Ten Thumb Sam (9 page)

Later that night as he lay under his blankets on the floor in the sleeping alcove, Sam listened to his parents arguing over Mr. Beaverwick's proposal.

“There's no way the Triple Top is going to sell out to Circus Enormicus,” Max insisted.

“Maybe we were too hasty,” said Sam's mother. “We haven't even heard Mr. Beaverwick's terms yet.”

“Come on, Irene. You've heard the same stories I have. Beaverwick is a tyrant. He has shows touring on six continents, and every single show is exactly the same. He might as well hire a bunch of robots.”

Sam heard his mother sigh. “I was there tonight when you went over the Triple Top's finances with Mr. Pigatto. We're in serious trouble, Max.”

“I know,” said Max. “We were just making ends meet when Albert and his family showed up with six extra mouths to feed. And now we have this morning's fine to pay off on top of everything else.”

“Exactly,” said Irene. “If things get any worse, we may
have
to consider Beaverwick's proposal.”

“Have you talked to your dad about the man in the gray suit yet?” Harriet asked Sam as they prepared to enter the big top three days later.

Sam shook his head. “Every time I try, he's too busy.”

“Maybe it's just as well,” Harriet said as she adjusted the straps that held up her tray of cotton candy. “We don't know for sure that he's the one sabotaging the circus. Although I have to admit, he does look kind of familiar.”

“Of course he looks familiar,” said Sam. “I bet he's been in the audience every time something bad happened.”

“He could work for the safety inspector's office,” Harriet pointed out. “He could just be watching us for safety violations.”

“No, it's him,” Sam insisted. “It has to be. We just have to catch him red-handed.”

The cousins were making their way slowly up the bleachers when one of their customers called them back.

“What
is
this?” the woman demanded. The two children beside her were gagging and spitting out half-dissolved candy floss.

“Are you trying to poison us?” someone else shouted as more people began to cough and make faces all around them.

“There's something wrong with the cotton candy!” Harriet whispered to Sam, her face white. “What do we do?”

Sam pointed across the tent to the bleachers on the other side. “It's not just us.” It was obvious from the noise coming from the other side of the big top that someone had been selling tainted cotton candy there as well.

Mr. Pigatto's voice came over the loudspeaker. “Ladies and gentlemen,” the ringmaster began nervously. “I know many of you have already discovered that we've had a PROBLEM with our cotton candy this evening.”

There were some angry boos from the audience.

“We do truly APOLOGIZE,” the ringmaster continued from the center ring, wiping his rosy face with
a handkerchief. “But you'll be happy to hear that we've already identified the problem. It seems that a quantity of ALUM CRYSTALS were somehow introduced into the sacks of sugar that we use to make our cotton candy.”

Mr. Pigatto had to shout into the microphone to be heard over the rising noise. “Ammonium alum u.s.p. is a common astringent. It is NOT poisonous. You probably have a bottle in your own medicine cabinets to treat canker sores or sore throats. It tastes absolutely TERRIBLE, but I repeat, alum is NOT poisonous.”

The audience was still angry and confused. “So what's this stuff doing in my cotton candy?” one man yelled.

“We are TERRIBLY sorry,” said Mr. Pigatto. “I repeat, the cotton candy is not poisonous. It will NOT hurt you. There will be FULL REFUNDS, of course,” the ringmaster continued. “And FREE ice-cream bars or caramel corn will be offered to everyone who bought cotton candy this evening.”

“Thank goodness it wasn't something poisonous,” said Harriet, letting out a ragged breath. “Where are you going?”

“Back to the bus,” said Sam. “I'm going to be grounded when my parents catch up with me anyway.”

“But you didn't do anything,” said Harriet

Sam looked miserable. “No one's going to believe me this time. I helped make the cotton candy today!”

Sam's father took him aside into the shade of one of the equipment trailers late the next morning. There were dark circles under Max's eyes. “The circus had a few special visitors this morning, Sam. Did you know that?”

Sam shrugged, his arms folded across his chest.

“We had a delegation from the city council of Thunder Bay to start. It seems the mayor and her children were among the people who consumed our tainted cotton candy last night. She wasn't very happy about it, let me tell you.”

Sam traced an arc in the dirt with the heel of his sneaker. “I don't know why you're telling me all this. I told you I didn't put anything in the cotton candy.”

It was Max's turn to shrug. “I just thought you should know that Thunder Bay has cancelled our permit to perform here this weekend.”

