Trouble in Mudbug (Ghost-in-Law, #1)(40)

“Hmm. You live like a hermit. When’s the last time you got out of the bayou for anything…dinner, a movie, a night on the town? Maybe if you spent some time in the general population, you could meet a nice man. Something the doctor is not. He uses women.”

Maryse waved one hand in the air. “I am not going to discuss this with you. It’s simply none of your business. You never liked me anyway, so let me take my chances. What the hell difference does it make to you if I end up a two-time loser?”

Helena studied her for a moment, seeming to contemplate her next words. Finally, she sighed and said, “I never said I didn’t like you. And besides, none of that matters now. We have bigger fish to fry, and I can’t have a decent conversation with you if you’re in such a snit.”

“Well, then you’re out of luck tonight.” Maryse rose from the couch. “I’m going to bed. Are you staying?”

Helena sat on the couch and glared at the television remote. “Don’t have much choice do I, if I want to talk to you. As long as I’m stuck here, will you at least change the channel?”

Maryse considered refusing for a moment. Hell, she considered turning the whole damned thing off and making Helena sit in the dark, but she just didn’t have the energy to listen to the griping. “You know, you could have saved us both the hassle and stayed at the hotel. I’m sure there are at least twenty televisions on there with all kinds of things to watch.”

Helena gave her a horrified look. “Oh, no—I already tried that one. Do you have any idea what those salesmen turn on when they are away from their wives? I can’t believe Mildred allows that crap in her hotel. Good God, the things I’ve seen.”

Some of the things Helena had seen were probably the same things Maryse could have been doing herself if her mother-in-law hadn’t cheated her of the opportunity. But she thought it wise not to point that out. “Fine. What do you want to watch?”

“I heard down at the beauty shop that channel six is doing an all-night marathon of real hauntings,” Helena replied, looking animated for the first time that evening. “That will be interesting. Maybe I could learn how to move things.”

Oh goody. “Yeah, sure, and if things don’t work out here with that little business concerning your soul, at least you’ll know where to find friends.”


Maryse awakened the next morning to the ringing of her telephone. She groaned and covered her pounding head with her pillow, trying to block out the shrill sound.

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Helena asked.

“No,” Maryse replied without even looking out from under the pillow. “Go away.”

“Sounds like someone needs coffee.”

The phone finally stopped, and the answering machine kicked on. “Ms. Robicheaux,” a polite voice began, “this is Mrs. Baker down at the insurance company. I just wanted to let you know that we finished processing the claim on your truck, and unfortunately, it is totaled. We’ll be preparing two checks, one for the last payment due on your loan and the other for the balance due to you. If you don’t receive that within ten days, please contact me at the office and let me know. Thanks and have a nice day.”

Maryse pulled the pillow back and looked at the answering machine. Last payment? What the hell were they talking about? She owed another two years on that truck. Knowing she couldn’t sleep until she sorted things out, she pushed herself off the bed and grabbed the phone off the nightstand to call her bank, happy to see that Helena had at least vacated the room.

When the branch manager picked up, Maryse explained what had happened and that she needed to verify the amount needed to pay off the loan on her truck.

“I hope you weren’t injured in your accident, Ms. Robicheaux.”

“I’ll be fine. Just a little bumped around.”

“Well, that’s good to hear. Just one more second…ah, yes, you owe just a tad bit more than one payment on your truck. I can print the exact amount and fax it to you if you’d like.”

Maryse rubbed her forehead, not sure she could stand all the confusion without at least taking an aspirin or fifty. “How can that be? I have two more years left on that loan.”

“We’ve been splitting those extra checks every month and applying the money to your house and truck payments.” The manager sounded confused. “Those were your instructions. I hope we didn’t misunderstand.”

“What extra checks?”

“Are you sure you’re all right, Ms. Robicheaux?”

“I’m fine,” Maryse replied, beginning to get a little irritated. “I’m just having trouble remembering everything. The doc says it will all come back in time.”

“Okay,” the manager said, but didn’t sound completely convinced. “The first cashier’s check was received in this office almost two years ago with instructions to apply it to your house. When you bought the truck, we received instructions to change application to half of the check on each of the loans. We’ve been doing that every month since.”

“You’ve been receiving cashier’s checks every month for almost two years?” A sneaky suspicion began forming in Maryse’s mind—one she didn’t understand in the least and wasn’t even sure she wanted to. “Exactly how much are these cashier’s checks for?”