Circus of the Dead: Book 3

by Kimberly Loth

  “Why do you trust me?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not sure I do completely, but you seemed like the best of all my options.” I might have offended her, but at this point, I don’t care. I’m just sick of feeling lost all the time.

  “You’re smart to not trust me entirely, but I’m touched that of all the people on the island, you picked me. Maybe at some point, I’ll earn the rest of your trust.”

  “Help me stop the ghosts from killing, and you’ve got it.” I pick up the purple die and put a few drops in my bowl.

  Lorena gives me a tight smile. “You’re an Obeah woman now. My power pales in comparison.”

  “That power is useless if I don’t know how to use it.” I should be all-powerful, but I’m not, and I don’t know what to do. I hate feeling like I should know how to do something, but I don’t.

  “I don’t know much about dark magic, but I can help you learn how to focus your power.”

  “Thank you. I’m also going to read as many books as I can from Samuel’s library. He has loads that will hopefully help.”

  “That's a good idea. Between me and those books, you’ll be a powerful force before you even know it.”

  A weight lifts off my chest. For the first time since I killed Samuel, I feel like I might actually be okay. I can figure this out. Surely a whole month is enough time to learn how to control the ghosts—especially since I now have help.

  “Thank you.”

  “What will you tell everyone else on the island?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe the truth. I just don’t want to be hated like he was.” Though, that ship may have sailed already. Perhaps I can win them all back by being honest.

  “You won’t rule like Samuel did. They’ll all be glad he’s dead. You should call a meeting.”

  “When?” I think I’d rather talk to people one by one, but a meeting does make more sense. I just hate talking to crowds, but if I don’t, then I risk some people hearing it from others, and that would destroy any trust I might be able to build with them.

  “Whenever you are ready.”

  “When I do, do you think I should stick to the truth?”

  “If you don’t tell the truth, what will you say?” Lorena pulls down a few soap molds, and I pour mine into one.

  “I don’t know.”

  “There is no reason to hide this from anyone. Honesty will be best.” Her lips tighten, and I swallow. She’s right, but what will they think about me killing Samuel?

  “How do we call a meeting of the island?” I ask, trying to remember how this worked before. Samuel did it all the time. Usually, someone came and fetched me.

  “There are a couple of acrobat boys in there that love running after everyone.”

  “I doubt they’ll listen to me.” They weren’t exactly my best friends after the Jane fiasco when I wouldn’t sleep with Samuel and he forced her to his bed instead.

  I take a deep breath of the scented soap. Her kitchen smells like a Bath and Body Works, and my chest tightens at the thought I will probably never walk into one again.

  “Just tell them Samuel sent you to ask them to gather everyone.”

  I run my hand through my hair. I’m not ready to be in charge of the whole island. Surely the ghosts will have to listen to me on some things. That’s the point of an Obeah man. But the islanders…I don’t know what that means for them.

  Lorena puts a hand on my shoulder. “Let me know when you are ready.”

  I spend the next few days avoiding everyone and reading everything I can about how to control ghosts. The books all make it seem like it’s second nature. Like I should be able to command them to do something, but it didn’t work. There is nothing anywhere that says what to do when the ghosts don’t listen. I spend a lot of time at Samuel’s boat, but I don’t move in completely.

  Yet, anyway.

  I write three letters to Maddie but don’t get any back. I miss her.

  Lorena knocks on my door.

  “What’s up?” I ask.

  “Any luck figuring out how to control those ghosts?”

  I shake my head and step out. Even after re-reading all the books I have access to, I still don’t know a dang thing. We sit on my porch swing.

  “People are starting to talk.” Lorena runs her hands along her skirt and frowns at me.

  “About?”

  “No one knows where Samuel is. And you’ve been spending an awful lot of time in his boat. They think you’ve asked for some kind of protection.”

  I sigh and close my eyes. “It’s time to tell everyone, isn’t it?”

  “It is.”

