The movie theater was just outside the mall, and Dean and Jonathan didn't have to walk a few steps to get to the door of the theater.

It's full of Raiders of the Lost Ark characters, a rugged Mulholland Road biker jacket, posters and portraits of Harrison Ford wearing a fedora and a leather whip around his waist.

During the summer vacation, many students came in and out, taking photos with posters and statues, and the atmosphere was extremely hot.

The two walked through the crowd and found the manager of the theater, a middle-aged man with a big belly and a little baldness, who made it clear what he meant.

"There's just one movie theater in town, and almost all of the Hawkins students are regular customers, including Peter. He came almost once every half a month. The fat man returned Peter's picture and charged Dean a five-dollar "consulting fee," recalling,

"Most of the students watch movies in groups, but Peter is often alone, and occasionally brings Jonathan with you, and he also has a lot of taste when watching movies, so I was very impressed with him."

"Can you tell us about the Monica Magic Show that rented your venue?"

It was almost half a month ago, and Monica set up a tent in the plaza next to the movie theater and gave the Hawkins two nights in a row a well-prepared magic show that lasted almost three hours at a time. I distinctly remember Peter coming to see a magic show before he was hospitalized. ”

Dean looked at the progress of the investigation, jumping from 12 percent to 13 percent.

"Monica is beautiful, gentle, kind, welcoming, and simply the perfect dream girl. The men of Hawkins are crazy about this magic stunner, and if it weren't for the fact that the tickets were too expensive and under the age of 18 were not allowed to enter, hormonal teenagers would have burst through the tent. The fat manager was full of praise and said, "But there is a reason why it is expensive, and those wonderful magic tricks are completely worth the ticket price." ”

"I was most impressed by two of the tricks – the human body and the blindfold magic trick, and Monica needed the audience to volunteer."

"A three-part body?" Jonathan interrupted curiously,

"Haven't you seen it?" The fat manager slashed the air three times with the palm of his hand, "Put the person in a wooden box and cut it in half with a huge blade, and the person is still alive and well, fluent in words, clear in mind, and able to joke humorously." ”

“GOD！” Jonathan's mouth opened wide in envy, "I should have snuck in and had a look without Joyce!" ”

"Why do you need volunteers, doesn't Monica have an assistant?" Dean interjected and asked,

"There is no assistant, except for the theater staff to help set up the venue, this delicate beauty is responsible for most of the rest of the work of the magic show, and she is very neat."

Dean nodded,

The fat manager continued with a fluttering eyebrow, "The blindfold extreme magic is more dangerous, Monica blindfolded the chosen spectator, and then directed him to throw a dart at the apple above the head of another volunteer. I swear that if my hand shakes and I throw an inch, the volunteer will be shot in the head and ascended to heaven. ”

"This must have been colluded in advance." Jonathan looked incredulous, "The audience who throws darts blindfolded has received a lot of professional training 100% in advance. ”

"It's so easy to see through it, it's not called magic." The fat manager shook his head, "The people who threw the darts are all from the town, and I only saw Monica for the first time that night, how could I collude in advance?" ”

"That's really god." Jonathan exclaimed.

Dean wondered if this Monica was some superpower, but with just a rough inference, there was no change in progress.

"Who are the volunteers with apples on their heads?"

"You guessed it, it's Peter. Everyone enthusiastically signed up to throw the throwing knife, but Peter was the only one willing to stand in the center of the stage as a target, and he was the only one willing to lie down in the magic box and let the blade cut at the waist. ”

The fat manager paused, and said in some surprise,

"I remember Peter as an eccentric, introverted, low-key kid, but that night he showed extraordinary courage and stepped onto the magic stage."

"Again and again, three men threw throwing knives at him, and then he lay down in the magic cabinet and was cut back and forth by the sharp blade a dozen times." The fat manager patted his fat chest in shock, and almost didn't pull off the buttons, "I was almost scared to pee my pants when I watched it from the audience." ”

Jonathan's face turned pale and he couldn't believe it,

"Peter is not the kind of person who likes to be in the limelight."

"Who knows, but Peter was calm beyond his years most of the time, except for being a little nervous at first. But he was still too young. ”

The fat manager pursed his lips,

"It's enough to brag about a deadly magic trick for a lifetime, and then it's a fool to joke with your own life, after all, no matter how wonderful the performance is, the magician won't give him a dollar."

……

Dean listened to the fat man talk about various magic projects, all of which were very common projects in later generations, and there was nothing worth paying attention to, so he asked,

"Did Monica mention the next performance location?"

"No," the fat manager said, glancing at the customers who entered the cinema outside the gate, "I talked to her, she drove a big truck all over the world alone, there was no fixed destination, and when she met a place she liked, she would stop for a few days and hold a magic show to save some money for travel and living expenses." She lives a bit like a gypsy, always on the road and never stops, but without those bad habits of stealing. ”

"Anyway, if you want to see her again, it depends on luck."

Gypsy?

This life is quite free and comfortable.

Dean asked, "She didn't leave any contact information or identification information?" ”

The manager smiled mysteriously after hearing this,

"Young man, you were also seduced by our beautiful magician? But you know what, the young people who asked me for her contact information were able to line up from the entrance of our movie theater to the police station, and my old friend couldn't help but call out Monica's name in a dream, and then the tigress in the house had a tooth knocked out. ”

The manager smiled gloatingly and shook his head,

"All the men are crazy about her. But unfortunately, Monica is a white rose that cannot be seen or touched, leaving no private information except for one name. ”

"It's not in order, is it?" Jonathan asked wonderingly, "She performs in our town, and she doesn't need to register with the police station or government hall?" ”

"Kid, this is the real world, not in the law books. How can there be so many rules in a small place like ours where birds don't, and a big beauty doesn't have any social harm, not to mention that she gave a wonderful performance to feast the eyes of the villagers, and also paid the rent of the venue, how can I embarrass her? ”

When Dean heard this, he looked at the progress bar that had risen to 15 percent and didn't move, and he couldn't figure it out.

If Peter's coma has something to do with the magician Monica, it's too little.

But after all, it was also a clue, he continued to ask,

"So we don't have any way to get in touch with Monica?"

"Theoretically, but you can try your luck in the surrounding towns, and maybe she'll stop there."

"Okay," Dean noted the impatience on the manager's face and handed out another "Lincoln" bribe, "One last question, did anyone in the tent have a physical or verbal altercation with Peter that day?" ”

"How is that possible?" The manager accepted the money with a smile, "Everyone applauds Peter's bravery." ”

……

Dean left the cinema with Jonathan,

"Man, are you really planning to look for Monica in another town?" Jonathan hesitated, "I don't think she or the Magic Show audience had anything to do with Peter's illness." ”

"There's no rush on this matter, didn't you say that Peter often walks around the mall, let's go and ask."

(End of chapter)