The Tiger's Egg Read Online Free PDF Page A

Song that makes the flowers grow, and the flowers feed them in return.”
    â€œI thought it was you Song Angels that sang the One Song,” said Miles.
    â€œThe Song Angels look after the One Song,” said Little. “They tie it all together, but everything has its part. The bees sing the flowers. The crows sing the thorn bushes and the seagulls sing the wind. Everything is connected, Miles.”
    They were approaching Doctor Tau-Tau’s wagon now, and as they drew closer Miles was sure there were voices coming from inside. Little looked at him, wide-eyed, and they crept forward and stopped behind the trunk of the tamarind tree.
    â€œYou can’t blame that on me,” a voice was saying.
    â€œOh, but I do,” said another, with an unpleasant titter. “Who else should I blame?”
    â€œI didn’t have enough time,” said the first man, and Miles thought he could hear a slight quaver in his voice. “No one should have to work under those conditions.”
    â€œYou lost me my associate,” said the other. “I gave you the job of bringing him back from the cliff, andinstead you pushed him right over the edge. You’re an idiot masquerading as a fool, Tau-Tau, and you’ve chosen the wrong time to come out of hiding. It’s not even you I was looking for, but you’ll do for starters!” The man dissolved into a giggling fit, although there was nothing very funny in what he was saying.
    â€œWait . . . wait!” said the other voice, sounding genuinely frightened. “I know what you’re looking for, and I think I know where to find it. I’m getting close. We can work together . . . can’t we?”
    The other man tittered again. Something about the sound made Miles’s skin crawl. He felt Little grip his hand tightly. “Tell me,” said the voice, “and you had better not waste my time.”
    The other man lowered his voice. He began to speak rapidly without taking a breath, but Miles could no longer make out the words. He looked at Little, crouched beside him in the grass. “We should leave,” she whispered. Miles nodded, and they crept out onto the road that led to Partridge Manor.
    â€œDo you think we should tell Lady Partridge?” said Little.
    Miles shook his head. “There’s not much to tell really, and she’d only worry about us leaving with the circus. If we tell anyone it should be theBolsillo brothers, but I’m not sure it’s any of our business anyway.”
    They walked on in silence toward the big square mansion with its glowing windows, and when Miles glanced over his shoulder he thought he saw a small figure slip out of Doctor Tau-Tau’s wagon and steal away into the night.
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    Lady Partridge, gowned, groomed and freshly scented, sat at the head of the table on the night before the circus took to the road. She had invited the Bolsillo brothers to dinner, and they sat in the new dining room, which was smaller and more friendly than the original one had been. In place of the marquises, duchesses and theater directors who once would have been her guests, Lady Partridge felt unaccountably pleased to find herself hosting a dinner for three small acrobat clowns, a boy who befriended tigers and a girl who had fallen from the sky.
    The conversation at the meal was lively. The excitement of their imminent departure had chased the weariness from the circus performers. They had spent the morning unpacking the big top and laying it out in the long field for a final inspection. Every rope and pole and eyebolt had been counted, and the smaller children had walked the spread-out canvas in their bare feet, looking for tears and burst seams. Every hole had been patched and every frayed rope replaced; blocks had been greased and checked for rust, and the whole structure had been packed away again and loaded onto the three long trucks that would carry it from town to