DEATH EMPRESS - JACK WILDER [1]

2: Blueprints

i wish there were some way i could reedit this without having wattpad delete my in-line comments, but there's not really a way out :/

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     As the next few days pass at an agonizingly slow pace, my mind can't help but scatter into hundreds and thousands of inquiries that all lead back to one simple question: why me? I never imagined I was good enough to receive one of these cards, or good enough to be recruited into the Eye. I still don't. It's the biggest illusion a magician can ever believe in, but the mere possibility that the secret society is real feeds us the motivation we need to become the greatest magician who ever lived.

     I catch a plane from Miami to New York in the morning, my whole body becoming weak from lack of sleep. I'm not the best when it comes to flying, so sleeping wasn't a very easy task to complete on the plane. I am practically running on three hours of rest when I take a taxi from the airport to a local coffee shop off the side of the road in order to boost my energy. From there, I make the taxi driver drop me off a block from the actual building I'm supposed to go to, just to be safe. I'm always second guessing myself and my actions, and today I question if whether or not the secret society wants their address to be exposed to New York City taxi drivers.

      I walk into the building, which happens to be an apartment complex. I look around for an elevator, but instead my eyes catch a flight of stairs and I sigh with frustration. I chug down what's left of my now mildly warm coffee and trash it in the bin, hoping it gives me enough energy to trudge up the stairs without losing my breath.

     Right as I take the first step, a strange burst of nerves course through my body and it makes me anxious. My blood runs cold as I get higher up, walk around, and climb up another flight of stairs. The higher I get, the closer I am to wherever I need to be. My feet then begin to freeze as I hear unfamiliar voices above me and I instinctively take caution when I reach the sixth floor.

     I stand in front of a trio: two males and one female with extravagantly fiery, red hair. The older male wears a hat that suits his attire nicely and the younger male sports a goatee, but what really strikes me about him is his cold eyes that stare at me intensely. In fact, they all stare at me and I lose any and all confidence in myself.

     "Well, there goes my ego again," the older male says, holding out his own individual tarot card. "Question: did you get one of these?"

     "Yes," I answer, pulling my own out for all of them to see. "I'm Kate," I say, smiling as I break out of my small shell. I find no discomfort with them since they are also magicians and they will not tear me down just because my specialties require a deck of cards.

     "Kate? Is your last name with a...an M? Nope, S...Sherman," the older male states. "Kate M. Sherman."

     "Wow," I say incredulously. "You even got my middle initial. Mentalist?"

     He nods proudly. "Most certainly. I'm Merritt McKinney."

     "Henley Reeves," the female says, smiling as she holds a hand out for me to shake. I become envious of her pretty smile but not in a spiteful way. I've learned in the past just how convenient my own charming looks are.

     "J. Daniel Atlas. Pleased to meet you," the younger male greets, staring at nowhere in particular. "I don't suppose you've heard of me."

     "No, I haven't," I say truthfully. "Are you from that All State commercial or something?"

     This joke earns a chuckle from Henley, but Daniel instead rolls his eyes and states simply, "Very funny. I applaud you."

     In the short amount of time I've come to know this Daniel Atlas guy, I've gathered my own opinion about him and it amuses me how vulnerable I can possibly make him. I sense he's full of himself, which is probably something anybody can conclude after having a short conversation with him.