
04 Feb The Amazing Nicolas Hemlock
āThe Amazing Nicolas Hemlockā
Written by Ryan Peacock Edited by Craig Groshek Thumbnail Art by Craig Groshek Narrated by N/ACopyright Statement: Unless explicitly stated, all stories published on CreepypastaStories.com are the property of (and under copyright to) their respective authors, and may not be narrated or performed, adapted to film, television or audio mediums, republished in a print or electronic book, reposted on any other website, blog, or online platform, or otherwise monetized without the express written consent of its author(s).
š§ Available Audio Adaptations: None Available
ā° ESTIMATED READING TIME ā 19 minutes
Do you know what a mentalist is, by any chance? By definition, itās someone with amazing observational skills who uses them to figure things out about people. Kind of like reading their mind. It doesnāt sound too interesting to watch, but youād be surprised!
My Dad was a big fan of Magicians. In particular, he loved the mentalists. He couldnāt do it himself, but he just loved to watch. He usually took me and my sister Gina with him, and we grew up immersed in the world of magic. We even got pretty good at some small tricks! My specialty was close up magic. Card tricks and multiplying balls. We used to talk about being part of a sibling act, although it never went anywhere. But of all the magicians and mentalists Iād ever seen, none of them beat out Nicolas Hemlockās show at the Poetic Theatre.
To anyone who doesnāt live in Hamilton, the Poetic is an old, but beloved theatre on Hamilton Mountain. Itās kind of a landmark. Going inside feels like stepping back in time. Itās not particularly large, but the art deco design feels like a classic theatre from the ā20s or ā30s. Iāve heard it used to be a movie theater, and I can believe that.
Iād seen countless shows in there through the years, but Nicolas Hemlocks was the best.
Heād come onstage with his assistant, a beautiful young woman in a long white dress. Theyād stand on opposite ends of the stage, and whatever he saw, she would read off perfectly. It sounds so simple on paper, but they took it to its logical extreme.
She would read peopleās Driverās Licenses without them even taking their wallets out of their pockets. He would make people draw something, and she would draw too, blindfolded so she couldnāt see. Both his Assistant and the lucky audience member would draw the exact same image. Not just similar. Exactly the same, line for line. He even picked people from the audience and she would tell them things about themselves, but simple things like favorite artists and actors.
Hemlockās claim was that āHe was speaking to her telepathicallyā. Of course, it was all smoke and mirrors. How couldnāt it be? No one is really telepathic. Even now that Iāve seen what Iāve seen, I think I can claim that much safely.
When I heard Nicolas Hemlock was returning to the Poetic, I was enthused. His show had remained on my mind for years since Iād seen it! The opportunity to see what had changed, or see if his act held up after all these years was something I didnāt want to pass up. I saw the Ad on the bus, heading into work one morning and I immediately messaged Gina about it. She was just as pumped as I was. Iād bought the tickets before the bus even stopped.
As the date of the show approached, my excitement grew. It was like finding out your favorite band was releasing a new album! Building anticipation. Iāll admit, I did follow Hemlock a bit. I knew heād done shows in the USA. Heād even fooled Penn and Teller and performed in Vegas! Returning to the Poetic was kind of a big deal. It was a small venue, nothing special. I was surprised when I didnāt see much marketing for the show. I would have thought theyād try and go all out, but it didnāt seem like they did.
The night of the show, Gina and I were there first. We got our seats and our popcorn. For as little marketing as there seemed to be, the turnout was incredible! Iād never seen the theatre so packed!
The opening act was a Sinatra-style crooner with an angelic voice. He was one hell of a warm-up! But as he finished, the lights dimmed.
For a moment there was silence. Then came a spotlight. A woman stood on the stage, dressed entirely in white. She was young and beautiful. She seemed radiant and almost more than human. Her charming smile lit up the room.
