He moved his mouth as though speaking, but I couldn’t hear a word over the roar of the ocean wind. I leaned closer, his lips against my ear.
“I love you, Olivia. Please come back to me,” he said.
His azure eyes pleaded for me to say I loved him too. Rejection and hurt, not being good enough for him, it all flooded back into my heart, making it heavy. Never would I let a boy make me want to change who I was again. Make me feel as though I had to give up everything I loved to become what he wanted me to be. Whatever love I’d held for William to send me in search of a way to be with him, to trek up a mountain, trust a hermit, and crawl into a hot air balloon, was long gone.
“I don’t love you. You’re not what I need.” I told him.
His eyes turned black and anger scrunched his face. With a sudden movement he shoved me in the chest and I stumbled back, arms flailing as I tumbled over the cliff’s edge. The briny scent of crashing waves reminded me of home and the rush of cool wind filled my senses as I fell…
The room blurred around me as I jolted awake, sitting up in bed. My head throbbed and I rubbed at my temples, leaning back onto the pillow… pillow? Blinking, my brain tried to understand the room around me. Wooden plank walls, a small cupboard at the foot of the single timber bed where I lay, and a door to my right. Where was I?
Sitting up as slow as I could, I gazed around the small room, nothing about it familiar. The balloon, I’d been in the basket, starving, thirsty… I’d taken Valger and… The memory of white canvas flickered in my mind but I couldn’t make sense of it. The world moved around me like I’d had too much ale and I pushed myself to my feet using the bed, then the cupboard, then the wall to guide me towards the door. Gripping the wooden handle, it wouldn’t budge and my disappointment and fear were overshadowed by an ache that shot like splinters through my head. The room lurched sideways, and I stumbled backwards, landing against the bed with a thump.
“You’ll get used to it,” said a small voice behind me.
I whipped my head around, my temples screaming, to find a small girl standing in the corner. She wore a yellow dress tied with a bow at the waist and her straight snow white hair fell over her shoulders down to her elbows.
“Who are you?” I croaked out.
My mouth was dry and my tongue swollen.
She tilted her head to the side as though assessing me. “Ember. I’m eight.”
“Hi Ember, it’s nice to meet you. Where am I?”
“On a ship, of course. They told me not to disturb you, but I wanted to see what you looked like. I like your hair, it’s pretty.”
I ran my fingers through my matted red curls. I was on a ship. Last I’d known, I was flying through the air and now I was sailing upon the ocean.
“Thank you,” I replied.
“Someone’s coming,” she said as the door knob rattled.
I turned to look at the door and when I looked back the young girl was gone, sending a shiver down my spine.
Climbing back into the bed, I pulled the sheet up to my chin and closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep. I needed to know more about where I was and why I was on the ship before I had to answer questions myself.
The door swung open, and I could sense more than one person entering the room.
“Wonder how long she’d been above that storm?” said a female voice.
A heavier, deeper voice replied, “at least a few hours. Altitude sickness can get the best of anyone. She’ll be okay though.”
“What do you think Lukah will do with her?” the woman asked.
There was a shuffle of feet.
“What are you both doing in here?” snapped a whiny voice. “Lukah wants to know why you’re not at the helm Apollo.”
“I was on my way,” grumbled the male voice.
“And you’re needed on deck Adrena. Embers gone missing again,” said the whiny voice.
“Let me guess. You can’t find her because you’re too busy kissing Lukah’s…”
“Adrena,” warned the male I assumed was Apollo.
“What? You know it’s true. We work our butts off for him while she follows him around with lust in her eyes,” bit Adrena.
There was silence for a moment before footsteps echoed away.
“I don’t know why you say those things,” said Apollo. “You know she’ll run back to Lukah and tell him.”
“She’s childish and ridiculous. Loretta doesn’t scare me.”
