The Magic Carnival Box Set: Books 1-3
Page 74
He still thought this was a bad idea. He didn’t like spending long periods away from the Carnival and he didn’t like working on projects where he wasn’t the one in charge—or was related to the person in charge. Plus, ordinary people made him edgy.
But Jack had been persistent and, despite his reluctance, the Carnival was depending on him.
Heaving a big sigh, Henry took off his cowboy hat and strode into the building through the glass revolving doors. It made him tired just thinking about spending an entire month with ordinary folk. The way they thought, the way they talked—the way they judged based on how you looked, instead of who you were on the inside. It all added up to a headache.
The massive entrance area was stark and industrial, with concrete floors and steel beams visible overhead. Henry’s boots struck the polished floor, and the sound echoed through the high-ceiling entranceway. Glass featured heavily in the design, as did steel bolts and rivets.
There was no signage to give any hint of what they did here, but the massive security guard standing next to the reception desk said it was something they wanted to protect. Henry nodded at the guard who had arms twice the size of Henry’s and a chin that looked like it could bulldoze mountains. The man didn’t even blink.
When they’d told him about the contract, Jack had muttered something about smart-room robotics and nanotechnology, but both fields were so wide, Henry still had no clue what the project might be. Not that it mattered; he could generally turn his hand to whatever was needed. He’d been doing it since he was old enough to pick up a spanner and help his father fix the thrill rides and to invent whatever they needed to grant the wish of the Carnival’s Mark.
He strode up to the starchy woman at the black marble reception desk who’d been eyeing him suspiciously ever since he’d come through the doors. Her perfect makeup was marred by the frown line in her forehead, and her dark brown hair seemed to be glued in place.
“Can I help you?” she said.
“I certainly hope so,” he replied, giving her his best toothy smile.
She looked down her nose at him, her glasses perched precariously on the end. Apparently, she didn’t respond to good ole carnival charm. Henry tipped his head to one side. “You know, you need a contraption to keep those glasses properly on your nose. I could do that, if you gave me a bit of time with them.” He leaned in and squinted at the tiny screws on the side of the glasses.
She blinked, leaned away, and pushed the glasses up her nose. “Your name?”
Her voice was so cold Henry had to suppress the urge to shiver. “Oh sorry, I was distracted. Henry Kokkol. I’m here on assignment.”
“Assignment?” She looked Henry up and down. He glanced downwards; cowboy boots, ripped jeans, and a faded David Bowie t-shirt—his usual. He’d taken his cowboy hat off as soon as he’d entered the building. His Momma had raised him properly.
He nodded. “Assignment.”
“You know what we do here, Henry?”
“Design high-end smart room and nanotechnology for the international market. So I believe. I didn’t have time to do much more than look you up on the internet before I was sent here.”
“And you still feel you’re in the right place?” Her voice was snide, but Henry was distracted from her attitude by the glasses. They’d fallen down her nose again.
Henry shrugged. “It’s not the place I’d choose to be, but it’s the place I’ve been ordered to report.”
“And who are you here to see?”
Henry pulled out his piece of paper again, and checked the name. “A Dr. Callaghan, according to this piece of paper.”
She sighed. “Dr. Callaghan is the owner of the company and our Chief Operating Officer. Are you sure that’s the name on your piece of paper? If I call his office and you’re not expected, I’m going to be annoyed with you, Henry.”
Henry smiled. “You’re not going to be disappointed,”—he paused, looking at her name badge—“Wanda.”
Wanda narrowed her eyes, not entirely certain he could be trusted. However, she picked up the phone and dialed a number. “Deirdre, there’s a Henry Kokkol here to see Dr. Callaghan?” Her voice implied she knew it was a hoax.
Henry leaned casually against the reception desk, tapping a finger on the marble, waiting patiently.
“Yes, Deidre, I’ll send him right up,” she said. Wanda glanced up at Henry, who grinned and winked.
Wanda shook her head. “I can see you’re going to be trouble, Henry Kokkol. Dr. Callaghan will see you now. He’s on level twelve. Robert will escort you to the elevators.” She waved one hand toward the large security guard.
Henry smiled. “Thank you, Wanda, for your help. I appreciate it.” He ambled over to the elevators in Robert’s wake. The guard inserted a keycard to unlock the call button, and pressed it with one beefy finger. The elevator doors opened immediately. Henry nodded at the impassive guard and stepped into the small space. It was fancy, all done up in mirrors and industrial steel. He sighed as he pressed the button for level twelve. This was already tiresome, and he’d only been here five minutes. He vowed that he would finish this contract within the week, no matter what. He knew he could do it. The magic pulsed through his veins even this far away from the Carnival.
When the doors opened, Henry stepped out into another, very different, entranceway. This one was much friendlier, with cream walls and old 50s advertisements for toys—mostly rockets and cars—framed on the walls. A blonde receptionist with another perfect up do was waiting behind a wooden desk.
“Mr. Kokkol? Dr. Callaghan will see you now. Please follow me.” The younger receptionist smiled at Henry, her blue eyes sparkling, and stood up.
Henry followed her to a set of double doors. She pushed one open, and led him into a large room, filled with strange and incredible paraphernalia. Henry looked around in wonder. Old-fashioned video games, life-size statues of movie characters, bits and pieces of machinery, cars and even boats all littered the room. There was even a Tardis.
