"Get up, lazy bums!" He growled. Outside, the caravan was getting ready to move on. Marco unchained Mike and yanked him to his feet. "Make breakfast for us, now!" Marco commanded.
"Ok." Mike replied quietly, but Marco twisted Mike's arm behind his back.
"You say `yes sir' to me and my brothers, worm." Marco said angrily. "Understand?"
Mike thought his arm was going to snap off. "Yes sir." He gasped. Marco let go of Mike's arm and he stumbled into the kitchen. Maria and Tanya came into the room.
"Ah, our slaves are awake, Tanya." Maria smiled, then looked at Micky. "You and Mike did well last night. For that you and your friends get to eat today."
"They only brought us one wallet, Aunt Maria." Tanya sulked.
"True, but that wallet had a lot of money in it." Maria replied, "It's what is inside that counts."
What Mike and Micky didn't dare tell the gypsies, but later told Peter and Davy, that they didn't steal the wallet, they had found it laying on the ground. Normally, they would've taken the wallet to the authorities, but this time they had to bring it to the gypsies.
Even thought they hadn't stolen anything, Mike and Micky still felt terrible over what they had done.
A short while later, the gypsies ate breakfast and the Monkees were allowed to eat what was left over, which wasn't much.
Soon after,
the trailers were hooked up again and the caravan, along with their
unwilling performers, were off to another town.
Back in Friday's office, the detective and his partner were trying
to find out what they could about this circus that was in town
recently. Saturday was going over old newspapers while Friday was
on the phone. Friday said goodbye to whomever he was talking to and
hung up the receiver. He looked at Saturday.
"Well Sam, I just got off the phone with the director of public works. He tells me there was a circus in town a few nights ago….and they had been set up at the old high school grounds.
"Where those boys found Nesmith's car." Saturday finished.
"Right, and it seems that that circus sure left a mess." Friday continued, "Garbage everywhere. People complained so that's how he found out about it."
Saturday turned the paper he was scanning around and showed it to Friday. He pointed a finger at a small ad underneath the comics.
"Sam the Man's Traveling Circus Caravan." Saturday said. "Never heard of it, but it's a lead."
"See lots of shows for one great low price." Friday read, "For one night only." Friday then read the date the circus was to be there.
It matched the date Mrs. Prudy had last seen the Monkees.
"The date matches." Friday said, looking at Saturday.
"Yes it does, Joe." Saturday replied. "But its been four days. That caravan could be anywhere by now."
Friday picked up the phone once again. "I'm calling the California
Highway Patrol, and tell them to keep a lookout for them. Then you
and I will start looking in the records about this `Sam the Man'."
Unfortunately, as Friday was making that call, the caravan quietly
drove into western Arizona, where the California Highway Patrol
would not find them. The Monkees were unaware of this, of course.
They were more interested in trying not to get a beating from their captors. While Mike and Peter practiced on their balalaikas, Davy and Micky were kept busy cleaning the trailer and the gypsies' instruments, plus any other work the gypsies found for them to do.
They weren't allowed to talk to each other, and the slightest disobedience brought them a slap or worse.
When the caravan stopped around noon., Peter was forced to make lunch for the gypsies, while the other Monkees were locked in the back room where Micky had been chained up earlier.
They talked of ways to escape, but knew they had to do it together, or one of them would die. The Monkees knew the gypsies were using their close friendship to keep them in line, and always kept one of them close by to insure cooperation.
When the Gypsies were done eating, Mike, Micky and Davy were released from the back room and were allowed to go into the kitchen with Peter to eat whatever was left over. Maria went over to Sam's trailer to collect their pay. Micky noticed Peter was keeping his head down, not looking at the others. He reached over and gently lifted Peter's head. Tears were coming down Peter's face and there was some blood at the corner of his mouth. The others looked at him in shock.
"What happened, Pete?" Davy whispered.
"The soup wasn't hot enough." Peter said, wiping his eyes. "I was slapped because the soup wasn't hot enough for them."
He started to sob.
The others gathered around and hugged him, trying to keep him quiet so the gypsies wouldn't hear him. It was all Mike, Micky and Davy could do to not leave the kitchen and have it out with Maria's sons. But they knew the gypsies were much stronger and they would no doubt get a severe beating themselves.
Suddenly they heard Maria coming back into the trailer. She seemed very happy as she called to her sons and niece.
"Good news, my dears!" Maria said happily.
"What Mama?" Zeppo asked.
"I asked Sam where we will be going in the next several days, and where he told me would put us near the annual gypsy clan meet!"
"That is great news, Mama!" Kiko exclaimed, "We will get to meet our gypsy brethren."
"Ah, yes, the good times we always had at those meets!" Rocco replied.
"It will also be a good time to say goodbye to our Monkee Pigeons." Maria said.
"Oh, why, Mama?" Marco asked, disappointed.
"We cannot keep them with us forever, Marco." Maria replied, patting him on the shoulder. "Someone is bound to recognize them or they might escape."
"So what will we do with them?" Tanya asked.
"Kill them?" Marco asked hopefully.
Maria shook her head. "No, Marco. We will sell them to another clan, or to someone who needs workers. Perhaps we can sell them together, or separately so they will never see each other again. That will be a fitting revenge for what they had done to us, right my grumchicks?"
"Right Mama!" Marco, Rocco, Zeppo and Kiko answered with a laugh.
In the kitchen, the Monkees heard every word. Peter began to cry again, and the other Monkees gathered around him and did the same.