The Expert

2. Meeting

The next morning, I woke up rather later than I had wanted to, but it can't be helped. Looking over to the clock on my bedside table, it read 10:38 am. I stretched my arms and let out a yawn as my spine cracked. Exhaling through my nose, I let out a contented sigh before sliding out of bed in my T-shirt that hung off one shoulder and a pair of shorts as I made my way to the bathroom. I took a quick shower as I washed my hair, shaved my legs, and washed my body before wrapping myself up in one of my favorite towels. After drying my long, jet black hair, I curled it before getting dressed in a white, long sleeve button up shirt, rolling the sleeves up to my elbows and pinning them with the strap; black vest, after tucking in my shirt; my black pants; black belt; black combat boots; and my lovely black fedora on my head. The perfect magician's outfit that was both casual and simple to accomplish. After brushing my teeth, I grabbed my wallet and my cell along with my apartment key before heading out, the Tarot Card in my jacket pocket.

As I made my way to the address, I headed for a Starbucks along the way, where I ordered myself a hot chai tea latte. Once I paid the cashier and got my coffee with a shot of expresso, I left the building and hailed a taxi. He took me to the address I needed to go to before I paid him and hopped out of the cab. With my large coffee now at halfway, I fixed my hat and headed towards the rundown-looking building where a man and a woman entered before me.

"Hey, Danny?" The fiery redhead asked, a coffee in her hands.

"Yeah?"

"Not your assistant anymore." She smirked before disappearing into the building, the one known as Danny, whom looked familiar to me, entered after her. Deciding not to bother with their conversation, I made sure to lag behind a good distance, sipping on my coffee until we reached the top of the stairs as I hung back again in the shadows.

"So I'm the not only one, eh?" The man asked who had a fedora on his bald head similar to mine. "Door's locked."

"Is it?" Danny asked sarcastically as he went up to it. Nothing is ever locked, but I think I'll wait to do that.

"Let's see now... Your name is...Helen? Henley?"

"It's on her coffee cup." Danny cut in.

"Thank you for keeping me honest, but that wasn't mentalism, that was just an observation." So he was a mentalist. "Second observation: you are beautiful." He smiled at Henley as she merely returned it.

"Oh, that's very-very great..." I was tempted to step forward, but Danny kept going. "I'm J. Daniel Atlas. I know who you are and we-we are not interested in your mind tricks." He held out his hand to him, but Fedora lifted his hand and flipped him off as I smirked to myself; oldest trick in the book...

"And I am not interested in listening to the two of you bicker like children." I came out from the stairs with my hand in one pocket of my pants and my coffee in the other. I quickly finished the rest of it before tossing the cup in the trash and popping a stick of gum in my mouth.

"So you got on too?" Danny asked. "I'm--"

"J. Daniel Atlas. I'm not deaf. And you're that asshole from last night."

"Excuse me?" He asked.

"The one doing the card trick with the seven of diamonds on the side of a building in which, might I add, a very lame trick as well as a poor way to pick up women. Which reminds me, how did your night go with Slutty Sally?"

"I, uhh, well..."

"Please don't mind him. I'm Henley Reeves." The redhead said as she brushed Daniel off.

"Merritt McKinney, and what might your name be, beautiful?" The one in the fedora asked.

"You tell me, Mentalist."