CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

"Now this man has balls," frowned U-Jin. He nodded toward Gates and his goon squad walking toward them. Mama Irene and Ruby knew who they were immediately. Julia felt the hairs on her arms stand up and looked at Noah for support to calm her nerves.

"Record everything," said Noah into comms.

"Well, good morning," said Gates. "My name is Charlie Gates, and my company owns Maison Soleil."

"How nice for you," smiled Ruby. Gates smiled at her, nodding his head. "A lot of nice people have visited us from there. A lot of dead people have too." That earned Ruby a scorn that would have made a lesser woman crumble.

"You know, it's against the law to mislead people in such a way."

"Honey, you ain't from New Orleans. Our people know that you don't question things like this. The magic is strong, and we believe," said Irene.

"Humor me. Tell me, is there a spirit around me now?" he laughed. "Is there someone that would like to present themselves to me?"

"Yes," said Julia softly. Not only was Noah beside her today but Joseph and Nathan were seated behind on a bench. Both men leaned forward, looking up at the man. "There are several people here who would like to know why you killed them."

"Careful, bitch," he sneered.

"You calling me a bitch won't deter me, Mr. Gates. Your wife, Patal, is here. Actually, she's not your wife at all, is she? You told her that you were married under American law, and her family released her dowry and entire inheritance to you. Except you didn't marry her. You shamed her by sleeping with her and telling her she was married. The fall down the stairs was painful, extremely painful. She was actually alive for almost an hour before she finally died, and you called for help."

"Shut up," he snapped, taking a step toward her. Julia didn't move, knowing that Noah, Joseph, and Nathan had her back. U-Jin had already circled behind Gates and his two men.

"Don't tell this woman to shut up again, or I'll snap you in two," said Noah.

"Your brother is here as well. He says your men don't know about that. A police officer, just like you, but you had him killed because he didn't believe in what you were doing. Your own brother in every way, and you hired a drug addict to kill him for the price of a bag of drugs. That must make you feel superior."

Gates' face was burning red. His fists were clenched, his stance still threatening. But Julia was not worried at all.

"Then we have Captain Richard Baldwin. Decorated veteran, officer, and friend. Or at least he thought he was. You said it was a hunting accident, but you shot him in the back and disposed of the weapon."

"You killed Dick?" said one of the men. "You said someone in the brush did it. You told us it was an accident!"

"Shut the fuck up! She doesn't know anything. Are you believing this bullshit?"

"How else would she know, Charlie? She knows way too much not to truly see the ghosts."

"Richard says that Charlie has multiple accounts that he's diverted money into for himself. Millions of dollars that none of you will ever see." Julia continued to stare at the man. Behind him were more than a dozen spirits waiting to have their turn. All were yelling at her.

"Hold on. Wait your turn," said Noah. "We'll hear from Gloria next, then Ben and Darren."

"Ben and Darren? You fucking killed Ben and Darren?" scowled the bodyguard. Gates said nothing, just looked at Julia. His hand was close to his service weapon at his side.

"I could kill you right here, and no one would charge me," whispered Gates.

Julia just smiled her sweet smile, realizing that her husband had very quietly made his way behind the man. He gripped his neck, the massive Bowie knife touching his skin.

"I beg of you. Make my day. Touch your weapon," he whispered.

"A fuck lot of good you two are!" he said, yelling at his men.

"You seem to be doing fine all by yourself, Charlie. I think the men might want to know what we've heard. Let's go, Frank." The two men walked away, headed back to Maison Soleil before Charlie could get there.

"What's your game?" he asked, still stricken by Joseph's hold. "What do you want? A piece of the pie? What!?"

"You still don't understand, Mr. Gates. I want nothing from you, but the ghosts do. Now that I have told their story aloud, they will be able to terrorize you, awake or asleep. They will haunt you day and night, causing chaos in your life. They are no longer silent victims. They have been seen.

"My friends tell me that your future is dim. Very, very dim. You will lose your election, you will be exposed for who you are, and you will die a painful, miserable death. Yet, somehow, I feel it won't be as painful as you deserve. Is that right, Mallory?"

"Mallory," he whispered.

"Mallory," growled Noah. "A child. Twelve years old and you used her. You gained her trust, you invited her into your home, and you used her. Did you really believe that tying a cement block to her neck would make her go away forever?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. He pushed free from Joseph only because he allowed him to. "No. You can't know. No one…"

"Everyone will know," said Julia. "Everyone."

Gates turned, running toward Royal to find a taxi. His ride was long gone, easily with a thirty-minute head start to speak to the other men. He would have a hard time convincing them to follow him now. He could run. He could take the money that he'd hidden and disappear, but then he'd always be looking over his shoulder.

That wasn't how he wanted to live. He wanted to live in luxury. With power. Ultimate power over everything he could see and touch. The POTUS was the only option for him. If he could just make his speech in Atlanta in three days' time, everything would be well.

"Fuck Maison Soleil," he growled. "Get me back to Atlanta."

"You say somethin', sir?" asked the driver.

"No. Just get me to the airport, please. An extra fifty if you do it in twenty minutes."