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“With that in mind,” Jiang said, sliding her foot off my shoulder so she could stand up. “Perhaps we should stage our own Yihetuan Movement. Leaders are few but followers are many.”
“But how can we know who to trust?” Vernice asked. “How many circus people are in on Laurent and Rex’s little schemes? How many would be scared to death if we told them what Bindi just told us?”
“The better question is how many would believe us,” Bernice added.
“We definitely need to exercise the utmost caution,” I acknowledged. “I trust every person inside this tent...” A monkey coo came from outside, prompting me to add, “And Samuel too, of course.” He responded with a happy reply and I finished my thought. “But we need to be very careful with everyone else.”
“Yeah? Well, our last performance is tomorrow night,” Bernice interjected. “We haven’t got time to be careful.”
“But I thought we always did three shows for each city,” I started, frowning.
“The first happened before you returned,” Jiang explained. “And tonight’s show is over, so all we have left is what Laurent refers to as ‘the grand finale’.”
My hands began to shake. How many more innocent souls would be sacrificed in tomorrow’s performance?
“If you’re worried about touching people in the audience,” Liberty said, looking at my shaking hands, “I might have a solution.”
“Gloves are the ideal solution,” Jiang said.
“I wish I had the ones from right before I left,” I answered. “Even if they don’t match my newest costume.”
“You mean these, dear?” Vernice asked with a small smile. Saying that, she pulled my old gloves out of a pocket in her skirt. “I been meaning to give ‘em to you.” Flooded by the wave of relief I felt, I was also awed by her ingenuity. When I held them up to the moonlight, I grunted and shook my head.
“They don’t match my new costume and I’m sure Laurent will have something to say about that.”
“I can take care of that, honey,” Liberty said, gently pulling the gloves from my hand. “Pretty sure the costume department can whip up another pair that’ll match your new costume.”
“What if one of them mentions it to Laurent or Rex?” I asked, worried about upsetting either because I still didn’t understand what role they played in all of this.
“The only thing Laurent cares about when it comes to the costume department ishisownsuit, and that’s definitely as far as his interest lies,” Liberty responded with a deep laugh. “It’ll be okay, I promise. And the new pair will match your new costume too.”
Samuel suddenly cooed before the steady tramping of boots became audible. We swiftly tucked ourselves into the shadows as the footsteps drew closer. I instantly recognized the large, bulky body that belonged to Rex. He held another man by the arm, supporting him as if he were intoxicated. I had to look at the fine shoes to recognize the other man as Laurent.
We collectively held our breaths until they finally passed. When it was safe to speak again, Jiang said, “I suggest we return to our sleeping quarters.”
Liberty looked down at me with sad eyes. Like a sister, she placed her hand on my shoulder and said, “Wish you were coming with us, Bindi. I’d feel a lot better knowing you were close by.”
“I’ll be fine,” I replied, putting my own hand on top of hers. “As the star attraction for the grand finale, as long as I don’t get caught, I couldn’t be safer.”
“If anything changes,” Bernice said behind me, “you will tell us, right?”
“Of course, I will,” I replied.
Liberty’s hand slid off my shoulder and we all exited the tent silently. Amelia clung to my arm the whole way back to my tent. She was looking from side to side and I imagined she was looking for any threats or danger. I didn’t dare talk to her while we walked. After Rex’s sudden appearance, I couldn’t risk giving away our position.
The two guards were still sleeping off their laudanum-spiked coffee when I reached my tent. I carefully stepped around them and entered it silently.
After putting my topcoat in the wardrobe, I held up Amelia. “I won’t lose you again, Amelia,” I whispered. “And I won’t leave you either.”
Then my thoughts returned to Rex and Laurent and the fact that it seemed Mr. Grey was the one pulling all the strings where they were concerned. Maybe they weren’t the enemies I’d made them out to be? I couldn’t help but wonder if Laurent and Rex were stuck in the same situation I was. Maybe they wanted to leave the circus, just as I did, but they couldn’t?
I couldn’t allow thoughts about Laurent and Rex to dilute the excitement I felt about the plan Jiang and I had formulated, with the help of the others—we were going to stage our own rebellion.
Chapter Eleven
My sleep was neither deep nor restful.
But what woke me up the next morning was worse. A great bellow from outside made me sit up on my cot with a start as my heart began to pound through me. Not only did the cacophony continue but the awful sound seemed to be coming closer and louder by the second. It took me a second or so to realize there were actual words underneath all the noise. Before my sleep-deprived mind could decipher the words, however, a huge thud was followed by a dull groan outside my tent.
