Voodoo Love (And the Curse of Jean Lafitte’s Treasure) (19 page)

             
"You know what I mean. Sex. You're going to have sex with him."

             
"The thought had crossed my mind. But I thought I'd give asking for your freedom a try first."

             
"No."

             
"Look, Lafitte and Euralie both know that there is a loophole to this whole curse thing. Hell, I saw it in a vision myself. This spirit is a sucker for love. If I do this, he'll view it as a sacrifice in the name of love and let you go free," I said.

             
Juan didn't look any happier.

             
"So I'm supposed to be excited that you are going to screw some spirit just to get me off the hook?" He crossed his arms. "I don't think so, Elizabeth. There is no honor in that."

             
"Honor? What other choice is there?"

             
"Um…well, not having sex? How about that one?"

             
"Then I guess you'll be stuck on the ferry forever with no hope of ever crossing over and getting peace," I pointed out. "Think about it. Sex with a spirit or an eternity of lost souls?"

             
His features darkened and I could feel the anger coming off of him. It frightened me.

             
Did you know he had this dark side?
The voice in my head whispered.

             
"I forbid you to do this," he said. "This is too great a sacrifice. I cannot allow you to…degrade yourself like that."

             
I didn't know what to say. Part of me was flattered that he cared enough not to want me to do this act. Part of me wanted to be much more childish and tell him that he wasn't the boss of me. I chose to be silent and brushed past him, tears filling my eyes.

             
"
Elizabeth
!" he called after me. "This isn't finished!"

             
I didn't answer. Up ahead there seemed to be a little clearing, and if I had to guess, I figured we were in the center of the island. The treasure would be close. It would be best just to focus on that for the time being. I swiped at my eyes and stumbled into the clearing.

             
And there it was. The tall majestic cypress tree with a single letter carved deep into its trunk: L. I knew that several yards before it on the ground, concealed by time and the elements, laid a heavy wooden trapped door. Beneath it was a man-made cavern, the resting place of the cursed Lafitte treasure.

             
The first time I'd entered this clearing, I'd felt the power of the curse. It gave off a low vibration of energy that made the skin prickle and the head feel heavy. I recognized the same hum now.

             
So did Juan. He groaned. When I turned to look at him, his normally tan skin looked sallow, as if all the spirit energy was being sucked away from him.

             
"Juan?" I rushed to him. "Are you okay?"

             
"I'm weakening." He leaned against me. "I have no power here. Must be something to do with the curse."

             
He fell to his knees and I knelt beside him.

             
"Juan, hold on. We'll fix this," I said, though I had no idea what to do. "Let's get you out of here. C'mon."

             
The bushes rustled, announcing the approach of someone.

             
"Euralie, come quick," I called. "Juan needs your help."

             
"Does he?"

             
Uh-oh. That didn't sound like Euralie's voice.

             
Diego Martes pushed his away out of the brush, gun in hand.

             
"Now why would a ghost need help?" he asked. "They're already dead."

             
Diego looked terrible. In the hours that had passed between our last meeting, he appeared to have gotten thinner and his eyes were sunk in his head, leaving dark hollows beneath them. Sweat dotted his forehead and there were rings of perspiration all around the armpits of his shirt. A foul odor perfumed the man, reminding me of a rotting or decayed animal.

             
He moved towards us, and I didn't know what to do. I was torn between running and staying. I could literally see Juan fading away. It started with his lower body and crept up like a magic eraser to his torso. He looked up, grabbed my hand, and with a pleading look said, "Please remember what I said. Don't sacrifice yourself for me. There is no honor in that."

             
Then Juan's fingers faded from mine and he dissolved. I could smell his essence all around me, and I closed my eyes, inhaling it, wishing it would last, and knowing that my heart was about to break into a thousand tiny pieces.

             
"Ah…how sad," Diego sneered. "Looks like the big, bad Montoya can't take care of his woman anymore."

             
"Shut up, Diego."

             
His narrowed his eyes. "Don't you talk to me like that. I'm the one giving orders now."

             
"Screw you. I’m not scared of you. You need me."

