by Trudi Jaye
“All this time and I never knew.”
Sam shrugged. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me. And apparently, there’s a lot I don’t know about the blocks. How did you get rid of Veronica’s spell?” His face was flushed and his eyes sparked with emotion.
“There’s a woman, Indigo, who lives with the Jolly Carnival. She managed to get it off me a couple weeks ago.”
Sam’s face paled. “I didn’t know. I thought…”
“She’s got one on you as well, hasn’t she?” Tilly’s voice was hushed. “That’s why you do everything she says. That’s why you’ve stayed all these years.”
Sam hesitated and then nodded. “Which is also why you can’t tell me anything more. But you have to take me with you.” He turned to Missy. “I wanted to escape before, but it was because I thought I could get far enough away to kill myself and end this nightmare. But to know there’s a cure to this curse?” He stopped and took a deep, ragged breath. “Please take me with you, Missy. And please get this terrible magic off me.” Tears glassed over Sam’s eyes as he spoke.
Missy watched him closely. “I don’t know,” she said. She just didn’t know if she could trust him.
Sam turned to Tilly, grabbing her arms. “You have to convince her, tell her I’m okay. Please, Tilly, you have to help me get out of here.” The tears were falling down his face now, and he swallowed like he had bits of glass down his throat.
Tilly raised her arms and hugged Sam, trying to comfort him. “It’s okay, Sam. You can come with us.” She looked at Missy over his shoulder. “He can come with us,” she said in a voice that brooked no argument. “He’s no more one of Veronica’s goons than I am.”
Missy studied them both, trying to see cracks in the personas they were presenting to her. It would affect more than just herself if she got this wrong. And she’d been getting so many other things wrong recently; it was hard to trust her instincts. Was Tilly on her side? It was difficult to know. But what did it matter? If Tilly was working for Veronica, they were doomed anyway. “Okay,” she said softly, hoping she wasn’t making another terrible mistake.
Tilly nodded and pulled Sam into a hug. “But, Sam, listen to me,” she said, pulling back and looking up into his face. “Veronica can track you via your link. We have to get you unlocked from her as soon as we can.”
Sam’s body shook slightly. “I will do anything and everything I can to get out of here and make that happen,” he promised.
“Then the first thing you can do is leave us. We have to plan.” Missy nodded her head toward the door.
Sam reluctantly walked away.
***
Zeph strode along the concrete, not sure where he was going. The sick feeling in his stomach wouldn’t go away. He was useless, unable to help the others get out of this place, unable to be trusted. He felt like sprinting as fast as he could. The thought made him look down at his leg, the one that had been injured not so long ago. He distinctly remembered the ride to L.A., the pain and the stiffness. He jiggled his leg around; it felt fine, like it was totally healed.
Instead of feeling good about it, the realization that Veronica could somehow heal his leg made Zeph shudder. She was so powerful. The Carnival people couldn’t do anything like that. When he’d been sick as a child, they’d all just looked at him with worried faces and not known what to do.
But Veronica had healed his leg.
How the hell were they supposed to go up against someone so powerful? It made all the planning Missy and Tilly were doing seem stupid, futile. What was the point?
He looked around and realized he’d been heading toward his mother’s house. A sudden urgency to see her filled his head, and he began to run.
Arriving at her house, he hammered on the door. When there was no answer, he tried the doorknob. It was locked.
Where else could she be? He looked at his watch. She’d said she helped out in the practice ring for much of the day; maybe she was there.
He was striding back to the practice ring when he felt the fog descending again. He desperately pushed at it, using all his strength. It worked for a few minutes, but the tendrils worked their way into his mind, this time devouring him, taking away his conscious thoughts. He held his hands to his head as if he could physically push it back, desperately trying to defend himself. But it was relentless, closing in on his mind, and soon he felt the warm cocoon of Veronica’s love enveloping him.
Zeph smiled.
Wiping at the tears on his face, Zeph tried to understand them. He was happy, he was with friends, and now he knew Veronica wanted to speak to him. Life didn’t get better than this.
He started to walk toward her office and discovered that wasn’t fast enough. He ran and then sprinted, pushing his body hard, all in the need to get to Veronica as fast as he could.
He arrived at the office and almost fell through the door, scrambling past a surprised Lorenzo. He slammed through Veronica’s office door and stood, chest heaving, searching the room for her.
“Through here, Zeph.” Veronica’s voice was coming from a room off to one side of her pristine white office.
The urgency had calmed, and he walked across the space and into the room. He looked around curiously. He’d never seen inside this part of the complex before, although he knew what was here.
Marco’s rooms.
“Where have you been, Zeph?”
His attention focused down on Veronica as he concentrated on answering her question to the best of his ability. “I took Kitten to the medical center to see Sam.”
“How is she?”
“Better. The doc said you’d healed the wound some, and he just wanted to watch her overnight to make sure she was doing okay.”
Veronica nodded. “That was a bad decision on my part, Zeph, letting Kitten do that act. I thought she was ready, and she wasn’t. I wouldn’t have made that mistake before you arrived.”
Zeph frowned. “You think I’m to blame?”
