Fleur Di Lis

Chapter Twenty-Three

The journey to New Orleans was one filled with silence.

From the moment we left the white wolves' compound, Bree and Kai started talking strategy:  How were we going to find where Bax was keeping Alexandria and Rik?  How was I going to get in without detection?  How were Alexandria and Rik getting out?  How was I stopping Bax?  When would Nate and the white wolves intervene?

How was I going to get out of there?

Nate stared at the road ahead, his knuckles white from gripping the steering wheel too hard.  I wouldn't be surprised if there were finger-shaped dents in the wheel once he let go.  His posture hadn't eased since Bax's phone call; he still seemed ready to spring, and his jaw clenched tight like he was stopping himself from going full attack mode.  Being a vampire, I gathered that his reaction to being cornered was a bit like that of a wild animal.  Trying to control the part of himself that Bax seemed to embrace so easily must be difficult.

Especially when he had his ideal meal sitting right next to him.

I stared out of the window, watching as the sea of green turned into forests of concrete as we neared the highway.  We had a seven-hour journey ahead of us, and all I had was my thoughts to comfort me.  Not that they were much comfort, since all they consisted of was the welfare of my partner.  That and the fact that the wolves in the back seat were doing all the hard work for us.  The only problem was, once we reached New Orleans, we didn't have a clue where to start looking for Alexandria and Rik.  We didn't know where Bax was keeping them; where he was planning his next move. 

Nate figured it would be somewhere near the bayou, where the voodoo magic was more concentrated, which the white wolves concurred.  Back in the days of slavery, the African Americans would congregate on the banks of the Mississippi and conjure potions and chant their voodoo songs to curse their owners and bring them salvation.  If there was ever a place where magic would be at its strongest, it was there. 

But, they also knew that the bayou was vast; he could be hiding anywhere near the Mississippi river.

Which meant that they could be anywhere, and left us no closer to finding them.

                                                                                               ***

Nate had arranged accommodation at the Hotel Monteleone, just outside the French Quarter.  The same French Quarter that Nate and Michaela had called home once upon a time.  The hotel was owned by 'an old friend', according to Nate and, when we arrived, I realised that the 'old friend' liked the Fleur Di Lis emblem as much as he did.  It was everywhere; in the banners that protected the entrance like a canopy, hidden in the upholstered sofas in the lobby, stitched onto the blazers of the hotel staff...

I glanced at Nate as we waited patiently in the posh hotel's reception for the pretty girl to bring us our card key for the penthouse suite.  Another luxury that Nate could happily afford, plus it meant that Kai and Bree had an entire suite to turn into an operations unit if necessary for the mission ahead of us.

If he noticed the familiar theme as much as I did, he was hiding his reaction well.

Instead, he studied the old map of New Orleans that hung on the wall on the other side of the reception desk and ignored my glances completely.  Being in New Orleans again must have brought a lot of memories back to him, and not all of them pleasant if the content in his journals were anything to go by.

History was in danger of repeating itself if I didn't find some way of keeping Nate out of it. 

Which was about as possible as finding Rik and Alexandria at this rate. 

The pretty receptionist returned, key card in hand, and a strange glazed look on her face that sent a chill down my spine and my cop senses on hyperdrive.  Something wasn't right.  Nate must have noticed it too, and uttered a small expletive under his breath, his shoulders squared as though preparing for an attack.  Shit.  What the hell was going on in this place?

We'd just arrived in New Orleans and already the place had me on edge.  

The receptionist handed the card to Nate, and said something in French that made Nate freeze on the spot with key card in his clenched, outstretched hand.  Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Kai and Bree exchanging a look that told me that they knew what the girl had said also.  Judging by their expressions, they knew why it made Nate react to it the way he did.  There was one phrase that I recognised, and that was Fleur Di Lis.

Why would the Fleur Di Lis have anything to do with New Orleans?

After what seemed like an eternity, Nate seemed to snap out of his frozen state and politely thanked the girl before striding towards the elevators.  I hurried behind in a vain attempt to keep up with his broad strides as he entered the elevator that pinged its arrival to the ground floor.  Instead of holding the elevator for us to enter with him, he allowed the doors to slide shut in front of him, leaving the three of us waiting for the next one.

I exhaled, frustrated, and flung my arms in the air.  "Great.  Perfect."

"Well," Bree commented airily, folding her arms across her chest.  "That was interesting."

"What did that girl say to him back there?"  I asked, rounding to her.

Bree arched her eyebrow, smirking.  "A seasoned detective like yourself, and you don't know basic French?"

"Yeah, I ditched that class at the academy," I retorted, stepping towards her and was glad to see her squaring her stance.  Every second she was in my presence, the urge to ragdoll her up and down the lobby was getting stronger.  I doubted that I would have much luck, since she was gifted with superhuman strength and agility.  It wouldn't stop me from giving it a try, though.  "I was more interested in learning about how to shut someone up when they're being a smartass, which I can quite happily demonstrate to you right here in front of these nice people."

"Vivre le Fleur Di Lis," Kai repeated quickly before Bree could open her mouth to snark back.  "It means 'Long Live the Fleur Di Lis'."

"Pretty," I remarked, averting my glare to Kai.  "What the hell does that mean?  And, why did it spook Nate the way it did?"

"The Fleur Di Lis that Nate penned in New York is quite different from the Fleur Di Lis here, Nicki," Kai explained as the elevator bell dinged an empty cab's arrival.  We clambered in and hit the penthouse and close door buttons before anyone else could come in.

"It stands for rebellion," Bree piped up lazily, leaning against the elevator wall.  "Revolution.  Strength in the face of adversity.  Why do you think it was Marie Antoinette's favourite signet all those years ago?"

"Rebellion?"  I frowned.  "Against what?"

"New Orleans was occupied by Frenchmen, mostly, all those years ago," Kai told me.  "And, with Frenchmen, came the Creole.  And, with Creole came..."

"Magic," Bree finished with a roll of her eyes.  "Voodoo and hoodoo and all sorts of other magic.  Unnatural magic.  And with magic like that, comes the likes of Nate and Bax."

Kai nodded.  "Yes.  Voodoo, like with every other type of magic that's out there, has a light side and a dark side that are constantly at war with each other to gain power.  Nate and Bax must've been caught in a particular crossfire years ago that have had them inadvertently at opposing sides."

Bree smirked.  "You can guess who's at which."

I nodded.  I didn't need to guess; Nate was light and Bax was dark.  And, by the looks of things, they were the poster boys for voodoo.  "And the Fleur Di Lis?"

"Emblem for the light," Kai responded.  "The dark side of voodoo -- the most common side -- has been ruling the French Quarter for a while now, hence all of the murders and the blood that stains the city's history.  The light want it back, and the Fleur Di Lis is their motif.  Rebellion.  Strength.  Courage.  Everything the Fleur Di Lis stands for."

And here I thought Fleur Di Lis meant exclusivity.