The Floating Lady Murder Read Online Free PDF

business, and the air was alive with the sounds and shouts of workers and their tools. Toward the rear, a team of carpenters could be seen lifting large scenery flats onto the braceworks. Overhead, a pair of wiry young men swarmed through the rigging high above the stage, pulling at the counterweights and sashes. In the orchestra pit, a handful of violinists and cellists bent over the pages of a musical score, sending up a few stray notes as they studied their parts. To our left, a matronly property mistress fussed over a bewildering array of wooden cups, houlettes and metal trays.
    “This is astonishing!” said Bess, raising her voice to be heard. “Do all these people work for Mr. Kellar? I don’t think I’ve ever seen such—”
    Her remark was cut short by a startling sound—the roar of a fearsome jungle creature. We turned to see a crew of four men wheeling a large wooden cage forward on a flat dolley. Inside, a fierce-looking lion paced back and forth in obvious agitation.
    “He’ll calm down in a moment,” one of the handlers was saying. “It’s just all the excitement of the travel. He’ll be fine once he’s had his feeding.”
    “Can you believe it?” Bess asked. “A real lion! Whatever can Mr. Kellar be planning? Harry, have you ever seen the like?”
    Even my brother appeared to be impressed. “A lion would make for a very splendid spectacle,” he admitted. “Very splendid, indeed.”
    “Perhaps Kellar is planning to vanish it,” I said. “Or maybe some sort of transposition?”
    Harry did not appear to be listening. “I shall need something even more magnificent if I am to achieve the pinnacle of the profession,” he said in a musing sort of way. “A tiger, perhaps? A panther?”
    Bess turned to him in surprise. “Harry, whatever are you talking about?”
    “An elephant!” he said, as if arriving at a sudden decision. “I shall cause an elephant to vanish!”
    “A fine idea,” said Bess facetiously. “And how do you propose to get this elephant from place to place? Do you suppose Bert will be able to give you and the elephant a ride on his milk cart?”
    Harry appeared to consider the problem. “The elephant could walk from place to place on its own four legs,” he declared. “However, it would require a special train carriage if we intended to take it on tour. That might be impractical.”
    “It might at that,” said Bess with raised eyebrows. “Better to leave him behind in New York. No doubt your mother would be pleased to cook for an elephant.” She turned away and swept her hand toward the enormous jumble of apparatus littering the back of the stage. “Look at all those crates! How does Mr. Kellar carry it from city to city?”
    “Mr. Kellar has his own private train,” said a man who had come up from behind. “The equipment alone occupies four cars.”
    We turned and found ourselves facing a lean, powerfully-built young man with rolled sleeves and an open collar. He had sandy hair, blue eyes and an affable, lopsided grin that made a striking contrast to my brother’s dark gravity. “Name’s JimCollins,” the young man said, sticking out a bony hand. “I’m one of the stagehands, and I guess I know about as much as there is to know about breaking this show down and setting it back up again. I’ve done it often enough.”
    “I am the Great Houdini,” said Harry, pumping Collins’ hand. “This is my lovely wife, Bess, and my brother, Dash. We are here for our appointment with Mr. Kellar.”
    “You have an appointment with the old man?” asked Collins, frowning.
    “Actually, our appointment is with Mr. McAdow,” I put in.
    “But Mr. Kellar will want to see us,” Harry said firmly. “You may be certain of that. Tell me, Mr. Collins, how are the plans for the Floating Lady coming along?”
    Collins recoiled as if slapped across the face. “The Floating Lady? How did you—” He took a step forward and gripped Harry firmly by the lapels. “See here,