Ch.16 Bayou Blues

[Philulhu]

Friday March 13th, 1931 6.30am
Johnson Bayou, Cameron Parish, Louisiana

The journey to Johnson Bayou had taken three days. Three days on the ‘Bella Rosa’, a boat that had definitely seen better days and certainly wasn’t designed to carry six people in anything approaching real comfort. The situation was compounded by there being a woman - Ivy - on-board, and the difficulties in trying to give her privacy in such an enclosed environment.

There was little to see or do on the boat. Once clear of the Mississippi, Jimmy hugged the coastline but it mostly comprised forbidding looking swamps. Occasionally they spotted rough wooden shacks built on stilts but they rarely saw any people moving around. A hungover Lucius hadn’t made for good company and the journey had been fractious at times, not helped by the monotony of food on board; a kind of fish gumbo perpetually topped up by whatever Jimmy or Lucius reeled in off the lines that dangled over the stern.

Everyone was relieved when Jimmy announced that they would be arriving at Johnson Bayou on the Friday morning and everyone was awake early. As they drew closer, they could see the fields of oil derricks along the coast and the brine-y sea air was mixed with a thick, oily smell. Here and there, tall masts burned off excess gas, sending dark, roiling plumes of smoke into the morning air. On the coast itself, they could make out a small cluster of dwellings, wood-built and raised up from the ground, which Jimmy declared as their destination.

A small lagoon formed a natural harbour, with a couple of wooden pontoons linking back to the land. Closer in, they could see what looked like a general store, a church and some homes, all of which had a weathered appearance that spoke of proximity to sand and seawater.

”Johnson Bayou,” said Jimmy shortly, holding out his hand for the balance of his money. ”Go see Bart at the general store and tell him I sent you. We’ll be back this way in about a week if you want taking back home.”

CON rolls, please. Let’s see what type of journey you had.

[Silver Priest]

1d100

Alex is still feeling fairly hardy, his experience in the war surely helping him in this endeavor. He's still very happy to see land, even if it may very well be hostile territory.

"Thank you for the ride," he tells Jimmy. "Hopefully our investigation will be wrapped up in a week for the return trip."

[Mr. Handy]

William manages to endure the boat ride. While he didn't used to be superstitious, he's seen enough that he has to wonder, and he really wishes that today weren't Friday the 13th. "I thought we agreed that you'd get the rest of it when we got back," he says. This way it will ensure that they do return for them.

CON x 5 roll (55% stat) for the boat ride:
d%

[jp1885]

[94] = 94
CON 65 1d100: [ 94 ] = 94

Ivy is decidedly green around the gills by the time they reach Johnson Bayou. No doubt much unladylike heaving was heard emanating from the little space reserved for her ablutions during the voyage!

[Philulhu]

”Told you!” grunted Lucius, from the prow as he made ready to tie off the boat. Jimmy grinned toothily. ”Oh yeah, ah remember now.”

As he spoke, there was a bump and a scraping noise as the boat and the jetty met. As Lucius slipped a rope around on of the stanchions, Jimmy stood to see them off the boat. ”See you in seven days,” he said.

[Bullfrog]

CON 18×5 (90%): 1d100

Lawrence remains stone-faced during the boat ride, watching the smoke rise from the oil derricks to mingle with the clouds in the sky; just one last foray into the dark places of the world, and he could live a normal life again, or at least pretend to. He was never a very smart man, but sometime during the slow fracture of his mind, he'd come to understand one thing: what he had experienced was not evil. Evil was too small a word to fit what it was. It was too big, and the world was too small...

Lawrence disembarks, unknowingly crushing an insect underfoot. He waits for the boatmen to depart before speaking:
"Alright, first things first: what do we do if we meet our old friend Nyatanga? I don't think he'd ever forget me and William, especially after what I did."

[Mr. Handy]

William waves to the sailors. "If we see him, we hope he doesn't see us," he says. "We just want to confirm he's here, and then report back to the Sheriff."

[Silver Priest]

Alex helps Ms. Ripley onto dry land if she permits, suspecting she'll appreciate the firm earth under her feet once again.

"Will that prove sufficient?" He asks. "The sheriff is understaffed as it is, and unaware of the powers Nyatanga wields. I'm also not sure he would truly feel compelled to take someone down who is operating so far outside his jurisdiction.

