Alexandre slept fitfully in the passenger seat, I think he regretted telling me where we were going, but I was bound to find out eventually. I exceeded the speed limit most of the way, and the turmoil inside of me seemed to have also upset the little jumping bean within me as she flipped and kicked continuously most of the drive. As we neared the outskirts of the town I called Alexandre's name to wake him. He grumbled sleepily so I laid a hand on his shoulder and he jerked upright immediately.
"Carys!" He yelled and then realized where he was.
"We're almost there." I said emotionlessly.
"Ah. I uhm, unfortunately do not know the exact location of the health fair..." Alexandre's voice trailed off.
"Don't worry about it, they have it the same place every year." My reply was still deadly calm. Alexandre snuck a look at me and I ignored him. He watched as the small town rolled by, silently observing the old crumbling brick buildings, the obvious signs of wealth and poverty sitting right next to each other in nicely kept houses surrounded by run down mobile homes with junk cars and hundreds of kid's toys in the yards, the few businesses, some permanently closed and the few still opened. He watched as the badly kept streets rolled by as we drove further out of town into the more rural areas towards the fairgrounds where the health fair always was. I dropped a hand to my stomach self-consciously, rubbing my thumb up and down. Alexandre continued to observe his surroundings and then me surreptitiously as I took the sharply curving road into the middle of nowhere.
Fewer houses were out in this direction, more farmland, more mobile homes, some long abandoned and others overtaken by wildlife. I pulled into the narrow road that lead to the fairgrounds and then into the big muddy field they used for parking. The grass was nearly as tall as the tires, but had been beaten down by traffic, vehicle and pedestrian alike. Alexandre's eyes widened briefly. I braked the car at the entrance.
"They usually set up behind there in tents." I indicated the brick and metal fence that didn't quite run the length of the field, forming an incomplete barrier against the back end of the field which nestled up in a little cup between some hills. "This place usually gets really boggy when it gets wet, I don't know if the car will get stuck." I offered.
"Here's fine." Alexandre stated and popped out of the car. I followed more slowly. I had actually hoped to never see this place again. My memory conjured image from the past and my stomach clenched uncomfortably. I felt the nausea settle in as memories of the few visits to the fair my sister and I managed to finagle out of my parents rolled through me and I could almost hear the music and screams in my head while the smell of funnel cake hit me out of nowhere. The guilt settled squarely in my chest as I thought of how I had abandoned her to my parent's control.
"Carys?" Alexandre asked nervously.
"It's fine... it's just...hard. I thought I'd never be back here... I thought this part of my life was over." I panted slightly and Alexandre came around the car swiftly to grab me tightly.
"You can wait here if you want." He whispered against my ear, but I shook my head. I had to do this. I hugged my rib cage and Alexandre squeezed me lightly before turning his attention to the field.
Like a hunting dog with his nose in the air, he walked across the field several times, using his speed to his advantage. I could smell the faint odors of people here, but I didn't know what scent I was looking for. Alexandre walked the areas that looked like parking first, then shook his head.
"Maybe inside?" I asked and he nodded at me, lightly taking my arm in his while we walked towards the fence. He let me go to jump the fence and cleared it easily. I took a deep breath to steady myself before taking a few steps and also easily jumping the fence.
"So many people." Alexandre looked overwhelmed.
"I know. They come from miles around to be treated here. Most have no health insurance, and this is the only time they can try to see a doctor all year." I sighed, the weariness heavy in my voice. I remembered the times my mother had stood in these lines. Alexandre glanced at me.
"The workers are usually over there, it might help to try around that area, you might find some less populated areas like behind where the tents would have been as they fetched supplies or took everything down afterward." I said, trying to be helpful. Alexandre wandered over to the area I pointed out, closing his eyes and letting his nose guide him. He shook his head again so we started walking along the gravel path that lead around the fairgrounds to give him a moment to regroup. He took my hand and rubbed the back of it with his thumb, lost in thought. Mid-step I was pulled to a stop. I turned to look at Alexandre. His eyes were wide, nostrils flared.
"I've got her." He said.
"What the Hell is she doing way back here?" I asked. Alexandre shook his head.
"There's another couple of scents, male, female..." He then started tracing her steps, stopping suddenly and turning in place to go a different direction, or crouching as though the scent dropped lower. He circled the area where the tents would have been until the scent started to get muddled, then retraced his steps, trying to find which direction she left. Suddenly all of the short stops, quick turns and different positions hit me.
