Anyway, Leona got the information she wanted from Mammy.
Although she no longer remembered the details of the original novel, she vaguely recalled that in the story, Eric first went to the circus, then learned magic and singing, and finally became famous, spreading to the Persian kingdom and becoming a well-known "eccentric" and "master of hidden doors".
Everything here was completely reversed.
It seemed that she really entered... a horror movie version.
Leona couldn't help but shed a bead of cold sweat.
She had watched many horror movies and acted in many as well.
Due to cultural backgrounds, there are few ghosts and demons in European and American horror movies. Most of them are about how serial killers cruelly kill their victims.
Of course, sometimes, in order to make sequels, they also endow those serial killers with inhuman powers and constitutions.
In the movies, the horror of the killers lies in that most of them are born bad guys, unpredictable, uncommunicative, and will show no mercy.
In some movies, they may communicate with the victims, but that is to break through their psychological defenses and watch the fear and struggle of their prey.
It can only be said that fortunately, this is not a traditional horror movie, and Eric is not a deranged serial killer.
Although he is also unpredictable and uncommunicative, at least he craves physical contact and will compromise because of a hug.
Leona felt that her values were a bit twisted.
She actually thought that Eric wasn't that scary.
Maybe he could change.
Leona was very clear that Eric was dangerous and might kill her at any time.
So far, his blade had hovered around her throat, teeth, and back several times.
He had only said one sentence, and she had to guess to figure out his intentions.
However, perhaps because she had escaped from him three times, her adrenaline surged as soon as she saw him, and a strong will to survive burst forth, with her thinking as fast as lightning.
After traveling through time, she felt extremely lonely and helpless and needed some people and things to cheer her up.
Eric was an excellent choice.
Leona thought, how couldn't this be considered a positive relationship?
She and Eric would be very good partners.
Thinking this way, she turned to look at Eric.
Eric was also looking at her, staring intently.
He seemed to have not expected her to have such an attitude towards Mammy, with a hint of scrutiny in his eyes.
Leona met his gaze, cleared her throat, and said calmly, "We need to clean things up."
Eric still didn't speak.
Leona, however, understood his expression. He didn't understand what "cleaning things up" meant, nor did he understand why it was "we".
All along, he had been alone - alone in restraining Mammy, alone in tying her to the chair, and alone in stabbing through her palm with a dagger.
Yet Leona said "we" to him.
This word puzzled him, and the scrutinizing look in his eyes grew heavier, almost with a hint of caution.
It was reasonable for Leona to think he was like a wild beast; his sense of caution was stronger than anyone she had ever met.
Even now, she still faintly felt that she hadn't persuaded him.
Rather, he had succumbed to loneliness.
He craved physical contact, craved kindness, even if the other party had ulterior motives.
Leona: "It's going to be getting up time soon... We can't let her talk about our affairs."
She emphasized "we" twice.
Eric paused and had no objections.
The process of persuading Mammy to cooperate was simple. Eric had a knife, and she had words.
Leona showed Mammy her now-stopped-bleeding wound and said, "As long as you keep today's incident a secret, I'll find a way to cure you. Otherwise..." She leaned forward, lowered her voice, and threatened, "I don't mind you losing this hand completely. After all, it's not mine."
Mammy glanced at Eric and nodded humiliatedly.
Leona thought for a moment and added two more conditions.
First, she couldn't steal anymore.
She didn't want to be caught by the police and exiled for theft.
Second...
Leona took out the gold pocket watch and stuffed it into the pocket of Mammy's skirt: "Give this back to Mike. Tell everyone that it was Eric who stole it. You picked it up in the woods and forgot to give it back to Mike."
Mammy looked at the gold pocket watch, her expression somewhat confused: "Did you - steal the gold pocket watch and frame him... and he still stood up for you? What did you feed him?"
Leona patted her shoulder: "That's none of your business. Just do as I say."
Mammy's eyes darted around, seemingly realizing that this was a good opportunity to sow discord.
But Leona had finally gained Eric's trust, and how could she give her a chance to sow discord.
She took a deep breath, imagining herself as a hot-tempered, desperate person, elbowing Mammy in the temple, then bending down, looking straight into her eyes, and saying:
"Do as I say, or you won't keep the other hand either!"
This was the first time Leona used acting skills to threaten someone. The effect was actually not very good, but with one elbow, she almost sent Mammy straight to heaven.
Mammy was dizzy and sweating profusely from the blow, very afraid that she would come again, and no matter what she said, she kept nodding in agreement.
In this way, Leona successfully persuaded Mammy to agree to her conditions.
She breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look at Eric, but he had disappeared at some point.
Leona shrugged, unconcerned. In the next two days, she needed to focus on planning her escape.
First of all, she had to bring her backpack.
The backpack was too important. It had everything in it - hats, coats, underwear, snacks, canned food, sanitary pads... Now this body was malnourished, with light menstruation. Gauze could get by, but what about later?
She didn't want to get a urinary tract infection.
There were also spare phones and power banks.
The spare phone was an old iPhone she had phased out. The battery health was only 85%, and it might shut down without warning, but the system ran smoothly, with a large memory, and it stored quite a few e-books.
She read a wide range of books and bought a lot of e-books at once, including novels and social science textbooks.
There was even a book called How to Skin a Lion, which collected life hacks from the Middle Ages to the Victorian era, including how to tame horses, how to make hand cream, how to keep your breath fresh, and how to skin a lion.
At that time, she just read it for novelty, but didn't expect it to come in handy now.
Most importantly, this era already had generators.
As long as she was lucky enough, she could live a comfortable 21st-century life here.
She must take the backpack, no matter what.
