A laugh bounces from me. “Three weeks from now, that all-nighter of a party will never stop.”
“Can’t wait.”
I glance to the front of the room and spot a woman with short dark hair having a rather animated conversation with Julian—and I can’t help but muse, it looks as if he’s two-for-two tonight.
One of the men I was just introduced to, Zeke, heads their way, and Julian raises his hand to him before stalking off behind the water tank.
The lights blink on and off, and Jasper and I quickly take our seats near the front next to Emmie and Leo.
Bright pink and yellow lights begin to swirl around the stage area, and soon Julian takes his position to a warm applause.
“Welcome, ladies and gentlemen.” He gives a polite nod. “Tonight, we honor two very special people as they’re about to tangle themselves in unholy matrimony.” A round of laughter ripples through the room. “I’d like to ask for an assistant from the crowd.” He stalks forward and points to a girl with short brown hair, and judging by the way her arms are folded tightly across her chest, she seems to be an unwilling participant. He takes her by the hand despite her resistant efforts and the audience breaks out into cheers.
My eyes widen a notch as she steps into view. It’s the same girl he was arguing with just before the lights went out.
Interesting.
The show begins, and Julian regales the crowd with a never-ending rainbow handkerchief he yanks from his sleeve, then her sleeve, then from the bottom of her skirt much to the audience’s delight. He then proceeds to do a few more run-of-the-mill routines before he gets around to pulling a live rabbit out of a hat—to which the rabbit replied internally, not this again. Leo and I were the only ones who laughed at that one.
And once his cheesy birthday party tricks run out, Julian’s tricks take on a darker, far more polished feel, and he proves himself to be every bit the mystic he introduced himself as earlier.
About twenty minutes in, he asks his lovely assistant to introduce herself to the audience, and the brunette leans into his mic apprehensively.
“My name is Bernie.”
“Bernie.” He runs a gloved finger across her cheek, and I’d swear I saw her flinch. “Beautiful name for a beautiful girl.” He leads her to an elongated table with a purple cloth draped over it. “Come, lie down.” He helps her do just that. “Close your eyes and think of better times. Think of the one your heart loves most.”
She glances to the crowd, specifically to the far left corner of the room, and it makes me wonder if that means the one her heart loves most is within our midst.
Julian says a few mystical sounding words before giving a sharp roar and snapping away the purple tablecloth, revealing what looks to be nothing underneath the girl.
The crowd gasps as Bernie floats seemingly suspended in midair.
Julian quickly scoops up a few glowing pink hoops off the floor and trails them around the entire circumference of the girl’s body, proving that, in fact, she is floating freely through the air.
A thunderous applause breaks out, and I lean toward Jasper.
“How is he doing that?” I whisper. “Is he really that good?”
Jasper shakes his head. “I don’t know. But I’m betting you’ve asked that question a time or two about me.” He gives a playful wink my way. “It’s almost as if I could read your mind.”
A dull laugh bucks from me as I elbow him in the ribs.
Aside from Leo, Jasper and Georgie are the only ones apprised of my strange gift as well—outside of my friends in Honey Hollow, that is.
Julian snaps his fingers, thus breaking the spell, and he catches the woman as she falls limp into his arms. He helps land her upright and the entire room is roaring with applause.
“And now”—he gives a slight bow—“my final act of the night is one that I am loath to share with you. Let’s hope I can get this right.” He grins out at the audience, assuring us the opposite is true. “Ever since I was a young boy I’ve been terrified of tight spaces and bodies of water.”
I look to Jasper with amusement because we both know I share the same two fears.
“But tonight, performed for the first time in years, I will be shackled and placed in this aquatic chamber that just might be my tomb.”
Fish burrows her head into the crook of my arm. I don’t have the stomach for this.
“Me neither,” I whisper.
Zeke and Archie step up and help wrap enough chains around Julian’s body that he qualifies as a metallic mummy. They help him step up to the top of the tank and onto a bench that sits over the expanse of it as they shackle his ankles together and his hands behind his back.
“Ladies and gentlemen”—Julian’s voice bellows over the room with an eerie echo—“should I not live to take another sweet breath, know this…” He dips his chin a notch and the room grows silent. “The answers you seek are often buried in your own backyard.” A nefarious smile takes over his face for a moment. “Now let’s hope I can get this right.”
A titter of laughter circles the room as Zeke moves a lever and Julian is plunged into the waiting water below.
Zeke and Archie work to secure the lid over the top and not an inch of air is left behind. It’s terrifying to witness. My worst nightmare is coming to fruition right here in the heart of my inn.
A blue stage light illuminates Julian as his hair fans softly back and forth while he writhes to free himself.
“I can’t watch,” I say as Jasper wraps an arm around me.
“Trust me,” he whispers. “Not one of those locks was secured.”
“That makes me feel better,” I whisper
