Magnolia's Fall From Grace

by Zara Teleg

  “I’ll be back.” I hesitated a few moments to not make it obvious I was following her in.

  “Maggie.” She threw her arms around me.

  “Oh, Sissy, I’m going to miss you.”

  She pulled away, opening her bag and pulling out the envelope. “Forge’s IDs don’t get questioned. He’s the best. Maggie, hunny, I know this is shocking, but you got to stay with me. Please. Listen. You won’t be able to contact me. You and this baby need to get out of town. These guys don’t mess around. They’re trying their hardest to force Vicious’s hand with Paw-paw’s property. Kingston is not taking losing it to Voodoo lightly.”

  Sissy got on her knees and placed her head against my belly. “Beautiful baby girl. Your Aunt Sissy loves you. You have the best mommy and will be one lucky little girl. I hope you have your daddy’s eyes and mama’s smile.” She placed her lips over my belly, giving it a kiss.

  She had me in tears. “I love you, Sissy. You take care and make all your dreams come true.” I sniffed.

  “You too, mama bear. Maggie, I will never forget you.”

  We hugged one last time. Sissy wiped the tears away. “I have to go. Be safe, Maggie. Never forget me.”

  “How could I? You are one of a kind.” I laughed, wiping my eyes.

  I waited a moment before exiting behind her. She bought a pack of cigarettes and gave me a wink before walking out the door and out of my life.

  Alcide ran around the other side of the Jeep, helping me in. I watched as Sissy jumped in the truck and gave her man another kiss before he started it.

  I opened the passport and found Hope King staring back at me. Of course. Forge had teased me one night that my name should’ve been Hope since I always saw the bright side of everything. And King, so I would never forget. He was one of the only club members who approved of Vincent and me. The picture was a punch to the gut, taking me back to that night we went to the drive-in, to Vincent making things on my list come true.

  “Maggie, did you hear me?” Alcide asked.

  “No, sorry.” I looked up from the paperwork, folding it and placing it back in the envelope.

  “I said, I saw some guys pull out right behind Sissy. See the car up there? With the blacked-out windows?”

  We were behind them for about a minute when it sped up the road, and we got behind a slow-moving semi.

  “Alcide…?” I pointed.

  My stomach lurched as a motorcycle sped between the other cars, weaving in and out at high speed.

  “Maggie, stay calm. Maybe it’s one of their family’s bikes?

  “Alcide, go faster. Follow him.” I pulled on his arm, having a terrible feeling. Our vehicle had nowhere to go.

  “Maggie, he’s going about a hundred, I can’t catch—”

  The explosion boomed, rattling everything around it as red and orange flames were sent towering in the sky.

  “Alcide!” I screamed as we inched closer to seeing.

  There was not a part of my body that wasn’t convulsing. I couldn’t get the words out. A choking sensation had me unable to speak. Approaching the scene, the flames became blurry through the tears.

  “Noooooo!” Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. My hands pounded against the window and my horrid scream fell silent. My eyes opened and closed taking in the scene before me like and old movie flashing on the screen. The upside-down truck was completely engulfed in flames, black smoke billowing from it, and sparks shooting out in all directions. The falling orange embers matched the dots that formed in front of my eyes, then everything went black.

  Chapter 25

  Magnolia

  “Maggie, push,” Shirley, the midwife who had been meeting with me the past few weeks, coached.

  I let out a shriek as the sharp contraction ripped through me.

  “Last one, on the next contraction.”

  I wailed not from the physical pain but the emotional agony my heart was in as rivers flowed down my face.

  A damp icy cloth was pressed against my forehead. I crushed Catherine’s hand as I was instructed again.

  “Maggie, push.”

  I grunted and bore down as the intense contraction shot a biting pain down through me. My mind was not on the little girl who was about to enter this world but on one of my best friends. If Sissy hadn’t met me, she would be alive. I screamed again, embracing all the agony in the push.

  “You did it.” Catherine wiped my forehead.

