The Sequin Star (20 page)

As the van lurched down the hump off the lot and onto the road, everyone on the front seat bounced into the air.

‘Poor old Manfred will be having a bumpy ride back there,' Jem sympathised.

‘Good,' said Claire. ‘I hope he gets rattled to pieces.'

Once on the road, Rosina drove along calmly and carefully. It was past ten o'clock and the streets were dark and deserted.

It was only a five-minute drive to Kit's house at Kirribilli. A police car was still parked out the front and two police officers leapt out, revolvers drawn, as Rosina pulled the bright-yellow circus truck into the driveway. The policemen stared incredulously at the youthful girl driver, the monkey, the dog and the dirty, motley crew of teenagers who tumbled out.

‘Good evening, gentlemen,' said Kit with a smile. ‘I'm Kit Hunter. I think you will be pleased to know that we have the criminal you are looking for locked up in the back of this van. The other one is incarcerated in an office in the Hunter Emporium at St Leonards.'

Rosina cocked her head to the side and tossed the set of van keys to one of the police officers. Jem held the office key out to the other on the palm of his grubby hand.

Alerted by all the commotion, Mrs Bruce threw open the front door. When she saw Kit she shrieked and flung her arms around him. ‘Master Kit, you're safe. We've been so worried about you. Where have you been?'

Mr Hunter rushed from his office, looking drawn and haggard. He drew Kit into a long embrace.

‘Thank God you are all right,' he whispered. ‘I thought I might never see you again. I just couldn't bear it if I lost you too.'

Kit hugged him back. ‘You won't get rid of me that easily, Dad, although who knows what might have happened if it wasn't for Rosina, Jem and Claire. They may well have saved my life.'

Mr Hunter looked askance at the circus members standing in his grand hall: the two girls in dirty jodhpurs and bedraggled ponytails, streaks of muck on their faces; the little brown monkey, dressed in a tutu; the huge, golden dog, his long tongue hanging out. Lastly, he glanced at Jem with his unruly thatch of blond hair and freckled face, flushed with embarrassment.

All of them could clearly remember the awful scene when they had last seen Mr Hunter, when he had called them vagabonds and gypsies and forbade them from ever seeing Kit again.

Mr Hunter took a deep breath. ‘Thank you,' he said. ‘Thank you all for everything you have done for my family.'

Rosina flashed her brilliant smile. ‘It was a pleasure, sir. Any time young Kit needs rescuing, we'd be happy to help.'

‘I do not intend to need rescuing again anytime soon,' Kit replied, with a broad grin at Rosina. ‘However, I do have some other ideas of how you could help me.'

Rosina turned her face away. Claire felt a little uneasy. It was clear that Kit liked Rosina very much, but Kit was supposed to marry another girl, a vivacious young film star named Vivien Blake – her grandmother.

‘Sorry to interrupt, sir,' said one of the police officers, ‘but we really do need to ask you all some questions. And could we borrow your telephone to ring the police station?'

A police car was organised to come and release Manfred from the back of the van and take the grimy, dejected and bruised magician into custody. Another was sent to the Hunter Emporium to apprehend Larry.

After seeing the state of their clothes, Mrs Bruce ushered them all into the kitchen instead of the sitting room. She made some hot cocoa and a huge pile of chicken-and-mayonnaise sandwiches, which they ate while the policemen took statements.

Mrs Bruce tended to various wounds with warm water, salve and gauze bandages. The palms of Claire's hands were red-raw from rope burn, and she had several nasty scrapes from her fall. These injuries were added to the many bruises she had gained from her collision with the cyclist over a week ago. She felt like she had been pummelled and beaten all over. Fortunately, Kit was not badly hurt, just dehydrated and battered, with a swollen nose and various scrapes.

It was noisy as the two policemen asked questions, with everyone talking over the top of each other. Detective Drummond soon arrived and asked many more questions, although he insisted on one person answering at a time. Mr Hunter listened attentively to all the details of the daring rescue. Claire, Rosina and Jem took it in turns to explain how they had found Kit, captured the abductors and escaped in a circus van driven by a fifteen-year-old girl.

Detective Drummond turned to Rosina. ‘And as for you, young lady,' he admonished, ‘I don't want to hear that you've been driving a vehicle of any kind until you're old enough to have an official driver's licence.'

