Demons Within

Chapter 24: Mistress Fate


"Your perspective on life comes from the cage you were held captive in..."

- Shannon L. Miller


A couple of days passed after the trio were reintroduced to Trina Vega, each having their own opinions and reactions to her appearance. While Tori was happy about seeing her sister after all of this time, was more than eager to catch up with the older sibling. Jade, however, wasn't too thrilled in the least, opting instead to avoid the 'other Vega' through various means of distraction including spending alone time with her boyfriend, whenever possible. Speaking of her boyfriend, Liam was firmly in the middle about his feelings towards the young woman. In his mind, heart, and soul, he knew there was no chance of him ever desiring Trina in a romantic light again, but, it was clear that he was wrestling with something deemed more important.

Their strained friendship.

Loving the girl on a romantic scale was something in and of itself but, the bond they formed as friends truly took a toll on him. After waking up, he managed to shower, get dressed, and sneak out of the hotel room without waking Jade or Tori up. It was early morning so the air was pretty cool for the time being, a fact he took note of with a solid grin adorning his lips. It didn't take long for him to find himself back on Bourbon Street where contrary to the night scene, it was relatively peaceful. A number of people in the general area were far fewer during the day, giving him access to a lot of the many shops that were otherwise unavailable to him due to the large crowds. Each step he took brought with it many opportunities for him to explore and contemplate both his external surroundings and his inner thoughts.

One of those thoughts: The mysterious woman he and Jade ran into a few nights prior. Aside from their rather creepy introduction, he felt that the woman known as Lucille held good intentions. His mind wandered to their encounter, details of her beginning to cross his mind. Her duel colored eyes were the first thing that he remembered with her figure being the second thing. He was no cheater or skirt chaser by any means, but it was impossible for him to have not noticed how the tight scarlet dress fit on her. He found his face heating up, causing him to shake his head viciously to get rid of the thoughts that began to trail behind.

"Get a hold of yourself," he muttered, ignoring the weird looks he was receiving from those passing by. "There's no need to think about things like that."

"Is there something troubling you, young man?" a feminine voice asked.

Turning around swiftly, he found himself facing a beautiful woman holding a basket of flowers and herbs. Liam then took notice of her appearance, his face flushing a subtle shade of red at how beautiful she was. In spite of the curious arrangement she carried, the woman seemed to be in her late 30's or early 40's as her skin was without flaw. Her eyes, a vibrant golden brown were mesmerizing to him, a fact in which he had to visibly rub his eyes to avoid staring. While he stood at 6'4" she was only about two or three inches shorter than he was and had a pretty good build to her form.

"Can I help you with something?" he snapped out of his analytical stupor after hearing the annoyance in her tone. "Or would you prefer to continue eyeballing me like a piece of meat?"

Blinking like an idiot, Liam chuckled nervously, amplifying his guilt even further. "My apologies, I was just caught off guard by your beauty."

Thankfully, it seemed she wasn't too offended by his rudeness. "Apology accepted, mon cher*." she laughed. "Nice save with the compliment by the way." Seeing him still a bit rattled, the woman stepped closer to him. "Now would you kindly answer my question?"

"Oh, right..." he chuckled softly, clearly uncertain about telling a complete stranger, no matter how attractive she was, his business. "I was just lost in thought about someone I had met a few days ago. It's nothing really..."

Raising an eyebrow, she smirked as if saying that she wasn't buying his response completely. "It's a girl, isn't it?"

The corners of his eyes crinkled, and his lips twitched "You're a shaman or something, aren't you?"

She let out a hearty laugh, not caring who heard or saw her do so. "Here in Louisiana, the proper term is Voodoo Queen,"

"Sorry," his arms hugged his chest as he averted his gaze. "I'm just a bit wary of anything supernatural. I didn't mean anything by my statement."

Sensing his sincerity, she stretched out a hand as a gesture of good faith. "No problem, jeune âme!*"

'âme?' his eyes narrowed at that last word. "What does that word mean, exactly?"

"jeune âme? Why it means young soul in French." she shrugged nonchalantly. "Why so curious, sugar?"

"It's just something someone told me a little while ago." he rubbed his scruffy chin.

This piqued the woman's interest, narrowing her eyes at him suspiciously. "Did this girl you're thinking about say those words by chance?"

"Did your voodoo tell you that?" he jokingly smirked.

Sensing his humorous tone, the woman returned his expression. "Doesn't take voodoo to put two and two together. I am curious at what was said exactly..."

