GORDON KORMAN THE HYPNOTISTS. scholastic press / new york

Transcription

1 GORDON KORMAN THE HYPNOTISTS scholastic press / new york

2 Copyright 2013 by Gordon Korman All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., Publishers since scholastic, scholastic press, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Korman, Gordon. The hypnotists / by Gordon Korman. 1st ed. p. cm. (The hypnotists ; bk. 1) Summary: Twelve-year-old Jackson Opus is descended from two powerful hypnotist bloodlines, but he has just begun to realize that he can control other people s actions with sometimes frightening results especially when the head of the Sentia Institute plans to use Jackson for his own benefit. ISBN (jacketed hardcover) 1. Hypnotism Juvenile fiction. 2. Conspiracies Juvenile fiction. 3. New York (N.Y.) Juvenile fiction. 4. Paranormal fiction. [1. Hypnotism Fiction. 2. Conspiracies Fiction. 3. Supernatural Fiction. 4. New York (N.Y.) Fiction.] I. Title. PZ7.K8369Hyp dc Printed in the U.S.A. 23 First edition, August 2013 The text type was set in Adobe Garamond Pro. Book design by Nina Goffi

3 3 The Bentley was a sleek, fast, high-performance machine, but in Manhattan afternoon traffic it didn t make much difference. It was a few days after the Gotham League championship, and Ashton Opus was gridlocked at Twenty-Eighth Street. He leaned on the horn, more as a release of tension than anything else. The driver in front of him couldn t move; neither could the driver in front of her; and so on and so on through the gridlock. Didn t anybody understand that he had to get to his son? Many frustrating blocks later, he pulled up in front of the medical building just as his wife, Monica, came hurrying out of the subway station. Have you heard anything more? she panted, breathless from running. I just got here myself. Leaving the Bentley parked illegally, Jax s parents rushed into the complex. Mr. Opus wasn t concerned that the car would be ticketed or towed. A three-hundred-thousand-dollar vehicle commanded a lot of respect. It probably belonged to someone with clout in this town, and people with clout didn t pay tickets. As it happened, Jax s father had very little clout. 15

4 He just happened to be the sales manager of a Bentley dealership. I can t believe it! his wife whispered as they rode the elevator to the fourteenth floor. Why would Jax misbehave at a doctor s appointment? I don t even understand what he s supposed to have done! When they reached the ophthalmologist s office, they found the waiting room empty except for their son, who was in the company of a building-security agent. The practice was closed until further notice, and Dr. Palma had been escorted home. It wasn t my fault, Mom, Jax defended himself. It was the doctor. He went ape on me! I didn t do anything! Honest! The Opuses looked to the security guard, who shrugged. Don t ask me. By the time I got up here, everybody was running around the waiting room, the patients were bailing out, and the receptionists were sitting on the doctor. Is Jax in trouble? Mrs. Opus asked anxiously. Nobody s pressing charges, the man replied. But if I were you, I d start shopping around for a new eye doctor. They just told me to wait with the kid till the parents showed up. That s you, right? The Opuses made short work of hustling their son out of the building and into a nearby coffee shop. Over a steaming hot chocolate, Jax tried to explain the events of the afternoon. He was looking into my eyes with that blue light, and suddenly he just froze. I mean, for a long time. So I said I had homework, would he mind hurrying 16

5 it up? I wasn t being rude I even said please. But he went nuts, running around the room like a crazy man, knocking things over. When he came at me with these eye drops, I got scared and yelled, Leave me alone! Well, that s when he totally lost it. He wouldn t let anybody near me. Every time one of his nurses came into the exam room, he tackled her. That s when they called security. He glanced up at his parents, his eyes beginning to fade from purple to royal blue. I guess he just snapped. Mr. Opus scratched his head. I suppose no one could hold you responsible for someone else s nervous breakdown. Mrs. Opus put a hand on her son s shoulder. Honey, I m so sorry you had to go through that. Why did I have to go to an eye doctor, anyway? Jax complained. I see just fine. She looked embarrassed. You know how your eyes change color. I wanted to make sure it wasn t anything that could affect your vision. Jax looked angry. Yeah, wait till you hear what he said about that. He said, It s not possible. If you were going to send me to an eye doctor, you should have picked one who knows what he s talking about. Of course it s possible! his mother exclaimed. It runs in your father s family. Right, Ashton? Mr. Opus looked away. Well, it doesn t exactly run in the family, but there are a few stories. My grandfather s cousin he had it, I ve been told. And his eyesight was perfectly normal, I m sure, his wife added triumphantly. 17

6 Oh, sure. Her husband was evasive. His eyesight. Twenty-twenty. But? Jax prompted, sensing there was something more. Well, what do I know? Mr. Opus told him. I never even met the guy. He died when I was a baby. It s just stupid family gossip, so the old ladies had something to whisper about. Now let s go home. Not until you tell me this so-called gossip, Jax insisted. It s nothing. They said he was crazy. Jax turned pale. Because of his eyes? Of course not! his mother exclaimed. We re sorry we brought any of this up. Why would you think such a thing? Well, Jax admitted, I ve been having some... problems lately. I ve been... seeing things. His father was alarmed. What things? Myself, mostly, Jax tried to explain. Like I m somebody else watching me. It only lasts for a second or two, but it s starting to freak me out a little. His parents exchanged a worried look. I suppose, Mr. Opus mused at last, at one time or another, we all kind of picture ourselves. It s not real vision, but we trick ourselves into believing it is. Jax shook his head. I don t think so, Dad. I was hoping it would stop, but it keeps coming back. It happened today in the doctor s office right before Palma lost it. Don t worry, Mrs. Opus said. She was a chiropractor and believed there was a medical professional somewhere who could cure anything. We ll get to the bottom of this. 18

7 How would you use your hypnotic powers? Click here to take the quiz and to find out more about The Hypnotists!