Free The Great Circus Train Robbery by Nancy Means Wright

there.”
    “There aren’t any people out there. Not today.”
    “No. But someone’s watching. I saw him when the female clowns went out—he’s sitting in the top row. A tall guy with a mustache and a black tie.”
    “Probably the director.” She peered out through the opening Hackberry had made in the curtain. The clowns were fooling around with their hoops; Tulip had gotten stuck in hers and the petite clown was trying to get it away from her. Now the petite clown was dragging Tulip in circles by the hoop—no small feat with Tulip’s bulk. Tulip was shrieking and the pug Lulu was nipping the petite clown’s ankles.
    Hackberry ran on with his basket of rail cars. He set the three cars running on a small circular track in the middle of the ring. But the petite clown and Tulip came whirling at him and derailed the train. Hackberry wrung his hands and wailed, then banged his head on the floor. A clown with an orange hoop helped him put back the cars, and just as Hackberry reached out to set them in motion, Orange Hoop grabbed one and held it up triumphantly.
    Zoe saw the stranger in the top row stretch out a hand—then pull it back. Hackberry reached for his car but Orange Hoop was quicker and got away. Howling, Hackberry raced for the exit, the monkey scampering behind. Spence tried to push the clown back in, but Hackberry was stronger. “No!” he cried. “Leave me be!”
    Spence pushed harder, Zoe could see the sweat on his brow. But Hackberry gave a giant push and knocked Spence down. He shoved past the waiting performers and out through the tent flap.  “Bring the  train,”  he hollered  at Spence,  who  was struggling to rise.  “Leave it in my bus.”  Sweet Gum jumped on the clown’s back, and they were off.
    “How do I do that?” Spence whispered to Zoe. “I’m not supposed to go in the ring.”
    “One of the crew will bring them in,” she said. There were steel poles in each of the two rings, with men controlling the ropes that hoisted and lowered the high-wire artists.
    When she looked out again she saw that the mustached observer had left. Who was he? Someone Hackberry was afraid of? Did he want Hackberry’s rail cars? “Maybe he’s the one who took your baggage car,” she said.
    “Who is? I can’t read your mind.”
    “Mr. Mustache,” she said. “So you’d better go back and see how Hackberry is. No, wait. I’ll go with you. When Tulip comes back in.”
    Out in the ring a short fat male clown was juggling four green apples. He dropped one, and then another, and the skin split and splattered. Applesauce, Zoe thought—so much for her gift to Tulip.
    Tulip, Lulu, and the petite clown were struggling for possession of the red hoop. Tulip was bigger, Lulu was louder and yippier, but the petite clown was younger and stronger. She had her hoop around Tulip’s neck and was yanking her in circles. As the music wound down, Tulip gave one last shove, the petite clown fell on her backside and Tulip ended upright with the red and yellow hoops around her middle. She did a wiggle dance; the hoops spun about her robust figure. Then she flung her arms high, picked up her dog and sashayed back through the bead curtain. The safety pin gave way as she squeezed through; her costume split in the rear to reveal her pink brassiere and big cotton bloomers.
    “Don’t worry,” Zoe said, “Mom will fix it.”
    “Oh, you darling girl,” Tulip said, giving Zoe a bear hug— she was in a good mood since she’d won the hoop contest. “Was it a good show?”
    “Oh yes, it was wonderful,” Zoe said, trying not to think about her gift of green apples. “Yeah, great,” Spence agreed, though he probably hadn’t watched Tulip at all, Zoe thought; he was too worried about Hackberry.
    One of the crew brought back the basket of rail cars and Spence picked it up. He’d go over to Hackberry’s school bus right off, he said, since Zoe was still holding together Tulip’s costume.
    “Be careful