Big Easy (Cowboy Craze)

by Sable Hunter

  Moving to answer, Jewel opened the door and stepped aside to give the woman a wide berth. Not because Willie Mae was large. No. It was the aura of danger coming off of her in tangible waves. “Come in.”

  “Thanks, Jewel. I’ve been anxious to get here. I need your help.” Needing no direction, Willie Mae moved to the reading table and took her place.

  The woman’s hands were shaking and even though the weather was muggy and hot, she wore a long sleeve sweater with a high collar. Jewel didn’t need to perform a reading to know that Willie Mae’s choice of clothing hid evidence of abuse. “What can I do for you today?”

  “I need to know what Everett’s been up to. I need to know if he’s stepping out on me.” The word ‘again’ went unsaid as Willie gave Jewel a hesitant smile. “I’m pregnant and I want everything to be…good.”

  “Congratulations!” She gave the woman a sincere smile before continuing, “Did you bring something of Everett’s for me to read?” She needed more than the conjecture she’d gathered from Willie’s rabid imagination.

  “Yea. This.” She placed what used to be a white T-shirt on the table. “I got it out of the garbage.”

  Jewel frowned. “Looks like he used it to wipe his hands after changing the oil or something.”

  “Probably.” Willie picked it up with two fingers and moved the shirt more to the center of the table.

  “Is that blood?” Jewel turned up her nose at the thought.

  A slightly hysterical giggle escaped Willie’s lips. “You tell me.”

  “All right.” Moving her hand slowly, she clasped one of the few still white spots amid the unidentified stains. “Let’s see.”

  Christ. As soon as her fingers closed over the material, Jewel was assaulted by images. Sepia colored swamp scenes. Brown earth. Tan sky. Black water. Grey tombstones. And the body of a broken female lying in the mud. “God help,” she moaned as a fat water moccasin slid obscenely over the woman’s upper thigh.

  “What’s wrong? What do you see?”

  “I…don’t know.” What was she seeing? Grasping more of the shirt, Jewel sought for more of the horrific vision. With no control over what she was picking up, she waited for the vision to come into focus. A man and a woman struggled, arguing. With the guy’s back to her, she couldn’t be sure it was Everett. Whoever it was, wore something similar to the garment she held in her hand. To Jewel’s horror, the girl was pushed to the ground and the man grabbed a branch, a tree limb, and thrust it…

  “No!”

  “What? What did you see? Is he cheating on me?”

  “I don’t know. I can’t be sure.” Jewel released the shirt, stumbling to the sink to cleanse her hands. To her dismay, the scene followed her, still playing out in her mind. The woman writhed in agony, the man took another limb and raised it above his head, bringing it down. “Oh, no. No.” Still with his back turned, the man rose and wiped his hands on his shirt – the same shirt…

  Willie stood and hurried to where Jewel scrubbed her hands over and over. “What did you see, Jewel? Tell me!”

  The woman’s demands fell on deaf ears. Jewel was no fool. She wouldn’t, couldn’t, reveal what she’d seen to Willie. “I’m confused by what I saw. I’m not sure the man was even Everett.” This was true. He looked enough like his brothers for the men to be triplets. Of course, Porter and Otis Hill were just as dangerous as Everett. More so. Porter was the mayor and Otis served as sheriff. Together, they protected Everett, who was the biggest crook this part of Louisiana had ever seen. Willie’s husband was guilty of most everything anyone could think of – smuggling, selling drugs, aggravated assault, burglary – the list went on and on.

  “What do you mean? You didn’t see his face? What was he doing?”

  Turning off the water, Jewel wiped her hands, then wheeled to take Willie by the shoulders. When she did, another vision assailed her. Everett viciously shaking his wife, then raising his knee to come up violently between her legs. If the woman was still pregnant, it was a wonder. “Willie, you need to leave Everett.”

  The woman tensed in Jewel’s grasp. “I…can’t.”

  “Can’t? Or won’t?”

  Willie ripped herself away, stalking back to the table to get her purse. “Does it matter?” Standing still, she seemed to study the worn handle of her fancy leather purse.

  Jewel picked up on the signals. Willie was trapped. She liked the things the Hill money could buy and during her time as Everett’s wife/punching bag, she’d learned too much. Seen too much. Everett would never let her out of the marriage. Alive.

