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My legs trembled, but I followed him out and upstairs to change my clothes and tell Mrs. Ferrier we would be leaving the house and might not return until very late or even the next day. Then we got into our car and drove through the night, making the trip in record time.
There were dozens of cars and pickup trucks along the driveway at Cypress Woods. As we pulled up to the house, I looked toward the dock and saw the torches being carried by men who were going in pirogues and motorboats to search for Paul. We could hear the shouts echoing over the bayou.
Inside the house Paul's sisters sat in the study, Toby looking as cold as a statue, her skin alabaster, and Jeanne twisting a silk handkerchief in her hands and gritting her teeth. They both looked up with surprise when we entered.
"What are you doing here?" Toby asked. From the expressions on their faces and their astonishment, I guessed that Gladys Tate hadn't told her daughters the truth. They still thought of me as Gisselle.
"We heard about Paul and came to see what we could do to help," Beau said quickly.
"You could go down and join the search party, I suppose," Toby said.
"Where's your mother?" I asked.
"She's upstairs in Paul's suite, lying down," Jeanne said. "The doctor was here, but she refused to take anything. She doesn't want to be asleep if. . . when. . Her lips trembled and the tears rushed over her eyelids.
"Get hold of yourself," Toby chastised. "Mother needs us to be strong."
"How do they know for sure that he went into the swamps? Maybe he's in some zydeco bar," Beau said.
"First of all, my brother wouldn't go off to a bar the day after he buried his wife, and second, some of the workers saw him heading toward the dock," Toby replied.
"And carrying a bottle of whiskey clutched in his hand," Jeanne added mournfully.
A dead silence fell between us.
"I'm sure they'll find him," Beau finally said.
Toby turned to him slowly and fixed her eyes on him in a cold glare. "Have either of you ever been in the swamps? Do either of you know what it could be like? You make a turn and find yourself floating through overhanging vines and cypress branches and soon you forget how you got there and have no idea how to get out. It's a maze full of poisonous
copperhead snakes, alligators, and snapping turtles, not to mention the insects and vermin."
"It's not that bad," I said.
"Oh really. Well then, march on out of here with your husband and join the search party," Toby retorted with a bitterness that shot through my brain like a laser beam.
"I plan on doing just that. Come on, Beau," I said, spinning around and marching out. Beau was at my side, but he wasn't enthusiastic.
"You really think we should go into the swamps, Ruby? I mean, if all these people who live here can't find him . . ."
"I'll find him," I said firmly. "I know where to look." Jeanne's husband, James, was at the dock when we arrived. He shook his head and lifted his arms in frustration.
"It's impossible," he said. "If Paul doesn't want to be found, he won't be found. He knows these swamps better than he knows the back of his hand. He grew up in them. We're giving up for tonight."
"No, we're not," I said sharply.
He looked up, surprised. "We?"
"Is that your boat?" I asked, nodding toward a dinghy with a small outboard engine.
"Yes, but . ."
"Please, just take us into the swamps."
"I just came back, and I assure you--"
"I know what I'm doing, James. If you don't want to go along, let us just borrow your boat," I insisted.
"You two? In the swamps?" He smiled, sighed, and then shook his head. "All right. give it one more sweep. Get in," he said.
