Spirits of the Bayou

by Morgan Hannah MacDonald

  A child of around eleven or twelve stood behind the counter. Her complexion was a pale milk chocolate. Her long black curls were large and soft. Marlene had never seen such eyes, they were a lovely shade of lavender. “How may we help?” Her confidence was astounding in one so young.

  “We would like to see Mama Arelia,” Delphine said.

  “She’s with a client now, but you can wait.”

  Marlene let her sister handle things while she gravitated toward some large glass jars on a shelf behind a far counter. They had herbs, roots, dried frogs, and chicken feet. There were bottles of oils. The counter had bowls of stones and crystals. One full wall was covered in different masks. She wandered over to the shelves.

  One shelf was filled with candles in glass holders with words and images painted on them. There were handmade dolls. Another shelf had religious icons, some catholic and others she couldn’t begin to name. Except, of course, for the one that looked like Marie Laveau. Everyone in New Orleans knew of the most famous Voodoo Queen who lived in the 1800’s.

  “Yo maman axe you not to touch.”

  At the young girl’s voice, Marlene turned around and spied Jon-Luc in front of some dolls. His hand receded to his side.

  The doll was a skeleton with a top hat. The next one had the body of a smartly dressed man, but with the head of an alligator. Then there was a sitting skeleton adorned with a Mardi Gras mask of colored feathers, and a chicken stood nearby.

  “Who are you?” Jon-Luc asked.

  The girl puffed up her chest. “I am Celestine Glapion.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I am a voodoo priestess. My grandmere owns this shop and I help her run it.”

  Jon-Luc scrunched up his face. “You’re just a kid.”

  “I am no kid, I am twelve.”

  “Too young to be a voodoo priestess,” Jon-Luc said.

  “What do you know?” The little girl put her fists on her hips. “You know nothing.”

  Just then an old woman emerged from a back room. She was short, plump and dark skinned. She wore a purple turban over her long dreadlocks. A white dress with a colorful vest and beads dangled around her neck. A white woman followed her. When they got to the curtain dividing the shop from the convenience store, the white woman thanked the dark woman, who smiled warmly and hugged her.

  After the customer left, the young girl approached. “Grandmere, this lady wants to speak to you.” Celestine pointed to Delphine, who stood at the counter waiting.

  Mama Arelia opened her hands and beckoned to Delphine. “Come, chil’.” She had a beautifully melodic Creole accent. Marlene watched her sister. The woman wrapped her hands around Delphine’s and closed her eyes. Mama nodded. “Ah, yes.” She opened her eyes. “I can help.”

  She started toward Jon-Luc. “Nothin’ ta fear, chil’.” She took his hand. She stopped at the entrance to the back room and turned around. “Chew come.” She pointed first to Marlene, and then to Delphine, before she disappeared through the curtain.

  Marlene was last to enter the room.

  The cement floor and the walls were painted red. There was an altar at the far end with a basket of fruit on the floor in front. The top of it was beautifully decorated with lace and strings of beads. It had many candles, an icon of the Virgin Mary and a vase with flowers.

  A pretty symbol was drawn on the floor in a yellow powder. It had a candle at the top left and an arrow pointing away. An incense burner, like her parish priest carried in Mass, sat on the floor at the end of the arrow.

  The woman took Jon-Luc and gently guided him to sit on the floor, then motioned to the sisters. “Come, come. You sit.”

  Marlene and Delphine sat on the floor where indicated.

  “I do many spells. One fur protection, one ta forget, an’ one to shield dis poor chil’ from de visions.” She picked up a candle with one hand and a glass of water with the other. She began to chant and dance around. Every now and then she would act like she was drinking the water, and then spit it out on the ground.

  Once she made her rounds, she deposited the glass and candle on her altar, and then picked up a gourd with beads around it and shook it. When she’d finished with that, she grabbed an abalone shell filled with yellow powder. She drew a cross on Jon-Luc’s forehead and mumbled some words.

  Marlene was mesmerized by the entire process. At one point, the woman put her hands on Jon-Luc’s head and said more words, their meaning lost on Marlene. She put a bunch of stuff in a bowl and sat on the floor in front of him. In the end, she pulled out a curlicue shell attached to a long leather strip and placed it around the boy’s neck.

