Chapter Thirteen
Mark looked up when Peter, Cassandra, Anthony, Frank, Stephanie and Wiktor came into the room and headed for the desk. Mark tapped his fingers on Seamus' desk as Seamus looked at Peter and Peter softly smiled at him.
"We need to talk," Peter said as he leaned on the desk and locked eyes with Mark.
"Where's your lawyer?" Mark said with a smug look on his face and Peter glared at him.
"I don't need him for this. Where is the client lists from the lawyer and the doctor?" Peter asked and Seamus typed on the keyboard. Peter walked to Seamus' desk when he leaned on the back of the chair and looked at the screen. The client lists appeared on the screen as Peter looked at the names and blinked his eyes a few times. "Right, search for the name "Oscar Pendragon"."
"Who is Oscar Pendragon?" Mark asked as he got up, walked to the desk and stood next to Peter.
"All in good time," Peter said while Seamus typed on the keyboard. The screen beeped when they saw Oscar Pendragon highlighted on both lists and Peter smiled.
"Well, look at that!" Peter said as he stood up and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Ok, so he was a client of both Doctor Andrew Bennett and Henry Altman. Who the hell is he?" Mark asked as Peter looked at him with a smug look on his face and scratched the bridge of his nose.
"He was an asshole," Peter said with a grin, but Mark only glared at him and Peter sighed, rolling his eyes. "Ok, he was this asshole that caused trouble at the Showdown five years ago."
"What did he do?" Seamus asked.
"He stole my act," Peter sighed and Mark titled his head to one side.
"He stole our acts as well," Anthony said.
"Da, he had no honor," Wiktor said.
"The guy was a first rate fraud," Frank said.
"What happened to him?" Mark asked.
"He died," Peter said.
"How did he die?" Mark asked while Seamus typed on the keyboard and looked at the screen. The screen beeped when a news article appeared on the screen and the headline read MAGICAL DEATH AT THE GARDEN. Mark and Seamus read the article when Mark looked at the photograph of Peter and Peter sighed, walking to Cassandra and she slid her arms around him.
"He burned to death," Mark said then looked at Peter and folded his arms over his chest. "Ok, what is Dante's Inferno?"
Manhattan, New York 2006
Looking into the mirror, Peter adjusted the wig when he felt someone sliding their arms around his waist and he turned around, seeing Ginger behind him. She was only wearing her lace panties while she grinned then took his head in her hands and kissed him. He wasn't wearing the sideburns, moustache, goatee and eyebrow ring as she moved her fingers under the wig and the wig tumbled off his head then fell to the floor. Ginger slid her tongue between his lips as he deepened the kiss and moved his hands up and down her back. Sliding his hands along her sides, Peter felt her shivering while she sighed into his mouth and he slid his hands up, cupping her breasts in his hands. Ginger rubbed against him as his cock strained against the leather pants and Peter moaned into her mouth. Ginger watched as Peter went down onto his knees and kissed her stomach while stroking her hips with his fingers. Ginger slid onto her knees when Peter arched her back a bit and slid his lips around her nipple. Ginger gasped as he swirled his tongue over the pebbled flesh and she grabbed onto his hair, twirling some of his hair around her fingers.
"Fuck," Ginger moaned as he smiled and stroked the underside of her right breast, causing a cool shiver to move through her. Going onto her back, Ginger looked up at him when Peter stood up and she noticed the makeup on his chest and neck was smudged. Grinning, Peter pulled on the laces as his leather pants loosened and Peter dropped the leather pants to the floor. Ginger sat up as she stroked his balls and he placed his hands on her shoulders.
"Shit!" Peter moaned as Ginger slid her lips around his cock and gently licked the warm tip. Rolling his eyes, Peter shivered while Ginger's tongue swirled around his cock and she slid his cock further down her throat. Sucking and nibbling on his cock, she felt his cock pulsating while Peter moaned and his heart thudded hard in his chest. Peter yelped when Ginger bit his cock after someone knocked on the door and he slid his cock out of her mouth, walking to the door. "What?"
"Fifteen minutes, Mister Vincent," the voice said as Peter sighed and placed his forehead against the door.
"Right," Peter said while pounding his fist on the door then turned, looking at Ginger then down at his erection. Shrugging, Peter walked to the bathroom when he closed the door and the light came on under the door.
The lights lowered as the screens clicked on while Gordon Lester walk toward the microphone stand and the audience applauded. Raising his hands, Gordon Lester explained what was about to happen while Peter stood on the stage and brushed the leather coat back, placing his hands on his hips. The lights came on over the stage as the audience applauded and cheered and Peter scowled, holding his arms out. A small smile came to his lips as the females in the audience cheered and he arched an eyebrow. The light came on over the other stage as the audience booed and Oscar Pendragon growled, balling his hands into fists.
"Fuck you!" Oscar shouted and Peter softly laughed, rolling his eyes.
"Giving up already?" Peter shouted and the audience laughed.
"NO!" Oscar shouted and Peter grinned, turned and sat on the throne prop. Peter swung his left leg over the arm of the throne prop when he heard some of the women in the audience cheer and slid his hands down to cover his crotch. Giving them a sly smile, Peter titled his head and shook a finger at them.
"Alright, Gentlemen, are you ready?" Gordon Lester asked as Peter looked at the chipped nail polish on the fingers of his left hand then looked at him and blinked his eyes a few times.
"Yeah, I'm ready," Peter said with a wave of his hand and Oscar growled at him.
"Let's get this over with!" Oscar said, walking to the throne prop and sat down.
