“But what if you can’t? What if this mysterious person forces you to do the same things Samuel did?”
The islanders all start to murmur. I’m two questions away from them turning on me again. Geesh, they’re a temperamental bunch. I’ll have to tread very carefully with them. This might be the reason why Samuel led the way he did. Fear probably worked best, but I don’t want to be like that.
“I’m not Samuel. For one thing, I plan on being completely open with you all. If they make me do something I don’t want to do, you’ll know what it is.”
Amy stands tall, surrounded by her kids. “They could force you to not tell us, like Samuel.”
“So far it seems like I have the ability to talk about it. If that changes, I’ll find a way to let everyone know. I promise.”
The crowd stays silent.
“Okay, so I don’t know how this will all work. I’ll do some reading, and Lorena will help me with my powers, but I promise I’ll only use it for the good of the people on the island. I’m moving into Samuel’s boat. My door is always open if you want to talk. Before I head back to my new boat, does anyone have anything else they need to ask?”
No one says anything. I meet Lorena’s eyes, and she gives me a big smile. I feel accomplished. Maybe this won’t be as bad as I thought it would be.
I don’t wait for anyone. I’d rather talk to them on my own turf and one-on-one instead of in a crowd. The air outside the tent is thick with smoke. That’s odd. Sometimes people on the island have bonfires, but everyone should’ve been in the meeting.
I cover my nose with my shirt and trudge down the path. The smoke burns my eyes. This is more than just a bonfire.
I hope it’s not the docks.
The boardwalk comes into view, and the air is hazy. I hurry down it and take the first left, right into thick black smoke. Through my limited view, I see flames.
Samuel’s boat is engulfed. My stomach drops out. Yet again, someone is messing with me. I need that boat.
Footsteps pound the deck behind me.
“Move, girl,” Luke yells. A few more guys are steps behind him. I jump to the edge and let him pass. I watch them yell instructions to each other. Another man rushes past me, long sticks in hand. They untie the boat, and each man grabs one of the sticks and pushes at the boat. It floats off into the swamp.
Luke wipes his forehead, and another pats him on the back. “That was a close one.”
I creep forward and push away thoughts of everything that was on the boat that could’ve been of use to me. “Why didn’t you try to put it out?”
“With what? Boats can be replaced. But if the dock catches fire, all our boats would be at risk. All our homes would be at risk.”
“How did you know the boat was on fire?”
“I followed the scent like you. This has happened a few times before. We can’t risk anything. Once we lost five boats and half the dock in less than an hour. Took us weeks to build it back up.”
My spidey senses flare up. He was already my number one suspect, and now he just made sure we didn’t save Samuel’s boat. What does he not want me to find?
“How do the boats catch fire?”
“Usually it’s an oven or grill left on.”
“But no one has been living there. I’ve spent time in the library but haven’t ventured into the kitchen.”
“What about a curling iron or straightener? Maybe you left one of those plugged in.”
“No. I haven’t brought anything over to Samuel’s yet.”
He lets out a sigh. “Good thing, or you would’ve lost everything.”
I think over his words. I have no proof, but my history here and the hairs standing up on my neck is all the proof I need.
Someone set that boat on fire.
Chapter Eleven
I watch the boat slowly sink into the swamp, the flames extinguishing as it’s entombed by the water. The trees hover over it like giant weeping mourners. I wonder if the zombies will take up residence.
I try not to think of everything I lost when that boat went down. It’s hard because it’s more than even I probably know.
Footsteps come up behind me. Lorena, Amy, Ruth, and a few others follow.
“Oh good, you’re okay,” Amy says. Her face relaxes.
I point out into the water. “The boat was on fire when I got here.”
Amy pats my arm. “We know. But I was worried you’d try to get on and rescue a few books. I’m glad you didn’t. At least you still have your other boat.”
Yeah. That tiny shack. It’s not what I worried about though. Samuel’s whole library is now at the bottom of the swamp. She wasn’t far off in worrying that I’d go after the books.
Anger builds in my chest. Someone did this on purpose.
“Who wasn’t at the meeting?” I ask, almost more to myself than to them.
“What?” Lorena asks.
I take in the three women who have helped and protected me since I arrived in this forsaken place. “I want a list of everyone who was missing from the meeting. One of them did this.”
“I think we can do that,” Amy says, a bit skeptically.
“Why wouldn’t we do that?” I ask.
“It’s just, honey, it was probably an accident. These things happen.”
The acrid smell of smoke still floats around me. She’s wrong.
I ignore her and address Lorena again. “Someone wants me dead. You know that.”
“Dear, I don’t think you are capable of being killed. You’re the Obeah woman. And as Luke stated, we’ve had fires before.” She takes note of my anger and then raises her hands. “But of course we can’t rule out foul play. Just don’t go thinking every action is meant to hurt you. People go crazy thinking that way.”
I give a slight nod, understanding her worry, but she’s wrong. I’ve spent the last few months trying to explain away the things happening to me. It’s time to start seeing them for what they are. Someone has it out for me.
Lorena puts a hand on my arm. “If someone deliberately set the fire, they knew you wouldn’t be here. So this was not an attempt on your life.”
