The Guild of Fallen Clowns

  Peepers’ hands remained firmly gripping Sam’s shoulders and he leaned in to his left ear. “The door is below,” he said.

  Sam closed his eyes and lowered his head.

  “Open eyes,” Peepers whispered.

  Sam’s eyes opened to slits. A vein in his neck throbbed as the view of the street below became clear. “Where is he? I don’t see him. I don’t see any—door.”

  In his left ear, Sam heard Peepers inhale deep. Peepers’ eyes were closed as he savored the flavor of Sam’s fear. He exhaled, and then gave Sam’s shoulders a quick shake. Sam leaned back hard and raised his head to the sky with his eyes closed tight.

  “What the fuck. Don’t do that again!” Sam yelled.

  Peepers drank in Sam’s predicament.

  “You lied to me,” Sam whimpered. “He’s not here, is he? You tricked me, didn’t you? Who the hell are you? Why are you doing this?”

  Peepers removed his grip on Sam’s right shoulder. “Look down,” he commanded.

  “No!” Sam said.

  Peepers pushed slowly on Sam’s left shoulder until he was hunched over, close to the point of tipping. Sam gave in and opened his eyes to the ground. “Okay, okay, my eyes are open,” he cried. Peepers released the pressure and allowed him to return upright on the wall. With Sam still looking down, Peepers flipped a small rock off the wall with his right hand. Sam watched as it floated in slow motion to the ground, where it shattered on impact with the sidewalk.

  Peepers returned his right hand to Sam’s shoulder and instructed him to keep his eyes open. Sam nodded with his head tilted down and eyes opened wide. Peepers jolted him forward and pulled back, preventing him from going over the edge.

  “Please don’t do that. Please let me back on the roof,” Sam pleaded. Peepers grinned in pleasure as his eyes closed and his head lifted.

  “Remember this place?” Peepers whispered.

  “Yes, of course I remember. Why did you bring me here?” His body trembled.

  “To finish job,” Peepers answered.

  Sam sniffled and turned his head. Peepers leaned out so Sam could look at his face. “Did you think death would stop me?” Peepers smiled.

  Sam’s face went flush as he realized the identity of Peepers. “The Happy Clown Killer?”

  Peepers nodded. “Peepers now.” He smiled.

  Sam turned away. His eyes closed tight. His face was tense with fear.

  “You can’t kill me this time,” Peepers said. “This time, Sam die when Peepers finished.” He let go of Sam and paced on the roof behind him with a glib sense of satisfaction. Then he moved his mouth back to Sam’s ear. “The Happy Clown Killer will feed on Sam tonight.”

  Suddenly, the fear in Sam’s face gave way to a sense of calm. His eyes opened and his muscles relaxed. “When you’re ready?” Sam whispered. Then he grinned.

  Peepers moved to Sam’s side and looked with disgust at his expression. “What did you say?”

  Sam smiled and turned to face him. “I said, ‘when you’re ready.’”

  Again, Peepers scanned Sam’s face and relaxed composure. He grew angry. “I am the Happy Clown Killer! You fear me!” he yelled. Sam nodded with a smile, which further infuriated Peepers.

  “I know I’m going to die tonight,” Sam said without concern. “I also know some things about you,” he added.

  Peepers snarled and showed his most horrific face in a failed attempt to change Sam’s expression. Sam casually picked up the figure of Peepers and studied it. “You see, I know that you get off on the fear in others,” he said. He turned back and chuckled at Peepers’ grotesque face. “The truth is—you had me. Before you told me who you were, I was so scared that I think I pissed myself. But now that I know you were the Happy Clown Killer, I’m seeing things a lot differently.” He smiled and looked back at the figure in his hands. “Oh, sure you won’t let me off this roof alive, but that doesn’t mean I have to feed your lust with my fear.” He turned back to Peepers, who continued to stare him down.

  “Yes, Sam will die,” Peepers said.

  “Yes, I will, but I’m okay with it because you’ve given me something I’m willing to die for.”

  Peepers looked at Sam in bewilderment.

  “You don’t get it, do you?” Sam said. Peepers’ eyebrows lowered.

  “Wow, I always thought you had every possible angle worked out. I gave you far more credit than you deserved.”

