Last Kiss Goodnight

  "Thank you. Thank you so--"

  "On the condition that you perform in the ring tonight," he added.

  "What?" she squeaked, even as Solo's grip tightened enough to cause her to wince.

  Immediately the pressure let up. But . . . she no longer wanted to move away.

  Jecis ignored her question. "And you, beast, are going to suffer. You think it was bad before? You'll soon be praying for those days. Not only will you be returned to the menagerie, but you'll become the main attraction at the new petting zoo."

  Solo roared with rage he'd probably suppressed far too long. "I will kill you first."

  "Threaten me again after your nap, and see what it gets you." Grinning now, her father reached up and pressed the button on the cage.

  Thump.

  Vika watched, helpless, as the man who had spent the last six days protecting her dropped to the floor, motionless. Vulnerable.

  Jecis opened the cage door and stomped inside. She dropped the blanket, determined to leave it behind for Solo to stay warm. Her father grabbed her by the arm and jerked her outside, slamming the door shut behind him.

  "I've been too lenient with you," he said, tugging her forward. "I realize that now. I've let you waste your time with the animals when I would have been better served using you in the ring. Perhaps then you would have appreciated all the work I've done for you. For you and you alone. I even considered killing Matas after what he did to you, and how do you thank me?"

  "Daddy--"

  "Silence! I'm taking you to the seamstress. The two of you will have to work all night, but whatever it takes, you will ensure you have the best costume or you will know my displeasure."

  "Y-yes. Of course," she said, wanting to look back at Solo but not allowing herself the luxury.

  I have to find that key. It's our only hope.

  Twenty-two

  The faithless will be fully repaid for their ways, and the good rewarded for theirs.

  --PROVERBS 14:14

  JECIS HADN'T LIED ABOUT the petting zoo.

  Vika gazed at it with growing horror.

  Early this morning, Matas--whose arm had mysteriously healed from Solo's abuse, though the skin was now veined with a sickly black--had drugged each of the captives, rendering them unconscious. He then dragged them into the tent Jecis had had his employees set up. There, the two men had stripped the captives to the skin and bound them to giant spinning wheels with thick iron bands.

  Solo never had a chance to fight, his muscles paralyzed by the sedatives. And now, he wouldn't have a chance. He couldn't even use his teeth. A muzzle covered the lower half of his face.

  The circus had kicked off a short while ago, and humans had begun to parade in and out, allowed to touch whichever otherworlder they desired, in whatever manner they desired.

  It didn't help that they peered at the captives with wonder in their eyes.

  It didn't matter that they didn't try to hurt a single one.

  The otherworlders were humiliated. Defenseless. Helpless.

  The tent was warm, encouraging the sale of ice cream in the corner, despite the frost outside. Strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate melted as the humans studied and petted the otherworlders one by one, discussing their "magnificence."

  Jecis had escorted Vika here a few minutes ago, and they now stood at the edge of the tent. She wanted to run from him. She wanted to attack him. How dare he allow this?

  "There isn't a key to the cuffs, you know," he said. "Years ago, I destroyed the only one that was ever made."

  The words penetrated the dark shroud around her mind and nearly sent her to her knees. He wasn't lying. He couldn't be. There was too much glee in his eyes.

  No key, she lamented, her insides hollowing out. There was no key. All this time, her search had been for nothing. Forget the money she wanted to save. If she'd found the key, she would have freed everyone ahead of schedule. If she'd known it couldn't be found, she would have still freed everyone ahead of schedule. Yet staying to aid the otherworlders had been for nothing.

  They were doomed. They had always been doomed.

  "Your beast will wear the cuffs to his grave," Jecis said with an evil grin.

  He meant to remind her of Solo's fate. He rallied her determination instead.

  He was a nasty, hateful man and he would never change. He would only ever cause more hurt. And Matas, too. He had been demoted to hired hand while off duty for his actions against her, but one day, he would snap. He and her father would fight for rights to the circus. Once, she had thought her father would always win against him. Now, after Matas had "healed" his arm? She wasn't so sure. But she did know only one of them would walk away--and she didn't want to be around to find out who it was.

