Page 46 of Curse in the Quarter
The vampire woman stepped forward, her movements carrying ancient authority. “Claudette Vire, representing interested parties from multiple communities. We’ve been monitoring developments, hoping for resolution that preserves existing territorial agreements.”
“This goes beyond territorial politics,” Bastien said. “We’re dealing with forces that view all community structures as obstacles to systematic harvesting.”
“Then cooperation becomes survival necessity rather than political choice.” Marcelline’s eyes reflected street light with predatory intensity, but her tone suggested alliance rather than threat. “What assistance do you require?”
Bastien’s phone rang with insistence that made his chest tighten. Delphine’s number, but the call came at an hour when she should have been safely asleep in her apartment.
“Answer it,” Maman said, recognizing the significance of timing that suggested emergency rather than casual contact.
“Bastien?” Delphine’s voice carried strain that made every protective instinct flare to life. “Something’s wrong. I’m at the Archive, and there are . . .thingshere that shouldn’t exist. Shadows that move like people, voices speaking languages I don’t recognize.”
His blood chilled. The entities weren’t waiting for dawn—they were moving against her now, while she was isolated and vulnerable.
“Get out of there. Come to St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 right now. There is protection here.”
“I can’t. The shadows are blocking the exits, and they’re saying things about choices I have to make before sunrise.” Her voice grew smaller, more frightened. “They’re showing me books that aren’t in our collection, documents that describe things I didn’t know were real.”
“What kind of things?”
“Magic that preserves consciousness across death. Techniques for binding souls together permanently. Experiments conducted by someone named Charlotte Lacroix who shares my bloodline.” Terror made her words come faster. “Bastien, they’re telling me I have to choose between saving thousands of people or becoming something that transcends human limitations entirely.”
The assembled group exchanged glances that confirmed his fears—the entities weren’t waiting for conscious choice. They were forcing decision through fear and isolation, manipulating her when she was most vulnerable to coercion.
“I’m coming to get you.”
“No! They said if anyone interferes, they’ll begin harvesting immediately. Starting with everyone who’s been marked by the contamination.” Her voice broke with desperation that made him want to tear down the Archive doors with his bare hands. “I think I have to do this alone. But I need to understand what Charlotte really wanted, what she was trying to accomplish.”
Maman stepped closer to the phone, her voice carrying authority earned through decades of guiding people through impossible choices.
“Delphine, listen carefully. Your ancestor didn’t just experiment with consciousness preservation—she built defenses that have protected this city for over two centuries.But those protections need conscious maintenance from someone who understands their purpose.”
“And if I choose to maintain them?”
“You save thousands from harvesting, but you accept limitations that prevent your own evolution beyond human existence.”
“What if I want evolution?”
“You gain power to challenge the entities threatening us all, but New Orleans loses its defenses against the harvesting.”
Silence stretched across the phone connection, broken only by distant sounds that might have been wind or voices speaking in tongues that predated human language.
“There has to be another way,” Delphine said finally. “Charlotte was too brilliant to design a system with only two options. She must have embedded something else, some path that preserves both individual choice and collective protection.”
Maman’s eyes widened.
“The spirit echo trace,” she whispered. “If Charlotte left complete instructions embedded in her defensive ritual work . . .”
“Then you might find protocols for evolution and protection simultaneously,” Bastien finished, understanding dawning. “But you’ll need time to research, to understand what she really built.”
“Time we don’t have,” Delphine replied, strain making her voice brittle. “The shadows are getting more insistent. They’re showing me images of people suffering, of marked souls being processed for harvesting. They want an answer before dawn.”
“Then stall them. Tell them you need to consult the original documentation before making achoice that affects so many lives. Demand access to Charlotte’s complete research.”
“Where would I find that?”
Bastien looked at Maman, who nodded understanding. “There’s a cypress grove on the old Lacroix estate property. Charlotte buried her complete journals beneath the largest tree, protected by wards that would preserve them across centuries.”
“That’s miles from here, and sunrise is less than five hours away.”
