Debra & Regan Webb & Black - To Honour And To Protect

She supposed other people might’ve felt obligated to help because she’d sent money back to help with Mama Leonie’s health care and final expenses. But Nico lived by a different philosophy. You took care of your own, no matter how much time or silence passed between visits. That had shown through when he’d returned with a boatload of supplies at midday, and he’d clearly spent some important time with Andy while she’d put things away in the house.

Now they had a stock of wood and charcoal, a generator and fuel to keep the small luxuries like the freezer, the ancient water heater and the two lightbulbs inside the shack going. They couldn’t stay here indefinitely, but they could certainly stay through the summer and longer if she hadn’t figured out the next step by then.

“Mom, the swamp is kinda creepy at night.”

She felt herself smiling. “In a good way?”

“Yeah!

“Nico told me his mom knew everything about the swamp.”

“She sure did. And she loved to teach anyone who’d listen. She treated me like a granddaughter. I learned her secret recipe for pancakes when I turned ten.”

Andy looked up at her. “Would she have been my grandma, too?”

“You better believe it. The two of you would’ve been best friends.” She rubbed her hand across his small shoulders. “Leonie was very special. I loved coming out here to see her.”

“This was your adventure place?”

Addison nodded. “Yes. And it’s good to be back.” More than she’d expected, really. It felt like home, even though she wasn’t anywhere near the farm where she’d grown up in Mississippi.

“I think it’s better than SeaWorld!”

“Just don’t try and pet a gator.” They shared a quiet laugh. “Tomorrow we can start exploring. I can show you what’s—”

“Safe,” Andy interrupted with a put-upon sigh. “You said we wouldn’t have to be together the whole time on this adventure.”

“I said we wouldn’t have to be in the car the whole time. And you’ve been playing on your own, right?”

“Right.”

“I just want to be sure you know what to do or where to go if you come across something dangerous.” Or someone.

Craig wouldn’t have the first idea of how to find this place, shouldn’t even know about it, but she wanted to be sure Andy knew how to find Nico in case they were somehow injured or separated.

“That doesn’t sound like an adventure.”

“Oh, it will be.”

Water splashed nearby. Andy turned to her with wide eyes. “Was that a gator?”

“Probably not. Gators slide into the water and most of the time they hardly make a sound or even a ripple.” A small exaggeration, but worth the resulting expression of wonder on his face. “A sound like that’s usually a fish or frog.” Not a person, she reminded herself. People who slipped or splashed made even more noise.

“Nico taught you that, didn’t he?”

“Mmm-hmm.” She held out her empty bowl, let him stack his on top. “Take those inside to the sink, please.”

“Do I have to wash ’em?”

“No, sweetie. I’ll do it after bedtime.”

She listened to his small footsteps, waited for the inevitable noise as the bowls and spoons landed with a clatter in the old porcelain sink. He rushed back out to join her a moment later, the screen door slapping shut behind him.

“About bedtime...”

She smiled into his serious face. “Yes?”

“It’s summer, so there isn’t such thing as a school night.”

“I noticed.”

“And we’re on an adventure.”

“We are.” She knew where he was headed, but she waited for him to say what was on his mind.

“Could I not have a bedtime?”

She waited. This was the way they did things. He had to ask nicely even when he delivered sound reasons.

“Please,” he added quickly with a winning smile.

“You still have a lot of growing to do,” she pointed out. “Sleep is important for growing.” Just after Christmas she’d bought him new tennis shoes, only to have him grow out of them within a few days. “Enough sleep,” she amended, anticipating his next argument.

His face fell but only for a moment. “There were nights last summer that didn’t have bedtime and we were at home.”

“True.” She drilled her finger at his belly, making him squeal and jump back. “There will be nights like that on our adventure, too.”

“It’s not even all the way dark yet.”

“That doesn’t mean it isn’t late.” And her son rose early, ready and eager for every day. She was more than a little grateful when she realized how well Nico had updated the place through the years. She wouldn’t have to settle for instant coffee.

She patted the top step. “Come sit with me and we’ll count the first stars.”

Andy dropped down beside her, just a little sulky with his elbows on his knees and his chin propped on his fists.

“You can’t see the stars if you’re looking at the water.”

He dutifully looked up, his lower lip poking out like a shelf. “Wow. There’s lots up there already.” Interested now, he forgot to pout.

They counted more than twenty as the sky transformed into an inky purple above the tall cypress trees. When she heard him yawn, she nudged him back inside the “swamp fort.” Leaning against the doorway, she kept her weary little man on task as he chattered through the bedtime rituals.

The little things like pajamas and brushing teeth felt so normal even in Mama Leonie’s rambling little shack. “Which one will it be tonight?” She hefted the backpack full of comics onto the narrow bed near his feet.

His eyebrows drew together as he considered. “Will you tell me more about Mama Leonie?”

Surprised, she agreed. “Where do you want me to start?”

“Why did she live out here all alone?”

Addison gathered her thoughts, drew hard on her memory to recall the tales. She didn’t want to scare Andy with voodoo stories, but she didn’t want to paint Leonie as anything other than the wonderful woman she’d been.

“Nico’s mama didn’t live out here alone all the time. She raised Nico and his brothers and sisters closer to town.”

Andy stared at the little room. “Because the swamp fort was too small?”

“Partly.”

“Why not just make it bigger?”

“They already had a bigger house. Maybe I’ll take you by it one day.” Addison settled on the edge of the bed while Andy squished himself and his pillow into a comfortable position. Going through the familiar motions soothed her. “But she always had this place for herself.”

“So it was her adventure place.”

“In a manner of speaking, I suppose you’re right. Mama Leonie came out here to meet with people who needed things. She practiced a religion called voodoo.”

“She turned people into zombies?” Andy’s eyes went wide as saucers but with more excitement than fear. Addison hoped it would always be that way, the opportunity for discovery outweighing potential distress.

“Of course not. She was smart and kind and full of compassion for people. She was more like a doctor or therapist.”

“But voodoo has zombies.”

“Comic books have voodoo zombies.” Addison wondered if she needed to rein him in a bit. “In real life, voodoo isn’t nearly so creepy.” She walked her fingers over his foot and up his leg and tickled him behind the knee. He giggled and squirmed out of reach. “It’s complicated but interesting, and the people around her counted on Leonie like they would a doctor or therapist.” She stood and managed to kiss his forehead before he could protest. “Now get some sleep.”

“Like a zombie?”

“If it helps you grow,” she said with a laugh.

“Where are you sleeping?”