onto the underside of the wagon as it passed. It was a bumpy ride into town, and his arms were tired when the wagon finally stopped in the town square near a bubbling fountain.
The three clowns hopped down.
“We’ll practice again tomorrow,” Andersen said, tying the horses to a trough. “And don’t forget what I said about that thing earlier.”
“To success!” Ludwig said, saluting proudly. “Thank god we’ve got the keys.”
Andersen smacked him on the head.
“Sorry, boss . . .”
Verona and Ludwig walked off in different directions while Andersen started down a dark alley, burping the whole way.
I need a place to hide.
Theo ducked into a church, a wooden building with stained glass windows and a bell tower.
He crouched inside the misty sanctuary. It was small and cozy. In front of the empty pews stood an altar with several lit candles and pictures of deceased toys next to them. He looked at each of the photos and wondered how they died—probably at the hands of Andersen, since he was one of Stratus’s henchmen. Even though the clown looked like a bumbling fool, he was probably very dangerous.
There were no side rooms in the church. Gasket wasn’t there.
Theo entered the bell tower through a small door in the back of the sanctuary and climbed six flights of stairs to the top, where the bell swayed in the breeze.
No Gasket.
Across the plains, he could see the castle. If only he could storm inside! He saw Grant’s face in his mind’s eye and imagined all the terrible things that Stratus might be doing to him. The thoughts were too much. He leaned over the tower railing, scowling and internally kicking himself for not being able to fight Stratus off.
He sulked on the tower for a while before he realized he was wasting time.
On his way down, he found a golden coin on the steps. It was faded and had a royal crest with two carrots crossed as if they were spears; on the other side, the letters MMXV were etched into the gold, as well as the words QUOD TE NUTRIT TE DESTRUIT.
“Interesting coin,” he said, tucking it away, “but I’ve got to find Gasket.”
He exited the church and snuck down several streets until he came to the town jail, a gray building with a cupola and missing bricks. There were bars over the windows and several steps leading up to the door, which was locked with a rusty padlock. Theo activated the Whatsamadoozle, turned it into a blowtorch, and burned the lock off the door.
He entered to find a baby dragon sleeping in a jail cell that could hardly contain him. He was at least three times Theo’s size, with black scales, long whiskers, triangular ears, and a paunch.
“Found you.”
Gasket opened his sad green eyes, and then closed them.
“I’m here to save you.”
Gasket exhaled and nearly blew Theo across the room. He sighed and closed his eyes again.
He doesn’t trust me.
Theo tried to open the cell, but it was locked with a heavy padlock. Next to the padlock, a security panel with a fingerprint scanner and a microphone were bolted to the wall.
They really don’t want him to leave. But where do I find the keys?
He stared outside at the town that lay before him. There was a mansion on a hill, a tavern, the circus grounds at the edge of town, and a bazaar.
SORRY!
You didn’t make a selection. Go back to the previous page. Otherwise, you may get lost.
The tavern was a gingerbread house with frosted windows. A sign above the door read THE DUELING GLOCKENSPIELS.
Theo climbed on a barrel and looked inside. A bunch of toys were scattered around the wooden tables, laughing as they played board games, told jokes, and passed around sippy cups filled with apple juice. A band was on stage, and two elves were at the forefront playing glockenspiels, each trying to outplay the other as the crowd cheered them on.
In one corner, a group of blue halibut passed around candy cigarettes and coughed up clouds of chalk that made a clown at a
The three clowns hopped down.
“We’ll practice again tomorrow,” Andersen said, tying the horses to a trough. “And don’t forget what I said about that thing earlier.”
“To success!” Ludwig said, saluting proudly. “Thank god we’ve got the keys.”
Andersen smacked him on the head.
“Sorry, boss . . .”
Verona and Ludwig walked off in different directions while Andersen started down a dark alley, burping the whole way.
I need a place to hide.
Theo ducked into a church, a wooden building with stained glass windows and a bell tower.
He crouched inside the misty sanctuary. It was small and cozy. In front of the empty pews stood an altar with several lit candles and pictures of deceased toys next to them. He looked at each of the photos and wondered how they died—probably at the hands of Andersen, since he was one of Stratus’s henchmen. Even though the clown looked like a bumbling fool, he was probably very dangerous.
There were no side rooms in the church. Gasket wasn’t there.
Theo entered the bell tower through a small door in the back of the sanctuary and climbed six flights of stairs to the top, where the bell swayed in the breeze.
No Gasket.
Across the plains, he could see the castle. If only he could storm inside! He saw Grant’s face in his mind’s eye and imagined all the terrible things that Stratus might be doing to him. The thoughts were too much. He leaned over the tower railing, scowling and internally kicking himself for not being able to fight Stratus off.
He sulked on the tower for a while before he realized he was wasting time.
On his way down, he found a golden coin on the steps. It was faded and had a royal crest with two carrots crossed as if they were spears; on the other side, the letters MMXV were etched into the gold, as well as the words QUOD TE NUTRIT TE DESTRUIT.
“Interesting coin,” he said, tucking it away, “but I’ve got to find Gasket.”
He exited the church and snuck down several streets until he came to the town jail, a gray building with a cupola and missing bricks. There were bars over the windows and several steps leading up to the door, which was locked with a rusty padlock. Theo activated the Whatsamadoozle, turned it into a blowtorch, and burned the lock off the door.
He entered to find a baby dragon sleeping in a jail cell that could hardly contain him. He was at least three times Theo’s size, with black scales, long whiskers, triangular ears, and a paunch.
“Found you.”
Gasket opened his sad green eyes, and then closed them.
“I’m here to save you.”
Gasket exhaled and nearly blew Theo across the room. He sighed and closed his eyes again.
He doesn’t trust me.
Theo tried to open the cell, but it was locked with a heavy padlock. Next to the padlock, a security panel with a fingerprint scanner and a microphone were bolted to the wall.
They really don’t want him to leave. But where do I find the keys?
He stared outside at the town that lay before him. There was a mansion on a hill, a tavern, the circus grounds at the edge of town, and a bazaar.
SORRY!
You didn’t make a selection. Go back to the previous page. Otherwise, you may get lost.
The tavern was a gingerbread house with frosted windows. A sign above the door read THE DUELING GLOCKENSPIELS.
Theo climbed on a barrel and looked inside. A bunch of toys were scattered around the wooden tables, laughing as they played board games, told jokes, and passed around sippy cups filled with apple juice. A band was on stage, and two elves were at the forefront playing glockenspiels, each trying to outplay the other as the crowd cheered them on.
In one corner, a group of blue halibut passed around candy cigarettes and coughed up clouds of chalk that made a clown at a
Similar Books
