by Candra Kylar
“You know me better than that. I’m loud enough to tell a man exactly what I need. Not that it matters. The only thing my loud voice got me here was captured”, I sniffed.
“Voldini being a bastard isn’t your fault. I’m still gonna kill him, you know. Council can’t do shit once it gets exposed that he wrongfully imprisoned and attempted to torture us”, he said.
“Worse could happen if we fail. There has to be a solution we aren’t thinking of, something to really get to Dimples. I just don’t think I can figure this out. Who is she really? What mystery lies in her past? It’s one I can’t solve”, I hugged my knees more tightly to my body.
“Give it time and you will”, he said confidently.
I wish that I had more faith in myself and my investigator skillset. It didn’t come with a background as a historian. What little was known of Elder Fae creations wasn’t mainstream knowledge. If I could learn the old language, if I could decipher some of the books held by the Council or Voldini, then I may have a clearer picture as to who Dimples was before she came to inhabit the body of a garden gnome. For now, all I had was some lackluster story that she was a dangerous demon that could still destroy anyone. Why would a demon purposely go into the body of a statue that would limit her? Some things just didn’t add up. Voldini was a born con and would have no problem lying. Rynna, for all of her robbed innocence, might easily follow along with anything he said.
We sat in silence and heard the crowds assembling outside. Would Elizar and my mother be part of it? Would my sister and my alleged guardian ghost Ian? I didn’t want them to see us like this, so trapped and having failed our mission. Despite wanting to be saved, needing the help to do it, I didn’t conquer the way that I had thought. The circus hadn’t been burned to the ground. Dimples wasn’t in my arms admitting that she was swindled by a clever con man. I would come to them empty handed if they arrived to save us. I may not even get a chance to see Dimples and undo the binding stone on her. The thought made the tightness in my chest nearly suffocate me. Only Voldini’s greasy appearance shook me out of such darkness. In his hand was a dress...a rather revealing one.
“I’m told it should be your size, Miss Everlaine”, he presented it as if it were a gift, “we can’t have you looking so plain for your first appearance. You should dazzle.”
“You can see almost everything besides my breasts and my…”
He shook it with a smile, “That’s the point. Let my investors see what you can offer and get addicted to gaping at you. Rynna is pretty enough but you could really steal the show.”
Braeden was seconds away from shifting, “I’m going to kill you. I’ll take my time and enjoy it. Then, I’ll put your corpse in that dress and hang it from the rafters.”
Voldini held a look of excitement, “Jealous protectiveness! Use it in the ring to fight your friend and I’ll be generous with presents for you.”
“Fuck your generosity”, Braeden grumbled.
I gave the dress a glance over, “Red isn’t a good color on me. My hair sets it off in the wrong way. Might have to return it for store credit.”
“You’ll wear it without argument if you want your friends to live. Rynna and Max assured me that your performance will stun the audience tonight. They’re smart enough not to defy someone of my status”, Voldini stuffed the dress through the bars, “I look forward to seeing you in it tonight. I think we’ll call you Fira for the intensity in your gaze.”
“And to hide my real identity if anyone does a basic search online”, I grabbed the dress reluctantly and fought a nastier retort.
“Good luck tonight. First performances are usually the worst”, he bowed quickly and then left before a response could be given.
Braeden swiped the dress from me, “I should tear this to shreds. Do you see this? It’s all glitter and sexed up see-through material. You’ll look...not like you. It doesn’t have your elegance and will squeeze the life out of you. Everywhere it hugs and the fact that it’ll show everything will just get the hornier side of the audience jacked up. You’ll be showing them things none of them need to see!”
I pulled the dress away from him, “And if I don’t wear it and play dress up, don the stupid stage name Fira, then he could destroy Dimples. It has a long slit up both sides so I’ll at least be able to walk. The skirt is long and drags. I think I wore one like this once so I should be able to move in it without much of a problem.”
“I was being serious about killing him and repurposing the dress.”
