

This book is a work of fiction, the people and places are not real, except in my own mind.

Mr. Topper's Fabulous Funtown

Jodi Woody

Copyright 2013 by Jodi Wooy

Smashwords Edition

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Cover design by Robin Ludwig Design Inc., http://www.gobookcoverdesign.com/

Mr. Topper's Fabulous Funtown

All that glisters is not gold;  
Often have you heard that told:  
Many a man his life hath sold  
But my outside to behold:  
Gilded tombs do worms enfold.  
Had you been as wise as bold,  
Young in limbs, in judgment old  
Your answer had not been inscroll'd  
Fare you well, your suit is cold.

~William Shakespeare

Merchant of Venice

# Chapter 1

# All That Glitters is Not Gold

There was never a town like Funtown, and likely will never be again. It was every little boy and girl's dream. Shiny, sparkly, noisy, flashy, extravagant and fabulous! Mr. Topper, the founder of Funtown was well spoken of in many a household. "What a marvelous man!" some would say, "A genius!" said others. After all he was the one who created Funtown, planned it, built it, paid for it, Mr. Topper was Funtown.

Parents used the wonderful, beautiful town to bribe their children for weeks, months and sometime even years "You better be good, or you will not be invited to Funtown" threatened parents, or "If you are good, you may get an invitation from Mr. Topper. So every child dreamed of Funtown, of that beautiful invitation, of lights and whirls of color, of the big merry-go-round with the music and horses, of the big top and the shows. Of course, if you had enough money, if your parents were wealthy, if you had private tutors and servants, and had a long line of illustrious ancestors behind you, you could simply go to Funtown (at a price). But even some of those children, the ones who didn't require an invitation to go, still hoped for one, could still receive one, proving they were especially good, or gifted. Yes, the children dreamed of going, and played 'Funtown' on recess, and if you listened closely, you would hear children discussing their desire to go.

"I want to live there," said one especially young little one.

"Nobody lives in Funtown," corrected an older little one.

"Who takes care of it?" asked another.

"Nobody takes care of it...its magic," answered a voice filled with awe.

This was always met with "ooohs and aaaahs" by the others.

Mr. Topper knew about these outrageous stories and rumors. Of course he did, after all, he was the one who started them, and went to great pains to make sure that they continued to be told, were whispered into the ears of all little girls and boys. Sometimes even he began to believe it was magic. When things were going smoothly, when all was shiny and glittered in the night, lit by gas lamps and lights. He would walk through his town and forget about the work, the trouble, and the unpleasant tasks behind all of the sparkle. At those times, he saw himself as a friend, a benefactor to the people, a generous 'Uncle' to all who came to escape their dreary lives.

But there were some, a few, who knew who Mr. Topper really was, and what Funtown really was. For all that glitters is not gold...

# Chapter 2

# Mr. Topper Himself

No one really knew where Mr. Topper came from. Some pretended to know, some made up stories about it, all in fun, and some even guessed that Mr. Topper was really a long line of grandfather-father-son. Others insisted, quite correctly, that he had been there as long as any living person could remember. Stories were told, that happened to be quite true, about so-and-so's grandfather, who said his grandfather told him, that they all had waited, when they were little ones, for that special invitation to Funtown.

If you were to actually see Mr. Topper, in the flesh, you would have a hard time believing these stories because he wasn't an old man, and yet he wasn't a young man. Mr. Topper was just the right age of a father. He had dark hair cropped short, a dark full mustache that curled up on the ends and piercing golden brown eyes. You never, ever saw him without his top hat or his black velvet suit coat with his eyepiece hanging from the pocket. If it wasn't for the ready smile on his face, you might think he looked a little frightening. But smile he did, on every poster, child's sketch, and for every photograph, but Mr. Topper had a lot to smile about, didn't he?

Mr. Topper, with his son, Tiny Mr. Topper, lived at Topperville, the largest, grandest home of all. Part castle, part mansion, part museum, and art gallery, his home was filled with wonders, oddities and secrets that very few even knew about. On his grounds, on the top of the hill that overlooked Funtown, there were other buildings as well. There was The Orphanage, The Skate Police Academy, The School for Tinkers, The Topperville Vault (where all Mr. Topper's money was stored), The Infirmary, and The Lockup (where criminals were stored), as well as many other necessary buildings of industry and commerce.

Mr. Topper made the rounds daily to inspect all of these. He handpicked the Police Academy teachers and students, the money counters and guards, his staff at Topperville, the inventors, the apothecary, the physician and nurses, the people who mailed the invitations, took tickets, picked up trash, cleaned and polished, swept the streets and the ones he sent out to advertise by posting posters and writing commentaries in the paper, and some not-so-obvious ways (like spreading delicious rumors and whispering in the ears of impressionable little ones, and overly simple adults), and other secret jobs that no one knew about. Not a person working in Funtown or Topperville was ever chosen by anyone but Mr. Topper. Yet, he never took an application, never posted a 'position offered' ad, somehow he always found the right person for the right position.

# Chapter 3

# Jayde: Skate Squad Cadet

Jayde loved Funtown. She was a Skate Squad Cadet, a Jr. Member, so to speak of the Skate Police and she believed herself lucky to be a part of what kept Funtown safe. All she had ever wanted was to wear the uniform, including their 'Marvelous Metamorphosing Skate Boots'. On her first trip to Funtown, when she was almost four years old, she had seen the police walking along the wooden sidewalks and promenades. Their uniforms were as red as the brightest apple, their golden whistles shining in the sun, their boots black as night.

Jayde was watching them intently, when someone snatched a purse and those officers jumped into the air, clicked their boots and suddenly they were racing away on wheels! All the Skate Police had them, including the junior squad. Jayde was thirteen years old, had been a Cadet since she was twelve, and she would be Cadet until she was eighteen. If you did your job well, you could move on to the Élite Squad until you were twenty-one. Nobody older than that served. At twenty-two, you were allowed to retire and live the life of luxury in The Village, on the outskirts of Funtown, or you could choose to serve in another area of Funtown.

So though the disappearance of her parents, eight years ago, on that same trip to Funtown, was a hard thing to experience, Jayde now felt very lucky indeed to have had that happen. Only orphans were ever allowed to join the Skate Police, or to work in the shops, eateries, and to serve at Topperville, Mr. Topper's home. Out of those, only the smartest and the bravest children got chosen out of the orphanage to be a Cadet. They were the ones who had Mr. Topper to care for them, and he was better than any mother or father. They lived in Topperville, in the Cadet wing, and trained at the Academy.

Her daydream of wearing the uniform had come true and she wore her uniform proudly, blew her whistle loudly, skated faster than anyone in her squad, greased her wheels and shined her boots every morning. Jayde wanted to work her way up to Squad Leader by the time she was sixteen. She thought very highly of herself, her skating skills, her speed, her quick thinking and of her future in Funtown. Didn't Mr. Topper himself speak highly of her? Thoughts and memories of her family were few and far between, something from her long-ago-past that she barely remembered.

Jayde loved her training at the Academy, even the book learning. She knew how to read and write, figure her sums, and how to fill out all of the forms that go along with being an officer of the law. But her favorite part of the day was when they got to tag along with the Elite Squad, the full fledged, ticket writing, crowd controlling, and crime stopping police. True, there wasn't a lot of crime taking place in Funtown, which she attributed to the fine job of the Elite Squad, but there were always tickets to write, missing children to locate, gates to guard and famous people to escort. Sometimes, rarely, they got to chase!

Once they had to chase a runaway clockwork dog from the "Sprocket's Stupendous Mechanical Menagerie". It had shot out of the practice ring and onto the boardwalk before Sprocket could get his hands on it. Jayde and her Sr. Officer took off after it, arms pumping and skates click clacking on the wooden slats. It was the most fun she had ever had. Of course the poor thing wound down before they got very far, but she had gone full speed, in town, dodging people, jumping over waste baskets and blowing her whistle with what little air she had to spare.

Living at Topperville with the other Cadets, Jayde had a few friends. She tended to be a little arrogant, bossy and ambitious, so not everyone could spend very much time with her. One of the boys that she had befriended in the orphanage, before she was chosen for the Skate Academy, worked in the kitchen at Topperville. Cooking for Mr. Topper, Tiny Mr. Topper, Tiny's tutors and teachers, the Cadets and the staff was no small chore.

Thomas, or Tommy, as Jayde called him, felt himself lucky to be part of the kitchen staff. The cooks tended to be cheery, and generous in their samples. He felt at home in the kitchen, in fact he enjoyed his job almost as much as Jayde enjoyed hers. Where Jayde was tall for her age, and lean, Tommy was on the short side, and was slightly plumper than most children his age. He blamed it on his love for food; Jayde blamed it on his hatred of exerting himself anywhere outside of the kitchen. Tommy was the only one who could put up with Jayde; they even actually liked each other's company. Jayde thought Tommy quite funny, and Tommy thought Jayde quite brilliant and brave. It was safe to say they had a mutual respect for one another.

# Chapter 4

# Tiny Turns Ten (Again)

Topperville kitchen was a place of frantic work and fantastic smells. It was a large room with cupboard's and pantries, iceboxes and ovens. The ceiling was rather low. There were big wooden beams with pots and pans hanging from them within easy grasp of the staff. The head cook was the queen of the kitchen; everyone called her "Cookie" and quite frankly couldn't remember her true name. Cookie was large, leaning towards obese and wore a silly little round hat made of white lace and ruffles that perched on the top of her bun, on the top of her head. Out of all of the staff, she had been there the longest at Topperville.

Then there were two other cooks, six cook's assistants, two for each cook (Tommy was one of those assistants), several dishwashers, waitpersons, fire tenders, woodchoppers, mice catchers, and so on. Tommy was the youngest of the assistants, being an assistant to the lowest cook, and so Tommy had to do a lot of potato peeling, vegetable chopping, lettuce washing, pot stirring and oven watching. Very rarely did he venture out of the kitchen, except at bed time, when he wearily stumbled to the kitchen dorms, which were conveniently attached to the kitchen itself.

Today, the kitchen was even busier than normal. Today was Tiny Mr. Topper's tenth birthday. Cookie had baked a ten layer cake, with cream filling between each lovely golden layer. She was putting the finishing touches on the icing and decorations while the rest of the kitchen was preparing a feast for an outside picnic on the beautifully manicured lawns. Not that there would be any special guests today, just the usual occupants of Topperville, as well as the workers. So the kitchen was chock full of the most tantalizing aromas, lovely platters filling up with treats and delicacies. The efficiency of everyone doing their jobs and staying out of each other's way was a statement of what a ship shape ship Cookie ran. So far there were no spills, burns, or hurt feelings.

Tommy was chopping dill pickles for the potato salad (a few of them found their way into his mouth) when Mr. Topper breezed through the kitchen. He liked to make sure that everything went as planned. It wasn't every day that they celebrated Tiny's tenth birthday. Not every day maybe, but it had happened before, on a yearly basis as a matter of fact.

For the past several years, according to time, but most people's memory became hazy when they tried to remember Tiny's last birthday. "It was a grand day, wasn't it?" they said, or "He sure has grown since his last birthday, hasn't he?" No one wanted to admit that they couldn't really remember past a vague feeling of fun and festivities. So when Mr. Topper indicated they were celebrating Tiny's tenth birthday and that he wanted to make it special and spectacular, they all listened and agreed.

"Beautiful work, Cookie," proclaimed Mr. Topper in his fatherly voice.

"Why, thank you, Mr. Topper, sir," beamed the cook. "There's nothing too good for our Tiny."

"No, Cookie, there isn't!" he said, giving her a pat on the shoulder. "All will be ready by five?"

"Oh yes, Mr. Topper, sir. I have everyone working away. They are all happy to contribute to Tiny's big day!" exclaimed Cookie.

Mr. Topper made his way through the kitchen, giving praise and pats on the back to everyone. They were all eager to please and reveled in his kind words and fatherly smile. When he got to Tommy, Tommy almost choked on the pickle he was crunching, and thought he may be in trouble. But Mr. Topper grabbed one of his own and took a big, noisy bite.

"Quite good, we have to make sure that the flavor is right, don't we my boy," he announced with a wink.

"Y-yes, Mr. T-Mr. Topper, sir," stammered poor Tommy. "Thank you, sir."

"Keep up the good work everybody," he called out as he made his exit.

Cookie let out a large puff of air, not realizing she had been holding her breath, "You heard Mr. Topper, let's get to work and make this the best party ever."

"For Tiny!" said Tommy, caught up in the excitement.

"For Tiny!" answered several exuberant voices.

In his own room, on the uppermost floor of Topperville, Tiny sat at a table studying maps of the heavens. He had been studying the stars for as long as he could remember. Mr. Topper had acquired many books, with stunning pictures, of the planets and stars for his son. Instead of playmates, Tiny had books. Instead of the robust looks of the other children who worked or played outside, Tiny was pale and frail, with dark hair and dark eyes, both of which made his face look even paler. The fact that Tiny was thin, and quite small for his age, helped contribute to his name.

Most of the time he was up at night, stargazing and he slept late in the mornings. In fact Tiny hardly ever ate breakfast with the others, mostly only lunch, and sometimes dinner, if it wasn't dark enough to see the stars. Once upon a time, Tiny had longed to be out of doors, to romp and play with the cadets, or to work in the garden with the kitchen helpers, but somehow he always ended up in his room, alone, or with his father always encouraging him, talking in that confident voice of his. Now, he hardly ever pulled his curtains, hardly ever glanced outside at the lovely lawns, never dreamt of being part of the Skate Squad, and never longed for a friend.

While checking the calendar to see where his stars would be tonight, he remembered that today was his birthday. He would be ten again today. Again? No, just ten. He shook his head and walked to the big window that he used for stargazing. He scooted his large telescope to the side and pulled his heavy drapes to either side of the window. The bright morning sunlight sprang into the gloom of his closed up room and dispelled the melancholy.

Tiny had actually gone to bed quite earlier than usual, at the request of Mr. Topper, so that he would be awake and ready to celebrate his birthday today. The sunlight on his face felt quiet lovely, and Tiny shut his eyes and just stood there for a minute, letting the warmth spread into his cold heart. When he opened his eyes, his father stood next to him and put his arm across the boy's shoulders. Tiny stood there with the comfortable weight before turning to look up at his father.

"Happy Birthday, Son."

"Thank you, Father," he replied with a small smile. "It looks very festive."

"Of course it does!"

"May I go down and watch?" asked Tiny.

"They are so busy, on a timeline you know, we wouldn't want them distracted from their duties, now would we?" replied Mr. Topper.

"No, Sir."

"Why don't you open one of your presents early," suggested Mr. Topper pulling a parcel wrapped in brown paper out of his suit coat.

Tiny walked to his bed and took a seat, eyes wide. He could tell by the weight and shape that his father had purchased another book. Mr. Topper eased to the window and pulled the curtains shut once again.

"Are you going to open it?" he said with a chuckle.

Tiny carefully unwrapped the present to reveal a fairly large book on astrology, with beautiful pictures and drawings of the heavens.

"It's wonderful, thank you, Sir."

"Why don't you take a peek while I go take care of some business? I'll come and fetch you when everything is ready," said Mr. Topper as he ruffled Tiny's hair.

"I will, thank you again," he mumbled as he slowly walked over to his reading desk, flipping pages as he went.

# Chapter 5

# A Day of Celebration

Jayde was determined to make an impression on Mr. Topper and Tiny at his birthday celebration today. She took extra time in shining her skate boots and polishing her whistle. There wasn't a single stray speck of lint on her bright red uniform. Her wild red hair had been tamed into submission and was in a respectable knot at the back of her neck, so as not to interfere with her helmet or chin strap. Always excited to wear her uniform and to be on display, today Jayde felt an extra tingle in her spine.

Something special was going to happen today, she could feel it in her stomach, which would explain why she wasn't eating much at the morning meal. With everyone in the kitchen so busy, Tommy and another assistant, were bringing trays heaped with cold biscuits and platters layered with cold cuts, into the large dining hall. There was a smaller private dining room in Topperville, but the dining hall was for those who lived and ate at Topperville. It was a long rectangular room with a dozen rectangular tables, all made of dark wood and surrounded by fine, straight backed chairs. Tommy had teased Jayde about trying to keep her girlish figure when he saw her picking at her food, and she had teased him about the softness of his figure.

Talk around the table was animated to say the least. It was rumored that Mr. Topper had built a new Astrolabe (a device for calculating star positions) for Tiny, who loved star watching. Tiny's Birthday was the only day, once a year, that all of the workers and staff got to enjoy the amusements of Funtown. As soon as everything was ready, everyone who wanted to, went and rode on the rides, watched the performers and had an overall good time. Then, the day was capped off with the picnic on the grounds, presents for Tiny, and the fireworks display. Some of the workers chose to forgo the fun to stay at their posts.

Cookie for one stayed to put finishing touches on the picnic, along with a few helpers. Tommy decided he too would like to stay behind. The rides made his stomach queasy and he much preferred to be around the food, where things could go into his stomach, not out. Jayde, of course volunteered to be on duty. Not that anyone expected any trouble, as the general public was not invited to Tiny's big day. As some of the other Cadets teased Jayde about giving up her chance to be thrilled with Mr. Topper's wonders, she proudly stated that she would rather be on duty looking out for the welfare of Funtown.

"Don't you mean, looking out for your own welfare?" asked one particularly nasty cadet.

"You are just jealous, Victoria, because you know I will be squad leader," said Jayde while rolling her eyes.

"The only reason you will get squad leader is because you do whatever anyone in authority says, no questions asked," retorted Victoria.

"Of course I do! That's our job!" said Jayde with a frown. "Besides, why wouldn't I? They know what's best for us."

"So...you think that having to 'retire' at the age of twenty-two is in our best interest?" asked Ivan, one of the older cadets.

"Don't you?" countered Jayde.

"I am not sure. I've been thinking about it a lot lately and it doesn't make sense really. Twenty-two really isn't old and how boring would it be to just go to The Village and just sit around all day in a big house. I don't see how that benefits us," uttered Ivan with a shrug.

"Everything isn't about us. It must be good for the community. Our reflexes get slower, you have heard what the instructors say. We wouldn't want something terrible to happen just because we didn't want to retire. Besides, you still have the option to work somewhere else, you don't have to just sit around. I for one would want to continue to contribute in some way to thank Mr. Topper for all the things he has done for us," answered Jayde with her chin held high.

"That's another thing...why do we have so many orphans in Funtown? Sure, Mr. Topper has taken us from the orphanage and given us a chance to learn and be good citizens, but where did we all come from?" Ivan continued with his questions.

"I know where I came from. My parents disappeared eight years ago, and Mr. Topper did everything he could to find them. When he couldn't, he petitioned the courts to allow me to stay in Funtown and become a cadet," Jayde answered in a way that reminded Ivan of someone spouting off memorized lines in a recital.

"So all of our parents just 'disappeared'?" asked Victoria sarcastically.

"You know what? I am not going to sit and listen to this. In fact I think I will report this whole conversation to Squad Leader Samuel when I report for duty today." With that said, Jayde got up from the table in a huff and stormed out of the dining room. If she would have looked back, she would have seen the worried look on Ivan's face and the ugly face that Victoria made at her retreating back. As it was, she almost crashed into Tommy as he came around the tables carrying another heaping platter.

"Hey, watch out!" Tommy yelped as he righted the tilting tray. "What's got you all worked up?"

"Some people!" fumed Jayde with a shake of her head.

Tommy looked back at the table that Jayde had just exited and saw what was left of Victoria's ugly face. "Don't let Vicky bother you; she's just mean, plain and simple."

"It's not Victoria that got me riled up. It was Ivan! He is so...so...ungrateful!"

"Ivan? I like Ivan. He's a little quiet maybe, but he is a nice guy. He always thanks the servers and he even tries not to leave a mess for us to clean up. What did he do that sent you stomping off?" asked Tommy as he shoved a whole tart into his mouth.

"He was questioning Mr. Topper and Funtown," she answered as if that explained it all.

"Ok?" said Tommy still chewing. He looked quite comical with his blond hair stuck to his forehead, cheeks red from the excursion and mouth full of food. Any other time Jayde would have laughed, but today she was just crabby.

"Oh, you wouldn't understand, and aren't you supposed to be serving those not eating them?" she asked with a frown.

"Yes, cadet Jayde, ma'm. I'll hop right to it, please don't blow your whistle and lock me up," he teased as he wiped the crumbs off of his face with the sleeve of his free hand.

