mystic caravan mystery 02 - freaky lies (28 page)

“You’re not dying on me!” Luke snapped me out of my reverie by grabbing my shoulders and giving them a good shake. I was even more stunned by his actions than my out-of-control emotions.

“I wasn’t thinking that,” I protested.

“You’re lying.”

He was right. I was lying. That didn’t mean I would admit it. “I don’t think I’m going to die, Luke,” I said finally, happy that my voice didn’t crack when I said the words. “I was thinking how much I love you.”

“Because you’re worried you’re going to die and leave me all alone,” Luke seethed. “You’re feeling nostalgic, and that’s making you weepy. Knock it off!”

If I was feeling nostalgic, that emotion evaporated with the arrival of Luke’s bossy tone. “You knock it off.”

“You knock it off first,” Luke snapped. “I’m not joking. You’re not leaving me. You can’t leave me. I’ll kill you first.”

“Well, that sounds counterproductive,” I muttered.

“You’re counterproductive,” Luke hissed.

“All right, that will be enough of that,” Kade said, annoyance wafting off of him as he slipped a hand between Luke and me to separate us. I didn’t even notice him approaching. He’s sneaky sometimes. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” I replied, shifting my eyes to my bare feet. Luke had insisted on giving me a pedicure, too. “Did you find anything during your search?”

“It’s going to take a bit longer than I thought,” Kade replied, using his thumb to tip my chin up so he could search my face. “The internet hub is slow out here today, so I left the search running in my trailer. I figured I could head back during one of my rounds and check for the results. I didn’t get very far in my effort because it’s taking so long.”

“A watched page never loads,” Luke said sagely. “I learned that from internet porn.”

“That’s … great,” Kade said, rubbing the spot between his eyebrows. “I can’t be sure Percival is a threat, but I want to run a search on him anyway, just to be sure. We should still be vigilant in case it’s not him.”

“I still think he’s just a weird guy who likes dressing in makeup and wigs,” I said. “That doesn’t make him evil.”

“He’s a clown,” Kade said. “That makes him evil.”

“I hear that,” Luke said, pushing Kade’s hand away so he could return to his work on my face. “You don’t need to be here yet. I’m not done making her shiny and pretty.”

“She’s already pretty,” Kade said. “You can’t improve on perfection.”

Holy … crap! My cheeks burned as my feet became the most interesting thing to look at.

“Oh, look how cute she is when you compliment her,” Luke cooed. He was back to enjoying himself. “I haven’t seen her this cute since … well … forever.” His eyes took on a far-off quality as he looked me over. “Her skin is almost glowing.”

“You two are a trip,” Kade said, shaking his head. “Is this what’s been going on the entire time I’ve been gone? Have you been fighting and then almost crying because you’re both emotional wrecks about the prospect of Poet dying? I thought we agreed that wasn’t going to happen.”

“It’s not going to happen,” Luke said, puffing out his chest. “I’m here to protect her.”

“I’m here to protect her,” Kade argued. “You’re here to doll her up.”

“You know what? I’m here to protect myself,” I corrected, hopping off the chair and grabbing the hand mirror from the picnic table before Luke realized what I was trying to do. “I don’t need anyone to doll me up either. I happen to think I look pretty good.”

“You look better than pretty good,” Kade said, tilting his head to the side as he watched me lift the mirror. “Luke did a good job, though.”

I was surprised when I saw my reflection, sucking in a breath when I saw the glittering makeup on my brow and cheeks twinkling in the sun. I generally don’t go for all the bells and whistles when I prepare for a workday, but I had to give Luke credit because I really did look pretty good. He’d tied my hair back in two loose buns, but he’d left several tendrils hanging loose close to my face, which gave me a wild look. My eyes were offset by a bright purple eye shadow that would’ve been overbearing under different circumstances. Luke actually made it look minimalistic, though.

“Wow.”

“Oh, I love it when a woman looks at herself in a mirror and says that,” Luke said, grinning. “You do look good, even if I say so myself. What do you think, Security Studmuffin?”

Kade usually blanched at the name, but he didn’t even acknowledge it this go around. “I think she looks amazing,” he said. “All she’s missing is one of those sequined skirts and a scarf.”

