Shadows (Bayou Magic 1)

That’s new.

At least there’s no shadow hovering over it.

“Wow, is everyone okay?” I ask the group, looking everyone over. “Did anyone get hurt?”

“Just scared us,” someone said.

“If that’s part of the show, it’s effective,” someone shouts, making me laugh.

“No, that’s definitely not part of the show. That was a freebie, just for you guys. Okay, well, now that your heart rate is up, let’s talk about Madame LaLaurie…”Chapter Twenty-One“Death always went with the territory.”- Richard Ramirez, The Night StalkerJust look at her down there, he thinks to himself as he floats above the streetlamp that he successfully blew up. She’s laughing and wandering through their city with her little group of idiots, who all want to know about the paranormal things that plague the French Quarter.

He always understood that Brielle needed to make a living, and that sharing her gifts with others was an efficient way for her to do so.

She does the best she can.

But she’s capable of so much more.

He didn’t realize that it would take him a while to figure out his new way of life. That he wouldn’t slip easily between his physical body to the spiritual one and carry on the way he was before.

It seems there’s a learning curve.

That displeases him. He’s been following Brielle all week, trying to communicate with her, but she can’t see him. Or, if she can, she’s ignoring him. That’s something he’ll have to punish her for later.

But he’s chosen to trust that it’s not Brielle’s fault. He simply has to work harder. Which is fine. Hard work has always come easily to him. He enjoys it.

He floats above the group as Brielle leads them through town. From his vantage point, he can see the other spirits she talks about, trapped in their own afterlives of torment.

He doesn’t pity them. They earned what they got and where they are.

Just as he did.

But he’s not trapped, he controls his destiny. And as soon as he figures out some things, he’ll be right back on track.

He watches as Brielle smiles and says goodbye to a customer. She’s so beautiful, his sweet girl.

Don’t you worry, he thinks. You haven’t lost me, Brielle. I can’t wait to show you what I have in store. You’re going to be so happy. So excited. It won’t be long now.Chapter Twenty-TwoCash“It’s been a week,” I say to Asher as I sit across from him in his office. I just arrived, and I want some answers.

And a conversation with a colleague.

Something’s eating at me.

“How is Brielle?” Asher asks.

“She’s doing well, actually.” I rub the back of my neck and sigh. “She’s gone back to work and says nothing strange has happened. The spirits of the girls are gone. Millie and Daphne have gone home. Everything seems to be back to normal.”

“And you don’t trust it,” he guesses correctly.

“It’s ridiculous, but you’re right. I don’t trust it. Catching him or discovering who he was wasn’t an easy task, as you know. But then it was over and wrapped up so quickly it just seems…unfinished to me. Please tell me you found his body.”

“We did,” Asher confirms, and I feel my stomach loosen for the first time in a month. “He crawled into a ruined shed about a quarter-mile from his house. He bled out there. We’re still waiting for an autopsy, but there was a huge amount of blood. As Sarah said, he was stabbed in the stomach.”

“I’m surprised he made it a quarter of a mile. I wonder why he went that way instead of calling for help?”

“You know why. There’s no way he could have called 911. He would have been caught.”

“In which direction was the shed?” I ask. Asher reaches for a map, unrolls it on his desk, and we lean over it.

“Here’s his house,” Asher says and points to a red dot. “This is where we found him.”

“I think this is Brielle’s mother’s house,” I say, pointing to a property less than a mile away from the shed. “I wonder if he was headed there for help.”

“Could be,” Asher says. “My men stopped by there and tried to ask questions.”

I lean back in the chair. “I bet that went well.”

“She’s crazy, Cash.”

“I’m a licensed psychiatrist, and I can confirm that statement. She also killed her husband roughly twenty years ago.”

The other man’s eyes narrow. “Come again?”

“You heard me.” I stand and pace the office. “I don’t have proof, just the word of a crazy old woman and my girlfriend, who was only a teenager at the time.”

“The house needs to be condemned. She needs to go to a mental hospital.”

“I know.” I turn to look at him.

“I’m reporting it to the proper authorities.”

“Understood.”

“Now, I have a whole slew of things to talk to you about regarding this case. I hope you don’t have any plans for a few hours.”