āAnd now, ladies and gentlemen. Itās the man weāve all been waiting for. The Master of the Mind. The Knower of the Unknowable, The Prince of Illusions himself, the inexplicable Nicolas Hemlock!ā
Hemlock stepped out from behind her. The move seemed almost impossible. He was a massive man that towered over her and was far too wide to hide behind her. His hands were outstretched to welcome the applause of the audience and they gladly gave him what he wanted.
āThank you! Thank you!ā He cried. Hemlock was somewhere in his mid-60ās. He seemed as if he was a giant on the stage. Not fat or particularly tall. But dominating and powerful.
āItās so wonderful to be back in Hamilton⦠Itās been so many years and Iāve missed this place!ā There were a few cheers from the audience.
āNow, before I continue and since she was so kind to introduce me, Iād like to introduce my lovely, lovely assistant, Elizabeth!ā
The applause for her was just as thunderous, and Elizabeth seemed to shy from it a little bit. Hemlock just kept his winning stage smile.
āElizabeth and I met a few years back, and itās been a pleasure touring with her. Every now and then⦠you do meet special people with who you share a connection. My act has always been a two-person act, but people meet and part ways. Everyone has their commitments, and Iām very, very lucky to have Elizabeth with us today. She and I share a unique telepathic connection. We can send each other thoughts. We can see what the other sees, and today we are here to show you just how much we have honed this ability!ā
āThatās right, Nick!ā Elizabeth chimed in, āThis is a very rare connection, but when itās made, it is so powerful!ā She looked over at Hemlock, āI think a demonstration is in order, isnāt it?ā
āYes my dear, I think it is! Now⦠letās get this show on a roll!ā
What followed was quite simply the best performance Iād ever witnessed. Hemlock and Elizabeth seemed to be so in touch. Iād seen countless magic acts throughout my years. But none like this. I couldnāt figure out how they did any of the tricks.
The obvious highlight of the show started early on when Hemlock gave a piece of paper to several different audience members. He even gave one to Gina. Everyone wrote something different down on each paper. After some thought, Gina wrote the word āToadā on it. I was right there to ensure that the paper never once left her hand. At the same time, Elizabeth wrote down a prediction as to what the papers would say at the end of the show. When that finally came around after almost two hours of demonstrations of their ātelepathic connectionā, Hemlock requested we all hand the papers back. From those papers, he formed a sentence.
A toad sleeps in the tree
Then, they opened up Elizabethās prediction envelope, which had sat in plain view for the entire show. Inside, the paper read.
A toad sleeps in the tree
The applause for that trick was deafening. Gina was in awe and Iāll admit, I had no idea how they pulled it off either! It had to just be misdirection, of course. But it was no less incredible! Hemlock hadnāt just held up, heād gotten better!
And I had to say as much to him.
As Gina and I left the theatre after the show, I spotted a door leading to the backstage. I paused for a moment, staring at it. It was unguarded. No one to stop me. It wouldnāt be the first time Iād done something like that. Gina and I had pulled a similar stunt to try and meet Bon Jovi.
Gina paused beside me and seemed to already know what I was thinking.
āCome on, letās do it!ā She said, taking my hand and pulling me towards the door. Any doubt I had was immediately dispelled. The door was unlocked and we slipped into the back unnoticed. From there, it was easy to keep walking like we belonged there. No one tried to stop us.
We spotted Nicolas Hemlock in the hall, outside his dressing room.
āHey! Mr. Hemlock!ā I called and he looked up. In person, he seemed just a bit smaller. His age was more apparent up close. But he had a kindly smile.
āHello. What can I do for you?ā He seemed to recognize that we werenāt part of the staff.
āOh, I just wanted to say I loved your show!ā I replied, āIt was really something else!ā
His kindly smile widened from a formality into something genuine.
āIām glad. Some days I worry Iām getting played out!ā He said and laughed nervously.
āNot at all! Iām kinda an amateur magician myself and I can see how you fooled Penn and Teller! Youāre incredible!ā
āWell, glad to see I can still inspire the youth.ā He said softly, āI donāt think you two introduced yourselfā¦ā
āOh, right! Iām Troy Sanders!ā I said, reaching out to shake his hand. My sister was next.