  “Okay. No time like the present. Give me a few minutes.” I run a shaking hand through my hair.

  I clean up, and then we head out. The weather is hotter than Hades, and I wipe my sweating hands on my shorts. It wasn’t all that long ago that they tarred and feathered me.

  We’re both quiet on the walk to the acrobats, lost in our own thoughts. I’ve already accepted I’ll be trapped on the island forever, but as long as I’m with Benny, I don’t care. Well, that and I want people to stop dying.

  Lorena stops at a small boat and knocks. A short kid with jet black hair answers, rubbing his eyes. His name is Ricky, I think.

  Lorena waits for a moment, but I don’t know what to say. She sighs.

  “Samuel’s calling an emergency meeting. Can you and your brother gather everyone to the big tent?”

  He nods groggily.

  “That was easy,” I say as we make our way to the tent.

  “Yes, it was. Far easier than your speech will be, I expect. Especially since I had to call the meeting for you.” She chuckles, but I can tell she’s irritated.

  I wring my hands. “I have no idea what to say.” I should have thought this through. I mean, I know I have to tell them the truth, but I didn’t think about exactly how I was going to do it.

  “You might want to start with why you were trying to take him out. That will help you move through the rest of the story. It will build some trust with the others as well. More than one girl has had trouble with Samuel trying to push his advantage with them.”

  “Did he do that to you?”

  Lorena’s head snaps around. “No.” Her voice has risen a couple of notches.

  “Didn’t you two have a relationship at one point?”

  She purses her lips. “Where did you hear that?”

  “Luke, I think. I can’t remember.” It is Luke, but I wasn’t supposed to say anything.

  “Once upon a time, we did have a thing. He’s very good looking, but that was years ago. I didn’t have the same grudge against him as others. He grew more cruel as the years went on. He was a far cry from the man I once knew.”

  That was a bit of a lie. Luke said they were together just before I arrived, but I guess I wouldn’t want to admit that if I were her either. She’s probably lying because she doesn’t want me to think less of her.

  We enter the tent, and I’m almost paralyzed. People are slowly filling the front few rows. It’s dim and dusty in here. Luke sits and pats the seat next to him, and I give a small shake of my head. His shoulders drop, but I know he’ll understand once I start talking.

  I wait for another five minutes. It looks like everyone is here, but it’s hard to say.

  I take a deep breath and stand up in front of everyone. A hush falls over the crowd.

  “I know you all are wondering where Samuel is.” My voice shakes a little, but so far, so good. “Most of you know that Samuel has been harassing me since I arrived on the island. Over the last few weeks, things have gotten much, much worse. I wasn’t on his side despite how it might have looked. He threatened to kill me and make me his sex slave.” I pause and scan the crowd. They are hanging on my every word. This is easier than I thought it would be.

  “Some of you also know I’ve been developing my magical skills. Lorena has helped, but a lot of it has been natural. I had to take action and protect myself and those who come t
o the island. I decided to try to take over as the Obeah woman. I thought by doing that, I’d be able to stop the ghosts from killing as well. It looked like there was no downside.”

  “Did you succeed?” someone shouts. Murmurs break out amongst the crowd, and I wait. Lorena shushes a few people around her, and quiet eventually settles over them once again.

  “Yes.”

  A few people gasp, but most are waiting for me to finish.

  “I was able to take Samuel’s position as an Obeah woman, and the 117 ghosts are now stuck with me, but I am having trouble controlling them.”

  People begin whispering again, and I wonder if I’ve lost them.

  “What happened to Samuel?” Luke shouts above the murmurs.

  “He was hundreds of years old. Without the youthfulness he gained from the ghosts, he withered and died.”

  “So you killed him?” Elias asks.

  “In a way, yes.” I grimace. I don’t like thinking about killing anyone.

  “So what will you do about the contracts?”

