Free For Old Crime's Sake (Chase Charley Mystery Book 1) by Rose Pressey Page A

out of the shop and didn’t look back. I peeked out the window and saw her marching down the street. It would probably take her a while to calm down after our encounter, but the feeling was mutual.
    Now I didn’t know what to think. Her comment about me getting what I deserved made me think she might be behind the voodoo. Why else would she say something like that? It could be a coincidence that she’d started the voodoo right after I’d run into the cop.

Chapter Twelve
     
    Courtney and I had decided to go to a little Cajun place just down the road, so I would meet her at her shop first. She sold all kinds of voodoo items and souvenirs. 
    It was a short walk to her place at the corner of Royal and Bourbon Street. I passed a few people on the sidewalk, weaving around a street performer. When I arrived, I stepped into her shop. The place was dimly lit. There were a few tourists, but they were walking out as I came in, talking about playing a joke on someone with the doll that they had just purchased.
    My cousin was at the back of the shop. She tossed her hand up and headed my way. “I’m glad you made it. I am starving. I just need to finish a few things first.”
    She lit the candle and then the incense. She waved her hand around, spreading the smoke and scent. I coughed and she quirked an eyebrow.
    “Sorry, it was the strong smell that got to me.”
    She waved the incense stick under my nose. “This smell, as you call it, is very important for doing voodoo.”
    I shook my head. “Of course.”
    She tucked the items under the counter. “I know you don’t believe in any of this.”
    I peered around at the voodoo dolls hanging around the store. “Of course I do.”
    She snorted. “Okay, that’s enough of your fibbing.”
    I pointed at the counter. “So this is what you needed to finish before we go to lunch?” I couldn’t help but think about the sticks that I’d found in front of my neighbor’s door and then again in front of mine.
    As if Courtney had read my mind, she asked, “Have you found any more of the sticks in front of your neighbor’s place?”
    I wished she hadn’t asked because I wouldn’t be able to lie to her. I gave it my best shot. “No, I haven’t seen anything.”
    I tried to look her in her eyes so that it would appear that I was telling the truth. She stared at me and I was sure that I had been figured out.
    She waved her hand. The bracelets jingled on her wrists as she gestured her hands. “You know what you need to do, right?” she asked.
    I shook my head. “No. What do I need to do?”
    “You need to find the men and find out exactly what it is that they want. That would be the best way to put all the pieces together.”
    I contemplated what she had said for a moment, but I still wasn’t sure it was the right thing to do. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I needed to dig deeper. I was used to taking risks, so I couldn’t stop now. Just because it seemed dangerous was no excuse. I’d seen the men following Dangerfield and then he’d claimed someone had followed me. The cop Phillip West had to be involved in this somehow.
    I tapped on the table filled the strange bric-a-brac. “You know, now that I’ve thought about it, you are right. I do need to find them.”
    “There you go. It’s a good idea,” Courtney said. 
    My decision to find the men had barely entered my mind when I regretted it. I was staring out the front window daydreaming and only half-listening to what Courtney was saying. That was when I noticed the men.
    “That may not be necessary,” I said and then pointed toward the street.
    She looked up and out the window. “What do you mean?”
    I stepped closer to the window. “I think they are coming in here. How did they know I had come in here unless they’ve been watching me?” They were the lowest of scum.
    “I think you are right,” she said.
    “We should get out of here.” I hurried back over to where she stood.
    She