The Guild of Fallen Clowns (33 page)

As Ringmaster awarded the prize, he called
out to all within earshot to draw attention to the winning
customer. A large crowd began forming, with all eyes focused on
Ringmaster and the teenage girl proudly holding her prize above her
head for all to see. Geno looked at the newly empty space on the
shelf and reached into his bag. He pulled out a cast figure of
Peepers, slipped it through the gap, and rested it on the shelf.
His empty hand pulled back and the gap closed.

*****

“C’mon, Dad, let’s give that a try,” a young
woman said to her father. She held her four-year-old son’s hand
tight and used her free hand to guide her father toward The
Ringmaster’s booth.

“I don’t think so, Brenda. Those things are
rigged. You can’t win.”

“Sure you can. That girl just did. Just give
it a try, Dad.”

“I’ll pass—but here.” He reached out to
offer his daughter some folded bills. “You give it a try.”

With an open hand, Brenda refused to take
his money. “No, Daddy. I want you to have some fun. You always tell
me stories of what a great baseball player you were when you were a
kid. I want you to do it. Show Sammy how good you are.”

“That was a long time ago. Besides, I wasn’t
a pitcher. I don’t think my aim will impress Sammy.” Again, he
reached out to offer Brenda the money. “Please, Brenda, I want you
to enjoy yourself.”

She refused. “No, Daddy! It’s about time you
had some fun. If you won’t do it for me, do it for Sammy. Give him
some fun memories of his Pop-Pop.”

“What, am I dying? We have plenty of time to
build memories.”

“That’s what you always say, but you’re
always sitting on the sidelines, Daddy. We don’t get to see you
that often.” Brenda looked up at her father with sad puppy eyes.
“Please, Daddy? I don’t ask for much.”

His eyes rolled up and he exhaled in
surrender. “Fine, I’ll play. But if I win, I’m not going to carry
one of those girly stuffed toys around this place. You’ll pick
something out for yourself or Sammy.”

“Oh, so now you think you might win
something. What happened to it being rigged?” she said
playfully.

“And you corrected me by pointing out how
the girl won. I still think it’s rigged, but just in case I do
knock down the lead bottles, I’m letting you know, I don’t want the
stupid prize.”

“Just play and we’ll discuss it IF you win,”
she said.

“Step right up. Three throws for a buck.
Knock all the bottles down once and win a prize from the bottom
shelf. Two stacks get you anything on the middle shelf. Knock all
three stacks down and you win anything along the top,” Ringmaster
said as he lifted his arm and motioned to the oversized, brightly
colored assortment of stuffed animals hanging along the perimeter
of his booth.

“Give him the money, Dad. Sammy, watch your
Pop-Pop. He’s going to knock down those bottles with a ball.” She
pulled the boy in front of her for a better view.

“Pop-Pop’s going to
try
knocking the
bottles down. Don’t get his hopes up, Bren. I might miss.”

Ringmaster took his dollar and placed three
baseballs on the wooden plank. “Three tries for a buck,” Ringmaster
called out. “Just three bottles and three chances to win.”

Brenda’s father picked up the first ball. He
rolled it around in his hands like it was a long lost friend. “It’s
been a long time since I held a baseball,” he said as he studied
it. Before throwing it, he raised it to his face, closed his eyes
and smelled it. “Wow, that brings back memories.”

“Hey, buddy,” Ringmaster interrupted.
“Smelling my balls will cost you extra.” Immediately, Brenda’s
hands covered Sammy’s ears.

Ringmaster started to laugh. “Sorry, lady,
carnival humor. I didn’t notice junior there.”

Brenda’s father found Ringmaster’s wisecrack
to be somewhat amusing. He lowered the ball and took aim as
Ringmaster stepped back to give him plenty of room to throw. He
pulled his arm back and launched the ball. It hit the bottom left
bottle, toppling it and the top bottle.

“Nice try, buddy, but you have to drop them
all for a prize. You can still win anything on the middle
shelf.”

He picked up the second ball and
concentrated on his aim.

“Hit between the bottom two, Daddy,” Brenda
cheered.

“Really, Brenda, don’t you think I know
that?” He returned his focus on the stack. Again, he reached back
and threw the ball with all his might. The ball thudded against the
backdrop. His aim was a good foot to the left of the stack.

