~Hello, just a quick note, first it's been brought to my attention about the cover image, I know it doesn't look placed in the 50's and it wasn't meant to be it was just meant to show what Claudia would look like until I can get a proper image. Secondly I'm sorry the chapters are short I'm finding it difficult to get writing without being flustered because it's my first time writing a story like this so please be patient with me. Thank you all for favorites, fallows and reviews.~
Two.
"So what exactly are you doing here Victoria?"
Claudia looked quizzically at Elsa as though she had no clue what she was talking about as the older women lit the cigarette taking a long drag from it then blowing out the smoke in a white puff before looking back to the girl.
"Come on now, I know it's you, using your mother's name oh but I know that far off look in my brother's passed down eyes."
The girl blinked then smirked looking the older women right in the eye.
"Why didn't you say anything in front of the others if you knew it was me Aunt Elsa?"
Elsa sighed sending up another puff of white smoke.
"And make a spectacle of you being here, after your little performance you've already drawn attention to yourself, why make it worse for you? So back to my first question, why are you here?"
Each syllable Elsa said was enunciated so her German accent sounded more threatening as she leaned forward to put out the cigarette in the crystal ash tray on the table between them her lips set firmly in a tight line.
"I came because I was back in Jupiter visiting dear old dad and I seen a flyer for Fräulein Elsa's Cabinet of Curiosities and thought I'd come by and pay my favorite aunty a visit and see what this cabinet was full of, I'd never expected such a group, Lobster boy, world's smallest women, a giantess, and a pair of siamese sisters, bet those two are your crown Jewels."
Elsa watched Victoria carefully her eyes narrow as she finished talking.
"Do not spit out those lies to me, your father has been dead and buried in California for 10 years an your mother longer still, you've lived in that asylum since you were eight, speaking of which how did you get out?"
Victoria gave a devious smile crossing her legs and arms.
"It's amazing what some good behavior and threatening one of the guards I'd tell his wife about his affair with a sweet little nurse that worked there can do or a girl like me, a walking lie detector and a human syrian, as far as why I'm here I came because I heard about this Freak Show in Tampa and thought I'd see what it was about and if you would be needing more help."
Elsa crossed her arms waiting a moment before looking at Victoria who was waiting in silence the same far off look in her eyes as before.
"So they dropped the murder charges on you because you black mailed them? Very cleaver, you'll need a place to stay for tonight until we can pitch you a tent."
She paused and in the silence the sound of footsteps coming closer to the entrance of the tent could be heard and after another moment a bearded women came in carrying a silver covered tray thought she didn't pause at the entrance like Jimmy had but rather came in and set the tray on the table that had been set up in a connected tent.
"Ethel, send in Eve if she has not gone to her caravan for the night."
The women called Ethel nodded once before leaving, Victoria kept her eyes on Elsa who looked back at her coldly as the sound of footsteps could be heard outside again before the tent entrance opened and Amazon stepped inside looking around for a second before she let her eyes fall on the pair settled under the crystal chandelier her eyes moving from Victoria to Elsa before she spoke.
"You wanted to see me Miss Elsa?"
There was a slight quiver of nervousness in her voice as her eyes came back to Victoria before returning to Elsa who stood with a kind smile on her lips as she crossed her arms.
"You need not worry my darling, I only wish to ask a favor of you Eve."
There was a slight change in Amazon as she relaxed with a quick nod.
"Our new monster will be needing a place to stay for the night until a tent can be put up for her, your trailer has just enough room for the trundle bed that is beneath your own, would you mind her bunking with you for the night? If you do not want it you can always let her sleep out in the cold."
There was a smirk in Elsa's voice as well as on her lips as Amazon's eyes flickered to Victoria for a brief moment meeting the far off look before she looked back at Elsa looking as though she'd rather have opinion two but was battling with herself.
"Come darling it's only one night, come morning the others will put up the tent and she will be out of your way."
Amazon lifted her chin and gave a half nod her eyes slightly lit with doubt.
"There's my strong girl, if you're headed to your caravan now she can fallow you if not the one of the others can show her the way."
She gave a dismissive wave to Amazon who turned to leave but paused looking back at Victoria who was now standing.
"This way then Claudia."
After a final glance at Elsa Victoria walked to Amazon's side and fallowed her away from the tent and back part of the way Jimmy had brought her, Victoria quickly round for ever two steps Amazon took she herself took four but she managed to keep up well enough until they reached the baby blue caravan, on the side in faded and chipped black paint was the name Amazon Eve and on the door in less damaged paint were the words World's Tallest Women, Amazon paused at the door before opening it and disappearing inside, Victoria fallowed and after a second a light was clicked on and she had to admit she was a little impressed the other women didn't need to bend her head to avoid hitting her head of the ceiling of the trailer but was able to stand at full hight with an inch or so to spare between her hair and the ceiling.
Victoria kept quite as she let her eye wonder over the contents of the shelves around her, the one to her left held multiple pairs of heeled shoes but only the pair of cherry red pumps seemed to have signs of wear on them and upon glancing over where Amazon was working on pulling out the pull out cot she seen they were the ones she had just taken off and replaced with black silk slippers.
"Since this is your bed wanna lend a hand?"
Victoria looked up and after a second nodded and went to Amazon's side both looking at the bed that was only half pulled out a rusted spring in the way of it moving any further, Amazon put her hands on her hips looking at the spring.
