The Woman of Illusion

Chapter 4

Me and Rachel had a nice long sleep, thanks in large part to the calming music playing in the bedroom stereos. The music was so soothing it could have you sleeping for months at a time. We woke up arm in arm, got cleaned up, and went down to breakfast in the dining room of the mayor's mansion. Me and Rachel gouged down on scrambled eggs, sausage links, baked beans, fruit salad, greek yogurt with granola, honey and sliced fruit, whole wheat toast with peanut butter, home chips, medium rare steak with garlic butter, orange juice, milk, pancakes with syrup, belgian waffles with whipped cream, French toast with syrup, coffee cake, cinnamon buns and strawberry-banana smoothies. We ate them all very happily, and our tummies were bulging in the brim by the time we were done. We thanked the mayor and his family for their hospitality, and walked out of the mansion with smiles on our faces. We walked arm in arm around the beach barefoot, feeling the nice warm sand in our feet. After a couple of hours of walking, the two of us came across a boardwalk at the end of the beach. The broad-walk had a large pier that went out into the bloody ocean. Suddenly, something clicked in my brain. It was a memory from several days ago. Rachel noticed this and was immediately concerned.

"What is it, love?" Rachel asked, a concerned look on her face.

"This pier!" I explained. "I overheard some of my college classmates telling me that a magician that moved here two months ago was living in a cottage right in the sea, and that it was connected to the town by a large boardwalk."

Rachel gasped, her hands covering her mouth. "My goodness! That's crazy! You think this could be it?"

"It's got to be!" I replied. "After all, I have never heard of a wooden cottage right in the middle of the blinkin' ocean before. In fact, I heard it can weather all kinds of storms."

"Now that's bloody insane!" Rachel replied. "We need to check it out pronto."

Me and Rachel then jumped onto the broad-walk and started walking down the large wooden pathway. It was just like my classmates described. Completely wooden, and seemingly never ending. I'm honestly not sure how long we were walking, but it felt like forever. I'm honestly thinking that this is just a prank my classmates are playing on me.

"Sammy! I think I see it! The cabin!"

I looked on up ahead and there it was, the very cabin that was discussed and talked about for almost three months. The wooden house looked like a beach house blokes rent out during the summertime, but with several key differences. The house had a large dock that had a large yacht moored in it, and there were flowers all over it. The wood that made the house looked extremely old, so old that it makes creaks everywhere. It's a miracle it's still standing.

Me and Rachel walked over to the door and knocked on it several times. We heard muffled footsteps from behind the door and all of a sudden, the door opened up to reveal Esmeralda, a large grin on her face. She wasn't wearing her magician's uniform, only magic themed pajamas that covered her entire body. Her hair was completely messy, as if she had been sleeping on it for several days in a row.

"Oh, hi you two! How are you?" Esmerelda asked with a smile on her face.

"Hi, Esmerelda. We're good, thank you. Is this your place?" I asked dubiously.

"Ha ha ha! Oh, yes. It is. Come in, come in." Esmerelda said, motioning with her hand.

Me and Rachel obliged and soon walked into the hut. The inside of the hut was surprisingly well looked after, in spite of the exterior. The hit consisted of a living room with a couch, coffee table and a barely functioning telly. Right next to it was a kitchen/dining room combo with a large fridge/freezer combo, a pantry, several cabinets, and a dining table with several chairs and a small tv at one end. Right next to the kitchen room were laundry machines, and right next to that was a staircase that I assume leads up to her bedroom. There was also a lavatory right across from the stairs, which has a door that looks really old. The interior of the lavatory looks pretty decent, although the decor needs to be well looked after. I'm amazed anyone wants to live here, to be brutally honest. Me and Rachel sat down in the couch and Rachel went into the fridge and brought out some lemonade. We took several cans each and Esmerelda sat down in a chair in front of us.

"So, what do you think about my show last night? Pretty amazing, isn't it?" Esmeralda asked with a broad grin.

"It was amazing! You made sure to keep us on the edge of our seats!" Rachel cried out, squeezing my hand.

"How the bloody hell do you do it?" I asked with the same level of enthusiasm.

"Years of practice and dedication." Esmerelda responded, taking a sip of her lemonade. "I've done this for a very long time, and let me tell you, it was a long road to where I am today."

"Can you tell us? Please?" Rachel asked, her eyes lowing wide.

"Ok," Esmerelda giggled, putting her lemonade down and taking a deep breath. "Here's how I came to be the Extraordinary Esmerelda."

"I was born all the way down in Cornwall. My parents worked in the entertainment industry, being famous actors and performers. They own a large circus, and I started performing there when I was four years old. I enjoyed it so much that performing in the circus became my full time job. I ended up performing in all of England, including London itself. I even got to meet the Queen.

"It was a wonderful life. I had a great family, a job I really loved, and my mom was pregnant with my little brother. I couldn't be happier. But then, everything changed."

Esmerelda took a deep breath, and continued on with a sad look on her face.

"It was during our summer break. Me and my family were staying at our summer house at the Sandringham estate. The Queen let us use one of the houses there for the summer as payment for our spectacular performance in Buckingham Palace. Me and my mom were watching the tellie in the convertible bed couch, and my father was cooking breakfast for all of us. Suddenly, my mom started screaming, and my father rushed over to see what's going on. He instantly called for an ambulance and managed to comfort my mother long enough for it to arrive. On the way to the hospital, my mother was writing and screaming in pain, and my father was doing his best to comfort her. When we got to the hospital, my mother was immediately rushed to the operating room, and she was there for hours. I was very scarred, worrying that my mom wasn't going to make it. After a few more hours, the doctor came out completely covered in blood. He then proceeded to talk to my dad in a very sad tone. I couldn't really understand everything he said, but three words stood out to me the most.

"They passed away."

Me and Rachel gasped in horror. The idea that she had lost her mother and brother on the same day was unimaginably awful. No one should ever go through that. Esmerelda took a deep, shaky breath and continued her story.

"My father was completely heartbroken by my mother and brothers death. He fell into despair and turned to drinking heavily. We also had to downsize our operations in order to pay the medical and funeral bills. My father's drinking problem became worse after that, and he eventually drank himself to death. I ended up selling what's left of the circus after his death to pay his funeral bills. I decided to lay low for a while so I can properly grieve, and after all that I decided to move here to start a new life."

Esmerelda took several deep calming breaths to compose herself, leaving us with shock and sympathy in our faces. Me and Rachel started her for a good long time. After a few moments of silence, I decided to speak.

"Esmerelda, I'm so sorry for your loss." I said in a very sad and shaky tone. "If there's anything I can do, just say it."

"Thank you Sam, but I need some time alone." Esmerelda replied with a sad smile. "Are you two going to my show next week?"

"Definitely." Me and Rachel said in unison.

"Thank you for your company." Esmerelda replied, a little happier. "It means a lot."

"Thank you for inviting us." Rachel said. "We'll definitely come over here again."

"I would love that." Esmerelda said as she escorted us out the door. Me and Rachel walked across the pier back to our homes, and before going into her house, Rachel gave me a big kiss on the lips.

"Thank you for last night." Rachel said in a soft happy tone. "It was one of the best nights I ever had."

"Same here." I replied, blushing a beet red. "Are you available to go to the movies tomorrow?"

"Definitely. See you then."

"See you then."

I kissed Rachel on the forehead and went home happier than I ever felt before.