Chase Tinker & The House of Magic Read online

  "But I don't like having this power!" cried Andy. "I want it to go away."

  "Oh no, you certainly don't want that," said Grandfather. "It's part of our legacy."

  "Legacy?"

  Grandfather clicked his tongue and blew out a puff of air. "I can see your father has told you nothing." He began eating again, scraping the fork across his plate. "Nothing! Ridiculous! So much explaining to do," he mumbled to himself. "I should've known. I should have expected this. Irresponsible!" He glanced at the bewildered boys. "Come on, boys, let's eat up. We have some very important matters to discuss after dinner."

  Shaking his head, Chase wandered into the kitchen to get himself another plate of spaghetti. This had to be the strangest day ever.

  While he ate, Chase kept sending Grandfather sideways glances. He noticed Andy doing the same thing. It was going to take some major getting used to having a new family member around they thought had been dead all these years.

  Chase swirled noodles onto his fork. So, according to Grandfather, he thought, this power stuff started when I turned 10 ½. He thought back. But, no matter how hard he tried, he wasn't able to remember when he'd made an object move by itself for the first time. Why hadn't his dad ever told them about it? He must have known about the half-birthday thing. It sure would've helped to know something!

  "All right," said Grandfather, after they'd eaten and cleaned up. "Show me your magic."

  Chase wiped his sweaty palms on the seat of his pants and demonstrated his power, which Grandfather called telekinesis, by making a pillow hop across the couch. It almost worked fine until it jerked high into the air, bounced off the ceiling and exploded, blasting feathers everywhere.

  He groaned. "Oh, man!" Maybe he just wasn't cut out for this magic stuff.

  "Hm. Excellent job anyway, Chase," said Grandfather as he spit out a few feathers. "Soon you'll be magicking things with hardly a thought."

  When Andy's turn came, nothing happened. He swished and waved his hands until his face turned purple. "It sure worked in the park and on Mrs. Pagel and Snookie-Dork when I didn't want it to!"

  "I wouldn't worry about it, Andy," said Grandfather. "We'll work on it later. I remember your Great-Uncle Thomas when we were boys. He had all manner of problems with his power. For the longest time, whenever he sneezed, he teleported himself to the oddest places. One day, I had to climb to the rooftop and pry him out of the chimney." He chuckled softly. "Those were the days."

  "Does Great-Uncle Thomas live with you?" asked Andy.

  "No. I'm sorry to say, he's no longer with us," said Grandfather. "He hated wearing his spectacles, you see, and he had terrible vision. One day he teleported himself squarely in front of a locomotive. Never saw it coming." He sniffed and pulled a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe a tear. "Ah well, enough melancholy prattle, boys. It happened long ago. Don't worry, your powers will improve."

  Andy pulled his glasses from his pocket and slipped them on. "Poor Great-Uncle Thomas," he murmured.

  "Why didn't Dad tell us any of this stuff?" asked Chase as he stomped around gathering feathers. "It sure would've been nice to know something!" He waved a fistful of feathers at Grandfather. "And come to think of it! What about you? Where the heck have you been? Why are you just showing up now?"

  "After he chose to leave, I never wanted to interfere in my son's life," said Grandfather gravely, tucking his handkerchief away. "One of my many mistakes, I must admit. Thank goodness his sister, your Aunt Clair, kept me informed of any big events in Benjamin's life."

  "We've never met Aunt Clair," said Andy.

  Grandfather shook his head and sighed. "It appears your father decided not to expose you to any of our magic. Well, it's time we had enough of that nonsense. I realize you boys have a right to be angry, but we need to put the past behind us so you can begin to learn all you need to know. Even more so since Clair told me Benjamin had been captured."

  "Captured!" said Chase, dropping onto the couch and forgetting about the feathers splattered everywhere. "That's what happened to him? But—but why? And who would want to take our dad, anyway? We don't have any money to pay a ransom, which no one even asked for!"

  "The world has some—people who would do anything to gain our magic," said Grandfather.

  "Who are these people?" said Andy, shivering and glancing around as if he expected someone to suddenly pop out from behind the curtains. "Would they want to take Chase and me?"

