was rather fascinated. It’s not every day that the voodoo spirit of love interrupts your bath, so I was willing to listen to what she had to say.
“So you do remember me?” Her hazel eyes filled with childish delight.
“Well yeah, Grand-mere Bea has pictures of you at home.” I slid deeper into the bubbles. Despite the fact that she was a spirit and had probably already seen me naked on several occasions, I was still utterly self-conscious.
“Such a pretty girl, and yet always hiding,” she reached out to touch my cheek. “You’re always hiding from yourself and others. You haven’t been using the gifts I blessed you with, have you?” Her soft voice questioned with authority.
“I’m too afraid,” I admitted. “I’m afraid of a lot of things.” I never opened up to people I just met, especially when I was naked, but spirits technically didn’t count as people, did they?
“I know you are.” Erzulie’s voice took on a sympathetic tone, “but you are needed here. You are the only one who can help. You are the only one who is strong enough. There must always be balance in nature, but it seems that sadness has reigned here for far too longer. I blessed you because you are so strong yet so fragile; you have the balance needed to be a great voodoo queen. But you need to start using what I have given you. Don’t worry, it will come naturally. The spirits will guide you. I will always guide you. Whenever you are in trouble, call upon me, and I will always be willing to help. Remember, you always have my blessing. Every part of you is blessed.”
I unexpectedly opened my eyes. Had I been asleep? What did Erzu
lie expect me to do with her advice? I wasn’t sure who I was supposed to help when I was struggling just to keep my own head above water.
How long had I been out? The clock on the wall told me that I had been in the bathroom for over an hour. I needed to start getting ready for the ball because being late on my first day wasn’t an option. I leapt out of the deep bathtub, grabbed a towel and wrapped it tightly around me. After gathering my jeans and tank top, I opened the door and looked both ways. Thankfully, the coast was clear. I sprinted down the hall and rushed into my room. “Sabrina, why didn’t you come get me!” I demanded as I slammed the door behind me.
“Maybe because I’m not Sabrina,” a shirtless guy who appeared to be around my age politely informed me. His intense, dark eyes looked at me in amusement, as I glanced over his slender yet muscular build. It looked as if Sabrina had found her summer toy.
“Okay, so where’s Sabrina?” I confusedly questioned. “And why are you in our room?”
“Your room?” His full lips broke out in a seductive smile as he ran his fingers through his shiny, dark hair. “The last time I checked this was my room,” he coolly advised me.
I scanned the area and realized that it was completely different from my room. For one thing, it was much more elaborate and was filled with books and antiques. I felt myself blushing as it became painfully obvious that I was standing in a stranger’s room in a towel, accusing him of invading my bedroom. “I’m sorry,” I stuttered as I backed up towards the door.
“It’s okay.” He swiftly came up behind me and opened the door. “I wish you luck in finding Sabrina.” His eyes danced, obviously taking delight in my discomfort.
“Yeah, okay,” I muttered. By the time I found my room; my face was burning from embarrassment.
“Looks like someone spent too much time in a steamy tub,” Sabrina joked when she saw me. “You look like a lobster. What happened?”
I looked at myself in the mirror and ran my hands over my fiery face. “Nothing, I kept getting the hot and cold taps on the tub mixed up. My bath ended up being too hot,” I lied. I didn’t want to tell her what had really happened because that would prompt her to go in search of the shirtless guy, and we really had to start getting ready.
“You have to check out these costumes!” Sabina exclaimed as she dramatically swirled around the room with a nineteenth century ball gown. Yes, she really did swirl like Mary Poppins would have, or Eliza Doolittle from that play Grand-mere loved so much.
I had to admit the costumes were gorgeous. There had to be at least twenty gowns in total. Although each one varied in color, they were all intricately decorated, cut off the shoulder, and had plunging necklines.
“I’ve always wanted to wear a corset,” Sabrina dreamily gushed. “My future husband doesn’t have a chance tonight.”
I rolled my eyes yet again. I didn’t want to interrupt her fairytale, but we had a job to do. “You remember that we are working at this thing, don’t you?” I reminded her.
“Oh, don’t be so silly, Arelia, of course I remember. So which one are you going to wear- and what are you going to do with that hair?” She pointed to my wet hair which was already settling into a pattern of frizzy waves.
I examined the dresses and finally settled on a red and black silk one that was trimmed in lace and embroidered with pearls.
“That’s cute,” Sabrina decided has she eyed the dress I had chosen. “What do you think about this one?” She held up a puffy pink dress that looked like it weighed more than she did.
“It is so you.” I had to agree that the dress did have her name written all over it.
“Thought so,” Sabrina looked pleased. She held it against her body and starting swirling again. “You’re going to let me do your hair and makeup, right?” she asked.
“Sure, go for it.” I might as well let her do the hard work.
After a lot of fussing and complications, we finally managed to help each other lace up our corsets and get into our dresses. How women had managed to do this every day was beyond me. I never thought I would ever wear something called a petticoat. I felt ridiculous and a bit self-conscious as we stood in front of the mirror. The corset had slimmed my waist down even further and gave the illusion that I actually had some sort of chest.
