Mesmerized: The Magician's Plaything (2 page)

For the money, right. And also because Malcolm was rather fascinating.

“-my lovely assistant, Tamara!” Malcolm suddenly yelled, yanking Tammy out of her poorly timed introspection. With wide hazel eyes, she jogged up to the front of the stage, in exactly the position Malcolm had drilled her on.

Perhaps she didn't remember that position quite right, though, for he growled lowly and yanked her over a couple of feet. “This is her first night, ladies and gentlemen, so you'll have to forgive any performance errors,” Malcolm informed the audience with his winning smile and equally winning accent. Tammy could practically see the women in the front of the audience swaying and swooning as he focused his gaze on them individually. He really had a way with women.

Women in the audience, at least. Tammy was a little miffed about him apologizing for her already, before the act even began.

She only made a few small errors after that – stumbling as she got on the platform that made her levitate, and forgetting to grimace in mock pain when he sawed her in half. The magic half of Malcolm's act was really rote, from what Tammy knew about magic acts. But she was still looking forward to the end, to the finale. When she would disappear.

For one, it was exciting and dramatic – she would disappear in a cloud of smoke, and reappear in an ingenious little box about twenty feet from where she'd disappeared. It turned out there was a little hatch in the floor, where she would duck under the stage and crawl up to the box. It was the most interesting part of the show to her, and the part that required the most activity from her.

And she didn't mind activity. She was sick of just standing around and looking pretty.

“And now, watch in amazement as the lovely Tamara disappears!” Malcolm now shouted, Tammy's cue to wave and stand over the marked hatch door. There was a loud bang, a billow of thick white smoke, and the hatch opened, right under Tammy's feet. She gave a small involuntary yelp as she was dropped a good five feet under the stage.

It wasn't a long fall, but it was enough to knock the sense out of her for a few moments. But she didn't have long to dawdle. Malcolm could only delay the reveal for so long. She shook her head and made for the box. It wasn't a long hike; it only took a few seconds, and before she knew it, she was scrambling up the small ladder, and stepping into the place she was supposed to be. The hatch slid closed underneath her feet. Now all she had to do was wait for Malcolm.

It seemed to take eons though, and her breath seemed to warm the box. She was afraid she was sucking all the oxygen out of the air. It was quickly growing muggy and humid, and Tammy would have killed for a breath of fresh air. She found herself silently praying to Malcolm to please open the door, and open it now.

Just when she was about to open the damn door herself, she heard the rasping of wood against wood, and a blinding light dazzled her. The spotlight. Objects swam in her vision and she blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of them.

Malcolm's face finally sharpened in her gaze, and he yelled, “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, and good night!” The act was over.

But instead of letting her out like he had in rehearsal, Malcolm only leaned in, and whispered in her ear. “Secret weapon.” And then he shut the door.

Tammy's eyes widened as she found herself unable to move. Those words did still have an effect on her, apparently, because she couldn't even twitch a single muscle, no matter how hard she tried. And she was stuck in this box.

She could hear the low roar of the crowd slowly diminish as the audience filed out. She heard the dull thud of footsteps on the stage, the reverberations vibrating up her feet and legs. The clicks and rattles of tricks being reset by Malcolm's assistants.

But where was Malcolm? Was he ever going to let her out?

She was still frozen in place, and she found a slow panic begin to rise. The box was so dark, it was constricting, pushing in on her and sucking out all the air. She swore that she could feel the walls pulsing around her, in time with her rapidly rising heartbeat. She wanted to do nothing more than to throw the door open and run screaming out, but she was still under Malcolm's spell somehow, against all odds and all of her instincts.

So she could only stand there and wait, scarcely able to breathe. The noises around her subsided, and she was left with something far worse – an overwhelming, dominating silence. And still, she couldn't move.

Tammy strained her ears, trying to listen for even the slightest sound, but all was silent.

