Redemption (14 page)

She turned to
Isaac with a sudden hope thrilling through her.  “People!”  She nearly jumped
up and down.  “There are other people here.”  They weren’t alone.

“Maybe,” Isaac
tried to keep hopefulness out of his voice, but the shadow of a smile was
hidden there, betraying him.  Could it really be true that they were not alone
in this nightmare?

“Of course, I
suppose it could be a trap,” Rebecca said with a sigh, as she made her way down
the path, trying not to run. 

Isaac shrugged. 
“Even if it is, we’ll go there.  I don’t think anything in this dream happens
by chance.  Something is guiding us.”

Rebecca
scowled.  She knew exactly which “something” it was that was guiding them,
herding them toward obstacles like it was his job.  She flipped the bird when
Isaac wasn’t watching, just on the off chance that the reaper might be
observing them.

They reached the
dusty entrance sooner than Rebecca would have thought possible, and stood
staring up at the brightly colored flags and banners that waved in the breeze
over the big, rustic archway.  The sound of music and laughter was so loud now,
that it was hard to talk to Isaac without yelling.  She sidled up close to him
and he ducked down to hear her.

“It looks
harmless enough so far,” she said loudly.  

Isaac gave her a
skeptical blue look.  He slipped a big hand behind her head and spoke near her
ear, giving her shivers.  “Yeah, right.”

They followed a
worn path under the archway and into the carnival proper.  There were dozens of
tents in varying sizes, all in brightly colored fabric with stripes, polka dots,
and zig-zags.  Some contained vendors, selling pretty cloth, food, and the
like.  Some were emblazoned with banners declaring that the tent contained some
sort of wondrous creature.  Rebecca was not the least bit interested in unusual
creatures.  She’d had enough of that sort of thing to last a lifetime.  There
were also a few carnival rides- the big, slow turning Ferris wheel they had
seen from the hilltop, a gaudy, gilt merry-go-round, and big wooden swings that
couples propelled by pulling on a rope suspended from the top of the ride. 

Among it all,
milled throngs of people.  Rebecca’s first rush of exultation was quickly
squelched.  While most were wearing clothes that seemed suited to the
old-fashioned feel of the carnival, others wore modern t-shirts and jeans.  The
people milled about, looking at things, enjoying rides, playing games, and
laughing.  But their faces were all covered with elaborate venetian masks. 
Some were covered in glitter and feathers, and bright colors, while others
sported exaggerated facial features, long noses, squinting eyes, or animal
faces in muted tones. 

The masks
reminded Rebecca of the raven mask that she knew so well, but there was
something different here.  Behind the reaper’s mask, there was darkness, but it
was a darkness that was alive with intelligence and cunning, and sarcastic,
cynical humor.  Behind these masks, Rebecca could sense nothing but blankness.

“Maybe we should
just try to get through as quick as we can,” she said to Isaac.  His hand
hovered at her waist, and she thought he must feel as she did- that something
wasn’t right here.

“Sure,” he said,
leaning close to be heard over the crowds and music.  In any other situation,
she would have enjoyed his nearness.  They passed an honest to God monkey
grinder as they walked.  Even the little monkey in his collar and chain was
wearing a mask.

They were
rounding a tent full of old-timey foods, candy apples, roasted sugared nuts,
and fluffy cotton candy- when something caught Rebecca’s eye.  She stopped in
the path, and a couple of people bumped into them in passing, their blank eyes
behind their masks skimming over the couple that had stopped so abruptly, then
moving on without comment. 

There, in the
food tent, was a woman in a familiar flowered coat.  Her graying hair was
pulled back in a long ponytail, and a large purple mask with gold scrollwork
and a plume of green feathers covered her face.  Rebecca would have recognized
that coat and that small frame anywhere. 

“Mom,” she
breathed.  Then she changed course and headed for the tent, Isaac trailing
behind in confusion.  A man of medium height was trailing along behind the
woman, holding the treats she passed on to him.  His features were covered by a
carved fox mask, complete with jaunty little ears. 