I tore the plastic over the garment, “I know. I may help you when all of this is over. Are you ready to shift over? People are already arriving. Our show is about to begin.”
“Not sure how this’ll end. We’re probably still in Stubin Station if the flyer we saw yesterday gave us any indication. Elizar and your family knew we came here. They’ll show up and they might create a scene”, Braeden said, “especially Elizar.”
“Then we roll with it. Use the distraction to get to Dimples, maybe you attack Voldini or give the preamble of it, just long enough for me to undo the binding stone on her. We run and his magic won’t be able to catch us in such a large crowd.”
“We roll with it”, he confirmed.
I wished that I felt as confident as my voice mislead others to believe. Braeden must be able to sense that it was all just an act. I was becoming Fira, the witch with a hot temper and an intensity to charm the crowd, so effortlessly flinging lies that her friends swallowed. All in a dress that humiliated me to walk out into a crowd in. Braeden at least played the gentleman and turned his back to me as I changed. He stood towards the front of our cage and hid me from any gawking view. The material slipped onto my body easily and felt surprisingly soft. It hugged me as if the tailors had made it exclusively for me. When I signaled for Braeden to turn back around, he had to hide his reaction. He rubbed the back of his neck and avoided any kind of praise. We didn’t need words.
To say I was terrified was an understatement. I wasn’t worried for my own well being or second guessing our rehearsed choreography. It was Dimples’ life that hung in the balance awaiting one mistake from us to send her to a premature grave. Voldini was malicious enough to do it. I didn’t want to fuel his fire. In my tight to dress, I practiced my movement, the slits on each side giving my legs room to work. My wand maneuvered with the same fluidity that it always did. We would be able to perform our act without much change to the program. Any distraction that happened would just be adapted into the performance. Our first and hopefully our last one with this grim circus.
Rynna and Alexei came back to check on us with worry in the tone of their voice. There was something vacant in their eyes that made me worry. A Seer could gather the pathways before us and would calculate the likelihood of success. Her worry told me that our chances were low. Alexei was just sad now that he had more performers to worry about, to build up in a false bravado for the crowd, his metallic fingers toying with the loud bowtie at his neck. We would probably never see them again after this. Voldini wouldn’t be stupid enough to let us anywhere near his circus ever again. There were charms held in the secret knowledge of Fae tomes that I could never hope to undo. This was a one way trip.
“I’ll say words tonight that aren’t true”, Alexei said with a clank of his joints, “and they were written for me. That’s my job here. To be the one who delivers a narrative that the audience will buy into. The ringmaster of a terrifying freak show of Fae outcasts. I’m so sorry to add you to that list.”
“I remember how you described Dimples and how angry it made me. Now I understand that those were Voldini’s words”, I fixed his tie by squeezing my hand through the bars, “and I can’t blame you for what you’ll say about us.”
Rynna swiped quickly at the corner of her eye, “I know what you’re planning and I’ve not told Voldini about it. I wouldn’t. You should know that your chances of success are next to impossible. It won’t end the way you want it to.”
“You once asked
me what I’m the most afraid of. Do you remember? Well, since then, I’ve had a lot of answers. Maybe they all come down to the fear of failure”, I said to her sincerely, “but the answer just left me feeling more empty.”
“The truth always does”, Rynna conceded, “good luck tonight, Abigail Everlaine. It’s never been on my side and I wonder if it will be on yours.”
Her eyes went past me to Braeden who paced the cage quietly. I knew they exchanged a look that held a silent conversation of its own. I wished that they were somewhere else, somewhere safe, where they could have a deeper conversation. Rynna had a kindness to her behind all of that ice that could be endearing. She was beautiful, young, and full of life which could never be expressed in a world like this. Her fingers, cold to the touch, wrapped around mine on the bars. We could have a friendship if only this wasn’t between us. If only she could have her freedom and Voldini was long gone. I could see why Tippler missed her presence in his life. His tiny fox heart must ache from making the choice to leave her behind.
