Freeks

by Amanda Hocking

  Roxie did her best to control the fire, and for the most part, she did a good job. It was just much harder to keep under wraps when she was upset or frightened. When her stepdad snuck into her room late one night, she’d finally had enough.

  Unfortunately, the fire had gotten away from her. While the firefighters were still hosing down the rubble that had once been her home, Roxie turned and walked away, and she never went back.

  “But we’re, like, super poor right now?” Hutch asked.

  “Well, we’re always kinda poor, but yeah.” I sighed. “We’re pretty broke.”

  “Then why doesn’t Gideon just go to Vegas and bet it all?” Hutch asked.

  I shook my head. “Gideon has played in poker games before, but only when he’s desperate. He doesn’t like cheating.”

  Luka picked up his cards and leaned forward on the table. “So, are we gonna play cards, or what? I’ve had a long night already.”

  For the first time, I noticed the weariness in Luka’s face, the kind of look he’d get after a long night of working. He didn’t have a show tonight, but he’d been performing for tips, wandering around the midway swallowing swords and juggling knives. But that kinda thing usually didn’t affect him this badly.

  “What happened?” I asked as he dealt the cards. “Why such a long night?”

  “It was mostly fine until toward the end of the night,” Luka explained. “There were these two rich townie assholes wearing sunglasses even though it’s the middle of the night, and they were drunk as hell.”

  I grimaced and my heart began to race as I realized to my dismay that it sounded like Luka was describing Logan and Troy, two of Gabe’s sister’s friends.

  “They were just being punks and asking me what would happen if they stabbed me through the stomach,” Luka said. “They just wouldn’t let up, even when I tried walking away. One of the guys had a girlfriend, and she kept trying to drag him off and apologizing. It was really sad, actually.”

  That definitely sounded like Logan, Troy, and Selena. At least it seemed like Gabe wasn’t around and hadn’t joined in. I lowered my eyes and tried to keep my expression blank. I didn’t want to hear the lectures from Roxie or Luka about associating with them, especially not after I’d had such a nice time with Gabe earlier tonight.

  “Eventually, Seth came over and chased him off,” Luka finished. “But it still sucked dealing with them.”

  “I’m sorry,” I mumbled, because there was nothing more I could say.

  12. townie

  We played a full game and had started the second one when Tim Phoenix came in to join us. Other than being leaner and younger than his brother, Brendon, he looked almost exactly like him. Blond hair, blue eyes, and a bright smile, it was easy to see what Luka saw in him. Not to mention how good he looked in his acrobat uniform.

  “Am I interrupting?” Tim asked.

  Luka shook his head. “Not at all.”

  Tim kissed Luka, then sat down at the swivel chair across from the dinette. “So, Mara, I didn’t have a chance to talk to you earlier today. How did it go at the police station? Do they know anything about Blossom?”

  “She hasn’t been gone long enough for them to really investigate, but it sounds like there’s a big equinox music festival going on one county over, so she might’ve gone there,” I explained. “If she doesn’t show up in a couple days, I have a number I can call for more help.”

  “I told you.” Roxie poked me in the arm to emphasize her point. “Blossom loves chilling out, getting high, and listening to jams. That equinox shit sounds right up her alley.”

  “We don’t know for sure that’s where she is yet,” I pointed out.

  “Not yet, but we will when she turns up just before we roll out of town,” Roxie said. She set her cards down in the center of the table and leaned back against the wall, so she was facing me. “Anyway, how did it go with that guy tonight?”

  Luka set his cards on top of Roxie’s. “What guy are you talking about?”

  “Didn’t you hear?” Roxie asked with a smirk. “Mara was doing the nasty with a townie.”

  “So what?” Hutch asked, sounding irritated. “Are we just done playing then?”

  I rolled my eyes. “We didn’t hook up.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Tim grinned. “I heard about that.”

  I tensed but tried to nonchalantly take a sip of my beer. “What did you hear?”

  “I heard you guys were making out on the Ferris wheel,” Tim said.

  “We just kissed a couple times.” I tried to play it off but nobody seemed to be buying it.

