by G A Chase
The loa looked down at his now-empty shot glass. “The problem must be the opening I punched between the realms when I got caught up in Agnes’s hurricane. All on her own, Serephine wouldn’t be able to handle that much energy. The power of a single lightning strike would shred the girl’s soul to ribbons.”
Kendell refilled the dark man’s glass. “So if the problem is in hell, how do we fix it?”
“I’m afraid there are other complications. Between my using the bank as the seventh gate to Guinee while designating its office as your fourth gate from hell to life, and Colin’s action of pulling Serephine through the gate—not to mention the fact that Agnes dropped me there out of her hurricane—the bank is no longer interdimensionally stable.”
Myles gripped the cane, fearful of what the loa might say next. “What, exactly, does that mean?”
“On my side, I’ll need to move the seventh gate to Guinee. Before I can do that, however, the bank itself will need to be demolished. That’s the only way to free up a gate location. Since it was built in your world, that’s where it needs to be destroyed.”
Myles looked at Kendell in disbelief. “He’s not honestly suggesting we bomb New Orleans Bank and Trust, is he? That’s just insane.”
Baron Samedi downed another shot, this time joined by Myles. “It’s the only way to seal the breach between our three worlds. If the breakdown continues, I can’t contain the dead souls in Guinee—though ghosts might be the least of your worries. There are a lot of frightening dimensions out there. Once a rift develops, it can be like trying to pull a loose thread off a sweater. The whole thing can unravel.”
Kendell shook her head like a bobblehead doll on a dashboard after the car had just slammed into a pothole. “Can we at least rely on you to help? Terrorism isn’t really part of our job description.”
“I’ll have my work cut out for me already. If the seventh gate is unstable, I’ll need to keep an eye out for wayward souls. Once the new gate is established, it will be a mad dash to replenish the deep waters.”
Myles continued staring at the empty chair long after Baron Samedi faded back to Guinee. “We’re going to jail. Either we’re responsible for the apocalypse, or we’re labeled terrorists because we blew up a bank, or we fail and suffer both fates. I wouldn’t even know how to go about blowing up a building.” He looked at Kendell, who appeared equally stunned. “We’d have to warn everyone to get out. This is insane.”
“The good news is we could slip Colin in right under the loas’ noses.”
Myles couldn’t believe those words had come from his love. “Sure, no problem. If we’re not thrown in some dark pit for the rest of our lives, we’ll just take crazy-ass Colin for a little walk through Guinee while they rebuild. How did we get into this mess?”
“If I remember correctly, we bought an antique pipe tool.”
He stared at the closed green shutters. “I know Colin is sitting in our alternate dimension, waiting for me to open that hidden bar, but until we take care of Sere, I think I’m happy to let the bastard just sit and stew. I just can’t deal with him right now.”
He expected a counterargument from Kendell, but she just sat back with her arms crossed as if watching the devil squirm in the next room. “We don’t even have a plan for dealing with the bank. Saving Sere has to be our priority. As you’ve often told me, one thing at a time.”
* * *
Kendell walked with Myles back to their apartment. The dogs needed to be fed. Even with Polly and the girls checking on the pups, Kendell needed her canine time. “I guess we could talk to Delphine. Maybe there’s a voodoo way to make it look like we blew up the bank.”
Myles walked with such stiff conviction that she could tell her idea of consulting Delphine was a nonstarter. “Since we’re dealing with the loas of the dead,” he said, “I doubt they’d be fooled by a mere voodoo practitioner. I think we’re going to have to research how to actually blow up the building. Joe Cazenave might know about demolitions. He’s never been very forthcoming about his paramilitary training, but he’s gotten us out of some tough scrapes in the past.”
The thought of going through with Baron Samedi’s plan made Kendell shake. “Since Joe still works for the police, he might throw our asses in jail just for mentioning the idea. I might do the same thing if I were in his position.”
“Or he could provide us cover with the cops. He also has the advantage of being associated with Luther Noire. Surely there must be something left in the World Trade Center’s vaults that could pulverize a two-hundred-year-old building.”
“Thanks for subtly adding that we’ll be destroying a piece of architectural history.” She looked down the street at the imposing marble building. “Though it’s not like some wonderful event took place there. History might not mind the destruction of Baron Malveaux’s seat of power. Sounds like the loas don’t have any qualms about losing the structure.”
“All they care about is Guinee.”
She looked back at Myles. “And what do we care about?”
“At the moment,” he said, “saving Sere, but preventing our world from being overrun by monsters isn’t a bad mission either. I guess, all things considered, destroying the bank isn’t the worse outcome.”
She stopped at a coffee shop. The prospect of seeing the dogs pulled at her heart, but saving the world wouldn’t wait. “Let’s get a cup of coffee.”
He looked at her as if she’d lost her mind. “Did you miss the part about risking our necks to prevent the apocalypse? We don’t really have time to stop for a latte.”
She nodded over her shoulder at the police station. “Step one is contacting Joe. He explained to me that being across the street from his office, this coffee shop is kind of an unofficial way of making contact with him. Lots of confidential informants hang out around the back tables. Just keep the conversation light.”