  My eyes blurred through the tears. My crying baby girl was placed on my chest. The angelic girl I couldn’t keep.

  My body had gone into shock, forcing me into labor at the sight of the accident. Alcide had gotten to a payphone, and we were at Shirley’s before I knew it.

  I looked down at my daughter, the product of the greatest love I could imagine. I didn’t want to hold her. I needed her to be protected. I had to get out as soon as I could. If I held her too long, I wouldn’t be able to do what I had to do.

  Catherine leaned in. “Maggie, I’m so proud of you.” She kissed my head before taking Paige and wrapping her up.

  Alcide stayed by my side the whole time, like my guardian angel.

  “Are you okay?” He placed a new cool cloth on my forehead.

  “No, but I don’t think I will ever be,” I choked out.

  “You will. You’re doing the right thing. You need to rest.” He offered me the cold water and gave my hand a squeeze. “Rest, Maggie.”

  Over the week, I recovered physically but not mentally. I couldn’t see Paige. I had Alcide move my things to Marie Rose’s until I was ready to leave. They all thought I was just stressed and wanted to go home. I said I was returning to school and would get help for everything I had been through. Alcide and I kept several things between us. He was the one person I felt I could trust in the world. After seeing what happened to Sissy and keeping up with the news, he thought I should get as far away from St. Genevieve as I could, and he’d do anything to help me. I didn’t deserve his kindness.

  Catherine was deliriously happy, and their family seemed whole. I couldn’t ignore the odd feeling I had in my gut. Catherine seemed to be rushing me to leave.

  “Meme, can you please do something for me?”

  “Chère, of course, what can I get you?”

  “It’s not that. I’m leaving soon. I need you to promise me something.” Her eyes met mine, and she took my hand, rubbing her thumb over it.

  “Anything you need, chère. You’ve made my family whole again, and I can’t imagine what you’re going through.”

  “Can you promise me, if someday Paige ever finds out, that you’ll give this to her?” I handed her a large envelope. Inside was a letter I wrote Paige, Venom’s medallion, and the carnival photo booth pictures.

  She nodded. “I will protect it with my life.”

  I hugged her and said another goodbye I didn’t wish to say.

  In the dark of the night, I packed my bags and snuck out of the house. I left them a letter saying I was going home and that they must never contact my family or me. I wanted Paige to remain a secret, and the only way to keep her safe was for no one to ever know about what had transpired the past few weeks.

  I was convinced everyone would be out of danger if I was gone. You couldn’t hurt people who no longer existed. There would be no reason to go after anyone I cared about if I was gone.

  I called the taxi company and waited down the block. I had the driver drop me at the bus station. Boarding the bus toward Atlanta, my heart ripped to shreds as I traveled farther from the little girl I would never see again.

  Seven hours through the pounding rain and wind, I arrived just a few miles from my destination. I hailed a cab to take me to a house I pretended was mine. My heart hammered as I kept repeating in a whisper, “The Lord is my shepherd; nothing shall I want. The Lord is my shepherd; nothing shall I want.”

  “Did you say something, Miss?” the cabbie asked.

  “No.” I rocked back and forth and began repeating it in my
head as we got closer. The Lord is my shepherd; nothing shall I want.

  “This is it.” The cab came to a stop.

  “Thank you.” I handed him the cash and grabbed my bag, walking away as the taillights faded out of sight.

  In the darkness, the steps to the bridge were the longest and heaviest my feet had taken. The bridge was symbolic of my life. I grew up terrified of crossing it, hiding in the back seat, refusing to look over its steep and narrow ledge as the water rushed below. Now, I stood on its ledge. No longer fearful of crossing it because it was the road to freedom.

  The storm that passed through during the night had the water raging like rapids. Its fury almost sounded calming as I took off the necklace my father had given me and placed it in an envelope along with a note. It was for their own safety and that of my baby girl. No one could ever know. I was doing everyone a favor. I wrote words explaining how I didn’t belong in this world, and everyone was better off without me. I bared my soul on the page and asked them to pray for God to forgive me for committing a mortal sin.

