Only By Moonlight (26 page)

M.J. cleared her throat. “My grandmother has
been filling me in on town gossip again. The word is Mrs.
Broussard, or Queen Bee as she’s called behind her back, is bad
mouthing you all over the parish. She says if anything is wrong
with Chase... uh, it’s you.”

“Big surprise,” LaShaun spat.

“C’mon now. She’s going to be the grandmother
of your kids.” M.J. wagged a finger at LaShaun in much the same way
her grandmother might.

“I wish y’all would stop talking about babies
like they’re already at the house waiting on me,” LaShaun shot
back. “How is Miss Clo by the way? Hope she’s staying out of
trouble.”

“Mostly,” M.J. replied with a smile. Then she
became serious again. “Back to Chase.”

“There’s more you want to tell me,” LaShaun
said and stared at M.J.

“I’m sorry to say there is. The DA has one of
my deputies working as a criminal investigator on the Manny Young
case. He’s been reviewing the evidence again, and doing more
interviews. Chase supervises this deputy.” M.J. paused.

“Well?”

“Chase pretty much took over. He’s put
together some kind of theory that could, maybe a long shot, but
could help the defense.” M.J. said.

LaShaun started at the sharp tingle that
crawled over her body like dozens of electrified spiders. “The
Blood River Ripper back on the streets with help from Chase.
Damn.”

***

The next day, LaShaun set out to do her own
investigation. Chase sounded normal when he’d called her the night
before from Shreveport. Yet she couldn’t kid herself. Paranormal
events were in motion. Unfortunately she had no clear images to
hang onto this time. LaShaun knew her emotional stake in events
unfolding made the difference. She was too close to see clearly
what was ahead because it involved her.

She went to Savannah’s law office after doing
historical sleuthing at the museum and local library. Her friend’s
sunny office on Main Street didn’t help lighten LaShaun’s mood.
What she’d learned about from her research was anything but
reassuring.

“Mrs. Honoré will be with you in a minute,
Ms. Rousselle,” Ginger said crisply. The legal office manager
seemed determined to keep a big city professional feel.

“Thank you.”

LaShaun smiled at her and then took a seat.
She decided to skip her usual format of reminding Ginger to call
her by her first name. Besides, a suited gentleman sat across the
room waiting as well. Maybe the formality would impress Savannah’s
potential client enough to bring more business. Minutes later,
Savannah strode out holding a thick brown folder. She waved to
LaShaun, but went straight to the man who stood. His officious
manner and thousand dollar suit made him look out of place in small
town surroundings.

“Sorry for the delay, Mr. Harold. Here you
go. I’m sure you’ll find the file is complete. Let me introduce you
to Ms. LaShaun Rousselle. Her family owns the company in question.”
Savannah turned to LaShaun. Her brows arched as her hazel eyes sent
LaShaun a message. “Mr. Harold is a real estate attorney
specializing in mineral rights, oil, and gas leasing.”

“Hello, Ms. Rousselle. Not to be technical, a
family trust actually owns the company which includes the property
in question.” Mr. Harold gave LaShaun a smile so friendly, the
sunlight outside seemed dim by comparison.

“Hello, Mr. Harold. You’re correct. But since
I’m the trustee no one cares about the technicalities.” LaShaun
beamed back at him.

Mr. Harold gave a slight nod as though
saluting her smooth comeback. “True, all in the family so to speak.
We’ll sort it out.”

“Oh I think it’s sorted out already. The deed
refers to all rights being included in the sale as listed in the
previous deed, which includes mineral, oil, or gas. I included a
copy of the previous deed issued in nineteen thirty-seven,”
Savannah said in her best attorney “case closed” tone. Then she
flashed her own mega watt smile at him.

The attorney seemed unfazed. “I’ll look over
these and get back to you. Have a great day, ladies.”

“Goodbye.” Savannah waited until the glass
door whisked shut before speaking. “We need to talk. Ginger, take
messages.”

“Yes, ma’am. Should I buzz you about your one
thirty deposition in Lafayette? It’s almost ten o’clock now
and...”

Savannah pointed a finger at Ginger as she
headed to her office with LaShaun in tow. “That’s why you’re
valuable. Keep me on schedule.”

