The Magic Carnival Box Set: Books 1-3

by Trudi Jaye

  “What did you do?”

  “I performed. I went with Dad whenever I could, and we did a father-son double act. In those days, it was a little more relaxed. We could get off school pretty easily.”

  Maddy laughed. “You know, this is strange, but I have real difficulty imagining you on stage.”

  Garth raised his eyebrows, surprised. It was so much a part of him he didn’t know how to react. He shrugged. “It’s what I’ve always done, and I’m told I’m good at it. Perhaps you need to come to our Winter Spectacular to see me in action.”

  She put one hand on his arm. “I didn’t mean to insult you. I just can’t imagine you being the funny man of the show.”

  He nodded. “Ah, well, that’s where you’re getting things wrong. I’m not one of those silly clowns with big feet and a red nose. I’m more one of those sad mimes who can’t find their way home.”

  “Do you know mime?”

  He did a quick pretend wall, and she laughed. He smiled back down at her. It was so easy to relax he almost didn’t recognize himself when he was with her.

  “Garth!”

  The voice came from behind them, and Garth turned to greet Rilla.

  “Hey. I’ve been looking for you,” she said. “They’ve given their approval, so it’s all go for the beginning of December. That leaves us six weeks to get ready. You better start practicing for your act in the show.” Rilla’s eyes were glowing, her body almost bouncing up from the path.

  “Roger that, Rilla,” he said, snapping a relaxed salute before gesturing to Maddy. “Rilla, this is Dr. Madelaine Annandale. She’s the one who’s been helping Simon.”

  Rilla turned her attention to Maddy and smiled. She held out her hand. “It’s great to meet you. Simon’s had a rough time of it lately. Hopefully you can help him out.”

  “I hope so too. He’s a great kid,” said Maddy as the two women shook hands. “But, please, call me Maddy.”

  “Maddy it is.”

  Maddy nodded to Garth. “It’s good to see he has people who can take care of him.”

  Rilla nodded. “Sure. That’s why we broke him out.”

  “Broke him out?” Maddy’s expression faltered.

  Garth stepped in, giving Rilla a sharp look. “She doesn’t mean literally, Maddy. Just that we checked him out of hospital to come live here with us.” Maddy didn’t need to know the gritty details. He didn’t think she would approve.

  “So Garth’s showing you around, then? Have you ever seen anything quite like it?” said Rilla, glancing around them.

  Maddy shook her head. “No, it’s certainly unique. I love the buildings. They were all built by the original Carnival people?”

  Garth looked around. The buildings were old, but they’d been carefully maintained and still looked very similar to the style of two hundred years before, when they’d first built the Compound. “We like our history, I suppose.” He thought of his house, updated and nothing like the rest of them. “All except the clowns. We’re all for progress.”

  “So that’s why yours looks kind of modern compared to the rest?”

  Rilla snorted. “You’re all for burning things down when you get too drunk.” She looked at Maddy. “Garth’s grandfather loved a tipple, and he got so drunk one night that he lit the gas stove to cook something and then left it on. Luckily, his wife realized what was happening before they all got burned to a crisp in their sleep. But they had to rebuild their house.”

  Maddy glanced at Garth, her eyes somber. “You must have been devastated,” she said. “All your things.”

  “It was before my time, I guess.” Garth shrugged. “It’s why the house is at the other end of the village, all on its own. No one was prepared to have their houses burned down, so they made him rebuild away from them.” Garth smiled at Maddy, enjoying the attentive look on her face.

  “That’s kind of a sad story. You know that, right?” said Maddy.

  Garth shrugged. “He did what he had to do most of the time. And he wasn’t an alcoholic. Just had a blowout now and then when he needed to get rid of some steam.” He’d been a bit crazy and would often take risks, but his grandfather had been strict about following the Gift and making sure the Carnival could successfully fulfill the wish of the Mark. He’d prided himself on it.

  “How do you know he wasn’t an alcoholic?” asked Maddy, her professional voice in place.