āGina Sanders. Heās my brother. Youāre basically his idol.ā
Iām pretty sure I blushed at that, but Hemlock didnāt seem put off.
āReally? Well, Iām flattered! Hey, I was about to grab a bite. How would you two like to join me, and maybe even offer a recommendation?ā
My heart skipped a beat.
āYeah! Absolutely!ā Gina answered for me. āWe know a pretty good place a few blocks away. Walking distance, if youāre interested! Itās a steakhouse!ā
āThat sounds good.ā Hemlock replied, āIf you donāt mind waiting around a bit, I just need to finish up and we can walk over!ā
He nodded respectfully before disappearing. My heart was racing in my chest.
āSee? Iāve got your back,ā Gina said confidently. I almost hugged her. She gave me a playful punch on the shoulder.
Sure enough, Hemlock came back not ten minutes later.
āSorry to keep you kids waiting!ā He said, āMy crewāll clean everything up. Iām a little too old for the heavy lifting.ā
āIs Elizabeth coming?ā I asked. Hemlock shook his head.
āSheās gone back to the hotel. She usually eats before the shows anyhow. I canāt. I get too nervous.ā He laughed awkwardly, āI donāt know how she does it, but sheās a natural on stage. Sheās got some real talent.ā
As we walked to the restaurant, we talked about magic. Mr. Hemlock was honestly very pleasant company. It was a wonderful surprise. Iād been a little afraid that heād be some cold curmudgeon. But he was anything but!
āYou know, itās been a while since I got to actually meet some of the audience,ā Hemlock told us as we sat at the steakhouse. Heād ordered a rare cut of beef and white wine.
āI might have a drink with the crew over dinner, but after the show⦠Iām usually dining alone. It doesnāt lead to the healthiest choices! Besides, touring takes a lot out of you. Sometimes youāre so tired when itās done. All you want is to sleep.ā
āThereās gotta at least be some reward to it though,ā Gina replied.
āOh, thereās plenty of reward! But Iām starting to think itās a young manās game.ā He sighed. It didnāt seem upset. Just wistful.
āYou know⦠Hamilton was where my career started. I played my first shows here.ā
āI know.ā I admitted, āI remember seeing you when I was a kid.ā
He raised an eyebrow.
āReally now? Well. Hopefully my act holds up!ā He chuckled, āAh, but I digress⦠Part of the reason why I came back is because I was thinking it might be best to end it here.ā
I felt my expression drop.
āYouāre retiring?ā I asked.
āWhy not?ā He replied, āIām 67 years old now. I think Iāve gone about as far as I can go. I canāt really top what Iāve already done. Thereās a dignity in knowing where the end is.ā
His hand absentmindedly went to a string around his neck. I hadnāt consciously noticed it before. It was some kind of necklace he wore under his suit.
āWell, youāre sure as hell ending on a high note,ā Gina said. Hemlock nodded in response.
āThatās part of the plan, my dear.ā His eyes focused on me, and he seemed to think for a moment.
āAlthough⦠I suppose Iām thinking of something that hasnāt occurred to me already. Troy, you said youāre something of a magician yourself, right?ā
āYeah.ā I replied, āClose up stuff mostly. Iāve always been fascinated by mentalism though!ā
āWell, maybe I can teach you a few things.ā He replied. If my jaw couldāve hit the floor, it would have. It took me a few minutes to actually respond properly. Hemlock knew my answer before I could even say it.
āR-really?ā I managed to stammer out.
āIāll tell you what⦠Iāll be at the Poetic tomorrow morning going through some practice. Stop by and maybe I can teach you a few things.ā
āYes! Of course, absolutely!ā
Nicolas Hemlock cracked a smile, and popped a bite of steak into his mouth.
āIāll be seeing you tomorrow then.ā He said.
