Under the Altswood Sky (The Altswood Saga #2)

Chapter 12 - Bloodbath

Chapter 12 - Bloodbath

Despite the morbidity of the Ferris wheel, I had to admit it was kind of pretty. The lights were twinkling in pastel colours, and even if the fluttering ribbons looked a little bit like war flags, they made the setting seem almost serene.

"You wanna go on?" Gabriel asked, using my shoulder as an arm rest.

I glared up at him. "Not on your life, golden boy. Next thing you know, that entire thing is going to come loose and roll away, squishing everyone in its path."

He grimaced. "Knock on wood before you jinx it."

I knocked on his head.

"Hey!"

"Come on," Annabelle called from ahead. "The carousel's next round is starting."

"Yeah, hold on!" Gabriel replied. He turned to me. "You coming?"

I placed my hand on my throat, gauging my body's reaction at the thought of spinning round and round on giant horses. We had already been on every ride in the outer circle of the carnival, and I was starting to become nauseous from the spinning and the twisting and the flying.

"I'll sit this one out," I said. "Jules is going to get here soon, I'll wait for him."

"Alright," Gabriel said, already leaving. "Be right back, then!"

I tried to hold back a snort as he ran off, his legs kicking like an excited child on the playground. He passed two tourists who hauled a dozen bags on each arm, and immediately, they started whispering to each other, glancing at Gabriel again and again as if they were trying to determine if it was truly him.

I must have audibly expressed contempt, because suddenly their attention snapped to me, and one pointed in excitement.

He raised his digital camera.

I was in such disbelief over the unabashed action that I simply stood there as the camera flashed. They didn't even attempt to hide the lens or pretend to be taking a picture of the Ferris wheel behind me.

"Pesky things, aren't they?"

Frowning, I turned around, dragging my eyes away from the tourists. The voice was familiar but not immediately recognisable, though when I saw who it was, it became clear.

"Tourists are filling into the island in droves," Joshua continued, approaching. "I'm certain there's a capacity somewhere that we're about to reach."

"Haven't you heard?" I replied, wry. "Bottle Island is the place to be now. They're probably selling merchandise on mainland like Buy one murder weapon get a bloodstained shirt for free."

Joshua threw his head back and laughed, drawing the attention of the nearby tourists again. They snapped a picture of him as well. "Touché."

I settled my weight on the low fence in front of us. "You're here with friends?"

"Yeah, Kathrin and Vicki are on a ride," Joshua said, gesturing vaguely behind his shoulder. "You?"

I nodded.

"Any news?" he asked then, quieter.

I folded my arms, deliberating how much he should know. He deserved to be in the loop, but from his exceptional paranoia—and coming from me, that was something—I didn't want to cause unnecessary panic.

"I suppose you'll be glad to hear that the police are opening a very quiet multiple homicide investigation."

Joshua inhaled sharply. When I pushed away from the fence to face him, his expression was caught in an unreadable middle, somewhere between shock and deep thought. He took a step forward, and stumbled.