They ordered their drinks and found a table near the front, overlooking the imposing building. “Once this is over,” Myles said, “do you think we’ll ever hear from Sere and Sanguine again?”
The way the steam rose from his cup reminded Kendell of the ghost they were trying to save. Losing touch with the swamp witch who was more sister than friend wasn’t something she wanted to contemplate. “Hopefully, we won’t have to destroy all of our communication network. I’d like to believe I’ll still talk to her on a regular basis. I want to watch Sere grow up.”
“Do you think they’ll ever find their way home?”
His questions made her heart sink to the pit of her stomach, but her sorrow was for herself, not her friend. “I think Sanguine has found the meaning she’s always sought. All the pieces of her life’s puzzle are put into place by that little girl.”
A barista cleaned the empty table next to them. As she walked by, she set a fresh napkin next to Kendell’s cup.
Kendell discreetly unfolded the soft white paper and read, “Benches by the ferry terminal in an hour.”
She looked around the coffee shop to make sure no one was watching as she stashed the napkin in the pocket of her jeans. “Looks like we’d better get going if we’re going to spend some time with the dogs.”
56
Myles had never been great at cloak-and-dagger. Each time he tried to be secretive about something, he felt the whole world was watching. Kendell didn’t make him feel any subtler. She often knew what he was up to even before he did. At least the tourists who walked the riverfront were too busy enjoying the city to be curious about the couple trying too hard to look casual.
“Why does Joe want to meet us out here? I’d have thought some side alley or back room would be more discreet.”
“The last time I saw him, he explained that most of New Orleans is under surveillance. Something about the moving water of the river prevents the usual electronic eavesdropping.” Kendell found the bench Joe had indicated in his note and sat on the cold metal.
Myles continued to stand, staring across the river. “I can’t stop thinking abo
ut what Baron Samedi said. It’s not just our reality at risk. As if the threat of letting monsters into our world wasn’t enough pressure.”
She reached out and took his hand to bring him back to the bench. “We can only worry about what’s in front of us. Mary can take care of herself. I’d guess every seer is keeping an eye on the future right now. If each dimension is the result of different choices being made, then all we have to deal with is what we’re about to do. There must be some version of Kendell and Myles that gets this right. It might as well be us.”
Joe walked up with a large coffee and sat next to Myles. “It’s about time you two made contact. Luther’s going out of his mind. The poor guy is running himself ragged rounding up all the stuff Colin set loose. Now, with the energy drain caused by whatever Professor Yates is doing, the vaults Luther is digging up are proving hard to control. Mind explaining what’s going on with the paranormal-power generation plant? If the World Trade Center loses much more capacity to the great beyond, Luther won’t be able to keep the artifacts he already has safe, let alone find the rogue vaults. I don’t need to tell you the kind of trouble this world will be in if all those magical items are set free.”
Such a lengthy speech coming from the usually laconic lieutenant was a testament to the level of the problem. Myles took a sip of his coffee, wishing there was something harder mixed in with the caffeine. “I’m afraid our problem is even worse than Salem’s witches getting their brooms back. There’s a crack between dimensions, and the only solution we’ve found is to blow up New Orleans Bank and Trust.”
Joe took a long sip of his coffee while staring out at the water. It wasn’t until he’d had a second sip that he turned back to Myles. “Does this have to do with the seventh gate to Guinee lining up with your fourth gate to hell? Luther always feared a short between the power lines might be possible.”
Kendell held her cup between her knees. “Colin pulled Serephine from Guinee into his hell as she stood guard over the fourth gate.”
“That would do it,” Joe said. “So now there’s a runaway reaction happening between dimensions, and you think blowing up the transfer station will stop the flow?”
Myles was just happy Joe hadn’t called for backup the minute they mentioned blowing up the bank. “I know it sounds drastic, but that’s why we need your help. Neither Kendell nor I are bomb experts. I wouldn’t even know where to start. I do have the cane Baron Samedi gave me, so we can move between dimensions. Maybe we could attack the building from another realm?”
Joe shook his head. “Wouldn’t work. The magic in that place isn’t confined to the two gates. Margery Laroque relies on an overlapping series of security systems that have been in place for generations. That’s why Baron Malveaux moved the seventh gate there in the first place. Marie Laveau promised him voodoo spells to keep the bank safe. In fact, we won’t even be able to use electronic equipment without them being disarmed by magic. That means no cell phones, remote detonators, or battery-operated timers. We’ll be down to old-school fuses and simple explosives. I do love a challenge. As for the more aggressive security spells Marie cast, I wouldn’t even know where to start.”
Myles warmed his hand on the hot coffee cup. “Baron Samedi is on board with destroying the seventh gate. He holds himself partially responsible for the breach. Since they’re the ones in charge of enforcing Marie’s spells, we shouldn’t have to worry about demons coming through from the beyond to stop us. Though I guess that won’t do much in terms of freeing up electronic equipment.”