             
Diego raised his gun.

             
"Go ahead," I said. "I dare you to. Then you'll never get the curse lifted."

             
"I saw Euralie though she didn't see me. I can make her talk," Diego said.

             
"No. She's bound by her ancestry. She can't invoke the spirit."

             
"Bullshit."

             
"Ask her yourself. It's why we're here. I was going to lift the curse and free Juan Carlos." I watched Diego's eyes twitch with uncertainty. He was so nervous and jumpy that I feared any small sound would cause him to pull that trigger in self-defense.

             
"You are going to free me," Diego said. "Tell me the name of the spirit. I can say it. I can call it."

             
"Not till midnight," I said. "That's when its magic is strongest."

             
"Then there's no reason not to tell me the name now," he insisted.

             
"I tell you the name, you kill me." I tried to sound brave, but my voice quaked. "Then Euralie won't do the ritual at all. There would be nothing in it for her. I don't think she would lift a finger to help you."

             
Diego thought it over. I could see a million holes in my logic but luckily for me, Diego was too tired or too messed up in the head to catch them. After a terse moment, he nodded his head.

             
"Sit down," he jerked his head in the direction of a nearby tree stump. "We'll wait for her to come find you."

             
He'd mentioned seeing Euralie, but not Eddie. I wondered if he knew his old buddy was still alive. Of course, it didn't matter. There was no way I could tell either of them they were walking into a trap.

             
The bushes rustled and I held my breath, unsure if I should call out a warning. Before I could make up my mind, Diego clapped a hand over my mouth, blocking off any sound I might have made. I saw Euralie freeze, raw terror creeping across her face at the sight of Diego.

             
"Hello, Euralie." Diego laughed softly. "You don't look happy to see me."

             
Her eyes darted to me and then back to Diego. Indecision mixed with the terror. I knew she was weighing the odds: run or stay.

             
"Get over here or I'll shoot
Elizabeth
," he said. "And then I'll find you and we'll have some more fun. It'll be just like old times."

             
Trembling, she took a step towards us. I strained to see behind her, wondering where Eddie was.

             
Please don't let him walk in on this
, I prayed.
Keep him safe in the bushes
.

             
I closed my eyes, trying to get my head clear. That's when I heard the voice of doubt whisper in my head again.

             
Eddie would never desert you like Juan Carlos did, even if he does love the voodoo priestess.

             
Before I could examine that thought, Diego removed his hand.

             
"Are you okay?" I asked Euralie. She knew what I was really asking though. Where is Eddie?

             
"Everything is fine," she answered with a slight nod of her head.

             
"Have a seat, Euralie." Diego nodded to the ground next to me, keeping the gun trained on us. "We have lots to catch up on."

*****

             
The hours passed in a blur. There wasn't much to do. Diego either couldn't or wouldn’t explain how he'd managed to find his way back to the island, but I figured it had something to do with the curse. Something else seemed to be guiding all of these strange puzzle pieces together.  Diego didn't trust Euralie or me, and despite the fatigue surrounding him, he kept a watchful eye on us. There was no chance to escape or plot together. We weren't even allowed to duck behind a tree when nature called, and by the time evening rolled around, I had to pee so badly it was practically unbearable. I finally gave into the urge and squatted in front of a tree, not caring who saw.

             
As I hitched my pants back up, my eyes searched the brush surrounding our clearing, wondering what Eddie was doing, what plan he might be hatching.

             
And then there was Juan.

             
I wondered what had happened to him. Would I see him again? Was it too late?

             
To keep myself from dwelling on this too much, I began thinking about the ritual. As I mulled over what was supposed to happen, an idea occurred to me. In the original curse, Marie Laveau had summoned the Baron and brokered the deal. In the latest ritual that was to be my job. Diego wanted to have the curse lifted from him. He didn't know about the trade I wanted to make: his soul for Jean Lafitte's and Juan's freedom. I remembered how Lafitte had been tricked into accepting the terms though he didn't know them. Could I pull a similar trick on Diego? After all, once he heard what I wanted, I doubted he would be that excited about further negotiations.