Chapter 20
“I still can’t believe you are going to that mumbo jumbo ceremony,” Red said for the third time.
“And as I’ve been telling you, I think it’s a good way to get a feeling for what Erin was going through.” Rachel grabbed her makeup case off the bed. “Anyway, you’re not obligated to go. I told you, Michelle is coming with me.”
Rachel started rooting around in her suitcase, looking for something to wear. Earlier that morning, Madame Verdene had called to invite Rachel to a cleansing ritual that she held once a month in her shop. Rachel accepted the invitation, feeling lucky that her friend Michelle was in town for a medical convention and could come with her. They’d decided to meet up for drinks before heading over to the voodoo shop. They were calling it a girls’ night out. Red was calling it a waste of time.
“What does someone wear to a voodoo ceremony?” Rachel said, as Red flipped through the channels looking for a game to watch.
“How the hell should I know? Isn’t that what your girlfriend is for?”
“Good idea.” Rachel picked up the hotel phone and dialed Michelle’s room.
“The line is busy,” she said hanging up. “I’m going to go with comfortable. Jeans and a T-shirt.”
“Sounds good,” Red grunted from the couch. “It’s not like you are trying to impress the dead. Because they are…dead.”
Rachel carried her outfit to the bathroom to change, bringing her toiletry bag so she could also freshen up. “I’ll be out in a bit. Keep an eye out for the pizza delivery guy.”
Rachel changed her clothes quickly, and settled for one coat of mascara. Her anticipation was making her restless. She hoped the ceremony would reveal more about what was going on in Erin’s life before the woman’s disappearance. She also hoped it would lead to clues about what had happened to Erin and her family.
After eating a couple of slices of pizza and watching part of a football game on TV with Red, Rachel was ready to go.
“Hey, clean up after yourself before you go back to your own room,” she reminded him.
“Yep. Good luck tonight.”
Rachel met Michelle in the hotel’s lobby bar. She was glad to see that her friend had dressed casually, too, in jeans and a black T-shirt. Michelle’s blond hair hung loosely around her shoulders, and she wore minimal makeup. After a couple of drinks, they made the quick drive to Madame Verdene’s shop, parking on a side street that looked questionable. When they stepped inside, several other women were already waiting in the shop and looking over merchandise. Rachel counted eleven other women browsing around the store waiting for the ritual to start.
Michelle picked up a voodoo doll kit. “I think I’ll buy a few of these for stocking stuffers. What do you think?”
“Good idea. These are for your family. Not patients, right?”
Michelle laughed as she twirled one of the six-inch colorful dolls around. “Well, I can think of a couple of patients that might find a good use for them,” Michelle said, sticking a large pin in one of the dolls. Rachel knew that Michelle had a challenging job as a couples therapy counselor.
“And you wouldn’t want that on your conscience,” Rachel commented.
“Good evening, everyone.” Rachel turned to see Madame Verdene walking toward the front of the shop. She was wearing another long black skirt with a matching black peasant blouse. Rachel noticed she was using a black cane to help her walk tonight. She hadn’t noticed the cane the first time she’d met Verdene.
“We always start this evening’s ritual with a tour of the historic graveyard nearby,” she said. She pointed her cane at her shop assistant. “This is Debbie. She’ll be leading the tour. I’ll see everyone back here for the cleansing ceremony.”
As everyone else lined up at the door to head outside, Rachel walked over to Verdene.
“I’d like to speak with you after the ceremony. We’ve found some information about Erin, and…”
Verdene cut her off. “I know what you want to talk about. We’ll talk later, honey.”
“Okay,” Rachel said, feeling taken aback. She’d been hoping to find out whether Verdene had more visions of Erin to share, but she guessed it would have to wait. She held back the urge to tell the woman about the arm found in the swamp, as she knew it was confidential. She almost smiled thinking how Krapek would have her head if she found out Rachel was spreading the word about the discoveries on the investigation.
The tour through the graveyard turned out to be fun, packed with details about the most famous witches, voodoo queens, and ghosts in New Orleans’s long history. During the tour, Rachel thought back to the pencil drawing she’d seen in Erin’s art studio. The graveyard on the tour looked very similar to the one in the drawing. She filed that thought away to discuss with Red later.
