"Dixon, Franklin W - Hardy Boys 111 - Three-Ring Terror" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dixon Franklin W)

The woman heard Frank, but too late. Rosen pushed her aside, and she went flying to the floor. As Frank ran past her, he slowed down briefly to make sure she was okay and then picked up speed again as Rosen darted through the red velvet curtain into the arena.
Frank pushed the curtain aside and came to a quick stop, searching for Rosen's green striped pants. Rosen was nowhere in sight. Instead, Frank was greeted by the sight of two animal cages. Inside the cages were a lion and a tiger. Then Frank spotted something else—a trapdoor in the center ring that had been left open.
"So that's where he went," Frank said aloud. "Down the trapdoor the clowns use to fool the audience into thinking tons of people are getting out of a little car." The nearby tiger let out a low growl, making Frank jump.
"I'm outta here," Frank said under his breath. Where were Joe and Chet? he wondered.
He was about to turn back to look for them when a voice at Frank's side said sharply, "You bet you're out of here!" Frank felt someone grab his arm and steer him around.
"Hey! What do you—" Frank began.
The woman who had a hold on his elbow was dressed in a security guard uniform. She had the greenest eyes Frank had ever seen. At her side were Chet and Joe, looking glum.
"This area is off limits," the woman went on, tightening her grip on Frank's arm. "I don't know who you kids are, but you obviously don't belong here."
Frank felt himself turn red, then he breathlessly tried to explain. "We're students at Circus U. We were just going to try out that trapdoor the clowns use."
"Yeah, right," the woman said, glaring at Frank, Joe, and Chet. "And I'm the Queen of England."
"We really are students," Joe insisted.
"I saw you chasing that guy," the woman said. "You nearly hurt someone back there. I don't know what you're doing here, but you'd better leave before I call security."
"I'm trying to tell you," Frank said. "We're students."
From the look on the woman's face, Frank could tell he wasn't getting anywhere. He pulled himself out of her grip and stood by Joe with his arms folded. The tiger in the cage across from them sank down onto the floor, crossing his paws . under him and giving them all a wary look.
"I have a student pass," Chet said, digging into his pocket and pulling out a card. He showed the card to the woman. "My friends here are brand-new students and they don't have passes yet."
The woman looked at Chet’s pass and nodded. "Okay, but you three are still not allowed in the arena without a Circus U. instructor. This area," she continued, gesturing toward the animal cages, "is very dangerous right now. The animals are about to rehearse with their trainers, and only professional circus people are allowed here."
Frank realized it was useless to try to convince her to let them stay. He sighed, looked toward the trapdoor, and knew they'd have to go after Rosen some other way. "Right," he said, turning away. "Come on, guys. Let's get out of here."
"Thanks, Chet," Joe said as they walked away. "You probably saved us from being kicked out of the building for good."
"No problem," Chet said. "But you guys had better get yourselves a couple of passes."
Frank nodded. "Up till now, we've been lucky. We've either been able to sneak past security guards or no one's noticed us."
"What are we going to do now that we've lost Rosen again?" Joe asked his brother as they left the arena through the front exit and began to round the building toward the parking lot.
Frank stopped for a moment and rubbed his chin. "We-know Rosen's still around the circus. When Dean Turner gets back, he can get us those passes. Maybe we can get him to write out special passes that will allow us to go everywhere in the building."
"We can also ask the dean to get us access to Rosen's file. Let's stop by his office before we leave for lunch to find out when he'll be back."
The three boys made a quick detour back into the building to Dean Turner's office. The dean's secretary, who was using the office next door, informed them that Turner wouldn't be back that afternoon—he was running late and he had to meet another donor out of the office later that afternoon.
"Rats," Frank said as they headed down the hall toward the exit. "Where does that leave us?" he asked.
"Hungry, for one," Chet said, holding his stomach. "The pangs—they're too much," he added dramatically, bending over.
"What's that?" Joe asked his friend. "Rehearsal for when you play the tragic clown?"
"Give me a break!" Chet cried, heading off down the hall. "Detecting is hungry work. You said so yourself before we ran off chasing Ralph Rosen."
Joe shrugged, looked at Frank, and followed Chet out the door. "He's right, you know. Even detectives have to eat."
Frank stopped for a moment and tried to think of a way through the dead end they were in.
Turner was out, Bo Costello wouldn't help, Georgianne Unger . . .
"Hey," he called out to Joe and Chet. "You guys, hold it."
Joe turned around. "What's up?" he asked.
Frank jogged up to where Joe was standing. "We haven't questioned Georgianne Unger yet. After all, she's a prime suspect. Maybe she's the one helping Rosen out."
Frank watched his brother think for a moment, then shake his head slowly. "No good. She's not going to give anything away if she's involved in the sabotage."
"I guess you're right," Frank admitted. "We'll just have to get those passes from Dean Turner and do some more searching. It kills me to waste so much time, though."
"Come on," Joe urged. "We'll grab a bite and have another look at the message. Maybe we can make some headway there."
Frank gave in and followed Joe. In a few minutes, they were all back in the van on their way to the burger place in downtown Bayport. After downing two burgers apiece and some extra-large fries, Frank and Joe dropped Chet off at home. His classes were done for the day, and he was going back to Circus U. that night for the performance of the Montero Brothers Circus.
"You guys are going to come tonight, aren't you?" Chet asked as he hopped out of the van. "It should be a fantastic show."
Frank nodded. "It'll be a good chance to see Turner and do some more investigating," he said.
"I'm glad I didn't go for the foot-high burger at lunch," Chet said with a grin. "Now I'll have more room for some great circus food tonight. Peanuts, popcorn, cotton candy, franks, sodas ..."
"Uh, we'll pick you up in two hours," Joe interrupted, rolling his eyes.
"Great," Chet said. "That gives me time to practice what I learned today."
"You're not going to the performance in clown makeup, are you?" Joe asked. "You wouldn't embarrass us like that, would you?"
Chet let out a huge laugh. "Just you wait and see," he said, racing up the sidewalk to his front door.
Frank was quiet as he drove the rest of the way home. By the time he parked the van in the driveway, Joe had rattled off all the facts of the case, but Frank had hardly paid attention. He kept thinking that there was something he should be remembering about what he had seen—a connection he should be making.
"Oh, well," he said absently, unlocking the front door. "I guess it will come to me."
"What will?" Joe wanted to know. He looked at his brother. "Have you been listening to a word I've been saying the whole way home?"
"Not really," Frank admitted as they headed upstairs. "I think I'll lie down for a while before we have to pick up Chet."
"Me, too," Joe said, opening the door to his room.