  “Dis powerful gris gris. He don’ remove dis an’ he stay protected. Don’ see no dead.” She faced Marlene with a penetrating stare. “Important ta remember, he reach manhood, chew come back. De hormones mess with da magick.”

  “How old is manhood?” Marlene asked.

  “She means puberty,” Delphine offered.

  Mama Arelia nodded. “Now chew go. I’m much tired.”

  The woman ushered them out of the room.

  “What do I owe you?” Marlene asked.

  “Celeste take care of dat.” Then she spoke to the young girl in Creole.

  “Ya, ya. No one bother you. I promise. Fais dodo,” Celeste answered.

  The plump woman hugged Marlene. “He have no memory of dis. He keep da gris gris on an’ da spirits leave him be.”

  “Thank you, Mama Arelia.” Marlene hugged the woman back tightly and felt her eyes fill with tears.

  She stroked Marlene’s head. “Now, now, chil’. No need for dat. Chew have good boy. He gonna be fine.” A blanket of warmth and peace covered her from head to toe at the elderly woman’s touch. She didn’t want to let go, but the woman pulled away and dried Marlene’s tears with her thumbs.

  “Thank you, Mama.” Delphine hugged the woman and stood back.

  Then Mama placed her hands on Jon-Luc’s cheeks. “Chew, chil’, gonna be okay. Chew gonna grow an’ be fine man who help many.”

  Marlene was surprised by these words, but thankful just the same. Mama Arelia turned Jon-Luc around and gently pushed him from behind. “Chew go now. Mama need nap. Chew tire dees ol’ bones.” She chuckled as she hobbled away and disappeared through the back curtain.

  SEVEN

  Two Years Later…

  Marlene slept in the chair by her son’s bed while she waited for him to wake. They had rushed him to the hospital in the middle of the night because he’d become violently ill. His appendix became inflamed and they had to do emergency surgery. They were lucky they got to the hospital in time before it burst. Bill had been there with her through the night, but had left to shower and go to work.

  “Mama! Mama!”

  Her son’s hysteria made Marlene leap from her chair and run to his side. “What is it, mon petit?”

  He stared at her with big round eyes and pointed to the end of the bed.

  Marlene followed his finger. “What is it, baby?”

  “Who are all those people?”

  “Pauvre bête! I’m so sorry, baby. Mama forgot.” Marlene grabbed her purse and fished around until she found his shell necklace. They had given it to her before they rushed him into surgery. She slipped the leather around his neck and threaded the shell under his hospital gown so it touched his skin.

  “Better?” She sat on the bed holding him at arms length.

  “Where did they go?”

  Marlene stroked his head. “It doesn’t matter, baby. It’s just good that they’re gone. Come on, you must rest.” She lay down beside him and held him close while he slept.

  *

  On Jon-Luc’s thirteenth birthday, he woke Marlene in the dead of night. “There’s someone in my room.”

  “What?” His father jumped out of bed and grabbed his gun from the nightstand. “You stay here.”

  She sat on the side of the bed with her son while they waited for her husband to return. Bill was gone a long time
and Marlene began to worry.

  Finally, he walked back into the master bedroom. “You must have had a bad dream. The house is empty and the security system is still armed. Go back to bed, son.” He put the gun back in the drawer and got under the covers.

  Jon-Luc stared at Marlene with a worried expression.

  “Want me to tuck you in?” Marlene asked.

  He nodded.

  “Don’t baby the boy, Marlene. He’s not a child anymore.”

  She ignored her husband and followed her son back to his room. After she kissed him good night, he snatched her hand and squeezed hard.

  “Owe!” Marlene grimaced. “Jon-Luc, what’s wrong with you?”

  His frightened expression alarmed her. He pointed to the corner of the room. She looked, but saw nothing. That’s when it dawned on her. It was back. “What do you see?”

  “That man with the blood on his shirt.” He stared at her with big eyes. “Don’t you see him?”

