Bound (Book#1 Arelia LaRue) YA Paranormal Read online

  Instead, he said, “I guess everyone has their own perspective of the world. What’s your favorite book?”

  “If I tell you will you laugh?”

  His arched eyebrows wrinkled in confusion. “Why would I laugh?”

  “It’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” I blurted.

  “Why is that?”

  “I guess I like the fact that Charlie is the underdog but still comes out on top at the end. I can relate to being an underdog. Plus, he gets an unlimited supply of chocolate, and I live on chocolate. Although I can’t really afford any luxurious brand like Godiva or anything,” I caught myself rambling. I was interrupted by an embarrassing growl that came from the pit of my stomach.

  “I don’t think I’ve heard anyone’s stomach growl so loudly.” Lucus was clearly impressed by the fact that my stomach probably woke up the entire house.

  I looked away in embarrassment. “I haven’t eaten anything since this morning,” I confessed.

  “Well, we can’t have you walking around like that, now can we? How about I fix you something?”

  “Um, you can cook?” I was skeptical that he even knew where the kitchen was.

  “Yes, I can cook, does that surprise you?” He acted offended that I had questioned his supposed culinary skills.

  “I’m sorry. I won’t believe it until I see it.” I challenged him.

  “Come with me,” Lucus ordered. He grabbed a plain, white t-shirt from his closet and opened the bedroom door.

  “But, we can’t leave Sabrina.” I eyed the bed.

  “Judging by her snores, she’ll be okay for a little bit. Just a quick snack and we’ll be back. I’ll make anything you want.” His eyes gleamed as he tried to tempt me.

  “Fine.” I reluctantly gave in and followed him to the kitchen.

  The kitchen was dark and silent when we got there. Lucus flicked on the lights and opened the refrigerator door. “You name the dish, and I’ll make it for you,” he offered regally.

  I glanced inside the refrigerator and for some inexplicable reason had a craving for chocolate chip pancakes. “Chocolate chip pancakes,” I demanded with authority.

  Lucus examined me. Speculation crossed his face. For the first time, I noticed how his high cheekbones were in stark contrast to his generous lips. It was an odd but enticing combination. “I can do that, but are you sure that’s what you really want?”

  “No, how about fried Oreos?” It wasn’t the healthiest option, but hey, he said anything.

  “I can honestly say, I have no idea what that is.”

  “You said anything,” I reminded him.

  Lucus rapidly tapped his fingers on the counter. “I did say anything. If you instruct me, I’m sure I can whip up some fried Oreos for you.”

  “Great!” I clapped my hands in anticipation of the scene that was going to play out in front of me.

  “What do we need?” Lucus asked as he headed towards the pantry beside kitchen.

  “Well, Oreos of course. We need some Bisquick, powered sugar, an egg and oil,” I rattled off the list.

  Lucus gathered the ingredients and placed them on the counter. He scratched his head, as he examined them. “What next?” he asked cautiously.

  “Mix the Bisquick and egg, dip in the Oreos, and fry them,” I instructed.

  Lucus hesitated before starting the procedure. Watching him was entertaining. His eyes were focused on the batter, as he made sure that each Oreo was coated perfectly. “No good can come out of this,” he warned. The oil sizzled and he started expertly frying.

  I grabbed one as soon as it came out of the pan and shoved it in my mouth. “So good!” I ecstatically cried through mouthfuls. “You have to try some.”

  “No thanks,” Lucus kindly refused my offer. He observed me gobble one down after another.

  “Come on, it won’t kill you I promise,” I pestered. I hovered an Oreo in front of his face.

  “Fine one bite.” Lucus took an Oreo from the batch. As he chewed, repulsion filled his eyes.

  “So?” I asked. I was eager to know what he thought.

  “That is one of the vilest things I’ve ever tasted,” he spat out.

  I clutched my stomach and let out a laugh. “You’re so dramatic! How can you think these are bad?”

  “Vile, just vile,” he repeated as he handed me a glass of milk.

  I took the milk from him, and our eyes locked momentarily.

