by Riva, Aline
Cleo nodded.
“I know that,” she said, and her hand shook as she brushed a tear from her eye, then she got up from the sofa, “I should leave, it's almost time. I have to hand myself over to Flint.”
“Good luck,” Emma replied, and Cleo gave her a nod, then left the suite.
Just as Cleo left, Vicki came out of the next room and joined her, she sat beside Emma and the two women talked in low voices.
Zodiac watched through a crack in the door, listening as they spoke softly, he caught some but not all of the conversation. When Vicki had gone into the bedroom and asked if he was okay, she had been smiling. Now she was looking worried and so was Emma and he had caught enough to understand they were both worried about his Daddy.
Now he knew something was wrong, Zodiac knew what had to be done about it. He went over to the bedroom window, opened it, climbed out quietly on to the ledge and jumped, landing like a cat in the car park below. Then he got up and darted quickly across the road and into the fairground. Today he didn't care how many people stared at him, all he wanted to do was find his father, because there was something wrong and if Daddy was ill or in trouble, he wanted to be there to help him...
As Greg walked across the field towards the colourful fair, he looked to the circus tent at its heart. He knew Flint would be in there, and so would Cleo. His heart ached for her. His arms hurt with the need to pull her away from all of the danger and just hold her and shield her from this wicked world. It seemed wrong that he had finally met the right one and now everything was so uncertain.
His thoughts turned to Zodiac as he wondered if he had done wrong to keep his son in the dark regarding all he had kept secret. He was so young, but old enough to understand. Yet he had chosen to protect him from the truth... He just hoped the others would keep him safe for a while, until he understood what had happened. Ideally, he wanted to explain it to him, when this was over, in his own words... but time was too short now. The tent was in sight and he was about to take on the biggest gamble of his life...
Cleo reached the tent first. She walked in and saw Flint standing in the middle of the ring, he was waiting for her. She drew in a deep breath and walked up to him. He watched her as she walked, noticing she was not limping. The bandage on her arm was still present bit she certainly didn't look injured any more. Back at the hotel it had been hard to estimate her condition, but now, seeing the way she walked, noticing the sway of her hips, he silently decided it would be a matter of days before she was back up that rope. Once he had eliminated Greg, she would soon slide back to her old life, because she had no choice – he would make sure of that... By the time she reached him, he was smiling.
“I see you came alone,” he remarked, “Your boyfriend's hiding, is he? I'm not surprised. He knows I run things around here and always will – I guess that was his last act of rebellion, taking you for the night. It wouldn't surprise me if he had one of his people plant that zombie in your room just to discredit me in your eyes. Why are you looking at me like you hate me? I didn't say you have to go up the rope... Maybe, if you're really nice to me and never do anything as stupid as this again, I might reward you by making the new girl the permanent rope girl. You can just live in the caravan with me, we can be comfortable together as we rule over our little kingdom. What do you say, Cleo? It could be even better than old times!”
He smiled brightly as he awaited her answer, but she just looked into his cold eyes, her face expressionless as she stood there comforted by the knowledge that she was carrying hope in her heart for Greg, she was also wearing his shirt, and it hung loose and partly buttoned over her clothing. She remembered the promise he made her on the bridge. She silently clung to his strength that lingered in her heart.
“It doesn't matter what you give me or how you treat me,” Cleo said as she looked Flint in the eye, “I don't love you. That's one thing you can never force me to do. My heart is with Greg. It will stay with him until his final breath and even then, I'll never stop loving him. You can't change that. All you can do is keep me prisoner. You're keeping a prisoner who truly hates you. I mean it Flint, you can keep me off the rope act, you can treat me better, fuck me every night and tell me you love me – but I will hate you and I will make sure that hatred grows every day. You can't have my heart because it is not yours to take but mine to give away - and my heart belongs to Greg!”
She had laid it all out well as she glared at him fearlessly, spurred on by the ache in her heart as she worried for the man she loved.
Flint had listened to her words, but they meant little to him.