The music started outside and the loud roar of the roller coaster told me that it was a full house. There was the faint smell of popcorn in the air and the hum of many voices talking excitedly. They had no idea of the struggles inside of this tent between people that felt hope leave them. They didn’t know that the spectacle of Vander Voldini was just another act to draw them in and empty their pockets. They didn’t know the real Dimples who was far from the horror of a demon and more like the soft warmth of an angel. A chill breeze swept through the tent and I rubbed my bare arms. The dress did little to keep me warm. I felt Braeden’s arms on my shoulders and held back tears. This was it.
“We go on after Rynna does her holo projections of the fall of the Icons. Exciting stuff because most humans have never seen them. They think even historians got their appearance wrong. Real shame we can’t see her work tonight.”
I answered with a weak voice, “We may never see it again. Do you think they’ll be scared of us when we walk into the ring? Like they were of Dimples?”
“Not sure what lines Voldini wrote about us. I’m probably an uncontrollable werewolf manipulated by magic that my savage mind can’t understand. You? A beautiful witch who could burn the ring to the ground in her fury and is held only in weak balance by the mysterious magic of the circus”, he said with a hint of amusement, “bullshit but they’ll enjoy it. May even want to see more.”
“I’m using the blue and red vanity magic tonight because it contrasts and looks more severe. I think I’ve mastered them enough to give off a good show. Fira the wicked witch filled with a wrath unbridled”, I said sardonically, “may we make tonight memorable.”
Braeden didn’t answer. I could feel the energy behind me as he shifted into wolf form. It was good timing because Max came walking toward us having a conversation with his other self. The two were arguing over the performance and I could tell that Max wasn’t happy with what the wolf wanted. He must not have liked a plan that involved faking injury. The wolf was violent and happy only when he could be aggressive. The human side of Max hated it. This plan could go awry if either side slipped up. We could be thoroughly screwed. Max nodded to me with arms shaking, not a very reassuring sign. I tried to nod to him confidently, to own the moment, but it instilled nothing in him.
When the loud organ started and the clapping began, I knew that the performance had begun. That same cold breeze hit my arms again and I felt that we weren’t alone. Wait...I knew that feeling. I knew what it meant. Hope brewed up inside of me and I nonchalantly moved to the other side of my cage so no one would notice. Braeden and Max would be bonding as wolves and preparing for a battle. Their instincts alone would be a hot and cold mix that would keep them preoccupied. I didn’t want anyone to notice that I was speaking in a low whisper to seemingly no one at all. That cold was a trademark of a ghost I was pretty upset with. Still, I felt relieved.
“I knew you would find me once you got over your new best friend”, I said under my breath, “please tell me you have a plan to get to Dimples.”
Ian’s voice came out of thin air, “She’s locked up tight. Amaris is here with Elizar and they are livid. Voldini will mess in his pants once he catches sight of them. Elizar is bent on killing him in front of all of the investors.”
“You can’t let him do that. If Voldini suspects foul play before I can get to Dimples, then he’ll explode the binding stone attached to her and she’ll go boom with it. We can’t risk it. Keep them calm at any cost. Once I’m with Dimples, then they can create a distraction”, I continued, “and only then. Please, Ian. Do this for me.”
“Ethan found out something important about Dimples. His research correlates with the story you gave us. Did you know that you look like the centerfold in a magazine for traveling businessmen looking for a cheap lay?”, he gasped out.
I searched the air for him, “I didn’t pick it out.”
“No wonder. It does nothing for your front or your back. Who ever told you to minimize your unimpressive breasts was an idiot”, he teased.
“I’m still mad at you so I’d hold up on the mockery. You’ve abandoned me, explained nothing, and now live with Amaris. Did I do something to offend your delicate sensibilities?”, I jabbed.
The air rippled with his response, “There are things you’re better off not knowing. I have to go find Elizar and Amaris before there’s a theater box full of dead investors.”