  “I saw him. He’s cute,” Roxie said.

  Luka leaned forward on the table, eyes wide and excited. “So are you gonna see him again?”

  “I don’t know.” I lowered my eyes and didn’t know how to answer the question. I wanted to, and we’d made plans to, but I wasn’t actually sure that I should. “Maybe.”

  “I always worry about dating a townie. What if you get attached?” Tim asked, expressing my sentiments.

  “Well, it’s not just that. I mean, he’s a townie,” Luka said. “You know how they can be to people like us.”

  Before Luka had gotten involved with Tim, he’d once tried to date a townie, and it had ended with the guy and a few of his friends beating the crap out of Luka when they realized he worked as a sideshow freak.

  And that was only one of many similar stories I’d heard. My romantic entanglements hadn’t turned out as badly as they had for some people, because I usually had the good sense to get out of there before they realized who or what I was.

  I shook my head, deciding that my urge to see Gabe was overriding all of my fears. “We’re just having some fun, and I’ll be okay.”

  “Yeah, Mara’s a real pro,” Hutch said, making me sound like a prostitute. “She does this kinda thing all the time.”

  “Thanks, Hutch,” I said dryly.

  Roxie yawned. “Anyway, it’s getting late. I probably should head back to my trailer. Seth and Carrie have to be done by now.”

  “Are you crashing here tonight?” Luka asked me.

  “If you guys don’t mind.” I stood up so Roxie could slide out behind me. “My mom’s kinda in a funk.”

  “Yeah, it’s no problem. If Seth doesn’t come back, you can sleep in his bunk in back,” Luka offered, motioning to the back of the trailer.

  I noticed a disappointed look on Tim’s face and shook my head. “No, that’s fine. I can sleep out here.” I patted the bench cushions that were about a hundred times softer and fluffier than my own bed. “Me and Hutch can have pillow talk.”

  “Good. You can tell him what it’s like to kiss with tongue,” Roxie teased as she opened the door. “He’s been dying to find out.”

  “I’ve kissed girls before!” Hutch called after her.

  She waved as she stepped outside, letting the warm night air waft into the trailer. “Night, guys.”

  Once she was gone, we cleared off the table. The dining table and couch folded down into a nice-size bed, and Tim started getting it ready for me while I threw away the empty beer bottles. Hutch hopped up onto his bed above the driver’s seat and Luka came back with blankets and a pillow from Seth’s bed.

  “Need anything else?” Luka asked after he handed me the bedding.

  “Is it cool if I borrow, like, a pair of jamma pants, so I don’t have to sleep in my dress?” I asked.

  I could’ve gone back to my own trailer to get something to sleep in, but I didn’t want to risk waking up my mom. She’d be all apologetic now, and she’d want to cry and hug me, and I was getting tired and didn’t really want to deal with that.

  Luka got me a pair of pajama pants out of his wardrobe, and I went back into the bedroom to change. Their plastic accordion door actually worked, unlike my own, and I pulled it closed behind me.

  I slipped off my dress, leaving me in my tank top and panties, and then I pulled on the pants. They were a little loose on me, so I pulled the drawstri
ng as tight as I could.

  As I was doing that, I heard this strange hissing sound, like how I’d imagine a really giant cobra would sound if it were really pissed off.

  “Do you guys hear that?” I asked, and pulled the bedroom door open.

  Luka nodded. “What the hell is it?”

  “I have no idea,” I said, and the sound only seemed to grow louder.

  Tim apparently decided that he should find out, so he opened the front door. He leaned out, looking around, and I came up behind him, standing on my tiptoes to see if I could see anything, but there was nothing. Tim stepped outside, and I followed him.

  “Are you guys seriously going out there to check out a strange noise?” Hutch asked. “Didn’t you see Friday the 13th parts one through four?”

  “Quiet,” Luka shushed him, but he stayed just inside the trailer.

  “We’ll be right back,” I said as I ventured farther out into the campsite.

  I could hear Hutch muttering, “So, I’ll take that as a no, you did not see them.”

