by Elena Paige
And imagine, my dear Agatha, a world where mages such as you and me, will be the only real magicians.
Alexander
“She was leaving my father? And taking me with her? I don’t understand,” said Toby.
Rufus continued. “I was ten at the time, and like any ten-year-old, I was besotted with excitement over the convention. So I sneaked into his private study and tried to take a look at the layout and performers for the year. Instead, I found his private diary, professing his love for your mother, and his intention to kill mine.
“I tried to warn my mother, who didn’t believe a word I said. I was only ten, you need to remember. On the day of the convention, Father insisted I was not to attend. I was so angry. I snuck out and followed my mother through the entrance.”
“How did you survive?” said Toby, feeling Rufus’s pain. His father had purposefully killed his mother, just to run away with Toby’s mother.
“My mother . . . she protected me. I don’t know why I survived and she didn’t. I was terribly injured. My father believes that not only my body but my mind is injured. I am nothing but a soulless son to him now.
“And I was for a time. But as my memories returned, so did my capacity to think and rationalize. I have kept this from my father and have been secretly working against him ever since. Hence why I am at your service and eager to help you if you’ll allow me.”
The silence in Toby’s head was too much to take. He looked at Thatch, who was still pacing frantically as though trying to wear out the wood beneath his feet. Wesa had sat quietly the entire time.
“And my mother? My father? What happened to them?”
“From reading my father’s subsequent journal notes, it is my understanding that your mother did enter one of the mage entrances that had an explosion. And she died.”
“But what about Holly? She said my parents are still alive? There’s still a chance, right? What about my father?”
“I don’t see how it is possible for your mother to survive. I can only assume your father was with her,” said Rufus .
“But was his body ever identified?” asked Thatch.
“They weren’t ordinary bombs. The magic my father used incinerated the bodies beyond recognition,” said Rufus.
Toby felt hollow inside. Like someone had pulled the last bit of hope of having a real family from him and stomped on it. He hid his tearstained face in his hands.
“I don’t think I can go on. I just want to go home. We’re no closer to finding the hat, and Grandpa is going to die, and it’s all my fault. Everything is my fault. Everyone I love dies! I think you should all go find the hat with someone else. Not me. I’m bad luck!”
Toby’s despair turned to anger. He turned and ran into the darkness. Stumbling on the beams and around the air-conditioning units that surrounded him, he didn’t care if he hurt himself. His heart was aching. Holly had given him hope, and Rufus had taken it away again.
After several minutes of running, he stopped and began pounding on the low roof above him, letting out the pain that had festered inside him for so long.
“Are you done?” Thatch had followed him.
“Leave me alone!”
“Toby, I know what you heard wasn’t easy for you. I never knew my mother either. She left my dad and me when I was just a baby. Nothing hurts more than your own mother abandoning you.”
“But she didn’t abandon me. She was going to take me with her. And now she’s dead.”
“She couldn’t have taken you with her, because you’re still alive and she isn’t. And I’m glad you are,” said Thatch, taking hold of Toby’s shoulders and turning him around to face him. “You need to bring your focus back on your grandpa. He’s what’s important now.”
Toby knew Thatch was right, but his heart ached so much he couldn’t let go of the hope that they might still be alive. He pushed past Thatch but fell backwards unexpectedly as a great gust of flames surrounded him. Wesa had caught up to them.
“Sorry,” she said pulling her hands back and extinguishing her flames.
Toby reached out for Wesa in the darkness, grabbing her arm and shaking it. “You heard what Holly said. You’re the one that took me to her. You trust her ability, don’t you?” He desperately needed someone to agree with him right now.
Wesa lit her hands back up. The light flickered off her sorrow-filled face. “I don’t know who or what to believe. But Thatch is right. We need to think of our parents first.”