Debbie, their tour guide, explained to the group that Cajuns had their own hybrid version of voodoo that reflected the culture that was unique to the area. Rachel hadn’t realized that the history of voodoo dated back over two centuries, to the time when African slaves arrived in the city, bringing with them a religion that had originated over seven thousand years ago.
“Voodoo,” Debbie said, “means spirit or mystery. Believers of voodoo accepted the existence of one god, which the powerful spirits referred to as Loa. The powerful spirits were responsible for daily matters in the areas of family, love, money, happiness, wealth, and revenge.”
Michelle nudged her and whispered, “Did you know voodoo could help you with love?” Rachel laughed quietly and returned her attention to Debbie.
“There was one powerful and well-known voodoo queen in New Orleans named Marie Laveau,” said Debbie. “Laveau was a poster child for the mixed races that emerged from New Orleans, as she is said to have been a free person of color and part Choctaw. She was born to a wealthy French planter named Charles Laveau and a mother who was a voodoo practitioner from the Caribbean and also a slave.”
As the tour wrapped up and the group followed Debbie back to the shop, Rachel felt like she knew everything there was to know about New Orleans voodoo history. She just wasn’t sure how much she really believed in it. Clearly, Erin had believed that it would help with her artwork—and maybe with other things, too. Whatever the case was, Rachel hoped to find out more.
Back at the voodoo shop, the mood had been transformed. They were led back to the office where Rachel had first met with Verdene. The area had been cleaned up, and there were several candles lit. The smell of sage lingered in the room.
“Please have a seat on one of the mats,” Verdene instructed the group.
Rachel and Michelle joined the rest of the guests in sitting down and forming a circle around the voodoo queen.
“This room has been cleansed of any negative energy. Likewise, the purpose of today’s ritual is to remove any negative energy that you may have lingering around you. After the ceremony, you should expect to feel light and free from any negative thoughts or energy.” Madame Verdene stood in the middle of the circle. “Now, the first thing I want you to do is close your eyes and relax. Inhale and exhale at a nice leisurely pace. Feel your breath become fluid within you.”
Rachel had taken plenty of yoga classes before, so the phrase sounded familiar. She closed her eyes as Madame Verdene had instructed and did the calming yoga breathing she’d learned in the past.
“I’ll be walking around to each of you to check your aura and energies. I will not be touching you, but you may feel a sensation of hot or cold when I do this. It will not hurt and should not be uncomfortable. Please try to keep your eyes closed, breathing nice and easy, and keep your mind clear.”
After a couple of minutes, Rachel sensed that Verdene was in front of her. She felt warmth traveling down her body. It was an odd sensation but nothing unpleasant. It was similar to lying on the beach and feeling the sunlight caress your body. Within a few seconds, the warmth drained away and coolness followed. She tried to keep her breathing steady and her mind calm and empty. Another strong smell, one of sage mixed with lavender, enveloped her.
She sensed rather than saw Verdene leave her and move to the next person. Rachel risked a peek and saw Verdene moving her hands across the length of Michelle’s body. Verdene wasn’t touching Michelle, but her hands were within six inches of her. After Verdene’s hands had gone up and down the length of Michelle’s body, Debbie handed Verdene a bunch of dried herbs, which emitted a light smoke. Verdene then ran it across Michelle. This was similar to the smudge stick Debbie had run across them when they returned from the graveyard tour.
Rachel closed her eyes again and let her mind wander while she waited for Verdene to finish with the rest of the group. An image of Mallory popped in her head. Mallory was wearing a pink polka-dot bathing suit, and her long red hair was in a braid that ran down the length of her back. Her back was turned to Rachel, and she was building a sand castle. Rachel could feel the coarseness of the brown sand against her bare feet as she walked toward Mallory. She called out to Mallory and her little girl turned to face her. Mallory smiled and held her hands out to Rachel. Rachel started running to Mallory, but the faster she ran the farther away Mallory drifted. She screamed Mallory’s name over and over, but Mallory was gone.