  Luka’s motorhome was the only one that had lights on, so everyone else must’ve been asleep. A streetlamp glowed behind Gideon’s trailer, and the moon shone above us, making it just bright enough where I could see.

  Tim was ahead of me, and he went left, so I decided to go right. A few lawn chairs were sitting out in front of Betty and Damon’s trailer, and they’d been tipped over. Other than that, I didn’t really see any signs of trouble.

  “Oh, shit,” Tim said.

  Luka left the safety of his motorhome and jogged over to where Tim stood beside Gideon’s trailer, and I hurried over to join them.

  “What?” I asked, but as soon as I reached him, I saw the problem. Spray painted in neon green on the side of Gideon’s trailer was one word:

  It wasn’t even spelled right, but I’d come to learn that the people who usually defamed our trailers very often had poor spelling. No matter how many times I heard it hurled at me, it never hurt less, and it never felt any less angry or cruel.

  “What a buncha dicks,” Luka said, and he took his boyfriend’s hand.

  I sighed. “Looks like I’ll have something fun to scrub off tomorrow.”

  Tim tilted his head, listening. “Do you still hear that?”

  I hadn’t heard anything, but as soon as he mentioned it, I noticed a low, guttural sound. But it had a gurgle to it too, like an overflowing soda bottle mixed with an injured animal.

  “That is not a spray can,” I said.

  Tim pointed to Roxie’s Airstreamer, shimmering like a silver bullet in the moonlight. “It’s coming from Roxie’s trailer.”

  Luka held on to Tim’s hand, trying to slow him down, so I sprinted ahead. The noise grew more pained, and almost recognizable—like it was human. I raced around the back of Roxie’s trailer, running toward the noise.

  I nearly tripped over Seth’s shoe, and then I saw him. It was dark enough where the blood looked black, and Seth was completely drenched in it. He’d been shredded—his arms, legs, everything was sliced up. His stomach had been torn open, and his entrails were spread out around him like slick sausage.

  Somehow, he was still alive, but a slash across his throat made it impossible for him to talk. I crouched down next to him and took his hand. He squeezed back, but he no longer seemed to have the superior strength he should’ve. His eyes stared up at me, filled with terror, and blood spilled out from his lips. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

  13. provisions

  The water was cold, freezing my fingers, but I barely even noticed it, even though they were raw from how long I’d spent trying to scrub Seth’s blood off my hands.

  Behind me, the sun rose lovely above the treetops, promising another beautiful morning, while I used a sponge and bucket to try to wash off the graffiti from the side of Gideon’s trailer. Roxie had tried to wash all the blood from beside her trailer, and from the corner of my eye, I could see a huge rust-colored puddle slowly drying.

  I’d exchanged my bloodied pajamas for jean shorts and a T-shirt, and though I’d really wanted to shower and wash away everything, I’d felt like there was too much that needed to be done. I’d settled for washing the blood off my skin and pulling my thick hair back into a ponytail, then went to work.

  Everyone else had gathered in the center of the camp, arguing and placing the blame squarely on Zeke Desmond and his two tigers.

  Well, not everyone. Gideon and Carrie were still at the hospital with Seth.

  “You know bloody well that it wasn’t my tigers!” Zeke shouted. He’d been yelling so much that his face had begun to turn beet red, matching the shock of hair that sprang wildly from his head. “They’re still in their pens, and if they’d gotten out, they’d still be out.”

  “The gate to their cage was open!” Doug shouted. He’d left his post in the midway camp to come over and give us all orders, since Gideon wasn’t here.

  “They were still in their cage,” Zeke insisted. “They didn’t go anywhere.”

  In the aftermath of discovering Seth, the tigers’ gate had been discovered wide open, but both of them were still inside, cowering in the corner. Mahilā had been making a plaintive mewling sound all morning, which many of the people in our troupe took to be a sign of guilt.

  But no one else had really taken to actually confronting Zeke. They stood in a small semicircle crowded around Doug and Zeke, watching the two of them go at it. Except for my mother, who was still in her trailer, and me, because I couldn’t just stand there doing nothing.