Toby let go of Wesa’s arm. He tried to push the thought of his mother and father out of his mind. The hat was what mattered. But instead, all he could see was their faces. His mind flashed back to when the panther had held up the only framed photo of his parents. How happy they had looked in that photo. And it had all been a lie. He wanted to find Kirby and make him tell the truth. But he knew that would be stupid. Kirby would never help them. There was only one person who could.
“We need to visit Aden McDermott again. I have a feeling he knows more than he’s letting on,” said Toby, a sliver of hope returning.
18
The Paper Plane
It was now six o’clock, and time was falling away from them. They still had no real clue to find the hat. It was agreed that Rufus would continue watching his father while the others visited Aden McDermott.
“I’ll find you all later,” said Rufus.
“You will? How will you find us?” Toby wondered how Rufus had found them in the first place.
“There’s more of us on your side than you realize. You’re not in this alone,” said Rufus mysteriously.
Toby felt reassured hearing Rufus’s words. He felt very alone in all of this. Apart from Thatch and Wesa, he still wasn’t sure who he could trust.
“We got in there from the toilet?” said Toby, landing on the toilet seat. “How did you carry me up through here?”
“With great difficulty,” said Thatch, jumping down next.
“Why do boys’ toilets smell so bad?” said Wesa, holding her nose.
They said their goodbyes to Rufus as they walked past the magicians, who stared at them strangely as they emerged from the cubicle together.
“We can’t waste too much time at Aden’s. We need to get back to finding the hat,” said Thatch.
“I won’t be long, I promise. I just can’t shake this feeling that Aden can give me the answers I need,” said Toby.
“And your answers are more important than saving the lives of our parents right now? The parents we have that are still alive?” said Thatch.
“I’m sorry, okay? I need to do this.”
“It’s this direction, by the way,” said Wesa, pulling Toby to the right.
They noticed there was no one crowding around Aden’s table. And Stacy wasn’t at her usual post.
“Something’s not right,” said Toby.
“I’m security. I’ll go in first,” said Thatch. Toby folded his arms and tried to think of a smug reply, but Wesa smiled at him and pulled him back, letting Thatch lead.
Thatch moved the purple curtain aside and peered around the corner. “Get in here, you guys. I need your help!” he called back to Wesa and Toby.
Aden McDermott and Stacy were tied up with rope, back to back on the gold carpet. Their mouths were taped shut. As Thatch freed Stacy and pulled off the tape, she cried and talked incoherently. She hugged Thatch to her.
Toby didn’t understand a word she said, except he heard the name Billy. Thatch was shrugging at him, from under Stacy’s embrace.
“You’re welcome,” said Thatch pulling away.
“I’m so glad you’re safe. You’re alright? Nothing happened to you?” said Stacy, reaching out her arms towards Thatch again.
“I’m fine, thanks. But it was you that was tied up,” said Thatch, taking three steps back from her.
Stacy straightened her hair and smoothed her clothes. She turned towards Toby and helped him untie Aden.
“You’re sure the three of you are safe?” she w
hispered to Toby. He looked at her properly for the first time that day. Her sandy-colored hair was long and tangled despite her attempt to calm it. Her face didn’t look angry or ditsy as it had earlier, but instead held only concern. It didn’t seem like the same Stacy he had met that day. He nodded yes to her slowly. She nodded back in understanding then stood up and began crying quite unexpectedly.
Now free, Aden soothed Stacy by sending her out for a walk. “Stacy, my dear. You go for a walk and buy yourself a treat. Here are a few gold coins. I’ll reach out to security.”
She mumbled something Toby didn’t understand between her tears and left the room. Why had Stacy asked if they were safe? Instead of worrying about herself, she seemed more worried about them. Did she know more than she had been letting on?
Aden turned to Toby and his friends. “I’m sorry, team. I let you down. It was the Kirby boys. They came here looking for the hat. Apparently, it was here all along. If only we had known earlier.”
“The hat was here all along? But we checked them all,” said Wesa.
“Billy insisted the hat they were looking for was your hat, Wesa,” said Aden.
