Magician's Fire Read Free Page A

tiniest distraction to him if I’ve been sent miles away.” Arthur held up the ball of paper and glared at it. “The school’s in Dayton, Ohio. So that’s 452 miles away, to be precise.”
    â€œSo what are you going to do?” Billie looked genuinely worried. “We don’t want you disappearing anywhere, Artie.”
    â€œMe neither. What, and not see the two people who do actually take an interest in me? I don’t think so.” Artie flicked the ball furiously away. “I’ll use the normal tricks. I’ve foiled all the other attempts to send me away and I’ll foil this one too, don’t you worry. It’s just it’s a bit much, him doing this. On my… On my b…”
    He stopped. He sat down on a bench, hard. The paper ball was bouncing down the path, and he stared after it, his hands shoved in his tweed trouser pockets. As bad as we’ve ever seen him , thought Harry, and he turned back to the white house again. The tall, rigid figure was still there, the telephone in his hand, his servants bustling obediently around him. Harry’s eyes narrowed, just as his friend’s had done. Then he turned back to Billie who, with a determined look on her face, had plunked herself down on the bench, right next to Arthur.
    â€œDon’t worry, Artie.” She thumped him on the shoulder. “We’ve got you a birthday treat. Pass the blindfold, Harry!”
    â€œBirthday—how d’you know it was my birthday? Oo f ! ”
    The blindfold was from Harry’s shoeshine box. A perfectly clean rag, he had bought it specially, and he swiftly pulled it over Arthur’s eyes and knotted it around the back of his head. Arthur’s hands flailed as Billie hoisted him over her shoulder and staggered off across the park.
    â€œWhere are you taking me? What’s going on— Hey! That tickles!”
    â€œYou’ve always said you wanted to be a magician’s assistant!” Harry ran on ahead. “Wearing the occasional blindfold’s part of it. Ready to row, Billie?”
    He jumped into the little boat moored at the edge of the pond. Billie tottered up to it and Harry helped her in, catching Arthur and propping him on one of the seats. Billie leaped in and grabbed an oar, and Harry grabbed one too. Together, they started to row, picking up speed quickly and passing various ducks.
    â€œWhat is going on?” Arthur, still blindfolded, was laughing now.
    â€œYou’re in the hands of an expert, birthday boy.” Billie sculled to the left. “Not as if I haven’t blindfolded someone before. Tied her up too! The owner of my orphanage, down in New Orleans.”
    â€œYou’ve told us this, Billie!” Harry rowed faster.
    â€œNow that was a real rough business, and I’d only just gotten started then—the Knotted Sheet Dangle, that’s what I call it—not only did I have to deal with the scariest owner of an orphanage there ever was, next I had to jump out the window and climb down a rope of knotted sheets, all the way down to the street below and— Watch out !”
    The boat thudded into the side of the dock. Harry threw the mooring rope, lassoed the mooring post, and helped Billie pull Arthur out. It was Harry’s turn to hoist the younger boy onto his shoulder now, and he stumbled out through the park gate and climbed onto a horse-drawn omnibus. He and Billie sat down, and for the next twenty minutes, they clattered across Manhattan, watching the city shudder past the window and laughing at the odd looks the other passengers were giving them, two scruffy street kids with a blindfolded boy in a tweed suit squashed between them. The omnibus tilted to a halt, and together they hoisted their friend and carried him out onto the street. On the other side, they saw their destination.
    A small, rather grimy-looking diner.
    They burst in through the door, the bell somersaulting above them. They