“Cleo,” he explained, “I love you. I don't care about your feelings as long as I get what I want, and Harvey Flint always gets what he wants. So all the shit you just said means nothing at all to me!”
“But it will when you wake one morning and realise I'm stabbing you to death,” she vowed, “If you harm Greg, I will make sure you die in the worst possible way.”
He cast a glance at the curvy, petite woman and laughed.
“No you wont, Cleo. You know how life works. I run this town and if you want to live without suffering, if you want a really nice life, you'll shut up and do as I say, because you won't last five minutes without me, I'll make sure of it.”
She shook her head as she looked at him in disgust.
“You can't have me the way you want me,” she replied, “It's never going to happen!”
He leaned closer and as she grew tense and he saw a flicker of fear in her eyes at last he smiled, knowing he could still provoke a reaction.
“As long as I have you to myself I have what I want, I really don't care how you feel, Cleo.”
Then Marc wandered into the tent and looked about the ring.
“Get out, I'm busy!” Flint yelled.
But Marc stayed inside the circus ring.
“I do not want to miss this, I'm not leaving yet,” he replied.
“Miss what?” Flint asked.
“MY big moment,” replied Greg as he walked into the ring to join them.
He took a few steps in and looked about the place, it was empty apart from the people who stood in the circus ring – as Cleo looked over at him Greg's heart ached far more than he cared to show. There was so much he still wanted to say, but it would have to wait. He was about to take a huge risk...
Marc turned, looking surprised to see Greg had showed up so soon.
“I hope you're here to apologise. Flint's a reasonable man. Just say sorry, do it for Cleo. Do it for your son. And do it for me and Vicki, we want you around for a long time to come – Vicki's pregnant.”
”Are you sure about that?” Greg asked, “I thought you fired blanks.”
“And you're right,” Marc replied, “That's what I thought too. No live ammo in me!”
“You seriously need to keep out of this, my friend,” Greg warned him as his gaze darkened and he took another step in Flint's direction, “This is my quarrel.”
Greg was now in the middle of the circus ring, where he and Flint stood facing one another.
“Greg, don't do this...” he heard Cleo say tearfully.
“At least you had the guts to show up,” Flint said as he reached for his gun.
Greg stepped back, pausing to open up his coat to show he was unarmed.
“I left my gun back at the hotel. I'm facing you man to man, unarmed. I want to sort this out with you once and for all even if we have to use our fists to do it! I'm not afraid of you, Flint. But the line is drawn in the sand, here and now: You leave me alone, you leave my son and my friends alone too. And Cleo is mine and that is not negotiable!”
Marc and Cleo were silent as they looked on, watching as the two men stood facing one another in the middle of the circus ring, their eyes locked as hostility silently built up and Greg's hand screwed into fist as Flint's fingers rested lightly, tapping at the leather holster that held his gun. It was a brief moment that seemed to be the calm before a terrible storm – a sense of doom was desc
ending, almost as if death had cast a shadow that only those who looked on could feel, as if to confirm that only one man would be leaving this situation alive...
Chapter 9
As the two men faced each other, Marc and Cleo looked on silently as fear shone in her gaze. She glanced at Marc, silently begging him to put a stop to this but he looked away, towards the middle of the circus ring. It was Flint who spoke first.
“You really shouldn't have come here today, Greg. And without a gun, too. That was really stupid. You must know what I'm going to do after the way you disrespected me?”
Greg was unaffected by his words.
“You think you're the big man who runs this town? If you're a real man, you'll put your gun on the ground and step away from it and take me on unarmed. I didn't come here to kill you. I'll fight you, but I'll make sure it's a fair fight!”
Flint looked back at Cleo. She was terrified. He realised she was wearing Greg's shirt, it hung loose on her and the thought of her needing this closeness, this reminder of him, spiked his rage. His eyes were burning with fury as he turned back to Greg.