Which is why it came as a complete surprise to her when the door to the box was thrust open. Her eyes widened in shock and fear as a silhouetted shape slipped in beside her. Hot breath rolled down her face and neck as she was pressed against the back of the box.

It was Malcolm.

“Still under my spell, I see,” he commented as he shut the door behind him, leaving them both in the cramped dark. “How is my assistant enjoying her first day on the job, hmm?” He leaned in close as he spoke, and Tammy could smell him. His breath was faintly minty, but his body smelled musky, sweaty, and very manly. She suddenly found herself growing weak at the knees, as she realized her level of attraction to him. And now, she was trapped in a box with him, unable to move.

“Is everything to your liking?” he continued, seemingly unaware of what was racing through Tammy's mind. “Speak, if you want to make any changes.”

Tammy voice caught in her throat, and oddly, she found herself not wanting to change anything at all. She wanted this man, exactly like this. She wanted him to take her, to force her. Long pushed down and submerged desires welled up inside her, a burning fire coursing through her body. Her emotions warred against each other. Half of her wanted to scream, to push him away and break out of that constricting box, and the other half wanted to throw herself on him, and beg him for what she knew they both wanted. But she was still under Malcolm's spell. She couldn't speak, and she couldn't move, no matter how hard she tried.

And Malcolm wasn't about to give her either of the things she so desired. He merely chuckled and opened the door to the box, snapping his fingers on the way out. “We've got another show in an hour, sweetheart,” he said, and the spell was broken. Tammy could move again.

Shakily, she stepped out of the box.

What the hell had just happened?

*****

The rest of the evening was completely normal. They did the show, everything went off without a hitch, and Tammy ended trapped in the box, once again. But this time there was no hypnotism, there was no spell. Malcolm let her out immediately after the trick, and allowed her to take a bow with him.

It was like that earlier incident had never even happened.

After the show, Jenna found her.

Tammy didn't even realize Jenna was watching, but there she was, grinning and waving with an armful of flowers. She'd mentioned the job in passing to her college friend, but she hadn't expected the woman to actually show up for a show, and now she found herself freezing slightly at the thought of having to talk to her. Jenna was also quite the feminist, and if Tammy let slip the little bit of strange behavior that Malcolm had displayed earlier, she'd scream abuse. It didn't matter that Tammy found it incredibly thrilling, and more than a little arousing.

She sighed, and made her way to the back of the stage to put on her civilian clothing. These work clothes certainly wouldn't do, not for going out in public. And she was sure that Jenna would have something to say about them. So, it was better to get out of them sooner, rather than later. She found her tiny, closet-sized dressing room, and stepped inside, changing quickly.

“You did marvelously,” Malcolm purred behind her, causing her to jump. How did he get in here without her knowing?

“Th-thank you,” Tammy stuttered as she pulled her shirt over her head. He'd seen her in her bra!

Which was a stupid initial thought to have. Her stage outfit revealed as much as her bra did.

“Did you enjoy the night?” he asked, looking at her meaningfully. Tammy knew full well what he was referring to.

She paused. She knew that if she was truly uncomfortable with his naughty advances and the way he treated her, now was the time to get out.

She nodded her head. “Yes, very much.”

He gave a slight smile. “Good. I expect you'll be ready for another show tomorrow.”

She returned the smile. “Definitely.”

With that, he left, and Tammy finished her changing. What an odd arrangement. The lines were blurring about how much of a job this job was. And if it wasn't a job, what was it?

She shook her head. No matter. She had to go out and see Jenna now.

In fact, she heard Jenna before she saw her – the girl was arguing with a security guard, trying to get back stage to see Tammy.

“I'm telling you, I know the assistant!”

“Sure, sure, you and every other lovesick female trying to get to the magician,” the guard sighed and waved a lazy hand at the crowd of females. Tammy suddenly heard screams from the other side of the stage. Malcolm was apparently doing an after show appearance, to the delight of his fans. She was certain that it was somewhat expected that he show up for autographs and fan encounters.

