The Madness - Kathy cakebread (reading list .TXT) 📗

The sound of the funfair was irresistible to resist; a melody of tunes all rolled into one. The field was large, full to the brim with side stalls and funfair rides ranging from the merry go round to the sidewinder. The smell of hotdogs and burgers wafted amongst the melodic tunes of the merry go round and the happy squeals of adults and children. The sky was bright blue, the sun bearing down on those below. There was little reprieve from the heat that summer evening; a welcome distraction from the poor summers they’ve had of late. Penny Plum a 19-year-old local teenager strolled through the car park, her hand held on tightly to her boyfriend Steven Ford. The pair had been together since they were 15, and every year they had made the trip to the fun fair. When the fair came to town everyone knew about it; nothing compared to the sense of fun and happiness a few rides and a good atmosphere could bring. The only difference this year was she drove them; having passed her test just a week before. Sighing lightly Steven looked up at her, ruffling her streaked blonde hair. She shrugged him off, her emerald green eyes glaring at his with the most contempt she could muster. It wasn’t much, after all Steven was the light of her life.
“You all right babe?” he asked, smiling.
“I’m fine you big donut!” penny giggled.
She linked arms with him, and they fell into step together their figures mingling with the large crowds. As they entered the fair she could barely contain her excitement, her eyes darting from attraction to attraction.
“What shall we go on first? Everything looks so brilliant! Even better then last year!” She squealed.
He laughed his crystal blue eyes lighting up. He knew his girlfriend like the back of his hand, her easily excitable personality making her so easy to please. If he bought her a chocolate bar on his way home from work she’d be made up for the rest of the night.
“Now is it me or am I having a sense of déjà vu?” Steven laughed, scratching his chin.
She gasped, raising her hands to her mouth.
“Oh am I really that predicable!” she grimaced.
“Yep, you only say it every year. Come on lets go on the darts, I want to show you how much of a man I really am!” he laughed.
“Oh if we have to!” she groaned.
As the stallholder gave Steven his darts, Penny glanced around, trying to suss out what she could go on next. There was the Ferris wheel or the roller coaster or maybe she could just get Steven to win her a bear. Decisions decisions she thought happily. Her mind consumed with ideas of how to occupy the night she forgot she had been playing with her ring and dropped it on the floor.
“Fiddlesticks.” She murmured, as the bent down to pick it up.
Out of the corner of her eye a glint of crystal sparkled in the evening sun. Intrigued she moved towards it, brushing the mud from the tiny object. It was a rather beautiful ornate necklace; it looked old, probably from the 1920’s. The centrepiece gem was a large green emerald, so green it matched the colour of her eyes, and it was surrounded by an encirclement of heart shaped diamonds. She grinned and slipped the necklace around her neck; it was too unusual to not put it on. Someone had clearly lost it and what a waste it was to just leave it laying there covered in dirt. As she stood up she felt shaky, her vision-spinning like she was on the Waltzer’s. She gasped, blinked hard and when she looked up the world was still again. Confused she looked over at Steven; he was just looking at her like she was an alien.
“What? What’s wrong with you?” she asked suddenly.
“You… you just look different. Are you all right? You look a bit green? Maybe you should get to the ladies!” Steven said, his face full of concern.
She looked at him, her face amused. The concern was plastered all over his face, his sea blue eyes full of worry. From this close she could see everything she had missed before; the laughter lines that were starting to form around his eyes, the lines forming on his forehead, the stubble from where he had forgotten to shave this morning. The thought of kissing him made her annoyed for some reason, as she knew that his stubble would give her a nasty rash. Men were so inconsiderate, they really were she thought angrily.
“Alright I’ll go to the toilet? Happy?” she growled.
“Hey don’t get mad with me I’m only saying you don’t look very well. Splash some water on your face or something it will probably make you feel better.”
He smiled kindly, kissing her lightly on the cheek. She smirked then walked towards the toilets, her figure soon disappearing into the crowds. Biting his lip Steven shrugged and looked down at his darts, one left. What was he going to do while he waited for Penny? He didn’t really have the mindset to play darts anymore; he was only really good when he was happy, and worrying about Penny had quashed that feeling. He threw his last dart with so little conviction it landed straight on the grass.
“Oh dear, that wasn’t very good. Better luck next time mate! Want to try again?” the stallholder asked.
Steven shook his head. He hoped she’d come back soon, he didn’t fancy hanging around doing nothing for ages. Taking the time she was gone to zone out and not think of anything he lent against the stall, his face blank, his mind miles away.
“Sir… hey sir… Oi. I SAID COULD YOU MOVE SO THE PUNTERS CAN GET TO THE STALL!” the stallholder said.
Steven jumped, glaring angrily at the man.
“Hey you could have asked nicely and I would have moved!”
“I’ve been asking you for five bloody minutes! If you want to do something while you wait for your lady why don’t you go look at the history of the fair. It might keep you occupied, you never know!” the stallholder moaned.
“Fine.” He muttered.
Steven felt so tempted to stick his middle finger up at the man he could feel it twitching by his side. He grimaced, holding his twitching hand in front of him; he certainly didn’t want to end up with a charley smile. The fairgrounds history stall wasn’t far from where he’d played darts, a large circular stand with a sign pronouncing ‘Learn the history of the fair you venture if you dare to know the tales of those innovators’. The stall detailed the history of the fair from when it started back in 1899, using bibliographical information and old faded black and white photos to add a certain je-nai-suis quoi. Steven glimpsed at the information and then the photos, trying to imagine what those people would be like now if they were still alive. As his eyes settled on another blurb he read about the black sheep of the circus family, a Mrs Vanessa Deliniro who enraged by her husbands infidelity killed him one night while their child slept in the room next door. As his eyes fell on her picture Steven gasped, his mind slipping back to earlier events. His brain in rewind he saw Penny rise from the floor, his eyes darting to her neck then back to her face. She had been wearing a strong, ornate necklace that he knew for sure she hadn’t worn before. The very same necklace that this crazed circus founder was wearing in the photo. His heart quickened as he wondered frantically what to do.

