Now You See Me: Daniel Atlas

Chapter Eleven: FBI Arrest

After a long night of celebrating in their hotel room at the Aria, it was finally time for their riskiest step to their plan: getting arrested by the FBI. Daniel was playing with some cards, Merritt was lying down on the couch reading a book, Jack was leaning back in a chair with his feet on the stool, Carly was sitting on his legs and Henley was upstairs. They all knew what they were going to say when the FBI would question them. Now they just waited for them to break down the door.

Just on time, the door slams open and around 15 FBI agents swarm the room, guns pointing directly at them. This startled Jack to kick his legs and kick Carly off of him. She groans in discomfort, but doesn't stay on the ground for long as one of the agents comes and yanks her back onto her feet. She yelps in pain, but the agent doesn't let up.

"Oh," Henley exclaims and looks at all the agents, putting her hands up. "Do you guys mind giving us a hand with our bags?"

*~*

The same guard who yanked her off the ground, was the same one to throw her into a vehicle and the same one to handcuff her too tightly to the table in the interrogation room. Carly looks down at her wrists only to see bruises already forming and the metal from the handcuffs cutting into her skin. Before she could fully register the severity of the situation, the door opens and two agents walk in. A lady with blonde hair and a man who has brown hair who looks distraught.

"Looks like you just talked to Merritt," Carly observes, trying to cover up the fact that she was uncomfortable with her handcuffs. "Or was it Daniel? He can get into people's heads too."

"Carly Contrary, age 23, arrested for robbing a bank," The man starts off as the two take a seat across from her.

"You gonna tell me your names or do I have to guess?" Carly asks with raised eyebrows.

"I'm Agent Dylan Rhodes, and this is Agent Alma Dray," The man does quickly. "Now, I'm going to ask once and I want an answer. How did you rob the bank?"

"Magic," Carly says with a flirtascious wink.

"That's not the right answer!" Rhodes shouts and stands up, slamming his fist down on the table. Carly and Dray flinch at his outburst and Carly winces when the metal cuffs dig into her wrists even more, drawing dots of blood. "Tell me the truth."

"I did," Carly says, her voice wavering slightly. She was supposed to be the charismatic one, but the pain was a variable she hadn't planned for. "It's illusions, it's what magicians do. Sleight of hand and eye. We're always going to be a few steps ahead of you and when you least expect it, that's when you'll be right where we want you. The closer you look, the less you'll see."

"We're done here," Rhodes says and gets up. Dray follows after him as they leave.

As the time passes, Carly fidgets with the cuffs, her wrists becoming red raw, but also littered in tiny cuts. She could feel her eyes water as the pain got worse. When the door opens again, this time an officer told her she could leave. He uncuffs her and she asks if there was a restroom nearby for her to wash her wrists. He just shakes his head no, but instead brings her to the lobby where someone was already waiting with a first aid kit. She takes a seat and lets the nice lady disinfect her wrists, but also starts to bandage them up. Carly turns when she hears her comrades getting walked out of their interrogation rooms. They must have let her our early because of her injuries, how thoughtful.

"They must not have asked you as many questions if you're out here waiting for us," Jack says with a toothy smile to the blonde. She just smiles sheepishly before looking back at the nice lady still wrapping up her wrists with white gauze.

"What happened?" Daniel asks and grabs the one hand still not bandaged to look at it himself. His grip tightens when he sees the cuts, instantly recognizing them from where the handcuffs would have been.

Daniel takes the gauze from the lady and takes over wrapping Carly's other wrist. Carly just looks up at his clenched jaw and narrowed eyes. When her hand starts to shake, Daniel looks past her wrist at her face where he sees tears streaming down her cheeks. He instantly tightens off the gauze before pulling her face into his chest.

"I was scared," Carly admits. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Daniel tells her. "Let's just get out of here already. They've done enough damage."

*~*

Daniel didn't let go of Carly's hand all throughout the drive to the airport and then when they were on the plane. Arthur asked a few questions, wondering why they were late but Henley easily told him a fibbed story. Carly sat next to Daniel in silence for a decent amount of the plane ride, but she knew she couldn't keep him there forever. She looks up at him and he turns to look at her. Sending him a small smile, he gets the message and quickly kisses the back of her hand before letting go and standing up to walk towards the back of the plane.

"Can I talk to you about my role in the show real quick?" Jack asks Daniel.

"Yeah, yeah sure." Daniel says and pats Jacks cheek and continues to the back toward Henley and Merritt. "Hey guys, we have a show to prepare for."

"Oh, do we now?" Merritt stands up and stares intently at Daniel.

"No, no, no. You're not doing that thing to me. No!" Daniel exclaims and looks away from Merritt.

"What thing?" Merritt asks. Carly slowly turns around in her seat and faces them along with Jack who had a hand on her shoulder. "I'm just looking at you."

"No, you're not. I've been watching you for a yea. I know all your little tricks," Daniel states.

"Is that all they are to you?" Merritt asks offended. "Tricks?"

"Yes, it's gimmicks," Daniel says flailing his arms. "It's Barnum statement. It's reading the eyes, body language. I get it."

"If it's so easy why don't you do Carly?" Merritt asks and Daniel shakes his head.

"We already heard Carly's story from you. And I personally don't think she wants to hear it again." Daniel looks back at her and smiles faintly.

"Do Henley," Jack says.

"No, do me," Arthur says from behind them and across the pathway from Carly.

"Okay," Daniel says and takes a stand in front of Arthur as the others gather around him. They all hoped they'd get the information they needed out of him.

"But I warn you, I can be difficult to read when I want to be," Arthur smirked.

"Just stay with me okay? So Art, you were a tough kid. You know kind of real rapscallion. You had a dog, a real tough dog. A brutish breed, like a real... I want to say, Ben the Bulldog?" Daniel gave it his best but the Horsemen were trying not to laugh at the failed attempt.

"Actually I was a prissy, little tot," Arthur answers. "I had a white, fluffy cat named Snuffles."

"I can do better than that." Jack calls out, laughing loudly.

"Let Jack do one." Henley adds.

"Come on, one more time," Daniel holds up one finger then turns back to Arthur. "Let's do family. You had an uncle on your mother's side. He had a real, kind of... a real masculine name. A real kind of salt to the earth... you know a real stick it to you. Like it was some kind of Paul. Thompson? Was it a Paul...?" Daniel sighed giving up. "Okay I got nothing."

"Nearly though," Arthur states.

"Was I?" Daniel asks optimistically.

"Yeah my uncles name was Cushman Armitage," Arthur laughed at Daniel.

"Really Snuffles and Cushman Armitage? That was your childhood?" Daniel asks rhetorically.

"I certainly hope tonight's show is better than this," Arthur points out to the team.

"Just you wait and see Art," Carly speaks up from her seat. "It'll be hell-raising."