The first draft of this story was written in my car. Last summer I had scheduled a number of Zoom meetings with my Stop Writing Alone community in the hopes that we would be at a hotel or motel stop on our road trip down south to see family. When the hours didn’t line up I thought that maybe, just maybe I could host a Zoom call on my phone from the passenger seat of our family car somewhere in the Carolinas. It worked and was so much fun. I’ve put the scribbled story through some revisions since, and here is what I came up with. Enjoy!
This story is a 2 minute read.
One More Twist
The smell of buttered popcorn and elephant dung mingled in the air making my stomach turn. Arriving at the Big Top felt like my own personal rock bottom. I hated the circus. Wearing a pair of jeans, a stretched out t-shirt and a trucker hat, I couldn’t help but wonder when Hollywood would send Bond into a circus tent to show audiences a bit of the less glamorous side of being a secret agent. Everything itched. I poked and prodded the quarter slot machine outside the ring set up for adults who are looking for sweeter treats than cotton candy, when Anastasia spotted me.
My mark was an acrobat with a side hustle of global espionage that, unfortunately, led me back here. I had followed Anastasia Alagarki from continent to continent, always two steps behind her, my intel never traveling quite as fast as her nimble limbs could twist out from under me. Catching wind of her civilian cover in the US was an opportunity not to pass on, no matter how cringey the setting was. It may even point the way to Anastasia’s mysterious state-side cash cow. Every time she was here, untraceable funds would flood her and her client’s accounts. I half wanted to lay low and follow all her movements.
Anastasia was decked out in her fuchsia sequin leotard looking like the most glamorous thing in this seedy surrounding. She was ready for her “death defying” performance advertised on all the circus posters. I was certain she couldn’t make me, so I winked at her like Bond would, imagining there could be a sensual way to bring her down that might give me reason to like the circus after all. She nodded and flashed me a crooked smile before she leaned over the shoulder of Murray, the ring leader, to whisper something in his ear.
Murray, a burly, unshaven beast of a man, portraying the image I thought my truck hat might project, turned and came right for me. “Lark?” he blurted.
“Yes,” I said, “I’m Lark, John Lark, how can I help you, sir?” I never bothered with a pseudonym.
Murray leaned on the machine I was tinkering with, then poked me hard in the center of my chest. “You’re in a lot of trouble, Lark.” He nodded over my head as my arms were grabbed from behind. More than my clothing had been casual on this trip. I had let my guard down and was paying for it dearly. I turned to find the Strong Man on one side and the Bearded Lady on the other.
Murray continued, “Lark, this here’s a family show. We don’t play dirty here. The police’ve been waiting my call. These rigged machines are not my style and, frankly, are criminal!” I was dragged out of the tent backward, my feet unable to gain any purchase while Murray bellowed after me, “That Anastasia’s more than a pretty face and flexible form – she’s been working these machines setting the trap for you! You’ve made your last withdrawal here, my friend!”
I looked up the rope ladder in time to see Anastasia finally return my wink with a blown kiss and a wave just as she grabbed the trapeze to swing away, one more time nimbly twisting far out of my reach free to fly another day.
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What are your feelings about the circus? Is it clear to you from this story that Anatasia’s state-side cash cow is this slot machine scheme? I am thinking I might revisit these two somewhere else in the world — where would you like to see John Lark encounter Anastasia Alagarki next?
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I can see this being an ongoing little series where they keep meeting in the most unexpected/bizzare places. Great story!