CHAPTER SIX

Corbin

The place Cindy had told me to go to, Miss Cecily’s, wasn’t that far from Evangeline’s. I probably could have walked the distance, but I didn’t much like the idea of leaving my precious GTO in a dirt parking lot overnight. The townsfolk had seemed friendly enough, and the town clean and comfortable, but you never knew.

Cindy had been understating when she said that the boarding house was big. It was massive. I’d literally stayed at hotels that were smaller. It had four massive white columns that anchored it to the mammoth wrap around verandah. You could probably fit two dozen vintage Southern belles in hoopskirts on the front part alone without any sweat. Before getting out of the car and heading to the massive veranda, I pulled out my phone and checked for texts.

Damn. No cell service. In the morning, I’d have to find a place in Pontmaison that had cell service and check to see if Tucker had pinged me again. Shoving the phone back in my pocket, I got out of the car and headed to the house.

“Hello?” I asked, knocking on the old oak door before me, then stepped back, taking in the front of the house while I waited for Miss Cecily. A faded yellow light above the front door illuminated a wide verandah, and the door was solid oak and old.

The door creaked open, catching me off-guard and revealing a small woman. Miss Cecily was so much smaller than I’d have thought. I’d assumed an alleged Voodoo queen would be tall and seem larger than life. Miss Cecily was hunched over with osteoporosis, had wrinkled skin that made it hard to tell her real age, but I wouldn’t have been surprised to find out she was ninety. Her snow white hair was wrapped into one braid that went all the way to her waist and her skin was the color of mahogany.

She looked up at me with some of the clearest green eyes I’d ever seen. Even if she was ancient, there was a lot going on upstairs with Miss Cecily. I’d seen less shrewd tour managers and entertainment lawyers.

“Well, isn’t this a surprise. I haven’t had a new boarder in quite a while.” Her voice came out smoother than I’d anticipated. Clearly making assumptions about this woman would not be a wise choice.

I stuck out a hand. “My name’s Corbin. I’m in town for a couple of months and am looking for a place to stay. I apologize for coming over here in the middle of the night, but Cindy Liu sent me. She said that you’d be up. She also said you were the best bet for a place to stay in town.”

Miss Cecily shook my hand as she ran her gaze up and down me, peering into my eyes as if searching for my soul. “I do rent rooms, young man.”

I grinned at her. “Great. I have the money to pay. Do you take credit cards?”

“I’ll take cash when you can get it next. I think you look good for it overall,” she said, nodding toward my car. “Besides, if Cindy sent you, she’s the best reference you can get as far as I’m concerned. She helped send my last lodger to me.”

“Oh, so there’s still room, that’s good.”

Miss Cecily grinned. “There’s room for lots of things here, child. Come in.”

I stepped through. The front hall was dusty and the furniture looked turn of the century. I gazed at the portraits on the wall as Miss Cecily led the way into a poorly lit kitchen. There, hanging over our heads were various bags of…something. Instantly I could see where some of the voodoo rumors had started. I sniffed the air, and realized some of the scents emanating from the bags reminded me of oregano. When I caught the scent of mint and lavender, a warm sense of pleasure washed over me.

My grandmother on my father’s side, Grandma Brigitta, used to grow herbs and dry them in the same way. As a kid I used to help her harvest and put up the herbs. My cousins hated the work, but I didn’t mind as much. Gran would tell stories of her grandmother coming over from Norway and settling in Minnesota. With the tales she told, I never felt bored.

“Do you have an herb garden, Miss Cecily?” I asked, pointing at the bags of herbs dangling down.

She looked up above our heads. “You ever hear of a gris-gris?”

I racked my brain. Something in that term was familiar. “Something about voodoo? I’ve been to New Orleans more than once, but I never really did the ghost tour or even the tourist bit at all.”

Miss Cecily chuckled. “Ah, you’ve heard the rumors. Cindy’s a nice girl, but she always loves to spread the rumors. Can’t quite help herself from telling everyone’s story.”

Tension took over in my body, shoving away the warm sensation my childhood memory had brought. I had to hope Cindy would keep my secret quiet. I was enjoying the anonymity and didn’t want my summer in hiding over before it started.

“Rent’s paid every week,” she said, matter-of-factly, switching the subject. “Fridays. It’s one hundred and twenty-five dollars.”

“A night?” I asked.

“No, a week,” she said, then she pointed upward. “So long as you don’t mind the rumors or the...ambiance…the room at the top of the stairs and to the right is yours. I only have two other borders. Lisa and Aimee, and Lisa’s out of town. So there’s plenty of room.”

I froze. “Aimee Bodine? The girl who runs Evangeline’s?”

“That’s her. You met her?”

“I sure did.”

“And?”

“Ma’am?”

“And what did you think of her?”

“She’s…amazing.”

Miss Cecily harrumphed, but there was a definite edge of approval to the sound. “Tasted her baking, did you?”

I grinned. “Yeah. But that’s not why I think she’s amazing.”

Something perilously close to a smile formed on Miss Cecily’s face and then she shooed me up the stairs.

The room was actually nice. It sucked that there was no internet, no cell signal, and no landlines. The television did work and it did have color, but the last thing I wanted to do was watch TV. I laid awake all night, but I didn’t toss or turn. I didn’t even care that I couldn’t sleep. All I could think about was the fact Aimee was in a room somewhere in this house.

And I absolutely fucking couldn’t wait to see her again.