  She was leaving tonight, Vika decided. After the performance, when everyone was too drunk or too tired to notice her actions. There would be no more waiting. She would gather up as many of her jewels as she could carry, free Solo and all of the others, and she would run. Run and never look back, just as Solo had said.

  Finally.

  If Jecis found her, well, she would rather die than come back. And there were ways to ensure that happened.

  *

  "Welcome to the amazing, spectacular Cirque de Monstres!" Jecis's voice echoed through the darkened tent. Vika stood on the sidelines. She couldn't hear him, couldn't read his lips, but she knew the routine by heart and recognized the distinct vibrations.

  Red, blue, and green spotlights suddenly switched on and swept over the crowd filling the bleachers that surrounded the center ring. As expected, twitters of excitement erupted, brushing against her skin. The lights switched off, once again leaving the tent in total darkness.

  Then, multicolored sparks sprayed in the air above, fireworks that weren't really fireworks cascading over the humans. Judging by the buoyant expressions, she knew everyone was squealing with delight.

  When the sparks died, the spotlights were once again turned on--but this time they were focused on the happenings in the ring. Smoke billowed from strategically placed boulders, and as cymbals clanged to set the beat, out leapt one of Jecis's more beautiful female performers, followed by another and another.

  Each woman wore a sequined bra top and tiny underwear bottoms. After they climbed on top of each other to form a pyramid, they raised and spread their arms, awaiting cheers.

  At least the majority of Vika's skin was covered. She wore an evening gown the same ruby red as her lipstick. It conformed to her curves, dipped low in the back, and flared at the bottom. Her hair was down, brushed to a golden shine and falling to her waist in perfect waves.

  A clown was the next to jump from the smoke, surprising the viewers, but rather than helping the ladies with the pyramid, he dove on top and tried to kiss the star. She resisted. The pyramid teetered. He maneuvered to the lower level and tried to kiss another. She too resisted, and down the pyramid fell. Laughter abounded as the females stood, and, lifting up their hands, seemed to tug the clown into the air with an invisible rope. He dangled there, suspended and struggling, and the crowd ate it up.

  Two other clowns bounded from the smoke, and they desperately tried to help their friend, but they were soon caught up in the same bubble of air, and the females began to juggle them without ever touching them.

  Ten more minutes, and it would be Vika's turn. Even the notion caused her heart to pound erratically. Where was X? She wanted to talk to him, wanted to ask him for advice. He would tell her the truth, nothing held back, and this time she would listen, whether she knew how to proceed or not.

  Audra was stationed beside her, to ensure she didn't miss her act. Vika was to be part of Matas's magic act. Just another punishment, she knew.

  "Why did you sell your soul for this?" Vika asked her. She wanted a distraction, but she also wanted the answer.

  Up went the girl's chin, though she didn't bother glancing in Vika's direction. "What else was I going to do? Where else was I going to go?"

  "Anywhere." br />
  "I believe you discovered the joy of trying that," Audra replied with a roll of her eyes. "Our kind isn't accepted out there."

  Our kind. "I'm not anything like you."

  A greater vibration stroked over her, and she knew the crowd was cheering madly. The clowns were vanishing one by one, and when there were no more, the females looked at each other, looked behind the boulders, as though they had no idea what had happened.

  "Don't kid yourself," Audra said. "You're exactly like me."

  "How so?"

  "We're tainted. And without this circus, we're nothing."

  No. She wouldn't believe that.

  "I loved you once, you know," Audra said.

  "And I loved you." Part of her still did, despite everything. She remembered the little girl she'd played with, laughed with.

  "You destroyed me when you rejected me."

  "No. I saved you."

  "No! Destroyed! My family was so proud that I was friends with Jecis's daughter, and when you cut me from your life, they cut me from theirs. At twelve, I had to find a man to take me in. He was awful, always using me, and the sad thing is, I'd still be with him if Jecis hadn't decided he wanted me."