  “Are you wearing your gris gris?” She could see the leather strip around his neck, but the shell could have fallen off. “Check to see if it’s still there.”

  Jon-Luc pulled it out of his pajama top and showed it to her. The shell was there.

  “We need to see Mama Arelia. I hope she’s still alive, she was pretty ancient when we were there last.”

  “Who’s Mama Arelia?”

  “It doesn’t matter.” She stroked his head. “Do you remember Charlotte?”

  He looked up at her. “I don’t think so, should I?”

  “Never mind.” She hugged her son.

  “Mama, what’s happening to me?”

  Marlene wondered if she should tell her son the truth. After all, he was growing up. This was as good a time as any.

  She stroked his head. “I’m sorry, baby, it’s all my fault.”

  “What is?”

  Marlene climbed up on the bed, lay down beside him and laid his head on her chest. “Since the beginning of time, there have been people in my family who have been blessed, or cursed, depending on the way you look at it.”

  His head flew up and he faced her. “I’m cursed?”

  “No, baby.” She guided his head back down. “You’re perfect.” She mentally slapped herself. She was screwing this entire thing up. “There are people in the Leclere family, like your great aunts, Minnie and Maude, who can see ghosts.”

  “So that man over there is a ghost?” His eyes were the size of saucers.

  “Well, ah, he’s no longer alive.”

  “I don’t want it. Get rid of it.”

  “I know, baby. We’ll go see Mama Arelia tomorrow. She’ll be able to help us. Now go to sleep.”

  “I don’t want to be alone. Will you stay?”

  “Sure.”

  *

  “What the hell?”

  Marlene opened her eyes to see her husband standing over her and their son as they snuggled together in his bed. She shook her son awake. “Jon-Luc, go take your shower and get ready for school.” He looked from his mother to his father and ran out of the room.

  “Dammit, Marlene. The way you baby him, he’s going to grow up to be a worthless mama’s boy.”

  “Let me get you some coffee.” She slid off the bed and went to their room to dress. She was eight months pregnant, so she moved slower than usual these days. Her husband followed close behind.

  “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The boy is thirteen now. He doesn’t need to be sleeping with his mama every time he has a bad dream.”

  “We’ll talk about this later.” She grabbed her clothes from the closet and set them on the bed.

  “There’s nothing to talk about.” He stomped into the bathroom and slammed the door.

  She sighed and dressed quickly before rushing downstairs. Marlene was busy scrambling up some eggs when Bill entered the kitchen. She could tell by the expression on his face that his mood had not lightened one little bit. She poured some coffee and handed him the mug. He grunted and sat at the table. He buried his nose in the brief he’d brought home the night before and she considered herself lucky.

  She put four pieces of bacon on a plate, and some eggs before she set the meal before him. He set the papers down and glared at her. “We need to talk.”

  She sank into the chair opposite him and placed her hands on the table while she waited.

  “You need to let our boy grow up. Soon your time will be taken up with the new baby. Jon-Luc will no longer be able to rely on you like he has. Do you understand?”

  His calm voice surprised her. “I know. I’m sorry.” Since he was being so reasonable, she decided to tell him the truth. “It was important that I stay with him just this once.”

  “Why was last night different from any other night? He’s had bad dreams before.”

  “It wasn’t a dream.”

  Bill put his hand over hers on the table. “I searched the entire house, there was no intruder. The alarm was still set. Of course it was a dream. What other explanation could there be?”

  Marlene gazed into his warm eyes and felt secure in her decision. “He saw a ghost.”

  “He…what?”

  “He’s going through puberty, Mama Arelia said her charm might not help once his hormones started going wacky.”

  “Who is Mama Arelia, and what does she know about our son?”

  “She’s a Voodoo Mambo who helped Jon-Luc before with his visions. I just need to take him back to her today and have her fix this.”

  His hand receded. “You’re mixing with Voodoo? Are you out of your ever lovin’ mind?”

  “No. You don’t understand, she’s a good woman. If you just met her—”

  He shook his head. “There will be no Voodoo in this house, do you hear me?”

  “It can’t be helped, Bill. He has the curse.”

