Page 60 of Stalked By Shadows

“Who said anything about need?” I asked him. “Plus you have me to design for.” It didn’t take him much convincing because he walked with me to the shop, and we left with me carrying two large bags of fabric. My favorite was actually a bit of quilting cotton made to look like it had rows on rows of multicolored baby dragons in funny poses on it. We’d only gotten a yard since it had been very expensive, but I was in love with it. Micah had also chosen a fabric that looked like leather at first, with intricate designs etched into it, only it wasn’t leather. I gladly carried our haul of stuff.

“I could totally see a cool coat or even a kilt out of that one. I’ve never worn a kilt,” I said. “But I’ve always thought it would be badass to wear one.”

“The correct way?” Micah asked.

“Meaning no underwear?”

“Yep.”

“Sure, though I worry a breeze might freeze my balls.”

“Not until December here in New Orleans, but I can make you a kilt.”

“I want to stop by Mary Lamont’s shop and see if she knows what Marc took,” Micah said.

Admittedly it took a few seconds for my brain to latch onto the meaning of his words and the direction of his step. I tugged him to a halt and he turned to look up at me. “Say what?”

“I want to know what Marc took out of the grave, and what the hell they were doing in the cemetery on my night. They closed the cemetery because of her. I think she owes me an explanation.” Micah pulled free from my hand. “You don’t have to come with. You can head back to the shop if you want. I’ll be there in a little bit.”

“Um, no. You realize that her buddy Marc was murdered after she took some possible possessed item from an open grave after slaughtering animals and you think I’m going to let you visit her alone?”

“You don’t know she actually took anything from the grave.”

“I believe Jared,” I said. “Just like I believe him when he said the darkness took his girlfriend. I’d rather the darkness not take you too.”

Micah flinched. “I’m not going anywhere and it’s light out,” Micah said pointing up to the sky. Though the sun was fading. “There are people everywhere. Her shop is right off the boardwalk. She lives above it, though I know she does Saturday night ghost tours too. I hope to catch her before she goes out. I need to know what’s going on. Were they trying to get me in trouble or is this unrelated to me at all?”

I didn’t point out that the last time he’d gone missing it had been light out, though it was on the tip of my tongue. “I don’t think it sounds related to you at all. More that they wanted in the cemetery on your night because it was the full moon and an open grave.”

Micah stared at me for a minute. “You think that’s why?”

I shrugged. “Who am I to explain the mechanisms of crazy people. They tortured animals in a public place after convincing some tourist couple it was a history tour. That tells me something is off in their head. Maybe they lured Jared and Sarah there to use them as sacrifices too.”

“Voodoo does not condone human sacrifice. That’s a bad stereotype.”

“And you said that these people don’t really seem to be practicing Voodoo,” I pointed out. “So forgive me if I don’t trust them to be on the up and up.”

We glared at each other for a minute, and I had a moment to wonder if this was what a fight would feel like between us. Only I didn’t want to fight. But I needed him safe. “I don’t trust her,” I finally said.

“I’ll be fine. I’ve met with them before.” He walked around me and headed toward Decatur Street.

“For all you know they could be hiding bodies in the cemetery on their nights.”

“I think the guards would have noticed,” Micah said. “Plus Mary isn’t all that big. I could take her in a fight.”

“What if she had a gun or some weird magic spell,” I stepped into his path to make him pause again.

Another shared glare. “I don’t believe in spells.”

“But guns. Guns are very real and dangerous, I assure you.” I had way too many horrific memories of what guns could do.

He threw his hands up into the air in exasperation. “She won’t hurt me in a public place. That would be stupid.”

“And criminals aren’t normally known for high intelligence. All I’m saying is that you’re not meeting with any of them alone again,” I insisted.

He folded his arms across his chest. “It’s only a block down the road.”

“Then you won’t mind me tagging along. At least I can still carry your bags.”