Violet Grenade(81)

"Get off my girl, Angie," she booms.

Angie leaps away as if electrocuted and sidesteps Madam Karina. She jogs down the steps, and her dogs lunge toward her at once.

Madam Karina flicks her fingers "That's right. You play with your pets, and I'll play with mine."

I shoot Madam Karina a disgusted look, but she doesn't notice. Angie's dog Kali sniffs at her pockets, desperately trying to nab a peppermint. Angie shoves her away and climbs onto her tractor.



       
         
       
        

"Have you loaded everything?" Madam Karina yells.

Angie waves. "Enough for now. Be back next Sunday." She keeps her head down as she rumbles up the road, no more than three boxes on the back, her dogs yapping at the oversized tires.

Madam Karina offers me a warm smile before heading back inside.

When are we leaving? Wilson asks in a snarl.

Soon.

I go inside and spot Cain coming up the stairs. Understanding passes between us, though I have trouble thinking past the way his red plaid shirt clings to his shoulders and biceps. The way it pulls tight across his chest. Strong, calloused hands emerge from the cuffs of his shirt, and for whatever reason, I'm gripped by an urge to feel those same hands on my hips.

I'm not sure why I'm suddenly struck by desire. Maybe it's because I told him my secret, and he didn't run. Or maybe it's because he told me his. I'm comfortable with him now, and with that comfort comes a sensation I've never allowed myself to feel. Cain is unpredictable, and unstable, and if I ever admitted it to myself, I'd realize he is exactly what my hearts yearns for.

"You going to buy something today?" Madam Karina asks.

My head whips around, and I find her sitting on the sofa. The same sofa where three Carnations sat the first time I entered this house. They were happy, playful.

Went to the market,

To buy me a gown.

All the boys whistle,

And one fell down.

Sway my hips,

Lips stung by a bee.

Keep on walking,

‘Till he take a knee.

"I'm saving up for something special," I tell the madam. The corners of her mouth turn down in disappointment, so I add, "The day I become Top Girl, I want to dress the part."

Madam Karina grins. "Good things come to those who wait."

"That's right." I return her smile, and then think to say, "May I have one more night as a Daisy? I'd like to say good-bye to Poppet."

"So you will be leaving her behind? I figured you might fight me on this."

"It's time she made her own way," I reply, not meaning a word I'm saying. "The ends justify the means, yes?"

She tilts her head. "Who said that?"

"Someone you'd admire." I bow my head. "May I stay with Poppet?"

She sighs. "You may, but tomorrow I need you in that guesthouse. Besides, I'd think you'd be eager to earn your lily as soon as possible."

"I'll earn that lily and more," I respond.

That night, after I've washed my face and checked beneath the beds, I climb under my sheets and look across the room at Poppet. She's holding a pink stuffed elephant against her chest as if she's afraid of the dark. 

"Did you get that today?" I whisper.

She squeezes the stuffed animal against her chest. "I told Madam Karina once that I saw a pink stuffed elephant in a grocery store. Told her I begged for it for my birthday, but my mother said we didn't have the money for such useless things. I don't know why I remember that toy among all the others I wasn't allowed to have." Poppet holds out the elephant and inspects it. "It's crazy how Madam Karina can be the same person who remembers these things about you and the same person who can lock girls away."

"She didn't give you the elephant, Poppet," I say in the gentlest voice I can muster. "She had Angie find this for you, and then she stuck it up on those shelves behind the cage wall. She knew exactly what would make you spend your money, and she knows that every dollar you spend lessens the chance that you'll leave. There's a reason they hold our money for us. And it isn't so we can earn more."

Poppet scoots down in bed until I can hardly see her frame. "I know."

Guilt twists inside my chest. As much as I want Poppet to accept the truth about Madam Karina, I also don't want to hurt her. I imagine it wouldn't be easy for any of the girls living here to learn how twisted the madam really is. We all want to trust again, and Madam Karina's Home for Burgeoning Entertainers provides a perfect mirage.

"I need you to be ready at a moment's notice," I tell Poppet. "But don't make it too obvious, either."