Wesa touched the golden hat on her head, looking up at it. Despite all they had been through, it had stayed suctioned on her head. “But we heard it was a mage hat we were looking for.”
“Yes, it is. It’s your old hat, dear lass. Your original mage hat! Can you imagine? You were looking for a hat that you had all along.”
“It was my hat? How? And how did Kirby find out it was my hat?” said Wesa, turning pink.
“That I do not know, but they were adamant it was your hat and were frantic to find it,” said Aden.
“That’s no good to us now. Those horrid brats have it. We’re doomed.” Thatch dropped his head into his hands.
“How long ago were they here? We can still get it back,” said Toby, looking toward the golden curtain and preparing to chase them.
“Please. Indulge me, children. Sit. I promise you there is time,” said Aden. He looked relaxed despite his ordeal. And he’d changed clothes at some point.
Aden was now dressed in a bright blue suit. Tucked carefully behind his crisp white shirt and blue bow tie, he revealed a chain around his neck. A small key hung from it. Moving swiftly toward the back of the room, he procured a small wooden box, no bigger than a fist. He fitted the key into the hole and turned it.
Toby watched in silence. He had a niggling feeling in his stomach not to trust anyone right now, including Aden.
“Wesa, I put your hat in here for safe keeping. Given I’m such a messy rogue, I figured it would be the safest option. It’s the only hat you all forgot to check.”
He opened the small lid and revealed an empty space. Taking his wand from the secret opening in his cape, he waved it toward the box and said, “Abracadabra.” Something small, shiny, and purple started to emerge. With a loud popping noise, it turned into a purple magician’s hat. Wesa’s original mage hat!
“This is the real hat the boys were looking for. I gave them a dud. They pretended they could activate it, but I knew better. Their father won’t be pleased now, will he?” Aden chuckled and winked as he proudly paraded around the room with the hat. He handed it to Toby, who stepped back from him and held the hat tightly to his chest.
Thatch let out a sigh of relief, but Wesa looked worried. “What happens if, or when, they discover it’s the wrong hat. They’ll come straight back here looking for it. Right?”
“I doubt it,” said Aden. He had a mischievous twinkle in his smile.
“What did you do to them?” said Thatch.
“Let’s say that the boys won’t have the upper hand for a while.”
Toby watched as Wesa and Thatch relaxed on the couch, looking relieved. But he wasn’t so sure everything was going to be all right. Something didn’t feel right.
“Don’t you think it’s convenient you happened to have the hat?” said Toby, planting his legs firmly apart.
“Toby! What are you saying? Aden has helped us. We have the hat!” said Wesa.
“I’m just as surprised as you are,” said Aden, relaxing on the couch next to Thatch and Wesa.
Toby stared at them, the weight in his stomach growing heavier and heavier. “I need to ask you some questions.”
“Go on, lad. Ask away,” said Aden, looking as happy as always .
“When Kirby, I mean Strebor, blew up all those magicians . . .” Toby glanced at Thatch and Wesa.
“Ah yes, the Dark Day of Magic. It was a tragic day for many of us. I lost a great deal of friends. What of it?”
“How did you avoid getting hurt in the explosions?” said Toby.
“I didn’t attend the convention that year. Alas, I wasn’t a famous magician then.”
“Did you know my mother and father, Agatha and Jack Roberts? They were mages, I think. Well, I don’t know for sure.”
“I’m sorry, Toby my boy, but I haven’t heard of them. I don’t know all the magicians of the world. Apart from the famous ones.”
“What about Strebor? Had you ever met him?” said Toby.
“I only met him once, but I never saw his face. He never revealed it, so no one knows what he looks like.”
“What do you mean he never revealed his face?” said Thatch. He began pacing while flicking his familiar coin into the air.
“He was a very famous magician. The most famous of them all. But he always wore a mask. It was part of his act—he never revealed his true identity. It was a shame he ruined his career. And died in the process,” said Aden, looking genuinely sad.
