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ALEXIS WAS BUSY SHOPPING along the Riverfront when the aromatic smell of coffee and beignets caught her attention. She stopped at Café Orleans for a café au lait before heading back home. While standing in line, she watched those around her. Despite the stifling heat, the coffee shop was still extremely busy. From where she was standing, she caught sight of an older gentleman playing his saxophone on the corner. She loved coming down here to sit and listen to the jazz players. The man played as if he was actually playing to a particular person. She could feel the love reverberate from the music. She wished she could play music the way he did, but she couldn’t carry a tune to save her life.
Something about the man held her fascination. She wasn’t sure if it was the way his salt and pepper hair contrasted sharply to his dark caramel colored skin or the fact that despite the oppressive temperature of the day the man wore a black pinstriped suit, crisp white shirt, and a scarlet red bow tie. She noticed that the whole time the man played the tune, he kept his eyes closed, not caring if anyone was around him or not. He continued to pelt away at the music and poured his heart into the song. Several people dropped cash in the saxophone case he left open just for that purpose.
As she dropped a couple of dollars into the growing pile, she wondered just how much money he brought in on a busy day like today. She almost jumped when he replied, “Thank you so much, ma’am.” She smiled at him while chastising herself for being so jumpy.
The air was heavy and moist with humidity. It would more than likely storm tonight. She loved listening to the rain at night and the thunder helped to drown out the ghostly sounds that seemed to reverberate through the house. Dominic told her it was just her vivid imagination, but she thought the man could honestly sleep through an earthquake. She, however, swore she had heard drums in her sleep, which was ridiculous. Why would a ghost want to play such a haunting tune on drums? The energy around the plantation had changed. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but it was as if something evil lurked about. Maybe Dominic was right; she was letting her imagination work overtime. Perhaps she spent too much time on Bourbon Street, in particular the voodoo shops. She had yet to tell Dominic of her frequent visits to the voodoo shops. He would probably laugh at her if she told him that she had her palm read once a week. She doubted he believed in any of the folklores that made up New Orleans.
After purchasing her café au lait, she made her way back to her car. The sidewalks were jam packed with people even though it was the summer. The crowd was a mixture of residents and tourists, the two being easily discernible. Usually, the heat down here deterred them, but they seemed to pay no mind to the rising temperatures today. The aromas coming from the nearby restaurants filled the air, making her mouth water. Maybe it was the good food that brought them here. If she didn’t have plans with Dominic tonight, she would stop and pick her up a shrimp po’boy for supper. It would be well worth the extra time she had to spend on the treadmill.
As Alexis walked past Bianca Honore’s voodoo shop, a voodoo doll caught her eye. It looked almost exactly like the one in her dream the other night. She found herself drawn into the shop.
The sounds of the drum music in the background were eerily familiar to the ones haunting her dreams. Maybe she had come into the shop too much and it was invading her sleep at night. Until now, she never noticed just how busy Bianca was. The store was packed with people buying various potions and charms.
She couldn’t believe how easily people bought into the religion. She walked over to the area where the voodoo dolls were displayed and picked up the voodoo doll from her dreams. She heard Bianca approach, “Cher, did you want a reading today?”
Alexis shook her head, “No, this voodoo doll caught my eye. You won’t believe this, but I have been dreaming of a doll almost exactly like this one lately.”
“Voodoo dolls can be very powerful if you believe in them. Do you think maybe someone has one of you?”
Alexis put the doll down and shook her head, “Mais non, I think I have been spending too much time in this shop and it is causing me to see the doll in my dreams. Even the music you play in here haunts my dreams.”
***
BIANCA LOOKED AT ALEXIS with veiled eyes. Dominic must not be giving her enough sleeping potion at night. She must tell him to increase the amount of belladonna. They couldn’t have her wake up and notice Dominic not in bed with her. Mais, that wouldn’t be good at all. She already didn’t get to see her Dominic as much as she would like.
Bianca told Alexis, “That could be. If you want to skip a few readings I understand.”
Bianca smiled to herself. She had prepared a voodoo doll very similar to this one to use on Alexis when she married Dominic. Her plan was coming to fruition, but she needed to make sure the woman slept through the night. Bianca’s plans were working perfectly for now.