"There's no way in hell my hands will fit in there to unjam it, so we need to find something to move it or you sleep on half a bed."
Victoria looked at the spring and after a moment kneeled down and wiggled her hand between the track enough her fingers touched the spring.
"I can move it, here pull the mattress I'll trust you not to slice my hand in two."
After a second Amazon began to carefully pull the under bed out stopping when it clicked to signal it was pulled out completely making Victoria remove her hand from the track while Amazon looked through the drawers of the small dresser tucked into the corner, after a few minutes she turned to face Victoria holding out a neatly folded pair of older looking navy pajamas.
"They'll be a little long but they should do the job until you can get your own clothes."
Victoria took the pajamas and looked at the port hole sized window she was pointing to.
"Bathroom is outside and past the first two tents, be sure to get that right people around her value their privacy and wouldn't think twice about killing a newbie like you."
Victoria nodded making a mental note about it.
"If you go out in the middle of the night be sure to prop the door open other wise it will lock from the inside, I'm genuinely a light sleeper but there are nights I don't hear a thing, if you do forget to prop the door then you'll be spending the rest of the day outside."
Again Victoria nodded sitting on the pulled out bed as Amazon took a set of red silk pajamas and went to the door.
"I'll be back and some advice, don't suddenly turn into a thief or you will not leave this trailer alive clear?"
Victoria flinched and nodded vigorously watching as Amazon smirked and left the trailer pausing to place a rock between the door and it's frame before she disappeared from sight, Victoria sighed running a hand through her hair keeping the threat in her mind. 'Guess I can't blame her, I'm the stranger staying in her caravan.'
Victoria thought to herself as she stood and quickly changed into the navy pajamas, Amazon had been right, the pants fit at the waist but we're a few inches to long, the long sleeve button up shirt fit a little better the sleeves were just long enough that she had to push them up now and again while she folded her clothes and set them at the foot of her bed with her shoes so they were out of the way.
By the time she had tucked them beside the bed Amazon was re-entering the trailer now holding a pillow and what looked like a folded cotten blanket, she handed them to Victoria before getting in her own bed.
"Jimmy said you could keep those as long as you're here, they started setting up your tent."
Victoria glanced out the window for a moment before setting the pillow down and laying down as they rhythm of Amazon's breathing changed slightly becoming relaxed in sleep, Victoria lay wide awake starring at the ceiling of the caravan listening to the distant sound of music as it drifted from where she could guess was her aunt's tent judging by the song, she closed her eyes for a second listening past the music to hear the crickets in the near by swamp, somewhere near by she could hear people talking and after a second the voices passed leaving the quite of the night.
She opened her eyes glancing out the window and as she watched the lights from the fairs wheel went out leaving only the soft multicolored glow of the lights that were strung around the tents outside, she let her eyes close again just listening to the record playing from Elsa's tent until it all drifted away and there was just silence and darkness and then there wasn't, suddenly Victoria was thrown into a dream that seemed so real she could have been wide awake.
She was eight years old again sitting in the dimly lit police station room her hands cuffed under the table in her lap as she looked around swinging her legs, moments later a man dressed in a black suit carrying a folder filled with papers which he set in front of her before he sat in the chair across from her his hands folded on the table.
"Victoria I'm going to show you some pictures and I want you to tell me what you know about them, can you do that?"
Victoria nodded and watched as the man took images out of the folder one by one and lined them up in front of her in a random order, she looked over each one carefully lingering on small things in each one.
"What looks familiar in this one?"
The man pointed to the first image, the old claw foot bathtub that had blood dripping off the rim, Victoria looked up from the picture into the man's eyes.
"That's where I killed my dad because he was crazy...your having an affair with your secretary..."
The man flinched looking bewildered and sweat began to gloss his brow as he glanced nervously at what she guessed was a two way mirror before he gathered himself enough to clear his throat and loosen his tie.
"Now you openly admit to this crime? You say he was crazy, how was he crazy?"
Victoria listened to the questions but she wasn't hearing them as her eyes searched his face as he struggled to keep eye contact with her.
"It's more than an affair, you have a child with the other women, your leading a double family life..."
By this point the man was sweating bullets and he quickly gathered the photos and shoved them back into the folder and left the room, a moment later a police man came in and led her out of the room into another that looked like a waiting area where once she was sat in a chair he knelt to her level looking her in the eye.
"Is there someone who can watch you for a few days Victoria?"
Victoria thought for a moment then shook her head absently.
"No, my aunty is in California and won't be back until summer...your a good man, you saved that little boy at your own expense."
She smiled softly and the police man blinked a bit surprised and then smiled softly again before it faded.
"So you have no family here to watch you?"
She shook her head and watched as he stood up and after making sure she'd stay he disappeared around the corner, many minutes passed until finally the man from the integration room came back with two men in white, before she could even comprehend what was going on she was forced into a strait jacket and with each one of the men in white holding one shoulder she was led out side and into the white ambulance, once inside someone else grabbed her and tried to hold her down but it wasn't working as she struggled until finally there was a sharp pinch in her side and suddenly her eyes felt very heavy and she struggled to keep them open as a raspy voice shushed her and a soft hand smoothed her hair as the darkness consumed her.
As the dream gave way to darkness Victoria became vaguely aware of the warmth she was curled up against but somewhere in the back of her unconscious mind she thought she heard the sound of a door softly being closed before everything was quite again.