“Aww, pickles,” Leila whispered.
“What now?” Carter asked. The clock was ticking.
“Easy peasy,” Leila said. “Follow me.”
The pair went down one floor, ran into another hallway, and went through a door marked SERVICE ELEVATOR.
“This leads to a back door on the top floor,” Leila said, cracking her knuckles.
“Good thing you know this hotel so well,” Carter remarked.
“A worthy escape artist should know where all exits are at all times. Something I learned back at the orphanage.” Leila grinned.
“Maybe… maybe sometime when we’re not pilfering our stolen stuff back, you can tell me what that was like. The orphanage, I mean. We might have a lot in common.”
To his surprise, Leila’s face went blank. “Yeah, maybe,” she said before stepping toward the elevator door.
Carter felt his own cheeks burn. Bringing up the orphanage might have been a mistake.
When they got out of the service elevator, Leila tried the handle: locked. She pulled a small gum-stick-size box from her swim cap. In it were little oddly shaped metal picks. Leila poked them into the service door lock, and a moment later it clicked. The door cracked open. “These aren’t my lucky picks, but I always have a spare set. After all, a good escape artist needs to know how to open any door at any time.”
“Are you sure you’ve never been a thief?” asked Carter.
“Maybe in a past life,” she said coolly.
Warily, they entered the penthouse suite. The walls were paneled with extravagant walnut wood. Landscape paintings hung in gold frames. Thankfully, no one was in the set of rooms. Leila pointed to a clock sitting on a side table, reminding Carter they had to hurry.
Creeping through the closest doorway, they found a giant bed covered in candy bar wrappers and empty pizza boxes. In the next room, they found the Spider-Lady’s extra sets of arms. It was in the grand master suite that Carter thought to check the bathroom. Sure enough, the bathtub was filled with stolen wallets, watches, jewelry, and more. “It looks like the booty that I saw the frown clowns trying to hide in one of the circus train cars the other night,” Carter said. “The car had already been filled up, so the clowns must have brought Bosso’s most recent booty here.”
Leila whispered, “Just what we were looking for!”
They started digging through it. But there was no journal, no bow, no lucky lockpicks, and no wooden box. “They aren’t here,” Carter muttered, feeling his blood turn hot.
“Then where would they be?” Leila asked.
“I don’t know,” Carter fumed.
“We need to return all this stuff to their proper owners,” Leila said.
“There’s no way you and I can haul out this stuff without getting caught,” Carter said. “We’ll grab our stuff, then call the cops anonymously.”
“But we saw Bosso and the gang pay off the sheriff by the pool downstairs,” Leila said, simmering. “Our hands are tied.” She patted the pocket of her jacket, and Carter heard the clinking of metal cuffs. “If only their hands were tied…” she added, gritting her teeth.
“Hey, there’s one room left,” Carter said and waved for Leila to follow. The last room was locked. There was a handwritten sign taped to it that read:
“Well, that’s ominous,” Leila said. She pulled out her old rusty lockpicks again and went to work. A moment later, the door opened. “Holy guacamole! Look at that diamond! It’s huge!”
In the center of the room was a bed covered in blueprints of a stage, yellow notepads with furious handwriting scratched all over them, and on top of it all, the world’s largest diamond, the Star of Africa.
“He stole it!” Leila said. “Bosso already stole it!”
“No, he didn’t,” Carter said, looking more closely. “My uncle trained me over the years to spot the difference between a real diamond and a fake one. Uncle Sly always said stealing a fake was a waste of time. And this one—it looks real, but it’s a fake.”
“Then why does Bosso have a fake replica of—” Leila didn’t finish her sentence. She and Carter came to the exact same conclusion at the exact same time.
“Bosso is going to switch out this fake one with the real Star of Africa tonight at his show,” Carter explained. “He’s going to steal the world’s largest diamond in front of everyone.”
Carter thought of all the people his uncle had ripped off and of all the heartache that he himself had helped to cause. He cracked his knuckles, then said, “We have to stop him.”
HOW TO…
Move Objects with Your Mind!
You’ve returned! I’m so pleased. I have another trick I’d like to teach you. No lollygagging—let’s get to it.
They say a magician never reveals his or her secrets. Unless, that is, the magician is teaching a fellow magician. Which I am. So here’s a little trick that I think you’ll enjoy. It is certain to astound and astonish! (If not, you have the wrong audience.) We already know that Bosso was planning to move the giant diamond into his treasure stash. Well, this is how to move a ring WITH JUST YOUR MIND (but really with a string).
WHAT YOU NEED:
A button-up shirt–which is what you should be wearing. It’s always nice to look nice on stage. Dark colors are better; black is best.
A stick–preferably one foot (or so) long or a wand, if you’d like A thread–this should be about the same length as from your shoulder to your fingertips. It is best if the color matches your stick or your clothing. (Bonus points if your clothes match your stick!) A ring–perchance one off an audience member’s finger (I’d avoid anything too valuable.)
HELPFUL HINTS (PRACTICE!):
Have I mentioned practice to you before? I have? Good. Let me say it again. Practice before you perform this! (And nap and snack…) You’ll thank me for it later.
STEPS (BEFORE YOU HAVE AN AUDIENCE):
1. Fasten the thread to the top of the stick.
2. Fasten the other end of the thread to a button on your shirt.
STEPS (AFTER YOU HAVE AN AUDIENCE):
3. Ask an audience member for a ring. If you already have one, give it to an audience member to inspect for any trickery. Then ask for it back.
4. Put the ring over the top of the stick, moving it slowly (so no one sees the thread!).
5. Move the stick away from your body slowly. The ring should go up. Now move the wand back toward you. The ring will go down. You now have complete control over whether the ring moves up or down the stick—simply by moving the stick back and forth!
SIXTEEN
After meeting in the lobby of the resort’s main hall, Carter, Leila, Theo, and Ridley raced all the way down the hill to Vernon’s Magic Shop. They didn’t stop for so much as a breath of air. After they rushed through the door, Leila slammed the door shut.
“Abracadabra!” Presto squawked.
Carter and Theo fell to the floor, panting for breath. Ridley leaned back in her wheelchair and fanned herself.