  "Don't you worry about any of that," said Grandfather sternly. "I won't let anything happen to either of you."

  "So what about our dad?" exclaimed Chase. "Is he okay?"

  "I truly hope so," said Grandfather.

  "Have you been trying to find him?"

  "Clair wanted to do it."

  "By herself?"

  "She's perfectly capable," said Grandfather. "And she knew her brother would not want to be rescued by me."

  "How come?"

  Folding his hands behind his back, Grandfather wandered around the living room and looked at the pictures on the walls of Chase and Andy from when they were younger. "From the beginning, your father hated being magical." Chase glanced at Andy, who just picked at a scab on his knee. "He never wanted the responsibility it entailed. Benjamin wanted to live a normal life and forget all about the world of magic. We had a dreadful falling out and, sadly, we parted and he never returned home."

  "Why didn't you make things up later?" asked Chase.

  Grandfather paused to consider this. "My son is a stubborn man. And so am I. Neither of us wants to admit when we're wrong. An annoying trait." He sounded as though this was one quality he wished he didn't have.

  "He let us believe you were dead!" said Chase.

  "I'm sorry our appalling feud has caused these problems," said Grandfather, shaking his head.

  "Why do we have these powers anyway?" cried Andy. "I liked being normal!"

  "Normal! Why be normal when you can be magical?" Grandfather raised his arms and twirled. Bright, red and orange sparks shot from his fingertips, followed by dozens of purple and yellow-stripped frogs, sapphire-blue canaries, and flashing shamrocks that drifted down like huge, green snowflakes.

  Chase jumped to his feet with his mouth hanging open as a frog sailed through the air and plopped right on the top of Andy's head. He staggered back, tripped over a footstool, and tumbled to the floor. The sounds of croaks and tweets echoed around the room. Chase stared down at the small frog sitting on his sneaker then he looked up at Grandfather, who now had several canaries perched on his head and shoulders. Ten seconds later, everything vanished.

  "And that, my dear boys, is why I love magic," Grandfather said calmly, as if it were no big deal to shoot birds and frogs from his fingertips.

  Andy was still sprawled on the floor with his eyes bulging when a barrage of questions burst from Chase. "Will we ever be able to do that? Why do we have these powers? Where do they come from? What's Dad's power?"

  Grandfather laughed and held up his hands. "I realize you wish to know everything at this moment, Chase, but it's getting late. We'll save those questions for later. What I want to do is invite you to come spend the summer with me in our house on Blackberry Island in northwest Washington State. There you will learn everything you need to know about your magical heritage."

  "Come visit you? Really? Cool!" exclaimed Chase. The boys had never been out of New York City. He flopped onto the sofa, his excitement deflating like a fly-away balloon. "I bet Mom won't let us."

  "I'll come by tomorrow and speak to your mother," said Grandfather. "I'm sure we can work something out."

  "If we go, will we meet Grandmother too?"

  "No," said Grandfather. "I'm sorry to say that lovely lady has left us, many years ago, in fact."

  Chase frowned. He still had way too many questions that needed answers. "But—but don't we need to be here for when Dad and Aunt Clair get back?"

  "Clair knows where to go," said Grandfather.

  "Should we tell Mom
about him?" asked Chase. "It might help her feel better."

  "It's probably best we wait until we have good news to share," Grandfather answered. "I see no reason to worry the dear lady even more."

  "So do you think she knows anything about our powers?"

  "I don't know, but we'll find out."

  CHAPTER THREE

  Meeting Mom

  Chase woke up early the next morning. Sunlight peeked through the half-open curtains as he lounged drowsily, feeling cozy and comfortable. It was summer vacation, his favorite time of the year…

  He jerked up as if he'd just won ten million dollars in the lottery as he remembered everything that happened the day before. They were going to spend their summer break at Grandfather Tinker's house. This was the most incredible thing to ever happen to him.

  Chase leaped out of bed, whipped off his pajamas and pulled on his blue shorts and a faded green t-shirt. He needed to pack! Dashing to the closet, he pawed through the piles of junk until he found what he was looking for: a huge canvas bag that had once belonged to his dad. He yanked the bag from the closet and tossed it on his bed.