Jayde just shook her head and continued on her way. All of the excitement of her morning was just about gone after listening to Ivan and his ungrateful blather. How could anyone not be happy about being in Funtown? Jayde just didn't understand it. She set out to find Squad Leader Samuel to make good on her statement.

He was over where they were setting up the picnic tables on the level part of the lawn. Jayde had been happy to find out that Samuel was going to be her supervisor today. He was always fun to work with. Samuel might not be as hard core as some of the squad leaders, but he truly loved to skate and he enjoyed helping others. In fact he was helping the workers shift tables into position, as Jayde approached. Samuel was eighteen, muscular and was always happy to lend a hand.

"Good morning Squad Leader," called Jayde as she came closer.

"Well, good morning Cadet Jayde, and how are you this fine bright day?" he asked as he set his end of the wooden table down with a smile.

"To be honest, Sir, I have something unpleasant I need to talk to you about in private," she murmured quietly.

"Do you now," said Samuel with a hint of a twinkle in his blue eyes. "I think that could be arranged."

"Thank you, Sir."

The worker thanked the strong Squad Leader for his help and Samuel slapped the man on his back and motioned for Jayde to walk with him. After they had gotten out of earshot of the others he slowed his walk and asked what Jayde had on her mind.

"Well, Sir...it was at the morning meal just a few minutes ago. A couple of the cadets were talking in a very disrespectful way about Mr. Topper," she tattled.

"In what way?" asked Samuel.

"Well, it all started when they were teasing me for volunteering today..." she began.

"I see," said Samuel.

"But that wasn't a big deal. I get teased all the time about wanting to do my best and make Mr. Topper proud of me. It was the things that Cadet Ivan was saying..." said Jayde trying to remember exactly what had been shared.

"Go on..." prompted Samuel.

"Well, Sir, he was questioning my loyalty to the authorities, and he made it sound like they didn't have our best interests in mind," she said.

"Jayde, do you think it is wrong for others to have a different opinion than yours?" asked Samuel stopping to look her in the eye.

"No, it's not that...Ivan asked if I thought it was right that Skate Squad Officers had to retire when we were twenty-two and he said he wanted to know why there were so many orphans in Funtown, and where we all came from. I told him my story, how my parents disappeared and how Mr. Topper took care of me, and then Vicky, um, Cadet Victoria started in about so many parents disappearing..."

"Jayde, why do you think that some honest questions from some young people at the breakfast table bothered you so much?" asked Samuel.

"It's so unfair! Mr. Topper does so much for us! And they act like...like..."

"Yes?"

"They act like it is his fault that they don't have parents!"

"Who's fault?" asked Samuel quietly.

"Mr. Topper's!" she exclaimed.

"Jayde I will certainly report this to the parties that need to know, but I would caution you to not be so bothered by simple questions. That's part of what makes us humans so special. We can reason and question. If it wasn't for a questioning mind we wouldn't have recipes, and books, or even Funtown. Ivan and Victoria will have answers to their questions some day and will be all the wiser for questioning in the first place. Now, they weren't talking about bringing harm to anyone, or damaging property, were they? For that would be an entirely different matter."

"No, Sir, they weren't. So you think that maybe I overreacted?" asked Jayde.

"Jayde, I think that your loyalty should be commended...I just think that sometimes you have trouble seeing things from someone else's point of view. A good officer of the law has to be able to see things from more than one viewpoint," related Samuel. "Do you understand what I am saying?"

"I think I do. I guess I can be a tad single minded," she said with a lopsided grin.

"Just a tad," chuckled Samuel. "Now, soon Funtown will be busy with all the fun and excitement it can offer, and we will need to make sure all goes as planned."

"Yes, Sir." Saluted Jayde.

# Chapter 6

# Funtown Proper

For Tiny's Birthday, Funtown was displayed in its entire splendor. The sky was clear, but not too sunny. The rides were fast and thrilling; the shows were mysterious and entertaining. Each person was able to catch a glimpse of Tiny and Mr. Topper here and there enjoying each other's company. For most of the workers and staff, the day was spent riding rides and following the father and son. They streamed in and out of the various attractions, from the Merry-go-round with all of the unusual animals, to the Fun House with its wacky mirrors and crazy corridors. All were having a fun time.

Jayde and Squad Leader Samuel followed close to Mr. Topper and Tiny. Keeping an eye on the crowd was easy. Of course Funtown was closed to the public on that day, as no invitations were ever sent out for Tiny's birthday. People were laughing, eating cotton candy and enjoying the special day. Tiny's face was full of joy as he went to every attraction. Mr. Topper joined him on each one of the rides and quite frequently had his hand on his son's shoulder. If someone stopped to talk to them, Mr. Topper answered most of the questions since Tiny was a bit shy around so many people, being used to spending so much time alone in his room.

As the day wore on, Jayde began to wish that she hadn't volunteered for duty. Especially when she saw Victoria and Ivan, hand in hand wooshing down the heights of the Slippery Slope (a giant slide). But a wink from Samuel and a smile and a nod from Mr. Topper reminded her of why she chose to do her job. She lifted her chin and stood up tall when she remembered how proud she was to be a cadet. There would be other parties, after all Tiny had a birthday every year.

"Jayde, why don't you go get us both a glass of lemonade. It's a warm day and even when we are on regular duty we get to have something cool to drink," suggested Samuel.

"Yes, Sir. That does sound good." Jayde hastily went to the closest stand and hurried back to where Samuel was.

"Everyone is sure enjoying themselves," said Jayde as she handed him his drink.

"It's always nice to be with friends and family," expressed Samuel.

"Do you have family here?" asked Jayde.

"Sure, don't you?" answered Samuel.

"No, my family disappeared years ago."

"What about Tommy and the other cadets?" asked the squad leader.

"They aren't family..." she began.

"Sure they are. We aren't just born into families, Jayde. Sometimes families are made by those who care about us and who help us along the way," suggested Samuel.

"Is that what you meant? Or do you have the flesh and blood kind of family here?" she asked.

"I do have one sister here that is family by birth. But all of the people in Topperville who care about one another, they are just as much family as she is," he answered.

"I guess I understand. It's like Mr. Topper. He takes care of all of us, so that makes him like our father," said Jayde as she looked over to where he was exiting a ride with his hand on Tiny's shoulder.

"Well...I guess you could say that..." replied Samuel slowly. "Sometimes we have people in our families that think more of themselves than others."

"Do you mean like Victoria?" she asked wrinkling her nose.

"No, the way you two fuss happens in families too," laughed Samuel. "We better get moving. It looks like the crowd is shifting. Just remember, Jayde, sometimes the way people act isn't their true nature, so you have to look inside a person."

Jayde thought about that as she moved along with the crowd. Maybe she hadn't tried to look inside the others around her. She knew what was inside Tommy. He may be soft and mushy on the outside, but on the inside Tommy was sturdy and strong. Maybe the opposite was true of Victoria. She was bullish and bristly on the outside, so maybe her inside was timid or scared. Jayde tried hard for people to see her as strong and capable on the outside, a hardworking dedicated Skate Squad Cadet. But now she couldn't help wondering how Tommy saw her on the inside.

# Chapter 7

# The Awful Accident

The day was going just the way everyone had hoped. Jayde was watching Mr. Topper and Tiny as they were getting ready to go on the largest ride in Funtown, "The Screamer", a wooden roller coaster that went up, down, around and around. As they neared the entrance to the ride a young girl about the same age of Jayde stepped up and started talking to Tiny at the same time as an older gentleman called out to Mr. Topper. Before anyone noticed, the girl and Tiny were on the ride, and Mr. Topper was still on the deck. When the ride started, Mr. Topper looked around and saw that Tiny was not there beside him.

Tiny then yelled down at his Father and gave a wave; in turn Mr. Topper stepped back and waved to his son, while motioning toward the base of the ride with his other hand. Curious, Jayde moved closer. The bottom of the ride was round and could have held several elephants inside. It was covered in intricate carvings of animals and scrollwork. Every few feet there were oval mirrors set into the base. It was toward one of those mirrors that Mr. Topper was motioning. With a loud screech, the ride came to a halt and riders were suspended in mid air.

Tiny was near the very top, and the young girl was pointing something out to Tiny, far off into the distance. Tiny stood up, putting one hand up to his brow to shade his eyes and looked in the direction that she had been indicating. In the meantime, Mr. Topper was again motioning frantically toward the mirrors and the ride started up with a jerk. Suddenly, Tiny teetered and tottered, and the girl sat with a look of horror on her face, as Tiny fell headfirst out of the seat and down to the ground beneath.

Jayde covered her mouth in shock as people screamed. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a man, in work clothes step out from somewhere behind the base of the ride. He looked over at the crumpled form of Tiny, and then straight up into Jayde's eyes. Then he took off weaving between the frozen spectators. In a flash Jayde shot off in the direction that she had seen him last. As soon as she could, she activated her skates and was flying down the boardwalk chasing after the suspicious stranger.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew she should have found Samuel, but she also had the picture of a medal and the words 'squad leader' going through her mind. This could be her big chance. She pumped her arms and lowered her upper body closer to the boardwalk, the click, click, click as she went over the boards became faster. Unfortunately, she forgot about using her whistle in all of the excitement and so people had to dodge out of the way at the last minute. This also meant that no other Skate Police Officer knew what she was doing, or where she was going.

Whenever she thought she had lost the man, she would get a glimpse of him. His hair was longer that most, he was wearing work pants, long sleeved shirt and suspenders, the kind of clothes that tinkers wore. Jayde was familiar with the tinkers; they were in and out of Topperville quiet frequently working on projects with Mr. Topper. She couldn't remember ever seeing this man before. As she raced after him, she tried to avoid the crowd of people and other obstacles.

Jayde remembered her training well, jumping over waste baskets, weaving in and out of light posts, people and all kinds of possible stumbling blocks. As she continued her pursuit the crowds got thinner and the streets narrower, not paying attention to where she was, only concentrating on one thing, keeping her eye on that strange tinker. Before she knew it they had left Funtown proper and were heading out of town completely. The boardwalk ended abruptly and Jayde fell sprawled in the dirt with her wheels spinning. Clicking her heals together; she transformed them back into boots and stood up to see if she could find her suspect.

As she stood there with her hands on her hips, trying to catch her breath, Jayde found herself in a rundown, shanty town. What could only be dwellings were crowded together on either side of a dirt road, barely wide enough for a wagon to get through. There was no glass in the windows, and Jayde could see into cramped living quarters, empty of any living people. In fact the whole place seemed too quiet. She was just getting ready to flee, when she caught a glimpse of the man she had been chasing, going into a dwelling at the end of the so-called road. Rapidly she ran forgetting her unease.

When she got to the door, she put her whistle in her mouth and pulled her only weapon out of the loop on her uniform. It was a club of sorts, and she had never in all of her patrolling had ever had to pull it free, let alone use it. The door into the shack was open, but the interior was dark. As her eyes adjusted, she moved to the side so as not to be back lit by the sun coming in the door.

There was no sign of the man that Jayde had been chasing. She was standing in a room that was a bit larger than the girl's bathroom at the Skate Academy. There was a small table minus the chairs, with a rough looking bench on one side, a poor excuse for a stove against one wall, and a few shelves built of scraps of lumber and cinder blocks. As her eyes continued to adjust, she could make out some straw pallets laying in the corner...and two big eyes staring back at her. Jayde's heart leapt inside of her chest and her mouth went suddenly dry. She tried to blow on her whistle, but couldn't seem to find enough air.

After what seemed like hours, but truly was less than a minute, she could see that the eyes belonged to a child and she spit the whistle out of her mouth with a huff of air, and took a long shaking breath back in. Feeling a little faint, she allowed her legs to give out and sank to the floor. All of Jayde's adrenalin was gone, and she was left shaking. Suddenly a vision of Tiny's crumpled body invaded Jayde's brain and she couldn't stop the tears. She hadn't actually seen him hit the ground, as she was trying to watch both Tiny and Mr. Topper, she was thankful for that, but she hoped he was alive. Poor Mr. Topper.

"Miss, are you alright?" came a soft voice from the straw pallet.

Jayde just shook her head and wiped her eyes on the back of her sleeves. When she looked up there was a small girl standing in front of her in a tattered dress. She was standing in the little bit of light that was fighting its way into the opened door. The big eyes that had frightened her at first were staring back. They were sky blue and full of kindness and concern.

"What's your name?" asked Jayde, beginning to come to her senses. "And where did that man go?"

"My name is Poppy; there isn't anyone here but me. Everyone else is working today. It's Tiny's tenth birthday again," answered the girl.

"I know it's his birthday. I just came from his celebration, he was riding on The Screamer and he...fell...again, what did you just say?" stammered Jayde, suddenly feeling confused and muddled. She continued to stare at the girl, did she know her?

"Don't mind me, is he ok, Tiny, I mean?" asked the girl as she stepped closer and breaking Jayde out of her musings.

Jayde shook her head and looked up at Poppy. The girl was smaller than Jayde, had a mass of curly brown hair she was noticing how long it was when she realized that Poppy only had one arm. Actually, she had one and a half. One arm had all of its parts and pieces, while the other ended just above the spot that her elbow should have been. Jayde couldn't help staring, but Poppy didn't seem to notice. Why hadn't she been brought to the infirmary, Mr. Topper would have seen to it that her arm was fixed.

"What's your name?" asked Poppy as she plopped down cross legged on the dirt floor in front of Jayde looking at her with her head to one side.

"Sorry, my name is Jayde..." she began.

"Jayde! You gotta go, Jayde!" said the little girl suddenly jumping to her feet. "You gotta forget you ever came here and forget all you saw!"

"What are you talking about? I don't even know where I am, or how to get back. I was chasing a man, a tinker, I think...he was there when Tiny fell..." stammered Jayde.

Poppy grabbed a hold of Jayde's hand and began pulling her to her feet. "You can't stay here. It's not safe! You have to go back, you have to. Oh, I wish Mom, or Dad, were here. But no, they had to go and work on those rides for Tiny's birthday. Do they get a day off for the birthday, nope not them, 'no rest for the weary', that's what Mom always says..." babbled the little girl.

"Wait," cried Jayde as she pulled her arm out of Poppy's one handed grasp. "Not until you answer some questions. First, where am I?"

"You are in The Village," claimed Poppy.

"This isn't The Village! The Village is full of nice homes where we can retire and live in luxury," said Jayde indignantly. "Why are you lying to me? And who was that man I was chasing? Where did he go, is there another door out of here?"

"This is The Village, don't know what man you are talking about, and the only door in or out of here is that one," she answered calmly pointing at the door Jayde had come in through.

"But..."

"Look, you have to go! I'll show you how to get back, but you got to forget you ever came! Let's go," she pleaded, taking Jayde by the hand again.

"I am not budging until you tell me what's going on!" Jayde stubbornly demanded.

"It's not safe for you to be here, and it's not allowed. I'll talk while we walk, but you have to go!" Poppy left through the door at a brisk pace leaving Jayde no choice but to follow.

Jayde had to practically run to catch up with her and started in right away with the question. "So who takes care of you here? Do you live here alone?"

"I can take care of myself, I'm eleven, but I don't live here alone. Our...um...my Mom and Dad live here with me," answered Poppy.

"You can't be eleven, I'm thirteen and I am at least a foot taller than you! Where are your parents?" Jayde asked with her brows drawn in.

"To answer your first question. Doc says we are small for our age, the kids in The Village, because we don't get much fresh air and sunshine. We don't eat as well as you up in Topperville either, but I am eleven. Unlike some people, I have a real birthday every year, and we've been here eight years, that makes me eleven. Now to answer your second question, my parents and most everyone else are in Funtown."

"Are they at the celebration riding the machines?" asked Jayde, suddenly things making a little more sense.

Poppy stopped and looked up at Jayde, then just shook her head and started walking again.

"You'd be better off not knowing too much about who we are and what we do..." Poppy let her voice trail off.

"Are you criminals, stealing from Mr. Topper, afraid to work hard? Mr. Topper takes care of those who are willing to work," Jayde accused, trying to figure it out once again.

"We do work, for Mr. Topper, not that we get any kind of a wage," she mumbled under her breath. "What else would we be doing? How do you think all of those big contraptions run, we don't ride them, we run them."

"Don't be ridiculous. Mr. Topper's inventions are magic, they run on their own!" now Jayde was just getting irritated.

"Then you tell me how I lost this arm!" sputtered Poppy holding up what was left of her right arm, obviously just as irritated as Jayde.

"What...what are you saying," asked Jayde as she stopped in the middle of the street.

"Look around you, go ahead, take a look at my neighbors," said Poppy motioning with her hand toward the other homes.

Here and there Jayde noticed some others peeking out of windows, sitting in doorways, some old and some young, and others looked to be midway. They all had something different about them. It took Jayde a minute to figure it out. Her mind just didn't want to accept what it was seeing. They all were missing something, a limb, an eye, toes, fingers; one old man even looked like half of his face was gone.

# Chapter 8

# A Puzzling Predicament

"What are you saying..." asked Jayde in bewilderment.

"I'm not saying anything, at least not really. We aren't supposed to talk to anyone from Funtown or Topperville. I just wanted you to see that what you have up there, the life you have, isn't what we have down here. The sacrifices we make are what keeps you in food and clothes and whatever else you enjoy up there. Now I've said too much and one of us will be getting into trouble if you blab," insisted Poppy as she moved on again.

"Maybe you should keep her here until your parents get back," suggested an older boy who was missing both legs and sitting on a board with wheels at each corner.

"No, Max, she needs to go back to where she belongs. If she stays here, then what have we been doing all these years?"

"If Tinker was here, he'd know what to do," mumbled the boy.

"What did he just say? I was chasing a tinker, that's how I got lost. What do you know about this tinker?" asked Jayde in her best 'officers' voice.

"Don't pay no never mind to Max, he believes in fairytales," said Poppy softly.

"Tinkers are real, they work with Mr. Topper all the time, and I am telling you, I chased one down here!" restated Jayde, her voice getting louder.

"Keep walking...Max isn't talking about any ordinary tinker. He's talking about Tinker. The one who created all that stuff up in Funtown..." Poppy began to explain.

"Mr. Topper created Funtown! That's just nonsense."

"Like I said before, Max believes in fairytales. I never said I believed them," declared Poppy. "Sometimes I can't help wishing they were real, but I've never seen this Tinker and things don't seem to get better for us at The Village."

"What do these stories say?" asked Jayde, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"We don't have much farther to go, and you'll see the boardwalk again...are you sure you want to hear those old stories?" Poppy asked.

"Just give me the short version," Jayde answered.

"Well...ok, the short version is...Tinker is a special man, he has lived for ever and will always live forever. He invented everything that was ever invented and wrote it all down in a big book. Tinker had a son, nobody remembers his name, but Tinker had plans to teach his son everything he knew. Then one day the boy and book, they disappear. Nobody can find either one. After a few years, Tinker just disappears too. Nobody ever saw him again. Then just a short time later, Mr. Topper shows up and starts building Funtown. Soon he's rich and everyone is talking about Funtown. Now, Mr. Topper lives in Topperville with a son that nobody knew he had, inventing new things all of the time. The story says that Tiny is really Tinkers son, and that Tinker is going to come back for what is his...well that's the short version. And here is the boardwalk."

"So you don't believe the stories?" asked Jayde.

"Well, I do think it's strange that every year, Tiny has his tenth birthday. I also think it's strange that you all don't know about us, how we work and run the rides. How we slave and starve and lose life and limbs just so Funtown can keep bringing in the sheep for the slaughter," said Poppy looking out towards Funtown.

"I think I will need to make a full report to my squad leader about what I have seen here. Something just isn't right," retorted Jayde, getting back on her high horse.

"Look, Jayde, if you do that, you'll be right here with the rest of us. You think Mr. Topper doesn't know about us? Who do you think brought us all here, and keeps us all doing his bidding? Would you want to live here, or slave day and night in those dark contraptions with gears and cogs ready to chew you up and spit you out? Sometimes you don't come back, they just bury you under the next big ride, or attraction. The best thing you could do is forget you ever were here. Make up some story about why you are missing, and you have to promise to never come back here again."

Jayde saw the real fear in the little girl's eyes. Just because she intended to fill out a detailed report, didn't mean she'd ever have to come back. So she promised. As she took one last look at the girl standing in front of her, the big blue eyes, the curly brown hair, something flickered in Jayde's memory, but like chasing lightning bugs in the dark, it swiftly flickered out.

