Page 59 of Her Cruel Dahlias

“I’ll walk you anywhere you want.”

After Cricket placed the locket back around her neck, she grabbed Zephyr’s collar from the bedside table. She trailed a finger across his scar, beautiful even though it held a horrific memory. He closed his eyes, inhaling softly at her tender movements. Gently, she reached to buckle the collar around his throat. “There,” she whispered.

“Thank you.”

Before leaving the inn, they ate breakfast downstairs, a bowl of oatmeal and strawberries, along with chamomile tea. The day was bright, and the warm rays crept across her bare arms. As they walked the path toward the carnival, Cricket tried not to let her nerves take over. But if this was the last she would see of Mistress Eliza, she wanted to offer the necromancer the locket back and thank her once more for giving her this second chance at life, even if the woman wasn’t pleased she’d given Cricket life after death. From what Bram and Zephyr had said, Mistress Eliza hadn’t thought Cricket would run off and would’ve just been out of her sight for a little while.

Not too far from the caravans, Autumn and Wilder carried armfuls of logs. Autumn looked toward them and stilled, a smile spreading across her face. She dropped the logs and ran in their direction.

“You’re back.” She grasped Cricket’s hand and pulled her away from Zephyr. “Everyone’s been wanting to make sure you’re all right. Hearing that you’re safe isn’t the same as seeing it for oneself.”

Cricket blinked away tears. “Thank you for standing up for me that day. It means a lot.” She was frustrated with herself for not giving Autumn a chance at first, for being more envious of her and Zephyr. But the truth was, even though they hadn’t been close friends, Autumn had stood up for her before anyone else.

“Mistress Eliza knows what she said was wrong. Juniper was like a daughter to her. We all are family. And sometimes families get along, and sometimes they don’t, but we have one another’s backs.” Before Cricket could respond, Autumn leaned in closer, whispering, “Take care of Zephyr. He needs you.”

Cricket’s heart clenched. “I promise. I hope I see you later.” She went back to Zephyr, and they trekked toward the caravans. Her gaze fell to Juniper’s home, and she wondered what would happen to it now. Who would fill it? And what about Cricket’s? Had anyone cleaned it? Even if someone had wiped away every drop of blood, she could never step foot inside there again. She kept her thoughts to herself because they didn’t matter at the moment—she would be at Anika’s after talking to Mistress Eliza.

“I need to do this alone,” she told Zephyr when they approached the necromancer’s home. “Can I meet you at your caravan after?”

Concern filled his eyes. “Are you sure?”

“I’ll be fine.”

Zephyr nodded, walking backward and watching her with an intensity that made her want to press her lips to his to calm her nerves. But instead, she stayed glancing over her shoulder at him as she took the steps to Mistress Eliza’s home. Once he disappeared from view, she knocked on the door. She waited a few moments, and when the necromancer didn’t answer, Cricket knocked a little louder.

“Are you looking for Mistress Eliza?” Stormy asked, and Cricket whirled around to face her, unable to hide her frown. “She’s inside her tent.” The performer stood there, looking as though she hadn’t changed her clothing or brushed her hair since Cricket had seen her last.

“If Mistress Eliza was going to yell at anyone, it should’ve been me,” Stormy said, tears filling her eyes. “Yet, I ran, even when I could hear her shouting at you. But I did tell her what happened, how I shouldn’t have hurt Juniper, how I at least should’ve made certain she’d gone to stay with you and wasn’t alone somewhere.”

Cricket’s face remained hardened. “Juniper loved you, you know. You’re the only person she’d ever felt that way toward. You weren’t the one who murdered her—however, you were the one who left her alone. I don’t hate you, Stormy, but I hate what you did.”

“I hate myself, and I knew Juniper was special, that she was more special to me than Louise ever was. That part frightened me most of all, so I turned my back on the one good thing in my life because I was afraid. Now that she’s gone, I’ll never get to tell her how I feel, how sorry I am, how this was the biggest mistake of my life,” Stormy sobbed, then took off running. Before Cricket could call her name, she was already gone.

Cricket didn’t want to have sympathy for how Stormy felt, but it was there. Pushing her emotions away, she skirted around the caravans toward Mistress Eliza’s tent.

Standing at the entrance, she could hear the necromancer shuffling her cards. Cricket inhaled and exhaled through her nose before she spoke, “Mistress Eliza? May I come in? It’s Cricket.”

The sound of the cards stilled. “You can come in, child.” Her voice didn’t sound angry but more resigned.

Cricket pulled back the fabric of the tent and entered the small space. The necromancer sat in her chair, smoking her pipe with several decks of tarot cards in front of her. At each of the corners of the table rested a crystal and a lit candle.

“So, you finally decided to return home?” Mistress Eliza said, leaning back in her seat.

“I took your words as though you wanted me gone from here.”

“From my sight. Not the carnival.” Mistress Eliza sighed. “Regardless, I shouldn’t have yelled at you the way I did. But out of everyone I’ve ever brought back to life, Juniper was different. She clung to my skirts as a child, so shy at first, frightened to live again. My heart has always held a special place for her. Juniper was the one performer who always listened, always did what was asked of her, never argued back with anyone. She was like my own. But all of you are. And yes, so are you.”

“I miss her too,” Cricket said softly. “And I understand why you shouted at me. I’ve blamed people for things before when I shouldn’t have.” She thought about Zephyr, the carnival, how she never should’ve blamed either one when her death had been because of Clancy.

“Stormy told me what happened, and she’s working on her punishment to continue to stay.” Mistress Eliza paused, inhaling smoke from her pipe. “There’s still been no sign of the murderer, and these authorities haven’t done a damn thing. We’ll be leaving in a few days since the land in the next town will be ready for us.”

“It’s better I not linger around then … so the carnival can continue. But I did want to show you something. That I wasn’t a failure when you reignited my heart.” Cricket held up her hands and kept her breath even, focusing on her curiosity until the prickling sensation stirred beneath her flesh. The buds rose, and a garden of red blossomed across both arms, not a hint of darkness to be seen. “Your vision, it was real.”

Mistress Eliza’s lips parted, and she stood from her chair, limping toward her at a brisk pace. She lifted Cricket’s arms and ran her finger across one of the roses. An appreciative look formed on her face. “They’re beautiful as I always knew they would be. I do want you to stay, Cricket. To travel with us, to perform, to dance, to blossom. I’m not the only one here who wants that.”

Cricket blinked, surprised by her words. This was what she’d always wanted, to dance on the carnival stage, yet something more important needed to be done first, so for now, she would put her dream aside.

“I’ll come and stay as long as you’ll have me, but I will remain here until the authorities don’t need me. And if the murderer is found while we’re traveling, you’ll allow me to leave so I can see them hang. For Juniper and the other victims.”