Sam looked up in dismay. “That's terrible!”

“That's right,” said Max, nodding. “That little prank had some very serious consequences. And it gets worse. The safety inspector, Mr. Burkenoff, showed up right after the delegation from the city. The Triple Top
was fined again, this time for violating sections of the health code. That's two fines in less than a week. We have ten days to pay up or we're finished.”

Sam's face had clouded over. “But what does all this have to do with me?”

“Nothing, I hope,” said Max. “But if there's anything you want to tell me, now would be a good time to get it off your chest.”

“I don't have anything on my chest!” Sam shouted. “I've told you that! Why won't you believe me?”

“I don't know what to believe anymore,” his father said. “But you have to admit, it doesn't look good that you helped make the cotton candy yesterday.”

“Why does it always have to be me?” Sam sputtered. “Why can't someone else be under suspicion for a change?”

Max put his hands up. “Calm down, Sam. Until we figure out who's been pulling these pranks, we're all under suspicion. We can't afford to take any more chances. From now on we're all pairing up. No one can be alone—unless they're using the bathroom.

“It's not just you,” Max continued as Sam opened his mouth to protest. “It's everyone. We're all going to be watching each other. Not much fun, but we're running out of other options.”

“Want to be my ‘buddy'?” Sam asked Harriet after lunch that afternoon. “I need to get out of here.”

Harriet looked up from the book she was reading. “Sure. Are we going anywhere in particular?”

Sam nodded. “The Thunder Bay library. I checked a map; it's only a few kilometers away. You might want to grab those notes you've been taking.”

“What do we need my notes for?” Harriet asked as she put a bookmark in her book and stood up.

“I'm tired of being the one everyone points to when something goes wrong,” said Sam. “It's time to add someone else's name to your list of suspects.”

Harriet raised her eyebrows. “Okay, but what does that have to do with the library?”

“It's just a hunch I have,” said Sam. “I need to check something online.”

When the cousins reached the library, a young librarian at the circulation desk directed them to the nearest available computer station.

“I've been thinking about the conversation Mr. Beaverwick had with my father,” Sam said as he typed Mr. Beaverwick's name into the search engine. “Is it just me, or is the timing of his offer to buy the Triple Top a little suspicious?”

Sam's search word immediately generated hundreds of hits. The first link took them to a recent article from a national newspaper site.

“Wow,” said Harriet.

Sam read the article aloud while Harriet took notes. “‘Circus Enormicus Incorporated has announced the addition of a new circus to its growing empire. The Leaping Lizard, a familiar name in Canadian entertainment circles since 1929, was recently rescued from bankruptcy by Bartholomew Beaverwick and his associates.' Hey,” said Sam, “isn't that your family's old circus?”

Harriet nodded, still scribbling.

“‘The Leaping Lizard is the third Canadian circus Mr. Beaverwick has acquired this year,'” Sam continued. “‘The previous two circuses were also facing bankruptcy
when they were purchased by Circus Enormicus. Mr. Beaverwick has announced his intention to persuade all remaining independent circuses in Canada to join forces under the Circus Enormicus banner.'

“I knew the timing of his visit was suspicious!” Sam said excitedly when he was done reading. “Beaverwick
persuades
circuses to join Circus Enormicus by sabotaging them until they're about to go under. Then he makes them an offer they can't refuse. They have no choice!”

“Try that link,” Harriet said, pointing to the screen. Sam clicked on a link that led to an article about one of Circus Enormicus's previous purchases. He let out a whoop when he saw the photograph next to the text.

“Shhh,” said the librarian at the circulation desk.

“Sorry,” said Sam. His voice dropped to a whisper. “It's the man in the gray suit! The mustache is a little thinner, but it's
him
! I knew it—he must work for Mr. Beaverwick.”

Harriet nodded. “You were right! And remember I told you I thought he looked familiar? Now I know where I saw him before. He hadn't grown the mustache yet, but I'm sure he was hanging around the Leaping Lizard just before it went bankrupt.”

The photograph the cousins were studying had been taken outside a courthouse in Vancouver. According to the caption under the photo, the owner of the Kit and Kaboodle Circus had taken Circus Enormicus to court to try to stop a forced bankruptcy sale. The photo showed Mr. Beaverwick next to his wife and two of his lawyers. Behind them was a fifth person: the man Sam had bumped into, the man Harriet had followed after the safety net fell on the clowns.