Chapter Seven

K itty drove to the nearest town with Leo in the seat beside her. He was still a stranger to her in so many ways, and she worried again if this crazy attraction would fade when they were out of range of the carnival’s influence. But when they pulled onto Main Street, the carnival was far away. And when Leo's hand found hers, the same spark of desire she felt last night flooded through her.

"Remember," Leo said, his voice tinged with that ever-present feral edge, "we need to be back three hours before showtime."

Kitty nodded, the weight of Madame Noir's rules settling on her shoulders even outside the carnival's boundaries. "What happens if we're late?"

Leo's grip on her hand tightened. "Trust me, you don't want to find out."

After parking in a central area, they walked down the quiet street. It was Sunday morning and the town just beginning to wake up around them. Kitty noted how ordinary everything looked—church members coming and going, shops opening up late for brunch and coffee. It was a world away from the dark, intoxicating atmosphere of the Twisted Carnival. In the week she had been at the carnival, she had almost forgotten what normal felt like.

"We'll be here for one more night," Leo said, breaking the comfortable silence between them. "Then it's on to the next state."

"Do you ever get tired of moving around?" Kitty asked. She loved travelling to a new place every week or month, a new crowd to awe and show off in front of. Except now, she would be the attraction for her notoriety instead of her animal training. That should bother her more than it did.

Leo shrugged. "It's all I've known for a long time. Some acts come and go, but I'm a permanent fixture."

She wanted to confirm what she had deduced last night and hopefully, he’d be able to talk about it. "Are all the performers like you? Cursed, I mean?"

"No." Leo shook his head. "Some never deal with Madame Noir at all. They're just exceptionally talented humans who enjoy the thrill of our particular brand of entertainment."

“Are they all humans?”

He gave a half shrug, but the smile and the look in his eyes told her everything she needed to know. No, they weren’t.

Kitty absorbed this information, adding it to the growing puzzle of the Twisted Carnival in her mind. She supposed it shouldn’t shock her that if magic existed and Leo turned into a lion at night, that other supernatural creatures were just as real. She glanced at Leo, noting the way he was taking in their surroundings with barely concealed wonder.

"You don't get out much, do you?" she asked.

"Is it that obvious? No, I don't often leave the carnival grounds. It’s been a while since I visited a town and mingled in with the mundane."

She looked down at their joined hands. This didn’t feel mundane. It felt accelerated from zero to sixty. This past week felt like she had known Leo for three years. It had taken her months to sleep with Marco. It had been easy to blame her jumping into bed with Leo immediately because of the carnival’s influence. But truth be told, if he snapped his fingers right now, Kitty would drag him back into the truck for a quickie.

On impulse, she stopped walking and turned to face him. "I need to tell you something."

His eyes met hers, curiosity and a hint of apprehension in their depths. "What is it?"

Kitty took a deep breath, struggling to put her tumultuous feelings into words. "I was worried that my feelings for you were being manipulated by the carnival. That its need to feed on emotion was amplifying everything I felt."

Leo started to speak, but Kitty pressed a finger to his lips, needing to get this out.

"But now I know that's not true. I've never experienced anything like this before. It's real, Leo. It's ours. And I don’t want it to end. It’s a little scary that this is happening so quickly. Do you feel it too or am I just seeing what I want?"

For a moment, Leo stood perfectly still, his eyes searching hers. Then, with a sexy grin that sent shivers down Kitty's spine, he pulled her close and kissed her. It was raw, passionate, a merging of human desire and animal intensity. Kitty melted into him, her hands tangling in his hair as she returned the kiss with equal fervor.

When they finally broke apart, both breathing heavily, Kitty saw her own emotions reflected in Leo's eyes. Desire, yes, but there was also a deep, growing affection that both thrilled and terrified her.

“You are my mate. My lioness.”

She hugged him tightly. “I don’t know about that, but I’m so happy right now.”

But now she wondered if this was only real because she subconsciously wished for it and made a deal with Madame Noir. And maybe that would be okay, if she knew what her curse would be. Would it be that she would never shake free from her past? Was the cost of her bargain, her job, that she would always be tormented by Brutus and the grief of failing him? Why couldn’t she just be happy and accept this?

