Chapter 7 Esmeralda
Esmeralda
The screams and cheers of the Big Top crashed over Esmeralda like a tidal wave as she quickly walked through Clown Alley.
The backstage area was empty of the performers, of the animals from the menagerie, of the tiny buggies used to cart in dozens of clowns, of the pesky monkey that was forever eyeing her trinkets.
Not even the ringmaster’s ratas were around.
Everyone must have been inside the tent still after they performed the march of showstoppers.
It was similar to the opening parade, in which the carnival performers sauntered through whatever town they arrived in to lure guests to the show.
Though the march of showstoppers was much more magnificent.
The energy of the crowd in one tight space heightened every sense.
The costumes were bigger. The tricks were more daring. Even the popcorn smelled better.
Jealousy nipped at her. She should be in there winking and waving to awed patrons. Instead, she was scrambling through the dim shadows to get away from a weasel who probably wasn’t even looking for her.
She risked a glance over her shoulder. Her heart jolted. A figure in black stood only yards away, half hidden by a pile of empty barrels.
She clamped her hand over her mouth to seal in the scream rising in her throat.
A warm breeze swept through the alley. The figure began to flutter in the air like a ghoul. Esmeralda slowed her pace and circled around. Panting, she squinted into the twinkling dark.
It was just one of the ringmaster’s coats hanging out to dry.
A laugh escaped her. “Esmeralda, you chump. There isn’t a soul out here.”
Camila had once commented how strange it was that Esmeralda spoke to herself so often.
Sometimes, Esmeralda had full-on conversations and arguments with herself.
Which, to her, was completely normal. She didn’t have a sister to speak with while growing up like Camila did.
She certainly didn’t have loving family members who asked her about her day.
She was an only child from a broken family of thieves.
No one had paid her any mind unless they needed her to fit into a tight space, so she made do with her own company.
And she thought herself to be perfectly entertaining most of the time.
But if she were honest, she didn’t want to always be alone.
It would be nice to find someone who wanted her.
Who loved her enough to see past all the jagged edges.
Sure, she was a thief. Esmeralda knew she could be rude and arrogant. Sometimes selfish and maybe even a little rotten. But there had to be something worth loving inside her.
The poster hanging on the wall shifted from the handsome face of the ringmaster to a congratulatory banner.
?Felicidades, to the eight performers chosen by Senor Veracruz!
Best of luck.
Don’t forget to smile.
Because one of you will be our brand-new muse!
Pride swelled in her chest. The ringmaster thought her worthy.
And when she was selected to be his lead act, she would show everyone who had ever left her behind that they should be sorry.
Someday soon she would be inside that big tent being cheered on by troves of loving fans instead of standing outside running from imaginary foes.
Until then, she needed to come up with a plan on how to wow the world. Just as she turned on her heels and took a step, something hard clamped around her shoulder, holding her in place.
“Stop,” said the deep voice she had heard minutes before. But it was hard to be certain when her pulse thundered so hard against her skull.
She forced herself to stay calm and fluttered her fingers to the left. “Banos are on the other side of this alley, senor.”
“I’m not here for the bathroom,” he said. “I’m here for you.”
That was all she needed to hear. Esmeralda stomped on the man’s boot. His hold on her loosened, and she darted forward. She grabbed the first thing she could reach, a large egg made from fool’s gold sitting on a vanity.
“Wait!” he yelled.
She did not, in fact, wait.
Whirling around, she flung the egg with the whole of her might. The egg didn’t hit the man in the skull as she hoped but instead pounded deep into his throat. Both his hands wrapped around his neck. He wheezed, gasping for air.
Esmeralda was not surprised to see that it was the weasel she had bumped into. Nor was she surprised to see the shining officer’s badge that had untucked itself from the collar of his shirt. But how quickly he recovered did surprise her entirely.
He launched himself at her. She tried to dodge out of the way, but her boot snagged on one of the tension wires holding the rear of the menagerie tent in place.
Her face skidded across the dirt. Something snapped.
Thankfully, it wasn’t her nose, but her dove mask had shattered into tiny pieces, falling like raindrops onto the ground.
For stars’ sake! That mask wasn’t cheap.
Cursing under her breath, she tried to rise, but a giant boot stomped onto her cloak.
She swept out her leg and kicked the young man’s feet right out from underneath him. She’d learned that trick once from the boy she had loved. The man landed on his back with a comical huff, but his long-limbed body sprawled out across her cape.
She grabbed the fabric with both hands and yanked. He didn’t budge.
“Get off, you mule!” This was the only cloak she had. She couldn’t just slip out of it and leave it here.
“Wait,” he rasped, still trying to catch his breath.
“So you can arrest me? Ha!”
I won’t go back to a cell. I won’t ever be so cold my bones feel brittle. Especially not so close to where I once lived.
She yanked again, and the seam tore. A frustrated shriek came from her.
“Get off!” she repeated. “Are you that terrible of an officer that you have to pick on a girl?”
“I see no girl here,” he countered. “Only a lying, scheming coward.”
That was strangely personal.
“Enough!” he roared.
He jumped to his feet just as she tugged. With the fabric free, she jerked back, landing hard on her rear. The officer stood to his full height.
“You can’t arrest me here,” she panted. “You can’t take me with you.”
“I only want to talk, dammit!” He shoved back the hood of his coat, gripped his weasel mask, and tore it from his face.
Esmeralda’s jaw dropped. She blinked hard, not believing her eyes were seeing what they were seeing. This couldn’t be. He shouldn’t be here. It made no sense.
“You,” she whispered.
His right eye twitched. “You,” he snarled.
The badge swung between them like the pendulum of the grandfather clock his father kept inside his manor.
She barked a bitter laugh.
“Of course you took after him. Looks like dear old daddy bumped you right up to officer, then. You should be so proud.”
She glared at the boy she once cherished most in the entire world.
The boy who was not a boy anymore. He was a man.
He’d grown up in the year since they’d seen each other.
Muscles had filled in around his once gangly limbs.
His jawbone seemed more defined, even though that shouldn’t be possible.
A few scars marred his brown skin. Skin she had once kissed and pressed against under the stars.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
Now she could hear the familiar richness of his voice. She hadn’t known it was him at first because the tone had deepened since their parting. He’d truly grown up without her. Just like he wanted. And yet, he had the gall to ask her questions.
Fiery rage burned through her body. He was working for his father. He was here to arrest her for running away from the comandante before her indenture was up. Or throw her back into a cell and leave her to rot like his father had done before. Or worse, ship her off to war.
Like hell he was.
She reached for the golden egg in the dirt. The second her fingers clasped around the heavy mass, she chucked it as hard as she could.
The egg bopped him right in his thick skull.
He stumbled back but regained his footing. He glared down at her, gaze unfocused. “You little—” His eyes flashed with fury before they rolled back. The boy she once loved collapsed in a limp heap next to her feet.
And, of course, he’d fallen right onto her cloak.
She breathed hard through her nostrils. “Ignacio Olivera, you are the very worst.”