He took a moment to remember that night; meeting the slightly older woman, her and Jade having a not so pleasant interaction, and even seeing the shop named after her emerged in his mind's eye. Then it hit, the moment when Jade had had enough and stormed out of the place, bringing him along with her only for him to turn around. In truth, he was trying to apologize but found the woman saying something that even he found difficult to discern at first.

"I don't every word, but, I remember it was something like 'Ton coeur est..."

"Ton coeur est à moi, jeune âme?"

"Yeah, that sounds about right." he nodded. "Do you know what it means?"

Of course, she knew what it meant. It was clear when he said the first words to her. Her face had twisted into a soft frown as she 'pondered' a possible meaning to his statement.

"It sounds very familiar, I must admit." she nodded. "Unfortunately, I'm not too sure if I the proper translation, however." She then noticed the look of disappointment resting on his face. Dejected, he shoved his hands into his pockets before suddenly flashing a grateful grin.

"Well, that's alright. It was selfish of me to pull you away from what you were already involved in to tend to my petty problem." she gazed upon him with intense skepticism. "I'm sure I'll figure it out, eventually... Um, I'm sorry but I never got your name."

"The name's Cecilia."

"It's a pleasure to have met you, Madame Cecilia" he leaned forward, bowing in respect. "I hate that I've troubled you."

Not one to just leave things as awkward as they were, she crossed her arms under her large breasts, somehow managing not to knock the contents of her basket out. "You do know that it's customary for one to give their name in exchange for another's." she flipped her long brown hair over her shoulder.

Blushing, he began to panic at the truth of her words. "I- 'm Liam."

At that moment, Cecilia's eyes widened, almost as if hearing his name sparked something within her.

"Well, Liam," she grinned softly. "I think I know a way to find the solution to your little problem."

His eyes slowly lit up in anticipation as a large smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Really? I don't want to be a bother..."

"Not at all," she smiled herself, showing him her dazzling white teeth. "It would be my pleasure."

With things settled between them, Cecilia led him down the path to her shop, thoughts of who he was filling her head as they drew closer to their destination.


After the past couple of nights, Trina and Tori had begun their healing process, which clearly explained why the older sibling was at the hotel where the group was staying. Throughout the pleasantries, there were several concerns that plagued her. One being that Beck was possibly around and two, both Liam and Jade could potentially make things more complicated. The former of the two was a wildcard in her eyes, given his cordial reaction towards her pre-emotional meltdown. Would he truly forgive her? Could they salvage what remained of their friendship and make something work from there? Or had she burned that bridge beyond repair?

All of these and other questions ran wracked her brain as she approached the designated room and, considering her reprimanding from Mercedes, Trina knew she couldn't turn back after making such huge progress. Whoever was behind this door at the time, she'd face them head on and without fail. It was all that she could do in order to continue pressing forward.

Knocking on the door, she waited; anxiously hoping that it was her younger sister who'd answer the door.

Life had other things in mind, though as the door opened revealing nobody. Her logic told her to turn and run, seconded by her nerves, but her stubbornness willed her past the threshold. With a deep sigh, she looked around the modest room, distracted by the scenery but for a moment as the sounds of the door shutting behind her, sealing her fate with none other than"

"Jade..." her voice, while sturdy, still held a small measure of fear for the scowling goth. That fear was like a drop of blood in a shark tank and Jade had picked up the scent flawlessly.

"Vega..." her eyes flashed danger signs. "What are you doing here?"

Inhaling once more, Trina balled her fists, a physical reminder of her new resolve. "I came here expecting to see my sister, but," she swallowed. "I'm actually glad that I ran into you."

Now intrigued, Jade tilted her head slightly, surprised by the young woman's statement. "Really? Why would that be?"

"Because, like with Tori and, eventually Liam," she took special note of the blaze dancing behind the girl's eyes after mentioning her former lover. "I need to gather some understanding between us. If not for the sake of peace, I need this for myself to move forward."

"Sounds a bit selfish to me, if I do say so myself." she taunted, the faintest hint of a smirk formed. "But, what does your little venture of redemption have to do with me? Tori and Liam, I understand, but me? We had no deep relationship, so forgive me if I'm a bit confused by your alleged intentions."

By now, the tension was only growing between the two, now heavily fueled by Jade's sarcasm and teasing tone. Fortunately, Trina had been through enough over the time she'd been gone to learn how to control her emotions and not give into other's bait attempts.

Jade was no different.

"Actually, our history goes way before Liam and you know it." The ghost of a smirk instantly disappeared from the pale girl, replaced by her lips holding a straight line. "You've had it out for me since the day you stepped in Hollywood Arts. You never passed up an opportunity to criticize or belittle me. You called me untalented, a waste of space, unlikeable, and more."