Tomorrow couldnāt come soon enough. I was back at the Poetic bright and early! The old art deco style of the theatre seemed less surreal in the daylight, but it still had its charm.
I followed the directions Nick (Heād asked me to call him that instead of Mr. Hemlock) had given me to get into the theatre via the back entrance. An employee led me to Nickās room where he sat playing a game of solitaire as he waited for me. He was dressed down quite a bit from last night. I barely recognized him without a suit on. But he stood up to greet me warmly.
āAh, Troy! Glad you could make it!ā He said and clasped my hand to shake it
āI wouldnāt miss this for the world!ā I said and immediately regretted it. It sounded so corny and pathetic. But Nick didnāt seem to mind.
āAh, no worries. Elizabeth is out on stage. I told her what was going on. We were going to give you a little private demonstration. But first, I wanted to get an idea as to where you were at. How much do you know about mentalism?ā
āWell, I know itās mostly based on probability, subliminal programming. Thereās a few math tricks for the numbers ones⦠I can do some basic tricks.ā I admitted. āGrey elephants from Denmark for instance.ā
āNot a bad start.ā Nick replied, heading out towards the stage, āOur tricks are a bit more elaborate. I designed a few in my time that build off of those principles. Although⦠Well, people always like Bigger and Better. Thatās where it gets hard. I did find a simple little trick that can help you, though. Itās as close to genuine mind reading as youāre likely to find.ā He said.
We stepped out onto the stage together where Elizabeth was waiting. She wore the same flowing white dress from that night and still had a charming smile. Up close, however, it seemed a little forced.
āTroy, you remember Elizabeth, right?ā He asked.
āOf course!ā I reached out to shake her hand, but she didnāt reciprocate the gesture. Her smile faded a little.
āItās nice to meet you, Troy.ā She said softly in that angelic voice of hers. She seemed to be keeping her distance from me.
āNick says he wanted to give you a demonstration of my⦠abilities, as it were.ā
āYeah, Iād love to learn how you do it!ā I replied. Her smile outright died and she glanced towards Nick. For a moment, I got the impression that she was angry with him. But whatever was on her mind, she didnāt say it out loud.
āVery well⦠Nick. How should we start?ā
āHow about his wallet?ā Nick said. āLetās find out whatās in there.ā
Elizabeth exhaled through her nostrils.
āOkay⦠Iām seeing⦠Cash. Two twenty dollar bills. One ten. Fifty dollars in total.ā
Watching her work up close was surreal! I had no idea how she knew!
āHealth card⦠Itās old. No picture. Driverās license expires in 2021ā¦ā
āThatās amazing!ā I said softly, and looked over at Nick, āI guess you saw last night, when I paid for dinner?ā
āThatās a good eye.ā Nick replied, āBut no. Itās a little more⦠complicated than that. Letās hear some more Elizabeth.ā
She nodded slowly and continued.
āYou have two hundred and four dollars in your bank account. But itās not all of your money. Thereās a fifteen thousand dollars in a separate account. Seven thousand of which was embezzled using the company credit card.ā
I felt a sudden pit in my stomach.
āI see a girl⦠Brown hair. Pretty blue eyes. She smiles at you often. You smile back. Her name is⦠Jane? Jessica? Janet? Yes. I see now. Janet. Youāre afraid to ask her out. You donāt know if youāre good enough for her.ā
I stood there frozen as Elizabeth calmly told me about my crush at work. Janet and I had never had much in the way of meaningful conversation and I hadnāt told anyone about how I felt! Not even Gina!
How the hell could Elizabeth know this?
āNow⦠I see a man. Heās worn. Haggard. His clothes are dirty. Heās old. Tired. I see a car. A blue Toyota.ā
Ginaās car.
Oh, God⦠I knew what she was going to say next. I wanted to stop her but Elizabeth continued, unaffected by what she was learning.