"So can you find your way back from here?" asked Poppy.

"Yes, the boardwalk all leads back to the same place. Thank you for leading me back...watch out for that tinker guy, I think he may have something to do with Tiny's accident..." warned Jayde, suddenly hesitant to leave.

"You better get going." Poppy reached over and gave her a one armed hug, shocking Jayde. She had never been hugged before.

"Ok," she said awkwardly patting the younger girls head. "Take care of yourself."

Jayde clicked her heels together activating her wheels once again and set out over the boardwalk at a fast pace. After several blocks she slowed and turned to look back, but she couldn't see the shanty town at all. Had it all been real? She decided to make a full report and leave it in the hands of her elders; the Senior Skate Squad would know what to do. Jayde was almost back to The Screamer, still skating as fast as she could, when one of her wheels popped off of her boots and sent her tumbling head over heels. She landed hard, her head hitting a light post with a resounding smack. Jayde heard someone scream...and then all went black.

# Chapter 9

# The Infirmary

When Jayde woke up, it took her a few minutes to realize where she was. The lights were dim, and she was lying on a soft bed with crisp white sheets. The wall and the floor was all dark wood like the dining hall at Topperville, but the ceiling was bright white even in the dim light. Someone close by was groaning and a soft voice was trying to comfort the hurting one.

Jayde was in the infirmary. She had only been here once before when she needed stitches in her knee after a collision with a unicycle rider. No sooner had she figured that out and a nurse in her starched white uniform appeared at the edge of her bed. The nurse gently took Jayde's wrist in her hand and looked at a timepiece that was attached to a chain around her neck. Jayde waited until the nurse had finished whatever she was doing and cleared her throat.

"So you are awake?" said the woman quietly with a gentle smile on her face. "I'm Nurse Janice."

"Can I get a drink of water?" asked Jayde, suddenly feeling like her mouth was full of sawdust.

"I have a glass right here on the bed stand," she answered as she helped Jayde take a drink. "How are you feeling young lady?"

"Mostly my head hurts...what happened to my leg?" asked Jayde as she took inventory of the rest of her body.

"Dr. Luke had to put a cast on it. I'm afraid it is broken and you hit your head pretty hard. You will have to stay in bed for a few days, Dr. thinks you have a concussion."

"When will I get to skate again?" asked Jayde.

"You'll have to talk to the Dr. about that dear. He'll be stopping by later today. I'm afraid we have a patient that has been keeping him quite busy answered Nurse Janice with a shake of her head. "Why don't you rest and I will see if we can get some broth for you."

"Ok, I do feel rather sleepy." Just then her stomach voiced its demand for some food, quite loudly. Jayde's face turned red and she grinned sheepishly, "I guess some broth would be nice."

"It has been two days. I'll see what I can round up for you," she agreed with a smile.

Jayde's mind tried to play 'catch up' with all that was going on. Two days? The last thing she remembered had been skating...had she crashed...she had lost a wheel. Suddenly she remembered the chase and Tiny's accident! It all came back to her, the tinker, the one armed girl, the awful place that the girl had insisted was The Village.

Her heart was thumping wildly in her chest. It was important that she give her report. Maybe she should ask if anyone from the Skate Squad had been by. Even with all the excitement of what had happened, Jayde still couldn't quite fight the weariness that was settling over her like a big fluffy quilt. Stifling a big yawn, she decided to just close her eyes for a bit while she waited on the broth and drifted off to sleep once again.

The screaming woke her. Jayde sat up in her bed so fast that the room began to swim. Lying back down, her heart once again drumming away inside her chest, she listened for what had woke her. There it was, somewhere in another room, someone was screaming. Jayde could hear footsteps rushing towards the noise. It sounded like a child.

Now that the room had ceased its merry-go-round, she eased herself to a sitting position. The pain in her head had dulled to a low thrum and she was able to get a drink by herself. When she tried to swing her legs around, she remembered the cast. Her right leg felt heavy and stiff. Pulling the blankets back, she could see that it was wrapped from her foot to right above her knee. By the time she had maneuvered her legs over the side of the bed, the screaming had stopped.

Jayde tried to stand and found that she could put her weight on the cast. The Dr. had built up a 'sole' on the bottom so that she would be able to stand on the leg. She eased her way towards the curtain that separated her from the other patients by hanging onto the bed. Thankfully, she didn't have far to go. Each bed in the infirmary had a curtain that could be drawn around it to give privacy. Jayde recalled that there were several wings, one for children, one for adults, and one that was used as for surgery.

As she stuck her head out of the curtain, she could see a group of people gathered around a bed at the far end of the room. Just when she thought she'd have to go back to her bed, Mr. Topper walked in and the people scattered. Jayde hung onto the curtain for support and strained her ears. The Doctor was speaking in a low voice and Mr. Topper was shaking his head. "I am taking my son home. You have him ready within the hour. Send a nurse with us to care for him there."

Jayde realized that the child who had been screaming must have been Tiny. He was alive! She felt a great relief wash over her and couldn't help smiling to herself. But that smile froze when she looked up and notice that Mr. Topper was staring at her, and for the first time, ever, in all her time at Funtown, he wasn't smiling. She gasped and turned as fast as she was able and hobbled back to her bed. She no sooner had herself back in and covered up, when a dark head popped into her curtain.

"Well, well, our Cadet is awake," chirped a cheery voice. Jayde looked up warily to see the familiar friendly face of Mr. Topper. "And how are we feeling, Jayde?"

"I...um...a little shaky, Sir," she managed to stammer. She was feeling light headed and disoriented.

"That's to be expected, I'm sure. The Doctor tells me you had a nasty bump to the head and that you've broken your leg."

"Yes, Sir."

"Well, I hope you are feeling better soon." With that said he put his top hat on his head, gave her his biggest smile and left her bedside.

Jayde let out a big sigh and sunk deeper into her pillow. That bump on the head must be making her batty. Why had she been afraid of Mr. Topper? It must have been all of the nonsense that the girl Poppy had been spouting off. He was the same caring, kind Mr. Topper that she idolized. He had even made it a point of visiting her when his own son, Tiny, lay in the hospital. Jayde gave herself a little shake, like a dog coming out of the water. But, when Nurse Janice returned with a cup of broth, Jayde's hands were still shaking.

"Was that Mr. Topper I saw?" asked the nurse with concern in her voice.

"Yes, he stopped by to check on me," answered Jayde.

"How nice of him," she said dryly as she looked down at Jayde's chart.

"He was here to see Tiny," explained Jayde.

"How did you know that Tiny was here?" asked the nurse with both eyebrows raised.

"I...kind of got out of bed," said Jayde with a cringe.

"Tsk, tsk," clucked the nurse, "you better be following Doctor's orders if you want to get out of here.

"I'm sorry. I always follow orders; really...it's just that I heard the screaming..."

"Tiny is in a lot of pain and we have had to keep him sedated, but the medicine seems to be giving him bad dreams. Mr. Topper is going to move him home so that he won't bother the other patients."

"How many others are there?" asked Jayde.

"There is just you and Tiny."

Jayde was confused, would they move Tiny just so he wouldn't "bother" her...She decided to change the subject, noticing that the nurse wasn't real thrilled about the conversation. "Has anyone from the Skate Squad been here?"

"Yes, Samuel was here yesterday and earlier today to check on you. In fact, he should be back any time," she predicted, glancing at her timepiece.

"Good. Um...do you think I could clean up a bit and brush my teeth before he comes?" asked Jayde.

"Of course!" chuckled Nurse Janice.

About a half an hour later, Jayde was again lying in bed, feeling a bit tired after the excitement of the afternoon. She hadn't heard any more screaming and assumed that they had either gotten Tiny calmed down or moved him back to Topperville. Whenever she thought about Mr. Topper, she couldn't help thinking of the way he had looked at her from down the hall. She got a little shiver ever time and the hairs on the back of her neck tried to stand up under the weight of her curls. Then there were all of the things that Poppy had said, and the others with the scars and missing limbs...something just wasn't right.

She intended to give a full report to Squad Leader Samuel just as soon as he got here. Maybe she should have just told Mr. Topper about it all when he had been there earlier. She was sure he would have been able to explain it all to her, or was it possible that he didn't even know about the people in the shabby little village? Her mind was going around and around all of those things when Samuel poked his head through the curtains.

"Well, how is our cadet this afternoon?"

"My head still hurts some, but my leg doesn't bother me too much," she said with a shrug.

"Nurse Janice tells me they have been giving you something to help with the pain," he prompted, taking a seat in the straight back chair next to her bed.

"That's probably why I feel so sleepy," said Jayde.

"Would you like me to come back tomorrow so that you can rest?" he asked with concern.

"No!" blurted Jayde. "I mean, I'm fine."

Samuel waited, knowing that something was bothering the girl.

"I need to give my report about what happened that day," she finally said while she picked the lint off of her blanket.

"Your report?" asked Samuel in confusion.

"Yes, I need to tell you what happened at Tiny's birthday celebration," she replied.

"Ok."

"Well...I was watching Tiny and Mr. Topper as they went from ride to ride. When they got to The Screamer, Mr. Topper was talking to a man and didn't notice that Tiny got on the ride with someone else. When he noticed that Tiny was already on, he started waving his arms around and looking at the bottom of the ride, you know where all the mirrors are," she looked at Samuel to make sure he knew what she was talking about. When he nodded, she continued. "Then...it all happened so fast...the ride started and stopped, Tiny stood up and then...then...he fell."

"Did you see him fall, Jayde?" Samuel asked calmly.

"I saw him go over the edge, but I didn't see him hit the ground. I caught someone coming out from behind the ride, you know how you see something in the corner of your eye?, and I thought that maybe he had something to do with the ride stopping and starting. That maybe he had meant for Tiny to fall. So I chased him. I'm sorry I didn't just report it, or ask for help, but I wanted to do something important by myself. I wanted to be the hero and catch the villain."

"Was it someone that you recognized?" asked Samuel.

"No, that's one reason I was suspicious. He looked like a tinker, but wasn't any tinker I had ever seen around here. So I skated after him. I thought I had lost him a few times, but I always caught a glimpse of him between the people or the buildings. I was skating pretty fast, and wasn't really paying attention to where we were, I was just trying to keep him in my sights. I ended up in this place...I had never been there before on patrols...the houses were small and rickety...and I saw the tinker go into a doorway. When I followed him inside, he was gone."

"Was there anyone else inside?" Samuel continued to prompt her.

"Only a little girl."

"Did she know the man?"

"No, in fact she said no one had come in the door, but me. She was there alone," answered Jayde.

"Did you believe her?"

"Yes, I didn't want to, but I had to. There was only one little room and no other doors. I had come in the same door that I had seen him go through, and had kept my eyes on it the whole time. He never came out. I can't explain it," remarked Jayde shaking her head.

"And did you talk with the girl?"

"Yes. She said her name was Poppy, and she said that we were in The Village, but that couldn't have been true. And, she said...well, she only had one arm...and she said that she lost it working on the rides. There were others too. People that only had one leg or one arm...it was awful."

Samuel sat for a minute watching Jayde as she wiped a stray tear from her eye. He handed her his handkerchief and waited until she blew her nose. He seemed to be making a decision.

"Jayde, how did you get hurt?" he finally inquired.

"Well, I wasn't sure how to get back to Funtown, so Poppy took me to where the boardwalk started. I was heading back to see if Tiny was...dead...and to give my report. I was skating pretty fast when I heard a pop. I think I lost a wheel. The next thing I remember is waking up today here in the infirmary," she replied.

"So you never saw this tinker again?" he asked.

"No. But, I just remembered, there was a boy in the town that said that he wasn't just any old tinker, but that he was someone special, The Tinker. Poppy said that he was the one who invented all of the machines and contraptions...and that Topper, I mean, Mr. Topper stole them. Have you ever heard anyone talk like that before?" she asked with a frown.

Samuel didn't say anything for a few minutes and Jayde figured he must think she was crazy, that maybe when she hit her head it had knocked the sense out of her. She couldn't look at him and again found some important pieces of lint that had to be removed from her blanket. Finally Samuel stood up and came right next to the bed. He took her hand in his and waited for her to look at him. When he knew that he had her attention he finally spoke.

"Jayde, I think that it is best that you don't tell anyone what you just told me, for a little while anyway. Why don't you let me look into this first before we go any further with it. We wouldn't want anyone to think poorly of Mr. Topper would we?"

"No," she said, but wasn't really sure if that was true.

"You concentrate on getting better and I will poke around a little. What direction were you going when you left Funtown?"

"I had gone past Mrs. Morelli's Confectionary Store and out that way. I'm not sure how many turns I took past the candy shop, but I think I stayed in the general direction. When I came back to the board walk it didn't take that long to get my bearings."

"So, do you think you can keep this top secret for awhile, Cadet?" he asked with a smile.

"Yes, Sir."

"Good, now you get some rest and I'll be by in a few days to check on you. If I have found anything out by then, I'll let you know," he gave her hand a final squeeze and left her alone with her thoughts.

# Chapter 10

# Home to Topperville

The next couple of days went by excruciatingly slow for Jayde. Tiny had been moved out of the infirmary, Samuel hadn't been back to visit, and there were no other patients in Jayde's wing. Nurse Janice had brought some picture books in for her to look at, but her head still hurt when she tried to read the stories that went along with the colorful illustrations. So mostly she just lay in bed, or hobbled up and down the hallway on some crutches the doctor had left for her. The worst part was having so much time to think about all that had happened and she found herself doubting her own memories.

On her third day in the infirmary, Tommy stopped in to visit. Jayde had never been so happy to see him. It was getting later in the evening and close to curfew so Tommy said he couldn't stay long.

"I'm just glad to see you, no matter how short the visit has to be. I am going crazy in here with nothing to do," acknowledged Jayde.

"How are you feeling?" asked Tommy as he took the chair next to her bed.

"Bored!"

"I meant how is your leg and your head?" laughed Tommy.

"My head only hurts when I think too much, or try to read, and my leg doesn't hurt much at all. Mostly it itches under this cast," she answered.

"Well, then stop thinking," he teased.

Jayde just gave him one of her "looks" and shook her head. "If only it was that easy."

"So what's got you thinking so much?"

"Just...stuff," she answered vaguely.

"Ok," said Tommy giving her a look of his own. "Oh, I almost forgot. Cookie sent this for you."

Tommy took a paper wrapped parcel out of his pocket and handed it to Jayde. It was a little smashed, but when she opened up the brown paper there was a piece of Tiny's birthday cake inside. She gave Tommy a big smile.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have put it in my pocket, but I needed my hands free to eat the piece she gave me. The cake never got served that day...so we've all been having some. You know how Cookie hates to waste," explained Tommy.

"Crumbly, smashed or whole, Cookie makes the best cake!" declared Jayde as she licked the crumbs off of the paper. "Speaking of Tiny's cake, how is he doing? They won't tell me anything around here."

"Nobody knows too much. He was moved home a few days ago, but you probably already know that. Some people say that he hurt his head, only it must be worse than your injury because he hasn't left his room. Cookie sends up broth to his room where his nurses try to spoon feed him. I guess I don't know much more than that and that is because I work in the kitchen. I haven't seen Mr. Topper since Tiny's birthday."

"I tried asking a few questions, but basically I was told to mind my own business," said Jayde.

"When will you be able to come back to Topperville?" asked Tommy.

"That's another thing they won't tell me, even though that is my business," complained Jayde in frustration. "They'll have to let me go home soon or I might just start screaming."

"Maybe if you were a good girl and followed all of the doctor's orders, they'd let you out," teased Tommy.

"You're right...I have always followed the rules. If I had been a "good girl" I wouldn't even be in this mess. I was trying to show off and be a big shot and I lost a wheel and crashed. Now I am stuck here in this cast and they haven't even told me if I will be able to skate again."

"You aren't the first skater to get hurt, Jayde. I guess if you can't be on the skate squad, you could always join the acting troop and do some of the shows for Funtown," he said with a big grin.

Jayde threw her pillow at him and laughed. "Thanks for coming, Tommy. You always cheer me up."

"That's what friends are for. Besides, Cookie wouldn't have given me that extra piece of birthday cake if I hadn't offered to bring yours," he said.

"You'll do anything for food," joked Jayde.

"Just about," he agreed.

"Well, what have we here?" said a voice from the doorway. "Good evening, Tommy. How are you Jayde?"

Jayde was thrilled to see Squad Leader Samuel standing in the opening of her curtained divider.

"Good evening, Sir," Tommy responded. "Jayde, I need to be going. I told them I'd be back to help prepare for the morning meal."

"Thanks for coming and save me some more of that cake," said Jayde.

"Will do," agreed Tommy as he gave Samuel his chair.

"So young lady, how are you feeling?" asked Samuel.

"I feel much better and would love to come back to Topperville," she answered.

"Glad to hear it. In fact, I am here to tell you that you'll be coming home tomorrow morning. I'll be here to pick you up around nine," he said with a smile.

"I get to go home. I missed the academy and all the squad."

"Well, Jayde, I am afraid you won't be coming back to the academy for a while yet. Mr. Topper has offered to let you stay in his wing of Topperville. In fact you'll be right next to Tiny," explained Samuel as he watched for Jayde's reaction.

"I'm not going to the dorm?"

"No, Dr. Luke and Mr. Topper think that you need some time for your body to heal after your accident," he replied.

"But...I could study or find something useful to do," she said.

"Actually, Mr. Topper has a reason that he wants you close to Tiny. He has finally began to stir around up, but he isn't quite fully awake. When he is lucid he isn't making much sense. It seems his head injury has caused some confusion in Tiny's mind and he has possibly lost some of his memory. Doc thinks he will need help adjusting. Mr. Topper wants you to help Tiny with his recovery."

"Me? What can I do to help?" she asked.

"Right now, Tiny needs a friend. Someone who isn't a doctor or a nurse, who can help him re-learn how to do some of the things that his body has forgotten how to do."

"Are you sure Mr. Topper wants me? After all of this?" she asked indicating her cast.

"Actually it was my idea. I knew you wouldn't want to just sit around and wait to heal and Tiny needs a friend. I think you can be trusted with Tiny and Mr. Topper agreed. I have faith in you, Jayde."

"Thank you, Sir. I won't let you down."

"There is one more thing I wanted to talk to you about, before you came to Topperville. I have decided not to tell Mr. Topper about your chase and the people you met. I want to give myself some more time before I bother him with it all. He has enough on his mind without having to worry about all of that. So can you just keep everything between us?" he asked.

"I already told Tommy about how I lost my wheel, but not about the tinker," she said.

"Pretty much everyone knows about your accident. We just don't want word to get out about the rest of your adventure, just yet. Can you give me some more time?" he asked.

"As long as I get to get out of here, you can have all the time you need," she agreed with a smile.

The next morning at nine o'clock sharp, Samuel arrived in one of the steam carts to carry Jayde back to Topperville. The Squad Leader had cushioned the bed of the cart with some quilts and pillows and made a little nest for Jayde to ride in comfort. Her ride was a little bumpy, but the pain in her head was just about faded to a minor hum and the cast kept her leg from moving much. Jayde looked around at the bright morning and was reminded of Tiny's party day. She had had some time to think about helping Tiny before she went to sleep the night before and she was feeling pretty good about it. It would be nice to be helpful, but she still hoped to be back on the squad as soon as her leg healed.

The only way to get her up the grand stairs was for her to be carried. Samuel and another Skate Squad Leader made a chair of sorts out of their arms and carried Jayde up the stairs. She felt rather foolish and when she thought about how much harder it would have been to carry, say...Tommy, up the stairs, it was all she could do not to giggle. Soon she found herself on the landing and on her own two feet, thanking the young men for the lift. Tucking the crutches under each arm, she followed Mrs. O'Malley, the head housekeeper, to her new room.

She couldn't help the gasp and knew her mouth was hanging open. The room was big enough to sleep at least six cadets. There was a large four-posted bed with a fluffy white comforter, which contrasted with the dark cherry wood. She had a dresser, a full length mirror and a writing table. Mrs. O'Malley showed Jayde where her bathroom joined her room, the clothes in the wardrobe and the little necessities she might need, including a toothbrush and a hairbrush.

"Those aren't my clothes," Jayde declared.

"Mr. Topper didn't want you to have to wear your squad uniform around Tiny. So he had these sent for you. They should all fit. The same woman who makes the uniforms also made the dresses," answered the housekeeper coldly.

"Thank you," replied Jayde.

"Don't thank me, thank Mr. Topper," she said with a nod.

