Trance (3 page)

I could see Pete’s reflection coming toward us. He had doubled backed through the maze looking for me. The mystery man followed my gaze.

“It looks like your date is searching for you.”

“Didn’t we already establish that he wasn’t my date? Being that I met him, like, ten minutes ago?”

“Nevertheless, he’s hunting you down and likely to spot you at any moment.” He held out his hand. “We could still escape.”

I hesitated. Every cell of me wanted to reach out and take his hand in mine, and get out of here. But I knew nothing about him. I didn’t even know his name.

“Hey, there you are,” said Pete. He looked nervously between the two of us.

“Yeah, sorry. My shoe broke.”

“
Uhuh.” He put his hands in his pockets and shuffled his feet.

The stranger took my hand and lifted it to his lips, placing a single kiss on the back of my fingers. “It was lovely meeting you, Scarlett
Tinks. I hope it happens again, soon.”

I smiled as he winked at me. My heart was beating against my chest in a way that hadn’t happened before. At least not without lots of running.

He turned and left Pete and I alone inside the mirror maze, staring after him.

“Who was he?” asked Lacey.

We had left Pete and Andy in the mirror maze, but not before she had exchanged phone
numbers with Andy first. Pete didn’t ask for my phone number which I was glad about. I’m guessing our non-attraction was mutual.

“That’s the thing, I don’t know. He just appeared out of nowhere, and helped me up off the floor. By the way, these shoes you made me
wear suck.”

“Of course they don’t, they just helped you meet someone you actually might consider dating, didn’t they? That alone means they are the best shoes I own.” She held the heel of the shoe in her hand and inspected it as I limped awkwardly beside her. “From now on, they’ll be my lucky pick-up shoes. You met a guy, and I met someone, too. Two for two. Yep, lucky shoes. Once I fix this heel, I’m wearing them next time. I might meet someone better.”

“They’re all yours. So Andy isn’t your true love after all?” The gravel on the ground crunched under the broken shoe and I had to concentrate on where I stepped, so I didn’t twist my foot or sprain an ankle.

“I guess he was a bit on the boring side.”

“Told you.”

“I’ll give him a chance though. He might be like these shoes and surprise you when you least expect it. Maybe he was just
shy. Shyness can give a bad first impression you know.”

“I don’t see you ending up with a shy guy.”

“Oooh, he could be my next project. I could make him over, dress him up, make him really cool. The kind of man women would fall over themselves to date.”

“Sure. Because all guys love a good make-over.”

She grinned. “Okay. Maybe that was a bad idea. But I’m going to give him a chance anyway. He was cute enough.”

I held my hand to my ear. “What’s that? Is that a romantic soundtrack I hear? The one that starts in every movie as the hero and heroine declare their love by saying ‘
Meh, they were cute enough I suppose’.”

“Very funny.”

We passed the last cotton candy stand before the end of the grounds. “It’s destiny,” I said, as I limped up to the counter. “You want one?” Lacey nodded. “Two sticks, thanks.”

“You make your own destiny.”

I handed her stick of pink sugary heaven over, and took a mouthful of mine, letting it disintegrate on my tongue. My taste buds went into overdrive and I groaned at the deliciousness. “Now this is true love.”

We reached Lacey’s car and I waited for her to unlock it for me, so we could leave. “He smelled really good.”

“Who? The guy?”

“Of course. Who else?”

Lacey shook her head. “You should have gotten his number then.”

“Nope. Now I can dream about him being the perfect man. If I met him again in person, he’d only disappoint me. He’d say something stupid, or do something I hated, and the magic and mystery would be lost. It’s much better this way.”

“You don’t know that.” We got into the car, buckled up, and she turned the key in the ignition. The car fired up on the first go, purring under our seats.

“Of course I do. There is no man in the world that is truly perfect. I’d rather live with a fantasy, than be disappointed in reality.” I licked the last of the cotton candy from my fingers. “It’s like cotton candy - when you taste it, it’s the most delicious thing in the world. But the reality is, it’s just sugar - it’ll rot your teeth, make you fat, make you sick if you have too much. A small taste, you’re in heaven. A
lot and you end up worse than before you had any at all.”