“Okay, Greg...I'm going to cut you a deal. Purely because you had the balls to walk in here unarmed and try to take me on. If you leave Cleo alone and you respect my rules, I'll write this off. I'll forget all about what you've done.”
“And I'm supposed to forget you tried to kill me and Cleo? What makes you think I have any intention of staying away from her?I LOVE her!”
He had yelled that statement up close to Flint's face. Flint stepped back, maintaining his composure.
“If you love her, I suggest you forget her. I'm considering giving you a second chance and I suggest you take it. How would you like to be ring master five days a week? You're a charismatic man, the crowds will love you. And I will get more time off... to be with Cleo.”
He smiled a cruel smile as Greg glared back at him.
“I'll throw in some accommodation – not here at the fairground, one of those nice houses with a sea view. And I'll have a word with the local school, see if I can persuade the head teacher to talk to the children about what a great kid Zodiac is and why he should be welcomed into their class.”
The mention of his son had made his temper rise even more... to bring Zodiac into this was about as low as Flint could go. It was hard to hold back from slamming his fist into his face, but Greg held back.
“You can't buy me with bribes, Flint.”
“Then I guess I'll just have to think of another offer... something you will accept. Perhaps I'm not being generous enough. Every man has a price.”
“Not me,” Greg said in a menacing tone.
“Everyone has a price. I'm now determined to end this peacefully, Greg. I've come to realise you're strong minded like me. So I have the choice to either kill you or make you an ally - I'd prefer to have you on my side.”
“That will never happen!” he yelled.
“You can go now,” Flint said calmly.
Greg just looked at him, confused by his unexpected remark.
“I said, go,” Flint replied, “Think about my offer.”
Greg shot him a look of disgust and turned away, heading for the way out. The tent was wide open and sunlight spilled in, beyond the big top the rides were in operation and the fair was getting busy now it was mid afternoon.
“Oh Greg, by the way - one more thing...” Flint called.
Greg turned around, framed by the blue sky and the green lawn and the colourful rides in the distance as the big wheel turned and the rollercoaster rattled on its tracks and the helter skelter stood gleaming tall in the summer afternoon brilliance.
“What now, Flint?” he demanded angrily, then as Flint raised his gun, Greg looked at him in alarm.
He pulled the trigger, the shot rang out and Greg was thrown backwards, clutching a hand to his chest as he lay on the grass outside the entrance to the tent, bleeding heavily.
Cleo screamed, her face was pale and her eyes wide with horror.
“You bastard!” she yelled at Flint, who chuckled as he holstered his smoking gun.
Cleo ran out of the tent and fell to her knees beside Greg. Flint remained inside, watching, deciding it would do no harm to let her watch him die, he had ended this the way he had intended from the moment Greg had agreed to the meeting. There never would have been any other end to this, not for a man who had tried to undermine his power...
Marc dashed outside, joining Cleo. Greg was on his back, taking short, sharp breaths as he struggled to breathe. Blood was leaking through the bullet hole in his coat and soaking his suit and the ground beneath him. Flint finally left the tent, walking around Greg as he bled on the path and called to some guards to keep the area clear. They began to gather at the end of the path, keeping the public away from the sight of the shooting.
Cleo was sobbing.
“Marc...” she wept, “Marc! Fetch Christian! He can help him, he can save him... Please do something!”
Greg was fighting to breathe as more blood ran from beneath him.
“Cleo...” he whispered, “Don't forget...You and me... on the bridge...I'm always with you...”
Tears ran down her face as she clutched his hand.
“Fetch a doctor!” Marc yelled as he looked to the guards.
Greg had started to shake as he focussed on the sky, then on the faces of Cleo and Marc as they knelt beside him.
“I don't think... I'm going to make it...” he gasped, “I don't want to die... Look after Zodiac for me...” He had said that as he had looked to Marc, who was silently weeping as he nodded.
“You have to try and hold on,” Marc told him, “Stay with me, don't close your eyes...”
Marc stripped off his t shirt and held it against the wound.
“Christian's good, he can handle a gun shot...Just stay focussed.”
