Chase turned and gazed out the window, not sure he was ready to forgive his dad yet. “I’ll try,” he mumbled.
“It’s all I can ask for,” said Grandfather. “Is there anything else you wish to discuss?”
Chase swung back around. “I’d sure like to know how you set those magical booby traps.”
“Ah, yes, there are a number of charms magical Tinkers are allowed to use. The one you speak of is a rather interesting and useful enchantment,” said Grandfather, nodding. “And I think you’re capable of not misusing it.” His eyes twinkled. “Most of the time. Now, the magical word is Tendicula. This means to trap or ensnare.”
“Tendicula,” said Chase, knowing that repeating it would help him remember it better.
“First, you must spit into the palm of your left hand.” Grandfather sat forward and did this while Chase, looking slightly revolted, watched closely. “Next, you rub your palms together, then you swing them apart while saying, or thinking, the magic word and what type of magic you wish to use: Tendicula, Dancing!” He slumped back against the couch and smiled at Chase. “And the trap is set.”
“How can we test it?” asked Chase as he warily eyeballed the booby-trapped spot and remembered the last time he’d encountered the crazy dancing power. He sure didn’t want to be wiggling around like a fool again.
At that moment, Grandfather’s doctor and good friend, Daniel Brown, strode into the room. “Ah, Hiram, here you are. I—what in the world?” His eyebrows shot up and his eyes nearly popped out of his head when he suddenly whirled in place several times and then tap-danced madly across the floor.
Chase barely choked back his laughter as the usually pompous doctor shimmied and shook his rear end around the coffee table, chicken-danced past the television, then wiggled his finger in the air while he boogied in a circle and kicked up his heels. His usually tidy blond hair flopped into his eyes as he pulled off his jacket and waved it in the air like a lasso.
Watching the crazy display, Chase remembered how he’d thought the doctor was one of the hated Marlowes. It was after confronting Doctor Dan that Chase realized how wrong he’d been. Dan had only wanted to be part of the Tinker family, since he had none of his own, but had gone about it the wrong way. Then, one day, after seeing Chase and Roland Marlowe performing magic, the doctor had needed to have a few things explained to him. He was shocked at first, but then came to accept that the world truly did have real magic in it, and the Tinkers were part of it.
“Hey! This isn’t funny,” Dan gasped out when he saw both Chase and Grandfather grinning from ear to ear. “How do I make it stop?”
This time Grandfather spit into his right hand and then rubbed his palms together. “End enchantment!” he said with a quick wave of his hands.
Doctor Dan plopped into a chair and pulled at his tie to loosen it. “Whew! That was interesting. I didn’t know I had it in me.” He sat forward and gave Grandfather a stern look. “Hiram, what did I say about using magic?”
The grin on Chase’s face slid away when he saw Grandfather slumped on the couch, panting, his face the color of egg-shells. “Grandfather! Doctor Dan, what’s wrong?”
“I keep telling him he needs to stop doing any magic,” said the doctor as he hurried to Grandfather’s side. “I’m not sure how it all works, but for some reason it seems to take way too much of the energy he needs to heal properly. Don’t worry, he should be okay soon.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Chase asked his grandparent, looking irritated.
“Because he’s too stubborn,” said Dan before Grandfather had a chance to answer. He glared at Grandfather, whose natural color was slowly returning.
Looking sheepish, Grandfather replied, “I’m sorry, Daniel, but it’s quite a difficult habit to break after all these years.” He patted Chase’s hand. “And I didn’t want to worry you.”
“I still needed to know,” said Chase. “If that’s what it takes for you to get better, then you have to do it!”
“I know, I know,” murmured Grandfather, frowning. “Getting old sucks!”
Chase had to grin when he heard the slang coming out of his usually proper-speaking grandparent. “Yeah, well, whatever you say, Grandfather. Just please do what you’re told, okay? We need you around here.” He looked at Doctor Dan. “When do you think he’ll be able to do his magic again?”