  He jumped out of his chair. “Dammit, Marlene, he gets this crazy shit from your side of the family! My parents warned me not to marry you. Insanity is inherited, you know. I should have listened. Everyone knew those damn aunts of yours were nuttier than a fruitcake. Claiming they could talk to ghosts.”

  “Please, Bill, remember your blood pressure.”

  “You should have thought about that before you told me this crap! No son of mine is going to be the town loony. It would make me the laughing stock of the firm. No, we have to get him out of here before it’s too late.”

  Marlene was kicking herself for thinking he could be rational. Because of her stupidity, she could lose her son. “Maybe Jon-Luc could just talk to someone.”

  “Like that helped your wacky aunts? No. We’ll take him to a sanitarium in Baton Rouge. No one knows us there.”

  “Please, Bill, be reasonable.” She burst into tears.

  “He’s going and that’s final. I just hope to God that baby you’re carrying doesn’t catch this insanity.” He stomped out of the kitchen. She heard him snag his keys off the table in the foyer before the door slammed.

  Marlene covered her face and sobbed. She would not allow her son to be locked up in a mental facility. She wished she’d kept her big mouth shut. She’ll take Jon-Luc to see Mama Arelia today, and just tell her husband it had all been a mistake. She’ll make sure Jon-Luc backs her up. She dried her eyes and headed to the bottom of the stairs. “Jon-Luc, it’s time for breakfast!” she yelled.

  She returned to the kitchen and poured him a glass of milk, then fixed them both plates. By the time she’d put them on the table, he still hadn’t shown his face. She walked out into the foyer and yelled up toward the second floor.

  “Jon-Luc?”

  Nothing.

  She climbed to the second floor and went to his room. He wasn’t there and his backpack was gone. He must have snuck out while they were arguing. She prayed he hadn’t heard what the fight was about. She would simply take him to see Mama Arelia when he came home from school.

  But he never returned.

  After contacting his friends and searching the town, they called the police. She made up flie
rs. She and her sisters put them up all over town, but there was no sign of Jon-Luc. He’d simply disappeared. On day seven, Marlene had horrible stomach cramps and began to bleed. She was rushed to the hospital. They had to do an emergency C-section, as the baby was in distress.

  They named their new son Chauvin. Being born three weeks early, his lungs had not completely developed. He needed to be kept in an incubator. This only added to the stress she’d already felt about losing Jon-Luc. Months passed and the police failed to bring her son home. Marlene’s deep depression made it difficult to take care of the new baby.

  Her sisters, Delphine and Georgina, helped until she could get back on her feet. But Marlene was never the same. She didn’t bond with her new child for fear she would lose him too. Although she went through the motions of being a mother to her new son, she never felt it in her heart.

  EIGHT

  Jon-Luc heard his parents arguing; his father wanted to lock him up in the loony bin. Crushed by his mother’s betrayal, he left. That’s how he found himself living on the streets at thirteen. He had no idea what an easy life he’d had until it was gone. He didn’t know anything about hunger or real fear.

  If he hadn’t hooked up with Gator’s crew, he didn’t know what would have happened to him. They picked pockets, snatched purses, and stole from the rich who didn’t need the money to survive. They used Luc as a decoy. Gator told him it was because he had an innocence that made people trust him. Luc learned to use it to his advantage, first with the tourists and later with women.

  His greatest discovery was that he could mask the visions with drugs and alcohol. Once he discovered this, he made certain he was always on a mind-altering substance. As time went by, they graduated from the simple smash and grab to breaking and entering. They’d never been arrested, but Luc wasn’t so sure about Gator’s newest plan.

  They were standing outside a glorious mansion in the 1400 block of Third Street in the Garden District, the richest neighborhood in New Orleans. Surely, a place like this had an alarm system. They’d get caught faster than a hot knife through butter.

  The old Greek Revival sat on a corner lot and took up half the block. It was white with ebony shutters. A black wrought iron filigree fence surrounded the property with spikes on top. A vine-covered arch held a nineteenth century lantern above the gate. An engraved placard nailed to the gate read ‘Thibodeaux’. Baskets of ferns and matching lanterns lined the gallery, as well as the two upper balconies.