āI smell alcohol. I see the headlights. I can see the look of terror on his face⦠W-why didnāt you stop? No⦠No, you didnāt⦠It was her⦠The girl⦠Ginny? No. Gina.ā
Elizabethās eyes opened.
āYou said someone had backed into her in a parking lot.ā She said, āYou tell yourself that, that man survived⦠But you know the truth.ā
My legs were shaking. I stood in wide-eyed shock as Elizabeth stared at me with silent judgment.
āW-what is this?ā I asked, my voice hoarse and broken.
Nick stood quietly beside me.
āThis is a bit beyond regular mentalism,ā he replied. āLet me show you.ā
We returned to the dressing room in silence. Elizabeth didnāt follow us.
From a desk filled with clutter, Nick took out a pair of books. One looked ancient and was bound in leather. The other was a simple notebook.
āI found this a number of years ago. A friend of mine liked to dabble in archeology. He caused some trouble when he started to decipher this thing. See⦠This is what some people like to call a grimoire. After he passed away, I adopted the book. I was so sure it was real magic that I wanted to study it. I wanted to see what it could do. All through these years, Iāve barely even finished translating half of it.ā
He laughed dryly, and offered me the notebook.
āThe vital spells are in there. Take a look.ā
I thumbed through the notebook in a daze, barely reading Nickās neat handwriting.
āFor the longest time, Iāve thought about a successor. Like I said, Iām getting a little old for this, and Elizabethās time with me is almost up. Sheāll be leaving soon.ā
āWhat is she?ā I asked, āA demon?ā
āNo, sheās human.ā Nick replied, āWell⦠She wasā¦ā His eyes settled on a large steamer chest in the corner of the room.
āSee⦠The living canāt read minds. But the dead can. If you know how to bind them, they can tell you things. But the binding only lasts for so long. Itās why I have to change assistants so frequently. Elizabeth is a powerful spirit. One of the strongest Iāve had in a while. Knowing that Iām unlikely to hit the jackpot again, like I have with her, is one of the reasons Iām retiring. That and the fact that Iām too old to scope out a new assistant and itās only a matter of time until I fail to control them. I think itās obvious that Elizabeth resents me. Sheās justified in that. I stole her life from her. But at least tonight will be her last showā¦ā
I stared at Nick in confusion, then horror as I began to understand what he was telling me.
āYouāre killing those girls,ā I said. Nick nodded slowly.
āYes. I am.ā He took the necklace out from under his shirt. I could see that at the end of it was a small glass vial filled with a dark red liquid. I didnāt need to be a doctor to know that it was blood.
āAs long as sheās got blood to give, Iām safe. But Elizabethās body is dry. Itās time to either quit or find someone else. If I try to summon her without her blood to guard me, she may act a little impulsively. Itās why her last show is tonight.ā
āYou should turn yourself over to the police,ā I said, my voice hoarse. Nick laughed.
āAnd what? Say I murdered my assistant six months ago? Theyāll never believe it! No one would! Which is part of why Iām telling you. My secret is safe. But my legacyā¦ā He paused and stood up.
āItās been in the back of my mind for some time now. The show must go on, Troy! I need a replacement!ā
āI am not killing people and performing some sort of blood ritual!ā I replied, backing away from him, āI donāt know what the hell gave you that impression, but that is sick!ā
āYouāre a man with drive, Troy! You could be a great magician! You could be one hell of a mentalist! Iām giving you the opportunity to take the world by storm! Iāll even teach you how to do it the old fashioned way, donāt worry! But this show is too good to die and itās a young manās game, Troy!ā
He offered a hand to me, but I stumbled backwards. His expression soured, and it was the last thing I saw before I left the dressing room and Nicolas Hemlock behind.
I thought about calling the police. I really did. But Nick was right. Theyād never believe me. The story itself was absurd! There was no way in hell I could ever prove it! I hadnāt seen the body. Iād seen Elizabeth up on stage. Tonight people would see Elizabeth up on the stage! No one would believe she was a ghost!