  “Well, be careful, Willie. Seriously.”

  “What kind of advice is that?” She jerked her wallet from her purse. “Be careful. I knew that before I came. What kind of an idiot do you think I am?” A momentary pause. “No, don’t answer that.”

  Hearing Willie’s defeated tone, Jewel came to touch her arm. “Put your wallet up, I didn’t do anything.”

  “Yea, you did.” She took out a fifty and laid it on the table. “You saw something bad and you’re not going to tell me. To protect me.”

  “I told you, I’m not sure what I saw.” Jewel prayed this to be true. “It could’ve been something that happened a long time ago.” Or something that hadn’t happened yet. “Just be cautious.” She picked up the money. “And take this with you. I didn’t earn it, not today. Let me work a spell or two and you come back when the moon is full. Two days from now. Bring something else of Everett’s.”

  “All right.” She jammed the bill back in her purse. “I’ll do whatever you say.”

  “Except leave him.”

  Willie looked apologetic. “Yea. I’m sorry.” After carefully folding the offensive shirt, she crammed it into the side of her purse.

  “You wouldn’t be doing it for me, Willie Mae.” Jewel hugged herself, feeling a sudden chill sweep down her spine.

  “I know.” Shouldering her bag, the still attractive woman took her leave. “I’ll see you on Monday.”

  Jewel watched her go, a sense of dread seeping into her very bones.

  …Next door, Easy spread foil over the plates of boiled crawfish. He’d found some corn on the cob in the freezer and a bag of country fries. While these two things weren’t the best substitutes for proper sides, they’d do in a pinch. “Now, we’ll see if she turns away a man bearing gifts.”

  Taking a plate in each hand, he was almost to the door when a knock sounded right in front of him.

  “Hey.”

  Easy was so surprised to see Jewel, he almost dropped the plates. “Hey. Come in.”

  When she opened the screen and slipped inside, he lifted the plates a bit higher. “I was just on my way to see you.”

  Jewel felt herself blush. “I’m not sure what I’m doing here.” Yes, she did. She was spooked. How crazy was that? She’d seen the impossible. Performed the impossible. Hell, she could even see dead people.

  But the vision she’d seen tonight had unnerved her. Big time.

  Easy felt something strange in the middle of his chest. “Well, whatever it is, you just saved me a trip. Come on. Let’s eat. I think this turned out pretty good if I do say so myself.”

  Jewel could see the error in her ways, even before setting the ball into motion. Keeping company with Ezekiel Blackhawk wasn’t smart. In fact, it might just be the dumbest thing she’d ever do – except letting herself get involved with Willie Mae’s troubles. “I shouldn’t,” she muttered even as she followed the big, handsome guy to her mother’s familiar dining table. “Smells good.”

  “Wanna beer?” he asked after placing the plate down in front of the chair she was standing behind.

  “Yea.” She watched him take two out of a small Yeti cooler. “Thanks.”

  He set one on the table at his place, then popped the other one and handed it to her. “Sit. Rest. You’ve had a busy evening. Looked like Grand Central over at your place. You haul in a lot of loot?” he asked as he fetched them a fork a piece.

  Jewel
removed the foil from her plate, inhaling the pungent spices of the crawfish boil. “Not a dime.”

  “What?” Easy threw a leg over his chair and eased down to join her at the table. “I thought that was the whole idea.”

  “Not really.” She speared a crawfish, popped off the tail, and brought it to her mouth. “An old man who lost his cat, one woman who needed to be encouraged to go to the doctor, and another woman who sought reassurance her husband wasn’t cheating on her.”

  “Wow. Could you give her the reassurance?” Easy forgot to eat as he stared at Jewel. Her warm eyes and compassionate smile could stop a man’s heart.

  “Unfortunately. No. She’s in a bad situation in more ways than one.”

  “I can understand feeling sorry for people, but don’t you need the money?”

  Jewel shrugged. “I make most of my living by selling essential oils and other stuff online.”

  “I see.” He ate a fork full of potatoes, then chased the bite with a sip of beer. “You’re good at what you do.”

  “Is that a question?”