“I can't...” Greg whispered weakly, then he turned his head and looked up at Cleo.
“Come here...” he gasped, “Closer...”
Cleo leaned close to him, her ear close to his lips as he whispered to her. Marc was still trying to stem the flow of blood as she raised Greg's head and cradled it in her lap.
“Hold on,” she said tearfully, “Don't you die... don't you leave me!”
But Greg dragged in another breath, then his body fell limp as his eyes closed. For a moment all Marc could hear was the sound of Cleo sobbing as she held his best friend, then he looked down at Greg's body and as pain and grief and overwhelming rage burned in his eyes, he looked up at Flint. But what ever he would have said next was snatched away by a terrible realisation.
“Daddy! Oh no, my Daddy!” yelled Zodiac, who had darted through the gap between two armed guards and now stood there, staring in disbelief at the sight of his father on the ground, bleeding heavily with a bullet hole that went through his coat.
Any murderous thoughts in Flint's direction evaporated as Marc got up and put a protective arm around Zodiac.
Just then Emma and Vicki, who had by now realised the boy was missing and headed into the fair to search for him, called his name, then Emma clashed with a guard as she yelled that he had to stand aside.
“His father is dead! That boy needs us, we're his only family now!” she shouted in the masked man's face. He stepped aside and let them pass.
Marc and the two women gathered around Zodiac, talking to him softly as Cleo cradled Greg's body. Then Vicki and Emma led Zodiac away from the scene as he glanced back, still weeping. Marc lifted Greg into his arms and began to carry him through the fairground. Cleo got up from the path, still wearing Greg's shirt that was now stained heavily with his blood. Flint reached for her.
“It's over!” he said firmly.
She shook her head.
“I'm going with them! I'm staying with Greg until he's buried!” she told him tearfully, then she turned away and hurried off to catch up with Marc, who looked shattered and devastated as he carried Greg's body through the busy fair towards the hotel and with e
very step he took, people cleared a path, looking on, saying nothing as the music from the fair played on but the crowd stayed silent. The only sound that carried on the sea breeze was Zodiac wailing inconsolably. Everyone knew Greg was the man who had come to this town and dared to stand up to Flint. It wasn't shocked silence, it was a mark of respect...
Alex Casper had felt jittery leaving the safety of the town and taking once more to his tunnel. It wasn't the thought of Flint learning he had escaped yet again, because the man was soft towards him thanks to their shared curse of madness. What scared him was the fact that his meds were not yet worn off and Emma had asked him to make his way out, to seek out John Mundy then to return with him and to deliver a message that if the people made a stand, things could change...
He felt like he was on a suicide mission as he ducked behind a low slope and fired off two shots, taking out two rotting corpses that had stumbled through the old fencing far at the back of the industrial estate boundary. He was taking the longest route to the retail park, because that way, he would avoid being spotted by the guards at the watch tower. The downside was, this was the side known for the high risk of bumping into drifting dead who had wandered in.
He thought about Emma. Before she had left, as Vicki had walked away, Emma had turned back and said, “Something for your journey,” and then she had kissed him. He carried the memory of that kiss. She seemed to love him when he was calm and even minded and the crazy thoughts stayed far away, yet now she was asking him to venture out of town – something that required his insanity to return in order to deal with it...
He was expecting to feel the calm, clear headed mindset to evaporate pretty soon, but it wasn't soon enough as he heard a snarl and saw another creature looming over the slope, it was staggering towards him, picking up pace as its jaws snapped and dead eyes set on him. His hands trembled as he raised his gun. A shot jerked back its shoulder, it stepped forward, moving on towards him, now he could smell decay and see its ravenous hunger set in dull white eyes. It was moving faster now, heading right for him. He raised the gun and fired again, taking it out with a single head shot that punched a bullet between its eyes. The creature fell back, then rolled down the hillside. The sight of it rolling was suddenly hilarious. He laughed and laughed, throwing his head back and laughing again.