I clench my fists and stare out at the boat. “But they had to have known that I would need things from it.”
Lorena gives me a look. “What did you need?”
“The books. But you were the only one who knew I needed them, and I know you didn’t start the fire.”
“There are others who would know that. Whoever is in charge would know you needed them. They took advantage of the meeting time to burn down the boat. But it’s still a big if.”
Amy puts her arm around me. “Which wasn’t much time. No one really knew about the meeting until a few minutes before.”
“They were probably just waiting for an opportunity,” I say. I have no doubt there was information on the boat that would lead me to who is controlling things here.
“All the contracts were on the boat. Does this mean the entire island is at risk from the ghosts?” Amy asks.
Lorena shrugs. “Your guess is as good as mine. But based on what little I know about magical contracts, fire wouldn’t destroy them.”
Worry quickly crosses all of their faces. I’m their dang leader. I’m supposed to be the one with the answers.
Talk about biting off more than I can chew.
I hate how I have no idea what’s really going on. That all of this is happening to me and around me, and I have zero control over it. I want to scream or hit someone, but I have to keep it bottled up. I can’t show weakness now.
At least I’ve narrowed my suspects. Anyone at the meeting was obviously not the one in charge. It has to be someone else. All of the people I am closest to were there, so that’s a relief.
That means that the person in charge is someone I don’t know very well, and I still have no idea what their motive is. Ruth and Amy talk in low voices not far from me. I’m pretty sure they’re talking about me.
Luke tromps over. “You okay?”
“Yeah, just bummed the boat is gone.”
“You should stay with me tonight. I think you’re right about this being on purpose.”
I wrinkle my nose. His boat smells bad. “I’ll be fine. They weren’t trying to hurt me. Everyone knew I was in that meeting.”
He rubs the back of his neck. “But they obviously want to make your life difficult.”
“Don’t worry. I’m an Obeah woman. I can’t be killed.”
He frowns. “Samuel was too.”
“Sure, but that wasn’t easy. It took me weeks of creating a spell to take him out.”
He chews on the edge of a dirty fingernail. “Maybe you can stay with Lorena or Amy if you don’t want to stay with me. I don’t like the idea of you being by yourself.”
“I’ve gotten used to being by myself. I’ve got the birds. I’ll be fine.”
He opens his mouth to argue.
“Do you want to come with us to try to figure out who was missing from the meeting?” I ask.
He nods, and I’m glad I distracted him. I don’t need him going all parent-like on me. Not now.
The five of us head back to Lorena’s boat. I take one last look at the top of Samuel’s boat sinking into the depths. Everything I needed was on that boat. That library was key.
We settle at Lorena’s kitchen table. She hands Amy a piece of paper and a pen and puts on a pot of hot water. She sets cups and several boxes of tea in front of us, and I thumb through them, looking for whatever cinnamon concoction she gave me a few days ago, but find nothing. Instead, I dig out the jasmine tea. Luke goes for the English black.
Soon the room is filled with all kinds of tea smells. It’s comforting in a strange way.
“Start with the circus performers,” I say.
Amy lists the acrobats, clowns, and others. Then Ruth rattles off the cooks and maintenance people.
Lorena sits down, looks over the list, and adds a few more names.
“Is that everyone?”
Luke peruses the paper. “I think so.”
I don’t even bother to look at the list as I don’t know as many people as they do, but I’m hoping they’ve managed to remember everyone.
“Now, who do we remember seeing at the meeting?” Amy asks and sips her tea.
“Make sure you saw them near the end. If they snuck out early, they could’ve still started the fire,” I say, leaning over the list.
“Yeah, of course.”
Each of them takes a turn, marking the ones they saw. A few people were marked as being there in the beginning but unsure of near the end.
Once they are done, there are five people who could’ve possibly started the fire. Three who no one saw at all and two who could’ve snuck out early. I don’t recognize any of their names.
John Bridger, Elise Mayes, Marcus Patterson, Lee Crow, and Oakley French.
“Each of us takes one and questions them now. They’ll have too much time to come up with an alibi if we wait until tomorrow,” I say.
Lorena gives me a sly grin. “You’re smart, you know that.”
“Thank you.”
“I’ll take Elise. She’s an acrobat, and I know her quite well.” Lorena puts a checkmark next to her name.
“I’ll take John. He helps me with the cats sometimes,” Luke says.
“I’ve got Oakley,” Ruth says. “She’s always sick.”
Amy takes Marcus, leaving me with Lee.
“Who’s Lee?” I ask.
“He’s a cook. His boat is right next to Elias’s.”
I wonder how I managed to not know him. Maybe I do but just don’t know his name.
“Got it. Look for any signs they started the fire, not just their answers to questions. Soot on their hands or the smell of gasoline. Anything.” I cross my arms and look around at my band of supporters. I’m lucky to have them, and I’m grateful none of them are suspects anymore.
Lorena gives a nod. “We’ve got your back. Don’t you worry. Hopefully, this will all be over soon. You took out Samuel, and I have faith you’ll take out this threat as well.”
I'm touched she has so much faith in me because I certainly don’t have it myself.
