The Mystery of the Circus Clown

by David A. Adler

“I’ll bet he’s in there taking his makeup off right now,” Cam said. She pointed to the men’s room and told Eric, “You check that one. I’ll check the other.”

  “Stop,” the clown said. “One of you should check the lobby. Maybe he’s still out here. Or maybe he left the arena. I’ll go one way,” the clown told Cam. “You go the other way.”

  Eric went into the men’s room. Cam ran to the nearest bench. She stood on it and looked around. Since the lobby circled the arena, she could see only part of it. When she didn’t see the Bumping Clown, she ran to the next group of benches.

  The lights in the lobby flashed off and on. Sounds of music came from inside the arena. The second half of the circus would begin soon.

  Cam got down from the bench she was standing on and ran to another one. She met Eric there.

  “I didn’t find him,” Eric said.

  “I didn’t find him either,” Cam said. “And now the clown with the chalkboard is gone. Let’s ask the guards if they saw the Bumping Clown.”

  Cam and Eric went to one of the guards standing by the doors. He was a tall man with white hair and a mustache. Cam asked him if he’d seen a clown leave.

  “It’s too early. The circus isn’t over yet,” the guard said.

  “This wasn’t a circus clown,” Cam told him. “This clown is a pickpocket. He was putting his hand into women’s handbags and taking their wallets.”

  “That’s some story,” the guard said, and smiled. “But I didn’t see any clown leave. Now you better hurry, or you’ll miss the rest of the circus.”

  Cam and Eric walked to one of the benches. “You can go back inside,” Cam told Eric, “but I want to find that clown and those wallets.”

  Cam and Eric sat down on the bench. They were quiet as people rushed past them to get back into the arena. Then Eric said, “Maybe what you told that guard was wrong. Maybe that pickpocket is one of the circus clowns. Maybe he went back inside and he’ll be in the second half of the circus.”

  Cam said, “That’s easy to find out. All the clowns’ pictures are in the program.” Then she closed her eyes and said, “Click.”

  Chapter Five

  “Oh, there you are. I lose so many things I was afraid that I’d lost you,” Aunt Molly said as she walked toward the bench. “Let’s hurry back inside.”

  Cam opened her eyes and asked, “Did you find your wallet?”

  “No.”

  “Cam knows who took it,” Eric said. “It was one of the clowns, the one who bumped into you after you bought the tickets.”

  Cam closed her eyes and said, “Click.”

  Eric whispered to Aunt Molly, “She’s looking at the pictures she has in her head of all the clowns in the circus program.”

  “Can she really do that?” Aunt Molly asked.

  Cam said, “Click,” again.

  Eric whispered, “Now she’s looking at another page in the program.”

  “Amazing.”

  Cam opened her eyes and said, “He’s not one of the circus clowns.”

  “Well, he’s not a clown, I can tell you that,” Aunt Molly said as she sat down. “He’s just a man dressed as a clown. Let me tell you something. If you see a flower in a garden, it’s beautiful. If you see it in the middle of a green lawn, it’s a weed.”

  “Aunt Molly, we don’t have time now to talk about flowers,” Cam said.

  “I’m not talking about flowers. I’m talking about people. I’ve been to a great many places. In Scotland a man wearing a kilt wouldn’t surprise me. A kilt is like a skirt, you know. But in Chicago I would turn to look at him.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean that if the clown is smart, he’ll just take off his makeup. That way he doesn’t even have to hide at all. He’ll look like everyone else.”

  “But I checked the men’s room,” Eric said. “And I didn’t see anyone wearing funny clown shoes or a costume or standing in front of the mirror taking off makeup.”

  Aunt Molly pointed to a man leaving the circus. He was carrying a large brown shopping bag. “Did you see him?” she asked.

  “Let’s go,” Cam said, and she ran toward the man. Eric followed her.

  “Why did you do it? Why did you take Aunt Molly’s wallet?” Cam yelled as she ran.

  The man stopped.

  “We know who you are,” Eric said. “You’re the Bumping Clown. And you’ve got your costume and Aunt Molly’s wallet in that bag.”

  “I’m not a clown. I sell hot dogs.”

  The man reached into the bag and took out a red and white striped apron and a hat. The sign on the hat said, “Hot Dogs.”

  Cam and Eric apologized to the man. Then, as they were walking back to Aunt Molly, two other men walked toward them. They were both carrying shopping bags.

  “Do you sell hot dogs?” Cam asked one of them.

  “No, cotton candy.”

  “And I sell popcorn.”

  Cam and Eric went back to the bench. Cam sat down. Then she said, “Click,” and closed her eyes.

  “That clown had a lot of makeup on,” Cam said with her eyes closed. “It would take a long time for him to take off all that makeup and his costume.”

  “Well, he didn’t take it off in the rest room,” Eric said. “Maybe he’s hiding somewhere.”