  My body trembled as I inched closer to the edge. My tears flowed like the turbulent water below. Momentarily paralyzed, I stared through the metal grates and let the movie of my life roll in my head. Visions of playing with Paige as a little girl. Viola and Frederick’s love and encouragement. The Sisters of St. Bernadette. Uncontrollable laughter shared with Sissy and Shannon. The last, most vivid images that haunted me were of Vincent’s eyes and our daughter’s face.

  I embraced the crushing pain of love and loss, allowing it to seal my fate. Shaking uncontrollably, I found comfort in the somber words of Psalm 23:4: “As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil…”

  Chapter 26

  Venom

  “Here are your belongings.” The guard handed me the envelope that contained my wallet and ring.

  “I hope I never see you back here again.” She winked.

  Vicious was right on time. “Venom, it’s about fucking time you came home.”

  Home. The last time I was home, Sissy and Paw-paw were still alive. Our club was in shambles, and my twin brother had disappeared.

  “Smoke?” Vicious held out the pack.

  I took a cigarette, and he gave me a light. I was free. It had been five long years behind bars. Lex hadn’t been bluffing. He knew exactly how to cripple us. The man I had stabbed didn’t make it. His brothers had pointed the finger at me. There had been no proof, but there had been enough smoke in the case to place me there, and a few of us were sentenced to several years in prison. Without Voodoo to massage the case like he always did, I’d had no choice but to surrender.

  “You alright? You should be happy. Tonight we celebrate!” He handed me the keys to the black Mustang Cobra that took up two spaces.

  “I thought it was an appropriate coming-home present. I mean, you did a lot of work on the inside. We would never have survived without you, brother.” He patted my shoulder.

  “Holy shit, did you do nothing but work out? You’re a fucking tank.”

  I was now a man, not the kid I came in as. I thought I was a man then, but prison changed all that. Lucky for me, the Devil’s Damned had more enemies in there than they did friends. Voodoo always said, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” and that worked out for me and my reputation in there. I was respected, at least tolerated, for taking out that fucker, even if I was acquitted on that charge. Apparently, Mannie had screwed a lot of people over.

  “You drive.” I handed him back the keys.

  “What?” I looked at the shiny new vehicle, not convinced I was ready.

  “Look, I just want to kick back and taste freedom. I need to clear my head.”

  A mischievous look crossed his face. “Oh, your head will be clear once we get back to the club.”

  I woke up after two days of partying to find two naked chicks in my bed, empty bottles of vodka on the floor, white residue on the end table, and every part of my body aching. I reached for my pack of smokes, rolling the blonde to the side. I had to take a piss. My head throbbed as I set out to the bathroom. I tossed the smoke in the toilet and ran the shower. Scalding my body under the water, I lost myself for a moment. This fucking place brought back too many memories. Maggie’s face was around every corner. I tried to shut it down. I thought prison had made me cold enough to not feel anymore. Being here was like waking from a bad dream, the kind I couldn’t shake. Every corner held a reminder of what once was. I swore. for a moment, I could hear Sissy’s laugh last night. So I drowned myself in vodka and pussy. Anything to numb the pain.

  The handle still squeaked when turning off the water. I wiped the fogged mirror with a towel and began to shave.

  “Venom. Can I join you?”

  “Too late, already showered.” I was not in the mood to entertain her. The door opened, showing me her naked body waiting for me to ravage her again.

  “It’s never too late. And you look sexy as hell in a towel.” She walked over, then grabbed the towel and pressed herself against me. Her hand reached for my hair. “I have never seen eyes like yours.” She kissed my neck, her hand running up my chest. “Wow, that’s quite a scar. Is it a cross?” Her fingers ran over it.

  “Ow!” she squealed as I removed her hand. “What was that for?”

  “I think it’s time for you and your friend to go.”

  “But—”

  “I said leave, now.”

  I stepped over the naked bodies that were strewn throughout the house. These fuckers partied like no other. Voodoo would have loved it. I, on the other hand, needed to get away from here.