  “What is Sam babbling?” Peepers growled.

  “Calm down, clown. I’ll tell you. I’m just enjoying playing with you for a change.”

  Peepers wrapped his arm around Sam’s neck and leaned forward. “Last chance,” he said.

  “All right, here it is. You failed to consider my reaction to having a second chance to kill you.”

  “Kill Peepers?” Peepers asked.

  “And that other thing I know about you is that you were terrified when you went over the edge to your death. I’ve never witnessed a fear as intense as yours,” Sam said. Then he held Peepers’ arm to his neck with one hand and held out the figure with his other. “I’ll see you in hell, clown!”

  Sam lunged forward, taking Peepers over the edge with him. Peepers and his figure screamed in unison as they raced toward the pavement below. The impact shattered the statue. Peepers’ body evaporated into smoke. Sam’s broken body landed face up—smiling.

  Chapter 28

  Standing with an opened black trash bag clutched in his rubber glove-protected hand and another black bag draped over his torso like a raincoat, Geno leaned down and picked up the bloody hand beside Regina’s body. He tossed it inside the bag, then reached to her side for the serrated pruning saw.

  From the mirrors inside the Labyrinth, Guild clowns watched in morbid curiosity as Geno portioned the corpse into six equal weights. He lowered the safety goggles over his eyes and lifted her handless arm as he placed the saw on the shoulder joint.

  Before he was able to start cutting, the building started to shake and rumble. Terror came over the faces of the Guild clowns, who looked to each other before fading from sight in the darkness of the mirrors. Still gripping the saw, Geno stood and turned to face the room. The magnitude of tremors intensified as a section of mirrored panels shook so violently that they appeared to come loose from their pivoting hinges. The saw dropped from Geno’s hand as he watched from across the room.

  From the center of the spectacle, a shockwave blasted across the room, knocking Geno against the wall behind him. Behind the wave, demonic screams pierced the reflective barrier as Peepers’ body hurled out from the mirrors and crashed to the floor. The impact snapped and twisted his limbs in unnatural directions as blood began oozing to the floor from his half-crushed skull. The quaking subsided and Peepers’ eye opened. Blood reversed course as his face and bones cracked and unfolded to his previous form. As soon as the process was complete, his body sprung from the floor to a standing position. His neck cracked as he rolled out the final kinks. Completely restored, he locked eyes with Geno as anger boiled up from inside. Geno gulped. Peepers snarled and rushed directly at him, kicking the table and chairs out of his path, sending them crashing against a wall, smashing the wine bottle and glasses into fragments around the room.

  Geno’s hands instinctively rose to protect his face. Peepers stopped inches from him and stared down. Buffalo-like grunting fogged Geno’s goggles with putrid hot breath from Peepers’ bulbous burgundy nose and clenched mouth.

  Geno tried to meet Peepers’ eyes, but he couldn’t see through the protective goggles. He pulled them off and threw them to the floor. Peepers’ eyebrows lowered. “What—what happened, Father?” Geno asked.

  “McGiggles,” Peepers said. He turned away from Geno and calmed himself.

  “Happy McGiggles? Is he here?” Geno asked.

  Still turned away, Peepers ignored Geno’s questions as he continued his own search for answers to his failure with his last victim, Sam. “Prove Peepers wrong. McGiggles help Sam.”
r />   Geno stepped forward to show his support. “Let me join the Guild, Father. I’ll take care of Happy McGiggles for you.”

  Peepers spun to face Geno. Rage filled his eyes as he fought off the compulsion to destroy his son right then and there. “You failed me!” he growled. “Cannot trust you in my Guild. Maybe Peepers kill Geno so McGiggles torture you himself.” Peepers shot him a look of pure disgust before turning away again.

  “But Father, I tried twice. She would recognize you, so I have to hide it in her purse. There were people, and Alan.”

  Peepers turned back and glared at his son. “Enough with excuses. Geno’s plans flawed. Disgrace to father.”

  “You are right, Father. I failed you, but I’m not finished. I won’t fail you again.”

  Peepers turned. “Fail again and the Guild will feed on your soul.”

