This brought more angry shouts from the crowd. Finally, Mr. Barlow’s patches pushed their way through the gathering and stormed toward the tent. Patches normally calmed unhappy customers by offering free tickets to the big show, or—if the problem rube was male—giving them a free pass to the special “event” in the back lot behind the baggage wagons, which was accessible only by word of mouth. But once in a while, they had to use force. This was one of those times.
At first, John thought the patches were angry rubes, coming forward to back him up. Then they charged him and his eyes went wide, looking around frantically for an escape route. Before he had a chance to run, one of the patches grabbed his wrist, twisted it behind his back, wrapped a muscular arm around his neck, and dragged him away from the now-leaning tent. John sputtered and clawed at the patch’s arm, but couldn’t get away. The other patch stood between Lilly and the crowd with his arms crossed, daring the rubes to try something. Merrick raised his hands again and spoke to the irritated mob.
“Okay, folks, okay. Everything’s fine. The heckler has been removed from the area. If you’ve already paid to see The Albino Medium, we’ll give you a full refund. She won’t be doing any more readings this afternoon. Everyone else, it’s time to move along. There’s nothing more to see here.”
The rubes who already paid grumbled and moved toward Alana, shoving and pushing to get in line for their refunds. The rest were reluctant to leave, afraid they might miss something.
Merrick waved them away. “Go on now,” he said. “Move along.”
Mr. Barlow pushed his way through the stragglers. “What the hell is going on over here?” he asked Merrick.
Merrick turned his back to the rubes and kept his voice low. “Someone outed her. The rubes heard everything.”
“Jesus Christ,” Mr. Barlow said. “What did she do now?”
“I didn’t do anything,” Lilly said. “That rube had his mind made up before he came into my tent.”
“His mind made up about what?” Mr. Barlow said.
“Me being a fraud,” Lilly said.
Several women in the refund line heard what Lilly said and gasped, then turned to spread the word, whispering behind their hands.
“Shut up, you dumb bitch,” Merrick hissed at Lilly.
“I don’t care,” she said. “I don’t want to lie to people anymore. I can’t.”
“I don’t give a damn what you want,” Merrick said. “You do what I tell you to do. Without me, you’d still be locked in your parents’ attic, half out of your mind. I saved your sorry ass and I own you.” He glared at her, daring her to speak.
She said nothing. There was no point.
He dismissed her with a wave of his hand. “Go back to the train and stay there. After we fix the tent, you’re on again.”
Mr. Barlow scanned the collection of angry rubes, his brow creased. “It’s too late for that,” he said. “Word is out she’s a gaff and it’ll spread like wildfire. Once the cops hear about it, we’ll get heat for sure.” He cursed under his breath and balled his hands into fists. “And at our biggest venue.” He pointed a finger at Merrick, anger flickering in his eyes. “Come up with a new act for her. In the meantime, she can recoup your losses by working for Josephine in the cooch show.”
CHAPTER 20
JULIA Two days after the ice storm and Fletcher’s surprise visit, the weather warmed and everything began to thaw. Water dripped into the already soaked ground, and snow and ice fell off roofs and buildings in giant, wet chunks. Tube-shaped pieces dropped from branches and wires, and dark patches of green grass and wet stone became visible beneath fields of translucent ice. The power came back on and the furnace sprang to life in the basement of Blackwood Manor. The house ticked as it began to warm.
Julia wrapped a sweater around herself and watched the wet scene from the kitchen window, sipping a cup of hot tea and honey. Over at the barn, a truck and horse trailer backed into the driveway. At first, she thought it was Fletcher’s truck, but a man she’d never seen before got out and went into the office.
Fletcher had stopped in the previous day to check the pipes like he said he would, but he only stayed a few minutes. A client was waiting at another farm and he couldn’t be late. He was polite but business-like, and Julia didn’t know what to say other than thank you. She thought about apologizing, but for what, she wasn’t sure. For their awkward exchange? For asking him to leave so quickly? For sending him out on the ice-covered roads after he’d been kind enough to check in on her? He was the one who made the decision to venture out to Blackwood Manor on such a treacherous night. She hadn’t asked him to come. And it wasn’t her job to keep him safe. Besides, even if she had wanted him to stay, for safety reasons or otherwise, the last thing she needed was for Claude to think something was going on between them. Still, she hated the thought of him being mad at her.
Over at the barn, the man got back in his truck, backed the trailer up to the main door, got out, and went into the office again. Julia furrowed her brow. What was going on? Claude hadn’t said anything about a new horse being delivered or any of them being sold. And he wouldn’t make those decisions without asking her anyway. Would he? She stared out the window, paralyzed by indecision. She didn’t know whether to go over there and ask, or wait and see what happened. Then, before she could make up her mind, the man got in his truck and drove away, and Claude let some of the horses out in the main paddock. The horses ran and kicked and rolled in the snow, enjoying their freedom after being stuck in the barn during the storm. Bonnie Blue raced out of the barn and galloped around the perimeter of the fence, her head held high, her nostrils flaring. She looked desperate, whinnying and calling out, waiting for someone to answer.
Julia’s heart dropped.
Where was Samantha?
She set her cup down on the counter so hard it nearly cracked, then hurried into the mudroom, threw on boots and a jacket, and flew out the door. If something had happened to Samantha, she wasn’t sure she could handle it. She rushed across the yard, sidestepping icy patches and puddles until she reached the barn, then yanked open the office door. She ran through the office and burst into the center aisle, searching frantically for Claude. He was putting straw in one of the stalls.
“Where’s Samantha?” she said, her voice rattled by fear. “I saw Blue outside alone and she’s beside herself!”
Claude stopped spreading the straw and looked at her, confusion written on his face. “She’s with a nurse mare.”
“Why?” Julia said. “Blue is frantic!” Her racing heart slowed, but only a little.
Claude gave her a stern look, as if she should know the answer. “Blue is one of our top producers. We need to breed her again as soon as possible.”
“What does that have to do with taking Samantha away from her?”
“We need Samantha to stop nursing so Blue will go into heat again.”
“But Samantha is only three days old. She’s too young to be taken from her mother!”