Bad Juju

by Dina Rae

  “I’ve got a little mandrake root, wolfsbane, crushed glass, ginger, and a pinch of some other special ingredients. Basically, dried up plants. Put this mix, along with the graveyard dirt and your uncle’s taglocks, inside of the doll.”

  “Huh?” Henry asked.

  “Taglocks? They are Jake’s uncle’s personal things. The reason you make the doll determines what herbs and spices to use for the stuffing. Like a recipe of sorts. We’ll use his hair, some of his cigarette butts, necklace, and underwear to stuff the rest of the doll. Good. Now I’ll stitch it back up,” Lucien explained. “I’ll get Mami out of her cage. Get my drum. Try to repeat after me. Damballah, oh Damballah, we call on you to invade Pete’s evil soul. Possess him. Torment him. Let him experience the kind of violence that Jake has suffered from.”

  The boys echoed the same words. Lucien began to play the drums. Jake held the doll over his head while Lucien chanted along to his drum beats. He looked hypnotized, switching from English to French. Mami slithered on the floor.

  “Here are some laces. Jake, take these and bind the doll’s hands so that Pete will never hurt you again.” Lucien continued chanting and playing the drums. Jake looked at Henry. He, too, looked hypnotized. Several minutes went by. “The doll is prepared. Damballah has heard your prayer. Let’s see what he plans to do.”

  Lucien took out a long candle and lit it. He stared at it with fascination for several minutes. “Damballah says we cast a very powerful spell. He is filled with negative energy. Look at the black smoke and the stained upper part of the cylinder. He’s very angry. Jake, you will get your justice.”

  “Is this the part when we stick pins inside the doll?” Henry asked.

  “We could, but Pete’s cigarette butts are a taglock, thus more powerful. Before we singe the doll, let me draw a face on it. Jake, lift up your shirt. I want to count how many lashings he gave you. Remember, balance is the key to invoking spells. They are healing beautifully. One, two, …nine total.”

  Lucien drew two Xs for the eyes and seven Xs for the mouth. He then took part of a tissue and wrapped it around one of the cigarette butts. He gently relit the smoke and handed it to Jake. The cherry glowed. “Burn the doll nine times. If the cigarette burns out, I have plenty more that you gave me.”

  The doll sat on the kitchen table while Jake singed it five times with the cigarette Lucien gave him and then another four times with different butts. The last step was dipping the doll into a pot of unused herbs he boiled.

  “Submerge the doll.”

  Jake followed his directions and held the dripping doll over the pot. It seemed like it was going to fall apart.

  “Jake, I’d give you the poppet, but it’s unsafe in your home. Leave it here. We’ll put it on the couch. Don’t worry, it will dry. It’s a very powerful spell. Damballah definitely heard us. Wish I could give you a time frame.”

  They talked about some possible mishaps Pete might have, but Lucien explained whatever happened, nine marks or scars or broken bones or something would be brought upon him for his wrongdoing. Just then Henry’s mother’s headlights were seen from the window.

  “Gotta go. See you tomorrow, Lucien,” Jake said. They bolted into the Henry’s mother’s car.

  Chapter 12

  “Hi boys. Jake, this is Natalie. She’s Henry’s sister. The group usually goes to 9:30 p.m. Is that okay with your folks? Aunt and Uncle, right?” He nodded. Jessica suspected he never told them about the evening.

  Henry had been hanging out with the boy all week. Jessica could still not get a good reading on him. She called the principal about Henry’s new friend only to be told Jake was a harmless loner with a terrible home-life. She admired his kindness towards his elderly neighbors. Keeping an open mind, she accepted he had social problems, just like Henry, but was a good kid. After all, he agreed to go to the Awana group. Was he a Christian? Was God giving her an opportunity to evangelize?

  “Jake, do you know what Awanas is?” Jessica asked on the ride to their church.

  “I think it’s like boy scouts, but for Christians,” he answered.

  “Basically. Do you go to church?” He shook his head. From her conversation with the principal, she was under the impression his aunt and uncle weren’t exactly walking with the Lord.

  “We go every Sunday at 9:00 a.m. You’re welcome to join us. We’ll pick you up. Then we go out to breakfast,” Jessica suggested.

  “Maybe. To be honest, my mom and I would sometimes go to church, but since she died I haven’t gone,” he answered.

