Nora Roberts - Honest Illusions  

SACRED SINS

BRAZEN VIRTUE

PUBLIC SECRETS

GENUINE LIES

DIVINE EVIL

HONEST ILLUSIONS

BORN IN FIRE

BORN IN SHAME

TRUE BETRAYALS

DARING TO DREAM

FINDING THE DREAM

SEA SWEPT

RISING TIDES

SANCTUARY

HOMEPORT

( anthology)

( anthology with Jill Gregory, Ruth Ryan Langan, and Marianne Willman)

RIVERS END

in hardcover from G. P. Putnams Sons

Titles written as J. D. Robb

GLORY IN DEATH

RAPTURE IN DEATH

HOLIDAY IN DEATH

( anthology with Susan Plunkett, Dee Holmes, and Claire Cross) To Bruce, Dan and Jason,

the magic in my life

O brave new world,

That has such people int!

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

The Lady Vanishes. It was an old illusion, given a modern twist, and never failed to leave the audience gasping. The glittery crowd at Radio City was as eager to be duped as a group of slack-jawed rubes at a dog and pony show.

Even as Roxanne stepped onto the glass pedestal she could feel their anticipationthe silvery edge of it that was a merging of hope and doubt glued together with wonder. Those inching forward in their seats ranged from president to peon.

Magic made equals of them all.

Max had said that, she recalled. Many, many times.

Amid the swirl of mist and the flash of light, the pedestal slowly ascended, circling majestically to the tune of Gershwins Rhapsody in Blue. The gentle three-hundred-and-sixty-degree revolution showed the crowd all sides of the ice-clear pedestal and the slender woman atop itand distracted them from the trickery at hand.

Presentation, shed been taught, was often the slim difference between a charlatan and an artist. In keeping with the theme of the music, Roxanne wore a sparkling gown of midnight blue that clung to her long, willowy formclung so closely that no one studying her would believe there was anything under the spangled silk but her own flesh. Her hair, a waterfall of flame curling to her waist, twinkled with thousands of tiny iridescent stars.

Fire and ice. More than one man had wondered how one woman could be both at the same time. As in sleep or a trance, her eyes were closedor seemed to beand her elegant face was lifted toward the star-pricked ceiling of the stage.

As she rose, she let her arms sway to the music, then held them high above her head, for showmanship and for the practical necessity that underscores all magic.

It was a beautiful illusion, she knew. The mist, the lights, the music, the woman. She enjoyed the sheer drama of it, and was not above being amused by the irony of using the age-old symbol of the lone, lovely woman placed on a pedestal, above the common worry and toils of man.

It was also a miserably complex bit of business, requiring a great deal of physical control and split-second timing. But not even those fortunate enough to be seated in the first row could detect the intense concentration in her serene face. None of them could know how many tedious hours she had put in, perfecting every aspect of the act on paper, then in practice. Unrelenting practice. Slowly, again to Gershwins rhythm, her body began to turn, dip, sway. A partnerless dance ten feet above stage, all color and fluid movement. There were murmurs from the audience, scattered applause. They could see heryes, they could see her through the blue-tinted mist and spinning lights. The glitter of the dark gown, the flow of flame-colored hair, the gleam of that alabaster skin. Then, in a breath, in a gasp, they could not. In less time than it takes to blink an eye, she was gone. In her place was a sleek Bengal tiger who reared on his hind legs to paw the air and roar. There was a pause, that most satisfying of pauses to an entertainer where an audience held its stunned collective breath before the applause thundered, echoing as the pedestal descended once more. The big cat leaped down to stalk stage right. He stopped by an ebony box, sent up another roar that had a woman in the front row giggling nervously. As one, the four sides of the box collapsed. And there was Roxanne, dressed not in shimmery blue but in a silver cat suit. She took her bows as shed been taught almost from birth. With a flourish.

As the sound of success continued to pound in her ears, she mounted the tiger and rode the beast offstage.

Nice work, Oscar. With a little sigh, she bent forward to scratch the cat between the ears.

You looked real pretty, Roxy. Her big, burly assistant clipped a leash to Oscars spangled collar.

Thanks, Mouse. Dismounting, she tossed her hair back. The backstage area was already hopping. Those trusted to do so would secure her equipment and guard it from prying eyes. Since shed scheduled a press conference for the following day, she would see no reporters now. Roxanne had high hopes for a bottle of iced champagne and a stingingly hot whirlpool bath.

Alone.

Absently she rubbed her hands togetheran old habit Mouse could have told her shed picked up from her father.

Ive got the fidgets, she said with a half laugh. Had them all damn night. It feels like someones breathing down my neck.

Well, ah... Mouse stood where he was, letting Oscar rub against his knees. Never articulate under the best of circumstances, Mouse fumbled for the best way to phrase the news. You got company, Roxy. In the dressing room.

Oh? Her brows drew together, forming the faint line of impatience between them. Who?

Take another bow, honey. Lily, Roxannes onstage assistant and surrogate mother, swept over to grab her arm. You brought down the house. Lily dabbed a handkerchief around the false eyelashes she wore onstage and off. Max would be so proud.

The quick twist in Roxannes gut had her willing away her own tears. They didnt show. They were never permitted to show in public. She started forward, moving into the swell of applause. Whos waiting for me? she called over her shoulder, but Mouse was already leading the big cat away. Hed been taught by the master that discretion was the better part of survival. Ten minutes later, flushed with success, Roxanne opened the door of her dressing room. The scent hit her firstroses and greasepaint. That mix of fragrances had become so familiar she breathed it in like fresh air. But there was another scent herethe sting of rich tobacco. Elegant, exotic, French. Her hand trembled once on the knob as she pushed the door fully open.

There was one man she would forever associate with that aroma. One man she knew who habitually smoked slim French cigars.

She said nothing when she saw him. Could say nothing as he rose from a chair where hed been enjoying his cigar and her champagne. Oh, God, it was thrilling and horrible to watch that wonderful mouth quirk in that very familiar grin, to meet those impossibly blue eyes with her own. His hair was still long, a mane of ebony waving back from his face. Even as a child hed been gorgeous, an elegant gypsy with eyes that could freeze or burn. Age had only enhanced his looks, fining down that compelling face, the long bones and shadowy hollows, the faint cleft in the chin. Beyond the physical, there was a drama that shivered around him like an aura.