"Mister Vincent, will you please go first?" Gordon Lester asked as Peter sighed, stood up and stood at the center of the stage. The audience was engrossed while Peter preformed his act and applauded as he bowed then walked to the throne prop, sitting down. Oscar growled when Peter placed his right leg over the arm of the throne prop and Gordon Lester looked at Oscar. "Mister Pendragon, if you please."
Peter watched while Oscar got up, walked to the center of the stage and Peter scratched the bridge of his nose. The audience booed and jeered while Oscar preformed Peter's act and laughed when three of the acts flopped. Peter noticed that Oscar was getting annoyed when he growled and stormed offstage. The lights lowered while the stage hands came onstage and set up for Oscar's final act. Standing up, Peter walked to the edge of the stage then hopped off the stage and walked to Gordon Lester. The lights came up as Peter looked up at the screen and his eyes widened. On the stage were nine rings with tubes sticking out of the rings and Peter balled his hands into fists.
"Shit," Peter whispered as Gordon Lester looked at him and titled his head to one side.
"Is there something wrong?" he asked and Peter sighed, folding his arms over his chest.
"If that is what I think it is, he's going to get killed," Peter said as Gordon Lester looked up at the screen and saw the rings.
"No, it can't be! He's not going to attempt Dante's Inferno!"
"Yep," Peter said as he popped the "p" then sighed, placing his hands on his hips.
"I have to stop him!" Gordon Lester said as he headed for the stage when Oscar walked onstage and walked by the rings, standing at the center. "Mister Pendragon, are you aware that the trick you are about to perform is forbidden? I demand you leave the stage immediately!"
"So you are ready to admit that Mister Vincent is guilty of fraud and stole my act?" Oscar demanded as Peter sighed and walked to the stage, standing next to Gordon Lester.
"Look, you fucking asshole, this has nothing to do with our showdown! That trick is dangerous! Now get off the fucking stage!" Peter shouted as Oscar looked at him and the audience started to get worried.
"For the last time, what is Dante's Inferno?" Mark asked as Peter sighed, let go of Cassandra and walked to the dry board. Turning the dry board around, Peter picked up the pen when he took the cap off the pen then drew nine circles on the dry board. Making tiny lines on the circles, Peter placed the cap back on the pen and turned, looking at them.
"Right, Dante's Inferno is based on the nine levels of Hell. Each of the nine rings gave a set of jets and the jets ignite until the fire reaches in inner circle. The idea of the trick is to escape before the last circle ignites," Peter said and Seamus softly smiled.
"That's easy. There would be a secret trap door in the inner circle and the trap door opens just before the jets of the inner circle ignite," Seamus said and Peter nodded his head.
"That's exactly right, a gold start for you. Now, it takes split second timing, but the danger of the trick is the jets could ignite prematurely and…." Peter said and Mark sighed, rolling his eyes.
"The one performing the trick becomes a piece of fried meat?" Mark asked and Peter nodded.
"That's why it was forbidden for anyone to perform the trick, but Pendragon didn't give a shit," Peter said as he looked at the dry board and sighed.
Manhattan, New York 2006
Oscar glared at Peter when Oscar snapped his fingers and the first ring ignited. The audience gasped as Oscar smiled and Peter stepped closer to the stage.
"Come on! Stop this shit!" Peter said when Oscar snapped his fingers again and the second, third and fourth rings ignited.
"Mister Pendragon….!" Gordon Lester shouted when a bright light flared and Oscar screamed. The audience gasped while Peter ran toward the stage, only to be stopped by security guards, and the lights came up. The fire spread across the stage as Oscar's screams died down and the sprinklers clicked on, sending waves of cold water down on the showroom. Peter growled while Ginger walked closer, slid her arm around his waist and led him away from the stage.
"And that was what happened," Peter said as he turned the dry board around and walked to the chair in front of the desk, sitting down. "Do you have Pendragon's files from the lawyer and the doctor?"
"No, just his name on the clients' lists," Seamus said.
"When did he meet the lawyer?" Peter asked and Seamus looked at the screen.
"They met ten years ago and the last recorded meeting between them was five years ago in April," Seamus said and Peter got up, pacing back and forth.
"Is there a date when Pendragon met the doctor?" Peter asked as Seamus typed on the keyboard and looked at the screen. Seamus sat back on the chair as he ran his fingers through his hair and blinked his eyes a few times.
"Pendragon became a patient of Doctor Andrew Bennett on the tenth of July. Now, unless this is a different Oscar Pendragon, it looks like he survived."
"That's not possible. I remember seeing what was left of Pendragon after the fire was put out," Frank said as he moved the wheelchair closer to the desk and Seamus looked at him. "He was burned to a crisp."
"How did you get to see the body?" Mark asked.
"The screens were still on and everyone saw body," Wiktor said.
"The audience panicked, but the security guards calmly led everyone out of the room just as the EMT guys arrived," Anthony said.
"Does it say where they took Pendragon's body?" Cassandra asked as she pointed to the news article and Seamus looked at the article.
"No, but there isn't any further visits by Pendragon after the fourth of September," Seamus said as Peter sat down, looked at the screen and leaned his forearms on the desk.
"Which means one of two things, either Pendragon died or Bennett had successfully reconstructed his face and body," Peter said, leaning back on the chair.
"There is one way to find out," Mark said as they looked at him and Peter tilted his head to one side.
"Well?" Peter asked as he motioned with his hand for him to continue.
"Not here," Mark said as he got up, headed for the door and opened the door. Confused, the others followed Mark out of the room as Peter frowned and the door closed behind them.