  Garth felt a sharp pain move through his chest. “Because my father was an alcoholic before he started developing Alzheimer’s. I know exactly what that’s like.” It had been his father who’d let the Carnival down. After the death of Garth’s mother, he’d started to drink, and his connection to the Mark had been affected. In many ways, the early-onset Alzheimer’s had been a blessing as well as a curse.

  Maddy’s eyes went round. “Oh. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”

  Garth glanced at Rilla, who was watching him carefully. He cleared his throat and looked at Maddy. “No worries. I wouldn’t have told you if it was a secret. But that’s why my grandfather’s story is funny and my father’s isn’t.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Garth saw Rilla look between him and Maddy. He wondered what conclusions she was making. But whatever they were, she kept them to herself and simply held up her hand in farewell. “I’ll catch you later. Remember, we have a meeting of the Nine later to discuss the sale of Viktor’s inventions and Baxter’s first payment. I’ll need you at this one.”

  Garth nodded. “I’ll be there.”

  He watched Rilla walk away, then turned to Maddy. “I’ll show you the practice rings.” He held out his hand in the right direction.

  “I’m really sorry, Garth. Truly, I am. It must have been very difficult for you.”

  “It was. I lost my mother, and then I slowly lost my father as well.” Garth almost bit his lip to try and stop the words. He didn’t want her to pity him, for God’s sake.

  Maddy put a hand on his arm again. “I know what it’s like to have your father be there, but not really present. I always thought it was worse than if they’d just died.”

  Surprised, Garth stopped to face Maddy. His emotions swirled, and a part of him rejected the suggestion that he wished his father had died rather than walked away from him in this manner. But a small fragment deep inside recognized the truth of what she was saying. It would have been easier. A swift cut, painful and sharp, but something he would have been able to move on from. Not this long, dragged-out process, with a man who only saw a stranger every time his son visited.

  “Was it the research?”

  Maddy nodded. “I lost my father when I got sick. He stopped seeing me as his daughter and saw me as a number. A subject.”

  “You’ve never talked with him about it?”

  “No. I see my parents very rarely. Once a year at Christmas, unless I can get out of it.”

  “Even your mother?”

  She shrugged. “We talk on the phone, but she’s on my father’s side. As far as she’s concerned, he saved my life and can do no wrong.”

  “That’s tough.”

  “But you’re thinking at least I have a mother, right?”

  Garth shook his head quickly. “No, no. Of course not. I was thinking it was sad. Families are sad sometimes.”

  “I’m used to it now. How about you show me these practice rooms?” She turned and continued walking.

  Garth allowed her to lead him away and change the subject. There was more to his sparrow than he’d realized. It made him want to bundle her up and protect her from the world. From her cold father and her clueless mother.

  “This is where we run through the routines. There’s a high wire over that side, along with the ribbon.” He squinted and saw Missy doing some work on the high wire, obviously practicing for the performance.

  “That’s amazing. Look at her go.” Maddy tipped her head, watching as Missy flipped between the bars thirty feet up in the air.

  “Missy does most of our aerial work, ever since…�
� Garth found himself unable to finish.

  “Since?”

  He took a breath and forced out the words. “Her mother and father had to leave recently. Her mother was the main high-wire act. She did the ribbons and was our contortionist.”

  “Oh. Does Missy do all of that?”

  Garth nodded. “She’s almost as good as her mother. Give her another few years and she’ll be amazing.” Missy had always worked hard, ever since they were children.

  “She’s very graceful.”

  “It comes with long practice and a lifetime in the Carnival.” Garth shrugged. It wasn’t hard to be graceful; you just had to work at it and be part of the Carnival when it was brimming with magic. He took a breath and felt the faint buzz in the air that denoted the pulse of the Carnival’s energy around them. It felt stronger, even in the short time since they’d been home.

  He led her over to the ring where the clowns were practicing. “This is Eb and Zach. They’re going to do the big show with me.” He raised one hand at the two men.

  “Hey, boss. Slacking off?”

  “Thought I’d let you two catch up.” Garth grinned at Zach.

  Zach snorted. “You wish.”

  “This is Maddy. She’s helping with Simon, and I said I’d show her around. Can you show her some of your tricks?”

  Zach shrugged and turned to Eb, who did a quick countdown.