  "I'm sorry, I am." She'd known Audra had begun living with one of Jecis's men, but hadn't known . . . hadn't thought . . . "You saw what Jecis did to Dolly. I couldn't let that happen to you."

  Audra laughed without humor. "Dolly. I always hated how much you cared for her."

  What! "She was your friend too."

  "No, she was a nuisance. Who do you think told your father that she slammed your hand in the cage?"

  "No," Vika said, shaking her head, refusing to believe what her former friend was implying.

  "Oh, yes. I wanted you all to myself."

  But how could she live in ignorance, when that former friend so boldly proclaimed her crime? Anger rose. "You ruined an innocent girl for your own selfish gain. Tell me, Audra. Are you happy with what your actions have wrought?"

  Applause rang out, signaling the end of the act and saving Audra from having to form a reply.

  Vika focused on the ring. Her palms began to sweat.

  Matas stepped front and center. He operated with his usual charm and flair as he waved his hand over a big black top hat--and out flew twenty birds, each painted with all the colors of a rainbow. They soared through the tent, circling the crowd before disappearing in a haze of smoke, just as the clowns had done.

  He tossed the hat aside, shadows rising from his shoulders, forming . . . lion heads. That was new. The lions turned toward Matas, opened their mouths, and ate him in one bite. He vanished. Then, even the lions vanished. Everyone looked around. A few people even stood. One second passed, two, then three. The lions reappeared at the other side of the ring, opened their mouths, and out spewed an uninjured Matas, earning more cheers.

  He spread his arms and grinned . . . but the expression lacked any kind of sincerity. "And now, I summon my lovely assistant," he called.

  Audra gave her a little push, and Vika stumbled into the ring. There was a burning around her ankles, and she looked down to see the girl had blown a flame onto the hem of her gown. She stopped to pat it away, causing the crowd to laugh and her skin to heat. Smoke curled around her.

  The shadows Matas always carried shot out and wrapped around her, tugging her forward. Dread threatened to consume her, but still she offered no resistance when he shackled her to a spinning wheel--the same kind of wheel Solo had been tied to in the petting zoo--with her arms above her head and her legs apart. A flick of his wrist and round and round she spun. Her surroundings blurred, and her stomach clenched.

  This had not been part of his act for years, and never with Vika.

  But her father wanted her scared, didn't he? He wanted to prove his utter control over her. He wanted to break her down and remake her into something dark, like him. He wanted her reliant on his mercy. Mercy he did not possess.

  Her mind blanked as, in quick succession, blades sank into the wheel beside her left and right temple. Beside her left and right hip. Her left thigh. Right thigh. Both of her ankles. Finally the spinning stopped, and Vika was surprised to find Matas hadn't purposely nicked her.

  He closed the distance between them and removed the shackles. Forcing herself to grin, Vika straightened and nodded to the crowd. For the next ten minutes, Matas had her fetch his props, "relax" on a table while he sawed her in half, his shadows hiding the fact that she was still in one piece, and he bent her over and kissed her for dramatic effect. She barely stopped herself from biting his tongue and spitting out his vile taste.

  The crowd cheered. There. She had done her part. She was done.

  Head held high, she strolled back to the sidelines. Several other performers patted her on the back for a job well done. For once, they weren't treating her as if she were a leper, and she didn't have to wonder why. They now considered her one of them, no longer set apart. And . . . a part of her liked knowing she was no longer despised, there was no denying that.

  Perhaps Audra was right. Audra, who was now stepping into the ring to swing on the trapeze.

  Perhaps Vika was tainted.

  A vibration behind her. A big hand on her shoulder.

  Jecis stepped up beside her, and her nervousness returned.

  "Well done," he said. He wore a formfitting red jacket, skintight black pants, and knee-high boots. He wore more makeup than she did, probably to prevent his aging skin from appearing washed out in the light.

  "Thank you," she replied, happy he wasn't here to yell at her.

  "Did you have fun?"

