CHAPTER 7
Tiger Lilly was continuing with her journey to the circus. The road was busy now and becoming ever more so with people streaming in from all directions. Faces alive with excitement. Such a crowd! It was as if the whole of Yeltsin had gathered to smile their happiness as they hurried to see the greatest show on earth. Everyone, that is, except Tiger Lilly.
Bad enough the worries she had about her Mum and Dad and how they would be feeling once they discovered she was not at the circus with her sisters but – and wouldn’t you just know? – she had to start in worrying herself silly about the necklace. Why she had chosen to put the stupid thing in her pocket instead of straightways pushing it back under the log, she simply did not know. Just didn’t. And why she had decided to wait until now to start in fretting about it she also did not know. Maybe because she was born silly. Totally silly, no maybe about it! Well, think how many times in a day did she decide that she had done something wrong when it was far too late to put it right; forever changing her mind. Next minute changing it back again. And was it not also true that it was not only the big, important things she was always changing her mind about? Little things too. Take painting a picture, for instance. She’d paint a thing green, then wish it were blue; or yellow or purple or plain yucky black – anything but the colour she had already painted it. Next moment she would be wishing she hadn’t bothered with painting in the first place, had done something else. Or maybe not. Born silly!
Even so, it hadn’t seemed at all right and proper to push such a beautiful thing back under that mossy old log - least, not at the time it didn’t. Now, though, she could think of a million reasons why she should have done exactly that - left it where it was. Yes, pushed it back, walked away and pretended she had never set eyes on the crackpot of a thing. Another thing! Why would anyone want to hide something so beautiful in the first place? Under a log of all places? Didn’t make a scrap of sense. Then again, what did she know about being a princess? Not a thing and didn’t want to if they were all like this one – all that shouting, that nastiness. Even so, her Mum and Dad would have a whole lot to say about her taking something that didn’t rightly belong to her - supposing, of course, they still had breath enough after they had finished going on about the way she had sneaked out of the house that morning. But best not to think about that! Least not just now. Oh, what a birthday this had turned out to be! If only she could feel as happy as the people around her.
Wait a minute, though! An idea! Yes, and what an idea! Why should she tell her Mum and Dad about the necklace or about seeing the Princess or, come to think, about anything that had happened that morning? Why not just tell Pearl? Pearl, no one else!
Now why in the name of Silly Billy Dickens had she not thought of that in the first place? All that worrying for nothing! Yes, as soon as she arrived at the Circus she would search until she found Pearl, tell her all that had happened and let her do the worrying. Let her decide what to do next. Pearl was the best ever at deciding what to do next and would never tell a secret no matter what and, if she happened to catch sight of her Mum and Dad before she saw Pearl, well she’d simply duck down and hide. She would hide from Lilac too. Worst in the world at keeping a secret was Lilac. Tell her a secret, tell the world. But not Pearl. Pearl was super clever – everyone said so and even their Mum and Dad always seemed to want to talk to her whenever they had a problem or something to decide. Lilac was clever too, but only sometimes. Right now, Pearl was the one she needed and so Tiger Lilly quickened her step.
No trouble getting through the gates. Well, not much. All she had to do was pretend she was with Mr and Mrs Gollitoe to avoid the ticket collectors. ‘No child allowed without an adult,’ said a notice at the entrance, but then she spotted Mr and Mrs Gollitoe. Mr and Mrs Gollitoe had eleven children, so who to notice an extra one? Least of all Mr and Mrs Gollitoe.
She had even less trouble finding Pearl - caught sight of her the moment she walked through the gate. How she spotted her so quickly and in such a crowded place she would never know, but there she was, covered from head to toe in a bright yellow apron and busy as a beaver serving drinks and buns from an even more brightly coloured cart. Why and what she was doing handing out drinks and buns from a cart, Tiger Lilly had no idea. Didn’t care. All she wanted was to be with her. But then – and only just in time - Tiger Lilly remembered the promise she had made to herself when she was sitting on the bench resting her legs. It was a truly meant, hand on heart promise that said she would never ever again start dashing about like a duck with back-to-front legs without thinking things through carefully and properly. Before making double sure it was the right thing to do. And, what was more, there’d be no more saying things she never meant to say in the first place, or hiding under beds and keeping things that didn’t belong to her. No! In future everything she did would be thought out calmly and carefully, with no more of shall we or shall we nots. After all, she was nine now. Nine today.
And so Tiger Lilly crouched in the shadow of the Big Top, squeezed hard at her eyes and concentrated all she could on the words she would say to Pearl. And then, having concentrated all she could, and having remembered to take her time – the first rule - she carefully and deliberately chose the words she would say. Repeated them until she knew each one by heart. Also, she decided, there would be no racing across the moment Pearl first caught sight of her. No, cool and composed is how it would be!
What she would do is wait until Pearl spotted her, would wave to her in a sort of oh-so-there-you-are, casual sort of way and would then begin to walk towards her. Slowly and with a smile. Second thoughts, no smile. Slightly worried would be better. Not too worried, though. And so, and having decided, Tiger Lilly waited patiently and calmly as Pearl continued to serve her juices and her buns.
Then it happened! Pearl had finished serving a customer, was wiping her hands on her apron when she looked up, caught sight of her, smiled a surprised happy to see-you smile and started to wave . . . and Tiger Lilly gave out a cry the like of which you have never heard before. A cry so loud and so mournful that all those unfortunate enough to be anyways near threw themselves back in horror. And no wonder! Such a terrible sound it was: a pathetic, howling wail of a cry that lasted without a stop until it disappeared into the folds of a bright yellow apron.
