The Circus Affair

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The Circus Affair - book excerpt

Prologue

“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Lisa shouted above the roaring engines of the aircraft as they finally set off down the runway. “Going to work in a circus, and Brazil of all places!”

She flicked her long, blonde hair back and grinned at each girl in turn, examining them with her wide, naïve eyes, waiting for similar, positive, uplifting responses.

Her enthusiasm was lost on the other three. They managed a weak smile in reply, each one thinking how young and inexperienced she appeared to be, compared to the three of them. For Melissa and Sarah, travelling abroad to work was nothing out of the ordinary. They had spent the past ten years on the road, travelling the world, working as dancers in a variety of different venues. They met up from time to time on various contracts, but this was the first time either of them had worked in a circus.

Wendy found Lisa’s exuberance irksome. She looked out of the window to distance herself. Whereas Lisa was itching to get there, Wendy was much more reticent. She did not relish the thought of working in a circus. Unlike the others, she had done it before, although a long time ago. She was only doing this job because she needed a means of escape from her former life. She laughed inwardly at the cliché. She was literally running away with the circus; fleeing from a life she did not even want to think about. Her stomach was still cramped as though it was being squeezed by a giant fist, squashed in a tight knot. It was only when the plane left the runway that she felt her breath ease slightly, daring to think that, maybe, just maybe, she had finally escaped the domineering clutches of her husband.

As Lisa continued with her banal chatter, Wendy glanced in her direction again, feeling more than a little melancholic for what she considered her lost youth. How carefree she seems, she mused, feeling old, although, in reality, she was far from it. The past six years with her abusive husband had sucked the life out of her until she was a mere husk of her former self. There is nothing there, she has no history. She holds no scars of past disappointment, there isn’t the slightest chip on her clean slate, she thought, with a hint of envy.

Melissa noticed Wendy emit a huge sigh, on take-off but mistook it as an almost silent expletive towards Lisa’s incessant chattering. She glanced across at Sarah. The redhead caught her eye, tossed her head towards the ceiling, rolled her eyes and finished with a slight shake of her head to show that she also found Lisa’s exuberance a little exasperating.

Oblivious to the tick-tacking passing between the others, Lisa expounded on her childlike expectations and assumptions of circus life. The others listened, enjoying the idealised portrayal. Wendy knew that the young girl’s idea of circus life and the reality would be poles apart.

“I can just imagine it now…” Lisa’s eyes sparkled, and her excitement began to infected Melissa and Sarah without them even realising it.

“A beautiful Big Top which appears as if by magic overnight, in the middle of a grassy field, with twinkling fairy lights…”

Wendy laughed. “She’s been reading too many Enid Blyton children’s books!”

The others grinned but continued to listen.

“There’ll be barrel organ music echoing out around the grounds and surrounding areas, like a beacon that forces passers-by to stop in their tracks and come towards the sound. As though they´re hypnotised.”

“Bloody hell!” Sarah’s expletive made the others laugh out loud but still, Lisa continued.

“We’ll be surrounded by performers practising in the ring all day and night to perfect their acts,” she said, grinning, knowing that they were laughing at her, all be it good-heartedly. “And…there’ll be sunshine every day, flowers, balloons…. oh, and popcorn,” she finished with a flourish. “Lots and lots of popcorn and… we’ll all live happily ever after!”

Melissa and Sarah burst into laughter at her idealistic notion.

Wendy frowned, cleared her throat and looked at the teenager. “Listen, I don’t want to burst your bubble or anything but I’ve worked in one before, I’ve lived the reality.”

“Really?” Lisa jumped back into her seat, folded her hands on her lap and stared attentively in Wendy’s direction.

“First of all,” Wendy began, “the magical Big Top has to be built up and pulled down and you will be expected to help with that. The beautiful, green, grassy field that you are imagining could be exchanged for a car-park or disused piece of wasteland covered in cowpats or dog shit. Working in the winter could find you wading almost knee-deep in mud. Be prepared to buy some wellington boots because you´re going to need them. The twinkling fairy lights, along with the caravan electricity are powered by generators, so the show lights are only turned on at showtimes. These same generators are usually turned off every night at midnight – or even before if the petrol is running out or if the person whose job it is to turn them off wants to go to bed a bit earlier.

“As for your music, the days of Barrel Organ entertainment are well gone, I’m afraid. Music is usually pumped out from a CD player or computer attached to high voltage speakers. The only people it is likely to attract from afar are neighbours in the surrounding area who come to complain because they’re pissed off with hearing it. And as for the dedicated circus artists, Huh! The only thing they practise is how to drink excessive amounts of beer. This usually means they end up in drunken brawls and/or take drugs, which further evolves in them running around the site waking everyone else up in the early hours of the morning.