  Even now, she wouldn't lie. "No." She might have liked the admiration she'd received there at the end, but the feeling had been fleeting--just like the admiration. These people would turn on her in a heartbeat.

  Jecis swept out his arm. "Look. Look out there, at their faces. Feel the adoration of the crowd. You can have that every week."

  "I don't want it. You had to sell your soul to get it." Just like Audra. "I won't do the same."

  "Sold my soul? Darling, when I took over this circus, I finally found my soul."

  How could he not see what he'd become? "Daddy, you found something dark and twisted. I liked you the way you were."

  A flare of frustration and impatience in his eyes. And . . . was that a skull hiding under his skin, peering out at her, its teeth chomping at her? "When I was weak?"

  "When you were sweet."

  "And you don't like me now?" he asked, his mouth moving contrary to the skull's.

  She pressed her lips together, refusing to answer.

  He didn't hit her, and he didn't push her. He didn't even speak another word to her. He simply stalked away.

  Vika remained in the same spot for the rest of the performance. And, she had to admit, even she was captivated by the colorful lights, the exuberant beat of the music, and the antics of the twirlers, spinning, spinning, round and round from cords hooked to wooden beams in the ceiling, their bodies contorted in what should have been impossible positions. Some even dove through fiery hoops, lightning flashing from their hands as they met in the center.

  A giant glass cannon was wheeled to the far right. A man made a big production of slipping inside the barrel. Audra swung from one of the ropes, nearing the cannon, and shot a spray of fire from her mouth, lighting the fuse. As she swung in the opposite direction, the male blasted from the center, and the fish inside the glass burst free. Only, they weren't injured. The glass turned to glittering snowflakes, and the fish to stuffed animals several lucky people in the crowd could catch.

  Finally, though, the show was over and everyone in the stands rose to their feet. They ambled out, talking and laughing, marveling over what they had seen, speculating about how certain things were done.

  When the last body cleared the door, the performers offered up their own cheer, breaking out the hard liquor they'd made in their own trailers rather than any kind of champagne. Jecis was in the center of them, dr
inking in their praise.

  Now was her chance.

  Vika snuck out the back of the tent and raced to her trailer. Once there, she locked herself inside. Jecis had a key, but even if he decided to use it, the lights would flicker on and off, alerting her to his presence.

  She exchanged her high heels for boots, but didn't bother taking the time to change out of her dress. Not yet. If her father spotted her, she wanted him to think she was just out and about, intending to enjoy herself with the other performers. That way, he would be less inclined to stop her or even talk to her.

  Well, it's about time, a voice said.

  X!

  "I know," she said. "Better late than never."

  Hands trembling, she stuffed as many necklaces, bracelets, and trinkets as possible into the largest bag she could carry. She ignored the chocolates, but also grabbed the cameras her mother had loved--besides the blade, they were all she had left of the woman who'd given birth to her, and she couldn't force herself to leave them behind. There was barely any room for a sweatshirt and winter pants, but they were necessary, so she crammed them in.

  "Did you know there wasn't a key to the cuffs?" she asked, recalling the times he'd told her to grab Solo and go now rather than later.

  No. I simply had a knowing that you needed to leave without worrying about the cuffs.

  Before donning her coat, she put on several pieces of jewelry that hadn't made the cut for the bag. Six necklaces, seventeen bracelets. Rings on every finger. What a sight she must be.

  "Well, I wish you would have told me," she said.

  I did. Several times.

  "Why not several more?"

  Why not listen the first time?

  A point she could not refute. "All right, I'm ready to go." The bag was almost too heavy to lug, but lug it outside she did. Cold air instantly enveloped her, the heat of her breath causing a fine mist to form in front of her face.

  "Do you know where Solo is?" she whispered.

  I do. He's in the same tent as before. The one for the petting zoo.

  Suppressing a groan, she flattened herself against the side of the trailer, hiding in the darkness, waiting and listening the only way she could. Thankfully, there was no vibration at her feet.

  Before you save the day, X said, you'll need to steal Solo some clothing. He's currently naked.