Page 34
Story: Blackmailed By the Incubus
Cook stops. His gaze shifts from me to Mags then back with apprehension.
“Sweetie, just how much do you know?” Mags presses gently.
I don’t know. I feel like I don’t know anything as I stare at the pair. The ground I’d walked in on seems to have shifted and I can’t find my footing.
“Sera.” Aiden stands in the tent doorway, still topless and beautiful, but painted in strokes of concern as he takes me in.
“Aiden.” I’m out of my seat and hurrying to him.
His arms are already open before I reach him, and all I have to do is step straight into his chest.
“What’s wrong?” he murmurs into the side of my head.
I should want to ask where Mama is. I should have some curiosity, but it’s the smallest pebble in an ocean of revelations that seem inconsequential.
“You have to hear this,” I tell him, pulling back to peer up into his face.
He says nothing as I take his hand and tug him back to the table and the pair watching us like we’re the ones who don’t make sense, but Mags repeats everything she told me, plus a little extra she hadn’t. The look on Aiden’s face when she mentions him being brought in at the age of three eases some of the turmoil in my gut that I’m not the only one floored by this news.
“Where did I come from?”
Mags shrugs. “I don’t know, sweetheart. I’m sorry. It was too long ago and there’s been too many new locations since.”
Aiden takes in a deep breath like he’s trying to maintain his composure. “And Sera was found?”
Cook grimaces. “It was bad timing, I think. Someone found you on one of the rides, fast asleep. We think your parents might have forgotten...” He trails off and hurries to get the kettle when it whistles.
“They forgot me?” I murmur softly. “I’m not a wallet. I would think you’d know if you don’t have your baby.”
“I’m sure they didn’t leave you on purpose,” Mags assures me softly. “There are so many variables. I think there’s a good chance they came back to get you, and we were gone.”
But they still forgot me.
“How old was I?”
In the process of dropping teabags into the mugs, Cook pauses to scratch the back of his thick neck. “A year? Maybe less? You were tiny, wrapped tight in a pink blanket.”
“And no one thought to take me to a police station?”
“We found you during moving day. You know we can’t leave the park, and we couldn’t leave you behind. Besides, even if we wanted to give you to the proper authorities, Aiden wouldn’t let us.”
“He put up such a fuss.” Cook chuckles. “He had a firm grip on your car seat and wouldn’t stop screaming until Mama Bloom agreed to take you.”
Behind me, Aiden runs his long fingers through my hair. His thumb brushes my cheek when I tilt my head back to peer up into his face.
“Do you remember? Or Warrick?”
He shakes his head. “He doesn’t. I guess we were all too young.”
“Why are we talking about this?” Mags cuts in. “What is the use of drudging up the past? You’re both healthy and you’re with the people who love you most in the world. Plus, Flora took good care of you, didn’t she?”
At the mention of Mama, I look up to Aiden once more.
“We’ve decided to get our own trailer at the next stop,” he declares firmly.
Mags blinks. “Oh! I mean...” She exchanges glances with Cook. “It makes sense. You’re both young and need your own space, and Flora needs hers.”
“Can we stay with you in your trailer during the move?” Aiden presses, eyes on Mags, and I realize why he sent me to find her. “It would be greatly appreciated.”