Rosina looked contrite. ‘I'm so sorry, sir, but it was the only way I could think of to get Kit to safety and Manfred into custody.'

‘Well, just don't do it again,' he repeated. ‘Given the circumstances, I won't charge you – but that won't be the case next time.'

Rosina winked at Claire with a mischievous smile. Claire felt fairly sure that Detective Drummond's threat would not stop Rosina from driving circus trucks when she needed to.

Detective Drummond turned to Kit and asked him some questions about the actual abduction.

Kit ran his hand through his fringe of thick brown hair and, for the first time, told his part of the story.

‘At about eleven o'clock on Sunday morning, our chauffeur, Larry Jenkins, dropped me back to Beaumont after I'd gone to deliver some party leftovers to the family of a friend of mine,' Kit began, glancing at Jem, who nodded. ‘There was no one here, so I walked down to the tram stop to visit some other friends.'

‘Which friends?' asked Detective Drummond.

Kit lifted his chin. ‘Rosina, Claire and Jem at the Sterling Brothers Circus at St Leonards.'

Mr Hunter shifted in his chair but didn't comment.

‘When I reached the tram stop,' Kit continued, ‘I realised I had left my pocketbook behind, so I returned home. There was a blue van parked in our driveway. I let myself into the house and found Larry Jenkins and Manfred the Magician helping themselves to my father's artworks.'

‘Then what happened?' prompted Detective Drummond, writing notes.

‘Together, they attacked me, punching and wrestling me to the ground. My nose started to bleed. They trussed me up like a chicken, threw me in the back of the van and loaded it up with art and other valuables. It was all over in a matter of minutes.'

‘How
dare
he?' Mr Hunter barked. ‘Just wait until I get my hands on that Jenkins. After everything I've done for him –'

Detective Drummond cleared his throat. Mr Hunter sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.

‘We drove off in the van about 11.30am,' Kit said. ‘It was parked somewhere very quiet. All the time I was tied up and gagged, but I tried to kick the side of the van to get attention. Nothing came of it. Then, many hours later, in the middle of the night they came back and drove me to what I later discovered was the Hunter Emporium.'

‘Do you have any idea what time it was?' asked Detective Drummond.

Kit shook his head.

‘I heard a vehicle being driven onto the circus lot at about four in the morning,' Claire offered.

Detective Drummond made a note and gestured for Kit to continue.

‘When the van stopped, they carried me into the store, threatening me with death if I made a sound. They locked me inside an office. I knew where I was by the sound of Elsie trumpeting and Sultan roaring.' Rosina stifled a giggle. ‘I stayed there until these three burst in just a short time ago and Claire cut me free.'

‘And do you have any idea how Jenkins and the magician knew each other?' asked Detective Drummond.

Kit glanced at his father, then at the policeman. ‘Larry has been driving me to the circus lot every day this week,' he confessed. ‘A couple of times when I came back to the car I found Larry chatting to Manfred. It seems Larry had been boasting to Manfred about working for a very rich family, telling him about our house and art and cars, and telling him how hard done by he was.'

Mr Hunter snorted. ‘
Hard done by
? What rubbish.'

Kit looked embarrassed and Rosina reached over and squeezed his shoulder.

‘When they first caught me in the hall, they argued over what they should do with me,' Kit continued. ‘It sounded like Manfred planned the robbery, borrowed the van from the circus and had contacts to sell the art.

‘It was Manfred's idea to kidnap me when I discovered them. Larry was against it, but Manfred said I'd seen their faces and was worth far more than the paintings. Kidnapping me would give them extra time to sell the loot and make plans to disappear. He told Larry they'd never have to work again. He thought Dad would pay anything to get me back.'

‘And so I would,' agreed Mr Hunter. Kit and his father exchanged smiles.

‘Who knows if he actually planned on releasing Kit after they received the ransom,' mused Detective Drummond. ‘You're very fortunate your friends found you first.'

Claire felt a chill as she thought about what Manfred might have been planning to do with Kit.

‘Manfred wouldn't really have hurt Kit,' objected Rosina. ‘I've known him since he joined our circus two years ago, and I would never have thought he would do anything so terrible.'

Jem shrugged. ‘Frank told me that Manfred used to be with one of the big American train circuses during the twenties. He was hugely successful – travelled all over the world, wore diamond rings, drank French champagne and lived like a prince. When the stock market crashed, he lost all his money and ended up trying to scratch a living in what he felt was a second-rate, colonial dog-and-pony show.'