“Having the lords of voodoo refrain from interfering will help, but that only neutralizes the paranormal aspect of Margery’s security system. Since there’s so much magical energy imbedded in the very marble of that building, using spells to conduct our operation isn’t going to do us any good. So we’re talking about a physical act of destruction, and this is where we have to consider the bank’s second line of defense. As sister of the chief of police, Margery has access to the most advanced surveillance systems. From the moment someone steps into her building, their picture is sent to a private room in the police station. Within minutes, the bank is aware of everything that’s known about their guest. Her security adds new meaning to the phrase Big brother is watching you.”
Damn it, Myles thought. Though Joe was a lieutenant in the force, he’d already lost his job once because of their activities. He didn’t want to embroil Joe in a scheme that was likely to end in arrest. “That’s a pretty impressive security system.”
“It is and it isn’t. Brother and sister have always presented a united front to the world, no matter the family squabbles or sibling rivalries, but their relationship turned icy when Gerald’s nephew, Lincoln Laroque, ingested the essence of Baron Malveaux and became Colin Malveaux.”
Myles still had nightmares about being rounded up after his shift at the bar on Bourbon Street to have the situation explained to him by the chief of police himself. “The chief all but had me abducted by his goons not long after that event. Though he’d never admit it publicly, he did express his concerns to me in private about Lincoln becoming Colin. I think the meeting was as much a warning as an encouragement.”
“Makes sense,” Joe said. “Brother and sister have always respected each other’s position of power. But as we know, Colin wants it all. The chief will never risk his position in a direct confrontation with his nephew. It’s always more of a chess match than an all-out fight with the Laroques. You’ll have to assume every police officer you see is vying for the chief’s job. Many of them think Gerald keeps his title through influence and unsavory activities more than reputation and arrests. But having him potentially on our side could prove useful. He might be willing to look the other way if it means bringing his sister down a peg or two and keeping Colin out of the game. Of course, that would be contingent on New Orleans Bank and Trust being able to rebuild. The chief would never accept seeing his sister destroyed.”
“We don’t want the money,” Kendell said. “We just need to demolish the baron’s old office. Maybe all we need is a good fire.”
As if that would be any easier, Myles thought. “Baron Samedi was pretty clear on his need for the whole building to come down, but the bank vaults must be safe from such an event. Our main concern is that no one gets hurt.”
From his seat on the bench, Joe tossed his empty cup into a garbage can ten feet away. “As part of Margery’s deal with the force, most of her security guards are off-duty uniformed policemen. If we struck at night and could manage a big enough distraction, we might be able to pull my brothers in blue back to their primary job of protecting the city.”
Kendell got up as if stretching her back, a move that made their encounter look like a light discussion rather than three people considering an act of subversion. “Mary hooked me up with the city’s homeless population. From the moment they abducted Baron Malveaux while he inhabited Myles’s body, every vagrant on the street has kept an eye out for anything that would threaten my safety. If I were to say the word, I’m sure that many unnoticed people could create quite a ruckus.”
Joe nodded. “That would give the chief cover to pull the team covering surveillance off the bank’s monitors as well, not that there’s anything more than a skeleton crew in the IT room at night anyway. With everyone’s backs turned, we can set off a smoke alarm in the bank just to ensure no one is left in the building.”
Myles got up to join Kendell in her admiration of the river. “That takes care of everything but the big one. How do we blow up a building that large and substantial? It’s not like it’s some termite-riddled house ready to fall down on its own. That thing was built like a Roman temple meant to last a thousand years.”
“That’s why you called me,” Joe said. “Give me a few days to put something together. In the meantime, round up your group of miscreants. We’re going to need all the help and distractions we can manage.”
* * *
Kendell continued looking at the water as Joe made his wa
y back into the Quarter. “The easiest way to round up the city’s homeless would be for me to go talk to Mary. I know she’ll be happy to help, so there’s not much point in you joining me for the trip across the river.”
Myles leaned on the metal handrail beside her. “With the band helping Professor Yates, Joe dealing with Luther Noire and Chief Laroque, and Delphine out of the picture, what should I do?”
She put her hand on his. “Now that we have a plan for the bank, it’s time you met with Colin. Just because we have to deal with this gaping hole between dimensions doesn’t mean we can turn our backs on him forever. He’ll be looking to get through the fifth gate. Just don’t get into a fight, because I’m not there to stand in the way.”
Myles turned his back on the river. “It’s just the two of us now, so you can tell me the truth. Do you really think we should let Colin back here? We convinced him that his plan to save the souls under the loas’ watch in Guinee wouldn’t work because each person requires so much energy that he’d never be able to bring more than a single spirit across from Guinee to put in one of our puppets. But that was before we knew of the gate-system hole that was responsible for draining Sere’s needed power. Once we have this rift repaired, what’s to stop him from continuing his pursuit?”
She looked past him to the other side of the river. The ferry was still docked at the Westbank terminal. “I’d say I trust Sanguine to keep him in line, but even she’s had trouble preventing him from trying to escape hell. I guess I trust in his love for his daughter—although, like walking on rotted-out boards, I’m hesitant to put too much weight on that feeling.”
“Even if his love is true, I’m not sure that’s good enough. Look at what we’re currently dealing with because of his arrogance. In just trying to save his daughter, he’s torn a hole between realities. We can’t leave any loose ends. He just grabs onto them and pulls until the whole world unravels.”