Hallow Be the Haunt (Krewe of Hunters #22.5)(33)

“Sounds good,” Jake said. “Any trouble out here lately?”

Bill Davis came forward, frowning. “Should we be worried?”

“No, not about anything that we know in particular. Careful, yes,” Jake said. “There are always some true monsters running around at Halloween.”

“We have a cop,” Trina said.

“And security. They won’t get here for about another half hour or so—just before the gates are open to the public,” Alex told them. “They’re good—we have to be careful sometimes not to touch or be touched, but even then… No real trouble. Alcohol isn’t allowed here—even when people are done. It’s just tea and whatever’s on the porch. No one gets too feisty.”

“He’s not talking about feisty guests,” Bill said, studying the trio of lawmen. He pointed at Isaac Parks. “You’re the detective on the murder case in New Orleans. Cases, I should say. We were just comparing them. Discussing what’s been going on in the news.”

“Some vigilantes have been killing bad guys,” Artie said. “We’re not bad guys, so I think we’re okay.”

“They killed a very sweet young woman too, we believe,” Parks said.

“You don’t know that,” Trina said. “Really, I can’t see the correlation—why would the police even think that? And I don’t know—all those bad guys down. Whoever these vigilantes are, they might be on the right path. Hey, that guy—that Tink guy they killed—he was a major cocaine and heroin dealer and he was suspected of killing a bunch of people. Okay, maybe they were bad people too, but—”

“We have laws for a reason,” Jake said quietly. “And courts—for a reason. Judges to dole out punishment. We prove guilt—we don’t assume it. Part and parcel of being American.”

“But seriously…” Harold began.

“Yes, seriously. We have courts. A system. Laws. Not only is being judge and jury all in one illegal, but the wrong people wind up hurt,” Jake said. He felt himself growing angry.

He couldn’t get Shelley Broussard out of his mind.

“But sometimes…” Trina said, and then paused, shrugging. “Forgive me. Sometimes, the courts aren’t so effective. But to answer your question, no—we haven’t had any trouble out here. And—” She looked at Ashley and smiled. “We’re an hour out of the city of New Orleans. People looking for trouble… They don’t usually want to drive this far to find it.”

“But we’re careful,” Harold added. “We watch.” He looked at Ashley. “And, I swear, we would report anything immediately. You know that.”

“I do,” Ashley said. “Seriously, these guys just wanted to see what was going on out here. Fun, huh?”

“Well, we were having fun,” Harold said.

“Go back to your fun—sorry. We didn’t mean to be a damper,” Jake said. “Just be careful—and alert. Even if it is Halloween.”

“Of course.”

“Sure.”

“You bet.”

The group all spoke in unison.

“Let’s finish this up,” Cliff said.

“Yep, see you all later,” Ashley called out cheerfully.

She walked ahead of Jake. He caught up to her, slipping an arm around her shoulders.

“Jake,” she murmured.

“Sorry. This is just…”

“Halloween,” she said.

“Let’s see your grandfather, all right?”

She glanced at him. “Shouldn’t you be back in New Orleans?”

“Not tonight,” he told her. “Not tonight.”





Jake was worried, Ashley knew.

She was worried herself.

Frazier was just fine, hiding in his study. He told them both he’d be there all night. That he would, in fact, be in his study—unless he was in the dining room or upstairs in his bed—until Halloween was over.

Jackson and Parks went back to New Orleans.

Parks was going to get a man to take over for Jude McCoy, who’d been watching over Richard Showalter. Then Jackson and Jude intended to keep a good eye on the art studio and follow Nick Nicholson if and when he headed out.

Parks himself was going to walk Bourbon Street.

“You should really be in NOLA,” Ashley told Jake at one point.

But Jake was stubborn. That night, at least, he was going to be at Donegal Plantation. With her.

Naturally, they were booked to the gills. There was no way for her or Jake to take a customer’s place in the house tours or on the hayride. But they tried their best to keep an eye on the groups.

The security company people walked around just as they should.

Their cop stayed on duty.

No one was even slightly feisty.

The night came and went.

Jake kept in close contact with Parks and Jackson and Jude McCoy.

But nothing happened in the city of New Orleans either.

A quiet night.

And still.

Once she fell asleep, Ashley dreamed. She heard the sound of music blaring, louder and louder from each consecutive bar and club. She saw the neon lights and heard the laughter of the people on Bourbon Street.

And ahead of her was the young woman.