The rest of the act went as planned, twirling me around, fooling the audience, but that didn’t mean I was okay. I was so not into it. And that made me sad. I resented that woman with the floppy hat for nearly ruining the illusion. Thank God she had disappeared by the time Ricco finished spinning around the boxes and set me free. We took a bow together with the audience still swooning over our kiss.
I focused on Emma, waving at me, as I assisted Ricco with the rest of his act. We’d gone over what he wanted me to do and I had a good idea anyway. Who hasn’t seen magic shows on TV with the pretty assistant distracting the audience while the magician fools them with his sleight of hand?
I was the one distracted.
Never taking my eyes off Emma jumping up and down and squealing with the younger princesses. No, that was wrong. She mouthed the squealing, but she was having a good time. What was I so worried about? Okay, so maybe I was totally on the wrong track. Maybe the poor woman in the floppy hat was a frustrated gym teacher who once upon a time took an aerial class and thinks she knows it all. I should feel sorry for her, not be afraid of her. I sure as heck know what it feels like when you can’t follow your dream. The funny thing was, she gave me good pointers about my silks technique. As if she knew my weak spots. Every performer has them, but when you get good enough, the average person doesn’t notice.
Which chilled me more than I wanted to believe. Who was she really?
I couldn’t tell you. Not then. I didn’t see it. Didn’t want to. But it was there. I just didn’t want to believe it.
I blew off the words sitting on the tip of my brain, like cobwebs pushed aside with a single stroke. Gone. Forgotten. I had something more important to deal with. Assisting this gorgeous man who could make any woman believe he was doing the trick just for her.
Including Princess Katerina.
“I’d be pleased if you’d do me the honor, princess, of tying my wrists together,” the count said, handing her a long piece of black silk.
“Me?” Kat said, laughing. “I wouldn’t want to make your assistant jealous.” She looked at me, her eyes teasing and I wondered what Ricco had told her about us. Of course, after that kiss, I imagined everyone in the audience wondered.
“Signorina Lane will also be assisting me,” he said. I held up a twenty-foot long piece of rope. “I’m a lucky man to have two beautiful women to help me in my act.”
The audience showed their approval with cheers and applause.
With a big smile, the princess did as he asked. Next, I tied the long rope around the silk binding his hands together and pulled it taut so he couldn’t escape. Then, with a lot of maneuvering, Ricco raised his arms up and down while I held the rope and he turned slightly away from the audience when—
Voilà! He was free from the cord.
Princess Katerina examined the silken knots she made, nodded in surprise they were still in place, and then untied them. Then Ricco waved the piece of silk around in a grand gesture and a beautiful dove appeared. Loud applause as the gentle bird perched on his forefinger before he placed it into a large cage.
But he wasn’t finished.
Next, Ricco showed off his magic skills by putting his hand through the lid of a glass box (not really, but it was an awesome illusion) and pulled out three big padlocks. His bare chest was shiny with sweat as he slid off the heavy chain slung over his shoulder and instructed his two prop men to wrap the chain around his muscular forearms and wrists. With their help, I set the padlocks in place.
With his longish, dark hair swirling around his face, his bronzed body muscular and strong, Ricco looked like a crime fighting superhero.
Every woman in the audience wanted him, and every man wanted to be him.
With dramatic showmanship and the twirling strobe lighting overhead to give the act a mystical effect, Ricco grunted and groaned while I strutted around the ring, waving my arms about in a graceful manner to distract the audience. Then, with what I can only describe as amazing strength, he raised up his arms bound by the chain and heavy padlocks and in no more than thirty seconds, the padlocks snapped open and he broke free from the chain binding him.
The crowd roared.
I stood there with my mouth open. How was this possible? I have no idea how he did these tricks. I was just as amazed as the audience. He rocked my world and theirs.
I knew he had one more illusion. I had no idea how he could surpass his performance with the chain and padlocks.
I soon found out.
My eyes did a double take when Ricco motioned for me to get into a large, black box. Uh-oh, we didn’t rehearse this. I shook my head no.
“Please, signorina.” He tried to cajole me with a bouquet of roses he made appear from out of nowhere.
I still said no.
“Chocolates?” He pulled a gold box out of his cape.
“No,” I said, laughing.
The audience loved our banter back and forth. I enjoyed it, too. Every time I said no, they did, too. They didn’t want to see me in any more jeopardy after he sawed me in half. They begged him not to do it. Smiling big, I thanked them. That was part of the illusion. Get the crowd to participate.
I turned and saw Ricco watching me, his gaze holding mine, his laughing, dark eyes sending funny sensations up and down my spine. I could get used to this assistant thing, but I knew it couldn’t last. Then, as if my subconscious reminded me why, I looked over at the VIP section to check on Emma. I let out a breath. Thank God she was still there, holding hands with Marianna and the young princesses, just as enthralled as they were.
“The audience has spoken and the audience is always right,” Ricco said, climbing into the big, black box. His prop men pulled a tall, beautiful black screen inlayed with mother of pearl birds and flowers behind him. “Instead, my beautiful assistant will secure me with handcuffs and then lock me in not one box, but two!”
