One False Step by Franklin W. Dixon Page B

should proceed as planned,” Frank said.
    Mario pulled the police van up behind the last bus, and the three of them got out. They headed toward the smaller practice tent. “The Masked High-Wire Troupe is the only one that practices here,” he said. “They’re completely separate from the others.”
    â€œI just thought of something, Mario. This is the most acrobatic team in Aérocirque,” Joe said. “I have a feeling that they’re saving the best for last. Whoever they’re going to rob tonight must be somebody really special.”
    â€œI guess we’ll find out tonight,” Mario whispered.
    As they approached the entrance to the tent, Frank reviewed the plans he and Joe had made before they went to bed last night.
    Mario would tell Baron von Battenberg that Frank and Joe were so enthralled by what they had seen in Aérocirque that they were planning a mini act at Bayport High School to raise money for charity. Of course, their circus wouldn’t have helicopters, but it would have high-wire acts, and Frank and Joe wanted to train with some of the acrobats to learn what they could. Mario would tell BaronvonBattenberg that the group Frank and Joe most admired was the masked troupe. If the baron refused to let the boys shadow that troupe, Mario had told them, he would explain that he wasn’t above not only pulling their permit for tonight’s performance in Philadelphia but contacting his network of police officer friends along Aérocirque’s tour and suggesting they do the same thing. Mario assured the Hardy boys that the baron would come through.
    As it turned out, Mario was right on the money. The baron didn’t hesitate when Mario suggested that Frank and Joe practice with the masked troupe.
    â€œOf course, you’ll have to wear costumes and masks too,” Baron von Battenberg told them. “The acrobats in this troupe never practice without their costumes and masks. They won’t work with anyone who isn’t wearing them.”
    â€œWe were counting on that,” Joe told him. “Weren’t we, Frank?”
    Frank smiled and nodded. “Yes, we were,” he said.
    The baron clapped his hands. One of the masked troupe members looked up and the baron motioned him over to where they were standing. Instead of speaking to the acrobat, he mimed that he wanted Frank and Joe to put on costumes and masks and practice with the troupe.
    The acrobat nodded, then he motioned for Frank and Joe to follow them.
    Joe followed, but Frank turned to the baron. “What language do they speak?” he asked.
    â€œThey don’t,” the baron replied. “They’re all deaf.”
    Suddenly, Frank wondered if their plan was going to work. “Were you using sign language?” he asked.
    The baron shook his head. “They don’t know that, either,” he replied. “They just act out what they want people to do, and that seems to work.”
    â€œSo what you’re saying is that none of them use the same signs to let the others know what they want?” Frank asked.
    â€œThat’s about it,” the baron said. “They’re a peculiar lot, but they’re the most exciting of the acrobats. They have nerves of steel. I think that comes with not being able to hear the crowd noise. Nothing throws them off.”
    Joe and the masked acrobat were now on the other side of the tent. They had stopped, and the acrobat was motioning for Frank to hurry.
    â€œThanks very much again,” Frank said. He turned and started running toward them.
    The acrobat showed the Hardy boys to the dressing room. He mimed that he would be by in a few minutes to pick them up.
    Frank and Joe quickly found costumes andmasks exactly like the ones the rest of the masked troupe were wearing.
    When they were dressed, the boys went outside the tent to the practice ring used by the masked troupe. The first acrobat had already communicated