I'd escaped the tent for a little while whilst I knew mother would be busy setting up for the next show. I wandered the grounds which was my favourite thing to do, imagining any one of these families was mine. A mother that loved me. A real father to lift me and put me on his shoulders. Walking through the crowd I spotted Jack osbourne, he was handing a little girl off to a mother. I felt like I'd seen this scene before except I was the little girl and my mother wasn't so loving. I watched for a little bit as he exchanged small talk with the lady. She was twirling a curl around her finger and leaning into Jack. I get it, he was a player. He wasn't interested in me specifically just any female he could get for his circus. I had heard mostly men performed at the osbourne circus. Disappointed I turned and walked back to the convention tent. I don't know why my hopes were high. I just imagined a different life somewhere else, where the beatings weren't from someone you were supposed to love and supposedly loved you.
I carried on with my practice, a haunting beauty to it now. Mother strode into the tent mid flip which caused me to lose my balance on the dismount. "Stupid girl" she clucked. "Tonight after the last show you're excused from your practice. You are to get bathed and wear your nicest frock and be in my trailer waiting." "Yes mother but can I ask why?" "No you insolent girl just do as I say" she snapped at me and walked out as quickly as she came in. I sighed and then her words hit me, what was she going to do with me? I prayed to the lord she wasn't giving me willingly to Walter. I had a suspicion she knew what he had done to me, and although I was still a virgin, I was anything but pure. Yet she said nothing.
The last show passed in a blur and although I was flawless, my mind was focused on tonight and deciphering the clues about what was happening. Jack osbourne from another circus comes here, mother tells me to dress nicely and bathe, Walter was bristly with me, Eugene kept giving me sad smiles. What the hell was happening? After bathing and putting on my favourite baby blue chiffon babydoll dress, I waited in mother's trailer. I sat down on her vanity table and looked at myself in the mirror, it had been a long time since I had, mother didn't permit mirrors in my trailer. Had my face always been this sallow looking? I looked like a ghost, eyes hollowed out, skin stretched over my skull. "You look beautiful" a familiar voice floated across the room. It was Jack. "Oh Jack, you startled me" He wasn't smiling at all. He sighed heavily. "Is your mother coming?" "I'm not sure, why?" I was puzzled. He didn't answer me, instead he positioned himself on my mother's bed and placed his head in his hands. "Sephy" he mumbled. I got up and knelt in front of him. "Jack, what's wrong?" He moved his head so he was looking straight in my eyes, so the next words pierced my very soul. "Your mother has sold you to me, you will be my bride, I'm taking you with me tonight." I audibly chocked and grabbed my neck because all the air had escaped me and I couldn't breathe. I slumped to the side and my head hit the floor with a thump. Jack immediately jumped up and was at my side. "Sephy! Sephy! Are you okay?" Just as he was about to gather me up in his arms, mother entered the trailer. "Jack honey, don't you know it's impolite to enter a woman's trailer when she's not here?" Her voice dropped with syrup. "Sephora, get up you stupid girl" she added just to add insult to the flame. I pushed myself up, not because I was eager to obey but I wanted to look at her. The woman who gave birth to me and was supposed to love and take care of me had just sold me. "What are you staring at me for?" She asked still sounding annoyed at my presence. "You sold me?" I whispered "Speak up you simpleminded girl!" She shouted at me so I raised my voice to match. "You fucking sold me!!!" The words echoed around the trailer. "You ungrateful little wretch, I've done everything for you, sacrificed for you!" Mother pulled her hand back to slap me but before she could connect with my cheek, Jack jumped up and stood between us. "Enough Violet" he glared at her. He turned to me and picked me up off the floor where I still sat and cradled me into his chest. Without another word to mother he strode out of the trailer. Jack almost sprinted through the grounds to just outside where he walked up to a car. Without letting me go he hopped in and slid me in the passenger side but kept me close to his side. I couldn't look at him, I just looked out the window as tears silently dripped down my face.