"Shanna Swendson - Enchanted, Inc" - читать интересную книгу автора (Swendson Shanna)

that area is too recent to have a fully developed magical culture, except among the
native groups."

That actually made a strange sort of sense. All of this did. "Okay, that explains a lot.
But it doesn't explain who you are or why you need me."

All heads turned to the big boss. "We are Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Inc.," he
said. "Magic is our business—and I don't mean the card tricks and fake wands that
your people think of as magic. We create the spells that magical folk use to get
through their daily lives."

This made less sense. I shook my head. "But don't you people have spell books
handed down through generations? Or have I seen too many movies?"

Owen picked up the explanation. I wondered what his job here was. "While it is true
that there are some timeless spells, we also need spells that keep up with the pace of
modem life. None of the ancient spells passed down from our forefathers would be
of much help in summoning a subway train, for example."

"I thought that's what you were doing," I said. "Well, no, I didn't think you were
really calling the train, but I did think that's what it looked like you were doing."

He gave me a wry grin. "I didn't even try to mask that spell—not that it would have
mattered to you. Nearly everyone stands on the subway platform, urging a train to
come soon. I'm just more effective at it than most people."

I felt sick and dizzy. Maybe this was one of those dreams you have the night before
a big event that you're anxious about, where you dream the whole event but it's gone
horribly bizarre. At any minute I'd wake up and realize I'd dreamed the wildest job
interview ever. I pinched my thigh under the table, but I was still there at the round
table in the great hall.

"A lot of what we do also involves illusion to hide the nature of who we are or what
we do," Rod said, apparently not noticing that I was on the verge of a total
meltdown. "That's why you see so many things others don't. One rule we have about
magic is that nonmagical folk can't see what we're doing—although that does no
good with people like you. Most people see only ordinary humans when they
encounter fairies, elves, and other magical creatures. They see what we want them to
see when
we do magic."

I nodded like I understood. I did, in a way. In fact, all of this made too much sense,
and I knew I shouldn't be buying such outlandish explanations so easily. I needed
proof, but they'd built themselves an easy out if I asked for it. They could just say I
couldn't see what they were doing. Then I looked at the fairies floating above their
seats and the gnomes seated on the piles of cushions. I didn't know what to believe
anymore.

"It was your immunity to illusion that helped us find you," Rod said. "Owen noticed
you a couple of weeks ago, staring at something you shouldn't have seen, and