The Juju Girl

by Nikki Marsh

  These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren. Proverbs 6:16-19

  This gave me a lot to think about, especially my "lying tongue". I wasn't sure I was ready to give up my lies of convenience, but I wanted to try. Although I hadn’t technically lied to Julian, I decided to own up to what I had done to him.

  On my next visit to Julian’s, we played a few card games, and after we finished, Julian went to a side table, opened the drawer, and pulled out two letters from Stefan.

  "I guess you've been expecting these."

  "I have."

  "When did you plan to tell me, Gabbie? Stefan thinks you told me about this little arrangement between the two of you."

  "We didn't want anyone to find out about us yet, so sending letters to me at home wasn't an option."

  "Am I just anyone?"

  "No, you're not. I should have told you. I don’t want things to change between the three of us, so I was waiting for the right time."

  I had disappointed Julian by not being honest, and I didn’t want to do that anymore.

  “Julian, I want to tell you something, and I hope you don’t hate me after you’ve heard what I have to say.”

  “It sounds serious.”

  “Do you remember that time you got so sick after one of our dance practices?”

  “How could I forget?”

  “That was me,” I blurted out.

  “What was you?”

  “I experimented on you with the Spider Egg Spell.”

  For a few minutes, he was speechless. His face had a stricken look, and he nervously ran his fingers through his hair. As the reality of what I said sunk in, his normally soft-spoken voice grew louder.

  “You did that to me?” he asked incredulously. “Do you have any idea how sick you made me? Didn’t you care at all?”

  “I didn’t think it through and had no idea how bad it would be. I only knew it couldn’t seriously harm you. I felt so bad when I saw how sick you were.” A wave of guilt rushed over me, and I couldn’t look him in the eye.”

  “What if something had gone wrong? What if I died upstairs in my room?”

  “I told Grann you weren’t feeling well before I left. She promised to check on you. I ran all the way home to get Felicie’s help. She told me the spell would only last an hour or two.”

  “An hour or two of pure agony. Why are you telling me this now?” He was calmer now.

  “I want us to be able to trust each other, no matter what. We’re going to need each other.”

  “Is that the only reason?”

  “I don’t want to lose my best friend.” I promised I would never lie to him again, and he promised to keep my secrets.

  I didn't wait to get home to read the letters. When I rounded the corner from Julian's house, I sat down on the steps of a small church and read my first love letter. Stefan began with, "My dearest, darling Gabbie." He said he couldn't stop thinking about our first kiss. He planned to spend much more time with me when he came home. He compared me to a caterpillar that blossomed into a beautiful butterfly. I hung on to his every word, reading them over and over, committing them to my heart and memory. We were one together. His letters convinced me of that.

  Auntie would be furious if she learned about our relationship. She hated Stefan because he was Suzanne’s brother. She hated me because I was alive, and Brigitte was dead. She hated Maman for not helping to save Brigitte. Her hatred was driving her mad, and that could mean danger for everyone. But I believed our love was so strong Stefan and I could conquer any obstacle that might come our way.

  At least that’s what I told myself.

  Chapter Sixteen

  A Change is Comin'

  I found Beau alone in the study when I got home. He often hung around to meet with Auntie or observe our comings and goings. Since Brigitte's death, our tutoring sessions were on hold. We had a comfortable, but not friendly, relationship. I still thought he was odd.

  "If you are agreeable, Gabbie, I'd like to resume our sessions now that Stefan has returned to school."

  He had lost his two main pupils, Brigitte and Stefan. While I wanted to help him out, I needed to spend as much time as possible with Miss Marie.

  "It's still hard for me to concentrate. I've lost interest after everything that's happened."

  "Understandable, but you can't give in to those feelings. Brigitte wouldn't want that. Besides, your Auntie wants you to put in more time with your studies to keep you out of trouble."

  "What kind of trouble does she think I'm in?"

  "Some furtive dealings with Felicie." He looked amused.

  "Doing what?" I asked.

  "Oh, spells, charms, fixes, and such. Or should I say, undoing them?"

  "Undoing them?"

  "Yes, undoing them."

  Auntie suspected that Felicie and I had reversed the spell on Stefan. I didn't want to deny it totally. That might make the situation worse. I had to think fast. My best move was to lie a little and laugh it off.

  "You must admit, Beau, Felicie is an interesting person, at least to me. I've never met anyone so superstitious, and I enjoy hearing about all her little rituals. She can be very amusing."

  I waited for his response, but he just smiled.

  "I thought she was, well, ignorant at first. I still do, but it isn't her fault. Everybody here is superstitions. It's just that her life revolves around them."

  "That's true, I suppose. But, perhaps she is just more open and obvious with hers."

  I took this as an opportunity to explore what he meant, but before I could, he added, "Tell me what’s she told you.”

  "A white butterfly is a sign of good news, but a black one means something bad is about to happen. Pointing the end of a broom at someone can cause a headache. It's bad luck to borrow salt, and Peacock feathers will bring misfortune to your house."

  We laughed out loud, but I wasn't sure I convinced Beau of our innocence.

