by Trudi Jaye
“Did Abba live up to your expectations? Did he protect you from whatever you’re running from?” Sam was taking a shot in the dark, but her quick glance told him he was right. She was hiding from someone or something. That was why she never spoke to anyone and covered herself up. She didn’t want someone to recognize her.
“Abba was everything I needed and more. He was an amazing man... I miss him.”
Sam caught the pain in her voice. It was the same with everyone here at the Jolly Knight Carnival. They’d loved their Ringmaster and the pain of his passing hung heavy around their necks. It made him wish he’d had a chance to meet him.
“I’m sorry I never got to know him.”
Celestine nodded. “His death was a tragedy. For all of us.”
They continued in silence for a few moments. It wasn’t the kind he felt he had to fill; it seemed comfortable, despite everything that had just happened. Eventually they made it to her trailer, a small, old rickety number painted orange and white that needed to be attached to a car to go anywhere. There was a small lamp over her steps that offered a little light.
“Thanks for catching me,” said Celestine, staring up at her door rather than at Sam.
“Look, Celestine—”
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s move on.”
“No. I want to say this. I don’t think you’d do anything to harm to Carnival. But nobody thought Christoph would do anything to harm it either. He’s essentially a good man who was convinced to do something bad. I’m just trying to look out for my new family.”
She glanced up at him, and he caught a flash of violet in her eyes. There seemed to be more of it than blue in that moment. He blinked. Must be the light.
“I’m part of that family too. I’m just looking out for them as well. And Christoph... He’s a good man, but he’s weak. He chose an outsider over the Carnival. I would never do that.”
Sam paused. “Are you sure? You’ve got secrets that you’re trying to keep, Celestine. It’s as obvious as the nose on your face.”
“They’re not the kind of secrets that will hurt anyone but me,” she whispered, her face suddenly stricken.
Instinctively, he put one hand out to touch her, but she flinched and pulled away. He hesitated then put his hand down.
“I can help you. Tell me what you’re hiding from, and I’ll help,” he said softly. And he meant it. He wanted to save her from whatever was putting those shadows in her eyes.
“You can’t help me. No one can.” She turned and climbed the stairs. She didn’t look back.
Sam stood looking at her closed door for a few moments, then turned back along the rows of campers to his clinic. They’d set him up with a bunk just off the main room, which was all he needed. He wasn’t the kind of person to gather stuff or need more than a few changes of clothes.
In the distance, the low nighttime Carnival lights were on. The area was empty of people. There were no security guards patrolling or eyewitnesses to what Celestine had been doing. Unless… Abruptly, Sam changed direction.
He’d met Frankie a few times, and his impression of the younger man was that he probably didn’t keep normal hours. Sam shrugged; he’d soon see. He knocked quietly on the door of the beat-up silver Airstream trailer, prepared for no answer. But within moments, it swung open to reveal Frankie, his hair mussed up, his eyes bloodshot, but holding a steaming mug of coffee in one hand. The younger man stared at him for a moment. “Come on in, then. If you must.”
Sam hesitated, but he was here now. He would finish his mission. He entered the blue-screened haven of the agoraphobic Chancemaster.
“What do you want?” asked Frankie without preamble.
Sam appreciated that kind of straight up dealing. “I want to check the new security cameras around the animal enclosure from earlier this evening.”
“What security cameras?” asked Frankie suspiciously.
“Jack told me about them. I know you had them put in,” said Sam drily. “I need to see the feed around the animal pen from about a half hour ago.”
“You think something happened?” Frankie’s tone sharpened.
Sam shook his head. “Nothing serious. At least I don’t think so.”
“But you want to check anyway?”
It felt like he was betraying Celestine by not completely believing her story. But there was a mystery surrounding her that Sam felt compelled to solve, and getting more information was the best way to start. “Yes.”
Frankie shrugged and turned to a large screen that held a series of black and white video images of areas around the Carnival. There were too many to keep track of for one person. “How do you even know what’s going on in all of them?”
“It’s essentially just a form of what they call big data. I’ve designed an algorithm to scrape information from all the cameras feeds as they come in. It’ll alert me if anything happens that it thinks I need to see.”
Sam nodded, although the technical jargon flew over his head. He’d stick to real people with real illnesses any day. “Sounds like you have it under control.”
Frankie’s face was blue in the darkened interior, and the eerie coloration hid whatever he thought about Sam’s comment. He pressed a few keyboard buttons, and suddenly three different views of the animal enclosure popped up on the screen. Nothing was happening.
“Can you take it back about forty-five minutes?”
Frankie nodded and pressed another couple of keys.
Suddenly on the screen, Sam saw a figure trailing around the enclosure, touching everything softly with one ungloved hand. She appeared to be focusing hard, and her face was taut with concentration.
“What’s she doing?” asked Frankie frowning.
“I don’t know. That’s what I was hoping we might figure out.”
“My program should have picked her up. Movement and human forms at this time of night should have set off every alarm I have,” he muttered as he typed on the keyboard. At the bottom of the screen computer code popped up in green, running in indecipherable lines across the bottom. At least to Sam. Frankie seemed to understand what it was saying. “She’s been doing this for a while. Ever since we left the Compound in fact. The program decided she wasn’t a threat.”
