Yet, he couldn’t force his lips to work.
She was the one to break the silence. “What was that thing in the mirror?” She whispered the words as if the creature might hear her.
“I have no clue,” he replied.
There was something nibbling at Ignacio’s thoughts. A phantom memory he couldn’t grab hold of. It had been like that since the ringmaster told him about the Valerio brothers. He’d heard their tale before. Someone else had told him about a portal to the gods. But he couldn’t for the life of him remember who had mentioned such things in his past.
His eyes scanned the mirrors that surrounded the tent. But the monster was gone.
The spotlights moved away from the fire brigade and beamed onto Veracruz, who stood on top a circular platform. He raised his arm and yelled into the loud-hailer, “Do you see the dangers my performers face?! It is all for you, folks! For our glorious, most astounding, most wonderous fans of Carnival Fantástico!”
The audience roared with a ferocity Ignacio had never seen. The backstage flaps opened, and rodeo riders galloped in, performing tricks on top their horses’ backs.
The ringmaster was not exaggerating when he proclaimed the show must always continue. One of his acts had just perished, and yet he so mercilessly moved on to the next. His performers were willing to do it too. They were willing to risk everything for the safety he offered. What a horrible sort of power he held over their heads.
The hoop was finally low enough to the ground that they could safely dismount, but Ignacio couldn’t let Esmeralda go. This could be the last time they were so close, and he couldn’t stand it. He wanted to bury his nose into her hair. To breathe in so deep, the scent of jasmine would cling to his lungs forever. Then, at least, she would always be a part of him.
But sinister happenings were afoot.
Regretting it already, he loosened his hold so she could step out of his embrace.
She faced him and tore off the gloves. She shook her head as she examined her arms. “From the pain I experienced, I thought my skin would be gone.”
He swiped his thumb over her wrist and found those damn iridescent flecks that made up the enchanted ink. He wiped hishand on his pants and inspected her more thoroughly but found no burns or injuries.
“Are you okay, though?” he asked.
“Normally, I’d lie and say yes, but my nerves are too frazzled for that. And, worst of all, I fear I must admit that you were right.”
Despite everything, he felt himself smiling again. “I don’t think I heard you correctly. What did you say?”
“Don’t push it, Pigeon.”
“I told you that you could trust me,” he said.
“Yeah, the jury is still out on that.” Her warm fingers slipped into his hand.
His insides clenched. “What are you doing?”
“I’m taking you to the one place where we might find our answers.”
The ringmaster’s wagon was far outside the carnival hub and not intended for customersoruninvited performers trying to sneak in. Three guards lounged in front of the strawberry-red wagon, smoking cigarillos and speaking about what had happened to Paco. They made light of the fire breather’s misfortune. They laughed and chattered on about who would get his prized game boards now that he was gone.
From their hidden place behind barrels of sugar, Ignacio’s hands balled into fists.
Esmeralda’s brow quirked. “Thinking about getting into a fight?” she whispered.
“I’d sure like to.”
“Hold that thought, hero. The ratas aren’t the sort to mess with. I’ve seen them get into scuffles a time or two with ill-mannered guests, and it never ended well for the other guys. Besides, you’ll cause a commotion, and we don’t want that if we’re trying to sneak into the ringmaster’s office.” She jerked her chin to the right. “This way.”
They slithered around bins of extra prizes, clusters of oddly shaped balloons bumping into each other in the breeze, and roller-coaster buggies in need of repair. “It’s like a circus graveyard,” he said as they hid behind a marionette booth.
“Ángel doesn’t like to leave things behind, unlike some people.”
“If that’s meant to be a slight, I feel like you’re being rather hypocritical. Seeing as you left the ring I gave you behind when you ran away. Why didn’t you take it? I gave it to you,” he asked. “You could have pawned it off for a good profit.” The question had been burning on his tongue since the day she left him and he found the ring placed inside the box that he had kept his savingsin.
“Now isn’t the time to dig up things dead and buried,” she snapped.
