Treacherous: The Beginning

By Enjil Washington

A traumatized young girl goes on the run from powerful assassins in this supernatural Cajun thriller full of criminal corruption and voodoo magic.

When the Piper family finds a beaten and bloodied young girl near their rural Louisiana home, they don’t think twice about taking her in. But their act of charity is about to change their lives in ways they never expected. The Pipers couldn’t possibly imagine the horrors that Madria has experienced—or the secrets she carries with her.

When vicious men came to her home and murdered her family, Madria managed to escape—though how she survived their brutal attack is a mystery. Now those men are out to finish the job. But while they present a deadly threat, Madria possesses powers of her own.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jun 20, 2011
• ISBN: 9781612547732

Book preview

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Get away from him, you son of a bitch! Leave him alone please, please, aghhhhhh, don’t hurt him, please! cried Erzuliaes.

Three men kicked in the door to Marchiems and Erzuliaes’ home, tied Marchiems’ hands behind his back, and beat him unconscious. Malcolm wore a tan turtleneck, brown slacks, and dark brown leather gloves as he swung an iron pole at Erzuliaes, who fought back, trying to protect herself. He hit her in the face with the pole and she fell down. Erzuliaes, stumbling, tried to get up. Blood ran down her face as she screamed, You motherfuckers! I’ll kill you!

Chance punched her in the face and spit on her. Erzuliaes tried to run to the crib to get her baby before they did, but Chance caught her, knocked her down, and began beating and kicking her. Erzuliaes, still conscious, screamed, Why have you come to hurt my family? Who are you?

Erzuliaes was hysterical and silently praying that no harm would come to her two children and hoping her thirteen-year-old daughter Madria would stay hidden.

The baby cried while Erzuliaes and Chance looked toward the crib. Don’t hurt my baby! scre amed Erzuliaes, Please don’t hurt my baby! Chance, breathing hard from struggling with Erzuliaes, grabbed the baby from its crib and held it up like a rag doll. Dressler snatched the crying baby out of Chance’s hands and threw him up against the brick wall over the fireplace. The sound was unbearable and the baby stopped crying immediately. Oh my God! You killed my baby!

Dressler grabbed Marchiems by his hair and stared him in the eyes. He was still breathing, but barely conscious with a bloody, swollen face. Dressler pointed the gun and shot him in the head four times. Malcolm picked up the dead baby. Holding him up by the t-shirt, he yelled to Erzuliaes, Don’t take another step, you crazy bitch! Erzuliaes didn’t understand that the baby was already dead and was hoping that he was alive while Malcolm threw the baby into the fireplace.

Erzuliaes partially fainted, but remained conscious. Dressler had a patch over one eye and used his good eye to stare into Erzuliaes’ eyes with hate. We don’t have time to waste. Mr. Deveroux said to kill everybody. Shoot this bitch!

Chance, dressed in black, pulled a gun from his holster and held it at Erzuliaes’ head. Erzuliaes appeared to have gone into shock. She looked as white as a ghost, with hair all over her head, eyes like fire, and torn and bloody clothes. Her mouth was agape; she made a hissing sound. No! she screamed. You killed my family!

Erzuliaes started rocking back and forth, hissing with the strangest look in her eyes. Malcolm went closer to Erzuliaes as she began chanting something he couldn’t understand. He shot her once in the shoulder, in the chest, and in the arm. He fired three more shots, but she was still standing. Malcolm got scared because he had never seen anything like this before. The other two men were watching in awe. Chance yelled, Look at that bitch; she’s still alive!

Erzuliaes raised her hands as if she was willing them toward her. Oh, shit! shouted Dressler as he jumped in fear and shot her again in the head. The most hideous laugh they had ever heard came from her.

I’m already dead, she said.

Erzuliaes remained standing, chanting chonka divile, chonka divile, chonka divile, chonka divile. Her voice sounded like a loud, booming bass. Tell Mr. Deveroux that I put a curse on his firstborn. He will never see daylight or walk on God’s green earth. Tell him that for me! Chonka divile, chonka divile. Suddenly, her head exploded right in front of them.

