Voodoo Queens of New Orleans - Vol. I | ✓

Chapter 17: The Wrath of Aubade

         
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There were many possible outcomes to the situation we were facing. Most of them ended in death.

I expected the Elders to leave us to die—I was surprised they hadn't left yet. It wasn't like they were obligated to protect us from the Leeches that approached us. But they didn't leave. They stood defensive, Hezekiah still holding me behind him. I looked over at the girls—Kizzy, Rocio and Esther—and knew that it would end in death for them if we were unsuccessful. My fate lied in the hands of Abraham. That's why the newborn bloodsuckers were after me. And despite this target on my forehead that kept Abraham relentless in his effort to find me again, I thought about the girls.

"You have to go," I whispered to them. I didn't look at them; I couldn't see their reactions.

"What?" Esther whispered back. "No! We aren't leaving you here!"

"They're here for me. Not you. If you leave now, there's a chance you can make it to the car in one piece."

It was clear that Esther was the most opposed to the idea. Maybe she felt indebted to me somehow because I saved her life, a couple of times. However, I didn't feel like I "deserved" companionship, especially if it meant putting their lives at risk. Sure—meeting Sajida the Shunned was one example of putting all our lines on the line. But this? This isn't a choice. I didn't choose to have Leeches on my back. But they were there. And I did have a say-so in whether the girls survived.

The Leeches were there for me. The girls had a chance.

No longer did the mist partially veil their figures. They came forward, disbursed quite isolatedly around us. I turned my head to find a Leech on a small dune in the distance; a painting would be envious of how immobile their posture was.

Three of them approached the Elders. All of them were similar in appearance—snout-nosed, pale skin, cavernous cheeks, and eyes the color of rich red wine. Some Leeches were white, others were black, all of them were menacing. They were not yet granted the luxury of looking somewhat "normal" in appearance like the Elders.

The first thing the three Leeches did in the presence of the Elders was bow. The twelve other ones that stood behind them lowered their heads, too. The Elders looked unfazed by their act of flattery. I remembered Abraham's words to his clan the night he had arisen:

Under my rule, these Elders are my word! You look to these Elders as you look at me! Their power will be manifested!

"Predawn, Master Hezekiah," the Leech in the middle greeted when he finally stood taut. His eyes—as all of the other bloodsuckers'—flickered between me and the Elders. I forced myself to look away from them; I wanted Kizzy to run. I wanted all of them to run while they could.

"Predawn," Hezekiah replied, his voice as low and as menacing as the Leeches appearances.

"Y'all are far off from our territory," Beau told them.

"We've been hunting, Master Beau," one of the other Leeches replied. "The Bayou of the Shunned has lots of game. They don't fight much. Easy kill."

I shuddered.

"Well, ain't that right?" Hezekiah said in a joking tone, making the Leeches laugh. Hezekiah was trying to soften them up a bit, but it wouldn't dismiss the fact that I still stood among them—Abraham's prize; the treasure he had lost in the crossfire of the Coterie's interception.

"What's your name, boy?" Hezekiah asked the Leech who spoke first. The Leech looked surprised that Hezekiah cared to even ask.

"Eric," he answered. "M-my names is Eric."