"Come on," Leo said, his voice rough. "I smell coffee."

They made their way to a small internet cafe, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and warm pastries enveloping them as they entered. It was a cozy space, with mismatched furniture and desktop computers in cubby holes. A few early patrons hunched over laptops, the soft click of keys providing a soothing background rhythm.

Kitty and Leo settled into a corner table, away from the other customers. As they sipped their coffee and licked lox and cream cheese from the side of their bagels, Kitty realized this was her first date with Leo. So they might have skipped a few steps, but what mattered is they were away from the carnival and it was real.

But was it?

She hushed that little voice again.

“I know you’re limited about what you can tell me about your curse, but I want to get to know you. I want this to be more than physical,” she said.

“I want that too,” he said. “What do you want to know?”

“Do you have any family?”

“A sister,” he said. He looked away with a haunted expression on his face.

“Does she know about you?”

“Yes.” He nodded.

“Does she visit when you’re close to where she lives?”

“No.”

Kitty waited, but he didn’t say anything more about her. “What about friends?”

“Just a few people from the carnival. The other freaks.”

“Don’t call yourself that.”

He surprised her with a smile. “That’s what we call ourselves. It’s not an insult.”

Kitty wasn’t so sure about that, but she let the comment pass. “How did you find out about the Twisted Carnival?”

“It was just there when we needed it.”

“We?”

He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He shook his head. “I’m not allowed talk about it.”

“I understand.”

They talked some more about their favorite things. It wasn’t a surprise that his favorite foods were raw steak and sushi and he hated romantic comedies. They found common ground in liking all sorts of games, from video to board games.

“Your turn,” Leo said. “What can you tell me that the Internet hasn’t already spilled to the world?”

The thought sobered her. There were so many lies about her. “I’m not the villain they make me out to be.”

“I already knew that.”

“But I’m not totally innocent either. I need to tell you about Marco.” She looked down into her mug of coffee. “Although, I wish this was something stronger.”

“You don’t have to tell me now.”

“I want to.” She took a bracing sip and looked at the watercolor of a beachscape on the wall behind his head. “Marco was an acrobat in my old circus. We were acquaintances, then friends and eventually lovers.”

Leo made a growling sound in his throat.

She placed her hand over his. “We should have stayed as friends. As lovers we were bad for each other. Jealous of each other’s successes. I didn’t like who I was with him, and I think I brought out the worst in him as well. We fought all the time. I broke it off with him—for good this time. And he vowed that he would make me regret it.”

Kitty had the thought that if Leo had been in his lion form, his tail would twitch.

“I can’t prove it, of course. But I think he snuck the man with the steak inside the carnival and told him what to do to distract Brutus’ attention. Brutus is very well trained, but he’s still a wild animal. A fact that a lot of people forget when they saw me working with the big cats.”

She blinked back tears and now Leo squeezed her hand in sympathy. She wondered where Nala and Sarabi were now. She didn’t trust them with Marco, didn’t trust them with anyone else in her old circus either.

Her gaze fell on one of the cafe's public computer terminals. "I'll be right back," she said, standing up. "Just need to check something quickly."

Leo's eyes narrowed, but he nodded, watching as Kitty made her way to the computer.

Her fingers flew over the keyboard as she searched for information about her old circus. It didn't take long to find what she was looking for: a schedule of upcoming performances, all located in the Midwest. Nowhere near where they were now.

A hand on her shoulder made her jump. Leo stood behind her, his expression a mix of concern and disapproval.

"Let it go. That life is behind you now."

She bristled at his tone. "I can't just forget everything, Leo. Those lions belong to me."

"To you or to the circus?" The question hung in the air between them, heavy with implication.

Kitty turned back to the computer screen, unable to meet Leo's gaze. "I have an idea.”

"Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like your idea?” There was an edge to Leo's voice now.

"I've been thinking about making a deal with Madame Noir."

Leo went very still beside her. "What kind of deal?"

"To bring Brutus back." The words tumbled out in a rush. "To bring all of my lions to the Twisted Carnival so I could have them here with me."

"No."

“If I could do that, it would make me complete. I could start over with a clean slate.”

"Absolutely not."

"You can't forbid me from..."

