Despite the temperate spring weather outside, the glass atrium was warm as the sun came in from above and heated his skin. The air was scented with thrice-cooked french fries, suntan lotion, and chlorine. And the only sounds Carter heard were of splashes and laughter.
Shaped like a tropical lagoon, the pool had three levels of diving boards, a twisting slide, a rope swing, waterfalls, and a hot tub (for grown-ups only after five p.m.). Waiters in white shirts and pants hurried around with frozen lemonades and nachos, weaving among the lounge chairs surrounding the pool. It was like a splashy paradise.
Carter was in such awe, he didn’t realize he was blocking the entrance. A large man called out directly behind him, “Hey, you…”
Fear rushed through Carter. It was Bosso.
FIFTEEN
Bosso towered over Carter. Today, Bosso was wearing a white tank top, black-and-white-striped swimming trunks, and rubber flip-flops that looked two sizes too small for his giant, hairy feet. Bosso and Carter stared at each other for a tense couple of seconds as Carter waited to be recognized. He expected Bosso to do something terrible.
Instead the carnival owner growled, “Move it, kid. You’re in the doorway.” Without waiting, he shoved past Carter.
“He didn’t recognize me,” Carter whispered to himself. Leila’s disguise worked. Bosso had no idea who he was.
Carter ran at the pool and formed himself into a cannonball. After coming up from the huge splash, he met Leila in the middle of the water. Together, they swam over toward the edge of the water where Bosso and his crew were camped. Like little frogs, the pair broke the surface and peered above the waterline with goggled eyes.
Bosso and his minions hogged the sun chair area around the deep end near the bar. Bosso was at the center, lying on his back, his eyes closed as two frown clowns in full makeup fanned him. The white from their faces was running in sweaty rivulets down their necks. The emerald ring on Bosso’s finger flashed, and his hand held a white blended drink with an umbrella in it. Beside him, a thin woman in a black full-piece bathing suit took in the sun. It took Carter a moment to recognize the Spider-Lady without her extra arms. The Walrus stood directly behind them, eating chicken wings and tossing the bones right onto the tiled floor.
Half a dozen clowns of different sizes lounged in normal swimwear fashion from the neck down and in that same clown makeup from the neck up.
“Hey, look,” Carter whispered to Leila. A man in a police uniform walked over to Bosso.
“That’s Sheriff Shaw,” Leila said. “What’s he doing?”
Bosso handed him an envelope. The sheriff opened it and thumbed through a stack of money. He slipped the envelope into his sheriff’s jacket.
“Looks like that cop is crooked,” Carter said. “He’s on Bosso’s payroll? That can’t be—”
Before he could say “good,” Leila pulled him below the surface. The clowns had been staring at them quizzically. Her underwater hand gestures signaled that they should meet the others. Together, Leila and Carter swam to the shallow end near the palm trees. They hopped out of the pool and met Theo and Ridley behind the towel cabana. The four huddled together.
“His whole crew is here,” Theo whispered, “except for the Pock-Pickets.”
“The Tattooed Baby is missing too,” Carter said.
“No, he’s here,” Ridley noted. “He’s over at the poolside bar chomping on a cigar and hitting on ladies.”
“Good for him,” Leila said.
“Okay, we have half an hour until lunch,” Ridley said, pointing to her watch. “Carter, Leila, you find a way into their room. Theo and I will stay here and keep a lookout. If they try to make a move, we’ll slow them down.”
“Oooh, I like that plan,” said a scratchy-sounding voice.
“Me too,” added a high-pitched voice. “But what do we do?”
Carter and Theo nearly fell over when they discovered Olly and Izzy standing directly behind them. “Where did you two come from?” Carter asked.
“We saw a team huddle,” Olly said.
“We love team huddles,” Izzy added. “But we’re still unclear on the big-picture plan.”
“You really want to help?” Leila asked.
“Leila!” Ridley hissed. “We already have one new kid. We can’t have two more!”
“The more the merrier, I always say,” Izzy said.
“You never say that,” Olly quipped. “But we can help. We’re good at distracting people.”
“A mesmerizing distraction would be helpful.…” Theo said.
“You don’t even know what you’ll be distracting Bosso and his gang from,” Carter said to the twins.
“Even better,” Izzy said. “Now, if you four get in trouble, we can say we have no idea what’s going on.”
“That won’t be hard for her,” Olly said. “Izzy rarely knows what’s going on.”
“How are you going to distract them?” Carter asked.
The twins exchanged a mischievous smile. Then they ran over to the diving boards. They kicked off their shoes and climbed to the top of the high dive in their tap-dance outfits. When they got to the top, they yanked off their matching plaid jumpsuits to reveal a pair of matching plaid bodysuits. They stepped to the tip of the high diving board and said, “Hey, folks! Is everyone having a good time?!” Since the acoustics in the room were very loud, their voices bounced all over, and everyone turned to look at them.
Clapping, cheers, and whistles ran through the pool crowd below.
“We don’t know if you’ve heard, but we have a star in our midst!” Olly said.
“A star? You mean like the sun?” Izzy asked.
“No, silly. Someone much brighter: the master of carnival-ism, B. B. Bosso! Let’s give him a round of applause.” The crowd went wild, then Olly continued. “Bosso, any chance you’ll take my sister next time you hit the road?”
“Watch it, or I’ll hit you,” Izzy said, winding up her arm comically. “But seriously, Mr. Bosso, you work hard to entertain. So for the next fifteen minutes, put your feet up, kick back, and let us repay the favor.”
Bosso sat up in his chair and scowled, then glanced around to see everyone staring at him. He quickly smiled his famous crooked fake smile.
Olly gave the misfits a wink, and Leila said, “That’s our cue. We have fifteen minutes.”
“Theo and I will stay here,” Ridley said. She handed Leila her backpack. “If the wonder twins can’t keep Bosso or his goons here, we’ll buy you some time. But no matter what, you better hurry.”
“How do you know where Bosso is staying?” Carter asked Leila during the elevator ride.
“When you were changing back into your regular clothes, I talked to the front desk. Perks of having a poppa who makes the best lobster risotto this side of the Rocky Mountains,” Leila said. “Bosso and the Sideshowers are in the penthouse suite, and the rest of his goons are on the same floor.”
“Bosso likes to be in control of everything,” Carter said. He remembered the scene of the clowns and the tiny red car in the train yard from a couple nights prior. “My guess is he’ll want to keep the important stuff in his room.”
“Then I’ll lead the way,” Leila said. When the elevator doors opened, Leila and Carter peeked into the hallway. The four Pock-Pickets were humming a tune as they guarded Bosso’s door.