Circus of Death - Candace Wondrak Page 0,1

and I did wonder about the legalities of it all. You didn’t really hear about traveling circuses anymore these days. Sometimes handlers brought an elephant to the county fair each summer, but that was different.

This… it was literally like this tiny circus was in its own world, just outside our town.

Feeling suddenly and oddly alone, I turned to the ticket booth to buy my own ticket with the small wad of cash I’d folded up in my jeans. It was situated right beside the front gate, its paint looking only a little worse for wear. I didn’t expect my ticket to be bought and paid for by my date; although that point was moot now, since he didn’t show up.

When I turned to the ticket booth though, I saw no one. The lady who’d been taking everyone’s money and handing over tickets was gone.

I stepped closer to the red and white booth, the lights lining its window box off since it was in the middle of the day, peering inside, trying to see if I could spot anyone in there. “Hello?” I spoke aloud, my voice sounding strange. Hollow, almost.

No one answered me, and I heard not a single sound, other than the wind.

Pulling away from the ticket booth, I looked all around, figuring I’d see her walking. No one could disappear that fast, I was certain of it. But she was gone. Absolutely, one hundred percent gone.

Huh. That was strange, wasn’t it?

Well, I’d wanted to buy a ticket and see the show, just to get me out of the house for a bit, but the disappearing ticket master was making it a little difficult. After tossing another glance around, I moved toward the brightly-painted archway that was the gateway, the door to the circus’s many tents.

No one was here to collect tickets, either. Not anymore.

Would someone find out if I just slipped inside and sat in the back? It wasn’t like I wouldn’t fork over the money if they found me and made a big deal about it; sneaking in anywhere wasn’t my thing, but I really didn’t want to go home just yet.

Maybe it was wrong, maybe God would smite me or something, but I stepped inside, my high tops crunching on the grass below as I moved under the archway. No rain for over two weeks; everything was a bit dry and dead.

Dead. I didn’t know why, but that word seemed to linger in the back of my head as I headed towards the main tent, the biggest one.

The closer I got to it, the more I spotted its red color was less than new. Old, maybe even a bit grimy; the splendor of the traveling circus seemed to wear off the closer to it you got. But it was still different, still something I’d never seen before, and like the other townspeople who’d taken their Saturday to come here and check it out before they packed up and left, I was curious.

I hesitated before the flap that made up the entrance to the big tent. It was closed, meaning the show might’ve already started. Going in late was probably rude, but I couldn’t see myself turning around and heading home just yet, either. I’d take the rudeness first, as sad as it was.

Huffing myself up, I went in, being as quiet as possible.

Stepping inside, it was like stepping into another world. The way the sun shone outside, it illuminated everything in a low maroon color, the beams still somehow peeking through the fabric of the tent. Beyond that, spotlights were on, sparkling as they pointed at the makeshift stage in the center of this giant tent. Loud music played, so loud I wondered how the hell I hadn’t heard it outside.

Literally another world, almost surreal.

Bleachers that were on wheels were set up around the stage, allowing any and all to see. I ended up going to the furthest one, trailing around the back and tiptoeing up the side of it until I reached a spot in the far-left corner.

Up top, from my vantage point, I could see the entirety of the tent, now. The risers weren’t totally full; I’d say the tent was at about half of its possible capacity, a lot of empty spots littering the bleachers. Still, the show must go on.

I bet these things weren’t as plentiful or as popular nowadays because everyone was all about animal rights and that sort of thing. There had been many stories that had come out and