Chapter 2
Kip Skyler drifted on the calm sea, arms and legs splayed over the black rubber of a borrowed inner tube. A gentle breeze wafted by. Wispy clouds overhead softened the sun’s heat. He had to admit he didn’t feel half bad. True, he was still grieving the tragedy of finding Randy stiff in his cage two days ago. At least he didn’t want to chuck all his props and give up magic forever. Even without his beloved rabbit, he still had the look, the talent, and the patter. He even had the exotic accent…well, exotic enough. If only he could conjure the courage to tell his dad he wanted to pursue magic as a career.
His inner tube rolled with the soft waves. Kip closed his eyes, relaxed by the gentle motion. He was on the verge of sleep when a high-pitched voice called his name. He gazed toward shore. A tiny boy and a tall girl stood together on the private beach. The boy waved frantically at him.
He waved back, recognizing the little chap from yesterday. What was his name? Mickey? No, Mikey. As a lark, he had shown him his vanishing and reappearing coin trick. The little kid’s wide-eyed wonder reminded him why he liked performing. Mikey had even called him a wizard.
Kip paddled back to shore and ambled to his beach towel.
Mikey raced toward him. “I brought my people.” He swung a small plastic bag. “Remember? I told you I would.”
Kip slid into his T-shirt, vaguely recalling the offer. At the time he’d had no idea what the kid was on about. What captured his attention now was the athletic girl who joined them. She seemed closer to Kip’s age than Mikey’s. And they looked nothing alike. Maybe his babysitter?
“Who’s your friend?” he asked the boy.
Mikey swayed his bag in the girl’s direction. “That’s my sister, Windy!”
She rested her long fingers on Mikey’s shoulders in a possessive way. “And you’re Kip?” She sounded surprised but not pleasantly so.
Clearly, she didn’t fancy him. Yet. He flashed a confident smile. The one he’d practiced in front of the bathroom mirror. No smile volleyed back. The only movement came from her short brown hair when a gust of warm air whipped through it.
He tried again with a deep bow. “Pleased to meet you, Windy.”
“It’s Winnie.” Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Is Kip short for something?”
“Stage name.”
His full name was Kenneth Paul Skyler. Not that he’d admit that to her. He loathed his given name. It sounded like he had a lisp. Hi, my name ith Kenneth. Ken was a doll’s name. Kenny sounded infantile. Five years ago, on his tenth birthday, he’d dubbed himself Kip. He’d been answering to it ever since. When he performed magic, he became Kip the Amazing.
At five foot seven, he was taller than most of the girls in his class at school. This girl stood eye to eye with him. She gave him a superior stare that made him feel awkward.
Mikey broke the silence. “Want to see my people now?”
He turned toward the little boy. Anything to avoid the girl’s scrutiny. “You’ve got people in the bag, mate?”
“Toys,” the sister clarified.
“Ready?” Without waiting for a reply, Mikey knelt and upended the bag.
An assortment of plastic horses and green army men bounced onto Kip’s beach towel. At least that’s how they first looked. He bent over to examine an unexpected collection of oddities. Some appeared to be a combination of man and horse. “Coo, Mike! Whatcha done to your horses?”
“They’re palum. Nobody makes palm toys. I had to make my own.”
Even the normal soldiers had been amputated at the knees. Kip lifted one. “What happened to this blighter?”
“That’s a mel-yew. Nobody makes them either.”
“Mel-what?”
The girl rolled her eyes. “Don’t even ask.”
“Mel-yew. They’re the warriors in Frama-12. I call them Minute Men ’cause they’re shorter than a minute.”
“Characters from a game he created. When he grows up, he’ll make a fortune selling it. Right now, it’s in the planning stages.”
Mikey turned to Kip. “Windy’s going to save us from the lurk in by going to Frama-12 in my place to be the general.”
Kip straightened to attention. He grinned at her and saluted.
Windy nudged her brother with her bare foot. “Let’s not get into that with strangers.”
“It’s okay. Kip’s a wizard.”
