Maiden of Orleans: a Bayou Thriller is a fast-paced suspense novel. 19-year-old Lori Faire lives with her mother and sister in a cottage on the Rasten estate where Lori's father had been employed before his "accidental" death.
When the weathy and sinister Henri Rasten attempts to force Lori to marry him, she decides to make her escape. Lori is helped by Mikhail Xavier, who proves to be a powerful defender.
Mikhail and Lori struggle together against Henri and his assistant, Oliver Paisley, a mysterious man deeply involved with the occult.
With Mikhail at her side, Lori is relentlessly pursued through New Orleans, the Louisiana Bayou, and out onto the Gulf of Mexico. Even a Halloween masquerade becomes a place of the utmost danger.
Will Lori ever be safe? Will she and Mikhail fall in love?
This novel presents an exciting battle between the forces of good and evil.
Excerpt 2:
Mikhail sat down on a white, wrought-iron bench. While he relaxed there, the sound of children's voices caught his attention. Through a few trees and bushes, he could see several small girls and boys playing with a jump rope. As they jumped, they recited a sing-song chant: "Kingdoms of darkness,
Kingdoms of light,
Guided by angels
Of power and might;
Once in deep Heaven a great war was fought,
And now to the earth, the battle is brought;
On a holy vessel , you must now sail;
For the sake of the Maiden, you must prevail."
At first Mikhail did not pay much attention to their chant. Then, when they repeated the verses, he took notice.
That is the oddest rhyme for children to be reciting, he thought. He rose from the bench and moved through the light shrubbery toward the children. They were only out of his sight for a matter of seconds, but when he came around a bush, they were gone. Where could they be? He walked around another row of bushes; no one was there, though. Hearing the telephone ringing in his condo, he trotted back inside, still puzzling over the mystery of the disappearing children.