  “How’s your hand?” he asked gently.

  “All better,” I announced. I raised my palm in the air demonstrating that it was all better.

  “Amazing,” he looked absolutely fascinated.

  “Yeah, I guess.” I stared at my feet and suddenly remembered Sabrina. “We should get back to Sabrina.”

  “I guess we should,” Lucus agreed although he didn’t make any attempt to move. I took the first step out of the kitchen and headed back to the room.

  “She’s still sleeping,” Lucus observed.

  He was right, Sabrina was in the exact same position we had left her in.

  “Why are you best friends with her?” Lucus questioned. “Does it make you feel like less of an underdog?” he asked referencing my love for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

  “What? No!” I felt my face turn red. “Why would you assume that? You think I’m friends with Sabrina because of her money? Typical.”

  “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just trying to understand why you think you’re an underdog,” he appealed.

  “Well, don’t. You have everything handed to you on a silver platter, so I wouldn’t expect you to understand!” I ran over to the door and opened it. “When Sabrina wakes up I hope you have fun, just make sure she gets back to our room safely.” I slammed the door shut before he had a chance to say anything. What was wrong with me? Why was I acting like a raving lunatic paying so much attention to what Lucus thought? He was just some spoiled rich kid who knew nothing about me.

  I was angry at Sabrina for being so irresponsible and even angrier at Lucus for being so smug and thinking that he knew it all. I had been friends with Sabrina my entire life not because we had everything in common, but we had enough in common. Despite her seemingly lavish lifestyle, I knew from the years that Grand-mere Bea worked as her nanny that her parents were never around. Given that mine were out of the picture as well, we clung together under the protection of Grand-mere Bea. Sure, there were times when I was envious, but I knew that Sabrina felt the same way about me at times too. So, for Lucus to assume that I was friends with Sabrina because of her money was ridiculous. Although he hadn’t said those exact words, it sure felt like that is what he meant.

  Anyways, they deserved each other. Together they could obsess over brands that I never heard about and do other things people with way too much money did. Besides, I didn’t have time for this. The plan was to come here and earn money not get caught up in whatever this was. Still, I had promised Erzulie that I would talk to Ms. Mae, and I intended to only to figure out what was going on with me, and how I could get out of this mess. Maybe she could undo the so called blessing, and I could be blissfully ignorant. It sure seemed like a welcome change from what I was going through now.

  Chapter 7

  Show me the Magic……Chocolate?

  I woke up just as the sun started to slip under the lace curtains. My body felt as if it had been in an extensive boxing match and sitting upright proved to be quite a challenge. The first thing that greeted me was the sound of Sabrina snoring indicating that either she had found her way back to our room, or Lucus had brought her there sometime during the night. I couldn’t help but shudder at the thought that Lucus had been here while I was sleeping. What if I had been snoring? There, I went again. Why did I care?

  After taking a quick shower, I blow-dried my hair to relieve some of the inevitable frizz and let it fall free in loose waves that were almost down to my waist. After last night’s elaborate up do, my hair was hurting. Yes, not my head but my hair, a rathe
r strange phenomenon that happened every time I wore it too tightly. Looking into the bedroom mirror, I saw a very tired version of myself. The least I could do was slap on some tinted moisturizer and concealer to spare the guests any possible trauma. After doing so, I found our day-to-day Darkwood uniforms in the closet. As far as uniforms went they were what I had expected. A navy blue skirt that was slightly above the knees and a white cotton shirt with the name Darkwood embroidered on the right-hand side.

  Even though, we didn’t need to go until nine, and it was only seven, I hoped to catch Ms. Mae before the guests started coming down for breakfast, and the day got going. When I got downstairs, I could hear my stomach growl. I was craving a blended, iced, chocolate coffee and a chocolate chunk scone from Lola’s. It was my usual breakfast whenever I had to work the morning shift, one of the only perks of the job.

