Chapter 1
JC walked among the many trailers at the edge of the thick woods. His brow was covered with sweat and he breathed in the sweet air around him deeply. A show always had that affect on him. It made him feel so full of energy and so clearheaded that he felt like, for hours after a performance he could take in every detail of the life around him. Most of the time that was a good thing, but sometimes he wished that he had just stayed in, talking to Jessie. When he almost rounded the corner that night was one of those times.
JC heard a slight whimper from around the other side of the trailer, and he stopped in his tracks, leaning against the side of it. He looked up to see that it was an empty equipment trailer, and therefore an excellent place for someone to be unwillingly dragged to. He went down on his hands and knees, crawling underneath so that he could see what was going on, on the other side, though he already had a pretty good hunch. He put his arms underneath his chest and looked up to the log on the other side. Two figures were seated there, and they were exactly who JC had guessed.
His uncle sat on one side, with his hands on the waist of the armless man from the freak show. The armless man sat, helpless with his eyes wide and full of fear. JC trembled as he imagined those eyes staring at him from above, but then sighed when the eyes turned toward the woods behind the sitting pair. The armless man was slapped and his chin was grabbed so that he faced toward his manager.
"You know what you're supposed to do, freak. So, do it." He was shoved down to his knees, almost falling forward without arms to brace himself up with, but his manager grabbed his shoulders, hoisting him back up to his knees. He searched the area, making eye contact briefly with JC, as his manager’s pants and underwear fell around his ankles.
"Please, sir..."
"You know your job." JC backed out from under the trailer when he saw the armless man's head being pushed from behind into the older man's lap. He gagged as he ran back to Jessie's trailer, the unnerving sight still fresh in his mind. He knew what his uncle did with all of the freaks, but he had never seen it firsthand before. He had heard tell of the horrible beatings the 'wolfman' received on a regular basis, and of the way he once dragged the poor 'satyr' through the woods by his hair. Jessie even claimed to have heard the 'satyr's' screams as he got caught in briar patches, but he had never expected to see his uncle abusing one of them. When he got Jessie’s trailer, he went in without knocking and sat on her bed.
"Jess?"
"Yeah, Jace?"
"Just wanted to make sure you were there." She cam out of the bathroom, running a hand over her short, wavy hair, and then stopped to look at her brother.
"What's wrong?"
"What do you mean?" He pretended to be oblivious, even though he knew that he could never put anything past Jessie.
"You're shivering, and you look kind of pale. Are you sick?" JC looked at the face of his concerned sister for a second, before going to close the shutters of her window. He came back to her bed and she sat down beside him.
"What happened, Jace?" He shifted his gaze around the room before opening his mouth to speak.
"I just saw the most horrible thing outside, Jess."
"What was it?"
"Well, you know how everyone says that uncle Larry abuses the freaks?"
"Yeah?" His eyes shifted once more before he went on.
"I just saw him taking advantage of the armless man behind an equipment trailer. He was pushing him around and then he made the poor guy suck him." Jessie gasped.
"You actually saw him do it?"
"I had to leave before he actually did it, because it was grossing me out, but I am sure that was what was going on."
"Well, we all knew it was going on, anyway." Jessie got up and went to her sink.
"Well, what should I do about it?" Jace came up behind her.
"You really want to know what the best thing to do would be, Jace?"
"Yeah."
"Pretend you never saw it, and try to erase the memory from your mind, Jace. Try to forget that it ever happened."
"How could you say that, Jess? What if it happens again?" She turned around to face JC.
"It has happened before, Jace. It's probably been going on ever since he's been with us. I'm sure that the guy's used to it by now... Besides, Jace, he's our uncle and the manager of this circus. All that confronting him will accomplish is getting your ass thrown out in the cold by family. If you don't mention it, than at least he'll be able to keep what little dignity a member of the freak show could possibly have left." JC nodded his head slightly as he realized that his sister was right after all. He stood up and went to her door.
"I'm going to bed, Jess. See you in the morning." JC took the long way back to his trailer, walking past the freak show trailers on his way. The three best friends sat around the fire beside one of the trailers. The 'satyr', the 'wolfman', and the 'armless man' all sat around talking to each other in hushed tones, until the 'wolfman' made eye contact with JC.
"Do you have a question, sir?"
"Um, yeah, I was just wondering what all of your names were..."
"We've all been here for quite awhile. You don't know our names?" JC blushed, as he shook his head no.
"I'm sorry. I don't."
"That's okay. My name is Joey, and I've been here for eleven years." He then pointed to the 'satyr'. " He's Justin, and he's been here since he was born, sixteen years ago." He next pointed to the 'armless man'. " Lance has been here for the past ten years. Why did you want to know?"
"Just curious. Thought I should know everyone in the circus as well as you seem know each other." The freaks smiled as JC sat down beside them.
Chapter 2