antagonize him!â
âExcuse me, but thereâs every need!â grumbled Esmeralda. âHeâs a total loony and a complete waste of our time!â She paused at the head of the final steep stairway to the stage. âListen, my lad,â she said. âItâs up to you and me and Jack to get ourselves out of here.â
âHow?â Trundle asked mildly.
âI donât know. Maybe we can convince the steam moles to help us after all. Come on, Trun, we need to go and talk to Jack.â She winked at him as she began to climb down the steps. âTop secret, you know! Maximum security! Mumâs the word!â
Chuckling to himself at her perfect imitation of the commander, Trundle followed her down into the unending chaos of the opera house.
A s they came down to ground level again, they heard a piercing shriek and saw Sheila go plummeting by into the orchestra pit. There was an odd booomoiiinnnggg sound, rather like a stoat hitting a drum. Sheila rose up again, her arms and legs flapping. She lost momentum and fell, accompanied this time by the sound of a drum skin tearing apart.
âMy drum!â someone yelled. âGet her out of it!â
âGurrrgh . . . urrrgh . . . wurrgh . . .â Sheila gurgled as several pairs of helpful hands lifted her out of the broken drum and carted her off while the drummer sat by, his face in his paws, sobbing quietly to himself.
Trundle and Esmeralda made their way down to the side of the orchestra pit. Jack was there, the musical score spread out across his knees. He was perusing it with a furrowed brow while adding some rosin to the bow of his rebec.
His face cleared as he saw his friends approaching. âMy, but this is good larks!â he said with a grin. âItâs total mayhem, of course, and I canât make head nor tail of the opera the count has written. But itâs such a treat to be among other musiciansâIâve really missed that, you know.â
âWell, Iâm glad someone is enjoying himself,â said Esmeralda. âBut thereâs still the Crown of Wood to be found, Jack! We canât stay here forever. I know weâve outrun Aunt Millie and the pirates for now, but theyâre never going to give up looking for us. Iâm sorry if Iâm spoiling your fun, but we need to get out of this place as soon as possible.â
âI agree,â said Jack, unperturbed by Esmeraldaâs tone. âWe were told to seek for the crown in Hammerland, were we not?â
âWe were,â agreed Trundle.
âWell, just take a guess where the first performance of the countâs opera is due to take place?â Jackâs grin stretched even wider. âIâll give you a clue. It begins with an H and ends in âammerlandâ!â
Esmeralda gaped at him. âTruly?â she gasped.
âAbsolutely!â nodded Jack. âFirst stop, Hammerland.â
Esmeralda gave Trundle a slap on the back. âDidnât I tell you not to lose heart, Trun, my lad?â she declared, although so far as Trundle could remember she had said no such thing. âI knew the Fates wouldnât let us down!â
âSo, if we stay with the opera house, weâll get taken to Hammerland,â said Trundle. âThatâs marvelous . . . if the place ever gets finished, that is.â
âHmm, good point,â said Esmeralda. âSomeone needs to take this lunacy in hand, and quickly, too!â She stared around herself, rolling up her sleeves. âUs Roamanys have been putting on shows and erecting big tops for five hundred years!â she announced. âIâll show âem how to get organized.â She fixed a determined eye on a crowd of goats failing to raise a timber beam. âAnd Iâll start with that useless bunch!â
Trundle and Jack watched as she marched over to the fumbling creatures and started shouting orders.