Man, this bitch must be one of them voodoo bitches.

I have never seen anything like that.

I almost pissed in my pants.

Let’s get the fuck out of here!

That was some creepy shit.

Did you hear her say she put a curse on Mr. Deveroux’s firstborn?

Dressler, the head honcho, said he was not going to tell Mr. Deveroux a damn thing. They all agreed to keep it to themselves because they didn’t want to sound stupid. Come on, I’m getting out of here before that bitch decides she ain’t dead.

Wait! Mr. Deveroux said to destroy everything, so we need to torch this place. The three men began throwing lighter fluid all over the house. Suddenly, Chance thought he heard a noise in the background. Be quiet. I heard something over by the fireplace.

As he walked over behind the table by the fireplace, he saw the girl. Look! Madria tried to run for her life, but Dressler grabbed her blouse and ripped it off as he jumped on her, knocking her to the floor. Chance yanked her up by the hair. Well, well, what do we have here? he asked. Her clothes were dirty and torn from hiding in the fire place. Kill the bitch so we can go home, Malcolm said.

Before we go we’re going to have some fun, Dressler said. Now be a good little girl. Come on, bitch, you gonna make me see stars tonight.

Man, just fuck the bitch and come on, Malcolm said.

All right, be still and everything will be all right.

They beat the girl until she was only semi-conscious and raped her over and over. Dressler relieved himself in the girl’s face and she started to gain consciousness. Then he kicked her over and over until he thought she was out again. Malcolm snatched the rest of her clothes off and raped what he thought was a corpse.

Chance bragged, I can do better than that. He grabbed a broom, broke the handle, picked her up, threw her on top of the table, and began beating her in the head. Madria woke up screaming and fighting. Chance told the others to grab her legs and hold her down. The other men were laughing as they held and she managed to break loose. Damn, look at that, she’s like her Mama. Grab that bitch.

Dressler caught her by the hair and swung her against the wall and asked, Which one of y’all want to kill her? The bitch gon’ suck me off first.

The men didn’t jump to the opportunity fast enough, so Chance went first. Hey, he said, poking her with the broom, open your mouth. He pushed her down low enough so that he could stick his penis inside her mouth while the others stood back and watched.

After he finished with her, he kicked her and asked, Next?

I’m next, yelled Malcolm, who was rubbing himself and licking his lips.

She halfway sat up and he grabbed her hair, knocking her head against the brick wall. He slapped her and said, Open your mouth, bitch!

The next minute all that could be heard was a grown man screaming like somebody poured hot grits on him. My God, look at that bitch!

Her mouth was raining blood and she was hissing like her mother. Madria stood up, hissing and butt naked, turned the table over, crashed through the window, and ran down the road.

Wait! Malcolm yelled. Catch that bitch—she bit my dick off! Then he fainted. Dressler tried to shake him conscious, but couldn’t. Dressler was worried; he knew the consequences they would pay if the girl got away. Mr. Deveroux was not a reasonable man.

We better find her before somebody else does, what we gonna do about Malcolm?

Fuck Malcolm. Didn’t nobody tell him to put his dick in that girl’s mouth, Chance said.

Madria, enraged and scared to death, ran into the woods behind an old shack. She realized that it was her or them—she was fighting for her life and she intended to win. She didn’t remember how she got away; all she remembered was running naked into the woods, wounded, hurt, dirty, scared, and enraged!

Catch that bitch before somebody sees her! We better find her or it’s our asses, one of the men said. They ran into the woods but could not find her. They looked everywhere, but she was nowhere to be found.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! We got to find that bitch before it gets dark! Dressler yelled as his phone began to ring. Fuck! That’s Mr. Deveroux! Shit! What am I gonna tell him? Ring! Ring! Ring!

You better answer that damn phone before he sends his hit men after us.