LaShaun shut the office door. “Harold was
hired by Quentin?”

“By Olympia, Inc., the company that is
seriously interested in drilling on your land. They’re looking over
the geological studies. I authorized it on your behalf,
remember?”

“Yeah, right.” She didn’t really. LaShaun had
more important matters on her mind, like saving Chase.

Savannah went to the coffee maker on the
credenza in her office. She poured two cups of coffee and picked up
a box. “I’ve got pastries. We’ll need both.”

“So we’re not celebrating,” LaShaun muttered.
She took the tray from Savannah and set it on the compact round
conference table. They sat across from each other.

“Not so fast. The good news is once again
your grandmother proved to be smart. Monmon Odette didn’t miss a
thing, girl.” Savannah shook her head in admiration.

“Monmon Odette was smart enough to get good
advice when she needed it.” LaShaun selected a small round flaky
treat with chocolate icing.

“Well the good news is I’m almost one hundred
percent confident we neutralized the Trosclair threat.” Savannah
frowned. “I did some digging on Olympia, Inc.”

“Pun intended?” LaShaun wisecracked and
licked icing from her thumb.

Savannah blinked at her for a few minutes,
focused on business. “Yeah, I guess. Anyway, Olympia’s CEO and
board president is the grandson of Claude Trosclair’s old
fraternity brother. These families stay connected across
generations.”

“So that’s what got Quentin interested in our
land. I wondered how he picked that company,” LaShaun said.

“I’m certain he had his lawyers and
accountants scouring documents for weeks to find some kind of
opening. Your grandmother may have conducted business with the
Trosclair patriarch back in the day, but she was no fool,” Savannah
said.

“Monmon Odette knew them well.” LaShaun had
studied the legal papers associated with every transaction.
Quentin’s grandfather, Claude, wrote the book on keeping every
business advantage.

“Old Claude underestimated Monmon Odette,”
Savannah replied with a grin. Then she grew serious again. “Now the
bad news. Neal Montgomery.”

“He’s a respected attorney. Not one hint of
anything dicey in his background. No shady clients or questionable
behavior.”

“But you were right about him working on
cases of horrible killers. He’s hooked up with attorneys across the
world who are doing the same thing. It’s funny, and I don’t mean in
an amusing way.” Savannah squinted at LaShaun. “Are we about to
take a stroll down Creepy Lane?”

“Why I’m sure I have no idea why you’d say
that,” LaShaun replied mildly.

Savannah put down her cup of coffee. “You
specialize in weird, LaShaun.”

LaShaun gazed back at her friend for a time.
“I’m worried about Chase, Savannah. Every since that poor kid was
murdered he’s been acting strange. Those kids were doing more than
just partying out there in woods.”

“Okay, but how is that connected to Manny
Young?” Savannah leaned forward.

“I don’t know yet,” LaShaun replied.

“One of the members of Juridicus is
representing Greg Graham.” Savannah sat back with a frown.

“Juridicus?”

“It’s like a private social club for lawyers.
Montgomery is one of the co-founders. ” Savannah let out a sigh.
“The club bought a historic building in the warehouse district of
New Orleans in 2006. Get this; they also own a plantation home on
Bayou St. John in New Orleans. Membership is exclusive and what
goes on at those meetings is hush-hush. All I have is lawyer to
lawyer gossip, speculation about what goes on behind those
mysterious closed doors. Very strange.”

“You ever see that movie The Devil’s
Advocate?”

“Whew, that was a while ago. But what does
that have to do with ...” Savannah’s expression went from surprised
to stunned. “Oh come on! You can’t seriously believe that
Montgomery is Satan on earth. I know people hate lawyers, but
that’s way out there even for you.”

“No, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he and
his friends are into some kind of high-class cult,” LaShaun said
quietly.

“A group of highly educated professionals are
devil worshippers. Okay, I get a group of rebellious adolescents
dabbling in the occult. That I get. But the list of Juridicus
members is a legal Who’s Who. They couldn’t...” Savannah’s voice
trailed off.

“I’m not saying Montgomery has some hotline
to hell, but more than a few adults dabble in the occult. We both
know that.”

Savannah fell back in her chair. “Oh
shit.”

