Shadows (Bayou Magic 1)

“A booby trap hex?” Asher asks, a smirk appearing. “Is that the official term?”

“No, the official term is it could burn your hand off if you touch it. Does that help?”

Thibideaux shakes his head and reaches for the box. When a bolt of lightning shocks his hand, he backs right off in surprise.

“How do we open it, then?” Asher asks.

Millie walks into the room, takes a deep breath, and smiles. “Because the one who cast the spell is dead, I can break it. Give me some room, please.”

We all stand back and watch with rapt attention as she splays her hands over the box, looks up to the sky, and begins to chant.

“Lord and Lady working for me and through me, assist me in breaking the spell cast on this object. The wielder has passed beyond the veil and no longer holds sway over this object or its contents. For the good of all, according to free will, grant me access, and—”

I don’t really hear all of the words she says after that. The room grows warm, and light fills the space, and then it’s gone in a flash as Millie sighs deeply.

“There, it’s safe.”

Asher reaches for the box, and nothing happens to his hands when he removes the lid.

“Cash.”

I join him and feel my jaw tighten at what’s inside.

“Looks like he had a thing for eyeballs,” Asher says quietly.

There must be a hundred eyeballs in the box.

“Get this to the ME,” Asher says. “I want to know how many there are. If he took both of his victims’ eyes, or just one. I want to know everything about this son of a bitch.”

I walk out of the room and lead all three sisters out of the house. They all look exhausted.

“They haven’t found his body yet,” Millie says and turns to Daphne. “Were you able to pick anything up on him?”

“I touched things in there,” Daphne says, her voice trembling slightly. “All I saw were echoes. Memories. Nothing from the present.”

“He’s here,” Brielle says, looking down at her feet. “He’s been following us through the house, grinning. He’s proud of his work.”

“If that isn’t the creepiest thing I’ve ever heard, I don’t know what is,” Millie says.

“I mean, there were at least a hundred eyeballs in a box, so there’s that, too,” Daphne reminds her. “I don’t want him following Bri for the rest of her life. We need to get rid of him.”

“He’s not going to stay,” Brielle says in surprise. She’s looking at something, or someone, in front of her. “He just said goodbye.”

“Just like that?” Millie asks and turns to me. “What are the chances that a serial killer would be like, ‘well, you got me. Peace out!’?”

“Slim to none,” I agree with her. “But I won’t complain if that’s his plan.”

“Me either,” Daphne says, just as two of the men who set off to look for the body come running back to the house.

“What do you have?” I ask.

“We found his shoe and a large pool of blood on the ground right next to the swamp.”

“We think he collapsed there and was dragged away by a critter,” the other officer says.

“Keep looking,” Asher says from the doorway. “We’ll keep searching for his body until dark, and then we’ll look again tomorrow.”

“He’s dead,” Brielle says.

“You and your sisters keep saying that, but I don’t see a body, and without that, I can’t confirm that he’s gone. I can’t tell all of those families that my psychic consultant assures me he’s dead, so it must be true.”

“I know,” Brielle says with a shrug. “I get it. But he can’t hurt anyone anymore, and that’s the most important thing.”

I wrap my arm around her shoulder and pull her against me so I can kiss her temple. “Proud of you,” I whisper in her ear.

“I want all of you to go home,” Asher says, pointing to us. “Cash, I’ll need you at the office this evening for a full debriefing, and possibly the news conference. Reporters will ask questions I may not be able to answer.”

“Just let me know when and where you need me,” I assure him.

“I want to go to the hospital to see the girls,” Brielle says. “They need some strength today.”

“We’ll all go,” Daphne says. “Millie, let’s stop by the Brew and make them some potions.”

“Excellent idea,” Millie says, heading for the car. “Let’s go.”

Once the girls are in the vehicle waiting for me, I turn back to Asher.

“I have plenty to say about this animal, but I didn’t want to say it in front of those three. He’s not a typical psychopath. I’ll brief you more later.”

“Agreed,” Asher says and nods. “I’ve never seen anything like this, and I’ve been in homicide for a long fucking time. I’d like to hear your thoughts. Go take care of the women, and I’ll see you in a few hours.”