NOLA (6 page)

“Amanda…” Mia started.

“Oh no, not your mother, your aunt Bevil.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Ralph leaned in and explained, “Bevil is one of Beverly’s nicknames.”

“Oh.” Mia didn’t know what to do with this information.  She filed it away and graciously greeted the two companions of Yum-Yum - she had yet to know her real name.

“I’m Candy, and this is Monique,” the black woman introduced.  “I knew your grandmother too, but I never had the privilege of meeting you.”

“I beg your pardon, but you don’t look old enough to be a compatriot of Grandma Fred,” Mia said.

“Oh, that’s because black doesn’t crack,” Yum-Yum said.

Ralph gasped.

Candy laughed.  “Don’t mind Becky. She’s determined to get a rise out of somebody.  I told her it wasn’t going to be me today.  I’m much too relaxed.”

Now that Mia knew Yum-Yum’s nonperforming name, Becky, she felt better. Although, she would probably refer to Becky as Yum-Yum mentally for quite a while.

Monique started to speak but was interrupted by a tall, thin, collar-wearing black gentleman who strode into the room as if he lived there.  “Well, I see Macbeth’s
witches three
are with us again.”  He looked down at Mia and said, “You’re new, and you, sir,” he nodded at Ralph.  He looked over their heads and said, “I see the Protestants are lusting over the collectables.”

Mia felt a blast of cold air as Wanda’s frosty glare brought with it a bit of the polar vortex.  Triple P just laughed good-naturedly.

“Father Peter, I must insist that you stop this,” Honor scolded.  She looked at the others, giving them a sympathetic look.  “Now that we are all assembled, why don’t we adjourn to the dining room?  Food before business, I insist.  And remember, no work talk.  I run a no-ghost zone table.”

Ralph held out his arm to Mia, who took it, happy to have him to lean upon physically and emotionally.

“Ah, Mrs. Martin has a knight to protect her,” Father Peter observed, giving his arm to his hostess.

“I wouldn’t pick on the young woman, Peter. She’s doing us a favor.  Father Acosta is ill.”

“I gathered that when I didn’t see the old coot here.”

“Behave,” Honor warned.

Ralph leaned over and whispered in Mia’s ear. “There are more divas here than at a
Kinky Boots
audition.”

Mia permitted herself a small laugh.  Stress eased its way out of her shoulders.

Ralph patted her hand protectively.

As they approached the large, beautifully set table, Honor broke away from Father Peter’s grasp and directed who was to sit where.  Ralph and Mia were quickly separated.  Mia was sat between Father Peter and Candy.  Ralph divided Monique and Becky.  Pastor Philip sat at the end of the table with Wanda at his right.  Their hostess, Honor, sat at the other end of the table.  She waited until all were comfortable before signally the footman to begin serving.

Mia looked over at Ralph, who seemed to be enjoying himself.  She was happy to have him there with her, but part of her wished that a certain scruffy farmer had made the trip.  A bolt of memory flashed through her.  She just remembered where she had seen Honor before.  She was the spitting image of the young woman in Murphy’s locket.  Mia picked up her soup spoon and began to eat.  Her appetite had returned with her acceptance that the world was indeed small.

~

The full moon bathed the forest with an eerie glow.  Maggie walked beside Murphy as he drifted from one tree to another.  He was inspecting each tree, looking for any damage they may have sustained during the long, cold winter.  He was sad to see he had lost quite a few young trees to the ravenous appetite of the area’s deer population.  He had Ted and Mia furnish food for the herd, but evidently, it hadn’t been enough.  Or it could be that the deer were partial to the bark of the young trees.  He would replant the trees but not until he devised a better way of protecting them from the four-legged pests.

Mia was sympathetic to his need to restore the forest, but she was also happy that wildlife had started to repopulate the place.  The area needed a certain amount of wildlife to help Gerald’s proposal for a wildlife sanctuary to be made of the hollow property.  He faced a zoning commission that was leaning towards subdividing the area for luxury commuter homes.  Homes were the last thing that should be built in an area that had witnessed the horrors Steele and the hag had brought to it.

“So if we have to sacrifice a few trees, Murph, then so be it.  Talk to Ted, I’m sure he’s got an invention in mind to keep the deer from eating your trees,” Mia suggested.

He hadn’t asked Ted yet.  He hated to bother the young father with his problems.  Ted had his hands full with little Brian.

