WtBB-Ch.5

I used to wonder how any parent could take their child to the Circus of the Damned.

Now, here I was, standing outside the Employee Only entrance, my daughter's tiny hand clasped in mine as I dug the key to the door out of my fanny pack.

The scent of cotton candy and popcorn was heavy in the air, masking the scent of blood that I knew was there as well. If the wind shifted just right, I could still smell it.

Only the fact that I knew it was willingly-nay, eagerly-spilled kept me from dragging Julienne back to the Jeep and getting the hell out of Dodge. That, and the fact that I trusted Jean-Claude when he promised her safety within his walls. Against my better judgement, but I trusted him.

Unlocking the door, I went in first, taking point out of habit and shielding Julienne's slight form with my own as if it were something I'd done every day, second nature.

After making sure that the lock engaged in the door behind us, I led Julienne down the stairs into the bowels of the Circus, where those near and dear to the Master of the City slept the day away, myself excluded.

Julienne gasped at the sight of the living area, and I grinned a bit. I was used to Jean-Claude's eccentricities as far as decorating was concerned. Maybe I should've warned her? Naw.

The carpet was still black, but the drapes hung to hide the bare stone walls had changed since the last time I'd been to the Circus. Sometimes, I thought Jean-Claude entertained himself by redecorating at least once a week.

This week, the wall coverings were a silvery azure blue that I knew would highlight Jean-Claude's eyes if he was in the room. It really should've clashed with the black carpeting, but somehow it worked anyway.

The leather couches were still black, but Jean-Claude had gotten extras of the wall coverings and draped them over the plush leather in a way that it looked as if someone had dropped them there in an artistically casual fashion. I was betting that no one had been sitting on them, or the effect would've been ruined.

Catching sight of him, I had to grin and shake my head. "Someone's been a bad influence on your wardrobe, Asher."

He was wearing a black pair of silky pajama-type pants that hung low on his hips. Framing the paleness of his chest and stomach was the matching shirt that gaped, unbuttoned.

His hair hung free, cascading down his back to his waist in a shining golden mane of perfect curls that any woman would envy, leaving the scars on his face bare.

Julienne's eyes were wide, and Asher's gaze ticked to her, I think searching her face for the horror and disgust he was so used to seeing.

She pulled her hand free from mine and walked over to him, tugging lightly on his sleeve until he knelt in front of her.

She searched his face for a moment, then laid one hand over the scars. Asher tensed, but Julienne leaned forward and kissed the perfect side of his face, her fingers trailing lightly down the furrowed flesh on the ruined side. "I'm sorry they hurt you," she told him quietly."I'm glad they're dead."

Asher's eyes widened, and his eyes found mine, filled with a sort of soft astonishment.

"We Blakes are hair and eyes women," I told him. "And you've got both in spades, Asher.You're gorgeous. I keep telling you that."

Julienne smiled back. "De rien. Tu es beau, Asher. Le verité." You're beautiful, Asher. The truth.

I really love my daughter. I'd been afraid of her reaction to Asher's scars, but I should've known better. I should've known that Julienne would look at Asher and see what I saw, that he was perfect.

I saw motion in my peripheral vision and looked up to see Jean-Claude standing in the doorway. He was wearing his usual skin-tight black jeans, knee-high pettable black leather boots, and a peasant shirt a la the French Revolution in a creamy, off-white color that he'd left unlaced from the midpoint of his chest up, so that the material gaped over the cross-shaped scar, framing it.

"Well, don't you look spiffy, as usual," I said, amused by the fact that he could wear something that would've looked more at home in a museum and not seem out of place.

Jean-Claude's lips twitched. "And you look beautiful, as always, ma petite."

I looked down at the black pants and royal purple polo shirt, complete with black business cut jacket to hide the Browning, and arched an eyebrow at him. "That's it. We're getting your eyes checked, Jean-Claude."

"Ah, and this vision of loveliness must be Julienne," Jean-Claude said, crossing to where she and Asher were.

Asher did a double-take as Jean-Claude spoke her name, and I figured he hadn't been told of the irony of her adoptive parents choosing something so similar to the name of the woman they had both loved centuries ago.

Julienne gave a little curtsy, eyes twinkling as she grinned at Jean-Claude. "Enchanté, Monsieur."

Jean-Claude did a full bow from the waist, taking her hand and kissing it in a gesture straight from the French courts. "Enchanté, Madamoiselle."

He released her hand and stood. "I see now why you were worried of what rumors may be started, ma petite."

Asher rose as well, looking surprised when Julienne clasped his hand, swinging it lightly and giving him a playful smile.

I shrugged. "People have been saying that I'm a devil-worshipping nymphomaniac for a while. Besides, according to the National Enquirer, you and I are the proud parents of septuplets already," I informed him with a smirk.

Jean-Claude's eyes widened slightly. "Seven? Mon dieu...The world would be doomed."

"Not only that, but supposedly they're seven sons. And you're supposedly a seventh son. So, the youngest is apparently going to be the antichrist," I said, rolling my eyes. "Sometimes, I wonder where they get this stuff."

Tactfully changing the subject, Jean-Claude inquired. "You are here for dinner...Are you hungry as yet?"

Julienne's stomach chose that moment to growl loudly, and she looked embarrassed. "Un peu."

"She's practically starved," I said. "You've seen my pantry, Jean-Claude. I'd have made a salad, but I was afraid the lettuce might eat her. It has evolved."

Julienne tittered and I grinned at her. "Hey, you saw it. It had hair. And I'm pretty sure it had a face."

"Ouí. I do not think I have ever seen anyone close a vegetable drawer in their refrigerator so quickly," she teased.

"Ladies, ladies...break it up. Don't make me get the waterhose," Jason said, sauntering into the room.

He looked at Julienne and did a double-take, looking from her, to me, to Jean-Claude, then back again. "Trippy."

Jean-Claude gave an amused half-smile. "I do not know, ma petite...I believe I may become accustomed to it."

The smile turned into a pout, which just made me grin. "Aw, want me to kiss it better?"

Jean-Claude arched an eyebrow at me. "In front if the children, ma petite?" he gestured to Julienne and Jason.

Nathaniel padded into the room and came straight to me, hugging me lightly and rubbing his cheek along mine briefly before letting me go. If we'd been in public, no one would've noticed anything out of the ordinary.

Julienne's stomach growled again and Jason snickered. "Jeez, Anita. I know you said you weren't mom-material, but do you have to starve the poor kid?"

I was about to give a scathing comeback, but he took Julienne's hand. "C'mon. I'll show you where the grub is."

Nathaniel looked at me and shrugged with a slight smile. "He likes kids," he said by way of explanation. "Let's go eat."