What the fuck I’m gonna tell him?

Tell him the bitch got away!

Hello, Mr. Deveroux, I was just fixin’ ta call you, how you doing? Is everything OK? No, sir, the girl got away. What? She ran into the woods and I think that Malcolm is dead or close to it. We are looking for her now. She’s hurt pretty bad and doesn’t have on any clothes, so she won’t get far.

What? Dressler, you and Chance get your black asses over here right now! Mr. Deveroux exclaimed.

The men drove to Algiers in silence, afraid of what was to come.

They arrived at Mr. Deveroux’s looking like they had been in a fight—their clothes were bloody and torn. There was a group of men playing cards and drinking with Mr. Deveroux, and Dressler and Chance walked in and sat down for Calvin to fix them a drink. Mr. Deveroux walked over to the other men and continued to play cards. When the game was over he excused everybody except Dressler and Chance. He sat down and listened to Dressler explain what happened. Then he told them to go clean up and that he would send up a change of clothes for each of them.

They did as they were told, and when they returned downstairs they were told to sit at the other table like two kids.

I send three grown-ass men to kill two old motherfuckers and their two kids and look what I got—a fucked-up situation! Mr. Deveroux yelled. Y’all fucked this job up. If you don’t find that bitch, your asses will be sucking on that rooster’s dick by this time tomorrow. How the fuck did the bitch get away?

Sir I was—

Don’t fucking ‘sir’ me, Mr. Deveroux interrupted. Get the fuck out of my face and go find the girl. I don’t care if it takes all night. First go back and finish off Malcolm, if he ain’t already dead, then call Sheriff McCray to send someone to assist you.

Who? You want me to call the sheriff?

Yes! All the money I grease their fat sorry ass palms with—it’s time for them to pay up. Call him and tell him I told you to, damn it. I want every door knocked down and every area searched. Spread the word that she escaped from a mental institution and is armed and dangerous! After you find the girl, kill her and the two sheriffs. Now get the fuck out of my face before I exit your asses.

Dressler went to see Sheriff McCray and told him what happened, leaving out what they had done to the girl. Sheriff McCray was not happy, but he told Sheriff Williams to assist him because he knew the consequences if he didn’t. Both sheriffs went searching down in the creek by an old vacant shack.

Be careful going in that old shed, McCray said, That building has been condemned for years. Sherriff Williams went inside to look around and called out for Sheriff McCray. Look, these footprints are fresh. Over there in the corner—that looks like fresh blood.

Look out! Sheriff McCray warned him, but it was too late. Madria jumped from behind a cabinet, looking like a madwoman with no clothes on. She shot the sheriff between the eyes with a homemade bow and arrow.

Sheriff McCray was too shocked to move; he could not believe his own eyes. Madria hissed at him like a mad animal, snatched the arrow out of Sheriff Williams’s head, jumped on McCray’s back, and jabbed it into his neck over and over and over until he fell to the floor.

Fiona Piper was the wife of Gregory Piper, the DA for the state of Louisiana. She sat on her veranda with her two daughters, Beatrice, four, and Tamalia, two, while they played with their dolls. Both girls were named after their great grandmothers, but they called Tamalia Tammy because Beatrice couldn’t pronounce Tamalia, and they called Beatrice Bea.

Fiona was five foot, six inches and 135 pounds, with long wavy hair, hazel eyes, and deep dimples. Fiona was madly in love with her husband and had been a proud wife and mother of two for five years. Gregory Piper was a devoted husband and father and was also very handsome with a muscular build and dreamy bedroom eyes. He was also in love with his wife, catered to her every need, and spoiled his daughters.

Fiona loved spending time with her daughters, not like other well-to-do mothers that hire nannies for their kids. Fiona took care of the children and the house herself, but she had a gardener that took care of the outside.

Come girls, let’s go take a walk down by the creek, Fiona said. The girls loved to play by the creek.