“I thought you said—”
“I know what I said,” snapped Frankie. “It’s the damned Carnival interfering with my programming again. Damn thing won’t let my machines do what they’re supposed to without messing with them.” Frankie pounded one fist onto the desk beside the computer, making the monitor and keyboard bounce.
Sam didn’t quite understand what Frankie was talking about, but he hadn’t taken his eyes off the screen, and he saw the moment Celestine touched George’s kennel. He watched as she had another seizure, her body shaking uncontrollably. This one only lasted a couple of seconds, and she was able to remain standing.
She opened her eyes again and started searching for something at the back of the kennel.
What the hell was going on?
Chapter 8
Celestine looked up from shuffling her tarot cards to see who had entered her tent. She was in full Madame Fortune costume, her favorite red patterned scarf tight around her head, holding back her unruly hair and draped over her shoulder for best effect. She’d applied her usual smoky eye makeup, although the thick black kohl around her eyes was itching—she was concentrating hard on not scratching it away. It was always like this at the beginning of the season, when she wasn’t as used to wearing the thick makeup.
She hesitated when she saw who had entered.
Alfie. Did he know what she’d done? She peered at him in the darkened confines of her tent, trying to see if his lined face indicated displeasure. She couldn’t see anything in his expression, but the wiry Beastmaster had never sought her out before. Sam must have told him about the night before. “Hi, Alfie,” she said cautiously.
“Hey, Celestine.” He looked around at the draped walls of the tent, the excess of velvet and beads
, and the low lamp. “This is some getup you’ve got here.”
She smiled nervously. “Thanks.”
Alfie hesitated.
Celestine tried to wait, to let Alfie say what he had to say, but she couldn’t. “I don’t know what Sam told you—”
Alfie frowned. “Sam? The new doctor fella?”
“You haven’t talked to him this morning?”
“Nope.”
“Oh.” Celestine looked away, suddenly confused.
“Should I talk to him?” asked Alfie suspiciously.
“Uh. No. Definitely not. How can I help you today?” She smiled, trying to cover up her nervousness.
Alfie moved further into the tent, still taking in her elaborate mystic decorations. He looked about as uncomfortable as she felt. “I’ve never done this before, and I’m not sure I want to do it now. But the Carnival’s been pushing me to come see you. To get a reading.”
Celestine’s heart dropped. This was the last thing she needed. Alfie was on the Nine, the ruling council. She couldn’t let someone in charge find out about her.
Meow.
Artemis appeared in the doorway, and Alfie’s face lit up. “It’s been a while since I saw that cat of yours. She’s a beautiful creature.”
Artemis started purring, and strolled over to Alfie, putting one paw delicately in front of the other.
“Did you see that?” said Alfie. “That slight limp on her left front paw?”
Celestine looked down at Artemis in surprise. She shook her head and came forward, her fear of Alfie gone in the face of a possible problem with Artemis.
Alfie crouched down to pat Artemis, his gnarled hands running along her smooth fur. Artemis rubbed up against his side, but when Alfie tried to pick up her paw, and she hissed at him, backing off from his ministrations.
Alfie looked up. “Can you hold her while I check that paw?”
Sitting down on the floor next to Alfie, Celestine gathered Artemis into her lap. The cat was anxious, having now realized that its people intended something more than petting. She tried to escape, and only Celestine’s strong grip kept the large cat in place. Celestine made a quick decision. The only thing that calmed Artemis down was skin contact. She was going to have to take off a glove. Holding Artemis close to her body with one hand, she managed to pull the other off quickly with her teeth. As soon as her bare skin touched Artemis, the cat stopped struggling.
Celestine glanced up to find Alfie watching her antics silently. She tried not to think about how much the perceptive animal trainer was finding out about her today.
Far too much.
But if he helped Artemis, she couldn’t regret it.
Alfie reached out and smoothed one hand down Artemis’s leg, the one that had been limping. He gently pulled it up and ran one hand over the soft pads underneath. “I can feel a thorn of some kind, stuck up next to one of the pads. I’m going to pull it out. The sooner that kind of thing comes out, the better.”
Before she even realized what he was doing, Alfie had grabbed Artemis’s leg in a firm grip, and used his other hand to pull at the thorn.
Artemis struggled, claws coming out. She scratched at Celestine’s leg, although luckily she couldn’t feel it through the thick-layered material of her skirt. Celestine automatically reached up to hold Artemis, to keep her from scratching Alfie, crooning to her cat the whole time. She was so focused on Artemis she didn’t notice Alfie’s hand still holding her cat. Her bare skin touched Alfie’s hand, and Artemis immediately stopped struggling.
But it was because everything was frozen; time had paused for a moment to take stock of who she’d touched. She felt the familiar rainbow brightness surrounding her for a moment, and she let out a breath. As ever, she wished she could just stay in this calm, beautiful place a moment longer.
And then everything went wild.
