Trapped in the Circus of Fear Read online

  Here’s my chance, you think. If they stay busy, maybe I can sneak past them. Just slip out, behind Mistress Barbarous’s back….

  As you approach, Mistress Barbarous unrolls the poster and holds it up in full view.

  You want to scream when you glimpse what’s on it.

  Check out the poster on PAGE 49.

  A star? Forget it. You’ve heard enough lies from these circus people. You want to go home!

  So you keep running. Straight across the parking lot. Down the road. Up a hill. Down another road.

  It’s six long miles home, but you make it. Panting and out of breath, you drag into your room, flop down on your bed, and fall into a deep sleep.

  You sleep for eight days straight! By the time you wake up, the circus has moved on to another town.

  It’s too late to help any of the kids stuck in the sideshow! And too late to help Richie.

  Sure, you escaped safely, but you left your friends behind.

  And you don’t think you’ll get to the good endings in this book if you abandon your friends, do you?

  No way.

  So go back to the beginning and try again. Because one thing’s for sure. This is not a happy

  END.

  “But there’s no one here!” you protest. “I don’t know how to make cotton candy!”

  “Figure it out!” Mr. Peepers screams, jumping up and down. “Make it for me now, or I’ll tell the big, mean clown where you are!”

  “Okay, okay,” you say quickly. Man, what a whiner!

  You flip on the cotton candy machine. You’ve watched people make it, so you sort of know what to do. You pour a packet of pink sugar into the bowl.

  “Hurry!” the clown screams. “Yummy, yummy, yum-yum-yum!”

  The fuzzy pink candy starts to build up on the sides of the metal bowl. You need a paper cone to twirl it up. But you can’t find one.

  “Do you see any of those paper cones?” you ask the tiny clown as you search.

  “Never mind that!” he snaps. “Just use your hands!”

  Your hands? That kind of sounds like fun!

  But the sugar is spinning pretty fast.

  Is it really a good idea?

  To use your hands for the cotton candy, turn to PAGE 8.

  To refuse, turn to PAGE 97.

  “I want to hide!” you tell Danny the Lizard Boy. “But where?”

  “Come in here,” he whispers.

  Quickly you slip into the cage with the Lizard Boy.

  “Get down,” Danny commands. He points to the corner with his tail.

  You lie down on the cold cement floor near the Lizard Boy’s piles of straw and food. Using his tail, Danny covers you with dusty straw. You try not to sneeze.

  You keep very still as someone steps into the sideshow.

  The sound of heels clicking on the cement floor comes closer and closer.

  Is it Mistress Barbarous? You can’t tell.

  You hold your breath and pray that the straw will cover you enough to keep you hidden….

  Hold very, very still on PAGE 54.

  Mistress Barbarous holds you over the jar of goo. Her eyes narrow as she glares at you.

  “What kind of a deal?” she demands.

  “Offer her something,” the Lizard Boy advises you in a whisper. “Something she might want!”

  Offer her something? What would she want?

  What have you got?

  If you brought along your lucky baseball cap, the camera, or the dictionary of circus terms, turn to PAGE 101.

  If you didn’t bring any of those things, turn to PAGE 67.

  The ball of twine? Yes! You’ve got it.

  You can think of about two million ways you could use it to get out of this situation. For instance:

  1) You could quickly loop a few loops and make a lasso. Then you could take aim and toss it, hoping to catch the loop on the end of a trapeze swing behind you. Then you could pull the trapeze toward you, do a flip over the bar, and swing away to freedom.

  2) You could use the twine to tie up Geyorg’s hands. Then you could slide down one of his skinny legs as if it were a firefighter’s pole.

  3) You could cut a piece of twine, tie the ends together, and start playing cat’s cradle to confuse and distract all the circus performers below who are trying to kill you.

  4) You could make a —

  Hold it! You’re taking too long to make up your mind.

  You missed your chance to make a choice. Find out what you do with the twine on PAGE 114.