  “If what Aunt Molly said about flowers and weeds and kilts is true, that clown doesn’t have to hide. He could be inside running around with the other clowns. But if he found someplace to take off his makeup, he’s probably sitting and watching the circus. Come on,” Cam said as she got up from her seat. “We have to find him now. When the circus ends, and everyone leaves he’ll get lost in the crowd.”

  Chapter Six

  Cam ran through the lobby and up the stairs to the doors that led into the arena. Eric followed her.

  “Wait for me,” Aunt Molly called.

  Cam and Eric waited. When Aunt Molly reached the top of the steps, Cam said, “First look at the clowns. If you don’t see him there, look around at all the people watching the circus.”

  Cam was about to open the door to the arena when Aunt Molly told her to wait again.

  “If the clown took off his makeup, how will we find him?” Aunt Molly asked.

  “You’re right,” Cam said as she turned away from the door. Then she closed her eyes and said, “Click.” She looked at the picture of the clown she had stored in her mind.

  “It’s hard to tell what he looks like behind all that makeup. He may have curly red hair, or it may have been a wig. But I do know that he’s short and he was carrying a shopping bag.”

  Cam opened her eyes. Then Eric opened the door and they walked inside. In the center of the arena Manny’s Monkeys were skating in a circle. As the monkeys skated faster, the circle got bigger.

  The monkeys left the circus ring, and the clowns came out. Cam looked at each of them. She didn’t see the Bumping Clown.

  Cam looked at the large crowd watching the circus. She saw only the backs of the people sitting near her. The people on the other side of the arena were just dots of color.

  Cam saw someone with curly red hair. There was something on his lap that looked like a shopping bag. Cam ran, down the aisle. But when she got closer, Cam saw that it was a woman. A little boy was sitting on her lap.

  While Cam, Eric, and Aunt Molly looked around at the crowd, Polly’s Pink Poodles rode bicycles around the center of the arena. Then the ringmaster called out, “I direct your eyes to the high wire for another look at the amazing Bailor Brothers.”

  The two brothers walked slowly across the wire. They took turns riding a bicycle on the wire. Then one of the brothers sat on a chair balanced on the high wire.

  Restless children were moving around in their seats. Some people were standing to get a better look at the Bailor Brothers. Cam looked up. One of the Bailors was standing on the high wire. His brother was balanced on his shoulders. The crowd stood and cheered as the Bailors walked carefully across the wire to the platform a
nd down the ladder.

  Jack Wally walked out, and the parade began. The clowns and acrobats marched out. The horses and elephants came next. People were clapping and cheering.

  Cam waved to Eric and Aunt Molly. She pointed toward the lobby and signaled to them to meet her there.

  People were beginning to leave their seats. Children who didn’t want the circus to end were crying. Music played. Four horses came out pulling a red, white, and blue wagon. There was a loud cheer for the Bailor Brothers. They were in the last wagon of the parade.

  The lights in the arena were turned on. Cam stood still and watched as people walked past her. She saw a few short men walk by, but she had no way of knowing if one of them was the Bumping Clown. Then Cam saw a thin young man standing just ahead of her. The man was carrying a large shopping bag and a chalkboard. There was some yellow and green makeup still on his face.

  That’s the clown who helped us before, Cam said to herself. “Hi,” she called to him and waved.

  The clown didn’t wave back. He pulled at the sleeve of the woman standing next to him. Cam saw a little green make-up on her face, too.

  The two of them quickly pushed through the crowd toward the doors. Cam tried to catch up with them. When she got to the doors, she saw they were already downstairs, running through the lobby.

  Chapter Seven

  Cam ran down the steps to the lobby. Eric and Aunt Molly were waiting for her.

  “I saw the clown with the chalkboard, the one who helped us before,” Cam said. “He was with a short woman, and they’re both carrying shopping bags. I think she’s the pickpocket.”

  Cam ran through the doors and onto the sidewalk. Eric and Aunt Molly followed her. It was raining hard outside. Some people had umbrellas. Others covered their heads with magazines and newspapers as they ran to their cars. Cam, Eric, and Aunt Molly looked for the couple.

  “Is that them?” Eric asked. He pointed to a man and woman walking quickly toward the parking lot.

  “Yes.”

  “You get the guard,” Aunt Molly said as she took a scarf from her handbag. “I’ll stall them.”

  Eric ran back to the arena. Aunt Molly walked quickly toward the couple. Cam followed her.

  “Excuse me,” Aunt Molly said to them, “but do you have the time?”

  “It’s four-thirty,” the woman called out over the sound of the pouring rain.

  Aunt Molly stood in front of the woman as the man walked ahead. “You know it’s not four-thirty in London,” Aunt Molly said. “It’s later there. I travel a lot and I never really know what time it is. That’s why I ask people.”

  “Come on,” the man called.

  “Please, I’m getting all wet,” the woman said. “And I’m in a hurry.”

  While they were talking, Cam sneaked behind the woman and looked in the woman’s bag. She saw a red wig, a white jacket, and pants with red and blue stripes. Cam was standing behind the woman. She pointed to her and nodded her head so that Aunt Molly would know they had found the Bumping Clown.

