Illeanna (2 page)

* * * *

Johnny looked at his brother then at Ellena.

“She’s working all the time and long hours. We never get to see her anymore,” Johnny stated.

“She’s trying to establish herself as a credible master chef. She’s already fantastic, it’s just that jerk who works there,” Ellena said.

“Yeah Jacque the fake French idiot. He makes her life hell,” Angelina added. Then both women walked away to help customers.

“This has to end, Gustave. We have to make her see that we mean to make her all of ours,” Johnny stated.

“She runs every time she sees us,” Gustave said then looked out the window as if he might still get a glimpse of her.

“She looked good didn’t she?” Johnny asked as he took a deep breath then exhaled. Gustave nodded.

“Hi, Sheriff, Deputy,” Sharon, the young woman who worked as a bartender at Gullies’ said as she slid her hand along both their shoulders and winked.

“Sharon.” Johnny said her name then went back to eating, ignoring the young blonde. She had been after them for months, but none of them were interested. They only had eyes for Illeanna Aubert. Problem was, she was too busy trying to fight her attraction to even consider a relationship with five men.

The kitchen was buzzing with activity for several hours straight. Illeanna was finishing the prep work on another plate of shrimp-and-sausage étouffée. The rice was steaming hot, the sourdough French bread warm, and the mashed potatoes slathered with roasted garlic and mashed with extra virgin olive oil. She placed it onto the tray alongside the other entrees going to table nineteen.

“Aubert! You got them étouffées ready to go?” Jacque Bertow, lead chef at Carlile’s Restaurant, stated firmly, nearly causing Illeanna to spill the next plate of food she was preparing. The damn man was a beast in the kitchen, and he was getting all the credit for her hard work and recipes.

“They were up two minutes ago,” she stated then watched as he walked over to the tray Leeza, the waitress, was holding that contained the dishes Illeanna prepared.

“Too much currants. Needs more spice!” he stated with more of a French accent that he probably picked up in France since he kept reminding everyone that he was French trained in the culinary arts. She thought he should go back to France and leave her to handle the cooking here in New Orleans.

“It’s fine. Go ahead, Leeza, deliver it before it gets cold,” Illeanna stated just as firmly, and Leeza hurried out of the kitchen.

“I am not responsible for the complaints that will return with the uneaten food,” Jacque blurted out and made sure that everyone in the kitchen heard his statement. How could they not? He was always on a pedestal.

Illeanna went back to cooking and preparing the next order of her shrimp-and-sausage étouffée. Little did Jacque know that it was the most popular item on the menu this afternoon. She had wanted to be sure to create an exceptional main course on the “specials” menu since Senator Millan Pierre was dining at Carlile’s for a luncheon.

She continued to ignore the pompous jerk and focused on cooking the food. Out by the front door the maître d’, Walter, was peeking in looking a bit frazzled.

“What’s going on?” Jacque asked.

“Uhm, the senator would like to see the chef who cooked the shrimp-and-sausage étouffée.”

Illeanna looked up, surprised that the senator was already there and had eaten already. No one had come in to warn her.

“Is he pleased?” Jacque asked as he began to walk toward the kitchen doorway and Walter as he untied his front apron.

“Yes, very pleased. All the guests at his table are.”

“I will be but a moment,” Jacque stated then began to fix his hat and his apron jacket, being sure that all the buttons were buttoned. Illeanna was shocked.
That son of a bitch is going to take credit for my work.

“I will tell him that you will be out momentarily,” Walter said then walked back out of the kitchen.

* * * *

Their laughter could be heard throughout the dining area. Although the restaurant contained a private room with its own back entrance, other patrons knew that someone of importance was dining at Carlile’s today. Private Investigator Louis Boudoux and his brother Julien were following a lead on a job they were working. They were following one of Senator Pierre’s associates, Jean Phillips, after his wife had hired them believing that her husband was cheating on her. Little did they know that the man was not only having multiple affairs, but it appeared that he was involved in some illegal activities that could destroy the senator’s reelection. They didn’t have all the proof yet, but they were working on it.

