The Houdini Escape
Page 6
Harry clenched his fists around the chain, willing himself to stay calm. He was the King of Cards, the Prince of the Air, and a master escape artist. He could hold his breath for a few more precious seconds.
Finally, he started to see red behind his eyelids. Harry let the chain slip out of his grasp and kicked off, struggling for the surface. As he reached the top, he slowed, letting only the front of his face break through. The ship was far away now, but it was possible that they were still looking back for him. Harry breathed in, pulling in as much air as he could. He panted for a moment, letting his vision return to normal, and then he kicked his legs and dove back underwater.
With powerful strokes, he swam in the opposite direction of the ship, staying underwater as much as possible. An observer would have to look at just the right moment to see a mouth and nose emerge above the surface for a quick breath, then disappear again.
Harry glanced back at the ship and saw it rounding the shoreline before finally disappearing. He treaded water for a moment to catch his breath, and then set off for the shore at a more leisurely pace.
Harry met Jacob at the pier, just as they had planned. Harry pulled himself out of the water and stood up, shaking the water out of his hair. “How did it go?” he asked, struggling to catch his breath.
Jacob was grinning like a maniac. “Your plan worked perfectly.” He handed Harry the parcel.
Harry took the artifact, hardly believing he was holding it once again. After the events of the past few days, it seemed miraculous that he’d managed to fool the Vespers. But Jacob had managed to climb up from underneath the docks, and as they’d discussed, swap the urns while Harry created a distraction. They knew it was a long shot, but it had actually worked.
“I owe you,” Harry said, smiling. He knew from his reading that no great magician, not even the great Robert-Houdin, had pulled off his act alone. It paid to have a best friend who was skilled in his own right.
Jacob raised an eyebrow. “That’s not all. While I was up there, I . . . got a little greedy.” He passed Harry a second parcel, this one a simple leather case. Harry opened it and gasped.
“How did you . . . ?”
“This was next to the artifact I switched. It must be their blackmail money, or something.”
Harry laughed. It was a good thing Zoltan wouldn’t discover that anything was missing until he was in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Inside the case was more money than Harry made in a year. He knew immediately what they would use it for. It was enough to take care of his family while he and Jacob finally created the act they had dreamed of. As soon as he returned the artifact to the museum — an anonymous parcel mysteriously appearing in the night watchmen’s room would do the trick — he could start planning.
Harry shivered, this time more with excitement than with cold. His real life was about to start.
The audience clapped as Harry leaped onstage and took a bow. The large tent was packed for the third show in a row. Their statewide tour, word of mouth, and the posters touting their stage name, “The Brothers Houdini,” had brought the Harlem hometown crowd out in force. Harry and Jacob had showcased their best illusions, from simple card and scarf tricks to an elaborate “mind reading” act. Now it was time for the finale.
Tonight wasn’t just any show. In the front row, Harry could see his mother, his brothers, and his sister. Even his father, who could barely walk, had been wheeled down so that he could watch. Mayer Samuel’s face was thin and taut, but Harry could detect a slight smile on it. His father still didn’t entirely approve of his son’s new venture, but Harry had caught him looking around at the crowd in wonder more than once.
As Jacob invited the local constable onstage, Harry looked down at the orchestra, a four-piece band that he had recently hired. What a difference it made having music to build tension! Together Jacob and the constable put Harry in handcuffs and leg irons, and tied a generous portion of rope around him. Just before they pulled a bag over his head, Harry flashed the crowd his most winning smile.
They led Harry to the crate and he crouched down, letting them guide him inside. The audience clapped as the front slammed shut and Jacob snapped a heavy padlock into place.
Harry couldn’t see a thing, but he knew what was happening outside. The orchestra was starting up, high fast notes building the excitement — and masking the sounds that Harry was making. Jacob would be joking with the crowd and making sure they knew that the constable wasn’t a plant. The cuffs and leg irons were the real deal.
Next, Jacob would produce a sheet and wave it about. He would climb onto the top of the box and hold it out with both hands, shielding himself from the audience. The orchestra would reach a crescendo as he lowered it down just enough to show his head one last time. Then in one smooth motion he would fling the sheet aside.
Only it wasn’t Jacob anymore. The metamorphosis appeared instantaneous, and Harry stood in his place, grinning at the audience once again. The money they’d taken from the Vespers had allowed them to design the most impressive trick anyone in Coney Island had ever seen.
The crowd erupted in applause, and Harry jumped down on the stage, taking a bow. With the constable’s help, he unlocked the front of the box and helped out Jacob, who was wearing the cuffs, leg irons, rope, and a sack over his head. The audience roared its appreciation and the constable smiled in amazement and shook his head as he used his key to let Jacob free.
Harry and Jacob clasped hands, walked to the front of the stage, and took a bow as the audience applauded. After another bow, they backed up and the curtain drew shut.
But the crowd wasn’t done. “HOU-DI-NI, HOU-DI-NI,” they chanted. Harry peered through the side of the curtain. Even his father was shouting it.
He locked eyes with Jacob and shrugged. They could do one more trick, couldn’t they? After a quick discussion, they settled on a new illusion that Harry had invented a few weeks ago, and they had been practicing ever since. Jacob grabbed their props from stage left and Harry signaled for the stagehand to raise the curtain again.
The stagehand yanked the rope and the curtain slid open. Harry Houdini stepped into the light, ready to amaze his audience one more time.
Clifford Riley would like to acknowledge
Gavin Brown.
Copyright © 2012 by Scholastic Inc.
All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. SCHOLASTIC, THE 39 CLUES, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2012943582
e-ISBN 978-0-545-45731-6
Cover design by Charice Silverman
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First edition, August 2012
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