  I found the keys to my new car and snuck out. I was still in prison time. The sun had just risen when I started the car, loving the sound of the engine. I flew down the highway, hating that Marsh Creek was now our home chapter. Not much had changed in five years. I didn’t know if it was self-torture, but I had to drive to Paw-paw’s. I needed to feel close to him. There wasn’t a day in prison that I didn’t think of him and how disappointed he would have been about how I treated Maggie and how I ended things. My fingers tightened on the wheel when I saw the restaurant where we picked up catfish fry for Paw-paw. I could almost hear Maggie’s laughter at the giant gator we encountered. When I crossed over the bridge to get to Paw-paw’s, everything I remembered was no longer there. What the fuck?

  The neon sign spelling out Kingston was red in the morning sky. It sat atop a five-story hotel that used to be my granddaddy’s land. How? I felt sick. The beautiful bayou, the quiet place my grandfather cherished, had disappeared. How could he?

  I jerked the steering wheel to the left, turning around in the street and flooring it back to the club. It only seemed like a moment had passed when I arrived. Running to the house, I looked around until I found Vicious sitting on the back porch having coffee. I nearly tore the door off its hinges as I stormed out and grabbed him by the shirt.

  “What the fuck are you doing?” my brother yelled, dropping the cup and spattering the hot liquid on us both. I welcomed the pain as I balled my hands in his shirt and jacked him against the side of the house.

  “You sold us out, you motherfucker. Why didn’t you tell me? How could you?” Spit flew from my mouth as a terrifying voice replaced my own as I screamed an inch from his face.

  “Calm down! What are you talking about?” He wrapped his hands around my wrists, attempting to get me to let go. It was useless for him. I had trained in prison to fight. There was nowhere for him to go.

  “Kingston.” I watched as his face paled.

  “Venom, I was going to tell you. But I wanted you to come home and enjoy yourself first.”

  “You must have gotten a lot of cash,” I growled. “Tell me, was it worth it? What did you buy? Must be a great big house you and Holly have now, huh?”

  I squeezed harder, pressing my knuckles into his shoulder, keeping him pinned.

  “I asked, what you bought with all that money?”

  Our noses were
pressed together.

  “What. Did. You. Get?”

  “You.” His voice was a whisper.

  “What?” I studied his face and loosened my grip before letting him down.

  “How do you think you stayed alive?” Vicious pulled the hem of his shirt down.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Venom, we were desperate. Kingston knew it. Viper was gone, we had funerals to pay for, your lawyer bills. We were about to lose this club, and the threats on your life were the last we could take. He promised to make it all go away—pay it all off and make sure you came out alive. I’m sorry. It was the only way.”

  My fist smashed into the side of the house. Blood oozed from the broken skin, but I felt no pain, just guilt.

  “Look, we would have lost it all if I hadn’t sold.” He placed a heavy hand on my shoulder.

  “I do have something for you. Wait here.” Vicious returned with an envelope.

  “Open it.” He held it out to me.

  I slid out the documents it contained. Unfolding them, I read Deed. It was the deed to the old cabin Paw-paw had, the one where I last spent time with Maggie, the day everything went to hell.

  “What’s this?” I continue to read down the page. Vincent Landry was typed out on the page.

  “It just needs a signature and the place is yours, just like he wanted.”

  “You…?” Vicious had no clue the memories that place held.

  “Yeah, man, you can fix up the cabin or just use it as a getaway. You may need it when you find out the plans we have, now that you are back.”

  “Daddy,” Vice called out, running out to the porch, carrying his toy motorcycle. He was now around six, and he looked just like his old man.

  “Bud, you need shoes.” Vicious picked him up and sat him on the rail.

  “What happened to your hand, Uncle Venom?” Smiling with his missing tooth, he was so innocent. He hadn’t been poisoned by the world, not yet.

  “Oh, uh, I—”

  “He was fixing his car and hurt it,” Vicious cut in.