“If he follows my advice, I would say he can start performing a few, um, tricks, or um, spells—or whatever you call them—by Thanksgiving. If not…” The doctor shrugged. “…it will probably be much longer.”
Chase didn’t want Grandfather to take any longer to heal than he had to, so after assuring Dan that he wouldn’t ask for any more magic help from his grandparent, he rushed from the room. He was anxious to try out the booby trap enchantment on his own, and he knew the perfect person to practice on: Andy.
He thought of all the places where Andy usually hung out and figured in front of the refrigerator would be the perfect spot.
No one else was in the kitchen when he pushed open the door and peeked inside. Scurrying across the floor, he skidded to a stop in front of the tall, shiny appliance. Without a second thought, he spit into his left palm, rubbed his hands together and swept them through the air.
“Tendicula, Telekinesis!”
He ducked into the Tidy Room and closed the door until only a thin crack of light cut through the dimness. He knew he probably didn’t have long to wait. When Andy wasn’t vegetating in front of the television set watching his favorite programs, he spent a lot of time scrounging in the kitchen for food.
It wasn’t long until Chase heard someone enter the room. Pressing his ear to the door, he heard light footsteps moving across the smooth floor. Moments later, a loud yell filled the air.
Grinning like he’d just transformed all the Marlowes into toadstools, he jumped from his hiding spot. “Ha! Caught you!”
“Chase! Are you responsible for this?”
“Uh-oh!”
Instead of finding Andy dangling upside down like a stringless puppet, Chase saw his mom, and if her glowing, candy-apple-red face was any indication, she was angry enough to strangle him and then serve him up for dinner. To make matters worse, she began to twirl as if she were caught in the spin cycle of a washing machine. Her shoes flew across the room in different directions.
“End enchantment!” he yelled after performing the spitting and waving movements again.
Anne crashed to the floor. “Ooph! Ow! Ow!” She lay there gasping and rubbing her shoulder and then her elbow. Chase pasted his best innocent expression onto his face as she sat up and glared at him. “Well?” she asked as she blew out a puff of air to swish away the stray strands of hair draped across her face.
“Uh…I guess it works,” he said with a sheepish smile.
“What works?” she snarled.
“The booby trap I set for Andy. It’s the coolest magic!” he exclaimed. “You see—”
“Oooh, so this thoughtless magical prank was for Andy,” she broke in, nodding. “Somehow, I don’t think that makes it okay. Did you ever think you might hurt someone?” Anne pushed herself to her feet. “You’re lucky I didn’t break any bones.” She waved her finger in Chase’s face. “It sounds as if you have way too much time on your hands, mister. I believe an afternoon of washing windows ought to fix that, don’t you? And I think it would be an excellent idea for you to get to work right now!”
She limped across the floor and pulled one of her shoes from the sink and the other out of the fruit bowl. “Exactly like your father,” she said as she paused a moment to massage her lower back. “Always doing things without thinking about the consequences of your actions. I think it’s time we had a family meeting to set up some new magical rules around here.” After one last frown at Chase, she left the kitchen. Two seconds later, the door swung open again. “And no magic help with the washing!”
Chase sighed, slouched into the Tidy Room and rattled around gathering the b
ucket, ladder, and other supplies he would need. He swished away the clothes pins flapping around his head and cursed silently to himself. Of all the people to catch in his trap, his mom had to be the one.
“No magic,” he muttered. “This sucks!”
“No way! I am not leaving!”
The angry, booming words echoed around the large family room as Chase leaped to his feet. This was by far the worst thing that could happen. The whole time he’d been washing windows, and getting pink, pruny fingers, he’d been worried sick about losing his magic privileges, and then if he did, how the heck would he control the sneezing that kept setting off his new powers? Did they expect him to walk around with plugs stuck up his nose or something? But it had never entered his head that his parents still might want to leave.
“Now, Chase, you have to calm down,” said Anne, reaching out as if to push him back down onto the sofa. “You need to hear our reasons before saying anything else.”