  “I’ll ask you again tomorrow. Okay, we are here. Have fun,” Jessica smiled.

  Once home, Jessica began to discuss Henry’s new friend with Tom.

  “They’ve been friends for what? Three days? Aren’t you being pushy? Awanas? Church? Slow down before you scare off his only friend,” Tom responded.

  Jessica was hurt, but considered his reaction. Maybe her sudden interest in Jake was a bit too overwhelming.

  ***

  Jake enjoyed the delicious pizza and company of the Awana group. The time went by quickly. Not the most exciting night a sixteen year old could have, but he was grateful not to be alone. Once home, the trailer was quiet. Without checking to see if anyone was up, he went straight to bed. He was high with anticipation, counting down the minutes until the spell would take effect.

  The next morning Jake woke up early and slipped out of the trailer. The place was eerily silent. He didn’t see T.J. on the couch or his car out front.

  He began his weekly chores with Esther Muddraker. She was the only neighbor who had him shop for her groceries. He let himself in her double-wide trailer, started a load of laundry, and joined her for breakfast. The woman could not drive and could barely walk because of her crippling arthritis. The grocery store was only a twenty minute hike, and she needed a few bags to last her through the week.

  “Well, you’re here earlier than usual. It’s only seven. You usually sleep in. What’s wrong?” Esther asked. Jake turned away as his eyes filled with tears. “You know I’m about one step away from calling the police on that S.O.B. You and that poor little girl don’t deserve this.”

  “What do you do? He’ll get what’s coming to him. Trust me.”

  “Ain’t that the truth. God has His own kind of justice,” Esther added.

  God, Bondeye, Papa Legba, Damballah…It didn’t matter anymore. All Jake knew was a higher force would help him with retribution.

  “Jake, here. This is my list and here’s some money for the groceries. You keep whatever is left.”

  Jake looked at the hundred dollar bill. “Mrs. Muddraker, this is twice of what you normally give me. I can’t take this. I know you’re not rich.”

  “Shut up and take the money. I have more things on my list this time.”

  Jake gladly accepted, but thought the extra cash was given out of pity.

  “Oh, and by the way, not being nosy, but you should be glad you didn’t see what went on last night. That guy living with you…”

  “T.J. He’s Leah’s brother. Didn’t see him on the couch when I left this morning. Sometimes he spends the night with Mona, his ex-girlfriend, who he’s trying to get back together with,” Jake answered.

  “Well, I’m not one to gossip.” Jake smiled at Mrs. Muddraker. She loved drama and was known for being in everyone’s business. “Okay, maybe I’m a little too observant. But I don’t think that woman, Mona, wants him back. I think it was her that pulled up to the trailer around seven last night and dumped out a few Hefty bags of his stuff in front of your uncle’s and then honked her horn. I couldn’t hear, but I saw what looked like an argument right through that window. Then she peeled out of here. He stayed outside in the cold with your uncle and his stuff, making calls, drinking, smoking…and then he loaded the bags into that clunker he drives and left. I think your uncle went with him. Are they back?”

  “Don’t know about Pete, but T.J.’s gone. And you never know, Mrs. Muddraker. You could have it all
wrong. He might have gone to his old house and his girlfriend welcomed him home with open arms. They had a romantic evening, renewing their relationship. She realized what a catch he was and how he almost got away. Let’s see, no job, no potential, no brains, no money…”

  “And don’t forget that he’s ugly!” added the elderly woman.

  “Exactly! I bet you and I could fill up a notebook with his issues,” Jake said. They both laughed. He knew she appreciated his sarcastic sense of humor more than anyone else in the trailer park. He grabbed her grocery list and hiked up to the store. Nothing new or expensive was added to the list. The bill was thirty something dollars. This gave him close to seventy dollars for a couple of hours of work. It took some of the sting away from Pete stealing his savings.

  His next stop was at Mr. Carillo’s home, next door to Esther’s. He was taking out the man’s garbage when he saw Henry’s mom pull into Chippewa Park. She went to Lucien’s trailer, unsure of where he lived. Jake dropped the bags and ran over to the SUV.

  “Hi. Which one is yours?”

  “Hi. My home is technically that one.” He pointed to the farthest one from the street, hoping she didn’t see the crushed beer cans and empty bottle of vodka. He just noticed the litter and hadn’t had a chance to clean it up. “I’m helping Mr. Carillo right now. I have four other neighbors who I check on.”