# Chapter 11

# A Piece of the Puzzle

That first day back in Topperville, Jayde wasn't allowed in to see Tiny. She was served her meals in her room and by the evening, she was just as bored as she had been in the hospital. Jayde had spent the day trying on clothes, looking out the windows, taking a long soak in the claw-foot tub and trying not to think about Poppy and the others. Her mind chewed over the little bit of information she had learned that day and doubts set in, doubts about Mr. Topper and Funtown, doubts about Tiny, doubts about her own doubts. She had pretty much decided to go to bed early exhausted from the merry-go-round of her mind and the boredom of being in her room all day, when there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," she called as she straightened her dress and tried to smooth her un-smooth-able hair.

"Good evening," said Mr. Topper as he came into her room, top hat in hand. He had his big friendly smile on, but Jayde couldn't help the little flutter in her stomach.

"Good evening, Sir," answered Jayde as she jumped up off of her bed and stood with her hands clasped in front of her.

"Sit, sit. I am just here to see how you are settling in." Mr. Topper leaned against the doorway looking comfortable and friendly.

"I am settled, Sir, and I wanted to thank you for letting me come home, I mean back to Topperville," she stumbled.

"Topperville is your home, Jayde."

"Thank you," said Jayde as she gave him a timid smile.

"And how is your leg?" he asked.

"It hardly hurts anymore. It does itch some though," answered Jayde.

"That means it is healing."

"That is what Doc Luke indicated," she agreed trying not to think about the itching.

"I wanted to give you a chance to get situated before you began your friendship with Tiny. I know you have known each other for years, but this will be different than just seeing him around Topperville. You'll be spending quite a deal of time with my son," he explained.

"I'm not really sure what I am supposed to be doing..." said Jayde.

Mr. Topper walked into Jayde's room and took a seat on the bed next to her. "Well, think of one of your friends, maybe Tommy who works in the kitchen."

Jayde nodded and Mr. Topper continued. "When you and Tommy are together what do you do?"

"Mostly we just tease each other," said Jayde with a giggle.

"Well that's part of being friends," laughed Mr. Topper. "Ok, let's pretend that Tommy was in Tiny's place. What would you do to help him?"

"I guess I would talk about all the things he didn't remember, the kitchen, the orphanage, just remind him of who he was," offered Jayde.

"Excellent! I knew you were the right person for this task. That, my dear, is exactly what I would like you to do with Tiny. Doesn't sound so hard, now does it?"

"No, Sir," agreed Jayde with a big smile. Now that she was here with Mr. Topper and feeling so at ease, she decided to forget about all the nasty things Poppy had said. Mr. Topper was wonderful, just like she had always known. "I'll do my best."

Mr. Topper gave her knee a fatherly pat and stood up. "I know you will. Nurse Janice will come and get you in the morning. She reported that the two of you got on quite well at the infirmary and requested to come and take care of Tiny."

"I'm glad. She's very nice, Mr. Topper even if she was tough on me," she smiled up at Mr. Topper relieved to be feeling back to normal again.

"Good night, Jayde," he said as he turned to shut the door.

"Oh, Mr. Topper, I almost forgot. Can I eat with the others in the dining hall? I'm not used to eating alone."

"Well, I had thought about that, but I think that under the circumstances it just wouldn't be best," he responded sadly.

"Oh...ok," she said quietly.

"Jayde, some of the others may resent the fact that you get to live here in my personal wing with new clothes..." he waited for her to respond.

"Of course. I never thought of that," she said nodding her head.

"We wouldn't want any hard feelings, would we?"

"No, Sir. Good night, Sir," she replied, hiding her disappointment.

"Besides, soon Tiny will be up and about and you can have your meals with him," he proclaimed, cheering her up. "Sleep well."

After breakfast in her room, Jayde waited for Nurse Janice to come and fetch her. She put on one of the simplest dresses in the wardrobe, still not used to wearing anything besides her uniform pants and jacket. It was a short sleeved dress that came to just below her knees, so at least her legs were free. At the last minute she had given up on her unruly hair and just plaited it into two long braids. Hopefully it would at least stay out of her way. She was sitting in the window seat looking out over the grounds when there was a knock on her door.

"Are you ready, young lady?" asked Nurse Janice.

"I think so," answered Jayde with some hesitancy.

"My brother seems to think you need something to keep you busy," said the nurse as she stood in the doorway waiting for Jayde.

"Who is your brother?" asked Jayde as she stood up and adjusted her clothes.

"Didn't he tell you? Samuel is my younger brother and he speaks very highly of you."

"He did mention that he had a sister, but I didn't realize it was you. It must be nice to have family at Topperville," said Jayde.

"It is, but Samuel and I have a bigger family than just the two of us," explained Nurse Janice.

"I know," said Jayde with a smile. "He told me about families that we aren't born into."

"He did, did he? I guess that makes us sisters as well," laughed Janice.

"I guess it does," answered Jayde.

"Why don't we go and see how Tiny is this morning. It's time for me to relieve the night nurse."

"Ok," said Jayde with a little more confidence.

Tiny was still in his big bed almost hidden from view under all of the heavy blankets. The room looked dark and dreary so Jayde hovered in the doorway while Nurse Janice talked to the night nurse. As soon as the other nurse was out of the room, Janice pulled all of the curtains and let the morning sunlight stream into the room. Jayde made her way into the room, shutting the door at Janice's request. The first thing she noticed was all of the books. They lined the walls on thick wooden shelves and were stacked on the bedside table as well as a large desk.

She was looking at the telescope, when she heard moaning from the bed. Janice had removed some of the heavy blankets and Tiny was finally revealed. He looked very small in the big bed and Jayde's heart swelled inside of her. The nurse was talking quietly to him as she straightened the sheets and fluffed his pillows. Tiny kept his eyes shut the entire time and mumbled softly. Jayde crept closer to the bed, trying to make out what he was saying. Janice smiled at her over the bed and motioned with her head for Jayde to come closer. Finally she stood next to Tiny.

"You can talk to him. Doc is pretty sure that he can hear us," prompted Janice softly.

"What is he saying," asked Jayde.

"Most of the time it is just gibberish. Sometimes he talks about his father, or the stars. I need to change his bedding. The night nurse reported that he had made a bit of a mess when they tried to feed him this morning. Why don't you pull up a chair and sit with him while I go fetch the clean sheets?"

"Stay here by myself with him," Jayde said with some panic in her voice.

"Jayde, he's just a sick little boy and he's not contagious," laughed Janice.

"But what if he gets worse, or...falls out of bed or something..."

"You'll be fine and it won't take me but a minute." Nurse Janice left Jayde alone.

So Jayde grabbed the straight backed chair from behind the desk and pulled it close to the bed, not too close. She sat there for what seemed like hours and still the nurse didn't come back. She checked her timepiece, only to realize that Janice had been gone just a few minutes. Tiny began his mumbling again and Jayde leaned in closer. When she heard the word "Tinker" she quietly scooted her chair as close to the bed as she could get it. His mumbling got louder and his face looked like he was in pain. Remembering the screaming in the infirmary, Jayde stood up and took Tiny's hand. She certainly didn't want to be the only one in the room if he started yelling his head off.

Holding his hand didn't seem to be working, so she put her other hand on his forehead and tried to speak in a soothing voice.

"It's ok, Tiny. You are going to be fine. Nurse Janice will be right back."

Seeing that it was working, she continued to talk softly to him while brushing his dark hair away from his forehead.

"Your Father wants you to get better. Don't you want to get better for your Father?"

When she began talking about Mr. Topper, Tiny quieted and the pain left his face.

"Father," he whispered.

"Yes, your Father loves you, Tiny," said Jayde.

"Tinker," he whispered with a half smile on his face.

Before Jayde had time to think about what he had mumbled, Nurse Janice returned with Mrs. O'Malley who was carrying the clean sheets. Jayde pulled away from the bed and loosed Tiny's hand from her grasp at the sight of the housekeeper.

"He was fussing and I was trying to calm him down," she explained.

"Well, it looks like you did a fine job," said Janice. "I have someone coming to help me get him out of the bed so I can change the sheets. Why don't you go down to the kitchen and see what Cookie has planned for Tiny for lunch today? It should only take us about twenty minutes to get him all settled. See if you can sneak us a snack up with you."

Tommy was in the kitchen when Jayde walked in. She had never been in the kitchen proper before and couldn't help feeling like she was breaking some rule. Nervously she came through the door and just stood on the threshold. Cookie was sitting on a stool at one of the butcher block tables and was drinking a cup of tea. No one had noticed her coming in and she felt stupid just standing there, so lifting her chin and squaring her shoulders, she marched over to the head cook.

"Good morning, Cookie. Nurse Janice sent me to see what you had planned for Tiny's lunch today," she said standing across the table from the Cook.

"Well, you must be Jayde." The cook smiled at her with cheeks bunching.

"Yes, Ma'm."

"I have some summer squash soup on the stove for him. Would you two like to have the same with a couple of sandwiches to go along?" Cookie inquired.

"I love squash soup! That would be wonderful."

"And how is our little Tiny this morning?" asked the cook.

"I'm not really sure...he is still in bed and not fully awake," answered Jayde. "I don't know if that is good or bad."

Jayde noticed that everyone in the kitchen had stopped what they were doing and were listening.

"I'm sure it would be best if he was up and about again. We will get him well, wont we girlie?" said Cookie, more of a statement than a question.

"Yes, Ma'm."

"I'll send up lunch at noon. Now I better get back to my books," said Cookie.

Jayde turned to go and caught Tommy's eye.

"Cookie, can Jayde and Nurse Janice have some of the cherry turnovers that you made this morning?" asked Tommy with a smile.

"Of course, Lad, and why don't you find them some lemonade to go with it. You can carry a tray up for her since she is still in her plaster," answered the kind hearted cook.

"Thank you, Cookie. Nurse Janice had asked me to sneak us a snack," said Jayde.

"No need to sneak in my kitchen, there's always plenty to go around," remarked Cookie trying to sound stern.

On the way up the stairs, Jayde filled Tommy in on all that had been going on since she last saw him. They walked very slowly, Jayde taking one stop at a time, and talked very fast.

"So, is Tiny really that bad?" asked Tommy.

"Wait until you see him. He looks so little in that big bed and he's pale even for him. When I was with him by myself, he was tossing and turning and looked like he was hurting awfully bad. I tried to calm him down. When we were in the infirmary together, he woke me with his screams and I was afraid he would start the same."

"What did you do?" asked Tommy.

"I just held his hand and talked softly to him." Jayde left out the part about rubbing his head feeling a little embarrassed about it. "He really calmed down when I mentioned Mr. Topper."

"You said the actual words 'Mr. Topper'?" Tommy asked seriously.

"No," declared Jayde with a frown. "I talked about his 'Father'. Why?"

"Just wondering," said Tommy evasively. "But it worked?"

"Yes...but just before Nurse Janice came in, he said something weird. I didn't think of it until just now," she said stopping on the stairs.

"What? What did he say?" asked Tommy from the stair above her.

"He said 'Tinker'."

"Are you sure?" Tommy inquired.

"Well, that's what it sounded like," said Jayde as she started up the stairs again. "But Nurse Janice said that sometimes what he says doesn't make sense."

"Hmm...." Tommy was clearly thinking.

"What?" asked Jayde recognizing that sound.

"Nothing," he said quickening his pace. "We better get back up there before they send out a search party."

Jayde had a hard time keeping up with Tommy, in her cast, as he moved so fast up the remaining stairs.

# Chapter 12

# Awake From the Dream

The first few days that Jayde helped out with Tiny were uneventful, other than the visits to the kitchen and the extra treats sent up by Cookie. Jayde once again was beginning to get bored. Tiny slept through the days. Mealtime was simply spooning soup or mush into his slack mouth and trying to get him to swallow. Sometimes Jayde did the spooning while Janice held his head. Other times they were able to prop him up a bit and he swallowed on his own.

On Jayde's third day of helping, they had just finished feeding Tiny some oatmeal with brown sugar and cream. Most of it had gone down and he seemed to be resting calmly in bed. Nurse Janice and Jayde were sitting in front of the window chatting. The morning was bright and sunny. The light coming in the window warmed and cheered the normally gloomy room. One particularly strong beam lit on Tiny's sleeping face, turning his pale white face into a soft golden color.

"He looks like a little angel in the sunshine," Jayde pointed out.

"Yes he does," agreed Nurse Janice. "I think he is getting stronger."

"Do you think he'll ever wake up?" asked Jayde.

"Sure, don't you?" demanded Janice looking into Jayde's eyes.

Jayde self consciously turned her head and lowered her eyes. "I hope so."

"Well, hope is a strong thing, Jayde. It helps us to face some hard things in our lives and gives us a reason to keep going."

"Have you faced hard things?" asked Jayde.

"A few in my twenty years," Janice said with a lopsided grin.

"What hard things would you face in Topperville?" asked Jayde.

"Even Topperville isn't immune to hardship. Look at little Tiny here. Mr. Topper himself couldn't save Tiny from falling," answered the nurse.

"I guess. This is the hardest thing I have ever gone through, Tiny and I getting hurt on the same day, having to leave the squad and wearing this cast."

"You've handled it pretty well, I'd say," commented Janice.

"Samuel, Doc Luke, and you have all helped me. Mr. Topper too, he's been really good to me."

"That's what family is for," joked Janice.

"Yes, Samuel was right," grinned Jayde.

"Let's don't tell him, he's got a big head as it is," teased Janice.

"Who's got a big head," whispered a soft voice from the bed.

Janice and Jayde both jumped up and hurried over to Tiny's bed. His eyes were closed and he looked like he was still sleeping peacefully. Jayde looked questioningly at Janice.

"My brother, Skate Squad Leader Samuel," said Janice watching Tiny closely.

"Maybe his brain is big," whispered Tiny.

Jayde and Janice just grinned at each other like fools.

"Well he is pretty smart..." ventured Jayde.

"I'm sleepy," he murmured. "Going to sleep."

The two girls stood there for a bit, but soon Tiny was breathing long and deep. He had never opened his eyes, but he had followed at least part of their conversation and had added his two cents worth. Janice told Jayde to watch over him while she went to find Mr. Topper and Doc Luke. Jayde stood there long enough that her leg got tired and she had to grab a chair to pull over. By the time Janice returned with both the Doctor and Mr. Topper, Tiny hadn't moved so much as a muscle or opened his mouth once.

"Are you sure he spoke?" asked the Doctor.

"Yes, Sir. Jayde and I both heard him. It wasn't like his usually mumblings. He heard us talking and asked us a question pertinent to what we were saying," answered Nurse Janice.

"Is that so, Jayde?" asked Mr. Topper looking at her in a way that made her feel uncomfortable.

"Y-yes, Sir. Nurse Janice said that we shouldn't compliment her brother or his head would get bigger and Tiny asked us who had a big head. Then he said that maybe Samuel had a big brain," she explained, getting more courageous as she went on. "He made complete sense and even made kind of a joke."

"But he never opened his eyes or tried to sit up?" asked the doctor.

"No," said Jayde and Janice at the same time.

"Jayde, why don't you go on back to your room while Doc has a look at my boy?" suggested Mr. Topper with his usual smile. "We'll give him some room to work."

"Yes, Sir. I hope this means he's getting better," agreed Jayde as she walked away from the bed.

"You and me both, child," said Mr. Topper as she closed the door behind her.

Jayde stood there for a minute with mixed emotions. She was thrilled that Tiny had spoken, but the way Mr. Topper looked at her made the hair on the back of her neck all crawly. Maybe her imagination was getting carried away. How she wished she had never met Poppy and listened to the bad things she had said about Mr. Topper. She wanted to go back to the way she felt about him before Tiny's birthday.

# Chapter 13

# Who is Tiny?

Over the next four days Jayde and Janice hardly left Tiny's side, except to sleep. They took their meals in his room, so Jayde got to see Tommy twice a day when he brought up the breakfast the lunch trays. Evenings were too busy in the kitchen and the lunch hall and everyday a different person brought up the evening tray.

Tiny had yet to speak again. There was one time late in the evening just before the night nurse was to come, when his eyes fluttered open and he looked up at the ceiling for a few minutes. They tried to speak to him, but it was as if he couldn't hear them, or was listening to someone else that they couldn't see or hear. Still that kept hope alive in them both.

Now on the fifth day since Tiny had mentioned Samuel's big brain, Samuel himself came bearing the evening tray. He had brought his own dinner up as well and the three of them ate together at Tiny's little table. Jayde had already spoon fed Tiny some creamy yogurt with maple syrup for his dinner. Jayde liked the way the brother and sister ribbed each other good naturedly. During a retelling of some childhood prank of Samuel's in the orphanage, Jayde had a strange nibbling in the far recesses of her mind. A picture of two little girls playing in front of a fireplace with pretty little porcelain dolls.

"Did I have a sister?" she blurted.

Nurse Janice and Squad Leader Samuel both looked at Jayde in silence. Finally, Samuel gave a slight shake of his head and asked, "Why would you ask that?"

"I-I just had this picture in my head of two little girls...and one of them had red hair like me."

"What were you thinking about at the time?" asked Janice.

"How you two get along so well and how it must be nice to have family, I know," she rolled her eyes at Samuel thinking of what he told her about family, "but I mean like you and Janice."

"Well, maybe you just imagined how it would have been with a sister." Janice answered as she folded up her napkin and not looking at Jayde.

"Probably, but it sure seemed real," she said shaking her head.

They still hadn't answered her question and she was just about to ask again when a piercing scream came from the big bed. All three of them jumped, even the brave squad leader. Janice was the first one to the bed and tried calming the boy. But he thrashed and yelled, crying and sobbing. Janice told Samuel to go for the doctor and called Jayde over to the bed to help.

Thinking of how she had been able to calm him once before, Jayde began stroking his forehead and talking softly into his ear. He began to still and the tears began to diminish.

"Papa..." he whispered with a shaky voice.

"Shhh, now...you're Papa will be here soon..." she murmured.

"Tinker!" he yelled and opened his eyes at the same time. He looked right at Jayde and inquired, "who are you?"

Jayde took her hand off of his head and stepped away from the big bed. "I am Jayde."

"Where is my Father?" he asked.

"He should be here soon, Samuel went to get the Doctor and I am sure that your Father will come with him," answered Jayde.

"Who are you?" he asked turning his head to Janice.

"Tiny, my name is Janice. I am a nurse. You have been a sick little boy..."

"Who's Tiny?" asked the boy.

Jayde shot a panicked look at Janice, who seemed to not be shocked at all.

"Don't you remember? You are Tiny," she stated firmly.

"I'm Ben. I don't know who Tiny is," he answered.

"Jayde, why don't you go and see what is taking the Doctor so long," suggested Janice. "I know I could move faster since you are still in that cast, but I don't want to leave our patient."

"Ok...if you think that is best." Jayde stopped and looked back at the bed before she left and saw Janice whispering in his ear. Worried about his confusion, she hurried as fast as she could on her crutches.

She met the Doctor and Samuel at the head of the stairs and Mr. Topper was gaining on them from the bottom of the stairway. By the time she got turned around and back to the room, she had missed pretty much all of the excitement. Tiny was sleeping peacefully and the Doctor had finished his exam.

"I think we should just let him sleep and take another look in the morning," said Doc Luke as he put his stethoscope back into his black leather case.

"I agree," declared Mr. Topper.

Jayde had to move out of the doorway when the night nurse came up behind her. Janice filled her in on what had happened in a quiet voice that Jayde couldn't hear from where she was standing. The sound of her crutches as she came into the room caused Samuel to turn her way. He came over and put his hand on her shoulder.

"I think you should probably go back to your room, Jayde. Mr. Topper wants to sit with Tiny for a while and Janice's shift is over."

"He woke up, that's what is important, right? It is only understandable that he was confused..." she tried to justify.

"Jayde, Tiny is just a nickname. We have all used it so much that we have almost forgotten his real name. Ben is the name he was given at birth," explained Samuel.

"Oh. Oh! So he isn't that confused. Good. I am awfully tired after all of the excitement. Good night, Samuel and will you tell Janice that I will see her in the morning?" said Jayde.

"Will do, good night, Jayde."

# Chapter 14

# A Belated Birthday

The next morning Jayde couldn't wait for Janice. She snuck into Tiny's room to find the night nurse sound asleep in her chair, and Tiny wide awake in his bed. He turned her way and gave her a big smile of welcome, so she hobbled over to the bed, leaving her noisy crutches at the door.