“And did you know Kirby then? I mean Mr. Kirby?” said Toby. He couldn’t shake the niggling feeling in the pit of his stomach that there was something Aden wasn’t telling him.
“I didn’t know him then, no. America and Ireland are worlds apart. Alexander Kirby was an up-and-coming magician back then. Despite his American roots, he mostly performed in Australia if I remember correctly. He was very famous in this country.”
Toby could see truth was right in front of him, but he still didn’t want to believe it. Kirby was famous in Australia—where his mother and father had lived.
Aden reached forward and pulled the hat from Toby’s hands. Toby let it go. “If I may offer my opinion, children, why not activate the hat here and now? Why wait until eight o’clock? Do it now and the panther will appear, take the hat, and give you back your parents. And your grandfather,” said Aden, turning the hat over in his hands. He took off his golden hat and tried the purple hat instead. “Quite extraordinary that it was your hat the entire time, lass.”
“I don’t think its a good idea to activate it now. We don’t know what it will do once activated,” said Wesa.
“What if it starts sucking people’s powers uncontrollably?” said Thatch.
Toby’s mind raced back to Holly’s words: the panther wanted his powers most of all. But he still wasn’t convinced he had any special ability. “I’m not done asking questions,” said Toby.
It was the one question Toby was dying to ask him. “After the explosion killed Strebor?”
“Yes, lad?”
“Did his death make way for you to become the next big magician in his place?” Toby leaned forward and pulled the hat from Aden’s head.
Aden looked taken aback.
“Toby!” said Wesa .
“It is a fair question,” said Thatch stopping still in his tracks.
“I don’t know what you mean. Many magicians can be famous at the same time,” said Aden, wiping the sweat from his brow.
“Yes, but it’s a bit of a coincidence that, when Strebor died, you and Kirby replaced him as the most famous magicians. And while other illusionists were killed, you happened to survive. And you had the hat most of the day. And now you’re keen for us to activate it.” Toby looked at Thatch for support. Thatch came to his side, crossed his arms, and stared hard at Aden.
“What has come over you both? Aden is our friend and you’re a
ccusing him? Of what? Being in on this with Kirby. Really? It was Aden that disguised me so that Kirby couldn’t find me,” said Wesa.
“Maybe they’re both after the Fiordi hat for their own reasons,” said Thatch.
“Children, please. Am I not the one that has just given you the hat? What else do I need to do to prove to you I’m on your side?”
“Tell us everything you know. I mean everything. I’ll bet there’s more you haven’t told us,” said Toby, jutting out his jaw.
Aden leaned forward and cradled his face in his hands. “All right. Yes. I’ll tell you everything.” His shoulders dropped and his once happy face looked grief-stricken.
Wesa pulled away from him, shock written across her face.
“You’re right. I have been looking for the hat. But please, before you judge me, hear me out. I heard about the Fiordi hat as a child. It’s a myth to all magicians. No one really believes it’s real. I felt differently. I dreamed of finding the hat and wearing it one day. But not to take other people’s powers!”
“Why else would you want it?” asked Thatch.
“According to legend, the hat was put under protection for one thousand years. Hidden by Merlin himself. Rendered useless until this exact year. When the power of three will set the hat free,” he said, staring off into space.
“So the hat belonged to Merlin?” said Thatch.
“It is just legend. I wasn’t sure any of it was real. But when you three turned up, you can imagine how excited I became.”
“You still haven’t told us why you want the hat, if not to take mages’ powers. What else can the hat do?” said Toby.
“According to the stories, once the hat is activated, it will seek a new wearer. A new Merlin. Whoever wears it first will be its true owner for the next one thousand years,” he said, half smiling.
“Do you mean they will be able to live for one thousand years?” Wesa covered her mouth in shock.
“Yes, exactly. But you see, when I met you, I understood this is not for me to take. It should be one of you that wears the hat. One of you who gets that privilege. I’m genuinely sorry I didn’t tell you the truth earlier. But I knew you might not believe me,” said Aden, his face drooping.