I paced my house trying to think up what to do, and at last I realized my only option was to reach out to Gina.
Hey, sis. Need your help. Something is really wrong and Iām freaking out!
She didnāt reply. I tried to distract myself as I thought up a plan of action. Most of my day was already wasted. But that was fine.
When my phone went off with a notification from Gina, I pounced on it.
Can it wait for tomorrow? Iām at Nick Hemlockās show! Surprised youāre not here! I was gonna surprise you!
Oh, no. Oh, no, no, noā¦
I suddenly felt sick. I didnāt know if Nick was going to try to sell her the same bullshit that he sold me or if he had something worse in mind.
I texted Gina back. I told her everything but she must have turned her phone off for the show because I donāt think she ever got my messages!
There was only one option. Call a cab and get over there. If Nick had anything in mind, I wasnāt going to let him get away with it!
The cab took its sweet time to arrive. The anxiety I felt was so overpowering I couldnāt think straight. I loathed every stop in traffic. Everything that slowed me down from my mission to reach the Poetic! It took me too long to get there.
I was smarter than to go through the box office. I didnāt have a ticket and I knew they wouldnāt let me through. Instead, I used the same entrance Iād used earlier that day to creep through the backstage.
I could hear Nickās powerful voice as he addressed the audience. His show was already well underway. I snuck out of the backstage and into the lobby, where I was able to get into the auditorium. I was lucky to find a seat so I wouldnāt cause a scene, and I scanned the audience for any sign of Gina. I should have recognized her ginger hair immediately, but in the dim lights, it was hard to tell for sure.
I reasoned that I could wait the show out. I could catch her as she left. The theatre wasnāt that big and only had one exit. It was a solid plan in concept! In practice however⦠my plan failed. As the show ended and the audience left, talking eagerly about how great it had been, Gina was not among them.
From the stage, I couldāve sworn Elizabeth stopped to glare at me from the stage before disappearing off of it.
I stayed until the audience was gone, my heart racing. Thereād been no sign of Gina, and there was only one person I could ask about it.
As I advanced towards the stage, determined to find Nicolas Hemlock and make him tell me where the fuck my sister was, he made the search easy for me.
He stepped out from behind the curtain in his immaculate suit. Alone as always.
āHello, Troy,ā he said. The empty theatre made his voice echo.
āWhereās Gina?ā I started to ask, but Nick was ahead of me.
āI understand youāre upset, Troy. But you made your position on my offer very clear. I understand. I take no offense!ā
I stopped a few steps from the stage.
āI can tell youāre afraid.ā Nick said, āEven from there I can almost hear the rapid beating of your heart. You really loved your sister, didnāt you?ā
As I started to ask another question, Nick interrupted me again.
āI know, I know. āWhat did you do with her.ā I suppose Iām avoiding the question, arenāt I? Yes. I gave her a special pass for the show, and yes. I killed her. I needed another assistant, Troy. I canāt retire with no heir and she does have a certain presence to her. Sheāll be a star, just like Elizabeth was!ā
āYou⦠you son of a bitchā¦ā I said under my breath. All I could see was red. All I could imagine were my hands around Nickās throat, and I hope his ātelepathic powersā told him that!
I sprinted at him, leaping up on the stage and I punched Nick with all my strength. Even if heād been expecting it, he hit the ground hard. I seized him by the collar of his finely pressed suit and hit him again and again. Any sounds I made were not words. Just angry screams of rage.
Nick tried to cover his face with his hands but I wasnāt inclined to show him anything resembling mercy. He was going to suffer⦠and I was going to draw it out.
āPlease! N-no! Stop!ā he rasped, āI⦠I can stop it, Troy! I⦠I can stop it!ā
Those were the words that broke through to me.
āHow?ā I demanded, gripping him by the lapels. Nick coughed. He was missing some teeth and his nose was broken. His voice was low and distorted.