The people
didn’t look up as Rebecca approached.  She stood staring at them, not knowing
what to do.  “What’s wrong?”  Isaac’s deep voice startled her. 

“My parents,”
she said as she turned him, fear and joy warring inside her.  “That woman in
the coat… I know it’s my mom.  She got that God awful coat for Christmas the
year I was married.”

Isaac looked
around wearily.  “Do you suppose it’s some kind of challenge?”

Rebecca shook
her head, at a loss.  She stepped forward and tapped her mother on the
shoulder.  “Um… Mom?”

The woman
stopped what she was doing and turned to look at Rebecca and Isaac.  “Hello,”
she said in a pleasant voice.  It sounded happy, but vacant.  Empty, like a bad
actor reciting a line.”

“Mom?  It’s Rebecca. 
Don’t you remember me?”

The woman tilted
her masked head, studying Rebecca.  The man in the fox mask came to stand at
her side as if to see what all the fuss was about.  “Oh, of course,” the woman
said automatically.  “How have you been?  Lovely day for a carnival, isn’t it?”

There was no
true recognition in her voice, only the deadpan sound of a recording. 

“Hey,” Rebecca
said casually.  “How about you take off those silly masks so we can talk?”

The man and
woman looked at each other, and then at Rebecca.  “But why?”  The man’s voice
was pleasantly confused.

Rebecca crossed
her arms.  “Because I’d like to see your face when I’m talking to you.  I
haven’t seen you in so long…”

The man shrugged
and took the treats the woman was holding, so that she could reach up and untie
the ribbon that held her mask on.  Rebecca let out a little gasp of surprise,
and Isaac slipped a long arm around her waist and pulled her back a few steps
as the mask slipped away from the woman’s face. 

There was
nothing there.  Just like the people at the warehouse.  Where there should have
been a face was only a blank space like a dark TV screen.  Rebecca and Isaac
turned and hurried back to the main thoroughfare.  The couple that looked like
her parents didn’t comment, or make any move to stop them. 

Rebecca put a
hand to her face as people milled on around them.  The noise was overwhelming,
and she was beginning to feel a little dizzy.  “That was weird,” she said,
shaking her head.  “Completely pointless and weird.”

Isaac nodded,
but didn’t comment.  They continued on their way.  Soon, the path came to a
larger gaming tent, where it forked off on either side to continue on toward
the other side of the carnival.  A young, slender woman in a short puffy skirt
and striped tights skipped toward them, blocking their way.  Her face was
covered by a red mask, and she wore a big red and black jester’s hat, complete
with bells on the tips that jingled as she bounced toward them. 

“Come on in and
have a game,” she said in a cheery English accent. 

“No thanks,”
Rebecca said, trying to make her way around.  But the crowd was thick here- it
seemed to be a popular place.  Short of pushing the woman aside, she was stuck.

Her companion, a
tall, broad guy manning the game, called to them in a booming voice.  “Come on
lad, win a pretty bit for the little lady.”  He was wearing a wolf mask. 

To the right of the
gaming area was a smaller tent stuffed with old clothes and props.  People were
lining up to have those black and white, old-timely photos taken.  Rebecca
turned to find Isaac’s attention drawn there.  He sidestepped the joker-girl
and moved inside the tent.  Rebecca followed, wondering what had gotten into
him.

She found him
staring at a photograph as if mesmerized.  It was a photo of a bunch of kids
ranging in age from six or seven to about fifteen or sixteen.  The eldest was a
tall, slender boy who was turned away from the camera, looking off set.  The
whole thing was staged like a western saloon.  The girls wore corsets and long
ruffled skirts, and the two boys were wearing hats and gun belts. 

Rebecca glanced
at the picture and then at Isaac.  He was staring intently.  Someone moved
behind the big racks of clothing, a dark shape, seen only in snatches.  But the
voice was unmistakable.

“See something
you like?”  The deep, raspy voice had no trouble carrying over the din around
them.  It seemed it spoke only for Isaac.

