I don’t even have my own stuff. It’s all back in Houston still. I have absolutely nothing. I can’t believe I gave up my whole life for this.
Narcisse sat down on the bed and stared at the walls. Then she closed her eyes and felt the gentle rocking of the boat back and forth on the water. After a few deep breaths, she made up her mind. She snapped her eyes open and began to hurry.
First, went to the small desk, pulled out a piece of paper, scrawled out a note, and then deposited it on the bed. Then, she found her purse and pulled out her wallet. Flipping it open, she discovered she only had seventy-five dollars in cash.
At least I have my credit card. Although it’s almost maxed out. Shit. Whatever I have left probably isn’t going to get me all that far.
Taking one last look around the room, she put a change of clothes into her purse, leaving the rest of the suitcase behind. She didn’t want to be encumbered if she was going to be walking. Then she picked up the spare keys to Armand’s boat. For a moment, she felt too guilty to go through with it and set them back down on the dresser. But she knew that without his boat, she would never be able to get out of the swamp. She snatched them back up and stuffed them in her pocket, as though they might escape if she didn’t act quickly.
Narcisse opened the bedroom door slowly and poked her head out to ensure that the hallway was empty. She paused, debating whether to take the front or the back entrance. Rather than venturing out and taking the risk, she went back into the bedroom, shut the door, and crawled out the window onto the deck.
Armand’s room was situated close to the area where they docked the smaller boats. Narcisse quickly sought out his boat and slipped into it, all the while making sure that nobody was around to catch her in the act.
Settling herself in, Narcisse took a deep breath. It had been a long time since she’d piloted a boat. She hoped it was like riding a bike.
Sticking the key into the ignition, she caught her breath when the vessel rumbled to life. Glancing around, she realized she was still alone. As Narcisse put the boat in gear, she realized it was just as easy as it had been a few years before.
She had no idea how to get out of the swamp. She didn’t have a map, and she certainly couldn’t have asked for one without someone becoming suspicious. Narcisse knew that Alligator Bend was east of New Orleans. She focused her gaze on the sunset and headed for the horizon.
* * * *
“Narcisse?” Armand asked, cautiously coming through the door to their quarters. He’d been eager to check on her all afternoon, but he sensed that she needed some space after their difficult conversation over lunch. He felt sorry that things hadn’t gone the way she had intended, and suspected she wasn’t entirely happy with the compromise they’d settled on. He just hoped Narcisse wasn’t too angry at the two of them.
When Narcisse didn’t answer, Armand stepped further into the room. The bed was pristine. It didn’t even look like she’d been there at all, much less gone to sleep like he thought she would. Walking closer, he noticed a folded piece of paper resting on the pillows. The second his eyes landed on it, he felt as though he had been punched in the gut. He didn’t know what it said, but he was sure it wasn’t good.
Dear Armand and Nelson—
I’m sorry to leave like this, but it’s for the best. I believe that I gave this whole mating thing a fair shot. But it’s become clear to me that I don’t really belong with the two of you, or with your congregation.
I also never thought I’d say this, but there are parts of my old life that I miss. I think it would be best if I returned to Houston, found a new job, and started over there.
Since I didn’t have my own boat, I had to take Armand’s. Armand, I’m very sorry for stealing it. I just needed to get out, and it was my only way through the bayou. I docked it in New Orleans, and I hope it’s okay. If it’s not, I’ll pay you back for it as soon as I get back on my feet.
I’m sorry it didn’t work out. Thank you for being so good to me while I was here. I will always remember the adventure we had.
-Narcisse
“Nelson, where are you?” Armand yelled.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, running into the bedroom.
Armand thrust the note into his hands. “This is what’s wrong.”
Nelson read it over and then let it fall to the floor. “Shit. What are we gonna do?”
“I have no fucking clue. Shit, how’s Serafine gonna react when she hears about this?”
“Hell, how’s anybody gonna react when they hear about this? Man, we’re in deep with everyone. First, we claim a mate the wrong way, and then we make her so upset that she’d rather run off than talk to us. We’re in trouble with everyone.”
Nelson sank down on the bed. “I can’t believe we made her so unhappy that she decided to leave. Hell, I can’t believe we made her so unhappy that she ran off without even saying good-bye. We–we really failed with the whole mating thing.”
“We need to bring her back. I–I can’t imagine living the rest of my life without her. I know things got off to a rocky start, but I never thought it would get this bad.”
“We have to go after her,” Nelson said. “That’s all there is to it.”
“But how? And how will we explain where she is in the meantime?”
“We’ll—we’ll say she went back to Houston to get her stuff and return her apartment key. Plausible she woulda done that.”
“They’ll be pissed at us for not goin’ with her.”
“They been pissed at us ever since we got mated. We can’t seem to do nothin’ right around here lately, so we might as well let ’em think we screwed up again. Better to have ’em think we let her go off on her own rather than havin’ ’em think we drove her away.”
Armand sighed. “You have a point. Guess that’s the best plan. So how do we find her?”
“First thing is to trace her credit cards. That’ll let us know whether she rented a car or took a bus or whatever.”