  “No. If you were a fraud, you would’ve taken their money.”

  “Huh.” Jewel ate a few more bites. “Maybe.”

  After they ate awhile in companionable silence, Easy rose and went to the cooler. “Another beer?”

  “No.” She pushed her plate away. “I’m good.”

  “I bet you are,” he flirted with a wink. At her warning look, he gave her a shrug and a grin. “Sorry. Habit. So…what brought you over here? Are you ready to tell me?”

  Jewel gave him an assessing look. He really was too handsome for his own good.

  Or hers.

  “Oh, come on. Was it my charm? Or my natural good looks?”

  “Ha!” She barked out a laugh. “Neither,” she lied. At his persistent stare, she caved. “All right. I saw something. It…unnerved me. I just needed to be around someone until I settled a bit.”

  “You saw something?” He was on immediate alert, his back straightening, his eyes darting to the door. “Like a prowler? An animal?”

  “No. In the reading. A…vision. Something bad.” Jewel jumped.

  “What’s wrong?” Easy reached out to touch her arm.

  “Somebody walked on my grave.”

  Easy moaned, “Man, I don’t like that saying.”

  “Yea, it is a bit unpleasant.” But spot on in this case. She stood and picked up their plates. “In any case, I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Why not?” Rising to his feet, he took the empty beer cans to the garbage.

  “I don’t know what it means yet.” She shrugged. “If there’s something to it, you’re safer not knowing.”

  “Safer?” Easy frowned. “Well, if there’s any chance of danger, you shouldn’t be involved.”

  Jewel was about to make a retort when one of the upstairs bedroom doors slammed shut. Hard.

  “What the hell?” Easy took off for the upstairs.

  Not feeling the need to follow, Jewel waited for him to return. “Probably a draft,” she muttered when he showed up. Yea, she knew she was making excuses for something she didn’t want to explain at the moment.

  “Huh. That was strange.” With a frown on his face, he considered the possibilities. “No windows open.”

  “Old houses. They settle.”

  Jewel peered down the hall, looking for Cotton Briggs. She knew he was here. He was always here. He’d been here since before she was born. Since her mother left, she’d tried to help him move on. Twice. Both times she’d failed.

  “Yea, I guess.” Easy didn’t know what else to think. He still wondered if someone was getting into the house in a way that he hadn’t found yet. “Does this place have a basement?”

  “No. The water table is too high.”

  “Hmmm.” He glanced around, still searching for an explanation. “It is a conundrum…that I will solve.”

  While he wasn’t looking her way, she checked him out. Like a kid in a candy store, Jewel feasted her eyes on what she knew would be very bad for her. Broad shoulders, fallen angel face, nice ass. “While you contemplate the mysteries of aging architecture, I’m going to head home. Thanks for the meal and thanks for letting me hang out while I regrouped from the willies.”

  Easy doffed his hat. “I’m glad I could be of service.” Following her out the door, he trailed her as she walked home.

  “You don’t have to come with me,” Jewel told him; a bit amused. Although, truth be told, she was a little glad for the company. “I’m by myself most of the time.”

  “A woman like you shouldn’t be. Remember, I’m just next door if you need me for anything.”

  “I appreciate the offer, but I’ll be fine.” She made her way, catlike, through the shadows.

  “Anytime. At all. Just whistle.”

  Jewel sped up a bit, as if trying to outrun temptation. Stepping up on the first landing of stairs, she paused and turned to face him. “I’ll be fine. That’s one of the perks of having a built-in alarm system. Sometimes, I get a little advanced notice of danger.” She zeroed in on his sexy mouth. “Like with you. You’re sweet, but you’re trouble.”

  Easy didn’t seem to take offense. “Are you saying I ought to come with a warning label?”

  With a sigh, she turned to go upstairs, leaving him standing alone in the shadows. “I’m saying you do come with a warning label, Mr. Blackhawk. And I’m one of the few who can read it.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  “Warning label, my ass. What she was reading wasn’t a warning label, it was a damn Welcome sign,” Easy fussed as he made his way back to the rent house.

  As he climbed the steps and let himself in through the front door, he wondered at how everything seemed to have changed since he left Belle Chasse early that morning. He thought he was just renting a house from a lady, no big deal. Now, he found himself thoroughly intrigued by this woman and her lifestyle. “Well, at least I won’t be bored.”