  You glance at a woman in a pink leotard. She has a pink sequined snake sewn on the front of her costume. She smiles at you. A good sign, you think.

  Then you take another look at the snake on her costume.

  It’s a cobra! Whoa!

  “Hi, I’m Sara the Human Snake,” she says sweetly. “You must be one of our young guest performers. Would you like me to show you some cool tricks on the trapeze?”

  “Um — sure,” you agree. “But can I ask you a few questions first?” In your head, you add: Like, how do I get out of this horrible circus?

  “Oh, come on.” Sara giggles, taking your hand and leading you toward the main tent. “Let’s have some fun on the ropes first. We can talk later!” She grins at you playfully.

  Okay, you think. If I go and work out with her for a while, maybe she’ll help me escape.

  Then again, maybe she’s leading you to Mistress Barbarous!

  Do you dare trust her?

  That depends. How much do you like snakes?

  If you brought your pet snake from home, you’ll probably trust her. Turn to PAGE 102.

  If you didn’t bring your pet snake, turn to PAGE 73.

  The huge clown puts his hands up to cover the horror underneath.

  Under the makeup there’s no flesh. No skin. Just bones!

  Just a gruesome, worm-eaten skull.

  It’s horrifying! You’re frozen with fear.

  “Come on,” Mr. Peepers yells. “We’ve got to get away now! Once he puts his face back on he’ll come after you again! Run!”

  The pudgy clown turns and bolts out of the tent. You run! Your heart pounds like a bass drum.

  You follow Mr. Peepers to a smaller tent next to the big top. This tent is filled with food machines: a hot dog cooker, nachos, popcorn, peanuts, a cotton candy machine. But the tent is deserted.

  There’s no one to sell the food to you.

  “Cotton candy,” Mr. Peepers demands. He seemed so cute before. Now he’s all red in the face. “I want cotton candy! Now!”

  Give him what he wants on PAGE 38.

  “Aaahhh!” you cry. You kick frantically, trying to find another rung to stand on. You hold on with your hands for dear life.

  “Good luck with your new friend, Sara!” Susan cries. She jumps off the ladder and hooks a trapeze. She lets out an evil chuckle as she sails away.

  “Hold on,” Sara cries. “I’ll try to help you.”

  “Oh, no, you won’t!” Susan screams. She flies over and the two of them start fighting above you on the ladder!

  It trembles and shakes. Great! Just what you need! Now it’s even harder to hold on!

  Uh-oh. What’s that tickling feeling?

  Your pet snake chooses that moment to slither out of your pocket and slide up your arm. Up toward your armpit!

  This is not a good time to be tickled.

  “A snake? Ooohh! I love snakes!” Susan cries from above.

  “Oh, no!” Sara’s sweet voice cries down to you. “Look out!”

  Hold on for one more minute, while you turn to PAGE 90.

  You have to stop Mistress Barbarous from getting another mirror!

  You stare down at your hand.

  Hey. I’ve got a whip! you realize. And the lions seem to be obeying your commands. That gives you an idea….

  CRACK! You snap the whip in the air.

  “Hup! Lions!” you address the three killer animals. “Attack!”

  You poin
t at Barbarous, who is racing away on her horse.

  “Attack! Attack!” you shout, cracking your whip and pointing at Barbarous.

  The lions roar. They heard you! Excellent!

  The only thing is: Cats don’t understand pointing.

  When you command them to attack, they attack you!

  You know, it’s not polite to point.

  And in this case, it’s not safe, either!

  THE END

  “All right, all right,” Mr. Peepers grumbles. “I’ll go and get your bag. You wait here!”

  You cower behind the leather trunk, hoping that no one finds you. Sweat trickles down the back of your neck.

  I’ll get my backpack, find Richie, and get out of this madhouse, you think.

  Suddenly you hear the pitter-patter of little feet. It’s Mr. Peepers. He clutches your backpack in his tiny hands.

  “Here! I found it!” he announces. “Now it’s chocolate time!”