  “So when do you think you’ll both be done?” Mrs. Novak asked.

  “Three, maybe four hours. Two o’clock at the latest,” Jake replied.

  “Can you introduce me to Lucien?” Mrs. Novak questioned.

  Jake looked at Henry who seemed agitated. “I guess, Mom. But don’t try to get too chatty with him. He’s our friend, not yours,” Henry rudely answered.

  “Gotcha. I’ll take you both out for hamburgers. Your dad is working, and Natalie is hanging out with friends. Just us.” Both nodded and she sped off.

  They finished up with Mr. Carillo and headed towards Mrs. Bolinski’s home. “This woman has so many health problems-cancer, heart, diabetes. It’s really sad. I think she’s dying. She’s a total sweetheart,” Jake explained before they went inside. Once they were introduced, Jake showed Henry how to do her laundry.

  “Is your uncle dead yet? Maybe hurt?” Henry nonchalantly asked.

  “Shh! What is wrong with you? Not cool, Henry. She’s right out there. Don’t ask me stuff like that in front of others, okay?” Jake whispered.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. You’re right. Wasn’t thinking.”

  “To answer your question, no. Or at least I don’t think so. Haven’t seen my uncle, aunt, her brother, Rhianna, none of them. They weren’t home when your mom dropped me off last night. My uncle’s car is parked outside, but not T.J.’s or Leah’s. We’ll talk to Lucien about it. He’s my last stop. I do light cleaning for him. Then we can visit.”

  Henry enthusiastically helped Jake with his weekly chores, enjoying both the work and meeting the neighbors. Once at Lucien’s, they checked out their poppet.

  “Can’t wait until your charms start to kick in,” Jake said to the doll as he held it. He filled Lucien in on the Chippewa Park scuttlebutt, including the drama seen by Mrs. Muddraker.

  “Lucien, my mom wants to meet you when she picks me up. Is that alright?” Henry asked.

  “Absolutely. I can’t wait to meet her,” Lucien said.

  Jessica pulled up. Jake instinctively placed the poppet behind the couch cushion not wanting her to know about their Voodoo lesson. Lucien graciously offered her tea, and she accepted. Jake could see Henry’s mood sour.

  “So, you spend a lot of time with Jake, and now Henry…That’s wonderful. I understand you’re from Haiti? Is your family safe?” Lucien shrugged. “I’m so sorry. Hope they surface soon, alive and well. Like your pet snake. He friendly?” Henry grunted a sound of disapproval. “Nice meeting you, but Henry thinks I’m intruding so that’s my cue. Boys, you ready for some lunch?”

  Chapter 13Jake was dropped off late afternoon after having lunch with Henry and his mother. Mrs. Novak offered a second invite on attending church with them the next day. He felt pressured into going and finally agreed.

  “Okay. You can pick me up tomorrow morning,” he said. It seemed to make Henry’s mother happy he would join them.

  Once inside, the trailer was still. Something felt wrong or at least more wrong than usual. Jake crept through the rooms to double check its vacancy. A few minutes later the phone rang. The caller I.D. showed Leah’s cell phone number.

  “Leah, it’s Jake. What’s wrong? I can hear you crying.”

  “T.J. He’s unconscious. Mona officially ended it. She threw all of his stuff out in front of our house.” Jake already heard a different perspective of the story from Esther Muddraker, but continued to listen. “She’s got a new boyfriend and he just moved in, Cody something or another. She didn’t want any of his shit in her house.”

  “Where’s Rhianna?” he asked, worried.

  “She was here earlier, but then my mom took her for the night. I don’t think T.J. is going to make it. The doctors…they say he’s got a depressed skull fracture. That’s code for he had his brain pulverized with a baseball bat. He bled from the ears, nose…and then yellow gooey stuff came out from his eyes. It’s not good, Jake,” Leah cried.

  “Who hurt him? Pete?”

  “No. It was the new boyfriend. I don’t know exactly what happened, but according to Pete, he and T.J. got to drinking. As we both know, nothing good ever comes out of that. Anyway, they went to the bars and did some more drinking. Then they went over to Mona’s, begging her to give T.J. another chance. I’m sure Pete had ulterior motives of getting my brother out of the house. Supposedly, T.J. brought Pete’s gun with them. One thing led to another, and I get a call just as I’m done working that T.J.’s in the hospital and Pete’s in jail. I tried to call you this morning, but you were working for our neighbors. So I thought now would be a good time to call…” Her voice was shaky and almost incomprehensible.

