His eyes fluttered but didn't open and he let out a low groan. He was alive. A rush of energy surged through me. I had to get him out of here, I had to help him. "Evangeline! Miles! Someone come quick. Brenon needs help."
Within seconds, several members of the circus were next to me and they lifted the Ringmaster from the ground. Miles and Evangeline watched the progress.
"Be careful with him," I called out after them.
"They'll take good care of him," Evangeline said.
Miles put his hand on my shoulder. "Go with him."
"Someone has to finish here. We need to check for any other survivors I said." Inside, I was screaming. All I wanted to do was follow Brenon, but I was the only Sayge here at the moment. "My aunt, my friends."
"Joe's with Goldie, on the train," Miles said. "Evangeline and I will finish up here."
"What?" Evangeline glared at Miles. "I'm going with Brenon."
"No." Miles shook his head. "You're not. Ara's got this. Let her go."
Evangeline's ears flattened against her head and her nose twitched. "Fine. What are you waiting for? Go, Ara."
I didn't need to be told twice. The group carrying Brenon had already left the warehouse and I hurried to catch up to them. Wherever he was going, I wanted to go with him. I needed to see if he was going to be okay, I had to help, somehow. My throat stung as I fought against the dark thoughts that swirled around my mind. What would I do if he didn't wake up?
As I crossed into the cool night air, I caught sight of the people carrying Brenon as they paused in front of a car. The flash of a lighter being lit caught my eye. "Mike, wait for me."
Mike blew a cloud of smoke into the air and waved me over, then turned to the group. "Make room for her, she's in back with him."
I slid into the back seat, and then they carefully lowered Brenon in behind me. I cradled his head in my lap, smoothing his hair. I didn't even look up from him when the car's engine roared to life. After a few minutes of driving, the familiar pulling sensation tugged at my insides and I felt like I was being sucked through a straw as the world went black for a moment. When we came out on the other side, I looked back down and saw green eyes staring up at me. "You're alive."
Relief, as I'd never felt before, sent me straight to tears. I couldn't control the trembling of my lower lip or the laughter that slipped out. I was hysterical and happy. I leaned down, kissing his forehead, and hugging his head with my arms. "You're alive."
He reached a hand up and brushed his fingers against my cheek before wincing in pain.
"Shh, don't worry, I'm going to take care of you," I said.
He nodded, then closed his eyes again. I ran my fingers through his hair, then wiped the tears from my cheeks. I knew my feelings were strong for the Ringmaster, but it was at that moment that I realized I'd fallen for him completely. There was nothing I wouldn't do for him.
Chapter 23
After what felt like the longest few minutes of my life, the car came to a stop, and the door was pulled open. Miles stared down at me. "How's he doing?"
"He opened his eyes for a second, and he's made a few noises, but not much else." Carefully, I lifted Brenon off of me and positioned myself under his shoulders to help guide him out of the car.
Miles held him in his arms like a child despite the fact that Brenon wasn't a small man. He just looked small compared to Miles.
"I thought you were staying with Evangeline," I said. "Did you find any other survivors?"
He frowned. "One or two. The rest had already fled. They should be at Kay's."
I wanted to check on the Sayges and my aunt. But I had to know if Brenon was going to be okay first. I told myself there was nothing I could do to help there. I was needed here.
I followed Miles to the train, among a rush of people who were flooding the tracks from multiple cars that had shown up since we arrived. Where had they all come from? Had the Circus had these cars all along?
"Ara!" I turned at the sound of my name.
Some of the tension I was holding left as Joe crashed into me, pulling me into a hug. A second later, Goldie slammed into us, the two of them squishing me between them for a long moment before letting go.
"You okay? I heard what happened. Goldie and I were here using this crazy communication system they have to monitor it all." Joe looked around. "Where's your aunt? And the others?"
My stomach tightened as guilt settled inside me. "I don't know. Miles said the survivors went back to Aunt Kay's."
"We can contact them for you," Joe said. "There's this mailbox thing and special paper, come on, I'll show you."
I glanced behind me. Miles had vanished inside the train with Brenon, and I felt like every bit of me was fighting the urge to be in there with him. I looked back at Joe. "Can you check for me? I want to see if Brenon's okay."
Goldie grabbed my arm. "What happened?"
"Iron dust," I said.
She let go of my arm, then pushed me. "Go. We got this."
"Thanks." I turned and ran toward the train before Joe could say anything. If Brenon was waking up right now, I wanted to be there. If there was any way my magic could help, I wanted to do something. Could they give him the orange drink he'd given me to help me feel better? What was the cure for something that was so dangerous to Fae?
When I entered the train car, my breath caught as I saw the sprawled out form of Brenon on his simple bed. Miles sat in a chair next to him and stood when I walked in.
"Anything?" I asked.
Miles shook his head. "Not yet."
I walked over to the bed and knelt down on the ground. Brenon looked like he was asleep. I rested my hand on top of his, and silently willed him to open his eyes. "Is there anything I can do?"
"We have to wait for it to leave his system. I don't know how much got in there, but he's not dead yet, so that gives us hope that he'll pull through."
"How long do we wait?" My insides squirmed at the thought of not being able to do anything. I hated feeling so helpless.
"Ara?"
I turned to see Evangeline standing in the doorway. "I brought you some company and some news."
Behind her, I could see Joe and Goldie waiting. Had they reached my aunt? "What news?"
"Your Aunt Kay is fine, but the Sayges are done with us. They lost a lot of people. They won't help us anymore." Evangeline stepped into the room and moved aside so Joe and Goldie could pass.
"It was a nice try, and I don't blame you if you want to go back to the Sayges," Evangeline said.
I narrowed my eyes at her, trying to get a read on her. Did she want me to leave? Was I going to have to deal with her jealousy around Brenon? I shook my head. "I'm not going anywhere, and you know that. What are you trying to pull here?"
For the first time, I saw a flicker of weakness in Evangeline's usually impassive expression. She looked hurt. "I'm not trying to pull anything. You showed great strength today, and I don't want you to leave."