"She poses as press." I whispered. Alexandre halted and jerked around quickly.
"What did you say?" He asked sharply.
"Look at the way you are moving. It looks like someone lining up photography shots. She poses as press. Hell maybe she actually IS press, or sells her pictures or videos legitimately, I don't know. That's why it's never the same health group. Why it's never the same route. She just tags along after whichever one is convenient. These things make big news 'human interest stories'. She could make a decent living covering them, and maybe even earn a name for herself, which means more tips on upcoming locations for these events." I was impressed and horrified. Alexandre came rushing over to me and gripped my arms.
"Carys, are you ok?" He asked me softly.
"I'm a little sick, honestly." I replied and swallowed several times. "But we need to find her. Can you see which direction she left? See...?" I giggled wildly and Alexandre shook me gently.
"Stay with me Carys. We're too close now to lose ourselves." He scolded. I blinked at him and smiled weakly.
"Go ahead, they may have let her bring her car back here because of her equipment, maybe that'll help." I answered him. He nodded once and took up his search again, stopping again at the edge of the gravel path.
"It leads off this way. You may have been right about her equipment, but I can't tell if this is coming or going. The scent is too old. Should I follow it anyway?" He asked and I nodded. He led me out by the old wooden stage and stopped again.
"Overlapping traffic here, she came back and visited a lot. The vehicle smells..different, some sort of chemical and air freshener...not not a chemical...." Alexandre mused.
"Copper." I stated "Overheated electronics." I recognized the smell from my days living here. The area was hot and humid in the summer, it easily fried electronics. I had lost more than one cellphone that way, and God forbid you brought out a delicate laptop or something more sensitive. Alexandre looked at me sharply.
"Good catch Carys, she might actually have traveled out here in a news van or something." Alexandre commented. "No wonder I didn't catch her scent on the way in, too much going on here." He frowned.
"It won't be local." I remarked dryly.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"This place doesn't have news. Unless you count church gossip." I laughed bitterly. Alexandre looked at me with concern. "Is the smell of the vehicle strong enough to track you think?" I asked calmly. "You're a lot better at this than me."
"Maybe..." He replied doubtfully. "I might have to hang out the window like a dog." He offered and I smiled halfheartedly for him. I followed as he walked slowly towards the fairground exit into the empty field and then paused beside the car. "I'm supposing this is the only road in and out of here." He remarked.
"Basically." I replied with a shrug. He nodded as if confirming to himself.
"I'll try to puck up the scent of the vehicle they were in a little further out then." He sighed and opened the passenger door to crawl in.
"You know..." I shook my head and didn't finish the statement. Although I wasn't sure which human's scent I was after because of the jumble of them at the fairgrounds, and I was nowhere as near as sensitive nor good at tracking as Alexandre, especially at older scent trails, I still picked up on the coppery scent. Mostly thanks to our little monster, who made my senses a tad more sensitive these days. I got into the drivers seat mulling over the way he was treating me and started the car, backing us out onto the road. Alexandre began to doze on the way out and since it was a fifteen minute drive or so, I let him, only waking him when we got to one of the town's three red lights.
"I'm not as good at this as you. I mean, they only could have gone straight or left here, but..." I said quietly. Alexandre blinked wearily and rolled down his window.
"Go straight for a little, and if there's nothing we can turn around." He instructed. I nodded. With his face next to the window, allowing the air to wash over him, he inhaled deeply as we drove through the light. Further down the street I hear him make a noise in his throat.
"So much traffic, but it's the same overlapping scents over and over." He commented and I smiled wryly.
"Wait, there it is, very faint, keep going." He instructed. I advanced the car slowly and Alexandre got more excited. "Yes, it definitely passed through here." We approached the second light of the town. "Right leads into rural areas, more dwellings and things, straight is down main street, eventually the highway, left is a more circuitous route back to the highway, but more commonly used by locals, so if they asked for directions, this is the way they would have gone. If they used GPS or came from a different state, they may have gone straight." I informed him, slowing as we neared the light.
"Just keep going straight for now." He replied, and so I did. Within a few minutes, he sniffed and shook his head. "No, I'm pretty sure I lost them." He sighed, so I turned the vehicle around in the next available parking space and drove back to the light. Unprompted, turned right and had scarcely driven a few feet down the road before Alexandre threw up a hand.
"Wait, wait! I have an idea!" He exclaimed excitedly, pointing at the ridiculously overpriced hotel across the street.