Armand raised his eyebrows in thought and then headed for the desk, where Narcisse’s purse was sitting. His stomach sank when he looked inside and found her wallet sitting there. He held it up for Nelson, whose optimistic expression suddenly collapsed.
“Maybe she took the cards and left the wallet?” he asked.
Even though he knew better, Armand opened it anyway. Her driver’s license was gone, but all of the other plastic cards remained.
“Shit,” he muttered. “No luck. She really don’t want us to find her. Hell, we don’t even know her Houston address. She took her license with her, so we can’t read it off of that.”
“Guess we have to swallow our pride and ask for help.”
“Or we get in your boat right now and go after her. She can’t have gone too far yet.”
Nelson sighed. “I think it would be easier if we got some help.”
“I don’t wanna deal with taking more flak from them, if it’s all the same to you. I just wanna bring my mate back.”
“Okay, okay. Let’s go. Shit, I hope she ain’t lost out on the water. It’s tough to navigate back to the city if ain’t done it before.”
“All the more reason for us to head out right now.”
They hurried out of their quarters, moving quietly to avoid having to ask any questions or get sidetracked with congregation business. Just as they rounded the corner, they came face-to-face with Serafine.
“Where’s your boat, Armand?”
“I don’t know.”
Serafine’s expression was serious, but a trace of amusement danced over her eyes. “That ain’t technically a lie, I guess. You know she took off with it, but you don’t know where she is, exactly.”
Armand swallowed hard. “Did you see that letter or somethin’?”
“Didn’t need to. I saw her takin’ off on your boat and managed to get inside her head a bit before she was too far out of range.”
“Wait,” Nelson snapped. “You saw her takin’ off, and you didn’t do nothin’
to stop her? You let her get away?”
“By the time I got to my own boat, she woulda been halfway down the bayou. Besides, what good would I have done? If she’s mad enough to leave, she wouldn’t listen to reason from me.”
“So where is she now?”
Serafine shook her head. “Don’t know. She’s too far out of range for my powers to work. But you’d best get your act together and find her. She can only be gone for two days before the curse makes her pay.”
A chill raced down Armand’s spine. “What–what do you mean, makes her pay?”
“You know darn well that we can’t leave the congregation for very long before the curse takes hold. That you get sick, that your body and spirit break down, and that you die if you don’t get home in time.”
Nelson shook his head. “We’re gonna go out right now and find her.”
“You’d better. You’re her mates, after all. Whatever happens to her when she’s separated is gonna start happening to you, even though you’re right here. You’re connected in body and spirit. If the curse starts takin’ her, it’s gonna take you, too.”
Armand started pacing. “We’ll go straight to New Orleans, see if my boat’s there. We’ll hunt the entire city for her if we have to. She can’t have gone that far yet.”
“Hope that’s true. Last time this happened, her mates weren’t so lucky. Couldn’t find her. They never came back. That’s—that’s when I became the voodoo queen of this congregation.”
Armand froze. “What do you mean?”
“The voodoo queen is connected to every member of the congregation. Someone takes off and stays gone too long, the voodoo queen suffers just like that person. When Regina died, I was appointed her successor.”
“So it ain’t just her and us—it’s you, too?”
Serafine nodded. “Worst part is, if I go, the congregation is in real trouble. My replacement hasn’t arrived yet. She won’t get here for a few more months.”
“What does that—never mind, I’m sure you can explain it later. We’re gonna go find our mate.”
With a nod to Nelson, they barreled out of the jetty, hopped in Nelson’s boat, and sped down the bayou.
Chapter Six
Nelson and Armand raced through the bayou, heading straight for New Orleans. While there was always the possibility that Narcisse had gotten lost out on the water, they didn’t want to start there. There was too much area to cover. It was better to see if she’d actually docked in the city first, before meandering through the swamp in search of her.
When they reached New Orleans and began riding near the piers, Nelson’s sense of optimism surged the second he saw Armand’s boat. “She’s here somewhere,” Nelson said. “We’ll find her.”
Nelson docked next to Armand’s vessel and they hopped out, racing toward the city.
“You search the area, and see if she’s still anywhere around here,” Nelson said. “I’ll go to the police.”
“You don’t want me to go with you?”
“We’ll be more effective if we split up. I’ll go searching after I talk to the police, and we’ll be able to cover more ground that way. Call me if you find her. If we don’t have anything by the time it gets dark, meet me back on the docks and we’ll go from there.”
Nelson’s hands were shaking the entire bus ride to the police station. But he forced himself to maintain his composure as he walked through the glass doors and approached the reception desk.
“I need to file a missing person’s report, please. My wife is gone.”
“I’m so sorry, sir,” the receptionist said. “How long has she been gone?”
“Ain’t quite sure. Couple of hours now. She probably took off around noon.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, sir, but we only fill out reports for people who have been missing for twenty-four hours. Have you made all possible attempts to reach her?”
“Her cell phone is still in her room, with a note. I ain’t got no way to reach her.”
