“It hurt nothing to ask.”
He had no idea how much it hurt, but she would heal that pain with the new life she was making. “Of course not, Archie. Have your secretary call as soon as possible, please.”
“I will. Grace…?”
“Goodbye, Archie.” She rang off before he could say more. Grace sat, staring at the phone for long moments, then swallowed back the memories, both the real one and the dreams, fighting off fear, anger and grief. She refused to mourn the Boston life she once had. She refused to be that vulnerable again. She’d protect herself, with knowledge and the truth. The truth that dreams of another life and time, curses and Lucien Flynn were all fictions—stuff and nonsense created to help her survive a time of stress.
***
For almost a month, Grace had buried herself in a stack of books and tomes nearly as tall as Luc. While she searched for her answers, he investigated some questions of his own. Those investigations required time away from theOnly LoveandSweet Dreams.
He worried about Grace’s safety, even while she sequestered herself inside the house with her books and documents. Yes, she had the dogs, but he’d yet to see her use the amulet Mambo Ayezan had given her. Luc had tried once to warn her about danger, but theensuing drama had been more than either of them could handle. She’d refused to believe him and accused him of trying to frighten her for some unknown ulterior motive.
If Grace would not protect herself, he would. Discovering who was behind the intrusions atSweet Dreamswas key to preventing them. Since she was secure in the house, it was probably the best opportunity he’d have to gain that information.
The rain, heavier and more persistent than other years, helped. Rain in southern Louisiana was a near constant, especially during the winter months, with showers occurring nearly every day. June, July, and August usually had significant amounts of rain, so persistent rainfall in April and May was uncommon, although not unheard of. During his sailing years, Luc had weathered many a storm and not a few hurricanes. Some years seemed wetter, some drier. Most of the time excess in one direction was balanced within the coming year.
The rains came a trifle earlier than usual that year, but rain didn’t bother him as he traveled spectrally to Duval Point. It was past time to deal with the person or persons causing trouble for Grace.
On this, nearly moonless night, Luc settled in a dim corner of Guidry’s nameless and poorly lit tavern. He’d been keeping this watch frequently since chasing Raspy and Nasal offSweet Dreams. To date, he’d learned little, other than that the grocer-sheriff-mayor, DeLille, was a more frequent visitor to the tavern than Luc had imagined. DeLille and Guidry had grown up together. Never fast friends, they’d competed with each other most of their lives. Guidry had the advantages of a wealthy influential family but had never learned the value of hard work. Nor did Guidry understand people and how to motivate them beyond the use of money. DeLille on the other hand, had come from poor share croppers and knew hard work well. That hard work had gained him not only a profitable business, but also an understanding of people and what motivated them, with the added benefit of respected standing from the landowners and laborers in the area surrounding Duval Point.
So, when DeLille walked into the tavern, Luc hadn’t been surprised.
What did surprise him was DeLille’s quiet request of the bartender. “Tell your boss I’m here.”
“He said you were coming,” the barkeep said with equal discretion. “Told me to have you go on into the store room.”
The older man ordered a bourbon and carried it with him to a door at the far end of the bar. Luc followed.
Guidry sat on a stack of crates, a lantern beside him.
DeLille found a similar stack and seated himself. “What’s so urgent that you had to risk having me meet you here?”
“Bitch of a night out there,” the tavern owner remarked.
“Yeah, raining gators and crawfish. I don’t have time to waste. What do you want?”
“We’ve been searching for months and ain’t found nothing,” he groused. “With that woman out there, we must be careful,” DeLille said, shifting his gaze around, as if needing to assure himself they were truly alone.
What woman? Are they talking about Grace?
“Should we get rid of her?” Guidry’s brow furrowed.
The grocer sipped at his bourbon. “What are you suggesting?”
The other man ran a finger under his collar. “Ain’t suggesting anything. Just asking. Besides, I think you know what I mean.”
DeLille simply stared.
Guidry actually squirmed. Luc knew the technique.
As expected, Guidry spoke up. “You ain’t paying me enough to do that.”
“So, half a famous pirate treasure isn’t enough to—how did you put it—get rid of one woman.”
The mention of a pirate treasure confirmed Luc’s suspicions.
“N… no.” Guidry’s eyes went wide.