“I have both inside,” Luke said. “I wanted her to strip out here so I could dress her, too, but that’s where she drew the line.”

“Well, everyone has limits,” Kade said, reaching up to touch one of the curls that framed my face. “I always think you look amazing, but this is … you look like a piece of art.”

“She’s my masterpiece,” Luke boasted.

“She’s my masterpiece,” Kade countered, his voice low. “You look beautiful. I can’t wait to see you add a skirt to this. I love those skirts. Wear one with bells if you can. I like knowing where you are before I see you.”

I thought about putting up a fight but he was so earnest I couldn’t muster the energy. “I can probably manage that.”

“Good.” Kade leaned over and gave me a gentle kiss. “I’m glad I’m going to be hanging around with you all day.”

Of course he had to ruin the moment. “Don’t remind me,” I grumbled, shifting my eyes to Luke. “You never did tell me why you’re in such a good mood … and what Burt has to do with it.”

“Oh, it’s nothing really, but when I stopped at the main house to see him he mentioned never visiting a circus before, so I said I would give him tickets,” Luke said.

“But … why would that put you in a good mood?” I asked. “I can see why that would put him in a good mood.”

“He said he was going to let me drive a tractor in exchange for the tickets. We had a lovely chat, and my love of farm equipment just sort of spilled out. He said he would be happy to make a lifelong dream come true.”

And there it was. Luke had been trying to get someone in a rural area let him drive a tractor for as long as I could remember. In fact, he made me promise to take photographs of him on said tractor should his dream come to fruition, because he wanted to make his own agricultural beefcake calendar. He thought it would make him rich and famous because everyone loves when vegetables and gay porn collide.

“Oh, man,” I muttered, instinctively lifting a hand to drag it through my hair. Kade and Luke reached out to stop me at the same time. “What?”

“Don’t ruin your hair because you don’t want to take photographs of me shirtless on the tractor,” Luke admonished. “I spent an hour doing your hair. It’s perfect.”

“Can’t you get someone else to take your photos? I might die tonight. I don’t want to do it.” What? I’m really going to do my best to fight off the death omen, but that doesn’t mean I can’t use it to my advantage. I mean, seriously, how often is another seer going to tell me I’m dying? Man, I hope it’s not often, because I’m not sure my nerves can take it.

“Does someone want to enlighten me?” Kade asked.

“It’s a long story,” Luke said, waving his hand. “We don’t have time for it.”

“Luke wants me to take a series of photographs of him shirtless on a tractor because he thinks he can turn it into a calendar and get rich off gay farmers,” I supplied.

“Apparently it’s not that long of a story,” Luke groused.

“I see.” Kade looked as if he was about to burst out laughing. “Well, we’ll figure that out tomorrow. Today we have other things to worry about.”

“We do,” Luke agreed. “I have to get free passes for Burt and Mama, I have to get Poet into a skirt, I’m doing the trapeze tonight and I’m saving my best friend’s life. It’s going to be a big day for me.”

“Don’t you mean a big day for us?” Kade challenged.

Luke shrugged, unruffled. “The only way it’ll be a big day for you is if you finally put on a big show of your own.”

“Thank you, Luke,” Kade muttered, shaking his head. “I think adding more pressure to this situation is exactly what everyone needs.”

Luke didn’t appear bothered by Kade’s sarcasm. “You do realize that you’re the headliner, main act and encore in that show, right? That means you have to be up for the challenge. We don’t take disappointment well around these parts.”

Kade scowled as he glanced at me. “Are you dead set on keeping him as your best friend?”

I couldn’t help but smile, even as Kade frowned. “I’m dead set on keeping both of you.”

Even though he fought the effort, the corners of Kade’s mouth tipped up. “I’m dead set on keeping you, too. Let’s make sure the dead part doesn’t happen, though, shall we?”

“Finally,” Luke enthused. “I didn’t think you’d ever find something we could agree on.”

It was official. The one thing that could bring Luke and Kade together was me. Now I just had to survive the next twenty-four hours to make sure all of their relationship efforts weren’t wasted.

26

Twenty-Six

A
normal day at the circus involves fun, frolicking and never-ending laughter. There also might be some heartburn and a few headaches. What we were dealing with now was pretty far from a normal day.