Rebecca slipped
into the tent and sidled closer to Isaac.  “C’mon,” she said loudly, “let’s
go.”  She tugged at his arm, but he only glanced at her and then back at the
picture. 

The deep, raspy
voice seemed to be enjoying itself.  “Cute kids, aren’t they,” it fairly sang. 
“The littlest boy is so cute I could just eat him up.  But that older one looks
like a bit of a moron.”  The voice dropped to a loud stage whisper.  “I wonder
if the others know he sells drugs a few blocks over, or that the rich women-and
not a few men- in town are developing a taste for pretty teenage boys?”

Rebecca pulled
at Isaac again, determined that she would move him this time.  But it was
unnecessary.  He turned on a heel, red spots of anger burning on his high
cheekbones, and marched them out of the tent. 

Rasping laughter
followed them, sending chills walking down Rebecca’s spine.  They didn’t make
it far before they were barred by the little joker girl again.  “Tut, tut,” she
said playfully.  “You haven’t played.  You can’t leave the carnival without
playing a game!”

Isaac gave
Rebecca a long glance, then turned to the woman.  “Fine,” he said curtly. 
“Let’s get this over with.”

Rebecca opened
her mouth to protest that they didn’t have time for this crap.  But Isaac cut
her off.  “You know we’re not getting out of here without doing whatever stupid
thing that dried up sack of sadistic remains wants us to do.”

She sighed and
followed him through the throng of cold, staring masks and flat, overly loud
laughter.  The game, it turned out, was a classic toss the ball and knock over
the pins kind of affair.  Rebecca went first, and she was given five balls. 
The pins looked like old wooden bowling pins, but they bore the faces of people
she knew- her mother, father, ex-husband, her old friend Sonja, and her boss. 

Every time she
focused on a face, there was a pang of recognition and regret.  She hadn’t seen
her family or Sonja in years, and she suddenly wondered how they were faring
out there.  Did they miss her?  Did they even notice she was missing from their
lives?  Even her boss was a distant figure, someone she saw every day, but who
only knew her professional facade, the mask she put on when she had to face the
world.  She vowed to herself that she would do better, if only she could have
another chance.  If only she could make it out of this dream world alive.  She
hit every single pin.

Isaac stepped up
and the pins were re-set.  She recognized the faces from the picture in the
photo tent.  They all had hints of Isaac’s beauty.  The girls had his big,
clear eyes.  The little boy had the same full, expressive mouth.  And they all
had that air of something that begged you to love them, maybe because they’d
had so little love in their lives.  Isaac took careful aim, those spots of
angry color still burning high in his cheeks.  He missed every single pin.

He turned to the
jeering game master and held out his hand impatiently.  “Again,” he demanded. 
The man behind the counter laughed and picked up another set of balls, but he
paused before handing them over. 

“You don’t play
for free, sport,” he said jovially.  “Where’s the payment?”

Isaac reached
into his pocket and pulled out the little lighter that he’d found there the
first night.  He placed it on the counter and held out his hands for the
balls.  The man in the wolf mask handed them over.  He scooped up the lighter
and examined it before slipping it into his pocket.

Isaac squinted
at the pins, taking careful aim.  He managed to hit the one with a picture of
one of the older girls.  The other four balls were duds.

Isaac glowered
at wolf-mask.  “Again.”

The man simply
held out a square fingered hand and wiggled his fingers.  Isaac searched his
pockets and came up empty handed.  He glanced at Rebecca, and she shrugged. 

“I don’t have
anything else to give you,” he said tersely. 

The man peered
over the counter.  “Your clothes are a might narrow for me, but those shoes
might fit.”

Isaac sighed in
exasperation and stooped to slip out of his sneakers.  They were dust covered
and tattered in spots, but he handed them over and stood there in his socks. 
The guy took the shoes with a grin, and handed over the balls.

Isaac took aim
again, and again he hit only one of the pins- the middle girl.  Rebecca was
silent.  This was obviously Isaac’s battle.