Page 39 of Lovers Fate

“You should take your job more seriously.”

His gaze remains fixed on my chest. “Oh, I do.” His eyes lift. “Very seriously.”

You never know what you might find.”

“I’m sure I won’t be disappointed.”

He slides the device close to my crotch, producing a beeping sound. I roll my eyes, but then he pauses and presses the mic near his ear. My eyes widen as I notice two men wearing robes, masks, and an upside-down cross approaching.

“You need to come with us,” he says to the security guard man, wiping his smirk off his face.

“W-what did I do?” he stammers, lowering the wand. He looks at me, then back at the cloaked men. The park must hire some type of undercover security to ensure that guests follow the park’s rules, and that includes the employees.

“Come with us,” the one on the left wearing red demands.

The man nods, handing the wand to the one wearing a black robe to the right, and then follows them to a gate right off the exit that reads Park Personnel Only.

I glance at Rachel. “What was that all about?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. It was fucking weird, right? It was like someone was watching.” She looks around. “I don’t see cameras.”

“It doesn’t mean they’re not there,” I mutter, knowing from experience being in the psych ward. They had cameras when you think they didn’t.

Rose makes it to the entrance by the time another security guard walks over to continue screening guests.

“What I miss,” Rose says once we all pass security and hand our tickets over.

I tell her about the security guy with the wand.

Rose scoffs. “What a creepy asshole.”

“He knows where we work,” I gather. “It’s a small town, and I’m wearing most of my outfit from the club.”

“Still a creep in my book,” Rose points out.

It’s the only reason I could come up with as to why he did it. I don’t think he is stupid enough to pull that shit with just anyone.

When the fog clears as we walk deeper inside the carnival, the masked park attendants are selling food. Other novelty items are scattered about, resembling zombies. There is a kissing booth sign to my right with the letter S replaced with the letter L that now reads Killing Booth.

There is a maze of mirrors to our right. The entrance resembles the wide mouth of a clown, emitting smoke from its nose.

A slight cold breeze causes goose bumps to erupt over my skin. A wave of dizziness hits me, causing my vision to narrow, warping the entrance. Followed by a sense of familiarity, laughter, like I’ve been here before, and just as quickly, the sense of awareness is gone.

“Hey, do you want to go inside?” Rose says her voice sounds strange for some reason.

I swallow, trying to quench my anxiety as my vision clears. “Yeah,” I reply.

The mirrors are so close together after we walk inside that my breath fogs the mirror.

Our reflection multiplies as we move through each mirror, trying not to bang my head. Rose keeps a close distance behind me. I go left and right through the maze like I’ve done this countless times.

“Have you gone on this before?” Rose asks behind me.

“No.”

“Are you sure?” she asks when I don’t miss a turn.

“I’m sure.”

---