Sweet Mystery (26 page)

“Simon, Grandfather is very sick. We’re at
the hospital and he is in intensive care,” Toya rasped in a tearful
voice. “Please come. The doctor said he might not make it. Simon,
please,” she sobbed. Then there was a click as she hung up.

Simon and Rae sat stunned by the news for a
moment, and then he stood up. “I have to go. You understand, don’t
you?”

The sweet mood they’d shared was gone. She
sat up. “Yeah, sure.”

As Simon took a quick shower and dressed, Rae
thought about her last encounter with Henry Jove. He had always
seemed so powerful, so in control. Of course, he was only human
like everyone else. It would be sad if he died just when LaMar was
on the verge of finding out the truth about Pawpaw Vincent and
Estelle, especially as it might turn out that Henry had been right
all along.

Rae went into the bathroom, showered and
dressed quickly while Simon waited. Afterwards, they walked out of
the house together and Rae got into her car.

Simon leaned down and kissed her forehead.
“I’ll call you later, babe.”

“Okay.”

Only moments ago the night had been magical;
a velvet comforter that wrapped them in love. Now there was an
ominous feel to the blanket of darkness surrounding the rural
highway as Rae drove home. The descending sense of gloom puzzled
her. Though she felt sorry for Henry Jove, despite his harsh words,
there was something else. A palpable shift in the atmosphere seemed
to signal dire events. Perhaps digging into the past had released
some kind of negative energy. Rae tried to shake off her morose
musings.

Later, at home, unable to sleep, she stared
at the television most of the night without really seeing it.

Chapter 13

“Over here, Willie,” a deep voice shouted.
The work crew’s boss gestured to the man operating a dump
truck.

Bright, hot sunshine beamed down on the men.
Work had begun early enough, but even now, at ten in the morning,
their shirts were soaked with sweat. In spite of the heat and
humidity, the men kept up a steady pace. They took turns drinking
water from the big, round coolers they carried with them.

For three more hours they worked, clearing
the thick vegetation in preparation for the installation of a road.
Onlookers who lived or worked near Bayou Latte wandered over to
watch, off and on. Even the birds, disturbed from their usual quiet
routine, perched high in the trees to observe the activity
below.

The sandy dirt was scooped up into huge
piles, which would later be used to build up the levee along Grande
River. Large rocks would be broken up for use as gravel for the
road bed or concrete mix. Nothing would be discarded.

Even the clank of machinery did not spoil the
beauty of the scene. Bayou Latte, which flowed along for miles, was
surrounded by lush, green grass. Wide palmetto bushes sprouted,
just as they had done in the subtropical land for centuries. Tall
oaks, white ash and maple trees formed a canopy over the forest
floor. A breeze stirred their leaves high up, but did little to
cool.

The sparse audience shared a cordial
companionship with the men working. Light banter went back and
forth as everyone enjoyed the day. Dump trucks lumbered away,
hauling their loads, some of which would be placed on barges.

“Hey, Gus!” a workman shouted. “Come over
here, man. Looka this!”

The foreman strode over to stare down at
ground. “What the..? That’s probably some deer or something.”

With a slow shake of his head, the worker
disagreed. “I hunt, man. That don’t look like no deer bone to
me.”

An hour later, the men sat around eating
their lunches and waiting. Deputy Wilson and Sheriff Thibodeaux
stood staring down at the bones laid on the ground.

“Best we call the state police on this one,
Kedrick,” said the sheriff. Squatting down, he took off his
sunglasses. “This might be nothing, but then again...”

* * *

Andrew sat down at the bar and ordered a
sandwich for lunch. “Hey, Garrett. They were digging over by the
bayou and found some human bones. Got everybody spooked.”

Garrett, who was getting ready to open the
bar for the evening, stopped arranging the glass beer mugs. “Say
what? Man, you gotta be kiddin’?”

“I’m tellin’ ya. My boss was down there when
one of the guys dug ‘em up. Folks all ready wonderin’ who it could
be.”

Andrew grinned when Sarah, the cook Rae had
hired, brought him a po-boy. “Thank you, ma’am.” He handed Garrett
a five-dollar bill.

Garrett gave him his change with mechanical
movements, his forehead wrinkled. “Can’t be nobody from round here.
We’d have missed ‘em by now. Tell ya what, it’s one of them drug
dealers, I bet.”

