The Guild of Fallen Clowns Read Online Free PDF

talking in front of the ride, the maintenance
worker’s description became clear. Two of the men were of average
height and weight. However, the third man towered over the other
two at about six and a half feet tall. He had the broadest
shoulders Alan had ever seen on a man, and his arms were as thick
as Alan’s thighs. He had a large belly, but due to his bulk, he
didn’t appear fat. If this wasn’t enough of a clue indicating this
guy was Cracky, the rest of the description was undeniable. The
worker said Cracky looked like Alan. Well, this hulk of a man wore
regular working clothes, but his entire head was made up in clown
makeup—a happy clown. He had to be Cracky.
    Cracky glanced away from his conversation
and noticed Alan as he approached. His painted-on smile grew and he
yelled out, “Boogy?” Alan smiled back as the distance between them
diminished.
    “What gave it away?” Alan replied.
    The two met in the middle and Cracky reached
out to shake Alan’s hand. As if Cracky’s giant hand wasn’t enough
to make Alan feel small, he also made half of his arm disappear as
he grabbed it with his other hand and shook vigorously. Unlike his
brief experiences in the park with the guard and the maintenance
worker, Cracky appeared to be extremely pleasant.
    “Hey, Boogy, glad you made it. It’ll be nice
havin’ another clown round here,” Cracky said, still shaking Alan’s
arm.
    “Glad to be here, Cracky. I didn’t know you
were a clown here.”
    Cracky released his hold. “Well, I don’t
actually work here as a clown. I manage da place. Da clown face is
for da kids. Dey get scared of me widout it. Wid it, more grown-ups
den kids are scared.”
    “Oh,” Alan said.
    “So what say I show you round, give you da Cracky tour of da place?”
    Alan nodded.
    “We gotta make it quick cause da gates open
soon. But don’t worry, if you got any questions, I’m usually easy
to find in the ticket booth,” Cracky said. “Follow me, Boog. We can
start wid da reason we needed your help in da first place.”
    Alan tried to keep up as Cracky swiftly
moved toward the opposite side of the carnival grounds.
    Still walking at a hurried pace, Cracky
looked back at Alan. “Have you heard of da Haunted Labyrinth of
Mirrors, Boogy?”
    “Sorry, can’t say I have,” Alan replied.
    “Well, da Labyrinth is our top attraction.
It scares da bajesus out of people, and for some reason, dey can’t
get enough of it. In our last town, someone actually had a heart
attack and died.” Cracky’s pace slowed as they neared the Haunted
Labyrinth.
    “Someone died?” Alan repeated.
    “Yeah, I mean it’s sad dat he died, but we
clearly warn people not to go in if dey have heart conditions. Some
people can’t handle such things. Anyways, I know it’s sick, but
once people heard bout dat, everyone wants to go through it.”
    They stopped in front of the Labyrinth. Alan
was a bit confused and didn’t see the connection to his role at the
carnival. Was Cracky going to ask him to work inside the Haunted
Labyrinth of Mirrors? Just the thought of that possibility sent
shivers down his spine. Sure, it was just a carnival attraction,
but after the incident at Krauss House, anything even remotely
connected to haunted spirits was unthinkable.
    Cracky continued, “See, pal, now dat
attendance is up, we thought it would be good to have someone like
you entertain da crowd while dey wait for their turn in the
Labyrinth. Keep da people happy so they don’t get frustrated and
leave disappointed.”
    Phew! That was a huge relief for Alan. As
long as he wouldn’t have to go inside, it should be a piece of
cake. He changed the subject. “So, how did you find me,
Cracky?”
    Cracky looked confused. “Don’t you know
Geno?”
    “Geno? No. Who’s Geno?”
    Still puzzled, Cracky replied, “You don’t
know Geno? Well, I guess it don’t really matter as long as you’re
here, but I thought you two knew each other.”
    “Huh?”
    “Yeah, Geno