  Jake couldn’t help but glow with joy. Thankful Leah couldn’t see his facial expression, he asked, “Why is Pete in jail?”

  “Oh, he’s in the process of getting bonded out. I’m not sure if he’s coming straight here or if he’s getting you. He’s using T.J.’s car if you were wondering why his is still at home.”

  “What’s the charge?” Jake asked almost doing an unseen victory dance.

  “B & E and gun charge. You wanna come visit T.J. with me? He might not have much longer. When Pete calls, I’ll have him pick you up before coming here,” Leah offered.

  His victory was put on hold. Jake knew if the situation was reversed, T.J. might not have visited him in the hospital, but Leah would. Could this be part of the Voodoo spell?

  Within the hour, Uncle Pete pulled up in T.J.’s old, dilapidated Camaro, honking the horn for him to hurry up. They drove in silence to the hospital. Jake took a chance and spoke, hoping his uncle was in a mellow mood.

  “So, how long were you held for?”

  “Well, let’s see...There was the initial arrest, hours of questioning, mug shot, prints…by the time they finally locked me up, it was morning, light out. And then I was just released now, about a half an hour ago. So eight or nine hours in the shithole. Met some interesting cellmates. I won’t be serving any real time for this trumped up bullshit….”

  Eight or Nine? That’s close enough to nine! My new favorite number, thought Jake, remembering his nine welts, nine X’s for the bastard’s face, and nine cigarette burns he gave the poppet.

  “Could’ve spent the whole day and night, but got lucky I guess. Bonded out. Now T.J…he’s not so lucky. Cody, that’s his replacement for Mona, swung a baseball bat at his head, legs, everywhere. I can still hear the thuds. But he claimed self-defense because we broke into the house and T.J. had my gun. Mona backed him all the way. Poor bastard. That piece of shit is gonna pay. Listen, I’m warning you T.J. looks like something out of a horror movie,” Pete said as they parked in th
e visitor’s parking area and approached the entrance. Because of his mother’s cancer he knew the hospital well.

  They slowly entered the room. Leah was at the foot of the bed. Her face was still bruised from the other night’s scuffle. Her blue eyes were red and veiny. T.J. lay unconscious with tubes sticking out of his arm and throat. His leg and abdomen were braced. Jake looked at the machines. They flashed and blipped in perfect unison. As his eyes made their way up to T.J.’s face, he was repulsed. Part of his head was bandaged, but the rest was swollen. His one eye was sealed shut with yellow glop oozing out from it. His cheekbone was caved in, giving him no facial structure. Jake tried to piece together T.J.’s misfortune while questioning if the Voodoo spell had anything to do with it. He felt nauseated. Had the doll been a mistake?

  “Thanks for coming. The doctor says he probably won’t make it through the night. He’s hemorrhaging and there’s nothing they can do. His cranium is fractured all over,” Leah said.

  “Pete says he was beaten up by a baseball bat? But it was self-defense? How did they get in all of this trouble?” Jake asked.

  “Well, Pete’s version of the story claims…” Her tone was no longer sad, but angry. She shot Pete a dagger sharp look. “…that they just wanted to scare Mona’s new boyfriend. Someone fired a shot from Pete’s gun at the front door. Cody thought they were breaking in and beat T.J.’s brains to a pulp. And Pete, you don’t have a scratch. What’d you do while all this was going on, huh?” Leah turned to his uncle.

  “I got arrested, that’s what. Your brother was never one to think things through. Not that brainy,” Pete said with a laugh.

  “How dare you make a joke as he’s dying. Look at him. Look at my face. Look at Jake’s back. It’s because of you…” Pete waved Leah off and stormed out of the room. Jake had never seen her so angry. Once alone, the silence became awkward.

  “Leah, how many times did Cody hit him in the head?” Jake asked.

  “Uh, lots. He’s hit all over. Doctor says nine alone in the head. Then another twelve all over the rest of the body. He’s only twenty-four. So young. I know he was going through a rough patch, but there was hope. Now there’s nothing.”