"Good morning," she whispered.

"Good morning," he answered. "I know I met you last night, but I don't remember your name."

"I am Jayde."

"Nice to see you again, Jayde. I am...Tiny. You've been taking care of me, haven't you?" he asked.

"I have been helping Nurse Janice during the day. I hurt my leg the same day you fell so your Father asked me to help." Jayde hadn't noticed the stumble on his name she was just glad that he remembered who he was.

"You mean Mr. Topper, right?" he asked looking at the blankets.

"Of course."

"Of course," he repeated.

"So, how are you feeling?" asked Jayde, trying to sound like Nurse Janice.

"Actually, I am starving. I feel like I haven't eaten in weeks."

"Well, you certainly haven't chewed. We have been feeding you broth, pudding, oatmeal and all sorts of soft foods. Some days you didn't get too much inside," she laughed. "Would you like me to go and find you something to eat?"

"No, thanks, I don't want you to have to maneuver on the stairs with your leg all wrapped up in plaster. What time is breakfast?"

"The morning tray doesn't come until eight. I usually don't come over this early, but I couldn't wait to see how you were doing. It was so exciting to see you awake after so long," said Jayde.

"I'm sure I can hold out until eight. How long have I been sleeping?"

"I guess I have lost track of time, let me see, I was in the infirmary for seven days, then I spent a day in my room after coming to Topperville, and I think it's been about nine or ten days since I have been helping," she answered.

"So about two weeks then..." said Tiny quietly.

"Something like that, so no wonder you are hungry. Look, why don't I go and see if my friend Tommy can bring up something early for us. Janice won't be here for almost an hour. It won't take me that long to get to the kitchen."

"Ok, if you don't mind..." Tiny seemed lost in his thoughts.

"Not at all, but you better still be awake when I get back," she teased.

This brought him back and he gave her a big grin, "I'll do my best."

When Jayde finally got to the bottom of the stairs she was winded and needed to catch her breath before talking to Cookie. She sat down on the last step to rest and heard some muffled voices. They were coming towards her was from the office. She was just getting ready to stand up and show herself, not wanting anyone to think she was hiding on the stairs, when she realized that they were talking about Tiny.

"Something has to be done," she recognized Mr. Topper.

"It is just because he missed the birthday party," said a voice that Jayde didn't recognize. Whoever it was sounded weary.

"Then we will have to have another party. We will just say that since Tiny missed his party that we will celebrate again. I think everyone will understand why we will skip the rides, and just have the cake and our traditional 'Happy Birthday' song. My son will know how much I love him and the rest of Funtown will be reminded as well."

"That should take care of everything, Sir."

"Good, you take care of your end and I will go and talk to Cookie about another cake."

Jayde waited until they both went their separate ways and stood up from the stairs. Now, what was that all about? She wondered. Waiting until she thought Mr. Topper had finished up with Cookie, she went into the kitchen herself. Mr. Topper was still there, however, so she caught Tommy's eye and motioned for him to come out into the dining hall.

"What's got you up so early?" asked Tommy as he dried his hands on his apron.

"Nothing special...except Tiny is awake!"

"Old news, we heard about it first thing this morning and Mr. Topper is in there planning a bigger cake for Tiny than the last one," he tried to sound bored.

"Ok, Mr. smarty pants, then how about getting a tray ready for the hungry boy," she asked swiping at him with one of her crutches.

"You mean he's awake right now?" he said excitedly. "Should I tell Mr. Topper?"

"No! I mean, not yet. He's hungry and Mr. Topper is busy and all. Janice isn't even up there yet..." she began making excuses.

"And, you just want to be the one to bring him his first meal. Do you even know what he's allowed to eat?" he asked with his eyebrows raised.

"Oh, I guess I didn't think about that..."

"Good thing we have Doc's orders," he said with a smile.

"Tommy, you are...well...just the best," she tried to thank him.

"You're welcome. Now, you better get upstairs and I'll sneak a tray up as quickly as I can."

Jayde had just finished helping Tiny with his toast and oatmeal. He didn't seem to mind that he was having oatmeal again, or didn't remember eating it from before. Tommy had stuck around and made sure that Tiny didn't overdo it, reminding him that his stomach would need to get used to solid food again.

"What is wrong with her?" asked Tommy, indicating the nurse snoring in the corner.

"I think that Doc put something in her tea. I could be wrong, but she's been sleeping since she finished her cup at around ten last night," explained Tiny.

"Why would he do that?" asked Tommy.

"Why would who do what?" asked Janice as she came into the room. "And why would you two be feeding my patient?"

"It's ok, Tommy checked on Doc's orders and he only had toast and oatmeal this morning," answered Jayde hurriedly.

"Why didn't you wait for me, Jayde?"

"It was my fault, Miss. I asked her to get me something from the kitchen," Tiny chimed in.

"Well, in that case, all is forgiven," she said as she walked over to the bed. "And how is our patient this morning?"

"I am full and awake," he pointed out with a smile.

"How long have you been awake?" she asked.

"Since about five o'clock," answered Tiny.

"No wonder you were hungry. Are you tired at all now?" she continued to check out her patient.

"No! I mean, not really..."

"Tiny, you are not going to go back to the heavy sleep again that you couldn't wake up from. You don't have to be afraid to rest. Your body has been through a lot and you will need extra sleep,"

"You're sure?" he asked sheepishly.

"Yes," said Janice with a gentle pat on his shoulder.

"Then maybe I could sleep a little. Can Jayde sit with me while I take a nap?" he asked.

"Sure she can, she had been with you the better part of the last few weeks watching you sleep, she is quite the expert at it," teased the nurse.

"I'll be right here when you wake up," assured Jayde.

"Right, so that's my cue to take this tray back and bring something for you Nurse Janice," said Tommy standing.

"Is there any tea left in there?" asked Janice.

"Sure is, still hot even," answered Tommy.

"Then just leave that here and I am good. I pilfered a turnover off of Samuel's tray before I came up."

"I'll see you later, Tiny," called Tommy.

"It was nice to see you again. Thanks for bringing me breakfast early," said Tiny sleepily.

"Ok, young man, time for a nap. Jayde why don't you go and fetch one of the books out of your room?" suggested Janice.

"Tiny has lots of books in here; I'll read one of those."

"I thought you had already started one from your room," Janice said.

"Umm, I did...sure, I'll go get it." Jayde realized that Janice was trying to get her out of the room.

Thinking maybe she wanted Tiny to have some privacy, she took her time coming back. When she walked back toward Tiny's room she again heard Mr. Topper's voice. He was whispering quite loudly, angrily in fact. Jayde stopped where she was and listened.

"Do I have to remind you that he is my son?"

"No Sir, I meant no disrespect. I just think it may be a bit early to have him up and about," replied Janice.

"I already checked with Doctor Luke and he said as long as we keep him warm and stable that we can celebrate his birthday tomorrow. I wouldn't do anything to harm my own son, would I?"

"Of course not. We'll make sure to have him up and ready," said Janice.

"Good. I'll send Mrs. O'Malley by to see if there is anything you might need."

Jayde had just enough time to move out of the way as Mr. Topper came barreling out of the room. He never even looked at her as he stormed past. Once again, Jayde had that empty feeling in the pit of her stomach. She didn't like this new side of Mr. Topper. Not one bit.

# Chapter 15

# Something Smells Rotten

Early the next morning Jayde was awakened by Nurse Janice. She was startled to see that the Doctor was setting up some utensils on her table, one of which was a saw. She jerked upright in bed. Janice reassured her that it was ok and she groggily wiped the sleep from her eyes and sat up in bed.

"Now, why don't we take that plaster off your leg young lady?" said the Doctor.

"Really! But it's only been a few weeks," she uttered, wanting to believe but unsure.

"Your leg is fit as a fiddle. Don't you want to be free of all the weight and the itchiness?"

"More than you could know," laughed Jayde.

Nurse Janice helped Doc carry the small table over to Jayde's bed. Before it all had time to sink in, her leg was free! It looked a little strange and smelled even stranger.

"Yuk," she said wrinkling her nose.

"You'll have to take a bath. You might want to take it easy for a few days. Let your leg build up strength again," instructed the Doctor.

"I will. Thank you!"

"You're welcome. Now, I have other things to see to this morning. I am helping them to rig a cart to carry Tiny to his party this afternoon."

As the Doctor left, Janice took a seat on the edge of Jayde's bed. She grabbed Jayde's hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Jayde, there is something I need to tell you. Well, Samuel and I...it's important that you trust us."

"I trust you," answered Jayde simply shrugging her shoulders.

"It's still early, why don't you go take a bath. I'll clean up this mess from your cast and soon Samuel will be here. We can discuss this together," said Janice.

"Can't you just tell me now?" asked Jayde feeling impatient and worried.

"I'd rather wait. He'll be bringing Tommy with him if that makes you feel any better."

"Ok, I'll make it quick," but despite her words she slowly put weight on her leg and took it easy on her way to the bathroom.

Thirty minutes later, she was dressed and waiting for Samuel and Tommy. Janice had left to dispose of the plaster and wrappings from her leg. Jayde walked slowly around her room. Her leg felt fine other than a little weak and shaky. She was just getting ready to sit, when Tommy peeked in the door.

"Are you up?" he asked.

"What does it look like?" she replied tartly.

"It looks like you don't have a cast on any more. How does it feel?"

"Like I never broke it," said Jayde with a grin. "But like it's been locked up in prison for a long time."

"Janice asked me to bring you to Tiny's room. Can you walk that far, or do you still need the crutches?"

"It's just down the hall; I think I can make it."

Tiny was sitting up in his bed, finishing up some fruit and cereal for breakfast. Samuel and Janice were at the table with a tray of Danish and tea. Tommy went right over and helped himself to a plate, sitting in a chair next to Tiny's bed. There were no other chairs so Jayde got a plate and balanced herself and her plate on the bed next to Tiny. As they were eating Tiny asked about her leg, and she in turn asked how he was feeling.

"I feel much stronger today," he said as he took his last bite. "Especially since I finally got to take a whole bath, not just a wipe down in the bed, I didn't like the smell of myself."

"You should have smelled my leg," giggle Jayde.

"Ok, you two. Some of us are still eating here," stated Tommy as he shoved another bite into his mouth.

"Oh, nothing ruins your appetite," teased Jayde.

"You're right!" he laughed.

"Well, if you can finish that up, Thomas, there is something we'd like to talk to you and Jayde about," said Janice.

"I'm done," sighed Tommy as he wiped his mouth on his napkin. "I want to save room for the feast and some of Cookie's cake!"

"Well, that is partly what we wanted to talk to you about," said Samuel. "Tommy, why don't you come on over to the bed where we can talk quietly?"

Samuel and Janice brought their chairs over while the three children got comfortable in the big bed. They sat like three peas in a pod with Tiny in the middle, all propped up against the big headboard.

"What we are about to tell you may surprise some of you, but I think that it will also make a lot of sense out of things as well," Samuel began. "You see things are not what they seem here in Topperville, actually in all of Funtown."

The three youngsters all looked at Samuel intensely, Tiny most of all.

"Tiny, as you have figured out...Mr. Topper is not your father."

Jayde gasped, Tommy nodded his head and Tiny broke into tears.

"What are you talking about!" said Jayde, trying to comfort Tiny. "Is that what you have been whispering to him?"

"Jayde, remember I asked you to trust us..." began Janice.

"But how can you say that?" she exclaimed.

"No, it's true," whimpered Tiny through his tears. "I've known it since the accident. I can't remember who I am really, but I do know that Mr. Topper is not my dad."

"Tiny, Ben, your real father is a wonderful man..." began Janice.

"Where is he? Have you met him?" asked Tiny in excitement.

"No...not in person, but we know who he is. Your father is a tinker; in fact he is The Tinker. Years ago, we aren't sure how long ago, Mr. Topper took you away from your father," Samuel explained.

"Why?" asked Tommy.

"Tinker had created wonderful things, inventions to help and heal, things to benefit everyone. He put all of the drawings and details of his creations in a big book. Mr. Topper was part of his team of workers and tinkers. In fact was in charge of the music boxes and instruments. But he was jealous of Tinker and wanted to use the inventions for other things."

"Like what?" asked Tiny.

"Let me guess, making money," said Jayde in disgust.

"That was part of it, but even more importantly, he saw how everyone loved Tinker and he wanted that."

"Why did he take me from my father? How does that make people love him?" asked Tiny in a small voice.

"It wasn't for love. It was for control. In the beginning he had to get people to obey him somehow, so he took you. Mr. Topper had stolen Tinker's Book, twisting the inventions into carnival rides, money making schemes, and even machines that hurt and control people's minds. What Tinker meant for good, Mr. Topper has turned into harm."

"What do you mean 'controlling people's minds'?" asked Jayde.

"He has a way to make us believe in illusions. That is how he has convinced us all that Ben is his son, Tiny. Even Tiny himself believed that Mr. Topper was his father. We aren't sure how long this has been going on, but we do know that as Tiny, Ben has celebrated at least a dozen tenth birthdays"

"What!" exclaimed Tommy and Jayde at the same time.

"Years ago, on one of Tiny's birthdays, one of the workers got lost. He ended up outside of Funtown; we don't know how or why, just that he missed the party. When he found his way back, with the help of a stranger, he didn't tell anyone. For some reason he was worried about how Mr. Topper would feel about it. It took several weeks, but the illusion began to wear off and he started seeing the truth."

"After a few months he started remembering things from his past, a family, parents, siblings, and a home. When he started asking questions it got to Mr. Topper. Someone warned him that Mr. Topper wanted to talk to him and he wrote everything down and hid the paper in his room. The meeting didn't go well, no one ever saw the worker again. But years later someone found the paper."

"Over the years, that paper was passed down, with others adding to it. Somehow, Mr. Topper and Tiny haven't aged since Mr. Topper kidnapped him. It became apparent that somehow during Tiny's annual tenth birthday Mr. Topper was doing something to control the minds of the people. It was the only time that we are all together in one place. During the singing and the music of 'Happy Birthday' we are all sucked into his illusion for another year."

"That's crazy," said Tommy.

"That's evil," said Tiny.

"Why hasn't Tinker come and taken Tiny, I mean Ben, back?" asked Tommy in confusion.

"Most agree that he stays away so that no harm comes to his son, to you Ben. Nobody has seen him for years," said Janice.

"I think I have," Jayde proclaimed.

"When?" asked Tiny.

"The day of your accident. The Tinker that I chased...but that can't be right...he couldn't have caused the accident, could he Samuel?"

"I just don't know...you said that the people in The Village knew who Tinker was," said Samuel.

"Yes."

"Could you find your way there again?" asked Samuel.

"Don't you know where it is?" she asked.

"No, you see we have all been under this illusion. Part of that illusion is that The Village is a wonderful place to retire and live in peace and no one has ever been there, ever seen it with their own eyes...except you."

"How is that possible?" Tommy asked.

"Well, we think because this man you followed led you there. You remember it all because you missed the birthday song, we all did."

"Which is why Mr. Topper wants to celebrate Tiny's birthday today. It's been long enough that we are all starting to question, to dream of our past..." explained Janice.

"Our past, what do you mean?" asked Jayde.

"We think that Tiny isn't the only child who has been stolen," said Samuel.

"So, my parents didn't disappear?" asked Jayde in a whisper.

"We don't know for sure, but we think that you and all of the other orphans were taken just like Tiny," answered Janice.

"We also believe that those missing family members are living in The Village and working Mr. Topper's machines, among other things," revealed Samuel.

"So Poppy was telling the truth?" said Jayde.

"Who's Poppy?" asked Tommy.

"Jayde, why don't you tell Tommy and Tiny about your adventure on his birthday?"

So Jayde explained all that had happened that day, from the chase to meeting Poppy to her accident. Tiny and Tommy asked a few questions while Janice and Samuel listened in. When she got to the part about waking up in the infirmary, Janice interrupted.

"Jayde, we have a confession to make. Your leg was never broken. You just twisted your ankle. When you were brought into the infirmary we did some quick thinking and planning with Doc Luke. We devised a plan to get you into Topperville as a resident and not part of the skate squad. Mr. Topper trusted you and you have a reputation for doing what is right, what he wanted, you follow the rules. So he agreed," Janice confessed.

"So that's how I got my cast off so early. But why couldn't you have just asked me, told me what was going on?" she asked.

"Even though you missed the party, there is still years of mind control working...we even have to fight it every day. If it hadn't been for all those notes, and writings, we wouldn't even know what was going on."

"So now what do we do?" asked Tommy. "We can't just keep letting him use us like his machines."

"We are working on that, Tommy. For now Doc has made these for us." Janice pulled several small devices out of her pocket. "We need to put these in our ears. Doc says we should wear them all day, just in case. We think it is the actual 'Happy Birthday' song, but it could be anything that is announced over the loud speakers."

"How did he make enough for everyone?" asked Tiny.

"He didn't," said Samuel. "Not everyone wants to believe the truth, Tiny. Some people prefer to stay in the illusion."

"Well, not me! Not anymore. And I am going to find my father, my real father," stated Tiny with determination. "In fact from now on I won't be called 'Tiny' anymore!"

"Whoa there, soldier, we have to do this carefully," laughed Samuel.

"I think what Samuel means is that, for now, it would be better if we all keep calling you 'Tiny', in fact we have to behave as if nothing has changed. Do you think the three of you can do that?" asked Janice.

"You mean deceive the deceiver?" asked Tommy with a grin.

"That's exactly the plan," said Samuel matching Tommy's smile.

"Sure thing," agreed Tommy easily.

"I'll do my best," said Tiny.

"How long?" asked Jayde.

"As long as it takes," answered Samuel all laughter gone out of his voice.

"Will we be able to find our real families again?" asked Jayde. "Because now I am pretty sure that the images of the two little girls playing dolls in front of the fireplace are memories."

"We are going to do the best we can to reunite the families. We have to get through today first. So all of you need to put these in your ears now. They shouldn't show and you'll still be able to hear, it will only take out the subliminal sounds," said Samuel.

"What is sub...whatever you said?" asked Tiny.

"We think it is a message that you can't hear with your natural ears, but somehow it goes right to your mind. Doc has been doing some studies and thinks these will work. This is the first time it has been tested against Mr. Topper though."

"You asked me if I could find my way back to The Village. Will I be going there again? Do you think that's where our families are?" asked Jayde, not wanting to let go of the possibility.

"Jayde, Samuel just asked us to get through today first. I know patience isn't one of your virtues, but can we just trust them?" asked Tommy leaning across Tiny to look at her.

"Yes, you're right. I'm sorry. I just want to know...you know."

"Yes, we do know, Jayde. Samuel and I are pretty sure we have parents there too. But we have to be smart. We didn't want to scare you all, but we have heard stories of mechanical soldiers that patrol outside of Funtown. If that is true, then we have to be careful so that our families aren't harmed."

"Mechanical soldiers, one of my father's inventions?" asked Tiny sarcastically.

"We have seen drawings of them..." Samuel stated.

"Ok, then. We continue as we have been and we wait until we hear the word from you. Is there anyone else besides Doc that are on our side?" asked Tommy always the practical one.

"It's best if you don't know. Also, just to be safe, don't discuss any of this outside of your rooms. If we have to send anyone to you we will use the code words 'you're free to choose'."

"I like that," said Tiny.

"We thought you might," said Janice. "Now today is going to be a long day for Tiny. I know I'm asking a lot, but do you think you could take a little nap before the party, Tiny? Unlike Jayde's leg, your head injury was real, and we don't want you over tired."

"Not right yet, but maybe later. Could Jayde and I visit for a while?" he asked.

"Of course."

"Well, Tommy, we better get out of here and get back to our posts," suggested Samuel.

"I'll see you all at the party. So what if the song is cursed...the cake will be great!"

They all laughed as Tommy and Samuel left the room.

"I have some things I need to see to. You two will be ok by yourselves, but if anyone comes just tell them I went to talk to Doc about moving Tiny this afternoon for his party," said Janice before she left.

The only person who came by was Mrs. O'Malley; she came bringing some soft blanket and a thin jacket that she had gotten out of storage for Tiny. She stood looking at Tiny for a bit and finally handed him a small box. He opened it to find a small timepiece clip that he could fasten to his jacket.

"Thank you, Mrs. O'Malley," said Tiny.

"It used to be your fathers," she said and walked out of the room.

"I don't like her very much," offered Jayde.

"She just gave me a present," Tiny replied.

"Yes, an old timepiece that used to by Mr. Toppers," retorted Jayde.