"I remember it being 'a waste of life' but, whatever." she leaned against the wall, arms crossed.

Irritation slithered up Trina's spine at the 'correction'. "That's what I'm talking about!" she raised her voice, no longer caring about angering her. "What is your problem with me?!"

"My problem?" she scoffed. "Where do I begin, Vega?! How about your arrogant attitude and lack of talent? You walked around as if you were gods gift to the world of acting despite being mediocre at best. You had this A-list attitude while carrying below average skills in acting, singing, and even dancing. You continued to deny your lack of progress and thus only got worse each and every day! In fact, you're the main reason I couldn't stand Tori at first; everything I accused her of doing was merely me expecting her to be a carbon copy of you!" It seemed that Trina was right about Jade's issues with her as they poured out of the latter's mouth like water from a faucet. "You know, I could forgive all of that if you hadn't broken his heart..."

Now it was Trina's turn to fire back. "But you didn't waste any time in snatching him up did you?! Couldn't wait until after I was out of the picture to snag him in your claws, right? You march around like you're some saint or something but I know the truth about you Jade." she pointed her pointer at her dangerously. When Liam and I were dealing with our issues, you were lusting after him while still dating Beck. You were lusting after him while still in a relationship with someone. So don't you pretend like you're this angel or something when you have no right to judge given your history."

Finishing her mini speech, Trina found that her adversary didn't so much as bat an eyelash the entire time; truly uncharacteristic for her. Instead, the sounds of chuckling bounced off the walls of the hotel room.

"Angel?" Jade, struggling to contain the burst of laughter tickling her core, pushed off of the wall. "I'm the farthest thing from that, sweetie. In fact, with the things I've done, I'd be on my way down the literal highway to hell. I'd probably have a special VIP room waiting for me too if I had to take a guess. The point is this, my sins are not what's caused things to spiral downhill." dark lids narrowed at the tan girl. "Now, despite your accusation, I didn't pursue Liam until several months ago. Prior to that, I patiently waited for him to heal from the hole in his heart you left." she then held up a hand to stop Trina from interrupting. "Before you mention that private letter, he never saw it until around the same time we grew closer, meaning that for over two years, he never read your personal message to him and thought you had played him for a fool."

This revelation left Trina speechless, giving an emotional Jade room to continue.

"Do you know the hell he went through, Trina?" she growled, hot tears scorching her cheek. "He didn't go a single date after you left. He shunned his friends, his sister, and even his studies were lackluster. He was haunted, believing that he wasn't good enough to be with anyone after 'failing you' as he put it. Then, he almost took his own because he began seeing images of you. All of that time he spent suppressing his emotions about you manifested into him nearly jumping off of the roof of the dorms back in Los Angeles and, if Tori and I hadn't found him when we did, he'd probably be permanently crippled or dead." All of her rage, all of her hatred towards the girl standing in front of her. "I watched him at some of his best moments and struggled with him through his lowest points! You weren't..."

By this point, Trina really didn't have a leg to stand on in this heated debate. Here she was, hoping to confront Jade about their petty squabbling during the past and yet, it turned into a lesson in what she'd missed out on by running away from her problems.

"Jade, I get it."

"No! No, you don't, Trina!" Jade shut her down once more, he composure finally starting to return. "You weren't there when Tori and I were literally competing for his love and affection. You weren't there when he was attacked at school or at Yerba when he risked his life to protect your sister and me from some maniac with a fetish for torture and rape." Her head shooting up, Trina's eyes looked as if they would pop out of her head after hearing that part. "Yes, he was brutally beaten, thrown in the worst part of the foreign prison, and then left to die by infection all because he stood up to an insane man hellbent on using us as his personal playthings. When we finally escaped, he nearly died fighting that monster despite losing so much blood! He needed a transfusion just to keep himself stabilized while in a coma, Trina. So don't you dare spit that bullshit about not wanting him to get hurt on your behalf because he did it for us."

Trina just sat down in a nearby chair, contemplating all that she'd been told about the boy that once tried to save her.

"He really did all of that?" her voice filled with amazement and a touch of jealousy at this point.

Jade simply nodded as a small grin of tranquility began to wash over her like a waterfall, drenching her in love and peace for the first time since answering the door.

"Yeah, he's an incredible guy." her tone trailed off for a second. "It's why I had a problem when we saw you the other night."

"Do you think he'll ever forgive me, truthfully?" she whispered, her tone breaking every so often.

Jade, known for being the traditional 'bearer of bad news', pondered the question. "To be honest, I can say that he's going to get over everything but, to tell if he'll let you back in his life; I'm not sure, Trina..."