“Look, I’m sorry about the magic, Mom,” he said, back-pedaling a bit, since he figured a little kissing up wouldn’t hurt. “You were right. As usual, I wasn’t thinking. Maybe a couple no-magic rules will help.”
Benjamin and Anne exchanged a quick look. “That’s not the point, Chase.” Ben rubbed his forehead as if trying to erase a splitting headache. “We want you boys to understand that your mother and I have decided we can’t stay—”
“I told you I’m not leaving!” snapped Chase, crossing his arms and staring at the floor, barely registering the little prickles of pain as Maxwell clawed his way up Chase’s body to sit on his shoulder. “This is our home. We belong here.” It was unbelievable to him that his parents even thought this was an option. “If you think I’d ever want to leave, then you’re delusional!” He knew he shouldn’t be speaking to his parents this way, but he was just so angry. “I don’t believe it!”
Ignoring Chase’s outburst, Ben continued, “This house holds too many—” He stopped abruptly then continued after a few heartbeats, “—and now here I am, sucked right back into magic and this—this place.” Chase squinted and wondered what else his dad had planned to say before stopping himself.
Shoving his hands into his pockets, Ben strode across the room and stared into the fire crackling merrily in the large stone fireplace. The orange of the flames reflecting off his skin accentuated the dark circles under his eyes. “I just want to live a normal life without magic.”
“But you are magical, Dad. It’s a big part of you,” Chase countered back. A tone of pleading crept into his voice. “And even if you run off again, you know you’ll never escape it. And anyway, we’re safer here.”
“Maybe we used to be,” said Anne, shuddering. “But those dreadful people have shown they can get in here and do whatever they please. I’m scared and I’m worried.”
“So who’s to say they won’t find us some place else?” Chase asked, frowning at both his parents. “They found Dad in New York and Aunt Clair in England.”
Ben turned from his perusal of the dancing flames. “But I wasn’t trying to hide myself then, and Clair—Clair wanted to be found.”
Chase felt a quick surge of sympathy at the look of sadness flashing across his dad’s face, but he shoved it away. He knew how much his dad missed his sister and that he still blamed himself for her death, but Chase didn’t want to think about it. He had to stay focused on convincing his parents that leaving was a bad idea.
“Okay, so you know to change into someone else now,” said Chase, waving his hands in agitation, “but what about the rest of us?”
“I can use my power to change us all whenever we want. We can look like whomever we please. It’ll be fun.”
“But I want to look like myself,” piped up Andy. He’d been watching the argument back and forth, like a tennis match, his face scrunched with worry. “And what about Grandfather? He needs us.”
“Yeah, Grandfather can’t stay here by himself,” said Chase, nodding in agreement.
“Dan can stay here with him,” said Ben.
“He has other patients he needs to take care of, too,” Chase retorted. “He doesn’t have time for Grandfather the way we do. And how about Janie and Mrs. Periwinkle? We can’t leave Persephone’s mom without her free will for the rest of her life. And we need to get Janie back! If she’s still alive, that is. Not that you two seem to care,” he added bitterly.
“Chase, that remark was uncalled for!” said Ben. “Of course we care.”
“Yes, of course we care,” echoed Anne. “But we have to also think about ourselves.”
“But aren’t they better at tracking Tinker magic now?” said Chase. “I mean, isn’t the magic and free will they’ve been stealing making them even more powerful?”
“I’ll enchant something with your grandfather’s shielding power to carry with us and help hide where we are. There’s a way to make it untraceable and disguise the magic it’s protecting.”
“So we’ll be prisoners in some dinky, crummy apartment somewhere? Is that what you’re saying?” Chase snarled. “Great. Just great!” Things were sounding worse and worse by the second.
“We want you kids to be safe,” said Anne, lightly touching Chase’s arm. “I’d die if anything happened to you or Andy.”
“We’ll be okay, Mom,” said Chase. “I have some extra abilities now that’ll help us. Some powerful ones that are great for fighting.”
“Fighting! I don’t want you fighting anyone,” cried Anne.