Murphy smiled when he thought of Mia’s baby.  The little feller could see him and reacted with a grand smile whenever Murphy visited him.  Cid told him that was just gas causing the smile, but Murphy knew better.  Brian Stephen Cid Martin could see ghosts, and he liked Murphy.

“Hello, Mister Murphy,” a young woman’s voice called from deep in the forest.

He moved quickly to intercept whatever was searching for him.  He was surprised to see a pale, stretched-out version of Mia floating there amongst the red maples.

“Hello, sir, I’m Sabine, Mia’s cousin.”

He nodded to the apparition.

“I’ve just OOBed over to check on how Ted’s doing with little Brian.  But there is no one at home.  I though perhaps you would know what’s going on?”

Her voice was so sweet.  It seemed to float on the late winter breeze.  Sabine was wearing a long, pastel, flannel shirt.  Her feet were bare, but while she was bilocating, she wouldn’t feel the cold.

“I have three little girls who had their one year birthday last month.  I know that, no matter how well behaved, babies can be a handful,” she said to explain her being there.

“Brian can see me,” Murphy said proudly.

“Can he?  Oh, that’s marvelous!” Sabine clapped her hands together.  “Two of my daughters can see ghosts. The other one can’t, but she has other talents, earthly talents,” she qualified.

“Ted’s taken him on a ghost hunt.”

Sabine didn’t bother to hide her distress.  “Does Mia know?”

“No.”

“Oh dear, I hope he has taken precautions.”

“Me too,” he admitted.

Sabine looked around her.  “You sure have done a lot with your farm.  I remember the hollow being a dark, sad place.”

“A lot has changed.  We have deer.”

“Deer are nice, but they can get into trouble though.  They eat bulbs and…”

“Trees.”

“Those too,” Sabine sympathized.  “Have you ever tried coyote urine?”

Murphy looked at her oddly.

“On the trees, silly.  What did you…  You didn’t think I meant to drink it!  Oh, you are silly!” she exclaimed.  “No wonder Mia loves you.  You make her laugh!”

Murphy was a bit stunned by this revelation.

“My late husband Brian was a voracious reader.  Did you know that Chicago has a coyote problem in the northern lake neighborhoods?  He told me he read that coyotes may be pests, but they are beneficial too.  He told me that, as he said, ‘
coyote piss
will keep away rabbits and deer.’  You see, they recognize the scent and stay away, fearing the predators are in the area.”

Murphy listened to the young woman, nodding.

“I’ll call and tell Ted he needs to buy some tomorrow.  He will be back in the morning, won’t he?” Sabine asked.

“Yes.  PEEPs are at a library not far from here.”

“Aren’t you part of PEEPs?”

“Yes.”

“Then why aren’t you there too?”

Murphy frowned.  “Not needed.  They call me ‘the big gun,’ and they said I would be bored there.”

“I think they should let you make up your mind if you’re bored.  I’ll call Burt and…”

“No!” he said and wished he hadn’t said it so strongly.

Sabine didn’t appear to be offended.  “I see, you would rather talk to him yourself.  Good plan.”

Murphy felt the kindness radiate off of her.  Even in OOB form, Sabine cast off a good vibe.  “Would you like to see some flowers?” he asked.

“Already?  It’s still winter.”

“On the sunny side of the hill, there are crocus and snowdrops,” he said, leading her there.

The hillside was almost covered with the emerging flowers.

“Oh my,” she said as they approached.  “I could just roll in them.  Stephen, they are beautiful.”

“There were more, but the deer…”

“Coyote piss,” Sabine said with her hands on her hips.

“Coyote piss,” he agreed.

“Well, I better get back now.  Tauni Cerise, she’s my nanny, worries if I’m gone too long.  It was nice to talk to you, Stephen.  If you ever want to visit me, just take the vortex and think…”

“Take me to Sabine’s place,” Murphy said.

“Yes!  That will get you there.  Bye, Stephen, have a nice night,” she said airily as she left.

Murphy pushed his hat back on his head and had trouble for a minute remembering what he was doing before Sabine came along.  “Trees!” he said loudly.

Maggie came bounding back towards him.  She had no idea why he had walked away and was talking to himself.  Mia, too, talked to herself a lot. Maybe it’s what people and ghosts do.