Mom, can we put our feet in the water? they asked.

Maybe. Play with your dolls first.

Tammy’s doll fell in the water and floated down the creek under the viaduct and Tammy ran after it. Fiona yelled, Tammy, don’t go past the viaduct!

OK, Mom.

Bea ran after her sister and something caught her eye. She thought she saw something move and heard the leaves rustle, so she went to investigate and saw a girl stretched out behind a tree. Mommy! she yelled.

Fiona ran down by the tree only a few feet away asking, What is it, baby?

Bea grabbed her mother’s hand and pointed at the girl. Fiona gasped. She bent down and touched the girl’s head. Oh my God! What happened to you, honey?

The girl hissed and struck out at Fiona and she jumped back. Fiona told the girls to stand back and tried to touch the girl again, saying, I won’t hurt you, honey. My God, who did this to you? She stroked the girl’s face tenderly, touched the girl’s head, and caressed her back. Dear child, you are safe now, please come with me. I won’t let anyone hurt you.

Fiona took off her shawl and placed it around the girl’s shoulders. Please don’t be afraid, you’re safe now. It’s OK, baby, don’t be afraid. I won’t hurt you. Oh my God, you poor baby, Fiona said. She hugged the girl and held her tight in her arms. Come on, let’s go get some help.

Nooooo! screamed the girl. Nooooooo!

OK, OK, calm down. How about I take you to my home, just me and the girls? See, my girls won’t hurt you. That’s Bea and her sister Tammy. Say hello, girls. Please trust me; you’re safe now.

The girl reached out to Fiona and passed out. Fiona used all her might to drag the girl back up the hill to the house. Quick, come on girls, we have to get her inside. She was heavy, but Fiona managed.

Inside, Fiona washed the girl and put medicine on her wounds and noticed she had been brutally raped. Fiona tried to clean her vagina tenderly and she cried while doing so. Fiona gasped with tears running down her face as she gently wiped the girl’s vagina. She put some salve on her cuts and alcohol on her bruises and noticed that some of her injuries might need stitches. Madria stirred, opened her eyes, remembered the awful hurt those men did to her, and started screaming and swinging.

Fiona hugged her and consoled her. It’s OK. You’re all right now, baby, it’s OK. Nobody’s going to hurt you again, I promise, baby. You’re safe now. Lie down and sleep. I’ll go make you something to eat, Fiona said.

The girl tried to jump up, but a pain caught her and she grabbed her side. Fiona saw blood gushing out from under the girl’s hand and she moved it. Oh my God, you’ve been stabbed. We need to get you to a hospital.

No! No! No hospital! the girl screamed.

I have to get you well; let me take a look at that. A large piece of glass was sticking out of the wound. Fiona took it out and cleaned the wound, putting medication and gauze on it. Madria lay back, exhausted, and fell asleep. Fiona made some milk and cookies and sandwiches for the girls and tea, cookies, and sandwiches for Madria.

Fiona went back into the bedroom and told Madria, Here, drink. It will make you feel better; you need to eat something. Madria drank the tea and ate the cookies and sandwiches in two minutes. You must have been hungry. Here, have some water. Do you want more food?

When Fiona gave the girl a pain pill and told her to take it so that she could relax, Madria looked alarmed. I won’t let anyone see you, Fiona reassured her. I promise you are safe here; nobody will see you, OK? Madria was too exhausted to argue so she took the small white pill and went to sleep.

Madria slept for about two hours with Fiona sitting by her side, watching her. True to her promise, nobody saw Madria. Fiona asked her if she remembered what happened and if she knew who hurt her.

Madria cried and screamed, They killed my family!

Who? Who did this to you, dear?

Madria started to cry again.

Honey! Honey, I’m home! a voice yelled out. Madria jumped up and slid into the corner, frightened. It’s OK, baby. That’s my husband. He will help you; don’t be afraid, Fiona assured her. Madria shook her head and said, No, no, no, bad men, bad.

