by Diane Butler
“He had a perfectly good vehicle and he ruined it,” Roxanne said. “Let him walk.”
“But it’s a long way back and he did help us,” Mary reminded her.
Roxanne sighed and stopped the truck but did not back up. She waited until Lucky retrieved his weapons and duffle bag from the limo and ran to catch up with her. Mary slid over so he could get in. He slammed the door and looked over at Roxanne as she started driving. “For a second I didn’t think you were going to stop.” Roxanne was silent so he looked at Mary. “She wasn’t going to stop, was she?”
Mary pointed at both of them. “You two handle this. Don’t put me in the middle.”
“What are you going to do for transportation?” Roxanne asked. “We are not a taxi service. I can’t believe that you stayed behind as a scout and then wrecked your only transportation. I started to leave you there so you could find another car. I assume that you are handy with one since you so easily destroyed what is so valuable in a ZA.”
“Don’t worry about me,” Lucky said looking out the window. “I’m a survivor, the same as you. You have your talents, I have mine. It would be in your best interest to learn what talents I have as they may become useful to you. We could work together as a team for the survival of both of us, and for Mary.”
Roxanne did not answer and everyone was silent until she reached Lance’s house to let Lucky out. As he opened the door she reached across Mary to grab his arm. “I doubt that we could ever work together as a team. We are both too strong-willed. In fact, how do I know that we didn’t each lead our own group and yours, being stronger, wiped out my group and left me for dead?”
Lucky sighed and yanked his arm out of Roxanne’s clutches. He got out but did not close the door. “Roxanne, I can understand your confusion and even your suspicions since you are struggling to put a life together without a memory of any previous life. We have told you the truth. You were part of us, you were family and it was Rodriquez who took you from us as punishment against me for arresting him before the ZA. What can I tell you, what do you want to know that you haven’t asked that may help ease your fears?”
Roxanne hesitated. “I don’t know what to ask but I can feel that everyone is hiding something. Something that they’re not telling me, but you most of all. I can feel it in you, a tension, a fear that I will find out something about you that you don’t want me to know.”
Lucky hesitated at the door of the cab and decided that if he and Roxanne were ever to get past this hurdle that she should be given all the information of the last two years whether good or bad and to let her process it. It was a gamble and he knew that the others would not approve, but he could not continue toying with her any longer. “All right Roxanne. The fact is that we were lovers until your disappearance.” He gently shut the door but stayed at the window. “Now put that in your Rugaru spirit and see what answers you come up with.”
Both Mary and Roxanne gasped at his words as he walked away. They watched him walk up the sidewalk and into the house yet Roxanne still did not put the truck into gear to drive away. Finally Mary asked, “What was he talking about Roxanne? What’s a Rugaru? What was he calling you? Is it bad?”
Roxanne shook herself out of her daze and put the truck into gear. “He knows what direction we come from now. I don’t like that. Don’t like it at all!”
“A Rugaru, Roxanne?”
“Yes, I was shocked that he knew of the word and wonder why he chose it. A Rugaru is a swamp legend said to be created by witches to scare people away from their coven. Others say that it is true and there are different variations of it. Basically it’s a woman who transforms into an animal and can be bloodthirsty. The fact that Lucky used it in reference to me is confusing and concerns me. Shoes, the woman who healed me kept referring to me as a spirit or goddess of wild animals and Lance..…Lance was afraid of me yet I never knew why. By Lucky using that term he was actually putting me in the bayou when in the past he always associated me with his group. Why the change now?”
She pulled into the yard and turned the truck around to back it up to the pier on the other side of the house. “Have you ever been afraid of me Mary?”
“No. I’ve never had cause to be afraid of you Roxanne. I’ve seen you struggle with yourself at times, seen you sad at times but I would always trust you and want you to be my partner.” They got out of the truck to unhitch the trailer and the two canines jumped out to put their nose down and sniff out any possible new arrivals while they were gone.
“What about Lucky’s reference that he was your lover, Roxanne? Did that bring back any memory?”
Roxanne shook her head, “No, nothing felt further from the truth. No link at all. Just….nothing. I can’t imagine it since we are both too head-strong to be tied together. I must have been a different person then, perhaps I was traded to him and it was not my choice. I will need to ask him more on the subject but I’m hoping he will stay away. I find him incapable of taking care of himself and to be an annoyance. I don’t have patience for the game he pulled today with the limo.”
Roxanne spent the rest of the day working on the boat and motor and came into the house exhausted. Mary had to go out several times to warn her that it was getting dark and that she hadn’t eaten. Once she took water out to Roxanne and asked, “Why the rush? You don’t need to do this all in one day, Roxanne.”
