Pilo Traveling Show (Pilo Family Circus #2)

11. ABOVE

JJ ambled through the tents, unable to clamp his jaw shut. He'd heard whispers, rumors, theories among the carnies that somewhere up here was a competitor—someone bleeding dry their tricks. It followed that they would have cohorts from the Pilo Circus. Some even claimed the clowns were in on it . . . but surely not, surely no one in all creation had the balls to even try it. Yet, here it was. The up-world show was sleeping now, snores and murmurs coming muffled through tent canvas. Curls grabbed a glass beaker, mumbled some excuse and went for a stroll, leaving JJ to explore the freak show tent on his own. And what do you know? There was Fatso asleep in his cage. JJ had never seen Fatso before, but he'd heard much talk today about the missing freak show exhibit; this had to be him. Fatso had hefty gouges over just about every part of him. Possibly meaning he'd just done a bunch of consecutive shows.

Which brought JJ to an uncomfy fork in the road: Gonko's plan looked like it was working, which meant JJ had to go down and squeal, unless he wanted the big monster back in charge. If JJ squealed, Gonko would kill him, which in itself was not so bad, but it wouldn't be a painless process (unless he somehow secretly squealed, but that would forgo any suck-up benefits with George.) If he didn't squeal and Gonko got caught, he, JJ, was now implicated in the conspiracy.

So he'd wind up a tortured head in the Funhouse for a long, long time. That could be insured against by only one course of action: get back down there and kill Jamie, right now, while he was chained up, then blame someone else for the death, maybe the stirred up suspicious carnies. The Matter Manipulator had threatened JJ, not Jamie . . . so if JJ took Jamie's place permanently, that might keep him safe from one nasty fate, at least . . .

A hand clapped JJ on the shoulder. He jumped and squealed. Some trick he'd never seen before stood before him—it was a trick all right, you could somehow spot true carnies from new arrivals. "What happened down there?" said the trick in a kind of conspiratorial whisper, looking around. The trick surveyed him. "What the hell happened to you? Looks like you got the crap kicked out of you."

"I was indeed brutally beaten," said JJ. "A rehearsal went wrong, I flubbed a line and they got me."

"Rehearsal? What the—why are you guys rehearsing down there?"

"Eh, long story."

The trick grabbed him roughly by the shirt. Curious! Some sort of macho trick. "So tell me the long story, dipshit. I need to know everything you know—there might be useful info."

JJ chewed on this for a moment, but could not quite get it. "Useful to what ends, sir?"

The trick looked stunned, looked like he wanted to punch JJ for this answer. "To take these fuckers out, remember? The map I gave you? Dude, don't you flake out on me now, not after what we've been through here."

"To take these fuckers out," JJ repeated, tasting the words experimentally. "Oh, right! To bring down the entire circus? Our . . . secret plan. Right?"

"It better be secret. That Steve guy have any new info?"

"Er, no. What about up here? Any news?"

"No. Emerald knows she's the big draw for these people, that's all, so she's making all kinds of threats not to cooperate. But she's as different with her makeup on as I am. It's not really Jodi, it's someone else."

"Deeby . . . Deeby, right? Listen." JJ related what had happened below, including Gonko's instructions for tomorrow, trying to mimic Jamie's mannerisms as best he could, all timid and trick-like, but this trick was looking at him strangely.

"You sure you're all right?" said the trick. "That beating you took, did it mess your head up a little?"

"You know I think it probably did."

"Keep it together. Come with me, I'll show you how the gates work." So the trick did just that, taking the gate pieces off to where no one sleeping would hear the metallic chime of their assembly. "Here, see? Now they're set up to go into the showgrounds."

"And how's this fit in with our secret plan to take out the circus?" said JJ.

Again the trick looked at him strangely. "It's like we said, we're just learning all we can for now. There is no plan yet, that'll come when we know . . ." The trick stopped talking and looked at JJ closely. "You're not Jamie," he said quietly. "You're not Jamie, are you?""

"I guess it depends. Philosophically speaking, we're all Jamie."

"What did you to do him? Where is he?" The trick went all macho again with the shirt grab and shoulder push. JJ considered laying down some slapstick but he ran instead, leading the trick on a long round chase through the darkness, til he rounded back through the gates and into the showgrounds again.

On the run he'd had time to come to a decision—for there was really only one valid course of action as far as JJ could see it. Eyes peeled for George, he stole through the night back toward the clowns' tent, where Jamie still lay helpless.

***