There were darkness, muffling, and 10K knew he was tied down. There was someone was lovingly touching his face.
Creepy, 10K thought.
The bind covering his ears was raised up a little, yet his eyes was still covered with the cloth. He was still gagged.
"So grown up," the woman whispered in his ear. She laughed psychotically.
10K shivered at the laugh. She always did that laugh and it always freaked him out, even when he was fourteen, before everything turned to shit.
She touched his bare arm and giggled, "So pale."
"Stop touching me you psychotic bitch," 10K said, but it came out muffled, due to the gag.
"What's that? I can't hear you baby-boy," the woman said.
"Esme! What are you doing to our prisoner?" A woman shouted.
"I haven't seen my son in four years!" Esmeralda shouted back.
"Son?" The woman asked, confused.
"He's adopted," Esmeralda replied back quietly.
His mom was a Latina, straight from Jalisco, to get away from the Drug War, she had told him. Let it be known that 10K was surprised that he wasn't going to darken like his mother and that he was going to have pale skin forever.
"I see, but from where I'm standing, it looked like you were going too…" The woman started, "Never mind."
"I would never!" Esmeralda shouted in horror.
"Yet, you have him tied down for the Grand Finale," the woman said. "Whatever."
10K heard her walking away and then he heard the snarling and growling of zombies. It sounded like a fence was rattling.
"Whatever to you too," Esmeralda replied. If he weren't blindfolded, he would've rolled his eyes. "This is going to be fun."
"To you," he said, but it came out muffled.
"What was that? I can't hear you," Esmeralda said and laughed psychotically again. He shivered. "Poor baby, are you cold?"
"No," he said, but again he was gagged.
"Suck it up!" She shouted at him, "Worthless kid! I took you in when your real parents was beating on you! I gave you a home and gave you a mother's love, but how did you repay me! You and your useless father placed me in a mental hospital, like I was scum!" 10K could barely remember his real parents. If he thought back really hard, he could see two women, which was all. "What do you have to say about that?" She lowered the gag.
"Well, to be honest, with a laugh like yours…" 10K started and got slapped for it instead.
"Shut up!" She ordered and replaced the gag.
Well, that just happened, 10K thought and felt the blind cover his ears instead.
He wasn't sure what was going on and wondered when the others will show up.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls of all ages! Welcome to—"
Warren looked disgusted at the tent.
Cassandra shuffled alongside them, while Murphy stayed behind so his daughter doesn't get hurt.
Addy rolled her eyes, "Of course they think it's a real circus and full of people instead of us."
They ran ahead and opened the tent. There weren't anyone in there.
"See things you won't believe," a ring master said. "Come one! Come all! Have a seat and enjoy the show!" There was a wall blocking off the circle. "Don't miss the Grand Finale!"
"This isn't right," Vasquez said.
"I don't feel right inside," Doc said.
"See that ramp?" Warren asked, motioning to the ramp across from them. It looked the seats was blocked off.
"Yeah," the others said. Cassandra just panted in response.
"I beat he's somewhere back there," Warren said.
"How do we get back there?" Addy asked.
"I don't know," Warren said.
"Do you think this wall is bulletproof?" Doc asked, looking at the wall.
Vasquez took one shot and it didn't leave a dent, "These people thought these things through."
Meanwhile:
10K was still lying on the board that he was going to get killed on, possibly, if his friends were out there.
He heard Esmeralda singing to herself. She was singing Sweet Child o' Mine; but instead of a girl, she was using a guy.
Esmeralda touched his arm again, "You know. This might be your last night. Got anything to say?" She lowered the gag.
"Yeah," 10K said. "You're one crazy b—" The gag was shoved back in his mouth.
"Nuh uh, no any of those bad words." Esmeralda asked, "Anything nicer to say?" She lowered the gag.
"Why am I here?" 10K asked.
"Don't you see—?"
"No," 10K replied.
Esmeralda rose up the blind fold and looked in his eyes. "This is like a movie."
"Not really. This feels more like a cheesy but entertaining TV show instead," 10K replied.
"This is the part where things get good with a death looming on the horizon," Esmeralda said and laughed again. "You know one slight touch and slice!" 10K flinched at the spit that landed on his cheek. "Everything ends, not with a whimper, or a bang, but with a slice."
"You're going to end up killed or eaten," 10K said. "That's why you ended up in a cell with padded walls. You're one crazed up fruit loop. Dad and I thought you needed help."
Esmeralda touched 10K's cheek, "But I'm fine. I'm not crazy."
"One crazed up fruit loop that ended up in a padded cell," 10K responded.
Esmeralda smiled, "You always loved that TV show and cartoon." She kissed his forehead and put the blind back on. She gagged his mouth again and he shuddered. "Think about it. You're smart enough."
10K wasn't sure which one was crazier. Bellatrix Lestrange from Harry Potter, Yang from Psych, or his mother?
"This isn't half bad," Addy said, motioning to the performers.
"I think they're all bat-shit insane," Warren said.
Vasquez looked at the tightrope walkers, the contortionist, the knife juggler, and the trapeze flyers.
"Hurry up and get this over with. We need to get 10K and get the hell out of here." Doc said and Cassandra snarled in response.
"Just wait," Addy replied.
A curtain went down and someone hit the window in anger.
After five minutes, the curtain went up.
There was something lying in the middle and a swinging blade was frozen in midair. It slowly made its way down, by swinging.
The ringmaster showed up, "You have ten minutes to rescue your boy. If not, I hope you enjoyed the show." He laughed and went backstage. The windows went down and they ran down to the table.
10K flinched when someone touched his arm and the blindfold was pulled away. Warren removed the gag and Vasquez touched the cuff holding him down. He pulled back when it shocked him.
"Great," Vasquez replied. "These psychos really thought this through."
A/N: Originally a two-shot, but it now has three chapters.