“No, not you. Missy. She’s a powerful talent, like you. But instead of helping me like you do, she’s causing ripples in our happy lives here.” Veronica stepped to one side, and Zeph saw the person lying in the bed beside her for the first time.
He was gaunt, his pale skin stretched over his body. The bones underneath protruded unpleasantly through the paper-thin membrane. His eyes were closed and he was so still; it seemed he must be dead. Zeph shivered, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Marco’s prone body.
“My one problem is that Missy is so very good in the air. Her act with Alphonso is going to bring the house down. The energy created by their act alone will be enough to help me begin to heal Marco properly for the first time in years.” She touched Marco’s hand, and he jerked like an electric current had been forced through his system.
“She’ll be fine,” said Zeph, feeling the need to defend Missy. “I can talk to her.”
Veronica ignored him. It was like she was musing out loud to herself. “When I realized if I weakened the Jolly Carnival, I could gain power, I was pleased. Abacus was wasting the magic on blessings for crying out loud. It seemed simple. I thought I would do it quickly and with ease. But it’s taken me more than ten years to get where I am.” She spun around suddenly and focused her glare on Zeph. “And I will not allow your girlfriend to ruin everything.”
For some reason, Zeph shivered. He didn’t understand why, because he wasn’t cold, and he had Veronica’s full attention, so he was happy. He smiled at her instead, to show he was listening.
“I wanted to show you my brother, Zeph. Marco is weakening. And do you know why he’s weakening? There is a disruption in our happy little world. Someone is making otherwise happy people wonder what they’re doing here. Breaking up the curses and making it harder for me to keep the peace. When I have to exert effort to keep everyone happy, my brother suffers.” Veronica’s voice was low and fast. She looked more rumpled than he’d ever seen her.
“What can I do to help?” asked Zeph.
Zeph crossed to sit in the seat, eager to help.
“I don’t know if you are aware of how curse magic works, Zeph. But I need to gather your power, harvest it from you, so I can help Marco.” Veronica opened the bedside drawer and pulled out a knife. “Usually, it’s a family member, but as Marco is all I have—and he’s certainly not up to it—I must find alternatives.”
Zeph watched with fascination as she held up the knife, turning it so the reflection shone in the light.
She walked over to Zeph. “Hold out your arm, Zeph. This won’t take long.”
He smiled as she laid the knife over his arm and sliced. Blood beaded out from the wound, and he watched, fascinated, as it dribbled down the side of his arm.
Veronica paused. “Actually, I’ve changed my mind. Stand up, Zeph, and take off your shirt. I need more than just a small jumpstart to do what I need today.”
“What do you need to do?” asked Zeph.
“I’m going to place a curse magic block on Missy. I must control her.”
Zeph nodded. She was right. Missy didn’t want to do what Veronica said, and that was bad. She needed to be controlled, to understand that Veronica knew what she was doing.
It was for the best.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Missy stood nervously in the reception area of Veronica’s office. She’d been invited into the inner sanctum this morning, and she didn’t understand why—today of all days. She should be practicing, making sure of all the last-minute details for the big show tonight, not standing here. Veronica must know. Her hand trembled where it hid in her jeans pocket.
Their plan was simple, and they knew what needed to be done. They’d prepped everyone as best they could.
And now this.
Her nerves were shouting at her, and every last fiber wanted to turn and run. But if they were to make it happen tonight, she needed to keep up the pretense of doing what Veronica instructed.
Missy took a breath and knocked on the door, waiting until she heard Veronica call out before she opened it. Veronica was sitting at her white desk, small glasses perched on her nose, looking at her computer. She looked up and smiled at Missy as she walked in. It wasn’t a pleasant smile.
Missy shivered, and again her every instinct said to run like a mouse from a snake. She held her ground—she only had to survive until tonight.
“Thank you for joining us, Missy.”
Us? Missy looked around and saw Zeph sitting on the couch, his face the usual dazed mask he wore when he was under Veronica’s influence, and his shirt off, exposing his bare, muscled chest. Her heart leaped.
“What have you done to him?” she asked angrily.
“Zeph has been helping me, my dear. You could learn a little from him about being a good neighbor.”
“What do you mean helping you?” Missy knew how curse magic worked. Her father was evidence of that. She stormed over to Zeph and looked at him closely. At first, she couldn’t see anything, except his dazed expression seemed even more pronounced than usual.
Then Zeph moved slightly and she noticed the blood.
It was smeared across the back of Veronica’s otherwise spotlessly white couch. Violently red against the starkness of the leather, the sight of it caused Missy’s stomach to clench, and she struggled not to vomit all over Zeph.
“What have you done to him?” But this time her voice was a whisper, and she knew the answer before Veronica spoke.
“Curse magic is more powerful than anything in the little circus where you were raised. But it requires a certain amount of sacrifice. Not everyone is willing to do what is needed. Luckily, I am.” She flicked her hand at Zeph. “He will be fine. I have called for Sam, who will be here soon.”
Missy sat next to Zeph and put one hand against his face. Tears slipped out the corners of her eyes and down her cheeks. She ignored Veronica.