  You unzip the pack and give Mr. Peepers all three candy bars. He earned them.

  “Mmmm, goody, goody!” he chuckles. He unwraps one, stuffs it into his mouth whole, and grins.

  “I have to go find my friend Richie,” you declare. You pull your pack onto your shoulders. “But before I go, can you please tell me what is going on here? Why is everyone out to get us?”

  Mr. Peepers shakes his head sadly.

  Hear the story on PAGE 107.

  “I’ve got a dictionary of circus terms,” you offer. “It’s really cool. It tells you what stuff means. Like ‘salto.’ That’s a certain trick on the trapeze. Or the ‘catcher.’ That’s —”

  Barbarous begins to laugh. She laughs so hard that she drops you.

  SPLAT! Right into the goop!

  “What an idiot!” she snaps. “I own this circus. Do you really think I need a dictionary to tell me what a salto is? Oh! You’re funny! You’re really funny!”

  The ringmistress doubles over, howling with laughter.

  Which is fine with you. While she’s laughing you climb out of the jar and sneak away from her.

  “Ha-ha-ha!” she howls behind you.

  Slipping and sliding in your goop-covered shoes, you start to run.

  Don’t stop until you get to PAGE 55.

  Mistress Barbarous grabs your arm. Hard. And marches you back into the tent.

  You don’t put up a fight. After all, what choice do you have? Your mom is gone. And she’s not coming back for a week.

  Inside the tent, the knife thrower is still racing around and around the ring. He looks impatient.

  “What’s going on? Is everything okay?” Richie asks you as Mistress Barbarous leads you past him and into the ring.

  “Everything is just great! Sit back down!” Mistress Barbarous snaps at Richie. “Your friend is about to become a real circus star. Do your stuff, circus kid,” she adds to you. She pushes you toward the white target board.

  “Good luck!” she spits. “You’ll need it! Morton’s not very good!”

  Not very good? You gulp as you hurry to take your place.

  Not very good!

  Face the knife thrower on PAGE 33.

  The bold black headline across the top of the poster reads: SEE IT TODAY! THE NEWEST ADDITION TO THE SIDESHOW: THE KID WHO LIVES IN A JAR!

  And underneath is a picture of you! Trapped in a jar of slimy, oozy liquid!

  Your heart pounds. If you don’t get out of here, Mistress Barbarous is going to seal you in a jar!

  Mistress Barbarous starts to roll up the poster. She’s going to see you!

  You crouch down and lift the bottom of the tent. Maybe you can squeeze out under the side.

  You flop down onto your stomach. You squeeze under the canvas, crawling out of the tent to freedom.

  You stand up to brush yourself off outside. Free!

  “Where do you think you’re going?” a stern voice behind you demands.

  Are you really free? Find out on PAGE 89.

  “I’m not sure,” you answer. You clutch the pendant in your fist. “Do you think it’ll keep working for me, the same way it worked for Mistress Barbarous?”

  “Of course,” Ramon replies. “They all use that pendant! Everyone in her family. Geyorg the Clown, the Great Bostini, her sisters — they use it every day. Otherwise their strange powers will go away.”

  “You mean if they don’t use the pendant, then they’ll just be normal?” you ask.

  Ramon nods.

  “Okay,” you say. “Then I have an idea. Come with me.”

  Hurry to PAGE 103.

  “Let me go!” you manage to croak, even though the evil clown’s hands are clamped around your throat.

  “Psst,” a voice near you says. You feel a tug on your sleeve.

  You glance down. A cute little clown in a frilly pink suit is trying to get your attention. His cheeks are round and rosy. Blue glitter stars are painted around his eyes.

  The clown who’s choking you doesn’t notice the other clown.

  “Hi. I’m Mr. Peepers. Got anything to eat?” the pudgy little clown whispers to you. “If you do, I’ll help you get free.”

  This little clown is my only hope! you realize.

  But did you bring any food with you on this adventure?

