Echoes in the Bayou (5 page)

Her
parents soon told her all they knew about her birth mother, she was young and
she had been a victim of rape. And rather than get rid of her baby, she decided
to give it up for adoption.  Although Ava’s adoptive parents were older
than most of the couples that were looking to adopt, it didn’t stop them from
wanting a child. Besides that, the fact that both of her parents had led very
successful lives made them all the more appealing to the agency.

With her
father being a prominent business attorney and her mother running her own
daycare center, it was only a matter of time before they wanted a child of
their own. So when they found out that they were unable to have children, they
knew that they still wanted to provide a safe, nurturing, and loving home for
an adopted child. And that was also taken into account by the adoption agency.
They were ecstatic when the agency told them about Ava’s birth mother, finally
they would get the chance to have a family.

You’re doing the right thing
. Ava
could almost hear her mother’s voice. It was times like these that she wished
her parents were still alive. With both Gavin and her best friend out of her
life, she had no one. She hoped that she would enjoy this new job and that
Magnus would be pleased with her work because she intended to drag it out as
long as possible. Not because she was hungry for money, her parents had left
her a small inheritance, it wasn’t that. She wanted the job at the plantation
to last because she simply
needed time to think
about where it was that she was going to go when the job was finished, but for
now she'd take comfort in the fact that someone needed her help.

By the
time Magnus looked up from his laptop it was close to five o’clock, after he finished
his outline he had decided to get a couple pages down. Thirty five pages later,
he had managed a great first chapter and a second and a third. He emailed his
agent and told him about his new idea. Steve immediately responded
congratulating him on writing what sounded like another best seller. "I
think I’ll celebrate with a bottle of wine," he said as he stared at the
computer screen. "Damn you’re good," he told himself.

 
Although he himself had never witnessed anything too
out of the ordinary at the plantation, he wasn’t about to be cynical. After
all, he did see that woman’s face and the red mark that had suddenly appeared
and there were the late night traipses to the kitchen. At least three times a
week, sometimes more, he would find himself standing in the kitchen. There were
times when he would be facing the window that overlooked the garden. At other
times he’d find himself in the pantry and then he’d wake up to find himself
staring at nothing but a wall of canned goods and jars.

 
At least I
think that’s what I was staring at
,
he told himself. When he asked his parents if he’d ever been a sleep walker,
they told him no. They said that once he went to sleep he stayed asleep and
that maybe his move out to the plantation wasn’t such a good idea and maybe he
should move back. But he told his parents no. He needed to be there, needed to
see things through and he intended to do just that. Besides he told them, his
sleep walking never took him outside the house or anyplace dangerous so he
would go with it, for now. "It’s not even real sleep walking," he
reassured his parents.

 
To Magnus it felt like he was being led somewhere and
there had been several times when he could feel the hardwood floors under his
feet. The smell of gardenias would always fill his nostrils, and for some
reason, he was intoxicated by the scent. "It’s obviously a
coincidence," he whispered. "The gardenia bush outside the kitchen
window carries the strong scent right into the room, that’s all." He
looked over at the large shrub. It became important; he needed it to fit into
his story.

By the
time she had reached Louisiana, Ava decided that it was pointless to call
Magnus and tell him that she’s arrived a day early.
I'm already here
, she told herself.
Might as well just head over to the
plantation and hope that he’s at home
.
She
was already off the interstate and following the directions that the gps was
giving her turn for turn. She smiled when she saw the overabundance of oak
trees, they were so heavy with Spanish moss that they looked like clouds had
tumbled from the sky and got caught up in the heavy branches.  The sight
was something she had only seen in photographs and in movies.

 
"Where the hell is this place?" She asked.
Even though it was still daylight, it was hard for her to keep her eyes on the
road. All around, the great oaks were on either side of her. It was as if the
giant trees were shielding her from the rest of the world, beckoning her to
enter a bygone era. The further down the road she drove the thicker and heavier
the trees seemed to get. "I must be losing my mind," she said to
herself. "I knew I should have googled this place. That’s the last time I
take Gavin’s word for anything! That asshole had me come out here to no man’s
land," she cursed.

 
Deep down she knew that no one was forcing her down
here, the decision had been hers, and hers alone.  Gavin had only
suggested that she take the job and since she had no place else to go at the
moment, it was as good a choice as any. "Okay, pay attention to the road
Ava, you’re almost there."  The further she drove down the deserted
road, the more it looked as if she were driving out of civilization and into a
time that had long since passed her by, yet she couldn’t shake the feeling that
she was driving into an adventure. This was an adventure that would surely
leave her more self-possessed than she’d ever been before.

Before
she could develop any second thoughts, the gps instructed her that she had
reached her destination. Glancing around she noticed that the oaks were even
more crowded now and the Spanish moss was even thicker than the ones on the
main road, and they formed a ghostly appearance or at least to her it seemed
that way. She could see the thick bayou on either side of her as she drove down
the gravel road. Just as she was beginning to think that Gavin had sent her to
a false address, the mansion seemed to materialize out of nowhere. 

 
She wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but this wasn’t
it. Looming before her was a rundown plantation.  She was sure that back
in its hay day it was a sight, even if the location was deep in the bayou and
far away from the modern world. There was an amazing stone fountain out front
that probably hasn’t sprouted water since the nineteenth century, and although
the massive pillars still stood, they looked as if they would crumple to the
ground at the slightest touch.