Too late, Chase realized he’d said the one word that would upset his mom even more. He had to move on to another subject. “And we can’t leave Grandfather all sick and alone,” he said quickly. “He can’t protect himself right now. If Dad wants to get out of here so badly, let him. That’s fine with me, but I’m staying!” He jabbed his finger at Benjamin. “And you keep insisting you want to get away from all the crappy magic, but you’re talking about taking even more when you leave. Aren’t you being a big hypocrite, Dad?” He was proud of himself for throwing such a great word in his dad’s face.
Anne sighed as she wrung her hands and nibbled on her bottom lip. Her eyes flitted from her son to her husband several times. Chase saw the conflict flickering across both their faces. “I hate to admit it, but the boys are right, Ben,” she finally said. “We can’t leave your father while he’s still recovering. I hate forcing the kids into doing something they don’t want to do, and no matter how hard you try, you can’t escape your magic, either. I—I guess we should stay. For now, at least.”
“Besides, since they found us here, I bet they can find us anywhere. Shielded or not. This is the best place,” Chase added.
He held his breath as he waited for his dad to agree or disagree. He kept to himself the one thought that kept running through his mind. What if Grandfather never gets well enough to live here on his own again?
Several tense seconds later, Benjamin’s shoulders slumped. “All right. Okay. We’ll stay and help take care of your grandfather. But I still plan on us departing at some point.”
Chase wanted to argue more, but since he’d won this round, he decided to keep his mouth shut for the moment. At least they weren’t leaving the house anytime soon. At this point, that was what mattered the most.
“We’re staying? Cool!” exclaimed Andy. “So what’s for dinner? I’m starving.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Making Plans
“Weeks!” growled Chase grumpily as he, Andy and Persephone tromped down the dirt road that led to their house. He adjusted his backpack. The darn thing weighed nearly a ton because it was so jam-packed with books for all the homework his teachers had piled on. “Weeks and weeks have gone by and we haven’t heard one thing from Janie or the Marlowes. We have to do something. I could barely think in class today.”
“It’s been two weeks and four days,” said Persephone. “Don’t exaggerate.”
“Seems like a lot longer,” he muttered.
“Maybe something came today,” said Andy,
looking hopeful.
“Maybe,” said Chase, “but I hate to get my hopes up and then—and then nothing!” He swatted at a couple of red and gold maple leaves drifting to the ground like plate-sized, colorful snowflakes.
Persephone tried to look reassuring. “At least we didn’t find a new room with her space manipulation power in it yesterday. So we’re pretty sure she’s still alive. That was a great idea you had, Chase. We should search again tonight.”
“Too bad Grandfather is too sick to do magic,” said Andy. “That way he could try to do her power and we wouldn’t have to waste time looking all over the house. But he told me we shouldn’t worry. If her power came to him, he would feel it. Well…except when he’s sleeping.”
“He does do a lot of that lately,” Persephone added, sighing.
“That’s why we need to go find her,” said Chase. “As soon as we get home, I’m talking to Grandfather about this.”
“I think you better do your math homework first,” said Persephone as the house came into view. “You don’t want to fall even more behind.”
“Yeah, yeah,” said Chase, waving the comment away as if he was swooshing away a pesky gnat. “I’ll get to it.” He had more pressing matters to worry about, and those didn’t include formulas, decimals and calculations. He turned to walk backward and couldn’t help grinning at Persephone. “I guess I don’t care if I’m teacher’s pet like some people.”
“I am not anyone’s pet!” She tossed her head. “I like getting good grades, is all.”
“Ignore him, Persephone,” said Andy, patting her arm. “He’s just jealous.”
Chase stuck his tongue out at the other two, then swung back around and loped across the yard.
“Oh, yeah, real mature, Tinker!” hollered Persephone.
He sent her another quick grin before disappearing through the kitchen door. Mrs. Periwinkle was sitting in her rocking chair in the corner. He opened his mouth to ask her if they’d received any news from Janie or the Marlowes, but then quickly shut it when he realized what he’d been about to do.
Chase Tinker and the House of Secrets Page 9