  "Actually, I once asked her to perform a spell to make Maman better. She said she couldn't, and even if she could, she wouldn't. If something went wrong, Auntie would take it out on her, and Auntie terrifies her."

  "So, I've noticed."

  "What about you, Beau? Are you superstitions?"

  "It's hard not to be, coming from around here. Superstition is in our mothers' milk. We aren't even aware we are ingesting it or that it is anything out of the ordinary. At least that's how it was for me until I grew up and learned better."

  After a few minutes of silence, he continued.

  "Now, I don't have any superstitions, but I'll not deny that pleasure to others. They're searching for ways to gather good into their lives and keep the bad things at bay."

  When he said this, it reminded me of the prayer Maman and I said every night when I was a little girl in Buras.

  "I knew you were too smart to fall for that," I added, intending to flatter him.

  "The smartest people can believe the dumbest things. No, my beliefs don't run towards the superstitious but to things I've witnessed myself, like Good and Evil."

  He saw my skepticism.

  "Good and Evil exist within everyone, Gabbie, and there's a constant battle between them. Everyone struggles with this sometimes, some more than others."

  I thought about my bad habits like lying and wondered if this was one of my battles with Good and Evil.

  "It's a recurring theme in the Bible and literature, too," he continued. "In fact, a writer recently explored his belief that 'Man is not truly one, but two."

  He piqued my interest and sensed my growing curiosity.

  "You might enjoy reading some literature that explores this duality."

  "I would. We can start with one or two sessions each week," I suggested. I had to appease Auntie, and wo
rking with Beau would do that, especially if he confirmed that Felicie and I weren't up to no good.

  "What should I read first?"

  "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I'll bring you a copy on my next visit."

  Beau wasn't as weird as he seemed. Maybe he had a reason for keeping up his guard. Maybe he wrestled with Good and Evil. Maybe Evil won. It was the first time we had talked about anything other than my lessons. He didn't talk to me like a child, but like a student he wanted to introduce to new ideas. I liked him for that.

  A few days later, I told Maman about our conversation. She didn't seem a bit interested as she stared at herself in the vanity mirror and colored her cheeks with rouge. She grew stronger every day, but I noticed changes in her. She had never cared about how she looked, or about fashion, or doing anything to make herself prettier. In our old life, neat and clean were the operative words.

  So, it surprised me when she first asked me to go to the apothecary with her. She wanted to buy some face powder and paints. Her illness had left her colorless, and she wanted to look as healthy on the outside as she felt on the inside. That made sense to me. She would never use it as garishly as Auntie. A few days later, she asked me to go with her to the dressmaker for new clothes. I enjoyed shopping with her. We took the streetcar and lunched at a small coffee shop.

  "I'm so happy you came with me today. I have no fashion sense, and you helped me make some good selections."

  "I'm glad I helped. But, I had no idea clothes cost so much. I didn't know you had any money." She laughed a strange laugh, a new laugh, one I had never heard before.

  "Don't worry about money or where we will live. I have my own money now, lots of it." She saw my confusion.

  "When Granpopá died, I inherited a lot of money and equal shares in the house and the businesses. Your father and I discussed it. We didn't want it, but we agreed to use the money if ever something happened to him."

  This should have eased my discomfort, but it didn't. Popá's death was the reason she had spent so much money on clothes. Were we better off because he had died? That upset me.

  "Having more money because Popá died bothers me. Doesn't it bother you?"

  "I don't look at it that way, Gabbie, and you shouldn't either. Do you think Popá would want us to be paupers? You know he wouldn't."

  She was wrong. Popá would never accept using the money for frivolous things. For the first time, I saw my mother through my fifteen-year-old eyes and realized I didn't know her as well as I thought. The things she’d sacrificed to be with Popá are the things that make her happy now. I wondered if she regretted giving them up all along.

  ✽✽✽

  Auntie's disturbing behavior escalated beyond grief. As Maman's vanity increased, Auntie's vanity disappeared altogether. She stopped taking care of herself and wore the same clothes for days, even sleeping in them sometimes. She stopped wearing make-up, even neglecting her beautiful hair. She insisted her body was decomposing on the inside. Yet, she went to the market from time to time even though Uncle tried to convince her not to. She became increasingly paranoid and interpreted his concern as more betrayal. Her appearance certainly must have embarrassed him.

  As Auntie's behavior become more erratic, Uncle Phonse and Maman spent more time together. They worried about her irrational beliefs, her unkempt appearance, and her increasing rants against them. She suspected Uncle Phonse and Maman were cooking up a scheme to cut her out of the businesses. She trusted no one and suspected everyone except Beau. He never challenged her. He once said that her madness was his greatest fear. None of us wanted that to happen, but I wondered why Beau cared so much. Why would it be his greatest fear? He was not family.

  ✽✽✽

  One afternoon, when I returned home after a morning of shopping with Maman, Felicie motioned me into the kitchen. Auntie had confronted her earlier, warning her to stay away from me and demanding that she keep me out of the kitchen or she would regret it.

  "That woman is crazier than ever. You shoulda seen her... looked like some kind of stray brought in from the alley, loose hair falling over her face and wild eyes threatening me."

  "What did she say?"