“I’ve been gone from the bayou too long. It’s time to get back. I’m worried about my healer and the bayou seems to be calling lately, especially since Lucky used that term.” She looked up at the windows to see Max watching her. Max had never been friendly to the guests who had taken up residence in his home and had only tolerated them. Roxanne loved all animals but felt as if Max was spying on her, testing her as when he lead the zombie back to their place.
That night was the first time that Mary woke up in a sweat because the nighttime temperature did not drop and there was still humidity in the air. She missed the cool breezes that usually came through the house and knew that summer was upon them. There was a full moon shining through her window and she could see Mutt sleeping at the foot of her bed. He stirred when she got up and went to the window but he waited to see if she would leave the room. She looked down at the pier to see Roxanne standing there in the dark with Cowboy at her side. Mary pulled a wrinkled pack of cigarettes out of the end table and lit one. When she finished it she went back to bed and Roxanne was still standing out there.
“Since when did you start smoking?” Roxanne asked as they were preparing breakfast the next morning.
Mary almost dropped the plate that she was holding. “Since I was twelve. How did you know?”
“I could smell it last night while out at the pier. I assume you were still in your room or Mutt would have come for me.” She opened two cans of dog food and put the plates down to feed the canines. “You’re too young but I won’t try to stop you. However, I won’t search for cigarettes for you either, nor will I trade to keep you in supply.”
“Agreed. It’s my responsibility.”
“I have never seen you do it while we were on a supply run so I will give you credit that you are aware that the smell could alert people that we are near.” She changed the subject knowing that Mary was smart enough to use her own judgment. “I need to find some oil for the outboard motor but I just don’t feel like another run today like the one we had yesterday. And, of course, Lucky will flag us down and ask to come with us or to take him somewhere. I was looking at the map,” she pulled it before her as they sat at the table eating, “and if we make a right instead of the left we usually make to go toward Mamou we will pass other houses along this same inlet and out to the canal. That way we won’t need to go past Lucky and it should be an easy run with a few scattered cottages before the road comes to a dead end.
“I thought you said that you wanted to question Lucky some more.”
“Yes, but on my terms, not his. And not while traveling in a truck. When I’m on a supply run I need my full
attention on the surrounding area.”
Lucky had not slept that night, waiting for Roxanne to return, hoping that she would return. He had thrown enough information out there in just those two sentences to grab her attention and had noticed how long she sat out front before driving away. He had interviewed cases where people had come out of a coma and their family insisted that they were not the same person with none of the characteristic that they were familiar with over the years. He had been remembering some of the things that Rodriquez’s man had told them and was beginning to think that Morgan was right and that Roxanne was lost to them. Or, at least the Roxanne they knew. And Lance was definitely frightened of her but would not speak of it out of fear. Lucky knew fear when he saw it regardless of how Lance explained it away or tried to avoid the subject.
What was it that the man with Rodriquez had called her? A witch, a she-devil, a spirit who had put a curse on him and killed others in his group. He remembered how ruthlessly Roxanne had killed KC when they were in Tennessee and without remorse she had killed her husband Ed. Lucky had seen how Mutt stalked the guy wearing Roxanne’s holster and who was doomed as soon as Mutt caught its scent. It was not a curse, but then there was that strange tale of a coyote that would come in the night and Roxanne shows up with Cowboy. Whatever had happened to Roxanne in the bayou, whoever she had stayed with for the last eight months had taught Roxanne well. Like those people who he had interviewed coming out of a coma, the Roxanne he knew had disappeared and a new person had taken her place.
If she was curious or angry at his words or wanted revenge then she would come during the night if the night had become her friend. He sat on his porch alert and waiting, hoping for her appearance. If they were to retain any part of the friendship they once had, she needed to come to him.
He was leaning back in his chair with his feet on the porch rail when he saw the illumination of headlights coming from the north road behind him. Unless Roxanne had taken a different route she would not be coming from that direction. He quickly jumped up and went inside to see the car pass, heading toward Mamou. It passed too quickly to see how many people were in it but he thought that they were either foolish to be traveling at night or were intent on reaching some place known to them. If they were looking for shelter they would have been traveling at a slower pace as they reached the houses on his corner but they never slowed down. He sat up all night but the car never came back, neither did Roxanne.
Roxanne and Mary were cleaning up when both animals came to attention. Roxanne was wearing her holster, Mary threw on her home-make holster and both grabbed their staffs to go to the front door. Roxanne was not surprised to see Lucky walking up their long driveway under the trees but she was not pleased to see that he had both his back-pack and a duffle bag with him. “Looks like he plans on staying awhile,” she said. “He’s got another thought coming cuz’ that ain’t happening.” The canines went to the edge of the porch and both began to growl waiting for Roxanne’s signal words. “Shush now, let him be. Let’s hear what he has to say.”
