The Horsemen

00

PROLOGUE

RILEY MATTHEWS CLOSED her eyes intently, staring into her blank mind, soon overstuffed with the thoughts of this random stranger.

She touched her temple with her pointer finger teasingly. She chuckled slightly to herself, then inhaled deeply.

"You're worried that your husband is cheating on you, so you're going to confront him about it," Riley said, eyes still closed. "Hmm, not the best idea there..."

She grinned to herself once more as she opened her eyes, clearing the thoughts of the innocent woman standing in front of her.

—

MAYA HART STOOD over a tank full of water. "I will be handcuffed, with only a minute to break free before these flesh eating fish dump into the tank and skin me alive," she announces to the crowd, hearing the roar from the eager watchers.

The lock clicks shut around the handcuffs and the floorboard underneath her gives away. She musters all the air possible before plunging into the tank.

The ice cold water surrounded her as she messed with the handcuffs a bit. A true magician never reveals their secrets, she banged against the walls, claiming she couldn't get out of the cuffs. But she could. People tried to break the glass with various objects and forces as she heard the muffled ticks of the clock winding down. Her golden locks flowed aray with the rise of the water.

She heard a buzz and all the fish dumped on her. Maya escaped down under the tank quickly and closed the hatch, soon reappearing in the middle of the old, metal room.

She saw the fake blood gush over the tank and onto the ground. She grinned as everyone groaned in udder dissapointment.

"WHAT IS THIS TWISTED CRAP ANYWAY?" Maya yelled and the crowd turned their attention to her, soaked from head to toe, but free of the cuffs.

No one knew how she did it, but they were all amazed. The crowd roared with triumph as she smiled at the people.

—

"WATCH CLOSELY AS I bend this spoon with my mind," Farkle announced to the crowd on the cruise boat. They were still at dock, he guessed a good three minutes before he bolted out of there like no tomorrow.

He turned the spoon around, grabbing an actual bent spoon from his back pocket. Slowly swapping the spoons out so no one can tell. A guy in the crowd jumps up.

"Hey! He has a spoon in his back pocket!" The guy runs up and grabs the bent spoon from his hand. "Now where's my thirty bucks?" He whispered in Farkle's ear.

Farkle pulled out three tens and started to hand it to the guy before he stole his wallet, pulled his hood up, and bolted.

He could hear the muffled yell of the man as he realized what Farkle had just done. He jumped over benches, the creaky wood shuttering under his feet. The waves crashed against the rocks with utter force, spraying seawater in his face.

Farkle hid inside a park, looking around to make sure no one saw him. He took out a cigarette and lit it, puffing in and out. He sighed as he placed the cigarette in between his middle and forefinger and sighed into the mid-day air.