Louis was just happy to be at Carlile’s so he could possibly get a glimpse of Illeanna. He and his four brothers shared an equal attraction to Illeanna, but whenever any of them tried to make a move, she would blow them off. It was getting more and more difficult to keep away from her, especially when other men came sniffing around her. Then a few months ago when her sister Angelique had gotten caught in some trouble and was nearly killed, they worried about Illeanna and her sisters. It just wasn’t right for five young, beautiful women to be handling so much on their own. At least the Lafont brothers had convinced Angelique to get into a relationship with them. Angelique was pregnant, building a new company, and expecting babies. That’s what he and his brothers wanted with Illeanna.

Louis rubbed the whiskers on his chin and exhaled. Man, it would be something else to have Illeanna be their woman and be pregnant with their child.

“Hey, where you at, bra?” Julien asked through his secret mike located on his wrist. Louis nearly jumped at the sound of Julien’s voice coming through the earpiece.

Louis raised his hand to his chin and quietly spoke into the mike up his sleeve.

“Sorry. I’m back. I was just hoping for a glimpse of our little chef.”

“Yeah wouldn’t that make this detail worth it? Hey, did you get a look at those two guys that just came in through the side room near the kitchen? I couldn’t see their faces,” Julien asked.

“Negative. I’ll check it out,” Louis replied then began to move toward one of the said two men, who were a few feet from Jean Phillips.

The classical music was playing in the background, lots of people filled the restaurant, and the senator looked as if he finished his meal and was looking around for someone.

“Where’s the chef? I want to compliment them personally on a job well done. I absolutely love this dish. It’s my new favorite,” Senator Pierre stated, and Louis felt his heart begin to pound inside of his chest. He was going to see Illeanna. And then he thought, she was going to blow his cover and Julien’s.
Shit!

Before Louis could think his next thought, chaos filled the room as one of the men pulled out a gun and fired it at Jean Phillips. Simultaneously someone came through the kitchen doors announcing that they were there. Louis feared that it was Illeanna and that she was going to get shot. As he turned all he saw was the white of the full chef uniform then another shot rang out. It happened so quickly as the two men ran from the room and entered the kitchen through the opposite swinging doors.

Louis and Julien ran toward the doors just as the senator’s guards did the same thing. A quick glance to the floor and he knew that it wasn’t Illeanna who had gotten shot but the other chef.

“Step away from the door!” someone yelled, and Julien swung around, ready to assault the senator’s bodyguards just so he and Louis could get to Illeanna.

“Police undercover!” Julien yelled, but Louis headed straight through the doors, gun raised and ready.

* * * *

Illeanna was aggravated, especially as the entire kitchen staff stood there dumbfounded and just as irritated as she was that Jacque was taking all the credit for the meals she prepared.

“Don’t worry about it. Let’s just keep working,” Illeanna stated as she moved around the counter and went to pick up the pot she dropped after Jacque stated that he was the one who prepared that particular meal.

“How can you be so calm, Illeanna? I would be freaking out right now,” Leeza stated, and others added similar comments.

“He’ll get his. Don’t worry, eventually he is going to have to actually cook a good meal and serve it to someone,” Illeanna said, chuckling, then stopped as she heard what sounded like gunshots.

In an instant two men rushed into the kitchen from the side room entrance. Other men came storming in, guns drawn. It happened so quickly. She saw the guns, saw the men’s faces, and then saw both Julien and Louis pointing guns at the two men. One turned as if he were going to hurt Louis or Julien, and she shoved the man before he could shoot. The other guy grabbed on to Leeza then shoved out of the way toward the men, and Leeza went flying onto the metal dish-washing station. Other people screamed as they saw the guns. They fell to the floor or went running from the kitchen, but Illeanna froze in place, her concern solely on Julien and Louis.

“Freeze, asshole!” Louis Boudoux yelled, and the men behind him that looked like secret service guys dressed in dark suits yelled, too, with guns drawn.

The one guy headed out the door, but his partner went to pull Maria, an older woman who worked in the kitchen, up by her hair, and Illeanna slammed the pot she had in her hands at his hands. “What the fuck?” he yelled then twisted around and grabbed Illeanna around her neck. He reached for one of the cutting knives as the men began to attack.