"I can, and I am." Leo's eyes flashed dangerously. "You have no idea what you'd be getting into.”

"Maybe it's worth it," Kitty shot back, her voice rising. Other patrons were starting to look their way, but she didn't care. "You don't understand. Brutus was more than just an animal to me. He was my partner, my friend. And because of Marco's deceit and the actions of one stupid man, he died."

"What you’d be asking Madame Noir to do will cost you more than you could ever imagine."

“I don’t care.”

“You don’t even know what it would be.”

“Neither do you.”

“I know the price mirrors the deed. Someone might have to die to bring Brutus back. You might have to kill someone.”

Marco? Kitty hated him, but she didn’t want him to die. She certainly didn’t want to murder anyone. She shook her head. “You don’t know that. Only Madame Noir knows what she’ll need for the miracle. I’ll ask her before I agree to anything. If I don’t like the terms, I’ll just say no.”

“It’s not that easy. She has a way of making the repulsive seem reasonable. I can’t let you do this.”

"You don't get to make that decision for me," Kitty snapped. She stood up abruptly, nearly knocking over her chair. "I need some air."

Without waiting for a response, she stormed out of the cafe, the bell above the door jangling discordantly in her wake. Marco had tried to control her too. Tell her what to do. It was bullshit then and it was bullshit now.

The bright sunlight outside was jarring after the dimness of the cafe. Kitty strode down the sidewalk, her mind whirling with conflicting emotions. She was so lost in thought that she didn't notice the young man with the camera until she collided with him.

"Oh, sorry," the man said, steadying his camera. Of course he was wearing a “Justice for Brutus” T-shirt. “Holy shit. You’re her.”

"I'm sorry, I don't..."

But the man was already talking a mile a minute, angling the camera to capture both of them in the frame. "I’m here with Kitty Wylde, the trainer who couldn’t control Brutus, causing the death of a man.”

“He didn’t die,” Kitty said exasperated. He had gotten mauled pretty bad, though.

“You should have been able to control him.”

He was right, of course. “It’s complicated.”

“An animal died for your incompetence.”

“Go to hell.” She shoved past the vlogger.

“Why are you in town? You’re not working at the Twisted Carnival, are you? Don’t tell me they actually trusted you with more lions,” he called after her.

Behind her, she heard a commotion. Risking a glance over her shoulder, she saw Leo confronting the vlogger. Even from a distance, she could see the barely contained fury in Leo's stance as he snatched the camera away.

The vlogger's protests were cut short as Leo systematically deleted the footage and then, with a snarl that was more lion than man, smashed the camera on the ground. Her mind raced. How had their first date gone so wrong? One moment, she'd been having fun with Leo, and the next, she was fleeing from her past and the harsh judgment of strangers.

Kitty ducked into a narrow side street, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She leaned against a brick wall, closing her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, Leo stood at the entrance of the alley, his posture tense, eyes wild with a mix of concern and something darker.

"We need to talk." he said, his voice a low growl that sent a shiver down her spine.

"About what? How you tried to forbid me from making my own choices? Or about how you just assaulted that asshole?"

Leo's eyes flashed dangerously. "I protected you.”

"I don’t need your protection.”

For a moment, Leo looked torn. Then his expression hardened. "If you make this deal with Madame Noir, I can't protect you from the consequences."

"I never asked for your protection," she said, even as part of her ached at the growing distance between them. This is what happened when you jumped into bed with a stranger. This is what happened when you opened yourself up to trust.

Leo's laugh was bitter. "No, you didn't. But you accepted it, along with everything else the carnival offered. Are you willing to risk your freedom, your life for Brutus?"

“To make things right, yes.”

"Then there’s nothing else I can say," Leo said. He held out his hand, a peace offering.

Kitty hesitated. Marco would have yelled and screamed. Threatened, maybe threw something around. He definitely would have sulked for days. Then it him her. Leo wasn’t Marco. He wasn’t trying to continue the argument. He wasn’t trying to enforce his will on her. She wasn’t used to that. Taking his hand felt giving in, but refusing felt like losing something precious, something she wasn't sure she could live without.

She took his hand.

“I’ll be here for you, even if I can’t protect you,” he said.

And Kitty believed him.