“You think?” Andrew took a bite of the fried
catfish in French bread.

“Sure. They use these bayous to smuggle
drugs. Bet one of his business partners decided he didn’t wanna
share the profits.”

“Or maybe he one of them gang members from
Lafayette or New Orleans. Folks love to come out here and dump
their trash.” Andrew gave a grunt. “Drugs and gangs; just another
form of pollution.”

Sarah lingered to join in the conversation.
“They ain’t the only ones that kill people.” She dropped her voice.
“Miss Zenola says voodoo is still practiced round here.”

Jackson, her husband, emerged from the
kitchen, wiping his hands on a towel. “Don’t talk foolishness. That
ain’t how voodoo folks kill.”

“He oughta know – his mama one of ‘em,” Sarah
mumbled before he got close.

Jackson took a seat on one of the bar stools.
“Besides that, they use spells to make folks get sick and die. They
wouldn’t need to dump a body.”

For the next few minutes a lively debate
ensued. Sarah insisted there was some evil magic being practiced
while Garrett favored the more Earthly sin of crime.

Rae walked in on them gossiping and
developing theories. “What’s all the commotion? I can hardly think
back in my office.” She sat down at a table with a sandwich and
soft drink. “Sounded like a roomful of people was in here.”

“Child, they found a body in the bayou,”
Sarah blurted out, foiling Andrew’s effort to tell her first.

“Humph, more good news. Now we find out our
backyard is a cemetery.” Rae was fast losing her appetite.

“Yep, Belle Rose is jumpin’ here lately.”
Garrett went back to work as he talked. “If old Henry dies, this
town won’t be the same.”

Rae felt a shiver down her spine. She did not
like to think of that day when she was confronted by the
self-righteous patriarch of the town’s most prominent Creole
family. He looked ill after their heated exchange.

“Guess his bad temper finally did him in. Rae
let him have it the other day. Right, baby sister?” Andrew threw a
glance at her. “Say he had smoke coming out of his ears.”

“Hush, Andrew,” Sarah whispered.

He looked baffled. “What did I say?”

An uncomfortable silence descended.

Garrett rattled several bottles. “Uh-umm, I’m
goin’ out back to the storeroom.” He darted away.

“I got to start marinating my meat for
tonight.” Jackson followed him.

“Hey, everybody actin’ like I stepped in
somethin’.” Andrew lifted both hands. “What’s up?”

“Rae, don’t you listen to ignorant gossip.
You ain’t caused the man to have that stroke.” Sarah gave Rae a
maternal pat before leaving. She shot an admonishing look at
Andrew. “You gonna learn to let your brain guide your mouth one of
these days.”

“Aw, come on. Rae knows she didn’t make the
old man sick.” Andrew pulled out the chair next to her and sat
down. “Ain’t that right?”

“Yeah, well the talk is I pushed him over the
edge.” Rae lifted a shoulder as she traced an invisible line on the
tablecloth.

“At his age anything can go wrong. The man is
eighty, Raenette.” Andrew put an arm around her shoulder. “He’s all
ready cheated the Grim Reaper longer than most.”

“Henry Jove is the last person I’d lose sleep
over, Andy. But I don’t wanna kill the man either.” Rae rubbed her
eyes.

“Poo-ya! One conversation ain’t gonna kill
that mean old goat.”

Rae patted his hand. He could always tease
her out of a blue mood. “Yeah, you’re right.”

“Sure I am. Not even you got that powerful a
personality.” Andrew poked her in the ribs. “Though you could raise
Mama’s temperature with them tricks you pulled.”

“All right, let well enough alone.” She tried
not to laugh.

For the rest of the day, Rae found hard work
a comfort, allowing her to avoid thinking of the Joves. She
completed an inventory, worked with Marcelle on the books and paid
the sales taxes. The dance hall closed at midnight.

Garrett had proved his skill and become her
manager. This meant that, eventually, Rae would not have to work
sixteen-hour days, but tonight she welcomed it. Only a few days
ago, the dance hall was a barrier to being in Simon’s arms. Now she
fought a fear that he would be drawn away from her. Working late
meant she could delay going home to an empty house. All she had of
Simon lately was his tired voice on the phone, telling her that
Henry Jove’s condition was still critical.