I knew something was wrong as soon as I pulled up outside my house. I had changed back into my own clothes at Lacey’s. She had insisted that I give her the shoes immediately, hugging them to her chest like they were a secret to be kept hidden away from everyone, including me. I also gave back her gold dress and put on my not-as-flattering (but infinitely more comfortable) sack dress.

The lights were still on inside, including the porch light. Usually when I came home at night, the only illumination was the one at the side of the house so I could enter through the back door, closest to my bedroom. My grandmother was a light sleeper, and coming in the front way meant crossing the threshold past her bedroom which inevitably woke her up. If she woke up, she had a hard time getting back to sleep.

I stared at the house, trying to determine any movement inside. If I saw their silhouettes through the window, it simply meant they were having a late night. That wouldn’t be so abnormal once in a while? I frowned knowing it was unlikely.

I got out of my car, closing the door quietly, locking it and walking down the side of the house to the back door.

There was no sign of anyone in the windows. Perhaps they had simply forgotten to turn out the lights before they went to bed? Again, unlikely.

Before I opened the door, through the glass, I could see the note waiting for me on the kitchen table, beckoning me to read it. Notes on tables never contained good news.

I opened the door in a hurry, and picked up the paper. My hand was already shaking.

‘It’s not serious. Your grandfather had a fall and fractured his hip. That’s all. Nothing to worry about. The doctor’s will be able to fix it up,
lickity-split. That’s why we didn’t call you, we didn’t want to ruin your night. We are at Mercy South. I’ll be home tomorrow to tell you more. Love, Rose. Kiss kiss hug hug. P.S. Really, he’ll be fine. Don’t worry! Love you.’

Don’t worry?

I keyed the details of the hospital into my phone to get directions, re-locked the house and returned to my car.

How could a fractured hip, not be serious?

I reversed out of the driveway narrowly missing the letterbox and placed my phone on voice so it could read out directions for me as I drove. The parking for the hospital was close to empty, so I got a park near the entrance. It was ten o’clock and visiting hours had finished two hours ago, but they couldn’t refuse me seeing my grandfather. If they tried, I’d cause a fuss.

The counter nurse whispered the floor and room number making sure that I knew that I had to be quiet by repeating ‘
sick people need their sleep
’, three times. I nodded and walked over to the elevator.

When I got to the room, my grandfather was awake and reclining up in his bed. He looked happy, they must have given him some good pain killers. My grandmother was sitting next to him, holding his hand.

“Just got out, petal,” he said. “They were able to fix me right up. Cracked the femoral joint. Guess this old body shouldn’t be dipping your grandmother too low these days.” He grinned.

“Are you okay, how long are you going to be here?”

He looked across at my grandmother who answered. “A week. They need to be sure everything will heal correctly.”

“You said it wasn’t serious.” I stood at the end of his bed not quite believing how casual they were both being about it.

“I’m still alive and kicking aren’t I? This silly fracture isn’t going to keep me down for long. It’ll just slow me up a tad. Although it probably means I can’t do my last show. That’s a bummer. I was looking forward to it.”

“Who cares about the last
show? I want you to be well.”

“Don’t make a fuss,” said my grandmother. “He’ll be fine. We are lucky, he doesn’t need a replacement, and we’ve got enough money to cover the costs. In a month or two, it’ll be like it never happened.”

“And I’ll get to spend more time with your grandmother. Although…”

“Although?”

“I was counting on the money from the last show. It had already sold out. Don’t want to have to give all that back. Never mind, we’ll get through, we always do.”

“You can use my money, I’ve got enough for all of us.”

My grandmother’s expression darkened. “No. I won’t touch any of that. It’s for you.”

“Then I’ll get a job. To help out. Until you get back and can do your last show.”

My grandfather sighed. “Petal, you don’t have to. Go live your life. You are young, and have the world ahead of you. We are getting old.”

“Speak for yourself,” said my grandmother, grinning.

“Stop worrying and start living.”

