Free The Vanished Man by Jeffery Deaver Page B

complete.
     
     
Much of the rest of her life, though, blew away like dust as she spent
     
     
more and more time at the store, handling the books and inventory for him, the payroll, serving as webmaster for the store's website. Since Balzac wasn't paying her much she needed other work and she took jobs that were at least marginally compatible with her English degree-writing content for other magic and theater websites. Then about a year ago her mother's condition had began to worsen and only-child Kara spent her little remaining free time with the woman.
     
     
An exhausting life.
     
     
But she could handle it for now. In a few years Balzac would pronounce her fit to perform and off she'd go with his blessing and his contacts with producers around the world.
     
     
Hold tight, girl, as Jaynene might say, and stay on top of the galloping
     
     
horse. Kara now finished Tarbell's three-silk trick again. Tapping his cigarette
     
     
ash onto the floor, Balzac frowned. "Left index finger slightly higher."
     
     
"You could see the tie?"
     
     
"If I couldn't see it," he snapped angrily, "why would I ask you to lift
     
     
your finger higher? Try again."
     
     
Once more.
     
     
The goddamn index finger slightly goddamn higher.
     
     
Wshhhhhh... the entangled silks separated and flew into the air like triumphant flags.
     
     
"Ah," Balzac said. A faint nod.
     
     
Not traditional praise exactly. But Kara had learned to make do with ah's. She put the trick away and stepped behind the counter in the cluttered business area of the store to log in the merchandise that had arrived in Friday's afternoon shipment.
     
     
Balzac returned to the computer, on which he was writing an article for the store's website about Jasper Maskelyne, the British magician who created a special military unit in World War Two, which used illusionist techniques against the Germans in North Africa. He was writing it from memory, without any notes or research; that was one thing about David Balzac-his knowledge of magic was as deep as his temperament was unstable and fiery.
     
     
"You hear that the Cirque Fantastique's in town?" she called. "Opens
     
     
tonight" The old illusionist grunted. He was exchanging his glasses for contact lenses; Balzac was extremely aware of the importance of a performer's image and always looked his best for any audience, even his customers.
     
     
"You going to go?" she persisted. "I think we should go."
     
     
Cirque Fantastique-a competitor to the older and bigger Cirque du
     
     
Soleil-was part of the next generation of circuses. It combined traditional circus routines, ancient commedia dell' arte theater, contemporary music and dance, avant-garde performance art and street magic.
     
     
But David Balzac was old school: Vegas, Atlantic City, The Late Show. 'Why change something that works?" he'd grumble.
     
     
Kara loved Cirque Fantastique, though, and was determined to get him to a performance. But before she could pitch her case to convince him to accompany her the store's front door opened and an attractive, redheaded policewoman walked in, asking for the owner.
     
     
"That's me. I'm David Balzac. What can I do for you?"
     
     
The officer said, 'We're investigating a case involving someone who might've had some training in magic. We're talking to magic supply stores in town, hoping you might be able to help us."
     
     
"You mean, somebody's running a scam or something?" Balzac asked. He sounded defensive, a feeling Kara shared. In the past magic has often been linked to crooks-sleight-of-hand artists as pickpockets, for instance, and charlatan clairvoyants using illusionist techniques to convince bereaved family members that the spirits of their relatives are communicating with them.
     
     
But the policewoman's visit, it turned out, was prompted by something
     
     
else. "Actually," she said, glancing at Kara then back to Balzac. "The case is a
     
     
homicide.".
     
     
Chapter