“I’ll watch from the sidelines,” Rosa announced. “I’ve got my kitten with me.”
It turned out that Rosa wouldn’t see much of the tilt-a-whirl experience from the sidelines as the ride was housed in a large wooden building. Rosa waved when the lineup disappeared inside. It was probably a good idea for her to keep an eye out for Gloria. Where was she? Rosa felt a tickle of worry. Gloria should’ve made it back from the restaurant by now.
Happy screams erupted from the nearby roller coaster each time it rounded the corner with a new load of riders, and Rosa wondered what thrilling hill or curve lay beyond her vision. Fairgoers passed her with popcorn or cotton candy in their hands, chattering away to each other with smiles on their faces.
The tilt-a-whirl building had patrons exiting, but none were yet her group of friends. The carousel had also stopped and let folks off. The roller coaster rounded the corner for the third time—she’d been counting—when several riders waved their hands at the control platform, presumably to get Victor Boyd’s attention.
Why hadn’t the ride been stopped? And where was Victor Boyd?
Rosa grabbed Diego’s squirmy body and pushed him back into her satchel before hurrying toward the control platform.
What in heaven’s name was going on?
4
As the control platform for the roller coaster came into view, Rosa saw that the small square pad that housed the levers and controls for the ride sat empty. The entire upper half of the platform—with only four corner beams running to a metal roof—was open. Had Victor simply walked off with the ride still running?
The roller coaster whooshed past Rosa as she continued to move toward the control platform while Diego did everything in his power to squirm out of her bag. Rosa had no idea how to operate a roller coaster, but she had to do something!
Folks on the runaway ride called out, “Hey!” and “When is this going to stop?”
A young carnie who couldn’t have been more than seventeen, ran from around the back of the roller coaster and toward the control platform. The kid wore jeans, a gray T-shirt, a dingy brown apron with tear-off tickets sticking out of the top, and a nametag that read “SKIP”.
“What’s going on with the coaster?” he said to no one. “Where the heck is Vic?”
Skip unlatched a lock, swung the gate open, and swore. Rosa, having stayed close behind, could see around his back. Victor Boyd was slumped into the bottom half of the small platform.
Skip kicked at Victor’s shoes. “Hey, you stoned?”
Rosa stepped around Skip. “Can you stop the ride?”
Skip stared at the controls. “There’s some sorta defect.” He ran for the wire mesh fence housing the roller coaster, yelling over his shoulder, “Don’t touch nothing!” Deftly, he pulled himself over the fence, and flipped open a gray fuse box attached to a post.
As he pulled a lever to stop the roller coaster, Rosa lowered her satchel to the floor. “Stay put,” she said to Diego, then turned her attention to Victor. “Victor? Victor Boyd? Can you hear me?”
The chains running along the nearby roller coaster track slowed, and soon the clack, clack, clack from the roller coaster grew noticeably slower until it finally came to a stop.
Victor remained unresponsive. His head was turned at an awkward angle, and his unkempt dark hair was mussed over his eyes. Rosa shook him by the shoulders, but he didn’t rouse. Reaching for his neck with two fingers, she was vaguely aware of the complaints coming from the roller coaster riders.
Rosa could find no pulse.
Victor Boyd was dead.
“What? What’s going on with Vic?” Skip asked, when he returned. “Why’d he pass out?”
Rosa checked her watch and then stood, surveying the situation. She turned to Skip. “You said there was a defect? What did you mean?”
“The train shoulda stopped after two rounds.” Skip pointed to the control panel. “See them there black splotches? Looks like burn marks. And the lever shoulda had rubber on it. They all got rubber on them for safety.”
Skip kicked at Victor’s feet again. “Dude!”
Rosa placed a palm on the carnie’s arm and shook her head. “I’m afraid he’s dead.”
Skip stared back blankly. “What?”
“Skip, I need you to do two things for me, all right?” Rosa forced Skip to look into her eyes. “Report this incident to your manager and tell him to call an ambulance, then immediately go to the bandstand and talk to the lead singer. His name is Detective Belmonte. Tell him Rosa needs him urgently at the roller coaster. Can you do that?”
“Yes, ma’am. Tell Mr. Henderson and fetch a detective.” Skip turned and jogged away.
Rosa struggled to close the gate on the control platform again, as one of Victor’s legs had wedged into the opening. She didn’t want to move his body, but she also couldn’t risk having any fair patrons happen upon him in this state. She knew from experience that a dead body would most certainly cause pandemonium.
After nudging Victor’s leg almost back onto the platform, Rosa pushed the gate as far as it would go, and just in time. A moment later, a man with angular features stomped toward her. He flailed his arms to the sides and yelled, “What the heck happened with the ride? Where’s the carnie? My daughter just got off and threw up, ya know?”
Rosa wasn’t about to tell him one ride operator had died, and the ticket-taker had raced for help. Instead, she held her satchel with a squirming Diego in front of her and stood in front of the crack in the gate, hoping to obscure the irate man’s vision.
“I’m reporting this to the pier office right now!” He shook a fist in Rosa’s direction as though the incident had been her fault.
Rosa called after him, “Yes, you should do that. Right away!” The pier office should
