The Magnificent Lizzie Brown and the Mysterious Phantom Read Online Free PDF

forgotten, they both turned toward Lizzie, faces eager for answers. “What’s your act?”
    â€œHigh wire,” Nora guessed.
    â€œNo, no,” Erin butted in. “She’s not got enough flesh on her.” She squeezed the muscles on Lizzie’s arm.
    Lizzie pulled away. “I — I don’t have an act.”
    â€œNot yet,” Nora said. “But Fitzy will find you a speciality before long.”
    Erin laughed. “Even if it’s just balancing on Akula’s trunk!”
    Nora nodded. “She could do that. She looks light as a feather.”
    â€œWhat is going on out here?” a voice interrupted them suddenly.
    Lizzie looked up the caravan steps as a ruddy-cheeked woman appeared in the doorway with her hands on her hips. Strands of dark hair whisked around her flashing blue eyes.
    Nora raced toward the woman and reached up the caravan steps to tug on the hem of her skirts. “Can Lizzie have breakfast with us, Ma? Fitzy just hired her.”
    Lizzie looked shyly up at Nora’s mother. “If you’ve not got nothin’ to spare, I’ll be fine,” she lied. Her belly was growling.
    â€œThere’s always a bit to spare in the Sullivan family,” Ma Sullivan said, looking over her shoulder. “Move over, Patrick. Sean, make some space. There’s going to be an extra kiddie at the table.”
    Before she knew what was happening, Lizzie felt Erin and Nora bundling her up the caravan stairs. Inside, the walls were lined with cupboards and shelves. A stove was squeezed in the corner beside the door, and in the middle was a table. Two dark-haired boys with lean, muscular arms were wrestling across the top of it, while a man sucked on a pipe, half-hidden by a newspaper at the far end.
    â€œPatrick, Sean, you best behave yourselves,” Ma ordered.
    Grumbling, the two boys slid back into their seats.
    â€œThose are two of my brothers,” Erin said. “And that’s Pa.”
    Pa lifted his pipe. “Welcome to the Sullivan Palace,” he called and went back to his paper.
    â€œMa opens up the tea tent after ten in the morning,” said Nora. “If you work at Fitzy’s, you can go there for a meal or a brew any time.”
    One of the boys reached out and ruffled Erin’s hair fondly. “Don’t tell me you’ve brought home another stray puppy.” He winked at Lizzie.
    â€œPatrick Sullivan, don’t be rude to our guest!” Erin said.
    â€œLizzie’s come for breakfast,” Nora added, flashing a challenging stare at Sean. “So no playing any of your pranks on her.”
    Sean held up his hands. “It’s Brendan and Conor you need to be warning, not us.”
    Nora shook her hair from her face. “And so I will when they get back from practice.”
    Ma Sullivan pushed her way to the stove and pulled a pot from the heat. “I hope you like porridge, Lizzie.”
    Lizzie’s stomach growled in reply.
    â€œI’d say that sounds like a yes,” Pa said from behind his paper.
    * * *
    After breakfast, Lizzie plopped down in the grass and leaned against the tall, spoked wheel of the caravan. She felt sleepy with her belly full and the sun shining warm on her face.
    Nora settled beside her. “Ma wants you to stay with us. She won’t have any child sleep outside when we can make room.”
    â€œAre you sure?” Lizzie wondered how the six Sullivan children and Ma and Pa managed to sleep in that small caravan as it was.
    â€œLook.” Nora wriggled between the wheels and opened a door to a wide square compartment underneath the caravan.
    Lizzie’s eyes widened. “We don’t have to sleep in there, do we?”
    Nora spluttered with laughter. “No, silly! We pack all the costumes and knickknacks here in the bellybox. Then there’s room to make up the bunk beds. You can squeeze between Erin and me. We’ll be as snug as