Naturally and of course, that had to be the very moment Mr Tommo appeared. on the scene. ‘What on earth!’ he exclaimed, pushing his way through the crowd of open-mouthed customers.
‘I am so sorry, Mr Tommo,’ Pearl said. looking up. ‘It’s my little sister, and I‘ve never seen her like this before. She’s really upset.’
‘Yes, I can see that,’ Mr Tommo replied, shaking his head. ‘How long has she been like this?
‘Oh she just this second arrived,’ Pearl hastened to explain. ‘It hasn’t interfered with my work, really it hasn’t. She’ll be fine in no time. Truly she will.’
‘Maybe so,’ replied Mr Tommo, with another shake of head. ‘Right now, though, I think it best for you take her to the Rumble Tum. Mrs Tommo will know what to do. So, off you go! Don’t worry, I’ll see to the cart’
The first thing Mrs Tommo did was to give each girl a glass of orange juice and sit them on stools in the quietest corner of the Rumble Tum.
“Now my pretties,’ she said, turning to leave. “Shout when you have sorted things out and no need to hurry. Mr Tommo and I can manage nicely, so take your time.’
And so, Tiger Lilly took her time and didn’t hurry for there was much to tell. First though- and no point denying- there were more than a few tears and sobs to deal with before she was able to tell how she had hidden under her bed and how she had sneaked out the house without her Mum and Dad knowing. She then said how sorry she was and how she couldn’t bear the thought of them worrying themselves about her and where she was, but Pearl said straight off that it wasn’t her fault and she wasn’t to worry a single second more. Mum and Dad would understand, she said and, on reflection, would regret not having told
her why her sisters had gone to the circus without her. Would, more than likely, be blaming themselves.
‘What’s on reflection?’ asked Tiger Lilly, looking brighter.
‘Having second thought, changing things,’ said Pearl.
‘I do that lots,’ said Tiger Lilly wiping away the last of her tears.
But now it was time! Time to forget all about sobs, tears and saying sorry and tell the most exciting part of all. So, after a quick return to the orange juice, Tiger Lilly began to tell how she had heard a strange noise when she was walking towards the Circus and how she had hidden behind a bush and how a beautiful coach with soldiers and horses had arrived and how Princess Serena – ‘Honest, I tell no lie, Pearl, it was really, really her!’– had stepped from the coach and had shouted the most awful things at someone she called her governess. How she kept on shouting she wanted to be alone.
The best thing about the telling was that Pearl stayed perfectly still, still as a town square statue, moving not a fraction and with eyes that grew wider with each word. Pearl’s eyes were always as large as saucers, but now they were dinner plates. She had also been the best at listening, but never had she ever listened the way she was listening now. So now was the time. Time to tell about the necklace.
And so she did.
‘May I see it?’ said Pearl as soon as Tiger Lilly had finished. She said it quietly and in a way that told Tiger Lilly she believed her every word and so Tiger Lilly reached into her pocket. “There!” she said, thrusting the necklace into Pearl’s hand. “Isn’t that the most beautiful thing you ever did see?’
Pearl made no reply, but drew the necklace slowly across her palm. ‘Oh my!’ she said at last. She said it again: ‘Oh my!’ But then, with a twist of hand so fast as to make Tiger Lilly jump, she pushed the necklace deep into her apron pocket. Deep as it would go.
‘Listen to me Tiger Lilly,’ she said, taking a breath and leaning towards her. ‘I don’t know what this is about it and perhaps it’s better if I don’t, but what I do know is that this necklace doesn’t belong to us – not to you and not to me - and the best thing we can do is put it back where you found it. Soon as we can! Next thing is for us to say nothing about it. Nothing, you hear? Not to Mum, not to Dad, to no one. Certainly not to Lilac. The truth is I have a nasty feeling about this, a feeling that tells me there’s something wrong, and the sooner we put it back, the better!’
‘May I have a last look at it then? asked Tiger Lilly.
No,’ Pearl replied, sharply. ‘Just concentrate on what I’m saying. Say nothing about the coach, the soldiers or anything else you saw this morning. Nothing about the Princess. Not a whisper, you hear! It has to be as if it never happened and I want you to promise you will not breathe a word. Not to anyone. Your solemn promise.’
‘I promise,’ agreed Tiger Lilly.
‘Swear.’
‘Cross my heart, spit in the wind and hope to die.’
‘Right then,’ Pearl continued. ‘I’ll put it back soon as I can – on my way home would be good And don’t worry, I know the log - should do, I’ve sat on it often enough. There’s no mistaking it anyway.’
‘What about Lilac, she’ll be with you?’
‘I’ll think of a way to distract her,’ replied Pearl
‘What’s distract?’ asked Tiger Lilly. There was no time for an answer. Mrs Tommo was back, holding their mother’s hand and speeding towards them as fast as her legs could go and with their dad, red-faced with Mattie on his shoulder, trying his best to keep up.
‘We’ve been looking everywhere!’ her Mum cried as she let go of Mrs Tommo’s hand to speed even faster, her arms stretched wide. ‘I can’t begin to tell you how worried we’ve been, but then we spotted Lilac and here we are! Such a relief, I can’t describe!’ She threw her arms around her: ‘Poor Tiger Lilly, it hasn’t been the best of birthdays has it, my love? Not good at all.’ She was still holding her tight when she turned to Lou. ‘How about if we come back later in the week, try making it up to her,’ she said.
‘A grand idea,’ Lou replied. ‘Something for us to look forward to.’ How wrong he was.