“Their wives or other halves are jealous, backstabbing, overprotective vixens, who guard their male partners with vigilant eyes that borders on obsession because they know that their men can’t be trusted for love nor money. Even so, they’re afraid that they’re going to lose them to any other female, who may or may not find their partners attractive. This leads to catfights over their apparently sex-starved husbands, so be prepared for plenty of backstabbing, jealousy, and snide remarks.

“And finally, sunshine flowers and balloons? Ha! I don’t think so! Well, sun yeah, because it’s Brazil but anything vaguely associated with a storybook, you might as well forget it.”

“But, will there be popcorn?” Lisa’s enthusiasm was visibly deflating like one of the balloons she had so enthused about a few seconds earlier.

“Oh, great! Well, thanks for that,” Sarah muttered despondently. “I can’t believe I’ve let myself be talked into doing this,” she shook her head. “I’m getting too old for all this shit!”

“I can hardly wait!” Melissa mumbled, brushing her curly, black hair out of her face, her voice laced with sarcasm.

Everyone looked at Lisa, waiting for another effervescent comment. “Well, despite everything you’ve said, Wendy, I’m still excited. I can’t help it,” she replied with a grin.

The other three gave a playful groaned.

“So, what is everyone expecting to get out of this contract?” Wendy signalled the air- stewardess and asked for a Jack Daniels and coke. “Me personally, I’m not looking for anything special. I want a quiet life, free from worries. I’ll work, stay in the caravan or whatever they give us to live in, and that's me done.”

“Snap,” Melissa replied, not wanting to disclose her embarrassing past. She had fallen head over heels for a guy who, after almost a year together, had confessed that he was married. She would love to find the perfect man and settle down, but she was scarred, humiliated, and still hurting from this man’s betrayal not only to her but to his wife.

Sarah’s dreams of a long term relationship had been deterred by her travelling lifestyle. She had had a few flings in the past but nothing that lasted and she had become hardened to relationship failure. Her past partners were usually too in love with their own careers to take a romantic step towards commitment. “Well I can’t see any of us falling for a Brazilian,” she replied. “There’s the language barrier for a start…”

“Yeah, plus they’ll probably all be partnered off or married anyway,” Melissa added.

Lisa’s eyes glazed over. She was itching to find love. Apart from a hasty fumble during the High School’s graduation Dance, she had never had a boyfriend.

Sarah grunted. “Then there’s their other halves, their wives, partners or long term girlfriends to worry about.”

“What do you mean,” Lisa asked innocently.

“Weren’t you listening to what Wendy said a minute ago or is your head still in the clouds?” Sarah replied.

Lisa looked out of the aircraft window. “Actually it’s above the clouds,” she pointed and giggling at the nebulous coverage floating like circus candyfloss below them.

“Remember,” Wendy said, “there will be men from all over the world working in the circus, they don’t necessarily have to be a Brazilian. There’s bound to be a lot of Latin Americans there too.” As she spoke, her mind was working overtime. She had no intention of getting involved with anyone. She would, however, prefer it if they all found boyfriends and moved in with them. That way, she could have the accommodation to herself. What could I say to them so that they’ll all hook up with someone and leave me to relax in the caravan alone? She pondered. “You know what? I think what we need to do is make a pact.”

“What do you mean?” Lisa frowned.

“We should find someone who can provide for us throughout the contract, regardless of whether we intend to stay with them afterwards or not,” Wendy stated.

“Ooh! I’m not sure I’m comfortable with that,” Melissa, forever the romantic, voiced. If she did find the perfect man, she was positive she wouldn’t want the other girls crashing in his caravan. She’d want him all to herself.

“That’s a good idea, Wendy. Someone who won’t mind the rest of us crowding into their caravan at any time of the day or night, when we need somewhere to crash,” Sarah replied, warming to the idea. She had never found anyone that she wanted to settle down with long term. She was afraid of commitment but she’d never admit it, and she wasn´t ashamed to use people to get what she wanted out of life.

“You need to target the owners of the biggest caravans,” Wendy explained, conscious of the fact that she had omitted herself from her last statement by using `you´ instead of `we´. Someone with a proper shower and toilet in their caravan, which actually works, so we don’t have to use the public showers because they are usually appalling!” Wendy replied.

There was a silence as they all looked across at Lisa. Her face showed her abhorrence at their statements. Her mind in turmoil.

“You’ve got no idea what you’ve let yourself in for, have you?” Wendy said with a malicious grin.

But, as it turned out, none of them did!

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