OK, I won’t bring him back here, but can I go tell him to watch the kids, please? I promise I’ll be right back. Fiona ran into the living room, kissed her husband, and told him to watch the kids because an emergency came up and she would be a few. He looked bewildered, but said OK. Fiona ran back in the room and found Madria passed out in the bed. Fiona covered her with a cover and kissed her on the forehead.

Fiona went into the other room, hugged her husband, and fell into his arms crying.

Baby, what’s wrong? I heard we have a guest, Gregory said.

Thanks for not asking questions, honey, Fiona said and then explained what had happened.

He listened attentively and his blood boiled while he listened to the gory details of that poor child’s experience. Fiona told her husband that the girl had been beaten, raped, and Lord knew what else.

She is so frightened, baby. She doesn’t want to see a man; she’s horrified!

Gregory stared into space without speaking for a moment.

What? What do you know, Greg?

I heard that some girl from a nuthouse had escaped and killed two sheriffs and they are looking for her. The chief of police has a reward out for her—says she’s armed and dangerous and anyone helping her will be punished severely.

How in the hell did she escape from a nuthouse and stab herself, beat herself almost to death, burn herself on her back and rape herself brutally? Not even the craziest lunatic can do that. Hell, Houdini himself couldn’t pull that one off!

I know, baby, but anyone caught hiding or abiding her will be in big trouble.

Fiona walked back and forth, listening to her husband and thinking. Baby, I have talked to this girl and seen how scared she was and I know she didn’t escape from no damn nuthouse. Whatever happened to her, someone wanted her dead—somebody is after her. They killed her parents and baby brother right in front of her and tried to kill her after they got done raping her, but she got away. The people who did this are monsters, and I ain’t gonna turn her over to them. You know yourself those sheriffs are the most crooked and prejudiced police force down here.

The sheriff said she killed her family and the two sheriffs, Greg said.

I don’t believe it; she’s too frightened to be a cold-blooded killer.

Yes, honey, I know you want to help, but what if they are right? We could be in big trouble; I could lose my job and we are putting our family and kids in jeopardy.

Oh, honey, I’m so sorry, but if you could just talk to her you would see what I see. You deal with liars every day—you need to feel her out. Talk to her for me, baby. That girl is in trouble and she needs our help! I’ll tell her she has to talk to you for you to help her.

Fiona went into the bedroom, woke up Madria, and explained that the sheriffs and police were looking for her and that Greg needed to talk to her so that he could help her. I’ll stay right here with you, sweetie. He won’t hurt you; please let him help you.

OK, Madria said.

Gregory came in and the moment he saw the girl he was enraged and thought to himself, Whoever did this, I will surely make them pay.

He told Madria to call him Greg and that he wanted to help her. I have to ask you some questions that you may not be comfortable answering. Do you understand?

Yes.

What happened and exactly what did they do to you and your parents?

She cried and shook hysterically and told him the entire story—how they beat her dad and shot him in the head and how they beat her mom and threw her baby brother against the wall. She had no emotion on her face as she told him what they did to her. She told him what she did to them and that she wanted to die because her family was all she had.

I am so sorry for what has happened to you, Madria. I will find those men and see that they are locked up for good.

No, you won’t.

Yes, honey, I intend to find them and lock them up and throw away the key.

They will find me. They are bad men and the police work with them, so you won’t find them.

Go back to sleep, baby. We’ll talk tomorrow. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone that you’re here. You are safe here. Fiona kissed Madria on the forehead and told her to try and get some sleep, that she would be in the next room, and if Madria needed her, she could just call her name. Five minutes later, Madria screamed and called for Fiona. For the next eight months, Fiona slept with Madria and never left her side.

Gregory told Fiona that some mobster guy was looking for the girl, but he didn’t know why. All I know is that they killed her family and she has nowhere to go. I can’t let them have her; they will kill her too. How do you know she’s not lying? I can’t get mixed up with the mob.