  To give the clown the chocolate bars, turn to PAGE 105.

  To give him the bag of peanuts, turn to PAGE 22.

  To give him the bunch of bananas, turn to PAGE 68.

  If you didn’t bring any food, turn to PAGE 113.

  You don’t have your lucky baseball cap. Tough luck!

  You’ll have to rely on your wits instead!

  In the puzzle below, the word LIONS is written forwards, backwards, up, and down.

  Circle all the lions. Then count them.

  After you count them, multiply by four.

  That’s the page number you should turn to next.

  If you find all the lions and do the math correctly, you’ll be very lucky. There’s a hint waiting for you on the correct page!

  But if you get the wrong answer …

  Ooooh. Bad luck. You’ll turn to a page that makes no sense at all for this part of the story. And then you’ll be hopelessly lost in the book!

  Good luck!

  Follow the instructions. Then turn to the correct page.

  “Take the cuffs off the kid,” Mistress Barbarous commands the clown. “I can handle this.”

  “Don’t try anything funny,” the clown policeman warns you. He unlocks your handcuffs. “That’s my job! Ha-ha-ha!”

  He somersaults away, laughing at his own joke.

  Mistress Barbarous grabs your arm. She has an amazing grip. She squeezes so hard, her hand almost bruises you.

  “Come on, circus kid,” she snaps. “You’re way too much trouble. I’m putting you in the sideshow right now!”

  You gulp. Can she really do what you saw on the poster? you wonder.

  Can she put you in a jar?

  The jar is waiting for you on PAGE 99. Get going!

  “What is that smell?” a male voice booms.

  It’s definitely not Mistress Barbarous!

  But you could still be in trouble, you realize.

  The footsteps come closer. A big black boot tip pokes into the straw by your face.

  “I smell fresh young meat!” the voice bellows.

  In the next instant, he pries away the straw you’re hiding under. He grabs you by the shoulders.

  “No, Bostini!” Mr. Peepers’s voice shouts. “Leave the kid alone!”

  Bostini? The Great Bostini? He’s the lion tamer Mr. Peepers warned you about. One of Mistress Barbarous’s dangerous relatives.

  Bostini opens his mouth wide. Incredibly wide!

  He growls at you. “Roooarrrr!”

  That’s when you notice his teeth.

  They’re pointed. Long. Razor sharp.

  They’re the teeth of a lion!

  “Aaaaaahhhhh!” you scream in terror.

  Turn to PAGE 77.

&
nbsp; You tear through the opening at the end of the sideshow tent. To the outdoors.

  Yes! You’re free!

  But you stink worse than a dead skunk. It’s from the slime covering you.

  Outside, you spot a large, fenced-in area where a man with a huge hose is washing the elephants.

  Do you think you have time to stop and get the slime washed off? You smell so bad it’s making you dizzy!

  Or do you just want to keep going — until you’re far away from this circus of doom?

  If you ask the man to hose you off, turn to PAGE 127.

  If you keep running, turn to PAGE 118.

  You dash into the big tent and glance around.

  Empty. Quiet. No knife thrower.

  Good! You sling your backpack over one shoulder and wonder what to do next.

  That’s when you feel something drop onto your head.

  You put your hand up and cautiously touch your hair.

  Yuck! It’s wet! Just a drop, but slimy!

  Who’s above you? Someone is up there in the dark at the top of the tent, dropping slimy goop into your hair!

  You tilt your head back and gaze up.

  A figure is perched on a small wooden platform. The platform that the trapeze artists swing from.

  From the way he’s crouching, you’re afraid he’s going to drop on you at any moment!

  Better move — and fast! — to PAGE 65.

  What did you bring with you? Some talcum powder? A ball of twine? A camera? Your pet snake?

  Your mind races, trying desperately to think of ways to use the things you’ve brought to the circus.

  But your mind isn’t fast enough.

  The gypsy’s violin bow slices forward.

  Right at your throat!