  “People over here always seem to be in a hurry,” Aunt Molly said. “It’s not like that all over, you know.”

  The woman started to push past Aunt Molly. The man was coming to help. Just then two of the guards ran up.

  “You, over there. Stop!”

  The woman started to run off, but she slipped on the wet street and fell. The man ran to his car. As he was opening the door, the guards caught up with him. They led him back to where the woman was sitting on the wet street. The guards helped her up and led them both back to the arena. Cam, Eric, and Aunt Molly walked behind them.

  They all went into an office behind the ticket booth. The woman sat down with the shopping bag on her lap. The man stood next to her. One of the guards called the police.

  The woman’s dress was soaking wet. The paper shopping bag she was holding was wet too. Aunt Molly took a handkerchief from her handbag and wiped the rain from her face. Then she gave the handkerchief to Cam.

  “Why are you holding us here?” the man asked. “We did nothing wrong.”

  “And look at me. I’m all wet,” the woman said.

  “You stole my wallet. That’s why we stopped you,” Aunt Molly said.

  “And you took other people’s wallets, too,” Cam said. “And I’ll bet they’re all in those bags you’re holding.”

  “I didn’t take anything,” the man said.

  “Neither did I. Everything in this bag is mine,” the woman said, and lifted her bag.

  As she lifted it, a big hole ripped through the bottom of the wet bag. Clown shoes, a jacket, pants, a small white hat, a red wig, and several wallets fell out.

  Aunt Molly picked up one of the wallets. She opened it and took out a credit card. She showed the card to one of the guards and said, “This is mine.”

  Chapter Eight

  Jack Wally walked into the office. He was still wearing his bright red suit and carrying his top hat. He wrote a list of all the names and telephone numbers of the people whose wallets were stolen. He said that he would call the people and tell them that their wallets had been found.

  Then the police came. “So it’s you two again,” one of them said. “The last time we caught you, you were dressed as train conductors. One of you picked pockets while the other one looked out for the real conductor.”

  “That’s what they did this time,” Cam said. “She picked the pockets while he made sure that they weren’t caught. We didn’t find them right away because with her clown’s costume on, we thought the Bumping Clown was a man. We looked for her in the lobby and in the men’s room. It was the clown with the chalkboard who stopped me from looking in the women’s room. The Bumping Clown was probably in there the whole time taking off her makeup.”

  “And the other one probably took his makeup off while we were talking to the guard,” Eric said.

  The police looked through the man’s shopping bag. They found his clown costume and a few wallets in there.

  “I see you were more than just a look-out this time,” one of the police officers said. “Well, come with us.”

  The woman picked up her clown costume from the floor. She dropped the wig on her head, and the police led her and her partner away.

  “I’m really glad you caught them,” Jack Wally told Cam, Eric, and Aunt Molly. “First I want to give you passes to see the circus again. One of the guards told me that you missed most of the second half.”

  Jack Wally reached into his hat and took out a few slips of paper. “Now what are your names?”

  “I’m Jennifer Jansen,” Cam said.

  “I’m Eric Shelton.”

  “And I’m Molly Jansen.”

  Jack Wally wrote their names on the circus passes. Then he asked, “Do you have sisters or brothers you’d like to bring to the circus?”

  “I do,” Eric said. “I have twin sisters, Donna and Diane, and a baby brother, Howie.”

  Jack Wally took three more passes from his hat. He wrote on the passes and gave them to Eric. Then he said, “Come on. I’ll get you some circus programs and flashlights. Then we’ll meet the Bailor Brothers.”

  Cam, Eric, and Aunt Molly followed Jack Wally to his office. As they walked there, Cam and Eric thanked Aunt Molly for taking them to the circus. They said they had had a good time. “And the best part,” Eric said, “is that we’re going to meet the Bailor Brothers.”

  Jack Wally gave them the programs and flashlights. Then they followed him to a small dressing room. One of the Bailors was sitting with his feet up on the dressing table. The other one had his feet soaking in a bucket of hot, soapy water.

  “I’d like you to meet some heroes,” Jack Wally said to the Bailor Brothers. “Maybe you can autograph their programs.”

  The two brothers signed the programs. Then the one with his feet in the bucket of water asked, “What did you do to become heroes?”

  “Well,” Aunt Molly said, “my niece Jennifer and her friend Eric caught two clowns who were p
ickpockets. Jennifer has an amazing memory. She has a head full of pictures and that’s how she remembers things and finds people. And do you know how Jennifer takes pictures and looks at them? She just closes her eyes and says, ‘Clock.’ ”

  “Cam doesn’t say, ‘Clock,’ ” Eric said.

  “Cluck?”

  “No.”

  “Clack?”

  Cam laughed and said, “No. I make the same sound a real camera makes.”

  Cam looked at Eric, Aunt Molly, the Bailor Brothers, and Jack Wally. “Smile,” she said. “I’m taking your picture.” Then Cam closed her eyes and said, “Click.”