  “I won’t fail again. But I was wondering, Father. Why the girl? Why don’t we go for him instead? I don’t think I would have to hide it. I can tell him I was weak and made one last piece and he needs to destroy it for me because I can’t do it myself.”

  “No!” Peepers shouted. “It must go to his female. Peepers make clown suffer.” The sides of Peepers’ lips turned up, revealing a smile. “Will take all clown loves before feed on him.”

  Geno nodded. “Whatever you wish. I’ll try again, and I won’t let you down this time. The clown’s woman will take you home with her tonight,” Geno said.

  Peepers grinned as he considered the outcome of his plans.

  *****

  With his canvas sack securely tucked under his arm, Geno plowed through the crowded midway in search of Alan and Mary. Failing to find them as he rounded the last corner, he felt his heart pounding as panic set in. He stood near Cracky’s booth and finally spotted the couple heading toward the exit.

  Cracky was busy with a customer and didn’t see Alan looking in his direction to offer a final farewell. Alan and Mary didn’t want to disturb him, so they turned to leave. Geno brushed in front of the next customer in line and panted out the words, “Alan was looking for you. He’s leaving.” He pointed and backed himself out of sight behind the booth.

  Cracky looked over the crowd and yelled out to Alan. Alan turned and Cracky smiled, waving him back to the booth. Cracky handled his last customer as Alan and Mary arrived.

  “Hey, Cracky, I wanted to thank you again before we left, but you looked busy.”

  Cracky looked at Mary’s giant panda. “Looks like you guys had a good time tonight.” He smiled.

  As they continued talking, Geno took advantage of the cover provided by the stuffed panda and worked his way to Mary’s purse slung behind her shoulder. He eased open the zipper and removed the Peepers figure from his bag. As he reached it toward the opening, both Mary and Alan burst out in laughter over something Cracky said. Her body arched forward, pulling the purse out of reach. She shifted the panda on her hip and tugged the purse strap higher on her shoulder.

  Geno remained undiscovered, but he stood back as guests stopped in front of him to discuss how many tickets they needed to purchase. One of them removed some bills from his wallet and the group moved to the front of the booth. Alan glanced at them and he and Mary backed away.

  “We’ll let you get back to work,” Alan said. “I’ll see you same time next year,” he added.

  “It was nice to meet you, Cracky,” Mary said. Cracky winked and the two turned and walked toward the exit.

  Geno went back to panic mode. His target was leaving and he still had the last Peepers figure with him. He noticed a family of seven following close behind the duo and sprinted up behind them. Once outside the gate, he broke away from the family and moved between the rows of parked cars, ducking low as he closed in. They reached her car, but Geno was still six cars back, nervously peering over the parked cars, stuttering, “Nn-ne-no!”

  Hugging the panda by the trunk of her car, Mary turned and asked Alan to take her keys from her purse. He pulled them out and opened the trunk. Mary lowered the panda inside and gently positioned it face up.

  *****

  The boisterous sounds from a rowdy group of approximately twenty college age kids approaching from fifty yards away diverted Geno’s attention from Alan and Mary. The group was scattered, and they sauntered along without urgency. Geno noticed a boy with long hair and a baseball hat grabbing his crotch before tucking between parked cars to take a leak.

  *****

  “This isn’t right,” Mary said as she looked down at the panda’s face smiling back at her from inside the trunk.

  “What’s wrong?” Alan asked.

  “He shouldn’t be locked in the trunk.” She looked back at Alan. “How would you like to be thrown in the trunk?”

  Alan smiled. “I agree,” he said as he reached down and removed the panda. Still holding her keys, he pressed the remote to unlock the doors. The space between the cars was tight and Mary laughed as she watched Alan attempt to open the back door and stuff the large prize inside.

  “Be careful. Don’t hurt him,” she said. Alan wasn’t as gentle as she liked so she placed her purse in the trunk and instructed him to step aside.

  “Sorry, but it’s a tight fit,” Alan said as he stepped back to let her finish the job.