āS-stab the corpse⦠Thereās a silver dagger in my dressing room. Put it in her heart. It⦠Itāll sever the connection⦠Sheāll move on. Sheāll b-be at peaceā¦ā
I let Nick drop to the ground and I hit him one last time for good measure. I wanted to kill him but⦠No. I wasnāt going to sink to his level.
āWhen Iām done⦠Iām getting the cops. Iāll show them everything, you bastard!ā
Nick coughed and rolled onto his stomach. He tried to pick himself up weakly. As he did, his necklace dangled from his neck⦠or at least what was left of it. The vial had clearly been shattered during my assault, and Nick noticed that too.
āNoā¦ā He rasped, unaware of my threat. The broken vial was the only thing that had his attention.
āNo⦠Not like this!ā
Behind him, I saw something that resembled a shimmering mist. For a moment, I thought I recognized a figure of a woman in the mist. It almost looked just like Gina!
Nick rolled onto his back, hands up in protest.
āWait, WAIT! STOP! NO!ā
Ginaās spirit fell upon him and as it did, Nickās final cry died in his throat. The shimmering mist smothered him and his face remained frozen in a look of absolute terror. His hands vainly tried to claw at his unseen assailant⦠but there was nothing he could do.
He died faster than he deserved.
The theatre was dead silent. I went into the dressing room where the steamer trunk sat. The dagger sat atop of Nickās notebook and I took it reverently in my hand. With trembling fingers, I opened the steamer chest.
In death, Gina looked so peaceful. Her eyes were closed. Her face was calm. It looked like she was just sleeping. She was dressed in the same white dress Elizabeth had worn. Just seeing it sent shivers through my body.
āIām sorryā¦ā I said under my breath. I moved her arm to find the best place to slide the knife into her heart. The movement was quick and undramatic. I stabbed her and left her to rest.
āI⦠I hope youāre at peace⦠I love you, sisā¦ā
Tears streamed down my cheeks but I left the steamer trunk open. I felt tired and I collapsed into Nickās chair, taking my cell phone out of my pocket.
Time to call the police. Time to tell them everything.
But as I dialed the number, I spotted something. Nickās notebook was partially open. I could see the string of another necklace hanging out of it, and my curiosity got the better of me. I opened the notebook and found a vial of blood, much like the one Nick had worn, marking a page. I saw my name amongst the text and as I read it, that sick feeling returned.
Troy,
I am sorry that I lied to you. I realize that if you are reading this, I am likely dead. It had occurred to me that you may end up killing me on account of what I intend to say to you.
I would advise you to put the necklace on. Those who die in the steamer chest are bound to it, and can interact with the world around them to an extent, on account of the charms Iāve placed inside the chest. This can include hostile behavior. Iād hate for you to get hurt.
You will soon realize what Iāve done, and you will be angry. But as Iāve said before Troy, itās a young manās game. Iāve left you everything you need in this notebook. Itāll help you succeed. Maybe it might even help you surpass me. I wish you luck in your upcoming career, and I hope that what Iāve done does not tarnish me too greatly in your eyes. I needed a successor. I needed a legacy. You are the perfect man to carry my legacy! The show must always go on.
* * * * * *
āTroy?ā
I looked up to see Gina standing across from me, wearing the white dress. Her voice was heavy with fear and she looked down at her own corpse in the trunk.
āTroy, what is this? T-Troy?ā
I stared at her in silent horror⦠and I understood.
He hadnāt killed Gina. I had. That spirit on the stage? That must have been Elizabeth, freed from her bondage and exacting her long-overdue revenge.
In his last moments, Nicolas Hemlock had pulled his greatest trick yet, and it wasnāt even magic.
Now Iāve told my story and in doing so, broken a cardinal rule. A magician never reveals his tricks, but now Iāve gone and done that. None of you will believe me anyway.
I should finish this up. Gina and I are performing at the Poetic tonight, and itās time to get our show on a roll.
š§ Available Audio Adaptations: None Available
š More stories from author: Ryan Peacock
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