Chapter Twelve
A huge weight rests on my shoulders as I trudge down to Lee’s boat. It feels as if I’ll never get any rest. Will this be my life forever? Chasing down people who want to complicate my life further? I’m so tired of everything. Of being hunted, of worrying about the people I love, of being trapped on a cursed island.
I nearly stop at my own boat, but if I do, I might never come back out. I still find it odd that I’ve lived two doors down from this man for months, and yet I’ve never met him. A dozen or so birds hang out on my porch, and they all lift their heads when I pass, but they don’t follow.
I pause in front of Lee’s door. This was kinda dumb to come alone. What if he attacks me? I gather my courage and knock anyway. I can fight back if he does. My magic still works.
“Hang on,” he hollers.
A pot crashes, and it sounds like a chair falls over. Heavy footsteps pound behind the door.
The door slowly opens, and the stench hits me first, a mixture of diarrhea and vomit. I take two steps back and hold my breath. The man standing before me in his dirty t-shirt and basketball shorts is easily three-hundred pounds. He has a scruffy three-day-old beard, and his eyes are bloodshot.
“What do you want?” he asks.
I swallow. “You weren’t at the meeting,” I say.
He grunts. “I’ve been sick. I can’t go more than ten feet without puking or pooping. Tell that little witch to go to hell.”
“For the record, I’m that little witch, and I am in hell.”
He doesn’t say anything. I should be a good detective and pursue this further, but it’s fairly obvious he’s sicker than a dog. I feel silly standing there, and I think I owe him an explanation.
“Someone set Samuel’s boat on fire.”
He gives a snort then turns and vomits all over the floor next to him. I jump back.
“Do we have more than one cook?” I ask, hoping I won’t have several dozen people puking all over. That’s all I need after the week I’ve had.
He nods. “I haven’t been to work in three days.”
“That’s good.”
He holds his gigantic belly. “I’m going back to bed.”
“Would you like me to send Ruth to help you?”
He shakes his head. “I’ll be fine. Just a bug. It has to pass.”
He shuts the door behind him, and I rush off his deck. I hope whatever germs are infecting him aren’t airborne because I do not want my boat to smell like that. Not to mention that getting sick sucks.
The sun is already starting to set. This day went way too fast. In the fading sunlight, everything looks like it wants to reach out and grab me, and once again I’m reminded of the horror show I live in. I still find it strange this is my life. My own friends back home wouldn’t recognize me.
The truth slams into me again.
Maddie is dead.
In all the chaos, I haven’t thought about her much. I wish I could just bring her back. If I could do that, the rest of my problems would seem that much more manageable. It seems like every time it’s as bad as it can get, it gets worse.
I’m the first back to Lorena’s boat, but a few seconds later, she shows up as well.
“Any luck?” I ask her.
She shakes her head. “You?”
“Nope. But we should wait until everyone is here to regroup.”
Lorena opens the door, and I follow her in. We sit in her living room, both of us lost in our own thoughts. Within a few minutes, everyone else arrives, looking pretty grim. Especially Amy. She looks like she’s about to be sick.
“Lee puked all over the floor. There is no way he got out and started that fire,” I say, starting the conversation.
Ruth giggles. “We found Oakley and John together. Highly unlikely they started the fire. Pret
ty sure they’d been there for a while.”
Luke rubs his face. “She’s right. I saw far more of John than I ever hoped.”
Three down. Two to go.
“Lorena?” I ask.
“Three other acrobats swear Elise was at the meeting with them. She’s a tiny mousy thing, so it’s likely we just missed her.”
“What’d you find?” I ask Amy. Marcus is our last hope.
She swallows. “Marcus is dead. I found him hanging in his cabin.”
Ruth jumps up and puts an arm around her. “Did you tell anyone?”
“Yeah, I grabbed a couple of the guys to take care of him.”
“Are you okay?” I ask.
She nods. “From the looks of him, he’s been dead for a few days. The flies were already on him. He couldn’t have done it.”
I falter for a second. “Did you know Marcus?”
She shakes her head. I look around at the rest of them. “Anyone?”
Luke rubs the back of his neck. “He was a clown. They typically only hang out with each other.”
I wonder why he did it. I mean, I know everyone on the island is miserable, but I didn’t think they were that miserable.
I fling myself back on the couch. “Then who the hell started that fire? We’re back to square one.”
No one says anything for a long few minutes. We’re all tired, and this has been the longest day of my life.
Finally, Lorena leans forward. “Is it possible someone started the fire remotely?”
“How?” I ask.
“Magic. You could do it.”
I wouldn’t know how to do it, but I’m sure I could now. Look at what I did with the big top tent during my show. Whoever is in charge has far more power than me.
“So, theoretically they could’ve been at that meeting and still started the fire.”
“Yeah.”
“It could be anyone then. We don’t know if someone is hiding magical powers.”
Lorena nods, and no one else says anything. Finally, I stand. “It’s late. We could all use some sleep. Maybe the morning will bring clarity. Thank you for your help. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” I look at them fondly. “Together, we’ll save the island.”
Circus of the Dead: Book 3 Page 7