  It took only a short time for him to stuff it with the things he thought he'd need. Since money was tight these days, most of the clothes were older or purchased from secondhand stores, while some of the shirts were cast-offs of his dad's. But, at that moment, Chase couldn't care less because, for the first time in a long time, his body hummed with hope and happiness.

  "Do you think this is a good idea?" mumbled Andy's sleepy voice from under his blankets.

  "Sure, why not?" answered Chase. "It'll be cool to go someplace different for a change."

  "Yeah, but—"

  "Look, anything we can learn about these magical powers is a good thing. I know you wish you didn't have yours, but you do, so you might as well at least learn to control it." Chase thought of his own magical goof-ups. "And I sure want to control mine."

  He was struggling to zip the over-stuffed bag shut when he heard loud knocking at the front door. "He's here! Come on, dork."

  "I'm not a dork. Dork," said Andy grumpily.

  Lugging the heavy case, Chase wrenched open the bedroom door and stumbled down the hallway in time to hear his grandfather say, "Anne, I know it's been a long time. It's lovely to see you again."

  "Hiram?"

  Bursting into the room, he saw Grandfather remove his cap and bow smartly to his mom.

  "And, Chase, awake and ready for the day, I see," said Grandfather, placing his hat on the sofa. "Excellent."

  Chase dropped his bag and goggled at them. "You guys know each other?"

  Grandfather winked at his grandson as he handed the large paper sack he carried to him and took Anne's arm. "Why don't we seat ourselves and have some delicious muffins, croissants and orange juice for breakfast? Fresh from the corner bakery."

  Andy wandered into the living room, rubbing his face and yawning. "Did someone say breakfast?"

  Anne frowned at Chase. "Did you know about this?" she mouthed, before turning back to Hiram. She held up her hand. "Hold it! What is going on? Why are you showing up here now? Out of the blue? And after years of absolutely no contact! And why is Chase carrying that old bag?"

  "Grandfather came by to see us last night," said Chase quickly. "He invited us to come visit him for the summer!"

  Anne pulled away from Grandfather and crossed her arms. "I don't know if Benjamin would approve." She paused. "And—and anyway, he's…gone right now."

  "I know. I've discussed it with the boys."

  "So you know where he is?" she said, narrowing her eyes. She looked even more worn-out than usual. Chase gulped, feeling guilty again for causing so much trouble.

  Grandfather shook his head. "No, Anne, I'm sorry I don't, but you and I need to talk."

  "I don't know what else we have to talk about," said Anne, sticking her chin in the air. "After all this time, I still haven't forgotten how you and Ben came very close to completely ruining our beautiful wedding."

  "They did?" exclaimed Chase.

  Grandfather sighed as he gently nudged them to gather around the dining table. "Your mother invited me to come here for your parent's wedding, without speaking to Benjamin," he said, while pulling food and cups of orange juice from the bag and passing them around. "She thought it would be a wonderful surprise, but instead, he was highly upset. I made matters worse by insisting it was time for him to grow up, accept his responsibilities, and come home. I'm quite ashamed to say we had a dreadful quarrel and I stormed out before the wedding even began. I know it's long in coming, Anne, but I truly am sorry for being so horribly rude. Now that I look back, I have only myself to blame for all the trouble. I only wanted things to be back the way they should've been before…" His voice trailed off as he shook his head. "Too many regrets."

  Anne sank into a chair. "So that's what you two argued about? He never wanted to talk about it." She took a muffin and peeled the paper from it. "I guess it's partly my fault too for not letting Ben know I invited you."

  "Now don't start blaming yourself," said Grandfather, patting her hand. "Ben and I had our problems long before that day."

  "Mom? Did he tell you about his...magical power?" asked Chase cautiously.

  "His—his power?"

  "We all have one," he said. "Grandfather said it's part of the family heritage. I have telekinesis and Andy can stop time. That's why Grandfather invited us to visit him. We need to learn lots more about it."

  Anne gawked at her son. "You boys have powers too?" she croaked, accidentally squashing her muffin.