“Ian…”
He whispered against my ear, “Give them hell, Abbie. I believe in you.”
I held back tears of frustration as that cold breeze left the area. He was gone and the feeling of familiarity went with him. My guardian ghost had come with reinforcements but could end up ruining everything. If I couldn’t get to Dimples in time, then it would all have been for nothing. Rynna had seen many possibilities in the possible future but none of them ended well. She had told me that Dimples would go down with the circus. It wasn’t how I imagined that prophecy fulfilled. Braeden and Max had their heads down and I had to hold back telling them that the plan had changed. We needed to at least go through with the choreography. I wasn’t sure if Max had a poker face and Braeden’s temper may spoil it all if he found out.
Ian told me that there were things that I was better off not knowing. Like what? He was hiding something from me and it sounded dire. What could be so terrible that he had to keep it under wraps? I had faced a possessed human turned frightening witch, a ballroom full of vampires hungry for my blood, and more brushes with Elder Fae magic than I was comfortable admitting. This shouldn’t feel so epic. It shouldn’t feel so foreboding. My father was more powerful than Voldini and could level his career on a whim. Yet he wouldn’t care that my life was on the line. I was dead to him once I made the decision to go public with my hybrid status. Amaris dedicated her adult life to hiding from him. If even my sister, a skilled necromancer, was afraid of him then I had no hope.
“She was born of fire and ferocity, barely controlling her humanity and dangling on a thread of sanity until she found refuge here. Fira the tantalizing sorceress is unstable on her best day and alluring with the havoc she causes. Will she hold her own against a werewolf that wants to make her his next meal?”, Alexei recited loudly in his microphone, “Given his own gift to regenerate from even near death, this vicious wolf has barely walked the earth in human form once bloodlust corrupted his mind. We have our barriers up to protect you tonight, my dear audience! Never fear, for they are held here for your safety.”
The words washed over me that an ignorant warlock warped by Fae teachings had written. Most of the audience wouldn’t recognize me and would certainly never guess the wolf given over to alleged bloodlust was a veterinarian with a soft spot for those in trouble. More lies built on top of it all, making the circus a menagerie of misunderstood humanity just trying to survive another day. We were part of it now. Braeden came to my side, his strong and warm wolf body rubbing against my leg to comfort me. I reached down and scratched b
ehind one of his ears to return the favor. This was it. This was the performance of a lifetime. The thing was, would it be the last one Dimples would ever see?
Thirteen
I stepped out into the ring and felt surrounded by dark magic. There wasn’t just the barriers around the cage which had held Braeden and I captive, but around each ring of the circus. Even if one were to remove their binding stone, they would need a lot of magical skill to break the barriers around each of the three rings. In the third, Alexei stood with the seamuck looking at me with an unreadable life in his eyes. He played up his mechanical body for the stage and hid his true sentience from everyone outside of the circus. I weakly smiled at him and looked down to Braeden. He was already moving into place. Thus started our performance.
The crowd gasped as I summoned the first vanity spell in the shape of a fireball and flung it to the wolf dancing along the edge of the ring, snapping his jaws in a simulated hunger the entire time. We would lean into our roles and let them have their show. The vanity spell hit Braeden and he flung himself to the ground a bit dramatically. I could tell from the slight wag of his tail that he was doing this to loosen me up, to make me smile, to calm my terrified nerves. There were so many eyes watching us but all I could feel was Voldini’s set on me in scrutiny. One mistake and he could punish Dimples.
I tossed out another vanity fireball, a loud roar coming from the audience once it burst into life, and Braeden dodged this. He vaulted towards me and I leapt out of his way exactly as planned. How pallid we looked in the hot lights shining down on us. How made up and ridiculous I felt as some stand-in actress to sell a few more tickets. The faces were hard to make out from where I stood and it was a small comfort that, the first time we went to a show, Dimples hadn’t been able to pick us out. Our own friends and family could be here yet I couldn’t make out a thing. There was only the show. I remembered my lines.