She didn't realize how popular he was, and felt a small pang of jealousy, for just a moment. He really could have any girl out there, she realized.

But Jenna knocked the feeling clear out of her head. “There you are!” she shouted and pointed the flowers straight at Tammy.

“Yeah, she's with me,” Tammy said to the guard, feeling a little sheepish. She should have gotten Jenna some sort of pass. But she didn't even know the girl was showing up Jenna was all smiles as she approached Tammy and handed her the flowers. Roses. “You did great!” she said brightly. Her hair had changed again since Tammy last saw her a week ago. Now it was cropped short and dyed magenta. Before, it had been slightly longer, with streaks of blue. Jenna seemed to change her hair every time Tammy saw her. She wasn't even sure what the original color was. “Even though I can't say I approve to the work,” she said in a more sniffing tone. “How can you parade around in that costume on stage?”

Tammy shrugged, a slight flush rising. “I don't know.” The costume
was
rather revealing. Tammy knew what comparison was coming next.

“I'm sorry, you just looked like a stripper up there.”

Tammy's flush grew. “I'm not a stripper, though.”

“You know they make more money, probably.”

“And they also are required to get naked!”

Jenna shrugged, but Tammy could see the slight grin on her face. Jenna didn't like this job, but she did like hassling Tammy. “Please tell me you're at least looking for a real job.”

“Of course I am!” Tammy said shortly, tugging at the sleeves of her t-shirt. She felt too exposed even now, in her normal clothes.

“Good. Come on, let's go out for a celebratory drink.”

The rest of the night passed more or less uneventfully. They went out to one of the many bars on the strip, drank a little too much, and got hit on by a few too many guys for Tammy's taste. She'd never been good around men, and had few boyfriends even through her college years.

Jenna shrugged off the advances for both of them easily though, and around two in the morning, they stumbled on their respective ways home.

Tammy had another big day tomorrow, after all.

*****

She didn't know why, but she felt even more nervous this night than the last. She was afraid that Malcolm would do something with that hypnotism of his again, and that she wouldn't be able to resist him. But at the same time, she was thrilled by the thought.

She hadn't told Jenna about that aspect of her performance last night. She knew the girl wouldn't approve. She had tried to get Jenna to use the secret phrase on her though, and it hadn't worked. Not that this meant much. It was entirely possible that only Malcolm had that kind of control over her.

A thrill ran up her spine at the thought. He could control her.

But for now, he was controlling her paycheck, and she had to get on stage.

This night's performance went without a hitch, in a blaze of strobing lights and hypnotized audience members. Malcolm was really on top of his game – he didn't make a single mistake. And when Tammy wormed her way over to that dark, constricting box again, she waited with bated breath, wondering whether he would do his magic on her.

To her chagrin however, he didn't. It was just like the latter performance of last night. He pulled her out of the box to a huge round of applause, and they both took a simultaneous bow.

“You look disappointed,” Malcolm murmured to her over the rush of clapping and cheers.

“What? No, I'm fine,” Tammy said back. Was it so plain on her face? Did she really want this so badly?

Malcolm smirked and squeezed her hand even tighter, and Tammy felt a flutter in her chest. “You better be fine, after what I have in store for you tonight.”

She felt her eyes widen. What did he have planned?

He wouldn't elaborate, and she didn't ask further. She almost didn't want to know.

The second and last show of the night went without incident. At least, until Tammy had to crawl through the tunnel to the magician's box, again. She was nervous and her heart fluttered against her ribs like a bird. She felt that familiar burning sensation through her body, centered around her thighs, and the general excitement of not knowing what was going to happen. Malcolm hadn't said anything at all was going to happen, after all. He could just be teasing her.

She wormed her ways towards the box, and lifted her body up into it, her arms shaking from the tension and effort. She could hear his muffled voice in the microphone, and the audience roared as the reveal was made.

“Thank you, thank you all!” he shouted, and Tammy's heart gave a panicked jolt. He was saying good night without getting her out of the box. What was he going to do to her?