Veronica stood. “But the reason I needed Zeph’s magic was because I have something important to do. But first, I wanted to tell you I was very impressed by your performance this afternoon. You and Alphonso make an excellent team.”
“I’m going to make this okay, Zeph,” Missy whispered, ignoring Veronica’s words. She rubbed her hand over his hair in a soothing motion, and Zeph leaned ever so slightly into the motion. Missy thought she heard him whimper, but the dazed smile stayed in place. She needed to see how bad the wounds on his back were, but she was afraid to look.
“It’s clear to me you’re an asset as well as a hindrance to The Experiment,” Veronica continued.
Missy put one hand on Zeph’s shoulder, gently pushing it forward so she could look at his back. He moved willingly enough, although a little stiffly. Missy looked down and gasped. His back was basically raw meat, cuts crisscrossed up and down the whole length. Blood pooled everywhere, including all over the white couch, making it seem even worse. Her breathing became shallow and it felt like she had to gasp down every little bit of oxygen she could get. A terrible sense of foreboding rushed over her; she looked up to find that Veronica had moved and was standing directly behind her.
“Zeph, would you please hold Missy for a moment? Tightly, if you will,” she said softly.
His hands clamped around Missy’s arms, and for a moment, she was too stunned to move. She looked at Zeph’s face and for the first time saw his anguished expression, his eyes calling out for help. But he continued to do what Veronica wanted, his hands painful around her upper arms. She started to struggle, knowing she had to get out of Veronica’s room.
A needle jabbed painfully into her neck, and Missy cried out. She tried to escape, kept pushing against Zeph’s strong hold, but to no effect.
Veronica removed the needle and stepped back out of range. “Thank you, Zeph. You may let her go now. She will be incapacitated shortly.”
Missy shrugged off his hands as soon as he loosened them and stood. The room tipped on an angle, and she reached out to grab the nearest chair. “What did you do to me?” she asked. The room started to melt around her. She tried to make a run for the door, but her legs felt like they’d been filled with lead while she wasn’t paying attention. She tripped over her own foot and fell to the floor, the side of her head hitting the edge of the coffee table on the way down.
She was woozily aware of being moved, pulled by gentle hands to the other couch. “Stay strong,” whispered Zeph in her ear. She knew that was strange, but she didn’t know why. Everything was fading in and out, colors going bright one moment and then fading to grey the next.
Zeph stepped away from her, and she moaned. She needed his comfort, his presence. She was scared and couldn’t remember why.
In the next minute, Sam appeared in her vision. “She’s got a nasty knock to the head, Veronica. I’ll need to check it out.”
“Not yet, Sam. You will work on Zeph first while I take care of her.”
“What are you going to do?” asked Sam.
“Your job isn’t to ask questions. Just do what I tell you.”
Missy tried to stand up, tried to move, but her whole body was like one giant lump of goo. Veronica came to sit next to her. She put one hand on Missy’s arm, and a powerful zap of electricity burned through her body. Instead of the fog that Zeph had described, and she’d occasionally felt pushing at her mind, this was a violent invasion, forks of lightning forcing their way into her mind, baring her inner thoughts to Veronica’s probing.
Missy screamed and tried to force her body to move. All it did was make her shudder and rock under Veronica’s touch.
“My dear, there is no point in struggling. Give in to your fate.” She turned to where Sam was tending to Zeph. “And you can get thoughts of a rescue out of your heads. I have you both firmly under my control. This close to me, there is no escape from the prisons of your minds.”
She turned back to Missy, and th
e brief respite was over. The sizzling electricity again pulsed through her mind, burning holes into her secret places and tearing open her protective layers until it laid bare her inner self.
And that’s where Veronica placed her curse magic, at the core of who she was, wrapping its tendrils around her innermost heart. It pulsed and seethed like a burning putrid acid, leaving Missy gasping for breath.
She felt exposed and open, as if she’d just been physically abused. But it had all taken place in her mind. She could feel Veronica’s electrical presence wandering around inside her head, looking to see what she could find.
Missy pushed back against her, tried to find a way to fight. And an incredible pain seared through her entire body, a powerful wave of agony that made her scream without thinking.
“Don’t fight me, Missy. I’ve been practicing my blocks, and this is my best one yet. Any resistance you give me, you will experience that pain again tenfold.”
Missy looked up at Veronica through glazed eyes and took a sobbing breath. There was no way to fight this.
Veronica had won.
***
As he watched Missy sobbing on Veronica’s couch, Zeph’s mind came sharply into focus. He moved his shoulder and pain streaked down his back. He was wearing a shirt he didn’t recognize, and he could feel bandages taped to his sides. He vaguely remembered Veronica cutting him while he simply sat there and let her.
He glanced beside him to the doc.
“Don’t,” Sam whispered, shaking his head. “Don’t let her know. Just do what she says.”
Zeph frowned and then realized the doc thought he was about to attack Veronica. His reactions hadn’t quite emerged from the fog, but as they did, he knew Sam was right. He wasn’t in any shape to take on Veronica with his back stripped raw. But Veronica didn’t know he was going in and out of her influence. That information might be helpful.