The 2000s…

Robert Sinclair was an exceptional illusionist, who had applied his talent to the pleasing of children. He had his own truck complete with his props, equipment, costume and room for only one passenger. He was always keen to study and examine the scene of an upcoming performance in advance, so as to plan a thoroughly captivating show for the children in any audience. On Monday he was to set up his equipment at the Van Horner mansion which was a beautiful white building with terraces, balconies, courtyards and large gardens; and prepare a  show for Saturday evening.

Mrs Van Horner was holding a birthday party for her nephew Daniel and his friends. She would hope to have the adults adequately entertained as well, but the thrust of Robert's performance would be aimed at the ears and eyes of dozens of enthusiastic primary school children.

He parked his truck in the street, opened the gate and walked to the distant front door, rang the bell and waited for an answer. The door was opened by a beautiful tall lady with blonde hair that curved upwards neatly above her shoulders. She wore a white neck-to-knees dress and the faintest shade of lipstick.

"Hello. I'm Robert Sinclair, the illusionist performing here on Saturday night. I promised Mrs Van Horner that I would have a look in the main room and set up most of my equipment today."
"Mother's not home at the moment, but I'll show you to the room. There's a side exit to the courtyard at the end of the middle driveway. You can back up to the door if you like."
"Thank you. I'll try not to disturb you with too much noise. Once I've brought the bulky things in and positioned them, the rest should be a fairly quiet procedure."
"You won't disturb me. I will be in the far wing of the house. You won't ever disturb me, Mr Sinclair."
"She senses my attraction to her" he thought "And she hardly seems keen to respond positively. I know there is no point in trying to impress her, and yet I cannot simply just accept that she is too cold and aloof to be the girl I wish she were. For some reason I strongly hope that there is a fair reason for her coolness."
"Okay. Thank you."
"You should be able to open that door without a key, from the inside. When you're finished don't bother saying goodbye. I'll be far too busy to see you out."
"I'll just pull the door shut and leave then."

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The truck was in position outside the courtyard door to the main room. As Robert carried in his platform, he listened to make sure that none of its hidden doors were rattling around loose. Within it were concealed magnets, hiding areas and other devices necessary to technically create a plausible illusion. The show need only be sufficiently exciting to bewilder the children, but the secrecy of the techniques must still be sufficient to prevent them from being discovered or exposed by the adults.