“Hey there, Henry. It’s so great to meet you!” A friendly voice emerged from the side of a strange metal contraption at one end of a large wooden table. A moment later, it was followed by the shape of a tall, gangly man who looked to be in his early twenties. “I’m Lucas Callaghan.”
He took in Henry’s surprised stare, and sighed. “I’m older than I look. Bad genetics mean people never believe I’m the one in charge. It’s lucky I’m more intelligent than most of them, or I’d never survive.” He flipped his long, brown hair out of his eyes, and grinned down at Henry.
A surprised bark of laughter escaped Henry’s mouth. “It’s, uh, good to meet you, Dr. Callaghan,” he said, holding out his hand to the younger man. Despite himself, Henry liked him already.
“Lucas, please.” He took Henry’s hand in both of his and shook it vigorously. “It’s great to have you here. Jack told me all about you. He said you’re a genius with machines.” He looked like an overgrown kid on Christmas morning.
Henry shook his head, suddenly nervous. “I hope Jack hasn’t been boasting too much. I’m good with figuring out how things work, mostly.” He could fix anything, and create whatever they needed for the Gift. But that was different to working in the outside world in some fancy research lab. His palms started to sweat and he wondered if he was going to get out of here in a week after all.
“That’s exactly what we need. We’ve reached a roadblock on our latest device, and I’ve decided a fresh pair of eyes will help the team push through.”
Henry walked forward and touched a massive engine sitting at the other end of the table from where Lucas had been working. “Is this what I think it is? A Chrysler A57 Multibank? The engine they used in the tanks in World War Two?”
“One and the same.” Lucas gave a pleased smile. “I have a working model in storage. I’ll let you drive it sometime.” Lucas walked over to stand next to Henry beside the table, and slapped one hand on his shoulder. “I knew you were the right man for t
his job, as soon as Jack told me about you.”
“I don’t even know what it is you’re doing here, Lucas.”
“It’s really quite simple. We’re trying to take smart room technology to the next level, to have it on us at all times. Not just when we enter a certain place or room, but all the time.”
Henry frowned. “At the risk of bursting your bubble, wearable technology is pretty much mainstream these days, isn’t it?” he said.
Lucas grinned. “Oh, yes. I really like you. You don’t hold back. That’s just what this team needs.” He touched the motor sitting in front of them with a reverent finger. “You’re right, it’s old news. Our project takes it further. At least, it was supposed to. It’s a Second Skin Kinetic Intelligent Neurosystem.”
“A what?” Henry struggled to imagine what that sequence of words might mean in practice. Some kind of computer that was worn on the skin?
“We call it SSKIN. Come on, it’ll be easier to just show you. I’ll introduce you to the team.”
Lucas led Henry back out to the elevators and pressed the button, talking the whole way. “The team is small, and they’re probably going to resist the idea of someone else coming in to help. But I know you’re going to blow our socks off, I can feel it.” Lucas rubbed his hands together and grinned. The doors to the elevators pinged open and Lucas gestured for Henry to go first.
“Research lab,” said Lucas as he entered.
“Certainly, Dr. Callaghan,” replied a woman’s voice.
“Voice-controlled elevators?” Henry said, his eyebrows raised.
“Only for me.” Lucas grinned. “Privileges of being the boss.”
“Do you tinker with inventions as well, Lucas?” Henry was suddenly curious about the background of the enthusiastic man in front of him. How had he come to be the owner of a multi-million-dollar technology company?
“Yes, I’m an inventor, too. I have a PhD in nanotechnology from MIT.”
“So a big time inventor, then.” Henry was being sarcastic, but Lucas didn’t pick up on it.
“Not so much big time as lucky. My PhD research into an alternative heating system was picked up and purchased by a rather large multinational company. Luckily, it wasn’t my only idea, so I was able to take that money and set myself up here. The rest is history.” Lucas swept his arms wide indicating the building around them.
Henry was impressed. Lucas really had done it all himself.
The doors opened, and they walked out into a large open floor plan area. Aside from a few desks with extensive computing systems to one side and at the back of the room, and a meeting area with a table and chairs, the area was filled with shelves and tables covered with robotics equipment—metal legs and arms, computer parts, keyboards, nuts and bolts, wires and cables, soldering devices—in all shapes and sizes.
Henry itched to start putting things in the right places. His hands even rose up of their own accord, as if to grab the closest part and get to work. He literally had to clasp them together in front of him.
He took another step into the room and stopped. He sensed a faint metallic magic floating in the air around him, whispering to him. He glanced at Lucas, and the other men who were walking toward him. It wasn’t coming from any of them.
They might not know it, but someone was working magic here.
***
To read the rest of Hidden Magic, click here to go to the Amazon page.
Trudi Jaye was born and raised in New Zealand, where she currently lives in a secluded haven amongst the trees with her lovely husband and her cheeky three-year-old daughter. She’s been writing since she was a young girl, and for the last ten years has worked as a magazine writer and editor for a variety of niche titles. She enjoys yoga, although she’s not very bendy, and karate, although she doesn’t like the idea of hitting anyone.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Readers Group
Ringmaster
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Epilogue
The Gift
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Tilly’s Secret
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Bonus Short Story!
Thank You!
Excerpt High Flyer
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Hidden Magic Excerpt
About Trudi Jaye
Table of Contents
Title Page
Readers Group
Ringmaster
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Epilogue
The Gift
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Tilly’s Secret