  *****

  The chain of loud young people got Alan’s attention as they filtered by the car. Alan looked back at Mary and grinned as she pulled the seat belt across the panda’s body. Running to rejoin the group was the longhaired boy with the baseball hat. His head tipped down as he plowed into another, more athletic, boy. Irritated, the larger kid shoved back, sending him against the back of the closest car. This was Mary’s car and the boy was pushed half into her trunk. He bounced back and tailed behind the group for the next five or six cars before slipping out of sight between the cars. Mary finished buckling the panda in the back seat and Alan closed the trunk on his way to the passenger seat.

  *****

  Returning through the carnival gates, Geno pulled a novelty baseball hat with a long hair wig attached from under his shirt and dropped it in a trashcan. He grinned and continued toward the Labyrinth.

  *****

  Taking her eye from the road in front of her, Mary looked in her rearview mirror to check on the panda. Alan snickered and looked back. “Don’t worry, he’s safe. You buckled him in good.”

  Mary grinned and looked back to the road. “I didn’t want you to see me doing that. I must look silly,” she said.

  “I think it’s precious,” he replied. “Oh god, did I just say ‘precious’? Forget about looking silly. Better than sounding gay…which I’m not…really.” He sank into the seat.

  Mary burst out laughing. “Now that was precious,” she said.

  “I don’t know where that came from. I never used that word before. I act so stupid around you.”

  “Oh, let it go, Alan. I think it’s cute.” She paused, then added, “Some might say you’re…precious.” Of course she did her best gay man impersonation of the word “precious.”

  Alan stared without saying a word. Her lips puckered as she fought with all her might to keep from laughing.

  “Go on, let it out,” he said.

  Mary glanced at his stern expression. She couldn’t hold it any longer and cracked up. Her repressed laughter resulted in an uncontrollable fit of snorting as she tried to catch her breath. As soon as the snorts started, her eyes opened wide and she slapped her hand over her mouth.

  Alan smiled. “What was that?” he said. “Do you have a pig in here somewhere? I swear I heard a pig snorting.”

  They both laughed hard for the next minute. When the laughter subsided, he looked at her. She looked back and got her last chuckle out of her system before looking back at the road. “You make me laugh, Alan,” she said. “I think laughter is the most important part of any relationship.”

  “I guess we’ll be okay as long as we stay clear of Ferris wheels,” Alan said.

  “Or any of those other thin
gs on your list of fears,” she added.

  “Oh, right, I was hoping you forgot about that.”

  “I’m a good listener, Alan. Nothing slips by me.”

  “Oh, lucky me. Now you probably want to know what’s on there besides my fear of heights.”

  “No, you can relax, for now. Besides, I never shared any of my fears with you.”

  “That’s right, you owe me one,” he said.

  “I do. And I’m going to share with you something I’ve never told anyone.”

  “No, you don’t have to do that, Mary. My fear of heights was nothing. Believe me, it’s nothing compared to some other things, which I’ve never told anyone…And, I’m not ready to share them now, so please don’t give me more than I’m able to return.”

  “Don’t worry, I’m not expecting anything in return. I just feel comfortable with you and it might feel good for me to finally say it out loud to someone. You’ll be doing me a favor by listening,” she said. They arrived at his apartment and she put the car in park.

  “Are you sure?” Alan asked. Mary looked serious and nodded.

  “Okay, here it is,” she said with a big sigh. “I’m a cancer survivor.”

  “That’s it? I mean, that’s great! No, I mean that’s horrible. Wait, here I go again. It’s great that you survived it, but it’s horrible that you had it in the first place.”

  Mary smiled. “I know what you meant to say, but that’s not the end of it.”

  “Oh, right, I would imagine you’re afraid it might come back,” he said. “No wait, that’s bad. I shouldn’t have assumed that. I’m sure it’ll never come back.” He put his hand over his forehead in an effort to slow down and think before he muttered another word.

  “Actually, you’re partially correct. I do worry that it might come back because I vowed to never go through the treatment again. It nearly killed me and it turned me into someone I never want to be again,” she said.

  “But you survived. You got through it and you’re the cheeriest, most optimistic person I’ve ever known. You can do it again if you had to.”

  “But I won’t. I promised myself that I’d never go through that again. I’m not afraid of what happens after I die. A big part of me looks forward to finding out because I believe it’s better than this. When my time comes, I’ll be ready.”