  “At some point, we’ll sign new ones. I don’t know how they work yet, but as of right now, you all should still be safe. I won’t expect any of the things that Samuel wanted of you. Also, when I determine how to work the contracts, if anyone wants to leave, I’ll make sure that’s possible. And I can promise you this. The island will be run very differently now.”

  The islanders all look at me like I should say more, but I don’t know what else to say.

  “So, um, you can go.”

  A few chuckles float around, and people get up and move toward the back. Edward and Jane approach me. Edward looks down at the ground. “You, uh, won’t take anything out on us, will you?”

  “You mean because of the tar and feathering?”

  “Yeah.”

  I let out a breath. This is a moment for new beginnings. I have to live with these people, so I might as well make the best of it.

  “No hard feelings. Let’s start over.”

  Jane shuffles her feet. “When you can, I want to leave the island, and I want to bring my sister with me too.”

  “Of course. I’m working on it. Right now, I’m focusing on how to prevent the ghosts from killing, but after that, I’ll see how the contracts work. Is that okay?”

  She nods.

  They move away from me and get in step with the other islanders. No one else approaches me, and no one seems angry either.

  At least I’ll have the islanders on my side as I figure this out.

  Chapter Three

  The day of the full moon, my stomach feels like it’s about to trade places with my throat. Tonight, Benny will be here, and I’m going to try controlling the ghosts again. On top of that, I have to start off the circus. Samuel did that with his ringmaster gear and a huge opening show. I’m not a performer. Sure, I could spin fire ropes and stuff, but this isn’t a small group outside of any tent. I don’t want to perform in front of a massive crowd with high expectations.

  Part of the show is building a good relationship with the circus performers. And I want Edward and Jane to know that our problems really are water under the bridge. Sure, they tortured me, but I need the islanders on my side. This island is unforgiving, and those of us who are alive have to stick together. So, together we worked out what I hoped would be a better show than Samuel ever put on.

  I’m not competitive or anything.

  A couple of hours before the sun sets, I take a shower and dress in my kickass fire dancer costume. I braid my hair and do my makeup with sharp lines and lots of mascara. Step one down.

  Raptor pokes my leg, and I glance at him. “Buddy, tonight, you’ll have to stay out of the way.”

  He squawks, and I feed him a grape and drop onto the floor with him. He hops into my lap, and I stroke his feathers.

  I don’t know how I’ll control the ghosts. Nothing I read this week gave me any ideas of what to do, and I could potentially watch another person die. Enough lives have been taken, and it needs to stop. I know I have three more weeks until the new moon, but I feel like nothing is working.

  The sun dips just below the tree line, and Benny pops up in front of me, all grins.

  He grabs my hands and jerks me to my feet, sending Raptor tumbling. He squawks and pokes me with his beak.

  Benny tugs me into his body and kisses me senseless.

  I pull away.

  “Hello to you too.” I can’t help the smile that crawls across my face.

  “I’ve been waiting for two weeks to do that. Plus, I didn’t want to give you the chance to say anything that would prevent me from kissing you again.”

  I kiss him. “You can kiss me whenever you want.”

  “Music to my ears.” He laughs and draws me toward my bed.

  “But now, I’ve got a circus to start.”

  He pouts for a second. “And I thought we’d spend the whole night in here.”

  I sigh. “I wish.” After we open the show, we can probably slip away for a few minutes. But I only have a few hours with the ghosts being corporeal, and I’m hoping they’ll have some insights on my problems. Not that I’m going to tell them what I’m doing.

  I open the door, and Benny follows me out. “I’ve been watching you practice. I think it’ll be an awesome show.”

  “Yeah? I hope so. I just want to put Samuel to shame.”

  He chuckles as we walk. The islanders all say hi, but the ghosts ignore me. I keep my mind closed off to their whispers so I don’t have to hear what they’re saying about me.

  “Do they know about me?” I ask, nodding to the ghosts.

  Benny shrugs. “I think so. I don’t think they care. I was the only ghost Samuel ever tried to control, so it doesn’t make much difference to them.”