The problem was, her backpack had already attracted the attention of the manager and was moved to the big tent - the biggest tent in the circus, guarded by hired gunmen, on day and night shifts.
By herself, it was impossible to get the bag out.
But she didn't want to ask Eric for help.
With their current relationship, as long as he didn't kill her, didn't express his thoughts with a dagger, and was willing to take her away from the circus, she would be grateful.
Asking him would change their relationship.
She didn't have the courage to bear the consequences of the change.
Leona could only think of other ways to see if there was anyone else in the circus she could use.
For the next three days, she no longer paid attention to Eric's every move but forced herself to interact with others.
The people in the circus weren't as scary as she had imagined.
Most of them were hooligans, illiterate, with no culture, not even able to spell their own names.
Apart from Eric, the most cultured person here was the manager, followed by a magician named Richard Simon.
It was said that Richard Simon used to be the star magician of the circus.
He was handsome, and he knew many magic tricks - making apples float in mid-air, taking a coin out from behind the audience's ears, and pulling a live rabbit out of a hat.
Many audiences were his die-hard fans, and some even came from New York, asking him to perform on Broadway.
However, after Eric appeared, Richard Simon became a second-tier actor in the circus, only able to headline when Eric rested.
These two days, Leona saw him walking back and forth outside the big tent, seemingly trying to take advantage of Eric's injury to return to the position of the leading actor.
Leona thought that perhaps she could use this magician to get the backpack.
During dinner, Leona sat next to Richard with her plate.
Richard had a very good appearance, with deep-set eyes and a high nose bridge, and was a gentle and melancholic young man.
He wore a thin woolen coat, with a white shirt and a velvet vest inside, and a fake gemstone ring on his thumb.
"Mr. Simon," Leona said with a smile.
As soon as the words fell, her back tingled, and suddenly a stinging chill rose, like a thorn in her back.
Someone was watching her, with a strong, tangible gaze.
Leona looked back in doubt, but saw nothing.
Was it an illusion?
At this moment, Richard answered her greeting: "Good evening, Polly."
Leona barely came back to her senses.
They must have been quite familiar before - only relatively close people would call each other by their first names; otherwise, they would all be called "Mr.", "Miss", or "Ms.".
Leona forced herself to ignore that strange feeling of being watched and pondered for a moment before casually asking, "What did the manager say?"
Richard hesitated for a moment and let out a bitter laugh: "You already know."
He sighed again: "The manager didn't say anything, but he probably doesn't want me anymore. Well, Eric knows more magic tricks than me, and his salary is even lower than mine... It's normal for the manager not to want me. It's okay. I can try my luck in other troupes."
Leona showed a concerned expression: "Can't we talk it over?"
"Even if I lower my salary to the same level as Eric's," Richard rubbed his eyebrows, looking a bit tired, "the manager wouldn't want me. Eric is too smart. He can learn many magic tricks after seeing them just once... He's a natural magician. I can't compare to him."
Leona looked at Richard and pretended to be indignant, leaning closer and whispering, "Mr. Simon, you're a good person. It's really unfair how they treat you!"
Richard was a bit puzzled by her indignation but still thanked her: "Thank you, Polly. I won't forget your kindness."
Leona grasped his hand in return, smiling.
She didn't need him to repay her kindness; she just needed him to steal the bag and leave the circus with it.
By then, she would persuade Eric to "ask" for the bag back from him - Richard was refined and of average build. It would definitely be easier to persuade Eric to rob him than to rob the manager.
Thinking of this, Leona felt in a good mood and didn't care about that strange feeling of being watched anymore, finishing the bread and potatoes in her plate.
Richard clearly coveted the backpack. Almost every evening, he would visit the big tent. Coupled with the performance time, the hired gunmen were all sent to guard the performance hall, wary of hooligans causing trouble.
Only two guards were left at the big tent, playing poker. Seeing Richard, they waved him in.
Half an hour later, Richard walked out of the big tent, looking calm and confident.
Leona didn't know how he managed to transfer the backpack, but she knew he had succeeded.
She breathed a long sigh of relief.
Now, she could plan her escape with peace of mind.
She had a premonition that tonight would be the most peaceful night since she traveled through time.
Leona's premonition was shattered.
In the middle of the night, heavy footsteps sounded, the canvas of the tent was lifted, and someone dragged a heavy object in.
Leona opened her eyes and struggled to focus, first seeing a pair of empty white masks.
It was like a bucket of cold water poured over her head. Leona instantly woke up, shivering, and quickly sat up.
The scene before her made her hair stand on end.
In the darkness, Eric held the unconscious Richard in one hand and the backpack in the other, walking towards her step by step, calm and composed.
Leona met his indifferent, emotionless gaze, and her stomach tightened, her throat dry, and she could hardly breathe.
What was he doing?
Were all her previous efforts in vain just because they hadn't spoken for a few days?
Why?
What had she done to provoke him?
What had Richard done wrong?
Eric's gaze was as empty as the mask.
He didn't even glance at Richard, casually throwing him aside, holding the backpack, and continuing to walk towards her.
The tall shadow gradually covered her body.
Leona's mind was in chaos.
What did this mean?
Was he trying to intimidate her and then give her a sweet deal?
She definitely needed the backpack; it contained too many important things.
The problem was, her plan was completely disrupted - before this, she only needed to wait for Richard to leave the circus with the backpack and follow him.
Now, Richard was unconscious in front of her.
The backpack was at her feet.
Eric was also staring at her with a creepy look.
She not only had to deal with this series of unexpected events but also had to figure out what he was thinking and why he was looking at her like that.
Leona looked at the peacefully sleeping Richard and thought suffocatingly, why couldn't it be her who was unconscious?