Page 15 of Two For the Show
“You have been an incredible audience, Youngston!”Jude shouts, arms held wide. The audience goes wild, hooting and whooping in response to his praise. “And we have something special for you tonight, so get out those phones and hit that red button because you’re going to want a record of this show-stopping moment!”
Dexter and I flank the trio of Alphas that we’ve determined were the cause of Alex’s torment. It wasn’t solely the interviews that Jude and Matteo did that sealed it. We all asked around and found out that the three of them spent time together and would clam up whenever another person came near them while they were talking.
Which wouldn’t have been enough to incriminate them. However, Jude used his master key during a show while the other acts were performing and entered their trailers, where he found the clown masks, and that was the final nail in the coffin.
Speaking of clown masks.
Quinton strolls into the ring with all three dangling from his hand. He hangs out behind the Alphas, and they haven’t spotted him yet, too distracted by the crowd watching them.
Good. I want them as blind sided as possible.
“You see, today is the day we add clowns to our lineup!” Jude booms to much applause. “The number one request from our audiences is that they want to see devious clowns, and we sure do have a corrupted trio for you tonight!”
Quinton hands Dexter and me each a mask, and the three of us pull them down over the heads of the Alphas, who have already tried to start backing out of the ring. We block their bodies, keeping them from escaping.
Jude’s eyes are dark, and his smile is sinister as he continues with the act. “These three have only worked together once that we know of before, so you’ll have to forgive them if they’re not show-ready. We couldn’t wait any longer to let you know that we found the clowns we were looking for.”
The specific wording Dexter wrote for Jude is meant to signal to Alex, should she see one of the videos takentonight, that we have found the people responsible for her torment.
And now we’re going to make clear that she’s safe if she comes back here.
“Now, with the help of Quick Cut, Maestro, and the Twisted Twins, we’re going to show you how much weappreciatewhat these clowns have done for us.” Jude stalks forward, stopping in front of the three. He reaches up and turns off his lavalier mic.
“Because we know exactly what you did to our Omega.”
“Look, man, I don’t know what you think happened,” Chet starts to bluster. “But we didn’t do nothing.”
“Yeah, whatever that bitch accused us of…” Travis begins.
“We did it,” Elvis yelps. “I didn’t know it would go as far as it did. I thought we were just going to fuck with her a little. Like hazing.”
“Shut up, Elvis,” Chet hisses. “Shut your fucking mouth.”
“No. You two assaulted her. I should’ve said something as soon as it happened, but I need this job.” Elvis turns to Jude, his eyes pleading for mercy that he’s not going to receive. “I’m sorry, Jude. If I had known she was your Omega...”
“What, you wouldn’t have touched her? But any other Omega is fair game?” Quinton sneers.
Chet rolls his eyes dramatically. “It was only a little roughing up. She’s fine.”
“Was it roughing up when you destroyed her nest?” I grit out through my clenched teeth.
It’s at this point that Travis realizes that just because Jude’s mic is off, it doesn’t mean the rest of ours are. The audience gasps loudly at my words.
No matter who you are, everyone knows that touching an Omega’s nest may as well be a crime. It’s one of the most taboo things you can do. Even the cruelest of Alphas will leave an Omega’s nest alone at risk of causing a Storm when the Omega realizes their safe space has been violated.
“Maestro, didn’t you say you needed someone new to toss your knives at? That I was getting to be a little too easy?” Quinton says, gripping Elvis by the shoulders. “I think our clowns would love to volunteer for the role.”
The audience roars their approval, and the three clowns collectively take several steps back.
“Or maybe it’s time to teach them to walk the tightrope?” Dexter asks, his voice a bored drawl that I know hides more rage than he knows what to do with.
My brother misses Alex, even if he won’t say it. He was getting used to her presence, even if he was a bit reluctant to admit it. I genuinely think, if he had had one more week with her, his walls would’ve cracked entirely to let her in.
Now the chasm between them is back, and I pray that it’ll close once she’s with us.
“Ooh, I love that idea, brother,” I say, making sure I lean a little closer to Quinton so his mic picks up my words. “Or we could have them swing from the trapeze.”
“Maybe we leave it up to our showrunner?” Matteo says, gesturing at Jude. “What do you think, Youngston?”