After climbing into my costume – Luke’s smirk when I opted for a skirt with bells grating only a little – I headed toward my tent with Kade in tow. He plastered a bright smile on his face for everyone glancing in our direction, almost as if putting on an act that everything was perfect, but I could tell he was tense. I didn’t know whether he was trying to convince himself or me with the act, but it was growing tedious.

After getting set up in my tent, I tied the flaps so they remained open, and took my chair. The circus would open in five minutes, and I expectantly turned my eyes to Kade. “You can go now.”

“I’m good.” Kade ran his hands over my Ouija board as he studied the table behind me. “I need to get another chair for back here so I’ll be comfortable. I’ll have Dolph grab one before he heads to the big tent for the afternoon show. I’ll be fine until then.”

I ran my tongue over my teeth as I fought to contain my irritation. It wasn’t much of a calming mechanism, but I didn’t know what else to do. “You know I’m an adult, right?”

“That’s one of the main reasons I climb into bed with you every night,” Kade replied. “If you weren’t an adult, it would be awkward and illegal.”

I narrowed my eyes. “I know you’re trying to keep things light, but jokes like that are never funny.”

“I knew that the second it came out of my mouth,” Kade acknowledged, rubbing the back of his neck as he studied me. “I know this is hard for you, but you have to let us help you. You can’t do this alone.”

“There’s a difference between helping and smothering,” I pointed out. “What you’re doing feels like smothering.”

“I don’t want that, but … if something were to happen to you and I wasn’t around … .” He looked lost. “I don’t think I could live with that.”

“I’m pretty sure I couldn’t live with it either,” I quipped. “I’m also not sure I can deal with this. Can’t you … I don’t know … do your rounds and just poke your head in here every time you pass? I’m not thrilled with that arrangement, but I can live with it.”

“What happens if you’re attacked?”

“I’m on the lookout for an attack,” I answered. “I’m expecting something bad to happen so it will be easier to fight it off if I’m already waiting for it.”

“It will be even easier to fight it off if you have help.”

I knew he was trying to help, but he was doing the opposite. “I’ve been taking care of myself for a really long time,” I said, choosing my words carefully so as not to offend him. “I can’t go from being self-reliant to waiting for you to save the day. I’m not built that way. You may be a hero, but I’m not a damsel in distress.”

Kade balked. “Is that what you think I’m doing?”

I took pity on him. “I don’t think that’s what you’re trying to do,” I clarified. “I think you’re so desperate to keep me safe that you can’t help yourself. You have to remember that Melissa gave me the warning last night. Someone who looked an awful lot like me already died during the intervening hours. I might be safe.”

“And you might not,” Kade challenged, taking a step forward. “You have every right to feel smothered, but if you die because you’re being stupid and refuse to accept help, how do you think that’s going to make Luke and me feel? How do you think Max will react? Nellie? How about Nixie and Naida?

“I know Max is the boss, but you’re the glue that holds this place together,” he continued. “You’re very important to everyone here. I’m not sure this circus can survive without you.”

His words warmed me at the same time as guilt flipped my stomach. Even if we figured everything out, solved the murders and banished the evil tonight, something terrible was on the agenda for tomorrow. “I’m not trying to be a martyr,” I said. “I’m just trying to breathe and make it through the day without killing you.”

Kade cracked a small smile, but it was fleeting. “Will you promise not to wander around alone?”

He was trying to meet me halfway. “I promise to be extremely vigilant and not wander more than a few feet from my tent,” I said. “That’s the best I can do, because I occasionally need a few minutes to myself between readings. People are annoying when they want a specific future and I can’t deliver it to them.”

Kade signed. “Will you be really careful and not wander around alone close to dark? Will you wait for Luke and me tonight before leaving?”

That was obviously his line in the sand. “Consider it done.”

“Fine.” Kade leaned over so he could give me a kiss. It was meant to be quick, but he lingered. When he finally pulled away, his eyes were bright. “If you promise to make it through the day without causing trouble I’ll make it worth your while later.”

I grinned. “Great,” I enthused. “I love getting a massage.”

Kade’s smile slipped. “That’s not what I meant.”

“I’m not getting my hopes up for anything else on a night when we’ll probably be fighting a monster,” I said. “I’m not a masochist … or naïve.”