A speck of color flashed toward the left. The fog was thinning now, she realized. Different parts of the circus were appearing, everything in its place, nothing so much as an inch off. The cage that had become Vika’s safe harbor was exactly where it had been left—right in front of Jecis’s trailer.
Only the landscape had changed. A single sun shone brightly in a baby blue sky. Rather than hills of soot and ash, with gnarled trees stretching grotesque limbs in every direction, snowcapped mountains painted the area.
“One day, you will—” Solo’s ears twitched. The corners of his lips turned down as he jerked his head toward her father’s trailer. “He comes.”
Swallowing a yelp, Vika jumped away from him.
A second later the door swung open, and Jecis pounded outside. Audra trailed behind him, wearing a lovely golden hat, coat, and boots—all made from One Day’s pelt. The bald patches from age and the holes from Jecis’s gun had been filled in with another animal’s fur, creating the illusion of a healthy lion in the prime of his life.
Anytime Vika saw the outfit, she struggled with the urge to rip Audra’s face off.
I will not react.
Solo shifted, as if he meant to leap in front of her. Somehow, he stopped himself.
“Vika,” Jecis said, looking her over with . . . a confusing mix of disappointment and relief in his eyes. “You have recovered.”
“I have.”
“You even appear content.” His gaze moved to Solo, and the tension returned. “And you look as if you want to cut my heart out with a rusty spoon and feast.”
Solo remained quiet.
“You were gentle with my daughter, weren’t you, beast? I bet you even controlled your darker urges, just to impress her.”
Again, there was only quiet from Solo.
“You taught her nothing,” Jecis shouted, his face turning red. “Nothing! I expected the animal to act like an animal. I expected to find her on her knees, begging me to free her.”
Audra backed up a few steps, turned, and raced to the trailer, as if she feared he would focus all of that rage on her. Tremors began to slide down Vika’s spine.
“An animal would make her feel the need to beg, yes,” Solo finally replied, leaving no doubt he considered Jecis the actual animal.
Jecis popped his jaw.
“Do you want me to beg?” she asked her father, bringing his attention back to her. “I will.” For Solo, she might do just about anything.
“Beg? Now?” He spit on the ground. “When it will mean nothing?”
Still. She had to try. With dread churning in her stomach, she said, “Daddy, please release me. Please.” She hated the idea of leaving Solo trapped, all alone, to suffer humiliation when the circus kicked off and new humans came to view him. As poorly as he reacted to rejection, it had to be a special kind of torture for him. But she had to. “Please.”
Solo placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed, a bid for silence.
Her father’s eyes nearly bugged from his face, and the red tint returned to his skin, darker now. “How dare you touch her, beast!”
Vika tried to step away, but Solo applied just enough pressure to keep her in place.
“Daddy,” she said, desperate. “I . . . we can have dinner tonight. And we can talk. Just like before, when I was little. Remember? And afterward, I’ll return to my former duties, if you’ll let me.”
Jecis inhaled sharply, released the air slowly. Finally he nodded, as if he’d just made a decision. “I will release you, Vika.”
“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