  Making his way from one room to the other, Easy made a mental list of things to do. “Need to get the cable turned on. Make a list of household items I’ll need. Toilet paper, for sure. Need to check on WIFI too. I’ll be sure and ask Jewel about that tomorrow.” He grinned. “Any excuse, you hound dog, you.”

  As he moved from one square room to the other, he noted the decor. Antique parlor furnishings, heavy-framed mirrors, even crystal chandeliers that looked like upside-down wedding cakes. “This is a mite fancier than the rustic Texas décor at Packsaddle.”

  When he came to the room he’d be staying in, he did admire the bed. It looked comfortable as hell. King-size and smothered in a pile of pillows. He sorta wanted to take a running jump and land in the middle of all that softness. “Probably break the bed, be my luck.” So, he didn’t, he was good.

  Once he finished showering, Easy unpacked the duffle bag and stored his clothes in the large oak armoire. The hour wasn’t late, but without television or an overnight guest, his entertainment options were limited. After rummaging around the room, he located a couple of interesting books. “Murder mysteries.” Flipping off the overhead light, he turned on the lamp, then settled under the covers to read himself to sleep.

  In a few minutes, he was deep into a whodunit set in the middle of a spooky swamp. Very appropriate. Snuggling down into the pillow, Easy’s eyes grew wide as he turned one page after another.

  And that’s when he felt it…the weird sensation of being watched. Lowering the book, he looked around the room. “All right, cut it out, Blackhawk. You’re imagining things.” He returned to reading, but in a moment or two, he felt a coldness on the back of his neck, and a tingling sensation edged down his spine. Not the erotic kind either. “Blast it!” He chunked the book on the covers and turned out the light.

  Closing his eyes, he laid there in the darkness, determined to get some sleep.

  And that’s when the noises started.

  Scuffling noises, like a pair of feet shuffling across the hall floor.
>
  Ripping down the covers, Easy jumped to his feet – and stood stock still. Listening. Did he imagine what he’d just heard?

  No. There it was again. The noise repeated itself – footsteps in the hall, stopping right outside his bedroom door. With a snarl to his lip, Easy literally leaped from where he was standing on the rug next to the bed, all the way to the door, a good four and a half foot. In the same powerful move, he grasped the door knob and turned it – to reveal – nothing.

  Charging into the hall, he looked both ways – nothing.

  With determined strides, he stalked through the house, checking every nook and cranny.

  Nothing.

  “Well, dammit. Dammit to hell. Gallivanting around in my undershorts.” He hoped to high heavens that Jewel wasn’t watching him through the open curtains. “What the fuck is going on?” His mind raced through the possibilities. Was someone in the house and eluding him? Was there an animal? One thing for certain, he’d heard footsteps outside his bedroom door.

  With a resigned sigh, he returned upstairs to bed. All was quiet for about an hour. Easy actually dozed off to sleep – when a loud thump resounded through the house. Followed by another and then another. Soon, it was a chorus. Thuds. Bangs. More walking.

  Easy climbed from the bed and repeated his earlier course through every room. When nothing turned up, he retreated to the bed and sat on the side of the mattress. He rubbed his arms and chest, trying to rid himself of the unmanly goosebumps erupting on his skin. “For fuck’s sake,” he muttered under his breath. His mind was going places he’d never thought it would go. Such goings on was his brother’s territory – not his.

  But when someone started running up and down the stairs, he did something very un-Easy like…he laid down and covered up his head with the pillow.

  And he stayed that way until he fell asleep about the time the sun rose.

  * * *

  “I gotta bite!”

  Hearing the jubilant announcement, Easy headed around Jewel’s house and set out toward the bayou. To his amazement, there were boardwalks laid out to cut through the bog and give a person access to the water. As he moved slowly down one of the walkways, his hand running along the top of the rough pole handrail, Easy tried to envision being the one to build this. “Nope, I’ll stick to fences,” he muttered. Wrinkling his nose, he acknowledged the peculiar smell of the swamp – a bit fishy, a light aroma of flowers, a little hint of decay. Not totally unpleasant, but different than he was used to.