hotel had lessened as her excitement with the events around her had grown.
When Maria finished the delicious coffee and pastries, she wanted to linger a while and watch the passing masqueraders, but people were waiting to take her table. She left a tip and walked back into the noisy throng.
Tonight was hers to enjoy as she wished. Tomorrow might bring sorrow to a man she had never met, and he might send her on her way home. That would be all right. The director of the library had been sympathetic about her need for a sudden vacation, and she was sure he would find no problem if she decided to curtail it. This might well be her only night to enjoy the fun of Mardi Gras , so she would enjoy it while she could.
A short distance away was the stairs that led up to the levee which bordered the Mississippi River . Maria was filled with a childlike excitement as she viewed the mighty river for the first time. Ever since she had read Mark Twain’s tales of the Mississippi , she had longed to see this magical water that flowed down from afar to visit the land of dreams.
All of the noise around her faded into obscurity as she looked across those darkly turbulent waters. Lights from the opposing bank sent shimmering patterns across the water. A number of ships passed in the night as they made their way to their various destinations. Not far away, a paddleboat’s horn blared out its strident message against the muted murmur of the Mardi Gras ’ cacophony.
“I’m here!” Maria called out, feeling new joy in being alive.
“And what can I do for you?” replied a raggedly clad man who came out of the darkness beside her.
Maria shrank away from him in sudden fear. She looked quickly from side-to-side, but the levee held only two passersby, moving in the opposite direction. The man stepped closer to her. His face was a grinning mask of sensuality.
“What do you want?” Maria cried out as she clutched her purse tightly against her.
“Whatever you have to offer,” that menacing face replied.
All at once, she was seized from behind by a pair of strong arms that swiftly shifted her away from the threatening intruder. Maria gasped as she looked up to see what the new danger might be.
It was another man, costumed in a black mask and cloak. He held her shoulders firmly in his hands as he looked back at the horrible man who had been bothering her.
“This woman is mine,” he whispered in a quiet, yet penetrating voice.
The first intruder hastily melted back into the darkness. Maria felt herself growing faint. The hands that held her increased in strength, as they led her to a bench on the boardwalk.
“It’s all right,” he whispered in a soft, Cajun drawl against her ear. “You have nothin’ to fear from me . . . for now.”
He added that last word casually, almost as though it had no meaning. Maria felt too weak to resist him, but she dreaded whatever significance that final word might have implied.
Once she was seated, the stranger drew away his arms to sit closely beside her. His posture held no imminent threat as he looked out across the water, but Maria still felt the need to quiver uncontrollably. Under normal circumstances, she would not have been so shaken by this unpleasant incident, but the fear and excitement of the day had her emotions in turmoil.
Before she could think of a word to say, the man said, “It’s not safe to come up here on the levee after dark. There are those here,” and he paused before completing the sentence, “who are not kind.”
Maria, at this point, managed to gasp out, “Who are you?”
The man looked at her, but she could not see his expression behind the mask.
“I’m the man who’s saved you from an unsavory experience.”
“But who are you?”
In a low voice, he replied, “Someone who likes to save damsels in distress.”
Once again, he looked away. As Maria’s heart slowed down enough for her
When Maria finished the delicious coffee and pastries, she wanted to linger a while and watch the passing masqueraders, but people were waiting to take her table. She left a tip and walked back into the noisy throng.
Tonight was hers to enjoy as she wished. Tomorrow might bring sorrow to a man she had never met, and he might send her on her way home. That would be all right. The director of the library had been sympathetic about her need for a sudden vacation, and she was sure he would find no problem if she decided to curtail it. This might well be her only night to enjoy the fun of Mardi Gras , so she would enjoy it while she could.
A short distance away was the stairs that led up to the levee which bordered the Mississippi River . Maria was filled with a childlike excitement as she viewed the mighty river for the first time. Ever since she had read Mark Twain’s tales of the Mississippi , she had longed to see this magical water that flowed down from afar to visit the land of dreams.
All of the noise around her faded into obscurity as she looked across those darkly turbulent waters. Lights from the opposing bank sent shimmering patterns across the water. A number of ships passed in the night as they made their way to their various destinations. Not far away, a paddleboat’s horn blared out its strident message against the muted murmur of the Mardi Gras ’ cacophony.
“I’m here!” Maria called out, feeling new joy in being alive.
“And what can I do for you?” replied a raggedly clad man who came out of the darkness beside her.
Maria shrank away from him in sudden fear. She looked quickly from side-to-side, but the levee held only two passersby, moving in the opposite direction. The man stepped closer to her. His face was a grinning mask of sensuality.
“What do you want?” Maria cried out as she clutched her purse tightly against her.
“Whatever you have to offer,” that menacing face replied.
All at once, she was seized from behind by a pair of strong arms that swiftly shifted her away from the threatening intruder. Maria gasped as she looked up to see what the new danger might be.
It was another man, costumed in a black mask and cloak. He held her shoulders firmly in his hands as he looked back at the horrible man who had been bothering her.
“This woman is mine,” he whispered in a quiet, yet penetrating voice.
The first intruder hastily melted back into the darkness. Maria felt herself growing faint. The hands that held her increased in strength, as they led her to a bench on the boardwalk.
“It’s all right,” he whispered in a soft, Cajun drawl against her ear. “You have nothin’ to fear from me . . . for now.”
He added that last word casually, almost as though it had no meaning. Maria felt too weak to resist him, but she dreaded whatever significance that final word might have implied.
Once she was seated, the stranger drew away his arms to sit closely beside her. His posture held no imminent threat as he looked out across the water, but Maria still felt the need to quiver uncontrollably. Under normal circumstances, she would not have been so shaken by this unpleasant incident, but the fear and excitement of the day had her emotions in turmoil.
Before she could think of a word to say, the man said, “It’s not safe to come up here on the levee after dark. There are those here,” and he paused before completing the sentence, “who are not kind.”
Maria, at this point, managed to gasp out, “Who are you?”
The man looked at her, but she could not see his expression behind the mask.
“I’m the man who’s saved you from an unsavory experience.”
“But who are you?”
In a low voice, he replied, “Someone who likes to save damsels in distress.”
Once again, he looked away. As Maria’s heart slowed down enough for her