  "Anne, how much do you know about the Tinker family?" asked Grandfather as he popped the lid off his cup.

  She dropped the muffin and turned to him. "Apparently, not as much as I thought." She cast a quick glance at Chase again. "From the beginning, I knew there was something special about Ben. One day he showed me his ability to change his appearance to make himself look exactly like other people. It scared me to death! He had to beg me to start seeing him again." She twisted her fingers together and stared at the table. Then, she smiled. "Pretty soon, it became kind of fun. I remember he used to turn into this sexy actor I liked."

  "Gross, Mom," said Chase, scrunching his face in disgust. "Too much information." Then his eyes widened. "I can't believe you knew and didn't say anything to us!"

  "After you boys came along," she said, "he stopped using it, so it completely slipped my mind. Until now."

  "At least you weren't kept in the dark, like Andy and me," said Chase, with a scowl.

  Grandfather cleared his throat. "Anne, it's important the boys come learn about the Tinker house and how to properly use their abilities."

  "What do we have to learn about a house?" asked Andy in-between huge yawns. "Houses are just…houses, right?"

  Grandfather shook his head and raised his eyebrows. "Not this house. It's another important family secret your father should've shared with you."

  Even more family secrets? Chase thought, frowning.

  Anne looked from Chase to Andy. "I wish Ben was here to talk with. I wondered why he had his special ability, except there are a lot of unusual, unexplained things in the world. So I never questioned him the way I should have. It never occurred to me he would pass on anything like that to our children!" She put a hand to her forehead. "This is such a shock!"

  "Dad hated the magic," said Chase. "That's why he left and moved way over here."

  Grandfather nodded. "I'm hoping the boys will feel differently. Especially after they get used to the idea of being magical themselves."

  "I still have to get used to it," muttered Anne.

  "Please, Mom," begged Chase. "Say you'll let us go."

  "I don't know." Anne sighed and looked at Chase's hopeful face. "And the whole summer. That's a long time."

  "You are welcome to join us, of course," said Grandfather. "Or maybe you can find time to visit later."

  "Please, Mom?" repeated Chase. Crossing his fingers behind his back
, he waited for his mom's reply.

  "All right," Anne said at last, shoulders slumping. "Maybe it'll help them get through these bad times. And keep a certain person from getting into more trouble." She glared at Chase, who hung his head. "Thank you for inviting them, and me, but I need to work and keep up with things here."

  Chase jumped to his feet. "Thanks, Mom!" He rubbed his palms together briskly and turned to Grandfather. "Can we go right away?"

  "I'd say, three days from today will do nicely," he said.

  "But—"

  "I'll need some time to discuss details with your mother a bit more," continued Grandfather. "Let her get used to the idea. I'm also looking forward to a trip to the top of the Empire State Building. Such a lovely piece of architecture."

  Chase plopped back onto his chair. "Sightseeing. Yippee," he grumbled.

  After three long days of visiting and touring the city, they were finally ready to go. It was a good thing too because Chase didn't want to wait one second longer to be off. His mom spent so much time fussing over them he was ready to run down the street screaming at the top of his lungs.

  "Make sure you brush your teeth. And wash behind your ears. And help around the house."

  "Yes, Mom," said Chase.

  "Don't stay up too late."

  "Yes, Mom."

  "And clean up after yourselves."

  "Mom!"

  "Okay!" Tears trickling down her cheeks, she hugged Andy, then Chase. "Be good and don't cause your grandfather any trouble. Understand?" She narrowed her eyes at her oldest son.

  "We'll be on our best behavior. I promise."

  Andy just nodded, still looking totally unsure about the whole thing.

  Chase turned to Grandfather eagerly. "Should I call a taxi?"

  "No need," he said. He tipped his hat to his daughter-in-law. "Take care of yourself, Anne. Say good-bye, boys."

  "Bye, Mom. See you later," they said together as Grandfather grasped each boy by the arm.

  "You did make the plane reservations, didn't you?" asked Chase, suddenly looking worried.

  Grandfather laughed heartily. "Plane reservations? We don't need any plane reservations."