“Not for Jack,” Divine muttered and then asked. “Can’t he fix it?”
“Divine honey, that ride is more than fifty years old,” Bob said dryly. “Jack has fixed and fixed it, but frankly I think this time it’s done in.”
“He had a technician out today, but he said the parts would cost a good couple thousand dollars by themselves,” Madge told her solemnly. “And Jack just doesn’t make any money on that ride anymore.”
Bob grunted and nodded. “It’s a kiddie ride that even the kiddies find boring. A bunch of yellow tubs that go round and round.” He wrinkled his nose. “Not much of a thrill. He’ll probably either sell it for scrap or as an antique online or something.”
Madge nodded in agreement. “We were just going to put an ‘Out of Order’ sign on it and leave it in place so we didn’t have a hole on the midway where it had been positioned,” she admitted, and then added brightly, “But now that you and your friends are here, we’ll have the boys take it down so you can pull the RVs in for the night.”
“Oh no,” Divine protested as several of the men moved forward, apparently volunteering for the duty. “I don’t want the boys to have to trouble themselves at this hour.”
“Oh now, Miss Divine, it’s no trouble,” Jack said, moving through the crowd to join them. “It’s trailer mounted. We just have to take the fencing down around it and haul the trailer off. It won’t take more than a couple minutes. Besides,” he added dryly. “I can’t stand to look at the damned thing. It’s given me nothing but grief for years now. I’ll be glad to get it out of my sight, and then out of my hair. I’m happy to move it.”
“Great,” Divine said dryly as Jack headed away with several men following him.
“Why don’t you take your friends and go get your RVs,” Madge suggested. “By the time you walk there and drive back, I guarantee the submarine ride will be gone and you can pull right in.”
“Great,” Divine repeated weakly as Marcus took her arm to urge her away. She’d been rather hoping that they’d have to split up the RVs and park them in different spots along the midway. Or that they wouldn’t have been able to fit them both in at all and the second RV, with Marcus, Vincent, and Jackie in it, would have had to be parked somewhere in the back lot, well away from the one she intended to use. That would have given her at least a little space to maneuver and manage her escape. She certainly needed to get away from her bodyguards/babysitters before Lucian arrived. But it seemed even fate was against her in this endeavor. Seriously, what were the chances that the submarine ride would drop dead, leaving a space just big enough for two RVs to park side by side in its place?
Pretty good, actually, Divine acknowledged. The damned thing seemed to break down pretty regularly. Although this was the first time the breakdown had been something that Jack couldn’t repair himself.
“Oh darn, Divine!” Madge called suddenly.
Divine paused abruptly and turned to see the woman waving her back. After a hesitation, she turned to Marcus and suggested, “Why don’t the three of you go ahead? I’ll catch up. She probably just forgot to tell me something.”
He didn’t even hesitate, but said at once, “I’ll come with you.”
“Are you going to join me in the toilet too when I have to use it?” Divine asked sweetly, and when his eyes widened in surprise, she said in a firm voice, “I’ve been taking care of myself for a very long time, Marcus. I don’t need an escort to walk over and talk to Madge, and I don’t like tripping over people every time I move. I’d appreciate a little space. You can either wait here while I see what she wants, or go get the RV, but you are not going to follow me around like a guard dog.”
Marcus eyed her solemnly for a moment and then nodded his head and said, “As you wish.”
Divine had no idea what that meant. Was he going to go get the RV or wait here? And why the hell was Vincent now chuckling softly? Shaking her head with bewilderment at the pair of them, Divine turned and headed back toward Madge. She’d taken only a couple steps though when she heard Jackie say softly, “Tiny loves that movie.”
The comment was just as bewildering to her as the men’s behavior was, but Divine merely rolled her eyes with exasperation and continued on to Madge. Honestly, she didn’t know what to make of the three of them. They had been kind; had given her blood, a bed, and clothes; and had taken care of her while she’d healed. They also appeared sincere in their intention of finding out who was behind the attacks on her and her RV. But she’d heard them talking. She knew they suspected she was Basha, and she knew Lucian was coming. Why hadn’t they just kept her chained to the bed and held her there until he arrived? Why this charade of friendship and caring?
Divine didn’t understand and didn’t have time to figure it out. She needed to lose the trio, leave the carnival, and start the next chapter in her life of running and hiding.
“Come,” Madge said when Divine reached her. Catching her hand, she then turned to lead her back toward her RV. “I almost forgot.”
“Almost forgot what?” Divine asked, following the woman.
Madge didn’t answer, but led her to the small enclosed trailer they always kept attached to the back of their RV. She quickly unlocked the door, pulled it open, and then beamed at Divine. “I bet you thought it was gone forever.”
Divine raised her eyebrows at the comment and shifted closer to the woman to peer inside the trailer, a smile pulling her lips apart when she saw the motorcycle inside. She’d forgotten all about the vehicle she’d left lying in the dirt in front of her burning RV the night Marcus had been injured.
“Madge, you’re an angel,” she said, stepping forward to run one hand gently over the handlebar. This was her ticket to freedom. It was how she was going to escape. All she had to do was give the trio waiting for her the slip for even five minutes, hop on the bike, and ride away. Turning, she gave Madge a quick hug. “Thank you. Can I leave it with you for now?”
The woman’s eyebrows rose in surprise, but she nodded readily enough. “If you like. I suppose the new RV doesn’t have a built-in storage space to keep it like your old one did.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Divine agreed, and then admitted, “But the RV I’m using right now is just borrowed. I’ll have to wait on a custom made one for special storage spaces like that. But I won’t make you hold on to the bike for that long,” she assured her. “I’d just rather leave it here for now. Tomorrow or the next day I’ll probably swing by to pick it up. If that’s all right with you?”
“Of course,” Madge assured her, closing the door. “It’s no problem at all.”
“Good,” Divine murmured as she watched her attach the lock once more, and it was good. She really hadn’t wanted to dip into the woman’s mind and make her agree to keeping it for her. But she would have. She needed the motorcycle, and she needed Marcus and the others not to know about it.
“What do you think she was showing her in the trailer?” Marcus asked, eyes narrowed on the women as they turned to walk back toward them.
“A motorcycle,” Jackie announced. “Divine’s motorcycle. She apparently abandoned it here when she took you away in the SUV the night of the fire and Madge had Bob put it in the trailer to keep for her until she returned.”
“Hmm.” Marcus nodded. He had fond memories of that motorcycle and riding behind Divine on it. He was actually surprised he’d forgotten about it until now. “We could store it in the RV to keep it safe yet handy. Why isn’t she bringing it with her?”
“Because she doesn’t want us to know she has it,” Jackie announced, and then pointed out, “It would be easier for her to slip away and escape on it if we don’t know it exists.”