  The two men started doing rounds of somersaults and cartwheels, faster and faster until it seemed like they were going to crash or fall over. They started interacting; Eb put his hands together for Zach to leap over him and into an aerial flip. Then Zach halted and leaned over while Eb used him as a human ladder, pitching his body into the air, turning a backward flip, and then landing with a thud on the ground. They stopped in front of Maddy and bowed, their faces showing a comical level of exhaustion from doing what was clearly just an introduction.

  “We’d shake your hand, but we’re too tired. We’re so slack that we can’t handle the pace.” Zach winked at Maddy as he spoke, and Garth rolled his eyes.

  “You know, for clowns, you have no idea what’s funny.” He grinned and suddenly realized it had been a long time since he just relaxed and joked around. It felt good.

  “I’m in awe of your abilities. I could never do it.” Maddy seemed sincere in her complements. She was a brain researcher, and she thought being a clown in the circus was something special?

  Zach waved a hand. “We could teach you how. It’s not difficult. Garth here, he’s the best in the carnival circuit. Maybe you should ask him to teach you a few things.” He wiggled his eyebrows at them both, and Maddy laughed.

  “Maybe.” She glanced at Garth, a twinkle in her green eyes.

  Garth’s heart skipped a beat and he let himself drown in Maddy’s eyes for a moment before shaking his head out of it. Concentrate. The last thing he needed was for this to get complicated. “Right, we’re on to our next stop. The food hall. Time for a coffee.”

  “Yeah, boss. You keep swanning around, and we’ll keep up the hard work.” Eb saluted Garth with a smirk.

  Garth shook his head. “I’ll be here later when you’re sitting down and eating and drinking too much with the rest of the crew.”

  “Just ‘cause we have lives…”

  “C’mon, Maddy. I’ll never win this argument.” Garth waved one hand over his head as he turned a grinning Maddy and led her out past the third ring. “This is where they practice with the animals.”

  “What animals do you have here?”

  “Elephants. Dogs. A lion. Horses. Monkeys. The usual, really.” Garth shrugged.

  “Elephants? I love elephants.”

  “I can introduce you to one close up. Martha loves to meet people, and Alfie will be around. But first, we go eat something. I’m starving.” He rubbed his belly for emphasis.

  “I thought it was just a coffee?”

  “I just said that to those two so they didn’t give me any more shtick.”

  “Are you afraid of them?”

  Garth flicked a surprised glance in her direction. “I’m not afraid of—” The twinkle in her eyes cut him short. “Oh. You’re giving me shtick as well.”

  “Of course I am. Sometimes you’re just too serious for your own good. And I can’t believe that I, Little Miss Serious Researcher, am saying that to you, Mr. Best Clown on the Block.”

  “That’s how you see yourself?” said Garth, intrigued. Her bland exterior had fooled him when he’d first met her, but now he realized Maddy was bubbly and bright and sharper than a tack. Her small stature hid a mind like a steel trap, and those jade eyes didn’t miss a thing.

  Maddy’s eyes darkened slightly, the green seas becoming turbulent. “Most people see me that way. And to be honest, to be taken seriously, I need it to be that way. The academic world can be cutthroat.”

  “Not as cutthroat as the carny circuit, surely.”

  Maddy raised her eyebrows. “I don’t know about that.”

  Garth shook his head. “I bet there are no knife fights.”

  “You’ve never been in a knife fight,” Maddy said, horror in her voice.

  Garth grinned. “Well, maybe not, but I know someone who has.”

  Maddy whacked him on the arm. “Stop fooling around and get me some coffee.”

  They found seats in the large eating hall, Maddy holding a coffee mug close and Garth with a sandwich and a smoothie. Maddy watched the people around them with large eyes, taking in the tattoos, the multicolored hair, and the ridiculously normal clothes on most of them.

  “They look exactly as I imagined them… and at the same time completely different. How do they manage that?”

  “You’re trying to put us in little boxes, Maddy. We’re just people who happen to live a slightly different life.”

  “With elephants and somersaults and sequins.”

  “Well, yeah, with all of those,” said Garth reluctantly. He didn’t want to admit they were different.

