“That will be up to you, child,” said Papa. He’d scried her thoughts so quickly, so easily, her mortal mind leaf-thin to a being such as him. For all her secrets—the pain, the losses so numerous she’dlost count, her envies and fears—she was laid bare before Papa Legba’s divinity. And that was what scared her most.
At last, they stopped. Papa pointed out into the darkness, his finger as gnarled and crooked as rotted wood. She knew this place, knew it well.The Dreadwood.An ancient place, even in the mortal realm. It held gateway magic, a threshold between realms. It had always been a part of Voodoo—any initiate had to be willing to take their trial in the woods for three days’ time. If they survived, the spirit world was pleased. If they did not? Well, the Dreadwood claimed another soul.
“Let us be finished with these games, Papa. I want to go home.”
“But my dear, I am showing you the way. That”—he gestured out to the Dreadwood—“is the only way.”
It was a lie. It had to be. This was his domain, his kingdom. He was Lord of the Crossroads, keeper of keys. Papa could return her back to the mortal realm if he wished itso.
“When you banished Jon here, did we not strike a bargain?” He stared into Marie’s eyes, his gaze red-hot. She felt her cheeks flush with shame. “Did you not think I would come to my own with Jon too?”
So many, many things she had not considered after the Quarter Quarrel. She’d been foolish to think that sending Jon to the Veil was the end of her problems. No, Marie realized, that was only the beginning.
“What were your terms?”
He smiled, pleased. This was the talk all loa revered in the end. The talk of deals and bargains, of flesh and souls to be won and traded. “That if he could bring you here, as you kindly did him, you would undertake my Trial of Spirit.”
Trial of Spirit.Once upon a time, Sanite had warned her it would come. It was true.
Sanite had foreseen one final trial, that last rite of her initiation. But then she’d died and Marie had become queen, the matter all but settled. What need did she have for another initiation? She was the Quarter Queen, her throne secure. But Sanite’s warning had not been wrong, just far too early. She hadn’t said who would deliverthis final lesson, only that Marie must learn it. And who better to teach her than Jon? After all, he had always been her best teacher.
“And what did you promise him in return?” she asked.
Papa’s eyes flared at her, the fiery glow of iron pulled from the forge. “Silly child. The only thing he’s ever wanted all these years: a way back.”
Of course. Had she thought the Veil would hold a man like Jon for eternity? She had hoped, foolishly. Desperately. Why, oh why, had she not simply killed him and been done withit?
Because you loved him,her traitorous heart whispered.
Marie found her voice smaller than she would have liked, dwarfed in the shadow of Papa’s power. “If I should fail?”
“Then you would remain here, in the twilight, where you would serve me for an eternity.”
Marie stared at him, unblinking, even as her heart quivered. “And if I should pass?”
His smile deepened, revealing crooked teeth. “Power beyond mortal comprehension. And I will, of course, return you on home.”
“This is the only way?”
“The only way, indeed. Do you accept the terms, Marie Laveau?”
“Yes,” Marie said. Something in the air stirred between them, and Marie felt some part of her spirit leave her and join Papa. His scale tipped a little, the deal as good as struck.
“Then you may begin.”
Marie jutted her chin higher and walked forward, resolute in her path.The only way.Those words followed her, whispered in her ear over and over again.The only way.Marie did not dare look back. She couldn’t stand to see Papa’s smirking face, the veneer of humor she found impossible to read. She would bear this alone, as she had always done in all things. She entered the Dreadwood, the bramble and weeds underfoot snatching at her with cold hands.
Marie peered into the dark wood and gazed upon its true face. The woods were alive. The trees moved, each brush of wind a trembling breath, gnarled branches slowly opening to reveal a long road before her, where Marie was forced to gaze into the dark unknown of her own heart.
Come,the woods whispered.We have much to show you.
What could the spirit world show her that she had not already seen? Demons, monsters, and men with faces far more terrible than either—she had seen evils of all kinds, even her own.
The wind picked up.Come and behold your deepest fears, Marie Laveau.The trees swayed, laughing at her.Come and behold the past.
Chapter Nine
Ree