You deal with criminals every day, Fiona said. Do you think she’s lying?

No.

If it were your children, would you want somebody to help them?

Yes. Fiona, you have such a kind heart—that is one of the reasons that I love you so much.

We’re gonna have to keep her hidden for a while, baby, because they ain’t gon’ stop looking for her. We will wait a couple of months and then you start telling people that your niece is coming up from California to stay with you because her parents died in a car accident.

What about the girls? What if somebody questions them?

My girls know how to keep a secret and besides, they’re babies—ain’t nobody gonna get close enough to them to start asking questions. We don’t allow them to talk to strangers; they know better than that. We just have to be really careful. That poor child has been ripped from her soul—only thing holding her together is God’s spirit. She told me she wanted to die, and I said, ‘No you don’t, because if you did you wouldn’t have ran from those bastards.’ She just broke down and cried and I told her that God saved her for a reason. I said, ‘Now you got to be strong and survive for God, and He and I will take care of you. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you, but you have to trust me and help me help you.’ She asked me why I was helping her and I said, ‘Because you’re hurting, and I don’t like to see anyone hurt.’

Fiona held Madria in her arms and slept with her every night until she was comfortable to sleep by herself. True to her word, she never left Madria’s side. In time, Madria came to trust Fiona and her family and they became attached to each other.

Two years later, Gregory’s niece appeared from California to live with them—at least, that’s what he told people. Although a few people knew about Gregory’s niece, the family still kept her away from the public. He thought it best to put the word out just in case someone accidentally ran across a teenager at their home. He had no intentions of introducing her to anyone; the plan was to move away and give her a new start as soon as he took care of some business. Madria seemed to be adjusting well, but every now and again she had nightmares about that awful night. She seemed to love the kids, and they adored her. By the third year, she seemed pretty comfortable and was officially a part of the family. Everything seemed to be falling into place—until one day all hell broke loose!

Samantha’s P.O.V.

I remember it like it was yesterday. I was playing hide-and-seek with my two cousins, Tanya and Tonya. They are our favorite cousins, although we tease them all the time and call them the chocolate twins because of their beautiful complexions, which they get from their mother. They call us the pineapple twins. Tonya says that we are confused by color; she says our genes can’t make up their mind to stick to one color. They are too funny! My sister, Joanne, does have eyes that change colors when she is mad. She gets her eyes from our dad. I got my mother’s dimples and eyes, but other than that, my sister and I are identical.

I was looking out of the window, admiring the most beautiful rainbow, watching the rain pour and thinking about what Medea would say. She always said that if the sun is shining while it’s raining, then the devil must be beating his wife. Medea is our granny by inheritance; she took care of my mother ever since she was a baby. Medea actually lives next door and she was leaving for the evening.

Some of my most cherished memories of growing up are from whenever Big Daddy and Mother were away. Medea let us shop until we dropped, eat all the junk food we wanted, and have pajama parties. We loved Medea to death. Mother was always out sporting one of her excursions or throwing one of her very important parties for her very important friends. We have always loved the idea that our own mother became overwhelming to us. Now don’t get me wrong, that’s not to say that we didn’t love her. She was a blast and we loved her with all of our heart and would not change one darn thing about her.

Now Daddy, who we so lovingly called Big Daddy, was everything but God himself to us. Oh yeah, my Daddy could do no wrong. For all the times that Mother was away, Daddy always came through with big, wet kisses, strong hugs, and plenty of toys. Big Daddy was tall, dark, and handsome. He had creamy brown chocolate skin, and the thickest, darkest eyebrows I have ever seen, which connected in the center like a vampire or unicorn. But he was so sexy. Big Daddy had black wavy hair with a small patch of gray on the left side, silky, long sideburns, and his fingernails were kept manicured. He was about six foot, four inches and 240 pounds of solid muscle. His body was so tight that you could see the ribbed edges through his clothes—which, by the way, were tailor-made. Big Daddy had a rather unusual dark, mysterious look in a sexy kind of way. His eyes were the color of the ocean, a cool bluish-green, and the color changed with his moods. He was often mistaken for a Brazilian. He and my mother were a beautiful couple and did not abuse their looks. That’s one of the things that everybody who knew them loved about them. Mom used to be a famous model but gave it up to be Big Daddy’s wife.