They continued talking as they left the room, closing and locking the door behind them. I opened my eyes and sat up again to find water and a piece of bread on the cupboard at the foot of the bed. I couldn’t pretend I was unconscious forever and my mouth was dry and my stomach groaned at the smell of fresh baked bread so I ambled over to the cupboard and ate and drank, wishing there was much more. How long had it been since I’d eaten or had fluids? My bag!
I turned back and forth, searching for my bag and my shoulders relaxed when I spotted it sitting on the floor by the foot of the bed. Sitting on the mattress, I pulled the bag up beside me and rummaged through it, checking the crystal from Mother Earth and my elixirs were still inside. They were. My chest ached at the memory of my beautiful emerald cape flying from my grasp, and my wet clothes were nowhere in sight. How I wished Nova were with me. This was her world, not mine. From what she’d told me, pirates were brutal and fierce, and I didn’t have the strength to fight my way out of a pirate ship if I was on one. And what would I do if I could? Swim to the nearest island? That’s if there was an island. And the last island I’d visited had been occupied by vicious savages who’d wanted to skewer me and roast me over a fire.
The ship rocked hard again. No, I had to sit this out. Assess the situation and wait for the perfect moment to find my hot air balloon and make my way back to Edith.
Lucy
BILSTONE, AUSTRALIA
Wiping my sweaty palms on my jeans, I stare out the car window sprinkled with rain. Dark clouds hung in the sky as though warning me of the pending doom.
“Catherine texted me and said she’d meet you inside,” said Dad as we pulled up in front of The Zen Garden.
“You’ll pick me up as soon as I’m done?” I asked.
The sky rumbled and I hugged myself.
“Of course, I’ll be waiting out front. I thought maybe we could all have lunch or something afterwards,” he said. “As long as we don’t get washed out.”
“I have an English assignment due I need to work on,” I lied. “Can we go straight home?”
I was sure he knew it was an excuse, but he decided not to push it any further. I was already spending a couple of hours with the woman, wasn’t that enough?
“Tell her I said hi and I’ll call her later,” he said.
“Will do.”
“Love you, Luce.”
“Love you too, Dad.”
He waited until I pushed through the glass doors of the spa and made my way across the sparkling white foyer to the front counter.
“Good morning. Are you with the Sparks party?” The young girl offered me a friendly smile. Her brown hair was sleek and straight, and her flawless makeup made her skin glow. Maybe if I walked out looking like her, Mike might change his mind about Charity.
I laughed internally at myself. Let it go, Lucy. That ship had sailed, if it ever moored to begin with.
“Yes, thank you.”
“Head through the door on your left and you’ll find them in the waiting room. Let me know if there’s anything you need while you wait,” she said.
I pushed open the frosted glass door and behind it was a small room with comfortable looking dark green couches, relaxing music, and the smell of lavender and frankincense. Catherine sat with her head back and eyes closed in a recliner, and beside her sat the last person I wanted to see… Tracey Bloom.
Tracey’s eyes widened as she looked between me and Catherine, who opened her eyes and sat up.
“Lucy, you’re here. This is my niece, Tracey,” said Cathe
rine.
“You’re the Lucy she’s been talking about?” Tracey’s nostrils flared.
“And you’re the niece,” I replied.
“You both go to the same school. Have you seen each other around?” asked Catherine.
“You could say that,” I replied.
A lady entered the room, interrupting the awkward exchange. “The massage room is ready for you all now.”
“Thank you, Alana,” said Catherine. “Come on girls.” She sprang out of her chair and followed Alana.
Tracey shot me a glare as she went next and I followed. Of course her niece was Tracey, the girl who’d spent my school life trying to make me feel like nothing more than chewing gum stuck to the bottom of her shoe. She’d made my life a living hell for years. It was only fitting Catherine was her Aunt.
Inside, we were handed thick white robes and asked to strip down to our underwear in separate rooms before we each lay on a massage table. I had a feeling I’d be extra tense.
Catherine lay in the middle and Tracey and I lay either side.
“What year are you in again, Lucy?” asked Catherine, her voice muffled as she spoke through the face hole in the table.