Rosina flushed with annoyance. ‘A
second-rate dog-and-pony show
? How dare he?' Sterling Brothers is . . .'

Kit took her hand and kissed it. ‘Yes, we know – the most spectacular show in the world.'

By the time the police had taken everyone's statements it was after midnight. Mrs Bruce suggested that Rosina, Jem and Claire should stay the night so that they could have a hot bath, salves for their scrapes and a good night's sleep.

Rosina and Claire shared the same bedroom that they had used on the night of the ball. Mrs Bruce lent them a couple of old shirts to wear to bed. This time Claire was quick to bags first go in the bathroom. She soaked in the deep, hot water and felt her many aches and bruises fade away.

Afterwards, Mrs Bruce smoothed more salve on her burnt palms and bandaged them. Claire was fast asleep before Rosina had finished her bath. She dreamt about elephants and monkeys and a chase in the dark. Then she was searching desperately for something in that darkness. However, no matter how hard or how long she looked, she never found what it was she was hunting for.

19
Command Performance

Claire and Rosina slept in the following morning. It was the best rest that Claire had enjoyed since she last slept in her own bed. When they finally shuffled downstairs, Mrs Bruce cooked them a feast of bacon, eggs, sausages, mushrooms, toast, marmalade and tea. Jem declared it to be the finest breakfast he had eaten in years.

Kit didn't join them. He and his father had left early to attend to some business. It was mid-morning when Mrs Bruce gave them their last cup of tea and checked their wounds. They all enjoyed being mothered. Claire thought of her own mum and how concerned she must be – she certainly had enough to be anxious about without worrying about a missing or injured daughter.

One of the police officers on duty out the front offered to drive them all home to the lot while the other drove the circus van.

As they were dropped off, Alf strode over. Jem and Rosina looked at each other in alarm. Claire wondered what the boss was going to think of them arriving in a police car.

Rosina stepped forward. ‘Alf, we –'

‘Did you hear the news?' Alf shouted, grinning and stroking his moustache ‘The Red Terror has won the richest horserace in America.'

‘Phar Lap won the Agua Caliente Handicap?' Jem asked.

‘He won by two lengths in front of twenty thousand people and broke the course record,' Alf continued. ‘He could have won by more, but the jockey raced him longways, around the pack on the fence, to avoid any foul play from the other riders.'

‘He really is a wonder horse,' said Rosina. ‘Remember when someone tried to shoot Phar Lap last year?'

Claire shivered. She knew the legend of the mighty Phar Lap – and that he would soon die in rather mysterious circumstances, from what many believed was arsenic poisoning.

‘People all over Australia are celebrating,' said Alf. ‘It's one of the greatest days in Australian history.' Alf chuckled again, clapping Jem on the back. ‘And it's a great day for Sterling Brothers Circus, too.'

‘What do you mean?' Rosina asked. ‘Why?'

‘Well, it seems last night you three rescued one of the richest young men in Sydney,' Alf replied. ‘Kit Hunter and his father came to see me this morning.'

Rosina, Jem and Claire glanced at each other with delight.

‘And apparently your determination is to be rewarded,' Alf added. ‘As a thank you, the Hunter family has booked out the Big Top tonight.'

‘Booked out the
whole show
?' Rosina asked, astonished.

Alf paused and wiggled his eyebrows. ‘But it is with one condition. Apparently young Mr Hunter wishes to have a special command performance.'

Jem frowned and sighed. ‘I suppose Rosina is to be the star?'

‘Yes, she is . . . but he has also requested two other special acts.' Alf smiled at Jem.

‘What acts?' said Claire, wrinkling her nose.

‘He wants a juggling, knife-throwing, chair-balancing acrobat and Mademoiselle Claire, the famed French elephant rider,' announced Alf, in his ringmaster's voice. ‘Any ideas where I can find skilled performers like that?'

Jem exchanged glances with Claire and Rosina. ‘Do you mean it? Claire and I are to perform in the ring tonight?'

‘You bet,' Alf replied with a wink. ‘So you'd better get practising – I don't want any embarrassing mistakes in
my
 circus.'

Jem whooped with delight. ‘Yes, sir. I'll get onto it right away.' Jem raced off to collect his props.

