Freeks(53)

“We have to wake him up,” Roxie said finally. “This is ridiculous.”

Carrying a vase of daises we’d picked up at the only floral shop in town, Roxie walked into Seth’s room. I followed a step behind her, so she’d be the one to wake him and not me.

“Seth?” Roxie asked quietly, setting the flowers on the bedside table. “Seth? Are you awake?”

Sunlight streamed in through his open blinds, onto the carnation-pink floor tiles and white sheets. In some places on his bandages, the white had turned a shade of pink, where he must be bleeding underneath.

But, other than that, Seth didn’t really look that terrible. The bandages were hiding the worst of his injuries, so the only real visible wound was a narrow scratch running along the bottom of his chin, and it didn’t even require stitches.

Slowly, Seth’s eyes opened and he blinked a few times. When he saw Roxie and me, his mouth spread out in a sleepy smile.

“Hey, guys. It’s so great to see you.”

“How are you feeling?” I asked, and Roxie sat down in a pale blue recliner next to the bed.

“Great.” He gestured to an IV dripping into his arm. “They have me hooked up to the good stuff. Tomorrow, if I’m released, I think they’ll be sending me home with some very nice pills.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re not in any pain.” I sat on the edge of Seth’s bed, since the room didn’t have any other chairs.

“How is the carnival going?” Seth asked. “How is everyone?”

I glanced over at Roxie before replying with, “Good. I think everyone’s doing really well.”

That was mostly true. Seth and Safēda had been the only two injuries, and I didn’t want to burden him with the suspicions and paranoia back at camp. He’d already been through enough.

“It’s been really busy at the carnival,” Roxie said cheerily. “I think we’re actually gonna make bank here.”

“That’ll be great, since I have these hospital bills to pay for now,” Seth said, but he didn’t sound that upset about it.

In part, because of morphine, and in part, because he’d probably never actually pay them. When we went to hospitals while traveling, we used fake names, and then we were gone. It wasn’t the best way to live, but it was the only way we could afford getting help when we needed it.

“Carrie called from the payphone outside the camp.” Seth’s blue eyes grew serious as he looked between Roxie and me. “She told me there’s been some strange things going on there.”

I shrugged, trying to downplay it. “There’s something weird about the town. There’s a bad energy.”

“My pyro hasn’t been working right at all,” Roxie added, and rubbed the palm of her hands where her fireballs usually sprouted from.

“That explains how I was overpowered by a big coyote,” Seth muttered to himself.

“A big coyote?” I asked. “You remember it attacking you?”

He shook his head. “No. I don’t remember the attack at all. Carrie just told me that’s the theory going around, though. Some kind of big coyote.”

“That’s one theory,” Roxie said under her breath.

“You’ll be getting out of here tomorrow,” I said, quickly changing the subject. “That must be exciting.”

“Yeah.” Seth paused before adding, “Carrie and I are actually going over to Texas. We were thinking we could wait in Houston and meet up with you guys when you’re done here.”

“You’re leaving?” I asked in surprise.

“I can’t work.” Seth gestured to his bandages. “And I’m weak as hell. This place seems totally bugshit. So we thought, why not go someplace safe and quiet to recuperate?”

I forced a smile to hide my growing unease. “That makes total sense.”

“A campsite is no place to heal,” Roxie chimed in. “And I doubt there’s a good hotel anywhere in this town.”

Seth began talking about Carrie’s plan to pawn some of her jewelry and Seth’s videos and cassettes so they would be able to afford to stay in a decent place in Houston for a few days, and he wondered aloud if Gideon would be able to advance him some cash.

While he spoke, Roxie cocked her head and eyed the daisies we’d brought with growing suspicion.

“You know what’s weird?” she asked when Seth finished talking. “There’s only one floral shop in this whole town.”

I shrugged. “So?”

“When we came in, the town sign said there were, like, thirteen thousand people or something,” Roxie elaborated. “And there’s only one flower shop and a small grocery. It’s not large enough to support that much business. Yet every day, the carnival is totally packed. Where are these people coming from? And why?”

“I think you answered your own question, Roxie,” I said. “It’s a small town. There’s nothing else to do.”

“Maybe,” Roxie said, but by the way she narrowed her eyes at the daisies, I knew she wasn’t convinced.





32. wicked

I awoke in my own bed with a dog-eared copy of Something Wicked This Way Comes lying beside me and my crossbow on the floor, in case I needed it. I sat up and peeled back the curtains, expecting to find the carnival in ruins, but instead, the campsite looked normal.