Page 31 of Devil's Haunting
Her footsteps are light as she approaches before sitting on the bench with us, Laiken still curled up in my lap right where she is meant to be. Rene’s black eyes look between us, assessing, before she takes a deep, cleansing breath and lets it out slowly.
“It is done,” she promises. “There is no longer a curse entangled with the roots of this land. Not that it would have touched either of you. It was only intended to hurt the Landry line because a woman felt scorned in her love and never properly seen. It could have all been prevented, but the cowardice of man prevailed as it often does. Desiree was not an evil woman,” she sighs.
Laiken gasps and sits up straighter in my lap. “You know about Desiree?”
Rene nods sadly and glances away before bringing her dark eyes back to meet he grey orbs of my woman. “I am of her blood. The daughter she had, she is my kin.”
Laiken presses a hand against her chest, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “I’m so sorry for the pain caused by Phillip. Desiree didn’t deserve it any more than Blanche did. Both were betrayed and both had to keep on living. I wish their story ended with them forging a friendship.”
“Yes,” Rene agrees with a nod, “it would have been a happier ending, but pride is often a stumbling block when it comes to friendship and love, especially when someone feels it has been stolen.”
My woman sighs and nods as she relaxes back against me. “Thank you for your help. I hope the spirits attached to this place can find their rest now.”
“They already have,” she promises. “I’m sorry for last night,” she adds with a whisper.
“That was quite a show,” my woman’s voice hardens slightly, but it remains warm.
“I sensed your love, but I had to test it to make sure.” Rene looks away again, her eyes moving over the land which should be partially hers. “Marilyn came looking for me many times and I chose not to show myself. Even though I believe her intentions were pure, her ties were not.”
Laiken bites her lip and nods. When she glances at me, I know what she’s thinking. My woman is all heart.
“This place should be yours. You have more of a claim on it than I do,” my woman’s voice doesn’t waiver with her words, they are strong with conviction.
“No,” Rene insists, “this land craves true love after being twisted in darkness for so long and that is what the two of you will give it. The two of you and,” she pauses and reaches over to touch my woman’s flat belly, “and the family you will grow here. Treat the land well, bring the house back to glory, and love. That is all that is required and all that is expected.”
Laiken blinks a few times before covering Rene’s hand with her own. When Rene slips her hand from underneath it andstands, the smile she gives us is as bright as the sun shining down on us.
Before either of us knows what is happening, she leans over and kisses both of our foreheads and chants some words I don’t understand. Then she glides away as if she were never there to begin with.
What remains is the sense of new beginnings wrapping around us along with a peace so profound it almost makes me tear up, though I’ll never admit it to anyone. When I look down at Laiken, she’s already looking up at me.
I take her mouth in a kiss which is brutal in its sweetness and devastating in its promises. It speaks of our love and our commitment, not just to each other but to this house and land.
“We will give the land what it wants,” Laiken whispers against my lips.
All I can do is nod.
If pressed I would say that I don’t believe in hauntings or Voodoo or spirits. But I do believe in the love I have for this woman and the power that brought her to me, whatever it may be.
I’ll never let her go.
My little Mischief-maker gets a contemplative look on her face before blurting, “Do you think she was trying to tell me I’m already pregnant? Even though I’m on the shot?”
The grin that overtakes my face is wide and when she glances up at me, she freezes. I wink at her and admit, “I think it’s exactly what she was saying.”
“Well, fuck,” my woman groans and all I can do is throw my head back and laugh.
Even if she’s not pregnant now, it’s just a matter of time. Our family will grow and breathe life into this house. Our future will be bright, and I’ll bend over backwards to ensure my woman is happy.
And that’s more than enough for me.
EPILOGUE
SIX MONTHS LATER
LAIKEN
The house is done. It took over six months from the first time I drove into New Orleans and met with Mr. Black along with a lot of sweat, money, and vision, but the house is done. I couldn’t be more thrilled with how it turned out. It’s no longer a monstrosity of a mansion without a soul.