Alf looked at Claire sympathetically, gesturing towards her bandaged hands. ‘Are you really up for performing in the ring tonight?' he asked. ‘I'm sure Mr Hunter won't mind if you'd rather not.'

Claire hesitated, looking back and forth between Alf and Rosina. On the other side of the lot she could hear Elsie and Empress trumpeting. She glanced down at her smarting hands.

Rosina smiled reassuringly. ‘Claire is good with the elephants and horses. She has been riding them and helping me look after them, and she has seen enough of the performances to know what to do. If she wants to perform, I can help her practise in the ring today.'

Claire felt a rush of excitement. She was being offered the chance to ride an elephant in the ring. What were sore hands to stand in the way of that? ‘I'd love to. After all, the show must go on!'

‘Excellent,' Alf said. ‘That's the spirit. I look forward to seeing our new acts tonight.'

Rosina smiled at Claire. ‘Come on then, Mademoiselle Claire. We have a lot of work to do before tonight. I'm going to make sure that you are
brilliant
in the ring.'

Claire and Rosina spent the afternoon rehearsing. They began practising Claire's entrance on the stretch of grass between the caravans. Much of the technique was similar to Claire's ballet training, but Rosina was a perfectionist. She made Claire perform the walk again and again – back tall, shoulders straight and toes pointed gracefully. She coached her through the curtsy, making sure her arm was raised in a perfect balletic arc. Most importantly, she reminded her to hold a dazzling, showgirl smile at all times.

The next stage of preparation was performing in the ring with the animals. Rosina gave Empress the commands and put her through her paces. In addition to riding the elephants in parade, Claire had to become comfortable on elephant back as Empress performed her tricks – climbing on pedestals, rearing and even balancing on a rolling barrel. Then they practised with the horses. The afternoon flew by and, as evening drew closer, Claire could feel her stomach churn with nerves.

Soon it was time to dress. Claire wore pink tights with the turquoise-blue tutu spangled with silver stars. She carefully tied the ribbons of her satin ballet shoes, knotting them around the ankles. Her dark hair was pulled back with a blue headband that sparkled with sequins. The colour matched her eyes. She borrowed a pair of white leather gauntlets to protect her raw hands.

Finally, Claire applied her heavy stage make-up of foundation, powder, black eyeliner and thick mascara. She looked into the speckled mirror. The reflection that stared back at her looked like a completely different girl from the one who had stumbled onto the circus lot ten days ago. Claire smiled and slicked on another coat of crimson lipstick. She was going to perform in the circus.

Lastly, Claire pulled out the damaged sequin star brooch that she had been carrying in her jeans pocket. She carefully pinned it to the waist of her bodice. In some strange way, it seemed perfect to wear it in her first true circus performance.

The circus performers and roustabouts hurried around the lot, fetching props and costumes. The menagerie crew moved the animals into the menagerie tent. Malia supervised the workers as they prepared popcorn, fairy floss, ice-creams and ginger beer for Kit's guests.

A red bus pulled up out the front and spectators began to stream through the gate and onto the lot. There were many families, most of whom looked like they had fallen on hard times. They were dressed in greys and browns and dingy khakis that were patched and darned and mended. Some of the children had bare feet, while others walked stiffly in shoes, as though they hadn't been shod for months.

One family gazed tentatively around the lot. Claire was the first to recognise a thin woman who was hunched over and coughing into her handkerchief.

‘Look, Rosina, there's Mrs Bates. It's Jem's family,' Claire called. ‘Mrs Bates!'

Mrs Bates looked around, her gaunt face suddenly glowing with anticipation. She was followed by Jem's brothers and sisters – Nancy, Tibby, Billie, Freddie, Becky and Lizzie – who were all scrubbed clean and dressed in the best clothes they could muster.

Claire and Rosina rushed to welcome them all. Jem hurried over as soon as he saw them. His face was alive with excitement.

‘What are you all doing here?' Jem asked. ‘How did you get here? It must have cost a fortune.'

‘We came on the bus,' Nancy said. ‘Your friend sent it for us.'

Jem frowned in confusion.

‘This morning, that lovely young friend of yours, Christopher, came to see us,' Mrs Bates explained. ‘He invited all of the Happy Valley families to come to the circus tonight to see you perform –
and
he organised a bus to come to La Perouse.'

‘There was food on the bus,' Billie said. ‘Fruit buns and apples and beef sandwiches.'