***
AS ALEXIS MADE HER way out of the French Quarter, she saw the hotel where she parked her car. Dominic recently surprised her with a Cadillac CTS-V, burgundy in color. The tan leather interior was soft as a baby’s skin and the seats seemed to envelop her. The man knew her so well and knew exactly what she liked. He never even asked her if she wanted a new car; he just drove up in it one day. Her excitement for the gift left her speechless.
The cafes and businesses here were just as busy as the French Quarter. The local businesses must be glad that things were finally picking up after Katrina. This area was lucky, several businesses were left untouched by the destruction Hurricane Katrina left in its wake. Unfortunately, others were demolished and their owners forced to rebuild. It amazed her that despite being scarred by the flood waters, there was still a vibrancy about the city. It just proved that the people here were resilient and there was no holding them down. The residents still had smiles on their faces regardless of the fact that they must rebuild everything they had.
As she neared the hotel, she saw Guy Mayon, the private investigator that stopped by the house a while back. She groaned as he headed towards her.
“Mrs. St. Germaine, will you please look at the missing girl’s picture one more time?”
She noticed a stack of flyers that he must be handing out along the Riverfront. “As I told you before, I wouldn’t know if she was in any of my husband’s establishments or if she worked for him. Dominic keeps his business out of the home and I have never had any interest in what he does to be honest with you.”
“Please, maybe you have seen her in passing around New Orleans.”
Alexis looked at the flyer one more time. She felt sorry for the family and what they must be going through. The young girl was barely twenty years old and last seen in New Orleans six weeks ago. She looked so carefree in the picture. Alexis wondered if she ran away from home. “Is there a chance that she just doesn’t want to be found?”
“I don’t think so. She went to college here in New Orleans and checked in with her parents who live in Baton Rouge at least once a week. She goes home on Sundays for lunch and to do her laundry. Her mom sends her back with all kinds of food and goodies to tide her over for the week.”
“I take it the parents hired you to find her.”
He looked at her intently, “I specialize in missing persons. Her parents felt they were getting the brush off from the local police force here and asked if I could help them out.”
Alexis shook her head, “You know there is a chance that she just wants some time to herself and took off for a bit.”
She watched as he pursed his mouth, “Is this coming from personal experience?”
Her mouth went dry as his gaze bore right into her, “Let’s just say that sometimes parents ask more from us than we are ready to actually give.”
“So, I take it your parents expected a lot out of you?”
She gave him a shaky grin, “They had their expectations. Look, I’m sorry about the missing girl, but I haven’t seen her. I really do wish I could help.”
“If you see her or hear anything, please give me a call.”
“Do you have a gut feeling on this girl?”
He nodded, “I don’t think she ran away. From what I have learned about her, she was very dedicated to her studies and her grades were good. I think she ran into some trouble and from what I learned about her, she isn’t very street smart.”
A chill ran down Alexis’s spine. There were evil people out there who preyed on the innocent. “Do you at least have any leads?”
“She was last seen buying a voodoo doll for her mother as a birthday gift. She stopped at a little shop on Bourbon Street to buy her an authentic one, but after that her trail grows cold.”
Alexis could only imagine who the poor girl may have run into on Bourbon Street on a Saturday. The streets were crawling with tourists and locals on most days, but the weekends and nights were the busiest times there.
New Orleans was busy this afternoon; everyone wanted to enjoy this beautiful weather. Pedestrians strolled along the sidewalk, mostly window shopping and cars drove by in a hurry to get to their destination. As Alexis walked back to her car, she noticed for the first time all the flyers for missing girls and even children, that were plastered all over the city. How had she not seen these before? She shuddered at what these families were going through, the uncertainty. Their lives suspended in a distressing limbo. A breeze blew off of the river breaking her out of her reverie.
By the time Alexis made it home, she was completely unnerved by the day’s happenings. She couldn’t help but think about those poor missing women. Her visit to Bianca’s shop and seeing the voodoo doll that haunted her dreams also had her a little anxious. She just couldn’t explain it. By the time Dominic made it home that night, she simply wanted to forget about the day’s happenings.
She ran into his arms and kissed him passionately. She whispered in his ear, “Let’s skip our plans. Make love to me.”
He needed no further prompting. He swept her up into his arms and carried her off to the bedroom.