Her pace fast, her head fuzzy Penny saw the toilets straight up ahead. There was no queue and the toilets didn’t smell, but she walked straight past, on towards the fair’s caravan site. As she weaved in and out of the mobile homes, she glanced around her noting the curious stares she got from small children. The atmosphere was happy, the kids playing football with a dog-eared tennis ball. Makeshift washing lines masked much of the homes, the grass covered in chairs and barbeque equipment. She tried not to look too inconspicuous, her gaze directly aimed towards where she was going. Thinking nothing more of this unknown visitor the kids went back to their game, desperate to be pronounced regional winner of tennis ball football. Without stopping to think she jumped up the two steps of one caravan and tried the door, it was unlocked. Pulling it open she stepped inside, her nostrils instantly recoiling in disgust. The odour of cannabis and beer was prevalent inside the enclosed space, the air warm and stuffy. Wrinkling her nose she threw open two windows and sat down. That was when she heard it; quiet at first but louder and louder came the sounds of two people enjoying themselves very much. In that instance she saw red, her heart pounded in her chest the blood flooding through to her temples. Storming through the living room towards the bedroom her mind throbbed with despair and adrenaline. The bedroom door was slightly ajar, the gap large enough for her to see the entwined figures of two people having sex. She watched quietly for a moment, absorbing the sounds, the smell, the sight. Just waiting for a moment, she didn’t know what moment but she knew it was coming. Meanwhile Steven dashed through the crowds desperate to find Penny, to rip that stupid necklace off and leave it on the ground where it belonged. Everywhere around him people exclaimed at his rudeness as he shoved his way through, but their cries fell on deaf ears, his mind and heart set on finding his girlfriend. His feet pounded the heavy ground, his heart beating in tune. Screams of joy and jubilation shrilled through his ears but he didn’t hear them. The only sound audible to him were the beats of his heart, the rhythmic pulsing of blood in his ears. He had a really bad feeling about this; he could feel it in his bones. Approaching the toilets he knew they were empty, a quick glance inside proved his findings, as the two-cubicle doors lay wide open. Shaking his head Steven ran on asking if anyone had seen a girl with bright blonde hair and green eyes. No one had seen her; the thought of trying to find her in 3000 square feet of field frustrated the hell out of him. He could try a tannoy perhaps but that would be treating her like a child and by the time he got there it would probably be too late. As he thought a surge of inspiration flashed in front of his eyes as he saw the picture of old Vanessa. Vanessa had come back to claim her man, and she would succeed yet again. Running through the caravans he asked some children if they had seen a blonde girl, they directed him towards a home near the end of the site.

As Penny waited outside the door she felt strangely calm, like she was in a trance or something. She felt a sensation of tranquil bliss sweep over her and she slipped into a dreamlike state, picturing everything but seeing nothing. As the man turned his head towards the door his eyes widened his face aghast in shock. He rolled off his partner who grabbed the blanket in disgust, trying to hide her nudity under the thin sheet. The man