"Everything I have came from him, besides I like it," answered the boy.

"Well, I guess you have a point, but I still don't think I like her. She is always skulking about, like she is spying on us," Jayde said with a shiver.

"I think she is just doing her job, she is the housekeeper," Tiny replied.

"Maybe you're right. I guess the head housekeeper needs to know what is going on in the house," she conceded.

# Chapter 16

# Let's All Sing 'Happy Birthday'

They had managed to get Tiny downstairs by three. He had managed take a rather long nap just after lunch. He and Jayde had avoided talking about the things that had been revealed to them that morning, instead talking about the Skate Squad and stargazing. Thought they hadn't mentioned it to one another, they both had thought about how the very things they loved the most had contributed to keeping them in the dark about their real situation.

Now, they both sat in a cart that was pulled by one of the sweet little ponies from the Daring Denali's riding act. Jayde had been surprised that they had provided for her as well. Her leg was still weak and she appreciated the thought. Plus, she liked being close to Tiny. She had become attached to him as if he were a younger brother.

Mr. Topper had come to oversee the whole affair of getting them nice and settled. They had thick blankets just in case the evening got chilly. Janice insisted that Tiny keep at least one thin blanket on at all times. Mr. Topper was so concerned and caring, even gentle, that a couple of times Jayde found herself wondering if they were all crazy. Making sure that Tiny wasn't overly extending himself, Doc and Janice had pleaded with Mr. Topper to keep the celebration short and simple. Presents were opened first right in the cart, and then Cookie served a wonderful birthday meal out on the grounds, picnic style. Tiny was allowed to get out of his cart for that, Samuel carrying him to his bench. Once again Jayde was able to sit next to him, with Mr. Topper on the other.

Tiny was beginning to tire when they brought out the beautiful cake that Cookie made for him. She had out done the previous one by two extra layers. There were ten candles on the top just waiting to be lit. The cake was set on a low table in front of Tiny and Mr. Topper had the microphone in his hand. First he asked everyone to stand. Jayde couldn't help casting a furtive glance at Tiny, who looked sadly at the crowd in front of him.

"I'd like to thank you all for coming! Tiny and I so appreciate such good friends as you have all been. Cookie the cake is spectacular!" he raved and everyone clapped and hollered.

"Before we see if it tastes as good as it looks, let's light the candles and sing 'Happy Birthday' to Tiny."

The candles were all lit and the music began over the loud speakers. Everyone joined in with gusto. Jayde sang along keeping in mind the warning to behave normally. But she was caught off guard when they finished the song only to have it repeat itself over the speakers. She cast a quick glance at Mr. Topper who stood there looking over the crowd with a gloating look on his face. Hastily she looked away and noticed Samuel and Janice singing with their eyes fixed on Tiny, happy smiles on their faces. So she joined in again.

Jayde sang along and carefully peeked at her timepiece. She tried keeping track of how many times the song was sung, but lost count. Keeping her eyes on Tiny, she saw his smile falter, and finally fade away. The look of sadness on his face almost made her cry. She fought the tears and sang until her voice was hoarse. When the last strains of music died out, everyone clapped and she peeked at her timepiece again. Thirty minutes! They had all been singing for a half an hour.

Tiny put on a brave front and smiled at everyone including Mr. Topper. The cake was cut and if anyone noticed that the candles had burnt down and disappeared into the frosting, they didn't mention it. After they had all had their fill of Cookie's magnificent creation, Tiny pulled on Mr. Topper's coat sleeve and the father leaned down towards his son. Standing straight, he again picked up the microphone.

"Despite the wonderful time he is having, my son is feeling tired with all of the excitement. He would like to thank you all for coming and asks that you stay and enjoy the evening and the food. He will be watching the fireworks from his window."

Everyone clapped and cheered while Tiny was again loaded into his cart. Jayde quickly insisted that she too was tired and that her leg was paining her, so that Mr. Topper allowed them both to leave.

"Would you like me to come and sit with you, Son?" asked Mr. Topper.

"Father, that would be nice...but I think you should stay with your people. They so look forward to spending this day with you every year," said Tiny seriously.

"You're right. You are your father's son. I'll stay here and come up to see you after the fireworks. You'll have plenty of time to rest before they begin. Jayde, I don't think I have properly thanked you for all you have done for Tiny. So, thank you, young lady."

"It has been my pleasure. I am just grateful that you have cared for me during my recovery," replied Jayde following Tiny's lead.

"It's been my pleasure. Never let it be said that Mr. Topper doesn't care for his own," said Mr. Topper lifting his chin in pride.

"No, Sir," said Tiny and Jayde in unison.

"Tiny, where did you get that timepiece?" asked Mr. Topper as he was straightening Tiny's blanket.

"Mrs. O'Malley, she said it used to be yours."

"You must have misunderstood; I never had a piece as simple as that one. Mine are much more intricate. But it suits you just fine."

When they got back to his room, Tiny collapsed into the bed. Jayde, though she felt tired from all the strange events of the day, didn't want to leave him alone. When Janice didn't show up and not another nurse came along, Jayde just decided to climb into bed with the little boy who was crying himself to sleep. She wrapped her arms around him and spoke softly like she had earlier before he had come out of his deep slumber.

Soon he was sleeping. Jayde lay there for a long time, thinking of Mr. Topper and what he had done to Tiny and all of the other occupants of Funtown. Before she too fell asleep, she vowed to herself to do whatever she could to reveal him for the villain he truly was. While she slept Samuel, Janice and many others schemed...

# Chapter 17

# What To Do About Mr. Topper?

It took several weeks of patient planning until Samuel came to talk to the children again. During that time, Tiny had regained most of his strength. Because of the fact that he stayed indoors almost all of the time, a ploy of Mr. Topper to keep him away from others, he had always been weaker and smaller than other children his age. Doc Luke had convinced Mr. Topper that he needed fresh air and exercise. On that recommendation and the cooperation of Jayde and Tiny, they were allowed out of doors. There was always a Senior Skate Squad member along, though never Samuel, and most of the time Nurse Janice as well.

Tiny didn't need a full time nurse any longer so they only saw Janice on these small adventures. At first they just sat on the patio, overlooking the gardens. Then they began to take little walks through the flowers and shrubs. Summer was coming to an end and the garden was giving her last hurrah. Into the second week they began kicking a ball around and Jayde even put her skates on a few times and let Tiny chase her around the patio. Their evenings were spent in Tiny's room, with the telescope out gazing at stars and talking about their futures. Occasionally Tommy joined them for a few minutes before bed, getting special permission from Cookie and Mr. Topper.

Mr. Topper had decided that Tiny's having a few choice friends, handpicked by him, and wouldn't hurt a thing. Jayde and Tommy both were always respectful and helpful. So now Tiny's curtains stayed open, most of the time and he slept more soundly at night, in a new habit of getting up early and going to bed at a decent hour. His face looked rosier and people commented to Mr. Topper how good it was to see him looking so healthy. Mr. Topper himself had noticed how much happier Tiny was... and how much easier to control.

They were getting so used to the 'act' that it was a surprise to have both Janice and Samuel show up in Tiny's room after dinner. Tommy had brought up the tray and had lingered to visit a few minutes. Cookie knew that Jayde was able to fetch the tray herself, but she allowed Tommy the chance to visit with his friends. She had taken a liking to the red-headed girl and had always had a soft spot for Tiny.

"Janice, Samuel, it's good to see you!" exclaimed Tiny getting up to hug them both.

"My, don't you look all strong and healthy," said Samuel roughing up his hair. "Janice told me you've been getting some exercise."

"It's been so nice to be outside," he said smiling.

"What brings you both to visit?" asked Jayde.

"Can't we just come to see how you were all doing?" teased Janice.

"You could, but you haven't been. So?" grouched Jayde impatiently.

"Well, we have come up with a plan and we are going to need all of your help," said Samuel.

The next hour the five of them discussed all of their parts in the plan. When they were finished and everyone was clear on what they were supposed to do, Janice and Samuel left the three alone again. Tommy stayed past his normal time Cookie allowed, but he knew he could get out of trouble by staying late to help with the morning preparations. He knew Cookie had a soft spot for him.

"So..." spoke Tommy into the silence.

"Well, I guess life as we know it is about to change," said Jayde.

"But for the better, right?" asked Tommy hopefully.

"Yes!" exclaimed Tiny. "Don't you want your family back?"

"If I have one. We don't know for sure where any of us came from, except you. I'm all for helping you find your real father, Tiny, but I like working in the kitchen, and Cookie and the others are like family to me."

"I think I have a family, or at least I did. I want to find out one way or another. There is such a thing as truth for truth's sake," said Jayde adamantly.

"Jayde's right. We need to know the truth and if the people in The Village are really being used by Mr. Topper as slaves, with all of you as hostages, then we need to stop him," Tiny replied with determination.

"What about Funtown, all of the workers and Topperville? What will happen to all of this?" asked Tommy spreading his arms wide.

"It will all still be here...but just not under his control," voiced Jayde.

"As long as no one will get hurt, I'll do all I can," said Tommy. "Are you sure you can find your way back there, Jayde?"

"I'm going to try."

# Chapter 18

# Skating Again

True to his word, Samuel had started everything rolling. Within two days, Jayde was back in her Skate Squad Uniform to patrol a partial shift. She still lived in the private wing close to Tiny, as Nurse Janice and Doc Luke had convinced Mr. Topper that this was for the best. But Samuel also indicated how Jayde had been on her way to the Senior Squad and that she was a vital part of the force. So for the past couple of days, Jayde had patrolled Funtown.

Funtown had virtually shut down after Tiny's accident, but now the crowds were back and the noises of Funtown rang in Jayde's ears. Before she had found all of the sights and sounds exciting, now they only sounded noisy and looked fake. The gleaming gold was only simple gold paint, the sparkling crystals were plain glass and the exotic faces just grease make-up. The music of each ride and attraction competed with its neighbor, making Jayde feel a little dizzy and disoriented. At first she hoped that she would get used to it again. Now she just tried to shut it out and do her job.

Not only did she have her normal duties to attend to, she was instructed by Samuel to keep a close look out for the man she had seen the day of the accident and for anything strange. This was harder than she'd thought. Knowing the truth about Mr. Topper and Funtown made everything look strange, what she had considered normal before all seemed abnormal now. On top of all of that, she couldn't help wondering who else knew the truth, who else had warn the earplugs at Tiny's last birthday party.

Her shift was almost over and it was close to lunch time. Though her leg hadn't been broken, it was still regaining strength from being immobile for so long. Jayde's head was beginning to pound and her leg complain. While looking at her timepiece she noticed someone out of the corner of her eye. Trying to act like she hadn't seen, she raised her head and perused the area close to where she had spotted the man. She let her gaze pass him by, but sure enough it looked like the man she had chased. He was standing still, under the sign for Mrs. Morelli's Confectionary and looking right at her.

Slowly, Jayde turned her head back and let her eyes land on him. He stood there quietly just looking at her. Could this be The Tinker, Tiny's father? She wondered. When neither one of them moved time seemed to stand still. Finally he gave a slight bow and turned and walked away from the crowds. Jayde stood frozen to the spot. How she longed to follow him! But she had learned her lesson, no more running off on a whim. She would report to Samuel and do what she was told. The senior member that she had been patrolling with came up to her to remind her that it was time for her shift to be over.

"Our replacements are here. I'll go back with you and eat some lunch before I come back out for my afternoon shift," said the girl. "Are you ok? You look a little pale."

"My head is hurting a bit and my leg is bothering me. I think I'll pop by the infirmary before I eat lunch."

After lunch, Jayde sat in Tiny's room, just the two of them and related what she had seen. Tiny sat giving her his full attention, leaning forward in his chair as if he could catch more of what she was saying that way. His little eyebrows were pulled together and he sat as still as a statue.

"He was not tall, but he wasn't short exactly. His hair was longer than Mr. Topper's but not as long as a girl's. It wasn't as dark as yours. His clothes were like any tinker's; he had on the thick canvas pants with suspenders holding them up. His shirtsleeves were rolled up and he had a tinker's muscles. I was too far away to see his face... I guess that's all I can remember."

"I wish I had been there," said Tiny.

"It probably wasn't your Dad, Tiny. I don't want to get your hopes up," said Jayde.

"Why not! Hope is good! It helps me to pretend that everything, all of this, is ok."

"Well, hopefully I will get to see Samuel or Janice today so that I can tell them what I saw. Did Janice come by this morning?" she asked.

"Right after I had breakfast," he answered. "She didn't mention coming back. I miss having you both here during the day."

"I know, but if we all just sit in your room all day, who will be working on making things better?" asked Jayde.

"But, what am I doing to help?" he exclaimed.

"You are tricking Mr. Topper and keeping your eyes and ears open," she reminded him.

"A lot of good that does, I never leave my room."

"Why not? Has Mr. Topper forbid you to leave?" inquired Jayde.

"Well...no..."

"Then don't just sit here, unless he tells you different, walk about the house, visit Tommy in the kitchen, pop in to see Cookie," suggested Jayde.

"I guess I could. I don't ever remember being told not to go out of my room, just Mr. Topper encouraging me to stay in and read or watch the stars at night. At least he doesn't keep shutting the curtains anymore and I get to have my window open to let some fresh air in."

"Just make sure that you don't do anything to make him keep you in your room. Don't be nosy and ask too many questions. Just keep your eyes and ears open and your mouth closed as much as possible," said Jayde.

"Thanks, Jayde."

"For what?"

"I don't know, everything, for being my friend. I never had one before and now I have you and Tommy and Janice and Samuel."

"Janice and Samuel say that friends are the same as family if they really care about one another," she explained.

"I do care, so I guess that makes you my sister," he giggled.

"I guess it does," she laughed.

Later that evening, Jayde got her wish and Samuel dropped in while they were having dinner in Tiny's room. Tommy had dropped off the tray with no time to talk, having promised Cookie he would be right back this time. Samuel had already eaten so he made small talk while the other two finished up their evening meal. Finally wiping her mouth on her napkin, Jayde took a deep breath and repeated the day's events to the squad leader.

"He never tried to approach you or talk to you?" asked Samuel.

"No, he just stood there looking at me," she answered.

"Did he look threatening in any way?" Samuel continued.

"No...in fact he looked friendly, if that makes any sense."

"I am proud of you, Jayde for not chasing after him. You followed directions well. Next time you see him, don't chase him, just approach him, or follow him without it seeming like you are trying to apprehend him. Do you think you can do that?" he asked.

"What do you want me to say to him, if he does talk to me?" asked Jayde.

"Just ask his name...maybe introduce yourself and tell him that I would like to speak to him about the day of the accident."

"What if it isn't the same man?" she asked second guessing herself.

"Jayde, trust your instincts. Do you think it was the same man?"

"Well, yes I do," she said with more conviction.

"Do you think he may have been my father?" asked Tiny.

"I'm just not sure, Tiny. Give us some time and maybe we can find out if he is, and if not, maybe he could help us locate your father. You are sure that he isn't a tinker you've seen before?" he asked Jayde.

"Only the day of the accident," she answered.

"Ok, then I guess I better be getting back to the dorm," said Samuel as he stood to leave.

"Samuel!" cried Tiny jumping to his feet.

Samuel turned and paused at the door, "Yes."

"I'm going to start leaving my room during the day and keeping my eyes and ears open," he said.

"Why, that's a great idea. Just be careful that you don't mention any thing about what we are doing," he warned.

"Jayde already told me that," grinned Tiny.

"That's because she cares about you," said Samuel.

"She told me what you said about families. We are a family now, aren't we? So even if I don't find my father, I'll never be alone again."

"No, Tiny, we are never alone when we have people who love us," agreed Samuel past the lump in his throat.

# Chapter 19

# Poppy's Surprise

No matter how hard she looked, Jayde did not see a sign of the tinker over the rest of that week. Her leg was back to normal and Tiny was stronger than ever. Tiny had begun his wanderings and had made a few new friends, but hadn't heard any vital information. Both of them were beginning to get discouraged. The only time either of them had seen Tommy in days, was when they went to the kitchen. Tiny had been eating his breakfast and lunch with his father in his private suite, while Jayde ate with the other cadets. Evenings were still spent together in Tiny's room with Jayde fetching their dinner tray.

Now they were sitting on a bench overlooking the gardens, just Jayde and Tiny. It wasn't time for dinner yet and the early fall breeze smelled of turning leaves and chrysanthemums. Jayde still had on her red uniform and black shiny skate boots. Tiny looked tired and maybe even a little sad.

"I don't know how much longer I can keep pretending to love and respect Mr. Topper," Tiny said looking around to make sure no one was watching.

"Shhhh, Tiny, you know we aren't supposed to talk about that outside of your room," whispered a worried Jayde.

"But...I'm starting to wish I had left those earplugs out on my birthday. At least then I didn't know any better. I just went along in a hazy dream happy to be watching stars and seeing my pretend father."

"Just hang in there," encouraged Jayde squeezing his hand. "Why don't I activate my wheels and do a few tricks for you?"

"If you want to..." he said without any enthusiasm.

"Sure, I love to skate. You know...maybe I could get a pair of skate boots for you!" said Jayde as she skated in circles in front of Tiny.

"Do you think you could?" he asked.

"Sure, there are some benefits to having Mr. Topper for your father."

"I guess you are right. I get to live here and Cookie makes my favorite foods. I have a lot of new friends now..."

"I'll ask Samuel about it tomorrow. Now why don't you get up and stop sulking, I bet you can't catch me," she invited.

"I bet I will be able to if you get me some skate boots," squealed Tiny as he jumped up to try and grab her when she glided by his bench.

Just as Jayde was crawling into her bed that night, there was a soft knock on her door. She hastily jumped out of bed to see who it might be. Samuel was standing in the dimly lit hallway so she ushered him into her room. It had been such a long time since she had spoken to him, that her heart started speeding along in her chest, she just knew something was up.

"Sorry to come so late. Were you sleeping?" whispered Samuel.

"No, I was just ready to though," she whispered back.

"I just wanted to tell you that I think I saw your tinker today," he said.

"Oh," Jayde gasped, "why do you think it was him?"

"I have never seen him before and he stopped and looked at me just the way you explained."

"Did he talk to you? Did you approach him?" asked Jayde.

"No...when I started to cross the street...he just sort of disappeared," replied Samuel.

"What, what do you mean he 'disappeared'?" she inquired.

"I don't mean that he vanished into thin air, he just lost himself in the crowds. There have been so many people here lately, it's like Mr. Topper is trying to make up for the time we were closed during Tiny's illness."

"Well," said Jayde. "Now what?"

"I guess we just keep doing what we are doing. Doc is working on something he thinks may reverse some of the memory loss, but he hasn't had much success. Has Tiny heard anything interesting?" he asked.

"Not that we can tell. He is getting frustrated though. He told me today that he didn't know how much longer he could keep pretending...and he said that he almost wished that he didn't know the truth," Jayde replied.

"That's what we were all afraid of," said Samuel wearily.

"Just do what you can to encourage him and I'll pop by real quick and see if he is still awake. Maybe I can say something to help."

"Goodnight, Samuel," she said.

"Goodnight, Jayde," he answered softly.

Just after Samuel shut the door, she heard footsteps moving down the hall in the opposite direction. She tiptoed to the door and peeped her head out. There was someone just turning the corner. Jayde couldn't be sure, but she thought it looked like Mrs. O'Malley.

The next morning Jayde woke up after dreaming about wonderful things. She couldn't quite put her finger on what they were completely about, but they were sunny, happy dreams, the kind you want to go back to sleep and dream again. So she hopped out of bed early and got dressed as quickly as she could. She was on patrol this morning and she was excited after talking to Samuel the night before.

On her way down to eat in the dining hall, she stopped by Tiny's room. He was still in bed. She almost left, but she heard him call from his bed. When she reached up to open the curtains he told her not too.

"What's wrong, do I need to get the doctor?" asked Jayde.

"No...I just don't feel like getting up yet. I don't want to eat with him this morning. If I can pretend to love him, I can also pretend to be sick. So I am staying in bed all day," he said stubbornly.

"My, aren't we the grouchy pants this morning!" said Jayde as she pulled the curtains wide.

"Hey!" exclaimed Tiny.

"I am your big sister now, and sisters don't let their little brothers wallow in self pity. Now the pity party is over and you, young man, are getting up. This morning you can come and eat with the skate squad, we'll just leave a message on the tray when they bring it up to Mr. Topper explaining that we are getting you some skate boots today."