I sat down next to my grandmother nodding. I knew that I’d get a job, even if it did mean sitting in a cubicle or a behind a counter at a fast food store. I’d help them until Thomas
Tinks did his last show and had enough money to set them both up in retirement. Then the town, no the world, would talk about the amazing performance from the last true magician.

I woke late the next day.

My grandparents had insisted that I go home and get some rest, although rest seemed to be transient as I drifted in and out of sleep.

I swung my feet out of bed and stood up groggily, trying to shake the lack of sleep from my head. If I was to find a job today, I’d need to be fresh and alert.

I shuffled into the bathroom, and turned on the faucets, waiting for the water to turn a shade warmer than ice cube, and stepped in letting the frigid temperature wake me up fully, before turning the hot tap on further to warm me back up.

Refreshed and dressed, I went into the kitchen and made a quick breakfast of buttered toast and tea, thinking about what I could do.

After I cleared up, I returned to my bedroom, opened my laptop and searched the same listings I did the previous day. Same jobs. Same mundane.

I dialed a fast food restaurant first.

“That position has already been filled.”

“But you only listed it yesterday. Do you have anything else?”

“Sorry, with your lack of hospitality experience, I’m afraid I have nothing to offer you. Think about taking a course, perhaps. Hospitality can be a rewarding career.”

“You want me to take a course to work at a fast food restaurant?”

“Good luck with your job search.”
Click
.

It was the same with the office job and two others I called. Lack of experience, too old (at
twenty-four!), already filled. Well there went my dreams of becoming a world-class feather boa wearing secretary.

I bit the inside of my cheek, staring at the screen as I considered my next move. I was about to close the laptop when a new listing appeared.

Personal assistant to Jason Green, professional stage hypnotist. Position: Performance partner and general admin - organizing schedule, costume decisions, venue booking. Entertainment experience required.

I
dialed. A ladies voice answered and we set up an interview for the following day.

Perfect. And I might even get to wear a sequin or two.

Deciding on what to wear to the interview proved to be more difficult that I imagined. I flicked my finger over the hangers, separating the sparkles and sequins for something conservative. I didn’t do conservative well, and the only thing I could come up with was an ordinary black dress. It was my usual cocktail attire, but if I dressed it down with a trendy
necklace, it could look somewhat corporate. Oh well, better to be overdressed than under.

I laid out my clothes for the next day, sent a quick message to Lacey, and headed to the hospital to spend the rest of the day with my grandparents.

According to the doctor, my grandfather was doing well. He was one of the lucky ones that wouldn’t need a hip replacement. Although he would still need to be extra careful in the future, and that included no more dipping my grandmother during their usual evening dancing.

“Thom’s accident is in the news today,” said my grandmother. “Have you seen it? They are calling him the best magician of his era.” She looked at my grandfather with pride.

“No, you’ll have to show me later. Oh, and I have some news too. I’ve got a job interview, tomorrow.”

“You know you don’t need to do that,” said my grandfather.

“It’ll be fun. I need something to do after our last show anyway. It’s with a hypnotist.”

“
Pfft. Hypnotists are all hacks.”

I grinned. “Totally.”

‘Good luck with the interview,’ texted Lacey.

I stood outside a plain looking building with a small black and white sign attached to a pole that stuck out from the side near the front door. A gust of wind swung the sign and it made a creaking noise giving an eerie mood that matched the grey clouds in the sky.

I walked in.

“We need to fix that sign,” said the woman behind the desk, squinting in its direction. She looked mid thirties, but attractive for her age. Her hair was tied back neatly and she wore glasses that suited her.

“You should leave it. Better for atmosphere,” I said.

“Mr. Green will see you shortly.”

I looked around the room, expecting to see large photos of this ‘hot’ hypnotist that Lacey was talking about. But it could have been any office reception in any city. Pale grey walls (modern, not drab). Newspaper articles framed in matching black frames. Lacey would love the decor.

One of the newspaper articles had a grainy black and white photo on it, but it hung on the far wall and I couldn’t make him out. I looked over at the receptionist wondering if it would be weird to get up and walk across to read it. I shrugged, what would she care, she wasn’t hiring me. I stood and walked to the far wall and peered at the photo.