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CHAPTER 23
Jonathan and Miss Aza hauled Hezekiah up and carried him to the exit of the attic. I helped, too; Hezekiah was heavier than I thought. His skin was cold and lifeless.
"We got to get him to the basement," Aza told us, sure of herself. So, we opened the door and gently walked down the stairs with a vampire around our arms. Kizzy, Esther, and Rocio were behind and in front, acting as the look-out, but their effort was quickly shot down when we saw someone coming down the hall. We stood completely still as Imani turned the corner, her eyes narrowed as if she was awakened suddenly. Hezekiah's collapse must have been louder than we anticipated.
It was fo
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Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 24
Mama hadn't said a word after Sajida left. Even when she went into the basement and saw Hezekiah's body asleep in the coffin we put him in, she was speechless. Kizzy and I stood back and just watched her, waiting for what she would do next. My pendant was still in her hand; she hadn't given it back because she did come in contact with me other than the deathly look I got from her when Sajida left. Aza stood beside her, wanting to explain, but waiting to see if Mama was ready to hear it. She just continued to stare at Hezekiah's body like she refused to believe or like she was struggling to understand how this was possible right under her nose. "I was trying to find the right time to tell you," Aza said softly, like trying to calm a lion. "I was going to tell you, A
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** Mama retired to her room after that. She didn't say a word to me. She didn't want to. I could see it in her eyes - she was almost ashamed at what had become of her. Sajida's words were proven true; the spirits came through her in her moment of anger. I stood on the front porch, stunned into silence. Hezekiah was gone by then, taken down into the basement - the "Undercroft" as some House members were calling it. Everyone was on edge, even when the vampire was locked away deep underground. And as they all cowered in fear, they looked at me as if I was the enemy. To them, I was supposed to let Hezekiah's hand burn. I was supposed to stand by and watch, no matter how gruesome. But what they didn't understand was that it wasn't about Hezekiah's hand. It was about Mama - what she w
Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 26
I felt like the Coterie's footsteps were chasing after me. One by one, the click of a heel right after the click of my own on the steps, half a second after my own. They were onto me, literally and figuratively. When we reached the bottom of the staircase, we all began walking through the living room, the House members staring on as we marched towards the Undercroft. I felt a chill come through - a draft the closer I got to the door, even in the intense summer. Two male House members stood by either side of the door. They opened it silently, the portal dark on the other side, save for the occasional lantern hanging on the wall's descent to the basement. Aza stepped ahead first, walking down the wooden staircase with a sense of pride and self-worth in her stride. She wouldn't let the Coterie see right through her and deteriorate her sp
Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 27
** "What did he say?" That was the first thing the Coterie asked me when I had come back from the undercroft. They all stood in the living room, waiting for me to come through the basement door. And when I did, they bombarded me. However, they saw it on my face - they knew something was wrong. "What happened?" Nene asked me, her voice graver than before. I didn't say anything. I didn't know exactly what to say, really. The words they wanted to hear did not exist; they would never hear them. I sat down on the couch. None of them sat with me, except for Aza, who walked over to the plush seats and sat down right next to me. "Nothing," I finally said. Silence prevailed. The
Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 28
** I didn't know where to start. Realistically, how would you even start with a creature like Hezekiah Mercier? He didn't want to answer any of my questions. Our interaction earlier that day was proof enough of that. So frankly, me being down in the undercroft again with my pajamas on and a candle in my hand was almost counterproductive. However, that instance earlier, I was under the supervision of the Coterie; the questions I asked were the questions they wanted to know the answers to. This time, as Hezekiah and I stood across from each other this late and forbidden in the night, I had different questions. The tides had shifted significantly that day, and I could no longer trust anyone in the house. The only person I felt I could trust had run off back into the city, practically exiled by the Coterie she belonged to. She was
Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 29
** That night dragged on like a relentless virus - slow, agonizing and painful. I didn't sleep - I couldn't sleep. The spirits wouldn't let me - they were all around me, watching me. Mama must have welcomed them into our home in addition to letting them into her heart. But it wasn't just the spirits I felt (they were a quiet and respectful bunch), but the thought of Hezekiah running through my mind that made it impossible to sleep. I sat on the bed, hands shaking from anxiety, neck pulsing in pain, wondering what was happening to him. Did his lungs still feel like they were filled with boiling oil? Did he still struggle for breath? Throughout the night, I kept trying my methods of escape, hoping that the latch on the door would unlock or the window would open. But still, they re
Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 30
I didn't know Mikael well. I knewofhim - he was the late Tia Valeria's novitiate. One of them. The other had died with everyone else in her House, leaving him as the sole survivor. He was young like the rest of us - an infant in voodooism. He was a lengthy, skinny man; I only ever saw him dressed in white which commonly swallowed him whole. This time, however, he was in pajamas close to the color of his skin - a light brown. Caramel, I suppose. His eyes were tired and heavy but his posture was alert and rigid. His hair, short and curly, was frizzy. His mouth had a natural pout, and his nose was narrow but a bit rounded at the tip. A handsome young man Mikael was, but clearly naive and impressionable - a victim of trauma. I'm surprised he volunteered to come with us, especially since he would be face-to-face with T
Voodoo Queens of New Orleans CHAPTER 31
Everyone in the living room had suddenly gone quiet as the banging against the door became louder. Growling and snarling were heard on the other side as if it pained Hezekiah to be kept alone on the other side. The Coterie and everyone in the congregation stared motionlessly at the door, holding onto each other and whimpering at everybangagainst the door. Mama looked at the six of us who ventured down there. She saw the state that we were in, saw our faces, and knew just how grave the situation was. I knew Aza's words rung in her head as she waited for Hezekiah to bust down the door. You should have fed him, Alize. You should have fed him. Suddenly, Mama grabbed my shoulders and looked me in the eyes; I was still in shock, unable
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