Wyatt leaned on a long pole. “The water’s shallow. If you can’t stay balanced, no worries. You’ll only go up to your thighs. Or waist. Unless we hit a pocket where the bottom falls out.”
Ezekiel shot him a glare. “I’m armed, you cretin.”
Wyatt laughed. “If you prefer, you can hang out here and Grand-mere will keep you safe with that shotgun of hers.”
Ezekiel stepped carefully onto the pirogue. “That’s one hell of a woman. Do they even make them like that anymore?”
Wyatt pushed off carefully using the long pole. Malichai picked up the other one to help. He watched Wyatt and then mimicked his movements.
“I think my brother Gator got the last one,” he admitted. “She carries a big-ass knife and isn’t afraid to use it. The first time I ever saw her, she broke into our home, crept up on Gator and stuck a knife to his throat. He stole her motorcycle, and she took my Jeep. It was a really interestin’ relationship.”
“My kind of woman,” Ezekiel said.
“She’s one of us,” Wyatt added. “A GhostWalker.”
“I figured she’d have to be if she managed to get the drop on your brother,” Malichai said. “He’s got a badass reputation.”
He took a careful look around him. It was dark and eerie in the bayous. The network of canals was hidden from one another by tall reeds and strips of land with weeping cypress trees.
“A man could get lost around here,” he observed. “I’ve never had trouble in jungles or desert, but this is something altogether different.”
“I grew up here, Malichai,” Wyatt assured him. “This was my play yard. We hunted and fished here. We had crab and crawfish traps we attended to daily before we ever went to school. We used a rowboat to take us to the French Quarter where we caught the buses to school.”
“What did you hunt?” Ezekiel asked.
“Anything we could eat. We couldn’t afford ammo, so every single bullet had to count. We didn’t miss.”
“Did Grand-mere teach you to shoot?” Malichai asked.
Wyatt nodded. “With guns, knives and a bow and arrow. We all had chores. Once a year we collected the moss from the cypress trees and laid it all out to dry. It was a big job. There were five of us and we used the moss to stuff our mattresses. We needed a lot of it. That’s what we slept on.”
“I noticed a lot of the furniture was thick and sturdy and carved out of wood,” Malichai said. “Whoever did the furniture making was good.”
Wyatt smiled at him. “We got good. After a few chairs collapsed and we broke the sofa once, we learned if we wanted a chair to sit in, or a table to eat at, we’d better do a good job. We offered to buy Nonny all new furniture after we were grown and a little more successful, but she loves the things we made. She’s very sentimental.”
“I wouldn’t give it up either,” Ezekiel said. “I thought the table and chairs were unique and quite comfortable. Did you carve those chests in the hall by the stairs?”
“Each of us carved one. They’re marriage chests. Nonny wanted us to have them for our brides. Gator took his, and Flame was particularly happy about it. She didn’t have a family and I think the chest and things inside it made her feel connected, really part of our family – which she is.”
“Did Grand-mere make those quilts?” Malichai asked.
Wyatt glanced at him and then away. There was a note of longing in Malichai’s voice, one Wyatt was certain he wouldn’t want anyone to notice. Growing up poor in the bayou had been a struggle, but they hadn’t realized they were poor. Nonny made them feel lucky and very loved. He knew his brothers felt the same as he did about their home.
“Yours was a good childhood,” Ezekiel commented.
“Yeah,” Wyatt agreed. “The best. We worked hard but we played just as hard.” He held up his hand for silence and indicated for Malichai to put his pole down.
Sound travels on these waters like you wouldn’t believe. No noise. Ezekiel, can you do your thing with the insects? If they go silent, the guards are goin’ to know. We want the alligators to bellow and the frogs to croak.
Ezekiel, even as a boy, could manipulate the insects, calling them to him, sending them away. None of the team knew how he did it, but the ability was an asset unlike any other. He could move without detection through any type of terrain and protect his entire team while doing it. Since his enhancement, Ezekiel’s ability had grown into a powerful instrument. He could flood the entire compound with swarms of insects, snakes and frogs should he want to do such a thing.
No problem. Give me a minute to connect. Ezekiel was all business. Once on the hunt, he wasn’t a man who joked around like some of the other members on the team – Wyatt included.
We’re close then? Malichai asked.
We’ve got a little tramp through the swamp. It’s dangerous. There’re a few spongy places in this direction.
Wyatt used the pole carefully, each movement slow and easy, so that even the pole moving through the water made no splash as he used it to push off the bottom and propel them forward through the shallow water toward the shore. The pirogue easily ran onto the ground and all three stepped off.