  Oh, man, they are going to be so pissed when I stop letting them kill. But the lives of the people on the island are more important to me than the ghosts’ anger.

  “What about Juliette?”

  “She’s thrilled. I’m actually surprised we haven’t seen her yet.”

  I push open the flap to the big top and find Juliette in the middle of the tent with the acrobats. She squeals and runs for me, flinging her arms around me.

  “I can’t believe you beat that bastard. Good for you. I was going to meet you at your boat, but I wanted to give you and Benny some alone time.” She wiggles her eyebrows.

  “Thanks, Jules.”

  She bounces from one foot to the next. “So I’ve been talking with Jane. Can I be a part of the show too? I was an acrobat once upon a time.”

  “Do you really think I would say no? Go put on a costume already.”

  She claps her hands and runs away from me. Nerves dance in my stomach. I really hope I do well tonight.

  A few people start trickling in. “Boats are here. Showtime,” someone calls.

  I escape to the back and watch the benches fill up. Benny sits in the front row even though he’s been watching the practices. This is our first time doing it in the dark. It should look pretty amazing.

  Jane prances up to me, her body moving fluidly in her leotard. “Everyone’s here. You ready?”

  I clench my shaking hands. I’ve never been good at addressing large groups. Performing, yes, talking to them, nope. “Yep.”

  Time for my magic to do its thing. I take a deep breath and douse all the lights in the tent, and it goes pitch black. Light doesn’t even creep in through the cracks from the tent flaps. A few people shriek. I walk to the middle of the main circle and light up the end of my ropes with normal fire. I hear a few shouts of “Look.”

  I spin like I normally do and try to ignore the crowd, who are murmuring now. I change the color of the fire to blue, which gets a few gasps. I spin the ropes in front of me and send a few of the fireballs flying into the air to float above the crowd. Then I change my spinning fire to green and send out another half dozen fireballs to hover around the tent. I do the same with red, purple, orange, white, and pink. Soon the whole tent is fu
ll of flying fireballs.

  A few go into the crowds, but they are harmless. People shriek and laugh.

  I stop spinning fire, but my costume glows with black fire.

  “Welcome to the scariest show on earth,” I shout, and the whole crowd cheers. “Do you like fire?”

  “Yes,” they scream.

  “Are you sure?” I ask, raising my hands high in the air, fire flowing from my fingertips.

  “Yes,” they yell even louder.

  “Remember, you asked for it.” I give them a wide smile.

  Suddenly, the whole top of the tent lights up with acrobats in costumes glowing with various colors of flames. The fire courses down their arms and legs. They swing down on ropes and swings. They flip, spin, and fly through the air, fire streaking around them.

  I spin fire again and hover a few feet off the ground. I pull the fire in from all the floating fireballs, and it surrounds me, forming a sphere. Then I take the fire away from each of the acrobats. Soon, I can’t see the crowd through the fire around me.

  I clap my hands and push the fire away. It hits the walls of the tent and sets them all on fire, a rainbow of colors.

  All at once, the fire goes out, and the tent is gone, disintegrated around them. The crowd explodes into applause, and I give a bow and run out the back, even though I’m totally exposed. I turn a corner and allow myself to breathe.

  It went off without a hitch. I’ll put the tent back tomorrow.

  A hand grabs mine, and I jump, but it’s just Benny.

  “That was amazing,” he says.

  “Thank you.” Adrenaline courses through my veins, and my legs shake a little.

  “Samuel never did a show like that. Ever.”

  I chuckle. “That was the plan. It was kind of fun too.”

  Benny shoves his hands in his pockets and stares at me with eyebrows raised. “So what’s on the agenda tonight?”

  He won’t like my answer. We don’t have that much time together, but I have things to do first. “I want to interview the ghosts. See if any of them have any idea how Samuel controlled them. They don’t have any incentive to tell me the truth, but if they seem dodgy, I’ll push them for answers. Even a hint would be good.”