Free Gods by Ednah Walters Page B

face when she sees you.”
    Giselle’s parents were probably the wealthiest family in Windfall and her mother could trace her ancestry to Madam Angelique de la Barthe, the supreme of a group of Witches who fled Salem during the Witch trials and settled in the bayou. While Madam Laveau gained notoriety in New Orleans, the new arrivals from Salem married the sons of the plantation owners in the surrounding counties and hid their gifts. We were surprised the Moutons hadn’t insisted our school be named Barthe High School. The family was the major contributor to the funds for the school. And now their daughter was claiming my man.
    “She’s dating Eirik?” I asked when we pulled up outside the Moutons’ mansion.
    Hayden laughed. “I knew that was eating you up. You’ve been quiet since I mentioned it. He must pick you up from school so you two can make out in front of everyone.”
    Yes, I wanted to tell the entire world that Eirik was mine, but I wasn’t going to humiliate Giselle while doing it. Oh, who was I kidding? She’d humiliated me and other Witches plenty of times. Karma was a bitch. I pressed on the doorbell and schemed.
    “Please, tell me you’re going to do it,” Hayden said.
    “Yes,” a man asked in a British accent, and I whipped around, remembering another Brit—Lord Worthington. But the man staring down at me was tall and skinny, with a shock of white hair perfectly sleeked back into a ponytail.
    “We are here to see Mrs. Mouton,” I said.
    “May I know the names of the ladies seeking an audience with Madam Mouton?”
    Was he for real? The gloves and the way he stood stiffly said he was a butler. I glanced at Hayden. She was struggling to keep a straight face.
    “Lady Celestia Deveraux and Lady Hayden Ferrand,” I said and curtsied.
    The butler didn’t crack a smile. “Wait here, please.”
    We waited until he closed the door then we cracked up.
    “A butler? Who has one around here?” Hayden asked.
    Before I could respond, the door opened and the butler looked down his nose at us. “This way, please. Mrs. Mouton is receiving guests in the morning room.”
    I’d never been inside the Moutons’ mansion, but I was impressed. They had a remarkable two-story foyer with two sets of stairs winding to the second floor. It was huge for a family of five. Giselle had an older brother, who was in college, and someone once said her grandmother lived with them and had her own wing. We followed the butler into a room where Mrs. Mouton was entertaining several men and women.
    “Thank you, Charles,” she said and the butler bowed before leaving the room. “Friends,” Mrs. Mouton said, her hostess smile bright. “This is Celestia, the young lady who brought the son of Baldur into our lives.”
    Expensive aftershaves and perfumes assaulted my senses as men stood to shake my hand and women pressed their cheeks to mine and kissed the air. They basically ignored Hayden and even separated us, so she stood aside. I wondered what they’d do if they knew she was an Immortal. Throw her out or beg her for the secret to immortality? I’d bet on the second one.
    “When will he come to see us again?” a woman asked.
    “Let’s not be too demanding of the young god, Cassandra,” Mrs. Mouton reprimanded her, her southern accent barely there. “It’s only been a week since the last meeting. He is busy. He left word yesterday he won’t be available for several weeks and we must continue rebuilding the Guild.” She flashed me a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Now, my darling child. What can I do for you?”
    “Could we talk privately?”
    “Of course. Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen.” She led the way to the study. It had bookshelves filled with leather-bound books. Most of them were about law. Her husband was a lawyer. “Do wait outside, Hayden.”
    “No, she can stay,” I said. From Hayden’s face, she would not have left anyway. Annoyance flashed on Mrs. Mouton’s face, but she quickly