Tonight was the last night. By the time the sun peeked over the horizon the circo would be all all but gone, the rides and tents dismantled, the people retreating to their trucks and trailers. They would be back, but when? Or where? No one could say for sure. For Jazz, it was truly an end. All the confusion, the uncertainty, the things she couldn't explain - it had somehow led her to this moment. They wouldn't notice her missing, not until it was too late. They'd be miles away, setting up in some new place, and she'd be here. Right here.
In the dark she hurried. Luck had helped her in finding that women's shelter, she hoped luck now would help her getting back to it without trouble. In one pocket she fingered the slick cellphone. A talisman...and a promise. A promise that she'd make this work somehow. Idly she wondered if out there, somewhere, right now her sister - sister! - was thinking of her.
I'll find her, she told herself. On the tail of that, came the image of him in her mind. Thomas Avery. He was, really, the reason for all this. His insistence, the way he'd looked at her before they'd parted....
She paused at a crosswalk, checking for traffic even as she smirked lightly. She rather hoped he'd think of her, even if he'd never admit it. He was far too proud, too...superior to admit to something like that about likes of her.
The clock atop a nearby church began to chime the hour, the bell breaking the night with it's deep, lonely tones. She found herself shivering, as she listened. She'd never liked that noise, so dark and sad. It made her want to go home and find people to keep her company, remind her she was alive.
She turned, deciding to do just that and....stopped. Right there in the middle of the street. A car screeched to a halt, almost clipping her, but she didn't seem to see it. She didn't seem to see anything, she was lost...lost....The cab laid on the horn and Jazz jerked, suddenly back.
Back - from where?
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