“I look so hot.” Sabrina boosted up her large boobs even further. “I wish I was as skinny as you though,” she added as she eyed my waist enviously. Sabrina was always on some sort of diet that she could never stick to. She was by no means large, but she wasn’t the mythical size zero she strived to be either. I was probably skinny because there was never enough food around the house.
“Sit,” Sabrina commanded aggressively. She whipped open her Louis Vuitton makeup case and started working her magic. What felt like an eternity later, my hair and makeup were complete. “Look.” She directed me to the mirror.
As I peered into the mirror, even I had to reluctantly admit that I looked pretty. Sabrina had worked my olive skin to its fullest advantage so that it looked radiant. All its imperfections were masked with concealer and foundation. She had highlighted my cheekbones in a soft peach blush and played up my large eyes with layers of mascara and strategically placed eyeliner. My lipstick matched the color of my ball gown and my wild waves had been tamed and styled into an elaborate updo. The only complaint I had was the hideously razor-sharp butterfly hairpin Sabrina had thrust into my hair.
“I know. I know. I’m good.” Sabrina took delight in her magical makeup skills as she watched my reaction.
“You’re more than good. I don’t think I’ve ever looked better. Thank you so much.” I gave her a tight hug.
“No problem, I’ll be ready in a few minutes,” she lied. I knew that few minutes translated into a few hours and we would be late.
“I’m going to head down and meet with Ms. Mae and Henri, so I can figure out what we are supposed to be doing.” I silently prayed that she wouldn’t make me wait until she was done getting ready.
“Good idea, I’ll meet you down there,” Sabrina happily agreed as she coated herself with foundation.
“Please, don’t take forever, it’s our first day.”
“You worry way too much, Arelia.” Sabrina easily shrugged off my warning and started playing connect-the-dots with her concealer. She was prone to breaking out when it was humid outside and usually spent forty minutes meticulously camouflaging any offending spots.
I ignored her as I shut the door behind me. I did not worry too much. One of us had to be responsible. To Sabrina, this whole thing may have been a vacation, but to me it was a fine line between eating Spam all year and actually being able to afford the occasional pizza. When you count pennies and pray that your stinky landlord won’t kick you out of your crappy apartment, ordering a pizza is like eating caviar. Of course, Sabrina constantly insisted on helping out, but I never accepted her help. She was my best friend, not my sugar mama.
I made my way to the kitchen in hopes of catching Ms. Mae alone. I wanted to grill her for more answers about the whole voodoo business. All the chandeliers on the bottom floor were brightly lit, making the house look ethereal. The kitchen was buzzing with servers and cooks while the smell of seafood gumbo filled the air. Everyone was so busy that it gave me the perfect opportunity to approach Ms. Mae.
“Oh my,” gasped Ms. Mae as she took a look at me. “You look exactly like your momma did the last time I saw her.”
“Except I’m not pregnant,” I pointed out.
“Yes, well there is that one difference,” she laughed as she iced a large red velvet cake. “Where is Sabrina?”
“She’ll be down in a minute,” I replied, knowing that it would be a few hours before she made her grand entrance.
“I suppose you want to ask me more questions, don’t you?”
“Well, I’m not totally surprised by the news. I mean, I knew all along that there had to be something up with me. Do you hear them too?”
“Yes,”
she firmly replied. “But in order for me to make contact it requires a great deal of effort. I am not as nearly as powerful as you.”
“Why didn’t Grand-mere Bea tell me that her whole family used to work here?”
Ms. Mae examined me in silence for a few seconds before finally deciding to respond. “Not everyone thinks the same or chooses the same path in life. Your grand-mere did what she thought was best by starting her own life. She’s never been one for secrets or the LaPlante family.”
“She told me that they’re cursed and evil,” I whispered.
Ms. Mae let out a hearty laugh. “One can argue what they want about the LaPlante family, but everyone deserves a chance. Don’t you agree, Arelia?”
“What do you mean?” I was confused by her question.
“No one deserves to suffer for eternity.”
“I guess not,” I said still a bit unsure of what she was implying.
“Arelia, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes,” gasped Henri in exaggeration.
“Thanks,” I shrugged, as I tried to brush off the compliment. Getting praise always embarrassed me.
He went over to Ms. Mae and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “The guests are starting to arrive.”
“Well, then you better take Arelia over, so she can greet them and show them some hospitality.” She gave him a loving glance.
“Wait. Are you two…?” I asked.
“Arelia, Henri is your great-uncle. Henri, your lovely niece is all grown-up, isn’t she?”
Henri bowed, “I suppose you don’t remember me, do you?”
“No, not really,” I reluctantly admitted.
“Well, this summer will give us a perfect opportunity to get reacquainted,” predicted Henri. He stretched out his arm for me to take. “Now, come with me, so we can greet the guests. I’ve written their names all down here for you and Sabrina. That should make things a bit easier.”
“But what should I say to them?” I wasn’t great at making small talk with strangers.
“I’m sure you’ll figure it all out.” Henri gave me a quick wink as he guided me to the front of the house.
Chapter 4
Drag Me to the Ball