Was this some cruel joke? Had she not put two and two together? Or was she playing dumb and knew all along Tracey was my tormentor?
A lady started massaging my back and shoulders. “Year eleven.”
“Oh, that’s the same year as Tracey. She should be in year twelve but when her mum relapsed and her dad was in jail she fell behind in school and we had to keep her back,” she said.
I swallowed hard at the information. Tracey must’ve been seething across the room.
“That’s not something everyone needs to know Aunty Catherine,” said Tracey through gritted teeth.
“It’s fine Tracey. Lucy is like family. You might have a deadbeat mother but lucky for you I turned out fine and I can be here to clean up her mess every time she falls off the path. You and Lucy both need a strong female presence in your life. It’s something you both have in common.”
My muscles grew tighter the more the poor woman massaged.
“Just relax,” she whispered to me.
I released a long breath. Tracey and I had nothing in common.
“I was telling Bruce the other day Lucy needs to make more friends,” said Catherine.
“I already have friends,” I told her.
“Of course, but I mean friends who are a better role model for you. One’s that can teach you how to dress and might get you out and a bit more social. Tracey might have had a rough upbringing, but with my help she always dresses like a teenage girl should. Tracey, tell Lucy about the party you went to last weekend. Tracey and I talk about everything. Maybe one day we can be close too.”
Over my dead body.
“I don’t think she wants to hear about parties she wasn’t invited to Aunty Catherine,” replied Tracey.
“Dad wouldn’t let me go to a party anyway,” I said.
“Your Dad is a great guy but he doesn’t know how to raise a teenage girl,” said Catherine.
I bit my tongue. I thought he’d been raising me just fine until she’d come along.
“I know you see me as a threat to your relationship with your dad, Lucy, but you can’t expect him to be single forever, now, can you? He’s a handsome man, sure, he’s a bit soft sometimes, but that’s something we can work on. Us girls have to train our men to be what we need.”
My teeth ached from how tight I was clenching them. I wanted to yell at her, tell her my dad was perfect the way he was, but I lay there in silence, swallowing back my anger.
“He could be worse,” she continued. “He could be like Tracey’s father. That man was no good from the beginning. I told my sister, I told her he’d destroy her, and he did. Now he’s rotting in jail and she’s dealing with a kid and a drug addiction.”
“Lucy doesn’t need to hear about my shitty parents,” said Tracey, much quieter than before.
“I think it’s good for her to see how lucky she is. Her mother might have died but look what you’ve had to endure and you’re still a good kid.”
“I know how lucky I am,” I replied.
“I hope so. Do you know when Tracey was eight her mother left her on her own for three days. Three days! When I finally went around to check on her, she’d eaten nothing but biscuits and her clothes were filthy…”
Catherine continued to over share about Tracey’s past. Her mother’s addiction and failings as a parent. Her deadbeat dad. I wished I could block my ears and wipe it from my memory because I could imagine the way it made Tracey feel. Was that why she was so horrible to people? Because life was so shitty at home, she wanted to bring others down to her level?
I was sure I was more tense than I’d been when I’d arrived by the time we were guided, wrapped in our robes and carrying our clothing into another room where chairs were lined up against the wall with pools of water at their feet.
“A mani-pedi always makes me feel fresh and revived,” sing-songed Catherine.
She ushered Tracey and I to the seats on either side of her, and three ladies began tending to our feet.
“Look at your nails, Lucy, they’re disgusting.” Catherine screwed up her nose.
Looking at my toes, she was right. When was the last time I’d cut my toenails? I bit my lip.
Catherine continued. “That’s it. I’m bringing you girls for a mani-pedi at least once a month. I know you haven’t had much female guidance, Lucy, but you need to take better care of yourself. When was the last time you had a haircut?”
I pulled my mousy brown ponytail over my shoulder. “I don’t know. I’ve been growing it out.”
