Maree Kimberley - Dirt Circus League

I stumbled towards the Meat House, my body shaking with the violence that raged within me, as the realisation of the mistake I had made in coming here rose to the surface of my mind. This was the last place I should be. That thought was crossed by another, even more terrifying.

This is exactly where I belong.

Asas running from a troubled past. To a remote outback town, a disappointing father and a fresh start thats already souring.

But then the notorious Dirt Circus League arrives. A troupe of outcast teens performing spectacular fight sequences and challenging any who dares to take part.

Theyre ruthless. Menacing. Thrilling. And led by the magnetic Quarter. Hes dark, powerful and intensely attractiveand he faces a threat only Asa can see.

Will Asa be drawn into the leagues mysterious community?

And, as she discovers the violent secrets at its heart, will she delve into her own untapped abilities to save herselfand heal those caught in its evil web?

Dirt Circus League is a compelling and fast-paced novel about the powerful allure of danger and the battles we face with our demons in a world beyond our control.

For Jack and Taylor

He watched Surgeons hand as she lowered the tiny organ towards the transplant site. For a moment she held it still, and the whitish, translucent trail of nerves and fibres glistened under the harsh surgery lights.

A tugging sensation skimmed across the skin just below his temple.

Stop clenching your teeth, she said. It distorts the skin tension.

He breathed out and relaxed his jaw. This was the first time Surgeon had done a live graft. Three birds lay almost motionless on a table behind his head. Their soft feathers stiffened in the artificial cool of the treatment room. Dark blood crusted around the six empty eye sockets.

There would be some risk, Surgeon had told him, mainly from opportunistic infection that could reach his brain in a few hours. That didnt worry him as much as the possibility that the grafts might not take. He breathed in deeply again and let it out, loosening his tongue in his mouth and letting his eyelids droop.

Ready for the next one? She stood over him, instrument poised.

He blinked his left eye and signalled yes.

The bitumen was long gone, and the red dirt road stretched out ahead of us like a ribbon of blood.

Out here theres a lot of nothin. Better get used to it, Asa. Dad said my name like it was a bad taste.

In the four hours since wed left Cairns hed hardly spoken. I got that he wasnt big on small talk but I was hoping after a twelve-year absence he might have been interested in asking his only daughter about her life. Maybe wed been strangers for too long or maybe he expected me to be grateful to him for providing an escape from the mess of my life back in Brisbane.

At least Id finished high school. It was one thing Id managed to accomplish in what had possibly been the worst year of my life. Although that was hard to judge. Almost every year of my seventeen on this earth had ranged between barely bearable and downright awful punctuated with occasional moments of joy when I proved my worth in the dojo.

I stared out the window. Dad slowed to a crawl as we drove through a herd of Brahmans. A dead one lay legs up in the ditch, bones protruding through decomposing hide. Oblivious, the sleepy-eyed cows wandered around the corpse to get to more feed.

Tough out ere.

Dad sped up again. The flat plains of yellowed grasses passed in a blur. An abandoned farmhouse, all smashed windows and rusted cars and farm machinery, shimmered in the heat.

Lots come up north thinking theyll find nothin but freedom and fresh air. He pushed his cap back up his bald head and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. What they end up findin is a whole diffrent kinda trouble.

Im not looking for trouble, Dad. Just a fresh start.

He grunted. Time and kilometres dragged until a sign claiming this piece of middle-of-nowhere as Dirt Creek appeared, followed by a mostly empty caravan park and a row of weather-beaten houses. Dad turned right into the deserted main street. Two pubs. A small supermarket. A dingy hardware shop. A cafe. A bakery. A fish-and-chip shop. A Chinese restaurant. At the end of the street a small park fringed by giant palms.

He took a left turn past the park into a street of cheap and uncheerful houses and pulled up outside the last one.

Go inside and make yerself comfortable. Im goin to the pub for a bit.

I opened the car door and air hit my face like a furnace blast. It dried in my nostrils and choked down my throat. I went to the back and pulled out my suitcase and backpack. As soon as they hit the ground Dad took off. I turned to face a dilapidated grey house behind thigh-high weeds.

Despite the outward appearance of Dads house, inside it wasnt too bad. He had aircon, at least, the timber floors were swept and the kitchen lino was clean. There was a small living room with a decent-sized TV, two brown armchairs and a two-seater couch. I plonked my stuff in the small room at the back where a stretcher had been made up with faded blue sheets and two pillows. I pressed my hand into the mattress. It was thin but clean, and a hundred times better than a bus shelter.

I checked the kitchen cupboards. Lots of packets of dried ramen noodles, some tins of beans and not a lot else. The fridge wasnt looking much better. A block of yellow cheese with one end of it covered in white mould, a dead lettuce, a few tomatoes, a carton of eggs and a loaf of sliced white bread. I put a couple of eggs on to boil, buttered some bread, sliced up a tomato and cut the mouldy bits off the cheese before grating some onto the bread. I sat at the kitchen table, a green plastic thing that looked like it had spent most of its life outdoors in the blazing northern sun.

I looked out into the backyard, a big patch of dirt with a clothesline in the middle and some trees and shrubs growing wild at the end. There was no fence between Dads and next door, where there was a thriving vegie garden and a few fruit trees. I could see pawpaws, bananas and a huge mango tree laden with fruit. A few chickens roamed around, too. Maybe I could pick up some gardening skills, make something of Dads yard while I was here and create something good instead of a trail of destruction.

I finished the sandwich and went out for a closer look.

Here, chook chook, I clucked at a small black hen.

Hey, who are you?

I looked up in the direction of the voice, shielding my eyes against the afternoon sun. A figure in shadow leaned against the back door.

Im Asa. Peters daughter.

Didnt know Peter had a daughter. The woman came down her stairs.

Yeah. I shuffled my feet in the dirt, not sure what to say. Iummmjust flew up from Brisbane this morning. That wasnt the exact truth but it was close enough. Dad picked me up from Cairns.

Long way to travel. She looked towards Dads house. He home?

At the pub.

Come in for a cuppa? She nodded towards her house.

Thanks, yeah. A cup of tea was the last thing I wanted in the steaming heat. But I had nothing else to do. And she had mangoes.

Im Karen, she said as she ushered me through her laundry and into the kitchen. A ceiling fan rattled overhead and a standing fan blasted warm air at us from a corner.

Asas an unusual name. Karen filled the kettle and smiled at me.

I shrugged.