"Do you think he'll be mad?" asked Tiny.

"Has he ever hit you? Punished you before?" reasoned Jayde.

"Well...no," he answered.

"Did he ever tell you that you couldn't eat with us?" she continued.

"No, he hasn't."

"Ok, so what are you waiting for, if you are eating with me, and we are going to get a note on that tray, you need to get up!"

"Ok, ok," he laughed.

After a hearty breakfast with Tiny and some of her skate friends, Jayde left Tiny in the capable hands of Ivan who promised to see what he could do about getting a pair of skate boots for him. Mr. Topper hadn't interrupted their breakfast or sent for Tiny, so the boy's worries disappeared and he was in a much better mood than when Jayde had found him that morning.

She was also excited. Her expectations were high, in her heart, she knew that today was the day she would see the tinker again. Something from her dreams fed that expectation. Samuel was right about the crowds, it was all she could do to walk between then all and keep her eyes open. Several times she had to stand up on a bench just to look out over all the heads of the adults. She was luckier than most being taller than the other children her age.

By the time her shift was almost over, she was tired and beginning to get a little grumpy herself. Once again the noise of Funtown was threatening to make her head start pounding. When she heard a little one crying over the noise, she tried to make her way through the people to detect what the problem was. Finally breaking through the masses, she stopped dead in her tracks. There was a little girl all frills and lace holding onto the tinker's hand. He was squatting down and talking to her.

Jayde stood there frozen, not sure what to do. She started to yell, but for some reason just couldn't get it out of her throat. Then he picked the little one up gently and started walking through the throngs of people as if he knew just where he was going; only he wasn't heading toward the lost and found...

Jayde followed as best she could without being seen. After a few blocks on the boardwalk, Jayde caught sight of a frantic mother gripping an arm of another skate squad patrolman and pointing away into the crowd. Jayde continued to creep closer staying where she couldn't be seen. When the tinker and the girl got closer, the little one let out a piercing shriek and the mother turned. Rushing over, the tinker handed the little one off with a gentle smile. Jayde was close enough now to hear the mother thanking him for bringing her toddler back to her.

The mother and child walked away with the little one waving goodbye to the tinker over her mother's shoulder. He lifted a hand in farewell and turned to look directly at Jayde. Nodding once, he walked away into the crowd. Jayde followed him, but didn't activate her skates. She was never able to gain on him, no matter how fast she walked, but she knew she wouldn't be able to skate in the crowds. The tinker seemed to be making it easy for her, even pausing a few times to make sure she was still behind him.

When they got to Mrs. Morelli's Confectionary, she realized that he was leading her back the way she had chased him before. Stopping, she decided to find Samuel and was just about to turn around when she noticed he too had stopped. Jayde looked at the man she had been following and he beckoned her with his hand. Right then she made up her mind to follow him and find out who he was once and for all.

They left the boardwalk behind and soon Funtown proper and zigzagged through dusty narrow roads until once again Jayde watched him walk into the same doorway. It was Poppy's house. Timidly she approached the house. With the weather being cooler, the door was shut. Jayde knocked boldly on the door and a face peeked out of curtain-less window. It was Poppy that answered the door, not the tinker. She grabbed Jayde by the arm and practically yanked her into the little shack, slamming the door behind them.

"Jayde! What are you doing here?" she demanded.

"Nice to see you too, Poppy," Jayde chuckled. "I don't suppose you let a tinker in here before me."

"The tinker again...no, no tinkers today," Poppy giggled.

"What do you mean, 'today'?" asked Jayde with her eyebrows puckering up.

For an answer, Poppy just grabbed her arm again and dragged her over to the little light coming through the window and held up what should have been her missing arm. But before where there had been empty space, now was a strangely beautiful mechanical arm. Jayde could see the gears and rods moving and turning as Poppy bent her arm up and down.

"Poppy! What-what happened to your arm?" stammered Jayde

"It's a long story, come and sit with me," said Poppy reaching for Jayde.

"I can walk, you don't have to drag me," laughed Jayde. They both sat on the pallet in the corner. "Ok, spill the beans."

"After I saw you last time things began to happen. Several people had seen the man you chased. It was Tinker, The Tinker, Jayde! He came here and he brought this!" she indicated her arm. "And he has been showing up with gifts for everyone. New arms and legs, earpieces to repair hearing, and mother got an eyepiece that allows her to see things very small."

"Why...what did he say?" asked Jayde in disbelief.

"He never says much, but he does a lot. He's helping us and giving us hope. Last time he was here, he told me you'd be coming and not to be afraid. I'm supposed to tell you who I am, who you are..." replied Poppy suddenly bashful.

"Who I am..." whispered Jayde, her heart drumming away in her chest.

Poppy reached over and took Jayde's hand, gently this time. She looked Jayde in the eyes and for just a minute, Jayde saw her own refection in Poppy's blue eyes.

"Jayde, you are my sister," stated Poppy plainly.

Jayde sat there silent. Her mind was twisting faster than a tornado and her heart went quiet. She closed her eyes and there on the back of her eyelids she saw the two little girls playing with dolls in front of the fireplace and she knew it was true.

"Poppy...you are my little sister," Jayde was the one grabbing this time, pulling her sister into her arms and laughing and crying all at one time. They hugged each other tight until Jayde yelped. "Ouch, I think that you aren't used to your new arm yet."

"Sorry," laughed Poppy. "It is much stronger than my old one was. I am still learning how to use it properly."

"So...I have a mother, a father?" asked Jayde.

Poppy turned away for a minute before answering.

"Our mother, Cynthia, is working. She works in the big Merry-go-round," Poppy replied.

"And our father?" probed Jayde.

"Our father, Jayden, was taken away. Mr. Topper took him over a year ago..." explained Poppy sadly.

"Where, where did he take him?" pleaded Jayde.

"That's the long story. Father decided that he wasn't going to do what Mr. Topper said anymore. He demanded that you were returned to us and said that we were leaving Funtown. Other's had tried before and people tried to warn him, but he just couldn't get over the fact that our family was torn apart..." she began.

"Wait," interrupted Jayde, "How did all of this happen, why are you here and how did I end up in the orphanage?"

"We came here to visit. An invitation came for all four of us to come to Funtown. Mother and Father planned a vacation and we came to spend an entire week here. You were so excited, I don't remember too much since I was just a toddler, but I've heard the stories over and over. Father was a builder and he owned his own company. We lived in a big house in the country and Mother stayed at home with us. We had servants and supposedly we were quite spoiled."

"Then on our last day here, you disappeared. Mother and Father looked everywhere and when Father went to talk to Mr. Topper about it he admitted that he had you. He demanded that Father stay and work for him and threatened to hurt you if he didn't. He promised that if Father cooperated, that you'd be taken well care of. Father refused. He came back to our room and we packed up, his intention was to go outside of Funtown and bring back help. We made it out of the main gate and were stopped by...by the patrol and taken through a back way here, to The Village. When we got here, there was a pile of your curly red hair on the table. Mother saved it and keeps it under her pillow," Poppy continued her story.

"Now, here we are. When I was eight, Mr. Topper said I could come to the orphanage if I wanted to, I didn't, so he put me to work inside the rides. I worked there every since until I lost my arm...that's when Father lost it. So they came and took him away."

"Where is he, can we get him out?" asked Jayde.

"He's been changed. Look, why don't I just show you," she said.

"You can see him, you know where he is?" demanded Jayde.

"Come on, you can see for yourself."

The two girls crouched behind a stack of lumber on the outside of The Village. Poppy had warned her to be quiet as a mouse and to keep herself hidden. Pointing to the tall rod iron fence, Poppy again put her finger to her lips to signal Jayde to stay quiet. Jayde's legs were beginning to complain about squatting for so long when she heard a whirring and thumping. Squinting her eyes, she could see something coming around the corner, outside of the fence.

Jayde's stomach felt all empty and goose bumps formed on her arms. There was a machine in the shape of a man, patrolling the perimeter of the fence. He carried a type of weapon that looked like a gun, had metal legs and arms and shined in the afternoon sun. As he got closer, Jayde gasped at the sight. The machines face was a face of a man. His head was shaved and he had a helmet on his head, one eye was covered with an eyepiece that moved like a lens of a camera. The uncovered eye looked cold and vacant.

Jayde couldn't watch any longer and turned away from the fence. She slithered down to a sitting position and tried to breathe. Samuel and Janice were right, Mr. Topper had mechanical soldiers. There was no way out of Funtown, unless Mr. Topper let you out.

When they got far enough away that it was safe to talk, Jayde stopped Poppy in the dusty street.

"Is that the monster who took our Father away?" she demanded.

"No, Jayde, you don't understand, that 'monster' is Father," said Poppy.

Jayde's world turned black and she slumped into the dust.

When Jayde came to, she opened her eyes and found herself looking into the kindest eyes she had ever seen.

"Tinker," she whispered in wonder.

"Yes, Jayde. It's me," he answered warmly.

"You-you're Tiny's father," Jayde said.

"I am."

"He needs you," she said sitting up.

The Tinker sat back on his heels and looked at Jayde.

"I need him as well. In fact I need you all," Tinker explained.

"To do what?" Jayde stammered.

"I need you to tell the truth, to stop all of the lies," instructed Tinker.

"But, he has my father...he's holding us all hostage! We are only children!" Jayde began making excuses.

"All of those things are true, but when he doesn't have any hostages..."

"Then our families will be free to go," said Jayde in confusion. "What about my father, those-those machine's that patrol?"

"You leave that to me, your job, and Tiny's job is to be yourselves. Who are you Jayde?" asked Tinker.

"I'm me," she said shrugging her shoulders.

Tinker looked at her with his eyebrows raised, the way a mother looks at her stubborn child.

"...and I am a member of the skate squad,"

"And?" prompted Tinker.

"I am sister to Poppy, daughter of Cynthia and Jayden." She began to pick up steam. "Friend to Samuel, Janice and Tiny and, and, I don't know what else."

Tinker laughed, "That is quite a lot. Now, Jayde I need you to go back to Topperville and tell Samuel what I have said."

"Can't you talk to him? I can bring him here..."

"No, Jayde I've chosen you to do this." Tinker stood and offered his hand to Jayde. She reached up and allowed him to pull her to her feet. "And I want you to tell Tiny that he isn't ten any longer. He was awake for his last birthday, no more sleeping. Tell him he is growing up and to remember who he is."

"But I don't understand, how am..."

"Jayde," he stopped her, "Do you trust me?"

"Yes," she sighed.

"Then go back and talk to Samuel. Tell him about your father."

"Where is Poppy?" she asked, looking around.

"I sent her back home to tell your mother what has happened today."

"But I didn't even get to say goodbye," whined Jayde.

"Goodbyes are a thing of the past. Next time you see Poppy, things will be different!" he smiled at her. "Now, I have carried you to the edge of the boardwalk, so go! Skate as fast as you can and find Samuel."

Jayde looked at the contagious smile on his face and smiled back at him, activated her skates and took off like a shot back to Topperville.

# Chapter 20

# Chosen

Jayde found Samuel sitting down for dinner. She grabbed a plate and whispered in his ear before walking to a deserted table in the corner. Samuel waited for a few minutes, not wanting to draw attention. He finished up his last bite and after taking his empty plate to the cart, went to sit with her.

"So, how was your shift," he asked loudly.

"Oh, you know, same as always," she answered just as loud. Then she whispered so only he could hear, "I need to talk to you!"

"I have to be on duty in fifteen minutes," he whispered back. Then again in his normal voice, "We seem to be short a skater tonight, would you mind going back on duty this evening with me?"

"Not at all, I love patrolling," she answered with a wink. "Just let me finish up my dinner and I will meet you at the station."

Samuel walked away and it was all Jayde could do to get a couple of bites down. She noticed that Mrs. O'Malley was watching her out of one of the doorways. Taking her plate to the cart she then popped her head in the kitchen. Not seeing Tommy, she turned to leave and almost knocked a tray out of his hand.

"Looking for me?" he smiled.

"I have to do an evening shift; can you meet me in Tiny's room after you are done with chores? Beg Cookie; tell her that Tiny has some stars he wants to show us."

"Sure, what's up?" he asked seriously.

"I'll tell you later, just be there! And watch out for Mrs. O'Malley, I think she's spying us."

While on patrol, Jayde told Samuel bits and pieces of what happened. Evening patrol was always quieter as some of the guests stayed in their lavish rooms ordering room service. But it was still noisy enough to drown out their conversations. By the time their shift was over, only part of the story had been told. Samuel agreed to find Janice and meet back in Tiny's room.

They were all there, Tommy with a plate full of big soft molasses cookies, Janice and Samuel, both still in uniform, and Jayde who had changed out of hers. Tiny had set up his telescope just in case anyone was to drop by and had books open to charts and maps for all to see. They were in Tiny's sitting area. Samuel asked Jayde to start at the beginning and tell them all what had happened on her morning shift.

She was interrupted several times with questions and comments of the others. When she got to the part about waking up to Tinker, Tiny leaned forward looking as if he was trying to hear with every ounce of his body. Then Jayde looked at Tiny and told him what he was longing to hear.

"He said he was your father, Tiny."

The little boy looked like he couldn't decide if he should cry or leap and shout. So he sat and wiggled and kept repeating, "I knew it, I knew it."

"He said that you aren't ten that you are supposed to grow up. He made it sound like he needed you to do this, Tiny. I'm supposed to tell you to grow up and to remember who you are," finished Jayde.

"I will! I can feel myself growing right now!" he shouted.

"Not so loud, little guy, or should I say 'big guy'," laughed Samuel.

"Jayde, did he have instructions for the rest of us," asked Janice, always the practical one.

"He said we were supposed to tell the truth, and be who we are," Jayde said with a shrug. "I told him I didn't really understand what he meant. I don't know if we are supposed to tell everyone that Mr. Topper is a fake, or that Tiny is really Tinker's son...I just don't know. He wasn't very detailed about that. And when I asked about my father, he said not to worry, that he would take care of that."

"I think maybe he means we should all be who we are...Jayde you like to boss people around and Samuel you know how to motivate others...you know who we are," suggested Tommy.

"I think you are right," said Samuel. "We each have strengths, things that we are good at."

"But he also said we had to tell the truth," said Tiny, "does that mean I can tell Mr. Topper that he is a..."

"NO!" said Jayde and Janice at the same time.

"I think that you, that we, will have to still pretend around Mr. Topper for a while yet. But it's time that the others know what is going on. We will need to take care in how we do this; some people won't believe what we have to say. I think a good place to start is with the ones who have questioned in the past. There are always a few who never seemed to just swallow it all hook, line and sinker," Samuel recommended.

"You mean like Victoria," said Jayde softly.

"Yes," answered Samuel.

"I guess I will have to apologize to her while I am at it. To think that I hated her for the things she implied about Mr. Topper and she was right all along."

"Jayde, all of us have been deceived, even the adults. In fact it seems like the longer they have been in Topperville, the more they believe in all of its lies. Maybe that's why Tinker chose us," said Janice.

They all sat quietly for a moment thinking of the fact that Tinker chose them to help break Funtown and Topperville free from the tangled web of lies. Suddenly Tiny hopped up off of the floor and whispered, "Someone's coming, and I recognize those steps!"

By the time Mr. Topper came breezing through the door, Tiny was at the telescope with Tommy and Samuel, while Janice and Jayde were gazing intently at one of the charts. He paused in the door and narrowed his eyes, before putting on his phony smile.

"Well, what have we here?" he asked.

"Good evening, Sir," said Janice, "Tiny was showing us a special alignment."

"I see, I see," Mr. Topper said nodding his head. "I think that it is getting late, have you all had a look?"

"Yes, Father," answered Tiny in his sweetest little boy voice. "Well, you haven't."

"Well, then I guess I better," he said puffing out his chest and walking to the telescope. While he looked and Tiny chattered, Mrs. O'Malley came into the room.

"Sir, can I speak with you in private, it's a most urgent matter," she asked.

"Now," he raised his eyebrows in two question marks.

"If it is convenient," replied the housekeeper stiffly.

"Of course. Goodnight, Son."

"Goodnight... Father."

"That was close," said Tiny with a sigh.

"I think we should be going," suggested Samuel.

"Does anyone else think that Mrs. O'Malley is kind of, I don't know, creepy?" asked Jayde.

# Chapter 21

# The Truth

The very next morning, Jayde sat with Ivan, Vicky and a few of the other junior squad members that she used to sit with. Vicky wasn't happy about her arrival at what she considered her table. She had quite taken over as the leader of the group since Jayde's life had changed and she wasn't willing to give that spot back to Jayde.

"Well, look who the cat drug in. What do we owe the sudden pleasure to? The senior squad didn't want you sitting with them today, or let me guess your new little friend is not feeling well today?" sneered Vicky.

"Actually, I came to apologize," said Jayde with confidence.

"Oh," Vicky squeaked, taken by surprise.

"You know the things you were saying to me the day of my accident, on Tiny's first birthday? Well, it turns out you were right and I am sorry for not believing you," Jayde apologized.

"We were right about what, exactly?" asked Ivan.

Things aren't what they seem in Topperville, and Mr. Topper...well he's not nice," explained Jayde leaning forward and lowering her voice.

"What are you talking about?" Vicky said while rolling her eyes.

"Tiny, is not Mr. Topper's son," she dropped the bomb.

"What!" whispered several people at once.

"His real father is a man called Tinker..." and Jayde proceeded to tell them the story of Tinker's book and Mr. Topper's lies.

"What you are saying is that we all might have families in The Village?" asked Vicky.

"I can't promise that you do, but I've met my sister and seen my father," Jayde left out the part about him being used as some kind of mechanical soldier.

"So, what can we do to help?" asked Ivan.

"That's exactly what I'd hoped you would say," grinned Jayde.

She spent the next few minutes giving them a few simple instructions, then before she left she reminded them to only share with those they knew they could trust, and under no circumstances to try to find their families in The Village.

Samuel did the same with his friends in the senior skate squad and the people he always helped out, Janice spoke to Doc Luke and some of those at the infirmary, while Tommy kept silent. He knew that Cookie worshiped Mr. Topper and would never believe that he could be evil. After a few weeks, word was spreading and at any given time you could see heads bent together and hear whispering in the dining hall. The residents of Topperville and the staff were beginning to learn the truth. So far Mr. Topper hadn't noticed.

Then one overcast fall day, ripe with rain, right before the trees gave up their leaves everything changed. A storm blew into Funtown. A storm like never before. The rain and the wind were so terrible that the gates of Funtown weren't opened and the crowds were sent away. The rides were locked down, windows were shuttered and everyone was told to stay inside where it was safe.

Jayde was in the dining hall with Samuel. Tiny was not in his room, and they hadn't seen him all day. Everyone was nervous with the tension of the physical storm outside as well as the storm brewing in Topperville. Most of Topperville were there in the dining hall, Cookie having set out steaming pots of tea and cold pitchers of milk along with plates of cookies and treats. Tommy was busy carrying and fetching until finally he sat down with Jayde and popped a whole cookie in his mouth at once.

"I found out where Tiny is," he said spewing some crumbs out of his mouth.

"Yuk," sputtered Jayde, "can you at least swallow first."

"Where is he," asked Samuel.

"He's with Mr. Topper and they are both at the workshop. Word is that Mr. Topper is worried about the stability of some of the rides in this storm and he has all of the tinkers in there trying to figure out what can be done. If you ask me, he's too late for that. No one in their right mind would go out in this to try to fix anything," Tommy explained.

"But how many of them are in their right minds. The tinkers are all still under his control, not one of them is on our side," Samuel groaned.

"Why is that?" asked Jayde.

"We aren't sure, but Doc thinks that maybe they are being controlled in a different way than the rest of us, same with the mechanical soldiers. Why else would they do what Mr. Topper asked? They know that he is up to no good, but still they go along. Do you think that all of those tinkers believe Mr. Topper created all of this on his own?"

"Just one more thing to figure out," said Jayde.

"Actually Doc might have already done that," Samuel replied. "And since so many of us are in one place today, he is trying it out."

"Trying what out?" asked Tommy.

Samuel leaned in and lowered his voice, "See those pots of tea, and the pitchers of milk?" he waited until they nodded. "Doc Luke has made a potion to help people remember. Janice has snuck it into the drinks."

"You mean right now, we are all drinking a potion?" asked Jayde.

"Well, most of us. Just knowing the truth isn't enough, we have to remember who we are and Doc thinks this will work. He has been taking it himself for a couple of weeks now and it seems to be working with no side effects," said Samuel.