  I kept picturing Seth, and the weakness of his hand as it gripped mine. I had to keep moving so I wouldn’t think about him so much.

  “You heard what Mara and Tim said,” Doug said through a mouthful of chewing tobacco. “It looked like Seth had been mauled by a tiger.”

  “No, we never said that.” I stopped scrubbing the trailer and looked over at them. “Seth was attacked by something, but we never said we thought it was a tiger.”

  Doug scoffed. “What else could it be? There’s no bears around here.”

  “I don’t know,” I admitted, and lowered my eyes.

  “It was probably the same vandals that spray painted Gideon’s trailer,” Zeke suggested, not for the first time.

  “You think a person did that?” Doug pointed over to the puddle beside Roxie’s trailer.

  Zeke folded his arms over his chest, standing as tall as he could. “It wouldn’t be the first time that the locals had come after us like that.”

  Doug shook his head. “They’ve got no reason to. We just got here, and we haven’t done anything.”

  “They had no reason to deface Gideon’s trailer like that either, but they did,” Zeke countered. “And you know how people have treated all of us.”

  Tim shook his head, and when he spoke, his voice sounded hollow and cold. “No, you all didn’t see Seth. There’s no way a human did that.” He stood a few feet back, looking at the ground, and Luka had his arm around him.

  Doug threw his hands up in the air. “Then it must be a tiger.”

  “It’s not one of my tigers!” Zeke continued to protest. “Safēda wouldn’t hurt a fly, and Mahilā wouldn’t go anywhere without her sister.”

  Brendon Phoenix—Tim’s older brother and the patriarch of The Fantastic Flying Phoenixes—had been holding back, standing in front of his trailer with his wife and three-year-old daughter. But he left now, walking over to stand in between Doug and Zeke.

  He’d been with the sideshow for a long time. Whenever Gideon had business to attend to elsewhere, he usually left Brendon in charge.

  “Everyone needs to just calm down,” Brendon said. “Nobody knows what happened to Seth, okay? And whoever—or whatever—it was, it doesn’t do us any good to fight amongst ourselves.”

  Doug spit a huge wad of gross tobacco spit on the ground, right near Zeke’s feet. “We need to get rid of those damn tigers.”

  “Doug, we’re not getting rid of anything,”
Brendon told him firmly. “And the carnival opens in a couple hours, so why don’t you go back over and calm down your people?”

  “The carnival is still on?” Doug laughed darkly. “You must be joking.”

  “I’m not.” Brendon turned to survey the crowd around us, speaking to them. “Seth was hurt, and we’re all sorry about that, but that doesn’t change anything. We still have a job to do, and yesterday, we hardly made enough money to get us out of this state, let alone put food on the table. We need to go back to work.”

  Doug looked like he wanted to say more, but he just shook his head and started trudging back toward his camp.

  “With Seth out of commission, we have to find something else to fill his strongman act,” Brendon continued.

  “Luka could step in,” Hutch suggested. “He has his sword swallowing and fire breathing.”

  “I could work with Luka,” Roxie offered. She’d been sitting on the steps in front of her Airstream, taking it all in, but she stood up now. “Make it a bit more elaborate and exciting.”

  I thought about mentioning the crossbow trick I’d been working on with Luka, but truth was, I didn’t feel much like performing, and Roxie had it covered. But I still planned to get my crossbow out tonight and practice with it—if there was something attacking the camp, I wanted to be prepared.

  “Why don’t you two talk it over and see what you can come up with?” Brendon asked.

  With Doug gone and under Brendon’s direction, the carnival slowly rolled into motion. Brendon was right—there was still a lot to do if we wanted to open today, and we had to if we wanted to get out of here eventually.

  Hutch came over to me, and without saying anything, he grabbed a sponge from the sudsy bucket and started scrubbing beside me. A bandana had been looped around his forehead to keep his shaggy brown hair out of his face, and it highlighted the dark circles under his eyes. None of us had gotten any sleep last night.

  The campsite had started coming alive—people chatting with each other, things being moved around, breakfast being made. But then it all suddenly fell silent, eerily so, like someone had hit an off switch on a radio.