Everyone froze, including Illeanna.

She was shocked at the fear that hit her insides. She wondered what the hell was happening that these men had guns in a kitchen for God’s sake. Were they after the senator? Why were Louis and Julien here, too? They didn’t work for the government. They were private investigators and bounty hunters.

“Let her go!” Julien yelled, looking absolutely insane and ready to explode. Illeanna felt the man step back with her toward the back door.

“There’s no place to run, man, the back door is covered with more cops,” another man with a gun wearing a dark, navy-blue suit stated. Louis and Julien gave him a look as if saying that was a stupid thing to say. She thought about it a moment and realized that this lunatic would feel trapped. Either way, he was going to be arrested, and adding murder to the list might not bother him.

“Call them off or I swear I’ll kill her,” the man holding the knife against her neck stated. She felt the pinch of the metal against her neck below her ear and the smell of onions on the blade. Only moments ago Maria was cutting the vegetables to add to the dishes they were preparing. How did this go so wrong? What in the world was she in the middle of?

“You’re not going to kill her, man, ya gonna let her go, and we gonna talk, you and I,” Louis stated in a rich Cajun accent that made Illeanna’s toes curl. The Boudoux men were rugged and sexy men. Specifically Louis, with his shoulder-length black hair making him appear wild and untamable. But with the wildness came trouble and trouble she didn’t need.

Illeanna tried to move her throat away from the knife.

“Quit moving, woman, or you dead,” the man stated and squeezed her tighter.

Illeanna stood on her tiptoes, trying to remain where the man wanted her to.

He was about a half a foot taller than her and built thin but muscular. Illeanna was about five feet seven inches tall, so this guy had to be about six feet. The Boudoux men were all over six feet tall and built to perfection. How could her mind keep focusing on the Boudoux men instead of her own life right now? She could die at any moment.

The man was beginning to panic. She could feel his arm tighten around her midsection, but the blade was no longer flush against her skin. She could feel the bit of blood trickling down her neck, and immediately she felt herself begin to shake.

“Please let me go. They got you, honey. There’s no place to run and only more damage to do to make you suffer more. Please,” she whispered, and he squeezed her tighter against him, making her gasp for air.

Both Louis and Julien stepped forward raising their guns, their elbows out and their eyes squinted with their fingers on the trigger and demanding that he release her.

“You let her go. She didn’t do nothing wrong. She’s not part of this,” Julien stated firmly. She looked at both of them, hoping that they could stop this man from killing her. The gunman was silent for a moment as if contemplating his next move. She stared at Julien and Louis. The thought that she may never see them again made her lose her breath. Tears filled her eyes.

Both men were strikingly handsome with jet-black hair, except Julien kept his short and military-like, while Louis kept his long to his shoulders. It looked silky and wild just like Louis’s personality. She swallowed hard and closed her eyes as the man lifted her feet off the ground and carried her back toward the door.

“Don’t do it,” the man in the dark suit stated just as the man holding her whispered against her neck. His lips touched her skin making her flinch in disgust. “You’re gonna help me.”

She held Julien’s gaze and saw the anger in his eyes. His muscular face looked beet red despite his tan complexion, and the vein above his right temple pulsated as he watched.

“Open the door, sexy, you’re coming with me,” he told her, and she knew that if he got her out of that kitchen and into a car that she would be in way more serious trouble than she was in right now.

He lowered the knife so she could turn the handle and when she did, he began to look over her shoulder to see if in fact there were other police outside the door and sure enough there were. That’s when she made her move. There were five steps leading out the back door to the parking area below. She didn’t know shit about self-defense moves, only what she had seen on TV. Illeanna grabbed his arm, twisted and flipped him nearly over her, but he weighed so much more and apparently was used to fighting because he took her with him. That was not how the move looked on television. They tumbled down the five concrete steps with her swinging most of the way. He yelled and struck back, but before their bodies even came to a halt, men in dark suits pulled the man up off the ground and arrested him.