"I'd suggest we first try and get the lay of the land and determine how much influence he has around these parts. Ministers tend to know everyone; if we spoke to them perhaps we'd get some idea what Nyatanga has been up to, and how evangelical he has been."

[jp1885]

Staggering slightly, Ivy readily takes Alex’s arm.

“And what, may I ask, is our cover story? We have a week, or thereabouts, in this place before our boat returns. Word of our arrival will have undoubtedly spread and I doubt this is a popular location for tourists.”

She takes in her surroundings with obvious distain.

“We also need a place to stay that is secure and defensible. Should Nyaranga catch wind of us - assuming he hasn’t already - then we have at least seven days before anything remotely resembling the cavalry arrives.”

“We should also endeavour to establish communication with the good Sheriff. Otherwise this putative cavalry will be poor indeed...”

[Philulhu]

A rough track lead up from the jetty to a small town square, surrounded on three sides by wooden buildings raised on short stilts. A general store - Proprietor D. Bartholomew Bordeaux - dominated one side, being at least twice as big as any of the other buildings surrounding it. Further along the track, was a small parish church, with a neat whitewashed fence separating the graveyard from the surrounding fields, where cotton appeared to be growing.

[Mr. Handy]

"Let's inquire at the general store," says Wiliam. "The proprietor will know his community, so he'd know where we can stay and who else is prominent here, as well as any means to communicate with the outside. I'd expect Nyatanga to have set up shop at the church, so we'll want to be careful about going there."

[Philulhu]

A bell over the door ‘tinged’ as it was pushed open and a middle-aged man sat behind the counter on a tall stool and writing in a ledger, looked up in surprise. He recovered quickly and said, “Well, good morning! We weren’t expecting visitors this morning but welcome, welcome to Johnson Bayou and my humble store! Now, what can I do for you today?”

[Mr. Handy]

"Good morning, sir," says William with a smile. "We'd like to know a bit about Johnson Bayou, please. To start with, do you know where we could stay while we're here?"

[Philulhu]

”It’s a note early for the tourist season but I’m sure Mrs Hebert will have rooms. I can get my boy to take you over there, as soon as he’s finished his chores,” replied the shopkeeper.

”As for Johnson, well, we don’t get that many visitors, not having a road to the town so most folks keep themselves to themselves. It ain’t the biggest of places, leastwise if you don’t count the oilmen and the cottonpickers.”

[Bullfrog]

"I'm interested in game around the area." Lawrence remarks. "What should an outdoorsman like myself expect here in your neck of the woods?"

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you. What time are services on Sunday at the church?" asks William. "And what's the preacher like?"

[Philulhu]

”Mainly wildfowl, small deer and alligators. You’ll need a license though; they’re a buck and a half each. Rangers don’t come around too often but it’s better to be safe than sorry,” the shopkeeper said the Lawrence.

Turning to William, he continued, ”There’s a service tonight, Sunday morning and Wednesday evening, but the church is open at any time for prayer. Our padre, Father Ortega, is relatively new. He’s been with us for two months. Came from Baton Rouge, if I remember rightly. We’d have preferred a local man but there was no one wanting to pick up the cudgel when Father Daigle retired.”

Behind them, the bell tinkled as the door was pushed open. ”Well, speak of the d….” said the shopkeeper looking over, before catching himself. ”Good morning! Blessings be to all!” came a voice from the doorway, and they turned to see dark-haired, young priest making the holy sign before them.

[jp1885]

After keeping her mouth shut long enough to come up with a reason for her visit to the place, Ivy is about to introduce herself to the storekeeper when Father Ortega walks in.

Working on the assumption that Nyatanga had somehow inveigled himself into a clerical position and having formed a distinct mental picture of the man, she is somewhat surprised by the appearance of the young priest.

As such, she remains silent and watches the man's reaction - does he seem to recognise William and Lawrence?

[59] = 59
Psychology 60 1d100: [ 59 ] = 59

[Silver Priest]

Alex finds the priest disturbingly smoldering, but focuses on the more important matter. Like Ivy, he suspects the priest is either Nyatanga or working with the man, and so remains cautious. "Good morning, Father."

[Philulhu]

Ivy notices nothing amiss, except for a twinge of jealousy that Alex seems rather taken by the newcomer.

”Good morning, good morning,” replied Father Ortega with a friendly smile. “Tourists, are you? Welcome to Johnson Bayou. Will you be staying long?”