The girl didn’t look convinced. Kip gladly accepted the challenge. Sunlight glinting off a delicate gold chain around Windy’s neck gave him an idea. His quick peek behind her back, while she focused on her brother, revealed the clasp. He smiled, recognizing it as one he could easily unfasten. He’d practiced multiple times on his Mum and Gran, and they never noticed. He rubbed his palms together to warm them. Just as his Mum and Gran had been fooled, Winnie would never feel it go. The moment he made it reappear, she’d be his friend for life. Little kids weren’t the only ones impressed by his sleight of hand.
“I really am a wizard.” Under the guise of pulling a quarter from her ear, he snatched the necklace. It only took a flick of the wrist. An unexpected heart-shaped locket was attached to the chain. Luckily, it fit snugly in his palm.
He held out both closed fists to Mikey. “Where’s the quarter?”
The little boy pointed at Kip’s right fist. He uncurled his fingers to show an empty palm.
“Then it’s over there!” Mikey pointed at Kip’s left hand.
He slowly opened one clasped finger at a time for effect. There lay the girl’s gold chain and locket.
Her right hand flew to her throat. Her cheeks reddened. Kip expected that. Surprise, disbelief. Any second now, she’d laugh. Yes, Kip was the master.
Instead of smiling, though, she clenched her fists and scowled.
Kip cocked his head, confused. She wasn’t supposed to snatch the locket out of his hand. He intended to give it back. She wasn’t supposed to spin on her heel and run away either. In all of his years performing, he had never frightened away an audience. At least her brother remained.
Kip faced Mikey. “What was that all about?”
The little boy stopped sifting through his playthings to squint through the sun’s glare at him. “That’s just Windy. She gets like that sometimes. There’s a picture of her mom inside her necklace. She showed me once.”
“I don’t understand.”
Mikey gathered the horses and dropped them into his bag. “That’s a memory you almost stole. Her mom died.”
Kip slapped his forehead. How could he have been so stupid? “I should go to her.”
“I wouldn’t. She had a rough morning. See that?” He stood and pointed to a section of beach fifty yards away. “That’s where she got tangled in the time tear.” He took six giant steps away from the ocean and poked a piece of driftwood into the sand. “This is where the time tear will rise late tonight. It shifts a little.”
Kip looked from the girl’s retreating back to Mikey. “The what?”
“The doorway to my home world. I marked it so you’ll know where the time tear will be when it starts to rise. The queen doesn’t have a court wizard. And Windy might like the help.”
Kip wasn’t sure what the little blighter meant. At the moment it didn’t matter. His nagging conscience focused on Windy. The poor girl was an orphan. He had to put things right.
“Wait for us by the towel, right? I need to speak with your sister.”
“She might not want to talk to you.”
Who wouldn’t want to talk with me? Kip signaled to Mikey to stay, then dashed after the long-legged girl. She had a hefty lead. He lowered his head and sprinted to catch up. Despite giving it his all, he still lagged behind by a good ten paces. If she didn’t stop soon, he’d never reach her. “Wait,” he called out.
Windy skimmed to a halt. She spun around, hands on hips. “What do you want?”
Kip hunched over, gasping for breath. “To apologize. Mikey explained about the locket.”
“If your mom’s still alive, you’ll never understand. My mother died when I was nine.”
He choked on his own breath. That young? To cover how startled it made him, he coughed a few more times and thumped his chest.
“Do you have asthma?” she asked.
Was that a note of concern in her voice?
The girl frowned. “We didn’t run that far.”
Maybe not. “Swallowed a bug,” he lied. Now that his breathing had returned to normal, Kip straightened. “I’m sorry. Ya know, about your mum. I never meant for my trick to upset you. I pinch watches mostly.”
“Who do you think you are? The Artful Dodger?”
“I’m a magician, actually.”
“You’re a menace.” She unclenched her balled fist, exposing her locket. “This was the last present my mother ever gave me.”
“I’m truly sorry, Windy.”
Her jaw tightened. “That’s not my name. I told you, it’s Winnie.”
“Thought that’s what Mikey called you.”
“He’s allowed.” She glared from Kip to the area directly behind him. “Where is Mikey?”
“Waiting by the towel.”
“He’s only six. We can’t leave him alone!” Winnie raced back the way they’d come.
Kip sucked in a deep breath of air and hurried after her. He panted, barely keeping up. In the distance, he saw his inner tube and beach towel. As they got closer, he could tell that Mikey’s toys were missing. So was Mikey.