“That’s okay, Daddy. You still have one more
shot. Just take your time and don’t throw so hard.”

He picked up the last ball and tossed it
back and forth between his hands a few times. For his final
attempt, he decided to loosen up and not think so much. He held the
ball and looked at Sammy. Sammy smiled back at his Pop-Pop. Without
taking his eyes off his grandson, he reached back. Then, as his arm
moved forward, his head spun toward the target, barely giving him a
split second to calculate his aim. The ball released and split the
bottom two, toppling the entire stack.

Sammy’s arms flew above his head. Brenda
screeched in excitement and hugged her father.

“We have another winner!” Ringmaster called
out to the crowd. “That’s two winners in a row at the Milk Bottle
Throw. The easiest game at the carnival.”

“Pick out your prize, Daddy.”

“Oh no, I told you I don’t want a silly
prize. You pick something, or let’s let Sammy pick one.” Sammy
grinned with anticipation of choosing one of the prizes. His head
and pointed finger aimed high to a giant gorilla above him.

“I didn’t agree with you. I just agreed to
discuss it,” Brenda said to her father while she looked at Sammy
and shook her head to let him know it wasn’t going to happen. Sammy
understood her gesture and responded with a frown.

“Oh, I should have known. You’re just like
your mother, Brenda. She was a master at twisting words.”

“Yes, I am. She taught me all of her tricks
while you were away. And I remember the one thing she would say
that always worked.”

“Oh, what was that?”

Before she could reply, Ringmaster
interrupted. “Look folks, when you figure out what you want, let me
know. I have other customers.” They nodded and Ringmaster stepped
away.

“Okay, wait,” she said. “Let me get into
character.” She put on a stern face and folded her arms across her
chest.

“Oh, here it comes,” he said as his eyes
rolled back.

“Sam—or, uh—Dad, you have two choices. You
can go to church with me and Sammy tomorrow or you can suck it up
and pick a prize for yourself.”

“I knew it. You played the church card. God,
I miss that. You’re right, she always got her way with that one.
Now I wish, just once, that I would have called her bluff and went
to church with her and you.”

Remaining in character, Brenda’s face
tightened. “So, Sam, what’s it going to be?”

As he looked at her face, he smirked and
said, “Both!”

Brenda’s confusion stripped away her
mother’s persona. “No—what—really? You’ll go to church with us
tomorrow?”

“Sure,” he said. “
And
I’ll take the
stupid prize. Let’s just say you and your mother both won one this
time.”

Excited, she turned to the boy and said,
“Did you hear that, Sammy? Pop-Pop’s going with us to church
tomorrow.” Her enthusiasm flowed through Sammy as he smiled and the
two jumped up and down together.

Sam turned to look at the prize shelf.
Starting from the front, he scanned the row of cheap fuzzy options,
all the way to the back where he noticed the one item which didn’t
fit in.

“Did you decide yet?” Ringmaster said as he
moved toward Sam.

“Yeah, I think so. Give me the one in the
back, the last one on the shelf.”

Ringmaster turned to see which stuffed
animal he was pointing to. He stepped to the rear and took the
Peepers figure off the shelf. A look of confusion came across his
face as he studied the unfamiliar object. He looked at the other
shelves to see if there were more mysterious prizes. It was the
only one.

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Sam said. Ringmaster
took another look at the figure, shrugged, and handed it to Sam
before tending to another customer.

“What did you pick, Daddy?”

Sam studied the figure. “I don’t know, looks
like some sort of scary clown thing.”

Brenda’s eyes widened. “You shouldn’t have
picked that,” she said as she reached for the figure.”

Sam pulled away. “No, it’s okay. It’s just a
toy,” he said.

Brenda turned to look at the prize shelf.
“Look, the stuffed puppy, you can trade it for that and I’ll let
you give it to Sammy.”

“Too late,” Sam said. He took another look
at the figure. “It’s just a toy, Brenda. I’m not as weak as you
think I am.”

Sammy reached up for the prize. “I want to
see it, Pop-Pop.”

Brenda pushed his hands down and stepped
between them. “Don’t let him see it. He’ll have nightmares.”

Sam obliged her and tucked it under his
arm.

“But I want to see it, Pop-Pop.”