My stomach flipped. Oh. God. How was he going to pull this off? He didn’t have enough air in that box to last more than a minute or two. What if he couldn’t get out? I began to have my doubts about this whole magic business. Now I begged him not to do it as I secured the handcuffs around his wrists, but he merely cupped my chin with his bound hands and whispered so no one could hear, “Don’t worry about me, Afton, I can do anything . . . except make you fall in love with me.”
Did he have to make me feel so guilty?
This last trick was beyond amazing. When the music reached a crescendo, the two prop men closed the lid and lifted the box into a larger box, then fastened a chain and lock around the outside box to secure it. I was so into the trick, praying he was safe, I put that woman out of my mind.
Had to.
I couldn’t let Ricco down. From what I’d heard beforehand from his prop men, he prided himself on doing his illusions with such speed the audience didn’t have time to think about how it worked.
I watched, nerves eating at me, as the prop men dragged the black screen in front of the large, locked box. The dramatic music came up . . . and, before the audience could take a breath, the magician appeared from behind the screen!
His tall, imposing figure blowing us away.
Wild applause and shout outs for more came from the audience.
Ricco turned and smiled at me. I knew what he was thinking. He taught me that your eye sees only what the mind lets you see. In this case, a skilled illusionist who knew how to dazzle and thrill an audience.
Including me.
He wiped away whatever doubt I had about his craftsmanship as a magician. I wish it was as easy to wipe away my insecurity about him liking me.
I looked over to the royal box to wave to my sister and saw it filled with the Fiorelli family, applauding and wearing big smiles.
Marianna and the young princesses jumping up and down.
But no Emma.
* * * * *
“Ready to meet Princess Katerina?” Ricco said, taking my hand after the applause died down. The music cued up for a short overture before the U.S. team performed.
“Oh, Ricco, I can’t.”
“Don’t be embarrassed, bella. Kat is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met…next to you.” He kissed my hand and I was grateful we were out of the spotlight.
“I can’t meet anyone, not even the princess,” I said, laying my hand on his arm. I felt his muscle tighten and it gave me goose bumps. There I go again. Touching him like we’re a couple, which I remind myself, is never going to happen. “Emma’s gone.”
“Gone?” He sounded really upset and my heart did a cartwheel. He did care. “What are you talking about?”
“She was sitting next to your sister Marianna in the VIP section and now she’s gone.” I fussed with my costume, pulling on it. Nerves. “It’s that woman. She’s taken her.”
“What woman?”
I explained my fears to him, told him about the funny hat she wore, though I left out the part about how she knew my weaknesses on the silks and tried to coach me. It gave me a strange feeling. Disturbing.
“I’ll call security and have them put out a search for her.”
“Thank you, Ricco. You know how Emma tends to wander off. I’ll check the dressing tent.”
Ricco grabbed a security detail while I raced off to the tent. I threw open the flap and there she was.
“Emma, thank God, you’re safe!”
Why wouldn’t I be? she signed.
“I don’t know, but you’ve been acting strangely.” I didn’t bring up the woman in the floppy hat. I didn’t want to upset her or create a bigger riff between us. I texted Ricco that she was okay. He texted back that he had no solid leads yet on the woman with the floppy hat.
Then there was Emma. Something felt off about her.
The hook on your cape is loose, she signed. She held out my white satin cape. I have to fix the clasp so it won’t fall off your shoulders when you make your entrance.
She didn’t look me in the eye. Was she lying to me? If so, why? Without another word, she held out the cape for my inspection, and then scurried off to fix it like a brown squirrel scampering into the dark woods.
I didn’t have time to worry about it. I had to prepare myself for my silks routine. Mentally and with a costume change. A gold lamé bodysuit so silky it made me feel like I was sprayed with gold paint. Emma had designed it with gold spangles and pink beads around the V-cut neckline with a swirl of gold sequins on the sleeves.
Unfortunately, I missed Katee’s ballet, but I could hear the music. She performed her routine playing a trio of dancing princesses. I’d seen her act in rehearsal. It was beautiful to watch. Using holograms and mirrors, Katee danced the story of the princesses who wore holes in their slippers each night when they sneaked out to dance till dawn. It had amazing choreography.
I was doing stretches when I heard an exquisite violin solo and I knew Finley had taken over the ring. I took a moment and listened to the haunting refrain of her music. Again, I wondered what hurt that girl’s soul so much that she played with such incredible feeling?
Emma finished sewing the clasp and as she placed the cape over my shoulders, Sloan’s melodious voice rang out clear and true over the loudspeakers. She wrote a thrilling romance about a struggle for survival. I looked forward to reading it on the flight home. You’d never know it was a fairy tale written by a woman with a broken heart.
When I heard the bouncy tunes of a calliope and the band changed to a brassy tune, I knew Savannah was as nervous as a beauty contestant waiting to make her surprise entrance. I peeked into the tent just in time to see her pop out of a huge shiny, chocolate cake waving her wooden baking spoon like it was a magic wand. Then in typical Savannah fashion, she slid down the fake cake as her chef’s assistants wheeled in her gorgeous twelve-tier wedding cake. Swirls of vanilla buttercream topped with cherries and sugary walnuts. Everyone got a slice along with pastry and bonbons.
I stood in the shadows and watched the fun, the happy faces, then I headed for the ring, praying I could put everything out of my head and do my routine.
It wouldn’t be easy.
I entertained the very real feeling that woman was watching me and for some insane reason, I wanted so much to show her what I could do.