Liaison with Ladonna

After yesterday’s meeting with Jazz I spent today wandering about trying to stay ahead of whatever chaos Gervais was planning to arrange. In my mind I tried to reason why Mr. Bianca Sangu would be meeting Liselle for coffee as I knew that he has been seeing Chantal while his wife had been busy with Caspar who was currently busy with Cameo. There were far too many secrets in this town and I knew of one person who had their finger upon the pulse of everything that happened. Gervais was not the only one keeping tabs as I knew that Ladonna had many contacts with her friends who were on the other side of the coin. For whatever secrets the rich and powerful had they were inevitably known by the people who employed them, and this was the backbone of Ladonna’s old network.

I decided that fronting up to Liselle in a café was not going to be enough to stop Gervais, I was going to need an ally, someone who was not afraid of him but also wanted to keep him from being so destructive. I had tried to appeal to Liselle and now I was going to try to get Ladonna to see reason. I knew I couldn’t waltz up to the Dubois Compound for fear of meeting Gervais as I would not be safe on the Dubois grounds and no one there could guarantee my safety from Gervais. I decided to call up Ladonna and get her to come to me for I had her number from when I had worked for Caspar as she had insisted upon having access to me day or night to shower me with her every changing and bizarre entertainment ideas.

Ladonna shouted down the phone in her cheerful booming voice as if I called her on a daily basis and if she was perplexed as to my motives she kept her thoughts to herself and readily accepted coming over for tea. Before she hung up I told her that it might be prudent for her to drive herself as this meeting was of a confidential nature. Ladonna snorted and said she hadn’t come this far in life for being daft and hung up chuckling. As good natured as she appeared Ladonna was no one’s fool and I knew when it came down to it she would protect the interests of her Dubois family over anyone else from the town. I had to appeal to her that Gervais was threatening the status quo of her family and this town by attempting to destroy all my friends. I hoped I could if not gain her help, at least gain her knowledge and if she would not help me stop him, at least she could warn me of what was to come. Ladonna had the guts to stand up to Gervais but her behaviour often appeared capricious and strange so I did not have much hope of getting her to agree to a thing.

I ran out the supermarket to get some things for Maritka who decided we were going to have a proper tea like Mother used to and set upon a storm of baking. She scowled at the name of Dubois but relaxed a bit when I explained it was Ladonna I had invited over. She muttered something about inviting snakes into the pantry but I had no time to worry about that, I was on a quest and without information, power, or even an idea I pretty much was floundering. I ran through the supermarket as I really hate these places as they always have too many people and too many boxes making me feel trapped. I turned the corner and stopped in shock at the sight of Jojo and Royce with a basket of band aids and other first aid supplies. Royce could not look me in the face and fled while muttering gauze leaving me face to face with the sleazy coward himself. Jojo acted as if I was a stranger and brushed me aside with a disinterested “Hello.” I looked at him seeing the stranger he had become and realised he and I had nothing left to say to each other, he was not the romantic love I thought he was, he was just a guy who took an opportunity with a grieving girl. When I looked back at him I saw Tony Sedero, sleazing away through life in order to get what he wanted and I walked by Jojo leaving him to remain a sad little tryst in my past.

I returned home to find Ladonna had arrived in my absence, a stern Maritka had kept guard on her much to Ladonna’s amusement and embarrassed I hustled her back to the kitchen. I returned to the drawing room to face one of the most difficult tasks in my life, convincing Ladonna to help me. She looked around the room appreciatively and said Mother was always a lady of quiet refinement and again I was surprised at the esteem that people had held for my mother. She was so private, she had not revealed much about the different aspects of her life, not even to me. I sat down trying not to let Ladonna see just how nervous I was and I started by telling her that she probably had a fair idea why I had asked her over. She snorted and said “Gervais” with a contempt that gave me hope she might be open to my suggestions so I went on to tell her that I had tried to get Liselle to help me with him and she was not interested. Ladonna raised an eyebrow as if I had said I had asked Liselle to shave her head and I faltered at her expression.

I told Ladonna that it was no secret that Gervais and I had issues however what had started with him amusing himself at my expense which had now degenerated into open scale warfare with him interfering with the well being of my friends. Ladonna did her famous snort and said if I hadn’t worked out that all interactions with Gervais were warfare regardless of how urbane they appeared it didn’t take long for me to learn. I told her that now I appreciated that but when they started I had no idea. I continued explaining her that in his last little communiqué with me he had referred to hindering the wedding of Jazz and Braith.

Ladonna raised both her brows at this and I went on hurriedly saying how Gervais has systematically gone through all my friends, he had broken up me and Jojo, me and Simon, Jojo and me again, caused a rift with Coco and Royce, ended Zizi’s contract and now was trying to destroy this wedding. Ladonna sat back like a relaxed chiffon Buddha and told me I should just leave town if I want it to end. I folded my arms while asking her if she really thought that would rid me of Gervais and for once Ladonna looked thoughtful as if she really heard me and she shook her head no. I asked her if there was anyway she could help me before there was a death in the family, hers or mine. Ladonna stared at me looking so sad I could not continue and I watched her clasp her hands and look very unlike herself. She said that was pretty much of the same thing and I shook my head in confusion.

I asked Ladonna what she meant and she tried to change the subject in her imperious tone but I had not come this far to be shoved aside like a little kid. I told her I really needed help and I had no one turn to for Gervais was out to destroy me and if someone, somewhere didn’t help me he was going to succeed. Ladonna sighed and looked around the room again, she said she had always liked my mother and so was reluctant to do anything to insult her memory. I felt my heart sink and knew Ladonna was about to give me some bad news. I wondered what on earth Mother could have done that Ladonna Dubois would know about, but she had done something big for Ladonna was not exactly discreet and for her to actually hold a secret was amazing. Ladonna said it was time to clear the air and looked at me with such sadness that I wondered just who the devil Ladonna Dubois was.

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