The Blue Carousel, the beautiful antique carousel that was the centerpiece of the outdoors section of the Carnival, was spinning softly. Gentle music played in the background like a lullaby, and Celestine smiled. The carousel had always been her favorite place in the Jolly Knight Carnival.
Then someone screamed.
One of the barriers around the edge of the carousel broke as an enormous dolphin from the carousel leaped away from it, swimming through the air as if through water, still carrying the terrified punter who’d been on its back. One by one, the other creatures followed until the air around the carousel was filled with whales and dolphins, mermaids and giant sea horses, each with a person clinging to it. Shouts and laughter filled the air, both from those on the rides and others watching from the ground. At first it seemed wonderful, as if these people were being given an opportunity to experience their ride in free form without the structure of the carousel taking them around and around. The music played, and the creatures swam high in the air, graceful and poetic as they rode the air like it was sea currents. The air sparkled with magic, and the creatures danced through the moment as if they were made for it.
But something inside Celestine chilled. Her hands curled into tight fists, and her gaze was locked onto the scene. She felt like she was made of stone, she was so tense. Something bad was going to happen, and she could do nothing about it. It was always the same. She was just a witness, forced to watch.
On the backs of the sea creatures, the people were reacting in a variety of ways, many with excitement and delight but some with screaming terror. One woman was circling up high on her whale, throwing her hands high in the air, and laughing as the sea creature did dives and spins. In the background, the sweet haunting melody of the carousel continued to play.
Last to emerge from the carousel was an enormous swan, its feathers purest white with golden tips that shimmered in the sunlight. It was the only creature not from under the sea. It wasn’t usually on the carousel, so Celestine knew it must be the Gift creature, created by their connection to the Mark and designed to draw one lucky punter into the Carnival so they could attempt to grant their deepest wish.
Sitting amidst the pure white feathers of this beautiful bird was the same young girl who’d been in her first vision of Sam’s death. Tilly’s little sister. Her face was calm, old beyond her years, but she clung tightly to the swan. She knew something bad was going to happen as well, Celestine could see it in her face.
Into the midst of all this chaos, Alfie ran, coming to a halt under the flying animals. He waved his arms in the air, crossing them over his head and then out wide again. “Bring your animals down to the ground!” he yelled. “Get them to the ground!”
But he was too late.
The gentle music came softly to an end, almost without anyone realizing it. The motion of the animals stopped in midair. They hung suspended for a moment, and Celestine held her breath, hoping.
But then gravity found them again. They plummeted to the earth, amid the broken screams of their riders. Most of the animals broke apart on impact, their bodies fracturing and spitting out from their center, breaking apart to varying degrees depending on how high they’d been when the music stopped. The people on their backs fared no better, their bodies smashed into their rides, the cries abruptly cut off. Pieces of the shattered wooden rides flew everywhere, hitting the people on the ground, while blood and flesh from the riders who’d fallen from the greatest heights splattered across the ground.
Silence fell. Then the low moaning of the survivors stirred the breeze.
Deep red blood, messy pieces of gore, and brightly painted sections of the broken animals were everywhere. Celestine wiped at her front, convinced she had someone’s blood spattered on her. She searched desperately for Alfie, and finally found him crushed beneath the whale. His usually intelligent face was slack and his lifeless eyes stared up at her.
Celestine screamed.
“Hush, hush, child. It’s okay. You’re okay.” The soothing voice calmed her, and brought her crashing back to reality.
Celestine opened her eyes to find herself being held in Alfie’s
arms, as he gently rubbed her back like he would with one of his animals.
She blinked repeatedly, trying to purge the image of Alfie crushed into the ground.
“They were flying, Alfie. Flying,” she whispered, unable to hold it in.
“Who were flying?”
“The carousel animals.”
“Don’t worry about it, child. You’re back now. Everything is okay.” Alfie’s soothing voice secured her back into the real world more quickly than usual, and Celestine pulled herself up into a sitting position.
“Thank you,” she said. “I’m okay now.”
“What was that?”
“I... uh...” She couldn’t think of anything to say. The flying animals from the carousel still filled her vision.
“Some kind of fit?” offered Alfie.
Celestine nodded, seizing on his answer. “Yes. Yes. I get them sometimes.”
“Nothing to do with seeing the future?” he asked softly.
Celestine hesitated. “No, of course not,” she said, shaking her head vehemently.
“What did you see, child?” Alfie’s eyes reflected the lights from above, and for a moment, he looked wise even beyond his years.
“Um.” Celestine tried to think of something, anything that might put him off the scent. She remembered the previous night’s adventure. “You have little tamarin monkeys?”
Alfie nodded, never taking his eyes from her.
“You’re trying to get them to breed?”
Alfie shook his head. “Not really. They’ve only just recovered.”
Celestine nodded. “Good. Because they won’t be able to get pregnant. There’s something wrong with the girl. You’ll have to pull in a breeding female from somewhere else, if you ever want to do that. You should probably get her checked out.” She hoped that would be enough to convince Alfie that she didn’t know what she was talking about. He’d learn about the little female’s pregnancy and think Celestine was nuts.
Alfie stared at her. “Is that what you saw just now? My tamarin monkeys? What about the flying animals?”
