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“You should drink whatever Delphine gives you, but do not eat anything.”
I blinked. “O-kay.”
My heart hammered in my chest.
“Have an. . .interesting evening, Emily.”
For some reason, that made me shiver. “Goodnight, Baba.”
Max climbed onto the porch and eyed me as I put my phone up. “Who was that, Em?”
“Baba.” I lowered my voice. “She told me to tell you not to eat the gumbo tonight.”
He stared back at me like I was crazy. “Man, I’m not eating or drinking anything here. I’ll motherfucking die of starvation first.”
“Well, Baba said I could drink whatever Delphine gave me.”
“For real?”
“Yeah.”
Sighing, Max shook his head. “This is going to be a shit show tonight.”
“Don’t say that.” I pointed at his pocket. “Anyway. . .I saw your phone kept ringing while you were by the tree smoking.”
He leaned against the railing. “Oh yeah?”
“Yes. Who was that?”
“Wrong number.”
I rolled my eyes. “Why are you bad at lying?”
“I’m not bad at lying, Em. It just isn’t any of your business, so I don’t take the time to come up with an excellent lie.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “It is my business.”
“It isn’t.”
I bit my lip, studying Max’s face. He looked tense and guarded, telling me that he was definitely hiding something from me.
“Max, please.” I moved closer to him. “Talk to me. I want to help you, but I can’t do that if you won’t let me in.”
“Your help would be dripping in blood.”
I frowned.
The screen door creaked open, causing Max and I to turn our heads.
Delphine stood in the doorframe, a shadow against the warm glow of the kitchen light. Her gaze pierced through me. “Dinner’s almost ready.”
Max and I exchanged glances.
Surely, the earlier message from Baba played fresh in our minds. Despite the enticing aroma of herbs and spices wafting from the house, I felt a knot tighten in my stomach.
Max had a similar apprehension lining his face.
“We appreciate it, Delphine.” I did my best to keep my voice steady. “But we’re not hungry.”