His grandfather ignored his plea and changed
the subject. He bent down and asked Sammy where the Merry-Go-Round
was. Sammy forgot all about his Pop-Pop’s prize and pointed in the
direction of the Merry-Go-Round.

“Is this some sort of icon of protection?”
the women said as she sat in the back seat of the cab. The Peepers
figure was standing upright on the seat beside her.

“Excuse me?” Reggie replied.

“This thing on the seat next to me. It looks
like something which might be used to ward off evil.”

Reggie turned to see what the woman was
referring to. Peepers appeared to be looking right at her. “What,
where did that come from?”

“I guess that answers my question,” the
woman said. “It was probably left by a previous fare.” Both Reggie
and the woman studied the object, then the woman said, “If nobody
claims it, you might want to keep it back here. I would certainly
think twice about robbing you.”

Reggie faced forward and put the car in
drive. “Good thought, but I’m pretty sure I know who it belongs
to.”

“Well, maybe they won’t claim it.”

“True, but I couldn’t just keep it. You’re
my last fare for the day. I’ll swing by and return it to him.”

“Seriously? You would go out of your way to
return
that
? Do you hand deliver everything people leave in
your cab?”

“Well, no, but it’s not that much out of my
way, and he was a nice guy.”

“Oh, so he tipped you well. I get it. Maybe
he’ll give you a reward. Smart girl.”

“Actually, his tip was small.”

The woman smiled as she leaned forward in
her seat. “Oh, now I know what’s going on. You like him. I’m so
stupid. I should have figured it out when you said
he was
nice
.”

Reggie blushed as she lowered her chin to
her chest.

“That’s it, isn’t it?” the woman exclaimed.
“Good for you. I really hope it works out for you.”

*****

“Oh no, not here, please don’t stop here,”
Alan said as the Ferris wheel came to a stop, rocking the seat at
the highest point. His knuckles turned white from his firm grip on
the safety bar in front of them.

Mary smiled as she watched his body tense.
His eyes were fixed on his own lap, avoiding the expansive
view.

“Are you afraid of heights, Alan?”

“I’m trying to get over it,” he replied.

“Why didn’t you tell me? We didn’t have to
come on here.”

“Because if you knew about all the things
I’m…I don’t like, you might change your mind about me.”

“Don’t be silly. Everyone has something they
are afraid of. So tell me, what other things…
don’t you
like
?”

“You don’t,” he said. The ride continued
moving and his grip lessened the closer they got to the ground.

“Seriously?” she said. “Do you really think
nothing scares me?”

“Well, yeah. I mean, look at you. You live
alone in a house in the middle of the woods with a ghost. You are
the most amazingly strong women I’ve ever met.”

Mary sat back in the seat, looking
thoughtful. After a short pause she said, “I think I’m flattered
that you see me that way, but it’s so far from the truth. You
really don’t know me at all. As a matter of fact, if you did know
about the thing that scares me most, you probably wouldn’t be
interested in seeing me again.”

“Are you kidding?” Alan said. “I’d love to
know what you’re afraid of. What is it? Do you have a list of
things, or is it just one or two things? Please, tell me.”

Mary frowned. “Whoa! You’re starting to
worry me. I said I have things that scare me, and you’re getting
excited, and almost giddy, to learn about my pain.”

Alan’s eyes widened. “Oh my god, you’re
right. That was totally inappropriate of me. I’m so, so sorry. You
have to believe me. That wasn’t my intention. I would never take
pleasure from your pain. I’m such an idiot. What was I
thinking?”

“I’m not going to lie to you. That was
pretty stupid. I’d also like to know what you must have been
thinking.”

The ride started to slow down again. It came
to a stop with them in the next position after the peak. Alan’s
hands lightly rested on the bar. He casually took in the view as he
tried to find an answer to Mary’s question.

“I guess I was feeling less intimidated by
you, and it felt good. You are so strong and I’m…well—I’m a wreck.
I know my response was unacceptable, but the idea that you might
have some flaws made you that much more attractive to me. I thought
that maybe I do have a chance.”

Mary sighed and offered no expression as she
digested his words.

“Obviously, I was wrong,” he continued. “I
wish you told me that when I had my Boogy makeup on. You might not
have noticed my stupid grin behind the sad lips.”