They stood on the porch waiting, watching and Lucky began to feel uncomfortable under their surveillance. He used his staff as a walking stick and looked like a camper on a hike. He hoped that he appeared to be completely relaxed but he did not trust the coyote or Mutt and kept his eye on both of them and on Roxanne for any slight signal from her. He stopped 15 feet from the porch and looked up at Roxanne.
“We have company” he announced.
Roxanne hesitated for a moment and then said, “Let him pass.” The canines stepped aside so Lucky could come on to the porch. He dropped his back-pack and duffle bag and began to rummage through one looking for water. Then without asking, he sat in one of the rockers and stretched his legs out while drinking. He wiped the sweat off his face, “We’re getting into mid-summer. Makes scavenging more difficult.” He could feel Roxanne’s eyes burning a hole in his head, waiting for him to explain his earlier statement so he told her of seeing the car during the night.
“But that road goes directly to the Tackle Shop then bends around to follow the small businesses that Mary took you past,” Roxanne said. “Eventually it goes up to the main street where the Mansion is. They could have been going anywhere within the town or even trying to by-pass it to connect with Main Street and head away from town. I’ve never followed Main Street further but I know that it does not go into the bayou. It must turn southwest and could even dead-end. I could see a small stone bridge that it crosses over and after that it was not well maintained. I don’t see what the concern is.”
“Are you not concerned about anyone new who enters your town? After all, you have proclaimed Mamou to be your town,” Lucky said with sarcasm.
“It was not my plan to chase a phantom car today, but if it concerns you enough to force you out of your house, then we can check it out,“ Roxanne sighed. “I knew that you were going to be trouble and I have my own plans to finish. I will be leaving the area soon and you cannot have this house as your residence while I am gone.” She picked up Lucky’s duffle bag and threw it into the house before shutting the door then turned to the coyote. “There are new people in town Cowboy. Do not put yourself into danger by protecting the house. Let them have it and meet us at Lance’s house. Do you understand?” Cowboy sat down on the porch and did not follow them to the truck. As Roxanne stepped into the cab she looked up and saw that Max was sitting on the roof of the porch watching them. She stopped for a moment looking at the cat and got a bad feeling about the day. Lately she received bad vibes around Max and felt that there was something wrong in the bayou. She had learned to follow her senses and the pull back to the bayou was growing stronger.
“You said that your group always had a back-up plan,” she said as she started the truck, “and that the Town of Mamou could be one of them. Then I suggest that you find another shelter if you do not want Lance’s house since I will be returning to mine at a later date.”
“I could house-sit for you while you’re gone,” Lucky suggested. “Make sure that squatters don’t move in on you.”
“You would be the squatter,” Roxanne quickly replied.
“I should have made Lucky sit in the middle so you two would quit talking across me,” Mary said.
“Where do you plan on going, Roxanne?” Lucky asked as she pulled out onto the highway.
“We will go by the Tackle Shop first,” Roxanne said, “then follow the alley with the small businesses. The same road you walked when Mary was showing you the way to the mansion.”
“That’s not what I meant. You said that you were leaving Mamou. Where do you plan on going?” Lucky questioned. Roxanne hesitated as she came to the intersection of Lance’s house and looked both ways as if she expected traffic. “I’m going home. I’m needed there. Mary is coming with me.”
Lucky sat back in his seat. “I’m sorry that you no longer consider your home to be with us,” he said sadly, “but are you sure it’s best for Mary? She would be safe with us.” Mary turned on him, “I want to go! It’s my decision! She asked me, she didn’t tell me!”
“Hush you two and pay attention,” Roxanne said. “We’re entering town and I want all eyes and ears on alert.”
Roxanne slowed the truck almost to a crawl as they passed the homes that Morgan had previously searched. Lucky could only identify the car that he had seen as being a station-wagon of light color but they did not see any cars parked outside of those houses or the Bait Shack. She made the turn to go through the alley bordering the small business lined up against the inlet that Lucky, Brandon and Morgan had previously searched. They would look to their right at each street off that alley as they approached the city blocks of town but still did not see a car that was unfamiliar to them..
Finally Roxanne stopped, “We will be entering dangerous ground from here if we continue to drive toward the center of town. Any closer and the Z’s at the mansion fence will hear us. I don’t see the car up ahead and it would have attracted zombies to this
vicinity unless he continued on and out of town with them following him. There are just too many streets to check including one more residential street back at the Tackle Shop. That street also leads into the town about five blocks over.”
“I can’t see sitting around waiting for them to come to us on their terms,” Lucky said. “They drove with a purpose and to be on the road at night meant that they were familiar with the area. I don’t think it was anyone just passing through.”
“All right, I’ll cut over five blocks and then back-track to the Bait shop using the second residential street going into our area,” Roxanne said. “But keep your eyes peeled for a place where you would like to relocate while waiting for your group to come back. Or, perhaps you will like these people and will join them,” she smiled.