Page 4 of Bayou Sunset

“Bien,” JP said, “it be one of da islands. We be on land for a while, and den we needs ya to bring us home.Mais, keep dis quiet. We no want anyone ta know our plans.”

Well, at least they were getting somewhere. Still….

“Ya know my rates. I charge by da hour.”

“Merci,” Pierre said with a broad smile on his face.

“By da way,” she stopped them from leaving, “what help will ya need from me?” Should she prepare meals? Rods?

“Ta carry da treasure,” JP boasted.

“Merde,” Pierre said.

“Well, she will see da map when wes open it to find da right spot,” JP whined.

“A treasure map,” another masculine voice said. “Mais oui!How da ya two fall for dat nonsense?” Mario Xenos asked.

Daisy Mae clenched her jaw. She despised her rival charter boat owner. He'd underhandedly stolen clients from her before. Well, she thought, he could take these two boneheads. They knew the maps for Jean Lafitte's—and she'd bet her last dollarthat's whose map they believed it had belonged to—were fakes.

“Dis be none of ya business, Mario,” Pierre stated.

Mario raised an eyebrow in response before the twins turned and hurried away.

Her rival looked at her dirty deck and laughed. “Enjoy,chère,” Mario said as he walked away.

Daisy Mae wanted to spray him but wouldn't be that childish with another boat owner. She despised Mario. Let him steal her brothers' trip away from her. This time, she didn't care.

Treasure map, indeed.

Chapter Three

IN THE DIM of night, Romeo navigated the familiar route to St. James Parish Hospital, a path ingrained in his memory from the countless times he and his family had driven there with his little sister before she passed away. However, at Ochsner Children's Hospital, they spent most of their time with Sally, tending to her needs and offering unwavering support. His little sister came into the world much too soon, and her fragile health presented her with a series of medical challenges. Despite her brave fight, she tragically succumbed to pneumonia at the age of eight, quietly slipping away in her sleep.

Romeo was just ten years old at the time and hadn't comprehended how a simple cold could have taken his sister's life. Now, he understood.

Striding into the hospital at a fast clip, he stepped into an elevator and punched the floor for the ICU. He was overwhelmed by memories of his family setting aside his sports activities, such as football and baseball, to accompany his sister to the hospital. Although he cared for Sally deeply, he couldn't help but resent the attention she received. At times, he even suspected that she feigned illness to disrupt his plans deliberately. Looking back, he realized that his immaturity had significantly influenced his perspective.

Romeo stepped out of the elevator and spied the nurse's station. He moved to the desk and asked, “Bonsoir.Would ya give me directions for Wayne Smith's room, if ya please?”

A cute nurse beamed at him. He wasn't conceited, but he knew he was an attractive man who often caught the eye of the opposite sex. But he didn't know how to handle himself in those situations. He always got tongue-tied. Hence, his pain-in-the-ass colleagues nicknamed him Romeo. He was so far from a Romeo.

“He be in da last room on da left.” She pointed down the long hallway. “Maissomeone be in there. You be family?”

He nodded. “I be his son. Is mymamanin there?”

“She be. I let her know ya here.” She smiled again and walked down the hallway—with a bit of extra sway in her step—presumably to his father's room.

A little while later, his mother emerged from the room, her eyes red and teary as she dabbed them with a tissue. Crap, she had been crying. It wasn't supposed to be a severe heart attack. Or so she had claimed, but he suspected she was not telling the truth, especially since his father was still in ICU.

When they came together, his mother fell into his embrace. Romeo always loved that he could kiss his mom on the head. The family always joked he must be the milkman's kid because he was taller than his parents. Of course, the younger generation didn't get the joke because they'd never had the milkman deliver to their homes. The delivery service stopped when he was young, but he remembered the man who had brought milk in a bottle to the house. He always got ice cream. That's how Romeo remembered him.

Romeo and his mother didn't speak, but he held her while she silently cried.

“Shh,” he finally said, laying his chin on her head. “It's gonna be okay,Mamou.” He hoped never to see the day when his mom was without his father. Together, they had married at a young age and had been inseparable ever since. He yearned to experience that kind of deep, enduring love in his own life.

After collecting herself, his mother pulled back. “They want ta watch ya papa overnight. He be stable so dey be moving him to a room.”

Well, that was good news. Romeo cleared his throat, washing back his emotions. “I'd like to see him. Dat be okay?” He longed for a moment without his mother in case his fatherneeded to impart something private.

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