‘And ginger beer,' Freddie added.

Jem glanced at his brothers and sisters. ‘Kit Hunter sent a bus to bring you all to the circus?'

‘Yes,' Tibby confirmed impatiently. ‘He said it was the most spectacular show in the world, and
you
are the star of it.'

Claire exchanged a warm smile with Rosina. Jem blinked rapidly, fighting back tears.

‘He certainly is,' Rosina agreed, ‘but now we had better get ready for the performance. Make sure you go in early so you can have front-row seats.'

‘And don't forget to take a good look around when you go through the menagerie,' Claire suggested. ‘All the animals will be in there waiting for you. Watch out that Elsie the elephant doesn't steal your hats.'

Tibby took off her straw sunhat and twirled it in her hands. ‘I hope she steals mine.'

The Bates family hurried into the menagerie tent. Jem made sure they all had chocolate ice-creams and big boxes of popcorn.

At last the show began. Alf strode into the spotlight in the centre of the ring, wearing his white jodhpurs, long riding boots, black jacket, red waistcoat and black top hat. He stroked his waxed moustache and called out into the Big Top, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls – prepare to be amazed and enchanted, shocked and enthralled. I have the great pleasure to present the
one
. . . the
only
. . . the
most spectacular
show in the world . . . Welcome to Sterling Brothers Circus . . . '

The band, dressed in their red uniforms, began to play the rousing tune that signalled the start of the grand march. All the performers were gathered in the menagerie tent in their spangled finery. Clowns, stilt-walkers, acrobats, aerialists and animals of all kinds paraded out and around the hippodrome.

This time – for the first time – Claire joined in, riding high on Empress's back, on top of her scarlet-and-gold rug. The two elephants plodded into the ring at the rear of the parade with plumes of scarlet feathers attached to their headgear. Empress held Elsie's tail in front with her trunk.

Claire smiled, waved and blew kisses until her cheeks ached. The applause was thunderous. Claire could see Jem's family waving madly back at her from the front bench. Kit and his father were sitting beside them. She blew them all a kiss.

When the parade was over, the individual acts began. Claire realised that she knew which act was to come by the music the band played. She helped out as usual in the ring door tent with the props and costumes, watching many of the acts through the crack in the curtain.

Rosina was determined to perform her bareback dancing routine for the Happy Valley children. It was the first time she had attempted it since her accident. Claire held her breath anxiously as Rosina danced on Pluto's satiny black rump, changing feet, landing backwards and balancing on one leg. Claire soon relaxed as Rosina executed each movement perfectly, a broad smile on her face, waving and blowing kisses.

Jem's family went wild as Rosina launched into a somersault, knees tucked to her chest, dark hair flying. Rosina did a final somersault and landed in the sawdust for her curtsy. Claire clapped along with everyone in the audience.

At last it was time for the elephant act. Rosina checked her make-up in the small, cracked mirror. Claire took off the dressing gown she was wearing over her costume. Rosina straightened Claire's headdress.

‘Ready?' Rosina asked. Lula chittered to Claire from Rosina's shoulder. Claire took a deep breath.

‘Ready,' Claire agreed.

‘Smile,' Rosina prompted, turning her attention to the elephants. ‘Trunks up. Walk on.'

The two girls sauntered out together into the ring beside Elsie, with Empress plodding behind. The spotlight dazzled Claire's eyes. The crowd roared. Claire didn't need to be reminded to smile – she was beaming from ear to ear.

Jem, wearing his turban, rolled out the big pedestals and placed them on the sawdust. Alf called instructions. Empress curled her trunk around Claire's waist and hoisted her up to the top of her back. Elsie lifted Rosina.

Claire remembered to sit tall and proud, her arm curved aloft, as Empress sat on the pedestal, balancing on her haunches. Empress and Elsie climbed on top of the pedestals then reared back on their hind legs, the girls clinging to their backs. The crowd cheered. Empress waved her trunk as though conducting the audience to even greater applause. Elsie walked the tightrope.

Then it was time for Empress's final trick. Claire took a deep breath, her stomach fluttering. At Alf's command, Empress climbed on top of a barrel and rolled her way across the ring. Claire sat on her back, looking both graceful and daring. Finally, Empress wound her trunk around Claire's waist and gently lowered her to the ground. Empress sank down on one knee, stretched out the other foreleg and bowed her great head to the sawdust.