Carter tried to resist, but the Walrus’s hand kept him in place as the frown clown searched him. “Nothing in his pockets, Bosso. The satchel only has a bunch of junk. Oh, and that trash he took.”
“Not a thief, huh?” Bosso said. “Tell me, son. Have you been grateful for my hospitality? Free shows, free food… Perhaps you’d like the ring off my finger?”
Bosso dangled the bright emerald ring in Carter’s face. Carter didn’t say anything. A knot formed in his stomach, growing tighter by the minute.
“You better let me go. I need to get home,” Carter lied. “My parents are probably looking for me.”
“Your parents?” Bosso laughed. “Kid, I know a street rat when I see one. If your parents are outside, my name is Aunt Petunia.”
The Spider-Lady, the Tattooed Baby, the Walrus, even the clown, all joined in on the laughter. Everyone was laughing except Carter.
Bosso pointed at the security clown. “Spike, what’s the big idea bringing this kid in here? I know it wasn’t purely for my amusement.”
The clown perked up. “I had my eye on him ever since he came down from the train yard. But then he just vanished. Every time I thought I saw him, he vanished again. The kid’s got talent… talent we could use.”
Bosso’s eyes went wide. He stared at Carter for several seconds as if he’d stumbled upon a stone that might actually be a precious jewel. “Look, friend,” Bosso said, changing the tone in his voice to warm and smooth—the same way Uncle Sly did when he wanted something. “I know plenty o’ people like you. No family. No friends. No place to go. Maybe they feel a little bit like misfits. So you know what I do? I give ’em jobs. I give ’em purpose. Now they’re all happy to work for me.”
Carter glanced around the room. The sideshow performers nodded; the frowning security clown smiled. Everyone in the room kept reminding him of his uncle in some way.
Bosso continued. “You don’t have to be on your own anymore. Come work with me. You’ll have a family, you’ll travel the world, you’ll even get a percentage of our earnings. All you gotta do is join my crew—but of course, if you cross me, I’ll throw you in front of a train.” Bosso released a terrifying bellow of laughter, as if he’d just invented the funniest joke he’d ever heard. “What’dya say?”
Carter felt torn. He’d been so hungry earlier, he’d almost considered breaking his code. The idea of a roof over his head—even a traveling one—was still more than he’d ever had. Sure, Bosso was gruff and imposing, but his offer seemed like a real option with real money involved.
“Come on, kid. Sorry I grabbed you so hard. Say yeah. It ain’t such a bad life,” the Walrus said. The strongman smiled, revealing half his teeth were missing.
The Spider-Lady lit another cigarette and purred, “We can be the family you’ve always dreamed of.…”
When he got nervous, Carter played with his sleeves. As he reached up to touch them, he felt Mr. Vernon’s ace of spades. He recalled Vernon’s warning.
Carter didn’t want to trade his uncle for more con artists. He knew instantly he had to get out of there.
“It’s not a bad offer,” Carter lied again. He even smiled and waggled his eyebrows, doing his best impression of Uncle Sly. “Can I think about it?”
“Absolutely,” Bosso said with a wide grin. “But don’t think too long. We’re only here for two more nights, staying at the Grand Oak Resort up on the hill. Otherwise, you can find me here. The door is always open. Unless it’s locked. Then don’t bother me. Hope to see you soon… friend.”
Bosso’s crooked mouth curled into the scariest, phoniest smile Carter had ever seen.
The Walrus opened the door. With Bosso still grinning, Carter forced himself to walk slowly out into the fresh night air, to pretend he was calm and collected. But he wasn’t. A wave of fear had risen up inside him. As soon as the caboose door closed, Carter ran as fast and as far as he could, and then threw up.
HOW TO…
Roll Coins on Your Knuckles!
Oh, hello there! So sorry to interrupt. You were probably expecting further tales of Carter. They’ll continue right after this brief magical interruption. You may skip ahead if you like (I won’t take offense)… OR… you could stay a moment and learn a bit of magic to impress your family, your friends, and your pets. (Yes, animals like magic too.) You might be thinking the magic tricks in this book are impossible for you to learn. But you’re wrong. Learning magic is not a trick at all—it’s a skill! Magic is like learning to ride a bike or play the piano. It’s not hard to learn, but mastering the best parts are a matter of practice, practice, and more practice.
That means if you work hard at it then you too can be as good as Mr. Vernon when it comes to coin skills. I’ll give you the basics. Perhaps your parents can give you the coin?
WHAT YOU NEED:
Your hands and fingers
A large coin (Start with a quarter.)
HELPFUL HINTS (ORDER OF FINGERS):
Thumb
Index finger
Middle finger
Ring finger
Pinky
STEPS:
1. Hold your hand out, palm facing down.
2. Take a coin and place it on top of your middle finger.
3. Lift your index finger until it is above the coin. (You can also lower the middle finger to help!)
4. Here comes the tricky part—slowly move those two fingers in the opposite direction. Your middle finger goes up, while your index finger goes down. It should catch the edge of the coin, making the coin flip over from the middle finger to the index finger.
Hurrah! You did it! If you didn’t, that’s okay. Mistakes are part of mastery. Try again. It’s tricky!
5. Now, keep doing this, over and over and over and over and over again. Once you have mastered it and can do it fast or slow, try moving the coin from the index finger to the middle finger to the ring finger.
6. Got it? Now add in the pinky finger.
7. Hard, isn’t it? But don’t give up. As all magicians know, practice makes perfect.
Remember: Practice, practice, and more practice. (And then practice again. And after that, practice a little more. Then take a nap, wake up, have a snack, and get back to practicing. All this work pays off. I should know.… Once upon a time, I was just like you!)
ADVANCED STEP:
1. Want to go a little further? Then try this: Use your thumb to cross underneath your palm and grab the coin from your pinky.
2. Now move the coin back to your index finger and start again!
If you practice this enough and get really good at it, it will make the coin appear to vanish and reappear back at the start each time. Voilà!
SIX