“Okay. I’ll give you a list of area hospitals to call and check, and you can contact those in the meantime just to make sure she hasn’t been admitted. Did you say something about a note?”
“Yeah, the note saying she was leavin’.”
“Oh.”
Nelson didn’t like the change in the tone of the receptionist’s voice. “What do you mean by that?”
“I mean that the police department doesn’t usually get involved in cases where one spouse has left another. I’m sorry, sir. I know you’re probably in a lot of pain right now, but we need to focus our resources on actual crimes.”
Nelson’s heart sank. “Oh. Right. Of course. Sorry to have wasted your time.”
“Good luck, sir.”
Nelson gave her a halfhearted wave as he exited the police station and began to scour the city for his beloved. After about an hour of wandering, he realized he was near a neighborhood that contained a Greyhound station. He hurried down the sidewalk, but once he reached the concrete building, he scrutinized every inch of space for a glimpse of his mate. Still, no sight of her. Giving up, he approached the ticket counter.
“How can I help you, sir?” the employee asked.
“Hey, I need to know if a woman with dark hair came through here looking for a ticket to Houston.”
The employee raised his eyebrows. “Do you have a photograph, sir? A lot of people come through here, and a lot of people buy tickets to Houston. I’ve seen a lot of dark-haired women come through here.”
Shit. “No, I don’t have one. Sorry to waste your time.”
Nelson kept his eyes on alert as he walked out of the bus station, and didn’t give up as he made his way through the busy streets. But as the sun began to set, he still wasn’t any closer to locating his mate. Finally, he gave up and made his way to the dock, where Armand was standing, looking just as dejected as Nelson felt.
“What did the police say?” Armand asked.
“She left us. They won’t do anything.”
“Now what do we do? Maybe you should stay in the city tonight, look around, and I’ll hit the road. I’ll go to Houston and look for her there, you stay here and keep watch, just in case she’s still hidin’ in plain sight.”
“I don’t know, man. I don’t like the idea of us bein’ separated.”
“You said so yourself that we’d cover more ground that way.”
“Yeah, but that was in the same city. Now we’re talkin’ about crossin’ state lines.”
“You got your cell, and I got mine. If I see her, I’ll bring her back, and if you find her, you call me and I’ll turn my rental car right around.”
Nelson gripped his friend’s shoulder. “Okay, then. Stay safe. Call me the second you find her.”
“Same to you.”
Nelson watched Armand disappear into the city. He debated staying in New Orleans for the night, but decided he would be better off going back to the congregation, taking his lumps from the other gators, and then asking them for help. He knew there was no way he’d find her if he was on his own.
* * * *
Nelson’s stomach was in his shoes as he climbed into the main boat and walked into the kitchen.
Serafine’s face fell the moment she saw him. “You didn’t find her.”
Nelson sighed. “No, we didn’t. I even went to the Greyhound station, but couldn’t get a glimpse of her. I went to the police, but I made the mistake of telling them she left a note. They won’t take the case because a crime hasn’t been committed.”
“What are you talkin’ about in here?” Manuel asked, coming through the door.
“It’s kind of a long story. But we’re in trouble.”
Manuel raised an eyebrow. “What kind of trouble?”
“Narcisse left.”
“What do you mean?”
Nelson swallowed, and knew he had no choice but to tell the truth. “I mean that she ain’t really been happy here, and feels like she don’t belong with the congregation. She’s been real u
nhappy. This afternoon, when we came in for lunch, she tried to talk to Armand and me about it, but we didn’t do a very good job of makin’ her feel better. So she took off to start her life over back in Houston.”
Manuel paled. “What? Didn’t somebody explain to her that she’s bound to the congregation forever? That if she’s gone too long, she’ll die?”
“I gave her a fair warnin’, but either she forgot, or she thought I was lyin’ to her,” Serafine said. “Because she took off, and her note made it sound like she thought she could just keep on goin’ in Houston, like nothin’ bad was gonna happen to her.”
“How the hell did she get to land?”
“Stole Armand’s boat.”
“Goddamn.”
Nelson shook his head. “I know, I know. Armand and I really fucked up. We spent the entire afternoon searchin’ New Orleans. But there’s no trace of her. He went on ahead to Houston to try to track her down, but so far, I haven’t heard a word from him. I’m beginnin’ to think it’s hopeless.”
Manuel banged his fist on the table. “It ain’t hopeless, and you ain’t givin’ up, you hear? I just got my son back. I am not about to let him die. We’re gonna find her, and we’re gonna bring ’em back. You understand me?”
Nelson felt suddenly optimistic by Manuel’s anger. “Yes, sir. I understand you.”
“Good. Let’s start makin’ a plan.”
Manuel hurried away from the table and began to collect other gators in the congregation who would be able to help with the search. Oscar and Xavier were tasked with leading a group of shifters to search New Orleans and inquire with anyone who might have seen her. A small group was sent out to explore the swamps, just in case Narcisse was there. Adele went to work trying to track down Narcisse’s contact information. They couldn’t afford to leave any possibility to chance.
Rose, Charlotte - Bayou Famine [Shifters of Alligator Bend 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 7