“M.J. says Chase has put together evidence
that could help Montgomery get Manny Young out of prison. The Chase
I know would never do anything to help Manny walk free. Never.”

Savannah jumped to her feet and marched to
her desk. “Look at these articles I found, five cases of murderers
winning their freedom. One in England, another one in Canada, two
in Brazil and one in Florida.”

LaShaun gazed at the photos of the three men
and two women smiling in victory after leaving prison “All of their
attorneys are friends with Montgomery, and belong to
Juridicus.”

“I can’t say for sure for all of them. Two
names pop up at international symposiums on panels with Montgomery.
They also co-authored articles in international law magazines.”
Savannah put her fists on both hips, her “feet on the ground”
attorney side in evidence. “The explanation might be simple, a
group of like-minded lawyers who believed those folks were unjustly
convicted.”

LaShaun quickly scanned the articles in her
hand. The printed words dissolved into images as Savannah’s voice
faded away. LaShaun worked hard to shut down the slideshow of
horror playing in her head. Her hands shook with the effort, which
made the papers she held rustle. “Yes, except for one thing.”

“I’m going to be sorry I asked, but what?”
Savannah sat on the edge of her desk as though she needed the
support.

“None of these people were wrongly convicted,
Savannah. They committed every one of the grisly murders they were
accused of. What’s more, their attorneys knew,” LaShaun said.

***

Chase would be home in a few hours. LaShaun
kept repeating the sentence as she made preparations to greet him.
He’d called on his way to the station. Miss Rose and the twins had
been on a conference call. All three stressed that LaShaun should
definitely not tell Chase what was happening to him. He would be in
even more danger, because the demon would step up his efforts to
take over. The twins gave instructions on herbs and seasonings that
would counteract bad spirits. In that way the demon would be
repelled for a time, but LaShaun’s window of opportunity would be
brief.

“Now I don’t usually encourage young people
to sin when they’re not married yet.” Miss Rose paused to clear her
throat.

Justine snorted and said, “Oh give me a
break.”

“This isn’t 1950 for goodness sakes. Even
back then people had sex whenever and wherever. They just kept it
quiet,” Pauline added.

“Shut up you two,” Miss Rose snapped through
the phone. “As I was saying, get him totally relaxed in the way
only a woman can do. You know what I mean.”

“In other words turn up the heat,” Justine
had put in bluntly.

“You got to do it, girl,” Pauline piped up in
agreement.

Which all explained why LaShaun had spent the
afternoon saying prayers. Jumpy with anxiety, LaShaun swept through
her house cleaning like a whirlwind. Her activity had a dual
purpose. She badly needed to keep busy, or the tension would drive
her nuts. She also used a combination of herbs traditionally used
to ward off evil as air fresheners. The fragrant subtle scent
soothed the frayed edges of her nerves. After a warm shower using
sandalwood oils, LaShaun dressed in soft cotton wrap that draped
her body. Her hair hung in thick curls to her shoulders. By the
time she heard heavy footsteps on the back steps and then on the
porch, LaShaun felt ready. She met Chase in the hallway with a
hug.

“Welcome home, love.”

“Chase gazed at her. “You look absolutely
gorgeous.”

“Seeing you come through my door is a
beautiful sight,” LaShaun replied. She walked to him and planted a
trail of kisses across his cheek that ended with his lips.

Suddenly Chase drew back with a scowl. He
sniffed the air. “What is that smell?”

“I’ve been cooking and cleaning, sweetheart.
What’s wrong?” LaShaun kissed his cheek again.

“Let’s air this place out,” Chase said. “Open
the windows.”

LaShaun tugged him back when he started off.
“I’ve got a surprise. Come with me, darlin’.”

“What’s gotten into you?” Chase wore a smile,
but his gaze darted around as though he was looking for something.
“Something has been done to this place.”

“Yes, come in and see the changes I’ve made.”
LaShaun took his hand, but he resisted.

“Let me get something out of my truck first.”
Chase tried to pull free.

“Oh no you don’t, Deputy Broussard. Next
thing I know you’ll be on your way to work.” LaShaun put a playful
sound to her words. Yet she yanked him until they were in the
kitchen entrance.

“I said stop this,” Chase growled, except the
voice hinted of another accent. His diction sounded formal in an
old fashioned way.