The audience watched as Mr. Chen pretended to take off the chicken's head.
Then he held up a chicken head for everyone to see.
I knew, of course, that it wasn't a real chicken head.
But the little girl in pigtails started to cry.
"It's just a magic trick, Brandy," her mom told her.
"The magician didn't really take off the chicken's head."
While we watched, Mr. Chen stuck the chicken's head back on again.
"Cluck! Cluck!" scolded the chicken.
I didn't think it liked being in a magic show.
Everyone cheered and clapped.
Mr. Scary took his chicken back, and Mr. Chen continued the show.
Next he did a trick with two one-dollar bills.
He cut them both in half, and then he put them back together again.
"Mr. Chen is a really good magician!" I thought.
For his next trick, Mr. Chen made a shiny gold coin vanish into thin air.
The audience loved it.
Even Mr. Scary was starting to look impressed.
"And now," said Mr. Chen, "for my best and final trick."
He signaled to Josh, who then led Bunch up to the front of the lounge.
"I will make this dog disappear!"
"I can't wait to see this," I thought.
Mr. Chen opened a wooden box and placed it on the floor.
Josh helped his dad put Bunch in the box.
Then Mr. Chen slid the box under the tablecloth.
I saw Caswell crawl in after Bunch.
Molly had spotted him too.
"Caswell!" she whispered.
"What are you doing under there?"
"I want to see Bunch disappear," said Caswell.
"Come out right now," Molly ordered him.
But Caswell crawled further under the table.
Molly looked at me helplessly.
There wasn't anything she could do without interrupting Mr. Chen's show.
"The dog is in the box," Mr. Chen was saying.
"But he will disappear when I say the magic words.
Abracadabra, pow! Make this dog disappear now!"
Mr. Chen waved his hand.
Then he lifted the tablecloth and opened the box again.
The little girl, Brandy, stood up on her chair to see better.
Sure enough, the box was empty.
Bunch had vanished!
"Bring the doggie back!" cried Brandy.
"This is the fun part," said Mr. Chen with a big smile.
"Let's all say the magic words together:
'Abracadabra, click and clack.
Bring that little dog right back!'"
Mr. Chen waved his hand over the table again.
Then he said the magic words, and everyone joined in.
"Abracadabra, click and clack.
Bring that little dog right back!"
Mr. Chen opened the box.
Everyone stood up to see.
But there was no sign of Bunch!
"Where's the doggie?" cried Brandy.
"Yes, where is the dog?" a few people echoed.
Josh and Jenny looked mystified.
Even Mr. Chen looked a little confused.
I had a feeling this was not what he expected.
Mr. Chen finally leaned over and whispered something to Josh, who nodded.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Mr. Chen called.
"In a moment you will see the dog reappear.
Until then I will perform another special magic trick."
Mr. Chen took out a ball of string and a pair of scissors.
"I will cut this string," he said, "and chew the two pieces back together again!"
That sounded like a good trick, I thought, but what about Bunch?
How would Mr. Chen bring him back?
While Mr. Chen was doing the string trick, Josh rushed over to me.
"Bunch is gone!" he whispered.
"We have to find him, or my dad's magic show will be ruined!"