  “It’s exciting, Garth. Not bad.”

  “It’s just our everyday life, Maddy. It’s what I’ve always known. I love it. Don’t get me wrong. But it’s not unusual to me like it is to you.”

  “It’s still magical. Just because you do it every day doesn’t change that.” She leaned forward and touched his hand where it lay on the table.

  Garth’s eyes flicked to Maddy’s face. Did she see more than he realized? Her face was calm and innocent, devoid of any writing between the lines.

  He cleared his throat. “Thanks. That’s a nice thing to say.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m not trying to be nice. I’m being honest.”

  Garth stared at her for a moment, wondering where she’d come from, this bright bubble of energy that made him feel more alive and more exciting than he ever had before.

  “Elephants next. Maybe Alfie will let you ride Martha.” He grinned when she gave a small shriek.

  ***

  “I ain’t putting my girls on the ice,” said Alfie as he patted Martha’s leg.

  “Of course you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to, Alfie. That’s why you’re in charge of the animals. You know them best and know what they’re capable of.”

  “But Rilla’ll talk to me in her reasonable voice and make it sound like I’m bein’ petulant.” He scowled back over at Garth, who stood at Martha’s head, accepting attention from her trunk.

  “I’ll help you, Alfie. I’ll protect you from the scary girl a third your age.”

  Alfie’s eyes blazed for a moment, and then he sighed. “You see, Maddy? This is what I have to put up with. Smartarses all around me.”

  Maddy did a good job of remaining serious as she nodded at Alfie. “I’m sure someone like you can pull it off. You seem very eloquent to me.”

  Alfie snorted. “Oh, you’re another one. Silver tongued, the lot of you. I’m just saying, Garth. I’m relying on you to be the voice of reason tonight. Don’t let things get out of control. This winter ice show is
all very well, but it’s putting a lot of people into a tailspin. What if we can’t pull it off?”

  Garth paused in patting Martha. Alfie’s concern was valid, and he was usually a good barometer of the mood around the Carnival. “I think we can pull it off, Alfie. But it has to be all of us working together. We’re not going to do anything that won’t work, and if you say some of your animals can’t go on the ice, then that’s final. You know that.”

  “She’s not up-front persuasive like her da, but she’s a sneaky one, Garth. Sometimes I think that’s worse,” muttered Alfie. “I love her to bits, but at the moment, I’m afraid to go see her in case I end up agreeing to buy a tiger or something.”

  “The Nine still has a say in that, Alfie. Things still have to be discussed.”

  Alfie nodded, still not entirely convinced, but obviously feeling he had Garth on his side. “Maddy, you must think we’re terrible hosts. Going on about the show while you’re supposed to be here enjoying your visit.” He looked up into the air, to where Maddy was sitting on Martha’s back.

  She had a massive grin on her face, her eyes shifting and shading like the sea on a rough day. “This is the most amazing thing I’ve ever done, Alfie. You could have been talking about making ice cream cupcakes and I wouldn’t have noticed.”

  Alfie grinned. “Glad to see you’re happy.” He glanced over at Garth, a sly look on his face. “So you’ve been showing Maddy around, eh? I don’t recall that you’ve ever shown anyone around the Compound before.”

  Garth glared at Alfie. “I’m sure I’ve shown all sorts of people around the Compound.” He glanced up at Maddy, who was smiling down at Martha’s face and scratching behind her ear. “Do you want us to lead her around a bit? Get a feel for riding her?”

  “I would love that above all else,” she said. She was glowing she was so excited to be sitting up on Martha.

  There was silence as Alfie led Martha around in a semicircle before taking off on a longer tour around the area, leaving Garth to stand with his arms crossed by the entrance to the large animal barn. He watched Maddy on top of the elephant and wondered at what was happening to him. Surely she was the worst possible person to have taken a liking to? Wouldn’t a Carnival insider like Missy have been much more suitable? Focused, driven, and completely uninterested in anything outside her chosen field, Missy wouldn’t have bugged him or provided an incursion into his daily life. It would have been perfect, if either of them had been remotely interested in the other.