~

The desert of crème brûlée was served with bitter espresso.  Mia had to refrain from making the little noises she made when she was enjoying something sweet.  She didn’t want to mortify Ralph. She caught him looking at her from time to time, and aside from almost using her salad fork on the fish, she managed the utensils like a debutante.  It was exhausting navigating through the meal.  She had a priest on one shoulder and a Voodoo priestess on the other.  They had no problems with the silverware.  Their manners bore witness to good breeding.  Mia felt like she alone represented the barbarian caucus.

“I think everyone is finished.  We’ll stay here and begin our meeting.  This way, coffee can be drunk and cookies can be snacked upon as need be.”

“I don’t know how anyone could eat any more,” Wendy declared.

Mia waited until all eyes were back on their hostess before she took a cookie.

“This year, we have seen the numbers of wandering souls quite depleted. Some of our resident mediums have complained that their spirit guides are reluctant to appear within the city limits,” Honor reported.  “I almost feel like it was a mistake calling you all here.  Still, we will do our spirit walk tomorrow afternoon.  I think that we should concentrate our walk in the 9
^th
Ward like last year.  I’d like us to meet at the Upper 9
^th
Ward at the Musicians’ Village at three o’clock.  This area has had the most recent renovation.  We will progress through the area, hitting spots where my spirit guide has seen lost soul movement.  We’ll continue on into the night.”

“Mia, since this is your and Ralph’s first walk, I’m going to ask one of the others to be kind enough to stick with you.”

“They can stick with us,” Monique offered.

“You want to put another fence-sitter in with you three witches?  No, Mia will be with me,” Father Peter insisted.

Mia looked over at Ralph, and he shrugged.

“I would appreciate the help,” Mia said diplomatically.  Inside, she was screaming, “No, no, no, and hell no!”

“Then I think we can enjoy the rest of the evening.  Those that have to leave may do so at any time.”  Honor rose and then waved her hands.  “Wait! Bring rain gear. It’s supposed to be a wet afternoon.”  She moved away from the table and left the room.

Mia picked up the pilfered cookie and took a bite.  Her mouth was filled with butter and pecans, pronounced
pee cans
in N’awlins.  If you pronounced it the way you were used to hearing it, you were quickly corrected.  She took a sip of the last of her coffee and rose from the table.  She felt a light hand on her shoulder.  She turned around to see Candy, the Voodoo priestess, looking down at her.

“Mia, can we have a private word?” Candy asked.

“Yes, of course.  Here or out on the porch?”

Candy’s face bloomed into a smile that was supposed to be engaging, but Mia found it a bit creepy.  “The porch would be nice.  The night air would do both of us good after that heavy meal.”

Mia mimed to Ralph that she was going outside, and he nodded.  He was enjoying the conversation he was having with Yum-Yum.  They were dishing on the latest Seeley sister antics.

The front porch was equipped with a few chairs.

“Normally, on this end of town, you wouldn’t see chairs on porches, but Honor loves her garden and spends time watching the birds while she has her morning coffee,” Candy explained.

Mia sat down and put her feet up on the wicker hassock.

“You and I have a friend in common,” Candy started.

Mia looked over at her and confirmed, “The judge.”

“Judge Roumain visited with me a week ago.  He explained that he wanted you to replace Father Acosta.  He knew that I could sway the witches and the mediums.  He was sure that Father Peter would be against you.  The father fears that you, being Bevil’s niece, will make a mockery of what we do.”

“I assure you, I take crossing over those that want to go as a very serious matter,” Mia reassured her.

“I know this.  My guide said, Candy Kane, my dear, you believe what the judge tells you.  I’ve seen her in action.”

“Really?  Cool beans.”  Mia knew better than to ask who Candy’s spirit guide was.

“The judge, he means well, Mia.  He shouldn’t be dabbling on this side of the things, but he’s bored.”

“I have a good friend at home who gets bored too.”

“Ah, is this the Stephen Murphy I have heard so much about?”

“You’ve heard about Murphy? Now
this
has me intrigued.”

“My spirit guide is a bit of a gossip,” Candy admitted.

“Forgive my ignorance, but considering your calling, I’m a bit surprised.”

“Don’t let Hollywood movies influence you, little bird.  They get Voodoo confused with Vodou and Vodun.  I practice Voodoo.”

Mia was a bit too unbalanced by being called a
little bird,
Angelo’s pet name for her, to concentrate on what Candy was trying to tell her.  She managed, “I seem to have a lot to learn.”