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"What happened?" Cassandra asked "Are you OK?"

I wasn’t sure I’d been here, but not here Myself, yet not ; instead it had been

"Coer felt full

"What was co?" Cassandra asked

"Erzulie She’s like" Again I groped for a word to describe her

"A mother"

I tiltedlike Erzulie

Cassandra frowned, but she refrained fro, she untwined Lazarus from her ankle, then du," she ordered, so I did

When I was finished, Cassandra bit her lip, and her forehead crinkled I began to get uneasy

"What?" I asked

"You went further than anyone else ever has Most only hear the voice of the loa, become a little scrao anywhere Did I?"

"Not physically"

"I just traveled to He in my head" I paused "What’s He?"

"There’s a town called Ife in Nigeria, but the one you went to is a legendary place, the mecca of vodoun, where the revelations of the has came to the first faithful"

"Terrific," I muttered "And what about this?"

I showed her the petal of the fire iris that I’d picked in a place I hadn’t actually gone

"I can’t believe you brought a piece back"

"What does it mean that I did?"

"Not sure"

"Wow You’re as helpful as she was"

Cassandra ignoredInstead, I always felt compelled to sarcasm them to death - or at least until they went away

"Keep the petal nearby," Cassandra said "Any questions you have should soon be answered"

"Just like that? Poof I know the truth?"

"Got me"

I narrowed my eyes "What happened in the past when you performed this ceremony?"

"The has came, inhabited someone else, and answered their questions"

"Truthfully?"

"Loas don’t he"

"Then why didn’t she answer me?"

"Maybe you had too many questions Maybe she didn’t know the answers Maybe you could only discover the truth by seeing it yourself"

"Maybe this is all bullshit"

Cassandra tilted her head, and I had to admit, if the previous hour had been bullshit, it was extrehtened ers around the petal "I’ll just wait for the answers Should be along anytime now"

"You believe?" she asked

I considered the question, remembered what had happened, where I’d been, how I’d felt

"Yeah" How could I not?

"I need to do some research," Cassandra said "Make some calls Find out why you traveled to Ife How you could have brought soht occurred to ood and bad voodoo?"

"They’re es Can’t have one without the other"

"So Erzulie ht have been bad"

"No The has are all about truth It’s the ood or bad We call the evildoers ’ones who serve the has with bom hands’"

"You used both hands"

"It’s an expression Don’t you trust me?"

She appeared so crestfallen, I wanted to reassure her, but I didn’t want to lie, either "I’ve never dealt with voodoo, Cassandra For all I know you could have been calling Satan hirand old time"

"He already is," she said dryly

"Ha-ha"

"You spoke to the loa, Diana, which ood or the evil intent caht about it "Sometimes"