The pa
int was peeling; the steps that led up to the wrap
around porch looked worn and extremely fragile. The second story balcony left a
lot to be desired and the grounds that stood in front of the place looked as if
they hadn’t been tended to in years. And speaking of grounds, besides some kind
of ivy growing up the sides of the house, she took note that there was no
effervescence of flowers around the place, no color, no signs of life. 
The entire place looked as if it was deserted and or haunted. "Great, I
can’t wait to see what the inside looks like," she mumbled before getting
out of the car. She made sure to leave the doors unlocked and a window down.
Just in case
I’ve got to make a quick getaway
,
she
told herself. 
I’ll jump in head first if I have to.

If t
his DuPonte
looks like something from the Addams family, I am so out of here
,
she thought to herself as
she made her way up the decaying stairs.
I ought to call Gavin and give him a piece of my mind
.
No, fuck that.
I’m sure he’s giving his piece over and over again to Melanie. Stop being
scared Ava, it’s just a house and you’ve seen plenty of houses, now go in and
meet your new employer,
her
conscience urged.

 
Magnus had just finished shutting down his laptop when
he heard a car door slam. He wasn’t used to guests showing up unannounced.
Hell, the only people that showed up unannounced were spectators, and ghost
hunters. All were hoping to catch a glimpse of a ghost, or something that they
could categorize as paranormal. "Everybody hoping to gain their five
minutes of fame on YouTube," he mumbled. He thought that the no
trespassing signs he’d put up all around the property would stop them, and it
did for a while. No one had been on the property in such a long time that he
thought the signs had done the trick. "I’m gonna have to take things to
the next level," he said out loud as he grabbed his metal baseball bat.

 
When no one answered to her relentless knocking and
ringing of the doorbell, Ava leaned her head back and quietly surveyed the
gigantic house. "Maybe he isn’t home," she said. "Okay but
what’s that car doing in the driveway smartass?"
You’re not
getting out of this one Ava
,
her conscience
chided her. While making her way back down the stairs, one gave way and she
cursed as a piece of old, rotten wood cut a deep slice into her bare leg.
"Shit! This is all I need," she said and bent down to inspect the
damage. The splintered wood had managed to cause a deep gash into her bare skin
and with blood trickling down her leg; she made her way back to the car.

 
Finding a used napkin, she managed to sop up the
blood that had run down her leg. She was angry now, not only was no one home
but she had cut herself and needed to wash out her wound quickly; she didn’t
want infection setting in.  Determined to at least find an unlocked door,
she decided to head towards the back of the house.  As she headed towards
a dirt path that wound its way towards the back, a waiflike hand reached out
from under the thick brush and quickly snatched up the bloodied napkin that she
had dropped.

While sh
e pushed her way through over grown weeds and swatted
at flying insects, something caught her attention. Out of the corner of her
eye, she saw a figure standing where she had stood only moments before. And for
a second she thought that she was passing a mirror, was it a reflection of
herself somehow?

"Must
be this heat," she murmured. She spoke out loud to shake the unpleasant
feeling she was getting. "This is too much," she said. Just as she
roun
ded the back of the house; something grabbed
hold of her arm. She let out a blood curdling scream.

"
What the hell do you think you’re doing?" A male
voice roared. "Can’t you read the fucking signs? They say no trespassing!
What are you stupid? There’s no goddamn ghosts here so get the hell out of here
before I call the cops!"

Ava stood
terrified and in shock. There was a man holding onto her with all his might and
he wasn’t letting go.
 

"Let
go of me!" She shouted back at him. "Yes I saw the signs as
shole but I'm not here to look for ghosts, I'm here
for a job. I'm looking for Mister DuPonte, Mister Magnus DuPonte!" 
She was shaking now and her leg was starting to throb. "Please do me a
favor and call the cops, and tell them to send an ambulance as well!" She
said, looking down at her leg, it was still bleeding.

 
"Jesus, are you Miss Montgomery?" Magnus
asked eyes still full of defense.

"
Yes I am, now how about you call the police," she
demanded.

Magnus
quickly released his grip on her.
"No need
for that Miss Montgomery, I'm Mister DuPonte."

Ava
rubbed the arm that he’d just released.
"Well Mister DuPonte, do you always greet your guests this way?" She
asked her voice full of irritation.

Magnus
shook his head.
"No Miss Montgomery, I
don’t. But when someone is lurking around my property, I have to assume that
they are not welcome so I take matters into my own hands," he said and
placed the bat down on the ground.

 
"I wasn’t lurking Mister DuPonte. I rang the bell
several times and knocked on the door quite loudly too, I might add. It isn’t
my fault you couldn’t hear me."

Now he
felt like a fool.
"Yeah, I’ve been meaning
to get the doorbell fixed, sorry about that," he said with sincerity.
"Can we start over? I'm Mister DuPonte, but please call me Magnus,"
he held out his hand. "It’s very nice to meet you Miss Montgomery."

 
 She was too tired to continue being angry.
Besides, Magnus was far from looking like someone from the Addams family; he
was quite attractive indeed, but she couldn’t help but notice that he looked
more like a rock star than a best-selling author.

Ava
managed a polite smile, she had to try and be as professional as she could,
especially under the circumstances.
 
"It’s nice to meet you too," she winced. The pain in her leg was
growing intense.  Magnus looked down at her bleeding leg. "You better
let me take a look at that," he said and offered her his arm. "Thank
you I'm sure it’s nothing, but if you’ve got some alcohol or peroxide, I’d
appreciate it," she said trying not to sound too difficult. The last thing
she needed was for him to think she was helpless.