A different shrieking started, and he twisted to find the monkey, intent on retribution, tangled in his rescuer’s black curls. Since when were clowns female?
A shrill whistle cut through the chaos, and the monkeys froze.
“Come!” The command bellowed from the front of the tent.
Two of the monkeys scampered toward the gangly man standing in front of a growing crowd of circus workers. The third, however, remained thoroughly snarled in the clown’s curls.
Between her screams and the monkey’s screeching, Abraham’s ears would ring for weeks. He snagged the rascal’s hand and untwined it from her hair.
The ungrateful beast sank its teeth into his hand several times until, finally freed, it joined the others on the man’s shoulders.
Abraham yanked a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped away the blood. It didn’t appear the bites would need stitches, but that didn’t lessen the sting.
A quick glance around confirmed the aerialist had escaped. So much for becoming this week’s golden boy. Now he’d be the whipping boy.
His rescuer clown turned damsel in distress lifted wide brown eyes to his. Tears beaded unnaturally on the paint coating her face. Frizz and wild knots stuck out in all directions. The sight was enough to give grown men nightmares. Himself included.
“That is enough.” The harsh words from the man with the monkeys cut off her shaky thank-you. “I am Adam Beadle, and this is my circus. I demand to know what is going on.”
Abraham glanced at Officer Yount, who was brand-new to the Twelfth Ward and policing in general. So far, the man asserted his authority as successfully as a fish climbed a tree. Not something they needed in this already disastrous situation. That left Abraham to take the brunt of what was certain to be an unpleasant interaction.
“We’re Officers Hall and Yount. We caught two of your aerialists burglarizing homes, and we pursued them here. Unfortunately, one escaped after releasing your monkeys, and your clowns interfered.”
Mr. Beadle bristled visibly. “I do not hire crooks. The men you seek cannot be mine. Arrest those clowns if you wish to catchrealthieves.”
Abraham shook his head. He must have heard wrong. “You want me to arrest your clowns?”
“These are my monkeys, and this is my circus, but those”—he jabbed a finger in the direction of the two pests edging away with the goat—“are not my clowns.”
At that accusation, the smaller figure holding the goat’s lead stomped forward. “You couldn’t pay me enough to be your clown. If you treat your animals this badly, how much worse must you treat those you employ?”
That was no young boy’s voice. Two female clowns but neither one belonging to the circus? What was going on here?
“You!” Mr. Beadle stalked toward her amid a screeching monkey cacophony. “I told you, that goat is too valuable to sell.”
“But not valuable enough to treat her wounds?”
Good grief. The petite woman crossed her arms and widened her stance as if she intended to go nose to nose with a man twice her size.
“Theresa!” The wild-haired clown snagged her friend’s arm. “Don’t antagonize the man.”
“Officer Hall, I insist you arrest these two for thieving my goat.”
“We didn’t steal her. We’re buying her!” The little clown—Theresa—produced an envelope from somewhere within her shirt and tossed it to the ground near Mr. Beadle’s feet. “The thirty dollars you required is there, just as we agreed.”
Thirty dollars? This wasn’t a carriage they bargained over. It was a goat. And a mangled one at that.
“Thirty dollars is no longer enough.” The monkeys on Mr. Beadle jumped and screeched as if emphasizing his declaration.
Lord, help him. It appeared there was more to this supposed goat theft than first suggested. “Did you set thirty dollars as the price for this goat?”
“It was only a number I threw out, knowing she could not pay it.”
But he did give it as an amount. Would that verbal dealing count as a binding contract? Abraham would let the lawyers decide. “Yount, take Miss Theresa, her companion, and the goat to the station. We’ll sort it out later.”
“This is preposterous! The goat is mine. She didn’t even produce the money until after they’d been caught. I demand these women be charged with theft!”
The man had a point. “Charges will be determined at the station.” Now back to the reason that brought Abraham here in the first place. “About your aerialists—”