Mother was highly educated; she was valedictorian of her law class, where she met Big Daddy. They both passed the bar exam with flying colors. Mother also had a master’s degree in psychology. She could practically write her own ticket, but she chose to dedicate her life to family business. She said it is more rewarding to be with her family any day than to be working for some stuffy law firm.

Upon graduation, Mom and Dad were approached by many headhunters from some of the most prestigious law firms in the country. They both declined and decided to start their own business, which to this day is one of the most successful black-owned businesses in the state of Louisiana.

Big Daddy graced the cover of Fortune 500 several times for being voted as one of the top ten most successful black entrepreneurs in the country. Big Daddy had many friends in all walks of life and was very much respected; Mom often called him a jack-of-all-trades because he had so many friends who didn’t have anything in common with each other.

Mom was also very much respected and had many famous friends. A lot of them were movie stars and models. She herself was a successful model—she was five foot, eight inches and curvy with big legs, big boobs, a perfect size six, and a body to die for. She had beautiful hazel eyes, long sparkling Cherri hair with a touch of blonde highlights, full lips, and skin the color of bronzed cocoa butter. Before she married my father, she had a very impressive portfolio.

Big Daddy was always bragging that Mom was his soul mate and together they made one fearsome team. He said the natives were always nervous around them because they never knew what to expect. Big Daddy was one of those people who said what he meant and meant what he said, and like all powerful men, he demanded respect and had no problem giving it. Mom didn’t tolerate a lot of nonsense; she had that lawyer attitude—quick to the point—and did not beat around the bush. My sister took that part of our mother’s personality. She can be very intimidating and vicious when she wants to be. Mom was a refined lady, but would kill you at the blink of the eye when it came to her kids.

The people in the Bayou used to be afraid of Big Daddy. They said he was touched, and his family was known to practice voodoo back in the old days. My sister and I got his coal black wavy hair and caramel colored skin complexion. Mama said we have darker skin, but we took our lips and booties from her side of the family. If you make my sister real mad, her eyes sometimes turn aqua blue—I’ve seen it! Anyway, Big Daddy was definitely into his family; he loved us very much and he was our hero. I guess you could say that we were Daddy’s girls because he spoiled us rotten. Mama was so pretty that sometimes I would stare at her beauty and think that I wanted to be just like her when I grew up—looks and all. Medea said that Mom and Dad shared true love with a very loving family; she said we should count our blessings and not take them for granted. My sister and I never went to bed without a kiss from either Mom, Dad, or both. Always, every night, Medea would kiss us good night and tuck us in.

Even on our family vacations, which were every year, Medea would go with us and tuck us in every night. There were always men with big guns around, and we always traveled with four or five cars each, riding four deep. I guess as a child I never really thought about it. Then I got older and started to pay more attention to my surroundings. I would ask mother, Why do Uncle Avery, Uncle LaDomé, and Uncle Morgan go everywhere we go? My mother would always have that same smile and say, Darling, you are such a curious child.

I would say, But, Mother, you didn’t answer the question.

My mother would say, Honey, promise me you will always be that way.

I would say, OK, Mother, but why do they go everywhere we go?

She said, Sweetie, you see, we are the richest black family in New Orleans and there are some bad people in this world who don’t like us because of our wealth and would do anything to try and take it from us. They would even try to hurt us. This is why your uncles are always around to protect us, and this is why Big Daddy and I tell you not to talk to strangers and beware of all around you.

End of Samantha’s P.O.V.

Saturday morning, 4 a.m.

Wake up, baby, come on, your mother’s waiting for you downstairs.

"OK, Medea,