While there was still much to work through, for the time being, it seemed that things were civil between the two as Jade continued the conversation.


After their trek, Liam stood at the entrance to yet another voodoo shop, uncertain on whether he should enter.

"Relax, dear." Cecilia comforted. "There's a bit of time before opening hours so you shouldn't worry about anything." Against his better judgment, Liam followed her inside to find that things weren't as bad as he thought they would be. He looked around the store, marveling at how little he knew about places like the one he was in. "Is it what you expected?"

"Not at all," he laughed sheepishly. "I thought I'd see some shrunken heads and voodoo dolls. Instead, all I see are some candles, books, and herbs for the most part."

He pressed on further, inspecting a large jar of sage while she let out a humor-filled laugh. "Not all shops like this carry dark art items. Some, like me, sell herbs and the like to ward off evil spirits. There are various avenues for which one can venture if they choose to dive into the world of spiritualism." Pulling out a book, she started flipping through the pages in search of the phrase that was mentioned earlier by the distracted Liam.

Scanning the contents, the older woman would find herself settling on something rather interesting. The phrase he mentioned turned out to be a ritual to deciding the next Head Voodoo Queen in New Orleans. Inside, she continued to read about the descendants of the original queen, Agata who were born under incest in order to 'preserve' the 'pure' bloodline and through extension the rule of power. Cecilia continued on, learning that a prophecy dictated that the line of rule could be challenged when a male child was birthed from two differing parents, thus making him a 'mutt' in the eyes of the bayou spirits. Should that child return, anyone who married him would find themselves becoming the undisputed Voodoo Queen. All of this was easily interesting to her, but her intrigue reached new heights when a particular line caught her eyes.

For the male child to be known, utter these words: Ton coeur est à moi, jeune âme.

This is the cursed mark implanted upon his soul unless he is claimed by another.

"Find anything?" he approached the counter, nearly startling the woman.

"Um, no... unfortunately, it appears that the phrase is nothing more than an old love ritual used centuries ago. Now it's just a fancy way of saying someone has a crush on you." she plastered a wide smile in hopes of covering up her lie. "It seems you were worried about nothing."

"Wow..." he ran his hands through his locs, clearly not happy with the outcome of his search. "That's legitimately disappointing."

Pivoting on his heel, he thought it best to just leave rather than wasting any more of her time. "Thank you, Cecilia! I'm grateful for your help. Sorry if I wasted your time..."

"Nonsense, sugar! I'm happy to help but," she furrowed her brow, staring into the book. "Do you, by any chance, know the name of the woman who told you that phrase? I may know her if she's local."

Thinking for a moment, Liam nodded. "It was a woman who also owns a voodoo shop. I believe her name was, Lucille?"

That name caused Cecilia's eyes to darken at the mention of that name. Intense and rising hatred boiled in her belly as Liam went on to explain how he, along with his girlfriend, met the woman, seeing her shop, albeit briefly, and the final phrase uttered before leaving to return to his hotel. If looks could cause damage, her shop would've burst into flame, a fact that he was completely oblivious to.

"Do you happen to know her?" he asked with curiosity and innocence lacing his words.

"Hmmm? Oh no, I actually don't... She must be new in town." she flashed a lackluster smile.

Returning the smile, Liam resumed his departure, stopping momentarily to thank Cecilia once again for her hospitality and left the shop, promising to return with his girlfriend to show her around.

Once he was gone, her smile dropped as the truth weighed down on her. That phrase; A simple phrase that, anywhere else, could mean absolutely nothing. For her, and those like her, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. The fact that HE was here in New Orleans at this exact time, combined with the reality of Lucille's knowledge of him first only exemplified her gut feeling. That boy, Liam, could possibly be the one destined to change the landscape of the voodoo hierarchy forever. There were several details to consider, but they were of little consequence should her hunch be correct. Immediately, she headed to the back, intent on making some plans before opening hours began.

"The king is here..." she smirked deviously, her mind becoming a catacomb for evil thoughts and darker intentions.


This seems like a decent place to stop for now. Considering I'm going to be focusing on this on a deeper scale, I'll probably try to keep pushing out a few chapters at a time (per week), if possible, for the sake of keeping the story going. Staying on one particular setting is difficult at times for me but I will be sticking to it for a bit to keep things stable and interesting.

Now comes the big question, what is the significance of Liam being in New Orleans? Well, without spoiling anything, it has a lot to do with his past. When I first started this, I noted that he and Ahrya weren't actually brother & sister but, in fact, cousins.


Mon Cher (My Dear)

jeune âme (young soul)

Ton coeur est à moi, jeune âme (Your heart belongs to me, young soul)