"How did she sneak it past Cookie and Mrs. O'Malley?" Jayde inquired.

"No one has seen Mrs. O'Malley today and Cookie is too busy to notice."

"Wow, how long does the potion take?" asked Tommy taking a big drink out of Jayde's cup.

"That we don't know. He said that every person is different, and he thinks the younger you are the faster it will work."

"Oh, I gotta go, I see Cookie giving me the evil eye over there," Tommy grumbled.

"Look at it this way, the more people you serve, the more of the remedy they will drink..." said Samuel.

"In that case, why don't we give him a hand? We don't have anything better to do and I'm sure Cookie will be glad to have the help," suggested Jayde.

For the next few hours, they carried out more refreshments and helped Cookie in the kitchen. Janice showed up now and then and poured small glass vials full of clear liquid into the drinks or handed it over to Jayde and Samuel to do. While the storm raged, the rest of Topperville began to remember.

# Chapter 22

# Out Into the Storm

By lunch time, most everyone had drank at least one glass containing Doc's remedy. So far Jayde hadn't noticed anything different and no new memories had surfaced. She was watching the others closely but there were no looks of surprise on any faces and in fact everyone had seemed to calm down a little.

The storm was still blowing itself over Funtown, but they all felt secure in Topperville. Jayde couldn't help wondering how the occupants of The Village were doing. Their homes were little better than the castles you can build with a deck of cards and she kept picturing them blowing away.

When she asked Samuel about it, he just shook his head and told her they would have to trust that Tinker was taking care of them.

The fierce wind was wrecking havoc on Cookies ovens, sending puffs of smoke back into her kitchen. So the flues were closed and big platters of sandwiches were being served for dinner. Samuel and Jayde, along with a few more volunteers continued to lend a hand. Jayde was helping Tommy chop and clean some vegetables while Samuel helped carry the heavy trays into the hall. They ate in shifts since they were all there at once.

The first shift had eaten and the last group was sitting down to eat when the door of the hall blew open and a group of men flung themselves inside. They were yelling for the infirmary staff to come with them. Several of the nurses and assistants hurried to the door and in chaos and more blowing wind, were escorted out the door. When they were gone only one little boy was left standing, dripping wet and shivering. It was Tiny.

Jayde quickly brought him in and took his wet coat off. Someone else handed him a hot cup of tea while a place was cleared for him at the nearest table. With shaking hands he gripped the cup and took a sip. Jayde took off her sweater and wrapped it around him waiting for him to warm up.

"He made them go out," Tiny said through his shivering lips.

Jayde looked across the table at Samuel knowing exactly who he was talking about.

"They didn't want to, they told him it was no use and too dangerous, but he made them. Funtown is blowing apart. The t-tinkers..." he buried his head in Jayde's shoulder and cried.

"Did some of them get hurt?" asked Jayde softly.

Tiny nodded his head against her. Cookie came bustling in and instructed that he be brought into the kitchen where it was warmer. Tiny clung to Jayde insisting that she come with him. Though they had shut down the big stoves and ovens, they still held some heat from earlier. Once he had warmed up a bit and drank some more of the tea, Tiny sniffed and told them what had happened.

"The tinkers were trying to tie down The Screamer and it blew over on top of them. Some of them were crushed and others were hurt, but the worst part was that there were people inside. They were dressed in rags and were screaming...there was blood," he began.

Jayde and Samuel waited for him to continue and neither one noticed that everyone in the kitchen had stopped what they were doing and were listening.

"Then Topper called into this box and those soldiers came, the ones that are part machine and they herded those people like they were animals. The rides began toppling and people were streaming out and all the while those soldiers were marching and shoving them away. Topper was yelling at the unhurt tinkers to pull out the injured ones. It was all so scary. I saw it all from the control tower. He had left me there alone. I thought it was going to crash too..."

"How did you get back here?" asked Samuel.

"I came down out of the tower and the wind knocked me down. Someone picked me up...I think it might have been one of the workers, and then there was this loud screeching noise and another loud crash, the tower fell...oh, Jayde," he started crying again, "it fell on Mr. Topper."

There was a collective gasp in the room and Jayde looked up to see that everyone was listening. Cookie had her hands over her mouth and others had shocked looks on their faces.

"Tiny," said Samuel in a stern yet gentle voice, "Where is Mr. Topper?"

"They took him to the infirmary with all of the other one's they could get out. He was bleeding...a lot," said the little boy. "I know I said I hated him because he stole me from my real Father, but..."

"It's ok, Tiny. He's been the only father to you for a long time. It's ok to feel sad," Jayde comforted him.

"Is it true?" asked Cookie with her hands on her hips. "That Mr. Topper isn't his father, that he left him in the tower alone."

"Yes, Cookie, I am afraid it is," said Samuel sadly.

"He could have been killed," Cookie said with ice in her voice.

"But he isn't, he's safe here with us," Jayde reassured.

"What about all of those others, the ones that were in the rides?" asked one of the assistants. "Who are they?"

"From what we can tell, they are our families," answered Samuel.

In the silence of that kitchen, realization began to dawn on some of the younger helpers, memories began to surface. It took some time before the silence was broken by Tiny himself.

"The storm, I can't hear it anymore!" he said in wonder.

"The child is right! Now, I need every able body to get to work. Get those ovens fired up, Samuel you get some of your skate squad and some carts. Bring everyone who isn't hurt back here. Jayde, get yourself over to the infirmary and see if there is anything they need from us, and..." Cookie choked back a sob and said, "See how Mr. Topper is doing."

Then she noticed Tiny sitting there all alone.

"Tiny, do you think you could scrape some potatoes for Cookie?"

"Y-yes, Ma'm I think I could do that," he answered.

"You go get some dry clothes on, then you and I are going to make us some soup, good hot soup, that's what these folks will need," and with that she wiped her eyes on her apron and got back to work.

Jayde was stunned to see how the storm had changed the landscape around Topperville. Branches and leave were scattered everywhere. The rain had stopped, but everything felt wet and heavy. Topperville, the infirmary and the main workshop were all no worse for wear, but in the distance, where rides should have been visible, there was nothing. They were still bringing people into the infirmary when Jayde got there. Trying to keep out of the way she called out to Janice when she spotted her.

"Jayde, you shouldn't be here," scolded Janice.

"Cookie sent me," explained Jayde, "she wanted to know if there is anything you need...and she wants to know how Mr. Topper is?"

"Doc Luke is in with him right now. I think he may have some broken bones and he has a nasty cut on his head. I don't know anything else. You can ask Cookie to send us something warm to drink, and ask Mrs. O'Malley to send some extra blankets, we have people here who aren't hurt that bad, but they are cold and in shock."

"Mrs. O'Malley is missing, no one has seen her at all today. Cookie has Samuel bringing, the ones who can come, to the dining hall. Do you think they can come there instead?" suggested Jayde.

"Yes, that's a good idea. I don't know how much room we are going to need," answered Janice. "So just have her keep the blankets there and send someone back to help get the stable ones to Topperville."

"Janice," called Jayde as she was leaving, "have you seen any of the people from The Village?"

"No, Jayde, I'm sorry," Janice sounded sad and tired.

After relaying the message to Samuel, Jayde stopped in the kitchen to inform Cookie of the change of plans and check on Tiny. He had a pile of potatoes in front of him and was working hard, Cookies idea of keeping him busy was working like a charm. She told her what she knew about Mr. Topper and then pulled her aside where no one could hear.

"Cookie, I am worried about those other people, the ones that Tiny said were inside the rides and the ones that were left behind in The Village. I've been there and they live in these little rickety shacks. I don't suppose any of them are even standing after such a storm and they may need help."

"Girlie, this day just keeps bringing bad news, doesn't it. Do you think you could get to where they are with all the damage that's been done?"

"I can try, but what could I do alone?" she asked.

"Tommy and Tiny, come here boys," she called as she motioned for Jayde to wait.

"Yes, Cookie," Tommy walked over to where the two were standing in the corner helping Tiny off of the high stool as he went by.

"Tiny, do you think you can tell Tommy what that 'box' looked like that Mr. Topper was controlling those soldiers with?" asked the wise cook.

"Sure, I've seen it before on his desk lots of times before," Tiny confidently nodded his head.

"Tommy, I'm going to get some stuff together for you to take to the infirmary, grab a couple of helpers to go with you. While you are there, you will find that box. I don't care if you have to pick the pockets of Mr. Topper himself, you bring that thing here. Understand?"

"Yes, Ma'm," Tommy grinned from ear to ear.

"He won't have to; I'll go with him to show my father how concerned I am for him. I can get it from his pocket, my hands are smaller," Tiny reasoned.

"Oh, Cookie! If we get that, then we can help the people in The Village," cried Jayde as she tried to get her arms around the large woman.

"That's enough of that," sputtered the woman, blushing and patting Jayde on the back. "Now off you go boys, you have a job to do."

# Chapter 23

# Neither Monster Nor Machine

Getting the control box ended up being the easiest part of the whole day. When the boys got to the infirmary Mr. Topper was snoring and drooling in his bead. It seemed that Doc Luke gave him more than pain medicine in his hypodermic needle. Tommy watched the door of the private room while Tiny dug around in his pockets. He finally found it in the inside pocket of his vest.

They practically ran back to the kitchen and to Cookie. Jayde had changed into some warmer clothes and had her skate boots on. Cookie put the box on her work table, hefted up her largest iron skillet and smashed the box to smithereens.

"That should do it!" bragged the happy cook. "Now, what are you waiting for, girlie?"

"Wait, Jayde, I want to go with you!" cried Tommy.

"Hurry then, go get your skate boots," replied Jayde impatiently.

"Maybe you should take some other helpers," suggested Tommy. "If I could skate I'd go with you, but since I can't I'd only slow you down. You can go on and I'll catch up."

"You're right, help me find Ivan and Vicky," said Jayde grabbing his arm and pulling him out the door.

It took much longer than it should have to get to the end of the board walk. They had to skate around branches and pieces of the rides and attractions. In some places the boardwalk had been blown apart and they had to deactivate their wheels and walk.

Now they stood on the dirt road and it looked as if the storm had stopped right on the edge of the boardwalk. Everything looked exactly as it had the last time Jayde had been there, not a board had shifted on a single shack. The streets were all clear and there wasn't a single branch in the road.

"It's as if the storm passed over this whole area," Ivan said with awe.

"Then maybe this was a waste of time," shrugged Vicky.

"No, Tiny said that there were people who were hurt and the soldiers were herding them in this direction. We need to check and see if there is anyone who needs our help," Jayde took command.

"What about those machines? How do you know that breaking that box changed anything?" asked Tiny.

"We don't." Jayde simply stated. "Look, if any of you don't want to come, you can stay here or go back. It's up to you."

"I'm going," said Tiny with determination.

"I'm in," replied Ivan calmly.

"Me too," sighed Vicky.

They had to walk in on the dirt roads as their skates just wanted to sink. The shacks all seemed empty and The Village was quiet. As they rounded a corner closer to Poppy's they found what they had come looking for. There were mechanical soldiers slumped here and there on the ground with people gathered around them. Jayde could see the Tinker in the middle of the street.

Her companions looked around in shock at the ragged people and the dirty little shanties, at the slumped soldiers and huddled closer to Jayde. But Jayde only had eyes for the Tinker who stood looking towards them with tears on his cheeks. Jayde bent down and whispered something in Tiny's ear. The boy jerked his head up and looked up the road. Then he took off running straight into the arms of his true father.

"Papa," he yelled as the Tinker grabbed him up and held him close.

Jayde and the others began to walk toward the happy reunion, when someone called her name. Turning to the side, she saw Poppy sitting next to one of the soldiers, with a thin, yet beautiful woman sitting on the other side. My mother and my father, she thought. By the time she got to her family, Tiny and Tinker were there as well.

The soldier looked up at and spoke one word, "Jayde?"

Jayde stood there with tears running down her face, looking at the man who was turned into a machine. Poppy and her mother were both sharing Jayde's tears.

Tinker let go of Tiny's hand and squatted down next to the soldier putting his hand on the man's shoulder.

"Yes, Jayden, it seems we both have our children back today."

"What happened?" he asked as if waking from a dream.

"It's a long story, my friend, but now we have people who need our help. There are injured."

"That's why we are here, Sir," offered Ivan. "Cookie sent us to see if we could help and to bring anyone who wants to come to Topperville."

"Hmm, Topperville...well Ivan, you are right. We need to move everyone injured or not, they all need a good meal and some hope. Do you think you can gather the rest of your patrol, Jayden?" he asked kindly.

"Yes-yes, Sir, I think I can." With a whirring and grinding he rose up from the ground, giving Jayde a sad look, and walked away.

"Jayde, you need to look past the mechanics and see the man," Tinker spoke at her side.

"I don't know if I can," she stammered.

"It may take some time. This, young lady, is your mother, Cynthia."

The woman came forward and stood in front of Jayde her face wet with tears.

"Mama," whispered Jayde as she stepped into the hug.

Tiny reached up to take his father's hand again, and Tinker looked down with a smile.

"Ben," he said to Tiny, "can you help us get everyone gathered up and moving to your home?"

"It's not my home, Papa, it is his."

"You are wrong about that, son. I built what you call Topperville. Only I named her Beulah. The infirmary and the main workshop are all my handiwork," informed the Tinker.

"Those are the only buildings that withstood the storm," Vicky whispered.

"Children, we can talk about all of this later, I promise, but for now, we have work to do. Mrs. O'Malley!" he called.

Jayde and Tiny looked at each other in shock.

"Yes, Tinker," and there she stood...smiling at them.

"Children, you all know Mrs. O'Malley. She has been watching over you all for me," he explained.

"But...we thought you were..." stammered Jayde.

"I see you are wearing your father's watch," Mrs. O'Malley said with a nod.

"Was this your watch, Papa?" Tiny asked with wonder.

"Yes, Ben." He ruffled Tiny's hair and then began to give them orders.

# Chapter 24

# The Fall of Funtown - or Mr. Topper's Trouble

With the help of Doc Luke and at Tinker's suggestion, Mr. Topper slept while others set to work. First the sick were cared for and rooms were found for every person from The Village. The other tinkers needed special attention to rid them of Mr. Topper's control. All of the laborers, skate squad and the mechanical men, set to work right way tearing down The Village while under Mrs. O'Malley and Cookie's supervision the new additions were fed and clothed. Everything belonging to Mr. Topper was boxed up and stored in a shipping crate.

Tinker was the only one who knew exactly who belonged to whom and restored family members to each other. It turned out that Tommy was Cookie's grandson, which explained a lot. Ivan and Vicky both found their families. There were more surprises and some disappointments. Several children were still orphans and Samuel promised to find out what had happened to their families. All were welcomed and accepted at Beulah.

Things had been so busy and hectic that Jayde hadn't gotten much of a chance to talk to her family. For now she was still in her room that was close to Tiny's. Tinker had re-established himself in his home and was once again in his own room. His kindness and honesty had the people happily following his directions and suggestions. Soon rumors began to circulate about Mr. Topper and what was going to happen to him. Some were saying that Tinker was going to 'make him disappear'; while others said that Mr. Topper had lost his mind and that he was going to a 'sanatorium.'

One afternoon, after things had settled a bit, Tinker asked several people to meet him in his study. Jayde, Tommy, Mrs. O'Malley, Doc Luke, Janice, Samuel and Tiny, who was now insisting everyone call him Ben, were all there, as well as several others. Tinker sat behind the big desk where Mr. Topper used to sit and Jayde couldn't help the shiver that went up her spine.

"I asked you all here for several reasons. First, I would like to thank those who took care of Ben, my son, while he was away from me. I would also like to thank those of you who helped free everyone from Topper's control. It took much faith and bravery to do what you have done. Now, I know that everyone is speculating about what I am planning for Topper. I have decided to simply allow him to take some of his own medicine."

"Topper will be sent to work in a manufacturing facility outside of Beulah; his rule in Funtown is officially over..."

"But Tinker, you can't just let him go!" interrupted Jayde.

"Patience, Jayde," he said looking at her kindly. "He will be fitted with a collar that will keep him inside the facility and a small area outside. If he tries to leave or remove the collar, well, let's just say it wouldn't be beneficial for him to do that. None of you will ever have to see him again after he leaves this place."

"Sir?" said Ivan politely.

"Yes, Ivan?"

"Why let him live at all?" he voiced what everyone was thinking.

"Because my son asked me to and even had he not, you cannot undo the damage that was done by behaving the way Topper would have. We have Beulah back again, The Village has been destroyed and soon Funtown will be replaced with schools and libraries, workshops and stores."

"What will we call it now?" Tommy inquired.

Tinker looked at Ben and nodded his head.

"We are calling it Tinker's Town," said Ben with a huge grin.

Several others had questions and comments. Tinker was patient and answered and listened to everyone. After several hours, Tinker gave some instructions and put some people in charge of different jobs. The atmosphere was one of hope and excitement about the future. Finally as everyone was leaving, Tinker asked Jayde to stay behind. Nervously she stayed where she was, Ben turned and gave her a little wave as he left and she smiled despite herself. It was so good to see him happy.

"How are you Jayde?" asked Tinker coming to sit in the chair next to her.

"I am good, Tinker," she answered without looking at him.

"Are you? You seem a little lost to me," he commented.

"Well, Sir, so much has changed..." she said.

"Yes, there have been a lot of changes for everyone."

"I guess...I'm having a hard time accepting all that has happened. I mean, I never even knew I had a family and now...and my father is, is not the same..." she tried to explain how she felt.

"The memories are coming back now, aren't they?" Tinker asked softly.

"Yes," sighed Jayde. "I think that is what is making it all so hard. We can never go back to the way things were. We won't be moving back to our big house and my father will never be the same again."

"I think none of you will ever be the same again. It's not just about how your father looks, or what he can do now, your hearts and minds have been changed. You are all free to leave if you like, there are no prisoners here. In fact several families are going to go once they are stronger to find their other relations. They will be the ones telling the truth to the rest of the world about who Topper really was."

"But we aren't leaving, are we?" she asked.

"No, your parents have chosen to stay and to help here. Your mother was a teacher and your fathers a builder, both are needed."

"What will I do?" she asked.

"You will go to school and of course, there is still the skate squad..."

"You are keeping the squad?" exclaimed Jayde.

"Sure, we will be having visitors soon and there will always be a need of peacekeepers with or without Topper. Besides, Ben wants to join the squad," he chuckled. "Now, Jayde, why don't you go and talk to your father. He didn't choose his changes, but he is learning how to live with them, just like you all will have to do. Can you help him with that?"

"Yes...I could try, Sir," she said finally looking into his eyes.

"I am proud of you Jayde. You and Ben will be good friends and your places in Beulah will be an important one when you are both grown up. Topper has put too much responsibility and demands on the children, simply because they are easier to control. My desire for you all is to be able to live as children until you mature to take your place as adults."

"Thank you. But didn't you have me tell Tiny, I mean Ben, that he had to grow up?' she asked.

"Of course, he couldn't stay ten forever. That was Toppers plan. He was afraid that if Ben grew up he would take everything he had built away from him. So he kept Ben young and immature. I want Ben to grow up naturally and take his rightful place as my son, but we aren't going to rush things," he said with a smile.

"Tinker, before I go, can I ask one more question, and please don't get mad..."

"You can ask me anything."

"That day that Ben fell, did you cause the...I mean, did you stop the ride..." she couldn't even finish.

A look of sadness crossed Tinkers face and he took a deep breath before answering.

"Yes, Jayde. I did."

"But Ben was hurt," she whispered.

"Yes, he was. Jayde, sometimes we have to do hard things. I knew that the only way to set Ben free was for him to go through what he did and through his pain that all of you would be set free. Ben and I have talked about it and he said he would do it all again."

Jayde looked up at him and saw the tears in his eyes. Swallowing the lump in her throat she said, "Then I am glad that you did it."

"So am I, Jayde."

About the Author

Jodi has always loved the written word. She enjoys writing almost as much as reading. Her tastes run from science fiction and fantasy, steampunk and westerns, to historical and romance. The only genre she will not read, ever, is horror. Now that her three children are now grown, she has begun her writing career. She and her husband of almost 30 years live in Wisconsin. They have seven grandchildren and a spoiled Rat Terrier/Jack Russell. Though she plans on writing some Christian fiction, she also plans on writing some that are purely for entertainment, without any kind of Christian message. Jodi's goal is to make her characters come alive and to provide a small place of escape for her readers.