“I’m a hairdresser for goodness sake, I can’t let you go around with hair that’s not trimmed and styled. Looks like our next date will be in my salon,” she said. “Thank goodness you girls have me.”
When the ladies were done with our toes and I’d convinced them to put a clear coat on my nails instead of the bright pink Catherine had suggested, we made our way to the changing rooms to remove the robes and put our clothes back on. I looked down at my nails. They did look much cleaner, and maybe my hair could use a trim. Pulling on my jeans and black t-shirt, I hesitated, taking one more look in the mirror. Could Catherine be right? Did I need to be more girly? Maybe that was why Mike hadn’t seen me as more than a friend? I’d always known I was different from the other girls at school, but I’d never thought I needed to change to fit in.
“We’ll meet you in the foyer,” Catherine called out.
Leaving my robe hanging on the hook, I pulled on my faded black sandshoes and made my way to the foyer. Outside the windows, the world had turned grey and heavy rain bucketed down.
“Looks like it’s going to be a cold wet winter.” Tracey’s voice made me jump as she arrived beside me at the window.
“I hope not,” I said.
“You can’t believe everything she says,” said Tracey. “She exaggerates, you know.”
“It’s okay. I won’t repeat any of it,” I promised.
She sighed. “She a lot isn’t she.”
I was thrown off by her sudden candidness with me. “That’s an understatement.” I hoped I hadn’t been too honest.
“I guess she means well. Not like I have choice but to stay with her at the moment. I met your dad the other day. He’s a nice guy.”
‘Too nice for Catherine,’ I wanted to say. “Yeah, he is.”
As though summoned by our conversation, Dad’s ute pulled up in front of the building, his smile spreading across his face as he climbed out with two umbrellas and ran towards the door. He pulled it open, hair and coat drenched.
I laughed. “Why didn’t you put the umbrellas up?”
He looked at them in his hand as though he hadn’t noticed them there. “Because I didn’t think about it. They’re so you ladies don’t get wet.”
Catherine approached us. “Such a gentleman.”
; “How was it?” he asked.
“It was nice,” I said.
“Yeah, it was nice,” repeated Tracey.
“I think we all bonded,” said Catherine.
Tracey and I exchanged a glance.
“Why don’t we grab lunch?” asked Catherine.
“We can’t. Lucy’s got an English assignment due,” said Dad.
I looked to Tracey, who knew very well I didn’t, but she kept her mouth shut.
“That’s a shame. We had such a great day it would’ve been the perfect ending.” She wrapped her arm around mine and Tracey’s shoulders and gave us a squeeze.
When she released me I stood beside Dad, as far away as I could get without making it obvious.
“See you at school,” I told Tracey.
She gave me a nod.
“Tracey, respond politely,” said Catherine.
“I will see you at school,” said Tracey in the poshest voice she could muster.
Catherine and Dad said their goodbyes and Dad handed her an umbrella before pushing ours open and holding it over our heads as we walked out of the dry shop and into the onslaught of rain.
My shoes and the bottom of my jeans were wet by the time we climbed into the ute. Dad watched as Catherine and Tracey ran to Catherine’s car.
“Sounds like you had a great time,” said Dad as we pulled away.
“You do realise who Catherine’s niece is, right?” I said.
“Someone from your school?” he asked.
“Her name is Tracey Bloom. The cow with the herd. The girl who made my life hell for years.”
His eyes widened. “Tracey? Really? But she was so lovely when I met her.”
“I bet,” I grumbled. “I can’t believe I had to spend a morning with my school bully.”
“But I thought you’d worked it all out and you were okay now? You were okay when I came in.”
“I was being polite because you want me to behave for Catherine. And no, we didn’t ‘work it out’, I told her to leave me alone and now she snickers quieter.”
“She’s been through a lot. Maybe you should cut her some slack?”
“Slack? Like she cut me slack when she posted a picture of my head on a man’s body for everyone to see? Do you forget how miserable she made my life?”
Circus in the Clouds (The Balloonist Chronicles Book 3) Page 4