  “Ms. Mae,” I called. I entered the already buzzing kitchen which was filled with the delicious smell of Creole calas, corn fritters, cinnamon rolls and pain perdu. My stomach growled louder as my nostrils were filled with the tantalizing aroma. Seeing that Ms. Mae was nowhere in sight, I decided to help myself to a cinnamon roll, an action that annoyed the baker who was arranging the batch in a woven basket. I didn’t care, as the roll made its way to my stomach, the only thing I could think about was how fantastic it tasted.

  “Someone is hungry this morning, what did you do last night?” Ivan asked in his usual condescending tone. His eyes were bloodshot, and his hair looked like he had jumped straight out of bed and rushed downstairs. He was clearly not used to getting up early.

  “Nothing not that it’s any of your business.”

  “Did Lucus keep you up all night with his incessant rambling?”

  “Okay, what exactly is your problem with Lucus, do you guys have some sort of history or something. Are you secretly in love with him?”

  “Hardly.” Ivan took a piece of pain perdu from the counter and started to nibble on it.

  “Arelia, I thought you’d be up early,” Ms. Mae entered the room wearing a flowing green dress and layers of beaded necklaces. She interrupted my attempt at stealing another piece of pain perdu. “Ivan, you are supposed to look presentable for the guests. No one is going to be willing to take any food from you if you run around looking like that. Child go on upstairs and wash that handsome face of yours. Put on your uniform and take off that ghastly black t-shirt. I can see three holes in it from here.”

  “Sure,” Ivan grumbled as he exited the kitchen leaving Ms. Mae to focus her attention on me.

  “Good morning.” I quickly moved my hand away from the pain perdu, but Ms. Mae had already caught on.

  “We’re hungry this morning, aren’t we?” she laughed. “I figured as much. Come with me.” She led me through the kitchen’s back door and to a small garden filled with red chrysanthemums. “Sit,” she ordered pointing at a white, square table where breakfast was laid out.

  “What are these?” I asked noticing a stack of boxes in the middle of the table.

  “Those are for you,” replied Ms. Mae with a smile on her face. “Go on, have a look.”

  Curiosity got the best of me as I grabbed the first, brown box tied with a pink ribbon. “Chocopologie?” I ripped off the bow and opened the box. Inside, there were rows of dark, chocolate truffles laid on a white silk cloth. “But who?” I asked already reaching for the next box which was identical on the outside but filled with white-chocolate truffles in the inside. In less than two minutes, I opened the remaining boxes and found myself surrounded by every sort of chocolate I could imagine ranging from caramel-shaped hearts to strawberry-truffle seashells. Without even thinking about how they had appeared, I grabbed a fist full and hungrily shoved them in my mouth. I closed my eyes and let the delightful flavors slide down my throat. After I had eaten almost an entire box, I opened my eyes to find Ms. Mae staring at me in amusement.

  “I take it that you really have a passion for chocolate?”

  “I’ve never tasted any this good before, who sent them? Did you make them? Can I learn how to make them too or maybe you can teach me so that they magically appear?” I stopped talking when I realized what I had said.

  “So, you are interested in learning more about your powers, are you now?” Ms. Mae was getting way too excited over something that slipped out.

  “After what happened last night, I guess they can come in handy.” I went on to describe what had occurred with Ben and how I had cured the snake bite. Ms. Mae listened in silence while nodding her head occasionally and widening her green eyes as I revealed the details. “I know what voodoo queen means, but I don’t know what any of this means,” I said as I finished the story.

  “It means that you are a very powerful voodoo queen, that’s what it means,” she explained. “For some, it takes extensive offerings and rituals to heal, but you did it so easily.”

  “I guess that’s what happened,” I shrugged.

  “Are you willing to learn how to develop your powers?” she asked me directly.

  “I am if you tell me where these chocolates came from.” I popped another chocolate into my mouth.

  “Here, this came with them.” She handed me a small, white envelope which I tore open in a split second. Inside the envelope was a hand written letter that read:

  I know it’s not Wonka’s chocolate factory, but I truly apologize if I offended you in any way. That was not my intention. I hope we can start over since you will be spending the summer at Darkwood.