* * *

Friday came and Rae could stand it no longer.
Her nerves were raw and she’d not had a decent night’s sleep for
several days.

“Garrett, you mind if I take Saturday off?
Andrew will help, and Neville will be down Saturday night.”

“Bet Andrew jumped at the chance.” Garrett
grinned. “Surprised me, but Andrew got a gift for runnin’ this
place. Why don’t you let him take some of the burden off you?”

Rae thought of her carefree brother. Despite
his laid-back attitude toward work, playing host was his strength.
Garrett was right. Andrew showed an understanding about cash flow
and balance sheets that was more than a surprise – it was an
outright shock.

“Think I can persuade him to quit his day job
at Thibaut’s?” Rae raised an eyebrow.

“Only reason he’d say no is if you don’t ask
him,” Garrett quipped.

Rae knew Garrett was right.

* * *

Andrew wore a wide grin when she met him and
broached the subject of coming to work for her.

“Now I gotta give Mr. Thibaut notice. He’ll
probably let me work some anyways. Me and Garrett switching days as
manager is a fine idea.” Andrew stuck out his chest. “The Dalcour
family enterprise is on its way.”

Rae tried to share his bright outlook. Once
he was gone, the gray fog of gloom settled back over her. Not even
the clear, blue sky full of puffy, white clouds helped. The small
park looked out over the water. She took a stroll along the paved
river-walk downtown trying to leave it behind.

“Rae, I’ve been looking for you,” Simon
called to her. He crossed over to the small park behind city hall.
“Just so happened I came to the office for something and saw your
car.”

“Hi, baby. How are you?” Rae pulled him
close. He felt so good.

“Sorry I haven’t been by in the last couple
of days.”

Rae placed her fingertips on his lips. “You
don’t have to explain. Is it bad?”

“He’s stable at least. But his left side is
paralyzed and he can’t talk. At least not so you can understand
him.”

Rae tried to visualize the formidable man
unable to command his own body. “What does the doctor say?”

“Dr. Picard had the neurologist examine him.
The next few days will be critical.”

“Even though he’s not exactly one of my
favorite people, I’m sorry this happened.” Rae took a deep breath.
“How is the family holding up?”

“Darcy is fine.” Simon frowned, disapproval
on his face. “He’s been at the hospital, but his biggest concern
seems to be getting the sheriff and state police out of his way so
his precious road can be built.”

“Man, I forgot about that. It seems we have a
murder mystery on our hands.” Rae sat down at a picnic table under
a sprawling oak tree.

Simon put an arm around her waist as he
joined her on the wooden bench. “Darcy didn’t even let the fact
that his grandfather had a stroke the night before keep him from
going out there the next morning.”

“From what they say, this plant is going to
help make the Joves even richer.” Rae gazed out over the sparkling
water. “Darcy wouldn’t let anything get in the way of that.”

“Yeah, guess you’re right.”

“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree
either. Mr. Henry is just as single-minded about making money.” Rae
glanced at Simon. “I shouldn’t have said that under the
circumstances.”

“No, you’re right again. But the strange
thing is Mr. Henry wasn’t too happy about something connected to
the deal.” Simon looked at her. “He was in the middle of a tirade
about his property when he had the stroke.”

“Henry Jove didn’t want to make more money?
Now that is strange.” Rae leaned against Simon. “He sure could get
worked up. Mr. Henry tore into me a couple of days ago and–”

“My grandfather wouldn’t be lying in a
hospital right now if you hadn’t come back to town!”

The couple turned to see Toya standing
several feet away with a stony face.

Simon faced her. “Mr. Henry was at risk of a
stroke because of his heart and high blood pressure. Rae didn’t
have anything to do with it.”

“The doctor said stress plays a factor.” Toya
jabbed a finger at Rae. “She has deliberately provoked us by
digging up the past and opening that sleazy dive.”

“You’re delusional.” Rae did not try to curb
her anger. She was tired of Toya’s attitude being thrown in her
face at every turn. “I guess that thunderstorm we had the other
night is my fault, too.”

“Grandfather was doing fine until you
provoked him! Why couldn’t you go back to bar-hopping with that
straggly band of yours?” Toya snarled. “Your grandfather stole from
him. Now you’re here him drive him into the grave.”