Marionette Murder

    Cheers rumble through the air and I tremble in my seat. The ringmaster shouts, encouraging the laughter of the crowd. Standing, I prepare to perform my act in front of thousands of people.

    “Alright folks,” the ringmaster shouts. “I think you’ll really enjoy this next act. Miss May the Marionette!” I walk into the ring and the crowd howls in excitement. The ringmaster signals to the light crew to let me do my thing and they focus their attention on me. As everyone settles in their seats, I begin my performance. Stretching my limbs into awkward positions, I press pieces of my bones outward. People gawk, as they normally do when I perform. I contort myself into weird positions and remove myself from them shortly after.

    Once I finish my performance, the ringmaster allows me to leave the stage. I stumble out of the spotlight, the crowd continuing to laugh at me. As I reach the edge of the tent, I flip the door open. I stomp back to my seat and plop into it.

    “Darling, what’s got your heart in a twist?” asks Jacob.

    “I hate that we have to sit here and perform as people laugh at us,” I respond.

    “Well,” Jacob stutters. “I might be some weird hunchback and you a contortionist, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do something about it!”

    “What do you think we ought to do?” I question. “Run away?”

    “That isn’t what I had in mind,” answers Jacob. His eyes cloud with devious intention.

    “What were you thinking Jacob?” Andrew asks.

    “How would y’all like it if the ringmaster just disappeared?” ponders Jacob.

    “Like he left or he died?” questions Andrew.

    “Death is always an option prefered by ringmasters,” Jacob retorts.

    “Leave me out of whatever you’re planning Jacob,” I murmur. “I don’t want anything to do with the death of the ringmaster.”

    “Suit yourself,” Jacob mutters. “Andrew, are you in or are you out?”

    “I guess I’m in,” states Andrew.

    “Let’s get to planning then. I knew I could always count on you strongmen,” remarks Jacob. I turn my back to them, facing the mirror. As they leave, tears tremble on the edges of my eyelashes. I gently pat on my eyelashes, refusing to ruin my makeup.

    “I should do something to stop them,” I think. “Yet the ringmaster never truly cared about us. Only about making as much money as possible.” I stand and wobble towards the exit. Flapping open the door, I make my way to the tent for our mystic. As I walk towards their tent, a terrified scream hits my ears. My chest tightens and my heart races in my torso as I scramble towards the source.

    When I reach the source of the scream, I spot Andrew and Jacob dragging a long object towards the trunk of the ringmaster’s car. As I jog towards them, they scramble to jump in the car. Just as I reach the car, they’re able to speed away. I slow to a stop, my hand turned outwards and my mouth agape. Without satisfaction, I stomp back to the mystic’s tent.

    “You should rest, you’ve seen a lot of trouble,” the mystic tells me. I nod and stand, only thinking of how terrible today has gone. I walk to the tent designated by the ringmaster. I stumble to my cot and slam myself into it. Pulling my raggedy blanket over myself, I attempt to get some sleep.

    As morning arrives, I jump out of my cot. The night tortured me by not allowing my slumber to arrive. Instead, I became more resolute in what actions I must take. Without waking the last of the group, I tiptoe out of the tent. As silent as a mouse, I sneak towards the big top.

    Once there, I barely move the door open and sneak inside. In one of the seats is our lead security guard. Approaching him, I clear my throat and he looks up at me.

    “I think the ringmaster has been murdered,” I state.

    “When?” the guard asks.

    “Last night. By Jacob and Andrew,” I answer. The guard bursts into laughter, having to hold his belly to stay upright.

    “Those two? Those two could do anything if they tried,” the guard mutters.

    “Sir, I’m begging you, they did something, I just know it,” I plead.

    “Alright little lady, since you’re so worried about the ringmaster, why don’t we check on him?” the guard asks. “We can check his tent together.” He grabs a hold of my arm and trudges with me to the ringmaster’s tent. As we approach the tent, I can see a flicker of light inside.

    “See? He’s just fine, he’s got his little light on,” states the guard. “You don’t need to worry yourself. How about this, you go get ready for today’s show and you’ll see the ringmaster during the show.”

    “Sir please, I know something bad happened. You have to believe me!” I beg. The guard chuckles and pushes me back to the tent. We get halfway there and I decide to give up convincing him.

    “I have to prove something happened to the ringmaster,” I thought to myself. I flap open the tent and stomp inside. As I stomp inside Angelica whirled around to look at me.

    “Where were you?” Angie questioned.

    “I was trying to prove the ringmaster isn’t doing so well,” I answer.

    “What do you mean?” asked Angelica.

    “Jacob was talking about how he wanted to make the ringmaster disappear yesterday,” I responded. “I think he might have done something. I heard a scream last night, ran to the source, and found Andrew and Jacob dragging a long item into the back of the ringmaster’s car. As I tried to catch up to them, they drove off.”

    “What can we do to prove it?” Angelica pondered.

    “There isn’t a whole lot we can do,” I retort. “The chief guard won’t believe me. We walked over to the ringmaster’s tent and his lamp was still burning.”

    “I’m sure we’ll be able to find something,” Angelica said.

    “That might take some time,” I mutter.

    “I’m willing to take that time,” announces Angelica.