  "She suspects I'm the one been teachin you 'bout spells and such."

  "What did you say?"

  "I only tell you somethin' bout our customs here, things that everybody down here knows, anyway. Like it's bad luck to tell a dream 'fore breakfast. And, if it rains while the sun is shining, that means the devil be beating his wife. If your left hand itches, it means you gonna' get some money. Stuff like that."

  "Did she believe you?"

  "I doubt it. She suspects we unfixed Stefan. But she ain't got no proof. The morning Stefan left for school, I had sense enough to scrape off the ball of wax from the back of his picture."

  "That was smart. I'm glad you thought of it."

  Felicie appreciated that I, again, recognized her cleverness.

  "Now she cain't come out and ask 'bout unhexing him without tellin' on her own self."

  "You're right. If we ignore each other, it will convince her nothing's going on."

  "That... and make sure we protect ourselves 'cause she was mean enough 'fore she got crazy."

  It wasn't only Felicie and me who needed protection from Auntie. Maman needed it more. Powerful gris-gris bags would help. When I asked Maman if she wanted one, I expected her to say no. But she laughed and said it couldn't hurt.

  "Where will you get them?"

  Her question surprised me.

  "Why, Neni, of course."

  "Of course," she drawled.

  I told Miss Marie about Auntie and explained why I needed the strongest protection. She thought for a few minutes.

  "Do you remember the steps to make a most powerful girs-gris?"

  "Yes, and I have already taken the first step. I got Felicie's and Maman's permission."

  "Good. That's the only way it works."

  After reassuring her I had their permission, she led me to her altar for the next step.

  "I must gather the strongest ingredients and place them in three small gris-gris bags."

  "Right," she said.

  I gathered some Black Snake Root, Angelica, Frankincense, Lavender, and Mugwort from her work area and returned to the altar. Miss Marie laid out three bags, a gold-colored bag for Maman, a purple one for Felicie, and a red one for me. After I placed the herbs in the bags, I surrounded them with seven lighted candles and chanted three times.

  This circle of glowing light

  Burns strong with righteous might

  To protect the wearer of this charm

  From evildoers evil harm.

  When I finished, the red and purple bags swirled a few inches above, taking on a fiery glow, but the gold-colored one didn't. They stopped spinning, and the glow faded.

  The chant worked for Felicie's bag and mine, but not for Maman's. Miss Marie eyed me with suspicion.

  "Are you sure your Maman agreed?"

  "Honestly, she did. I wouldn't lie about that. Why would I?"

  "Good. But, since you're sure you didn't lie, there're only a few other explanations."

  "Like what?"

  "Like maybe your Maman wasn't serious when she agreed. She scorned her own power. Seems curious she'd agree to a gris-gris bag, don't it?"

  "Now that I think about it, she laughed when I asked her. But she agreed. Honestly."

  After a few minutes, she continued.

  "Don't bring it up again. If she does, tell her you thought better of the idea."

  "Why should I lie to Maman? Why can't I tell her the truth?"

  "Because there is only one other explanation for why her gris-gris bag won't work, a far more dangerous one."

  "Such as?"

  "You say your Maman is changing, right? She's vain, she cares about her looks, she's not so interested in you, she's spending money on things she never would have before, and she's spending more and more time with your Uncle."

&
nbsp; "Maybe this is her way of getting back to normal. Or, maybe she can't think straight because of her head injury."

  "Or, maybe your Maman ain't your Maman anymore."

  "What?"

  "Maybe, your Maman's spirit is gone and another spirit possesses her body."

  In that moment, it all came together. Maman wasn't Maman anymore. That explained the changes in her. Someone's spirit possessed her body. It had to be Suzanne. My heart sank. I stopped breathing for a minute. I couldn't think. I wanted answers.

  "If Suzanne has taken over Maman's body, where is Maman's spirit?"

  "She’s where Suzanne was, lost between two worlds.”

  "Can't you tell me more?" I pleaded.

  "Spirit Possession and Banishment require the highest level of skill. The only way you can reclaim your Maman's spirit is to get your family Grimoire. That will teach you exactly what you must do."

  "But I need to cross the Veil to get it," I shouted. "I can't do that."

  "You'll learn. Crossing the Veil is the first step. Getting the Grimoire is the second one. Exorcizing Suzanne's spirit is the final step and the hardest. You may not free your Maman right away. You must search the Grimoire to find the right instructions and formulas."

  "But, what if Suzanne kills her before I do?"

  "If Suzanne wanted to kill your Maman, she would have done it by now. She needs your Maman's body. She’s using it to stay close to your uncle. If she kills her, she can't do that."

  Miss Marie's wisdom calmed me a little.

  "It's Suzanne's love for your uncle that's protecting your Maman. She won't leave him if she can help it. Besides, she's having too much fun torturing Lucinda. Just watch her carefully."

  "If I snoop around, she might get suspicious."

  "That's why you need to make yourself invisible."

  "Invisible? Are my powers strong enough to do that?"

  "No. Not until your second Spiritual Guide visits you."

  "When will that be? How long must I wait?"

  "Not for me to say. But remember, once you have the power of invisibility, use it for good, never for evil."