  Lucus.

  “Typical, a rich kid trying to buy an apology,” I groaned as I threw aside the card, but that didn’t stop me from eating another piece of chocolate.

  “Why all of this hostility towards Lucus?” Ms. Mae interrogated.

  “It’s nothing.” I didn’t want to get into the disagreement we had last night.

  “Well, it must be something to get you all worked up like this.” She had picked up on my angst. “Lucus is a good man with a good heart. He has been through a lot over the years.”

  I snorted, “sure it must be difficult being Lucus LaPlante.”

  “Not everything is as simple as it appears.” Her velvety voice took on a menacing tone which made what she said sound even more cryptic. “Promise me that you will at least attempt to get along with him. He may just surprise you.”

  “Okay, sure. I guess. I do work here after all.” What was with all of the mystery around this place?

  “So, I take it that I can now trust you with this.” She handed me a thick book with a brown leather cover with the words LaRue written on it.

  “What is it?” I eyed it suspiciously as she handed it to me.

  “All of the spells and potions that us LaRue women have used over the years. I want you to read through it. I expect you to be down here every day at seven sharp, so we can start your training.” She was joking right?

  “Training? This isn’t Hogwarts, is it?”

  “Very funny Arelia. By the way, a school like Hogwarts does exist in Scotland. One of my best friends attended it.”

  “Are you kidding?”

  “I assure you, I am not.” Her smile vanished, and her normally soft expression turned severe.

  “Okay. I’ll take your word on that and see what this training thing is all about.” Her pretty face broke out in a smile and in an instant she looked years younger.

  “Fantastic, I will put this book in your room for you, so you don’t have to carry it around.”

  “Grand-mere Bea isn’t going to be happy about this though.”

  “Your grand-mere will understand. She can’t protect you forever, you are strong enough to protect yourself anyways,” counseled Ms. Mae.

  “I guess,” though I couldn’t help feel like I was somehow betraying her. If she hadn’t spoken to Ms. Mae for years, she must have had a pretty good reason. Although, your sister secretly asking the voodoo spirit of love to bless your grand-daughter and your grand-daughter ending up with weird powers are pretty solid r
easons.

  “You go on and finish your breakfast, have some fruit and drink some freshly squeezed orange juice to balance out all of that chocolate you just ate,” Ms. Mae advised as she rose from the delicate wired chair. “Guests will be down any minute for breakfast, and I need you girls to keep an eye on things and accompany them on the plantation tour. Where is Sabrina, this morning?”

  “Probably still sleeping,” I answered remembering her Hurricane/lingerie fueled attempt at seducing Lucus last night which may have worked.

  “No, I’m not, I’m right here,” chirped Sabrina walking into the garden. It wasn’t even nine, and the girl had on four layers of makeup complete with fake eyelashes and cherry red lipstick. She had cut our uniform skirt so it was at least four inches shorter and accessorized it with her favorite cheetah print booties even though it was already oppressively hot and humid.

  “Child, where are you off to?” Ms. Mae was not aware of Sabrina’s quest to conquer Lucus.

  “Oh, you know just trying to look my best for the guests,” Sabrina replied as she grabbed a cinnamon roll from the table.

  “Are you sure, you’re going to be comfortable walking around in those all day on these grounds?” Ms. Mae was skeptical because she didn’t know the distance Sabrina would go to get what she wanted.

  “Please, I do it all the time. In fact, these were the booties that accompanied me to Japan, when I went up Mount Fuji.” What she meant was when she took a helicopter tour around part of Mount Fuji.

  “You girls have ten minutes before you need to greet the guests for breakfast. Henri will meet you on the front lawn. Since it’s such a hot day, we decided to host breakfast outside.” Ms. Mae left us and went back into the kitchen.

  “Last night was amazing,” Sabrina’s voice was muffled as she gobbled down her roll.

  “What happened?” I asked even though I knew the answer.

  “We just talked all night, and then,” she giggled, “let’s just say that my plan worked, and I know he feels the same way about me.”