Acts of Violet(56)
You crossed a line, and I don’t know what this means for our friendship. Maybe it’s better if we don’t have one for a while.
—Gabriel
Strange Exits
Episode 6: “The Vigil”
CAMERON FRANK [STUDIO]: It’s February twenty-second, 2018. As the sun begins to set in Willow Glen, thousands have gathered in front of the Cordova Park bandshell, a mile from the theater where Violet Volk was last seen. The weather has been unseasonably warm for late February, with clear skies and temperatures in the high fifties. While it’s a relief that no precipitation will disrupt the event, one can’t help but hope the impending darkness will bring a chill to the air. Just enough to honor the somber tone of these proceedings.
They’ve been coming every year on February twenty-second—the date of her final performance—for the last ten years. The candlelight vigil is organized by members of the Willow Glen community, who spread the word locally, and the Wolf Pack, who spread it everywhere else. A month beforehand, seemingly overnight, Willow Glen is papered over with flyers announcing the event, followed by posts on social media. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own candles.
This year, people have come from all over the world to honor Violet on the ten-year anniversary of her disappearance. Hotels in the area have been booked for months, and locals have listed their spare bedrooms on Airbnb to accommodate the influx of visitors.
The program varies from year to year, though there’s usually at least one well-known name on the roster. Two years ago, Riley Price performed an acoustic set. Last year, Jackson Cleo gave a touching speech. This year’s lineup includes half a dozen participants, including a special tribute by Viva Vox and a highly anticipated last-minute addition, Quinn Dwyer, Violet’s niece. It will be the first time anyone from the Dwyer family has formally addressed the crowd, apart from the quick thanks Sasha offers the attendees.
I’ve arrived at the vigil two hours early and it’s nuts how many people are already here. You’d think U2 was giving a free concert in Cordova Park tonight.
[MALE VOICE]: Check one, two. Check one, two. [electronic screeches] [faint howling]
CAMERON FRANK [STUDIO]: That howling over the sound check is from self-identifying members of the Wolf Pack announcing themselves to each other. You can also spot them by their silver pins bearing Volk’s double-V logo. While paraphernalia bearing the logo is ubiquitous among this crowd, the superfans wear two pins side by side, so that the Vs form a W.
One thing I’ve always appreciated about Volk is her diverse audience; to this day, it transcends age, race, gender, and nationality. In other words, there’s really no such thing as a “typical” Violet Volk fan.
The reason I’m here early is to get sound bites from some of the attendees, and I certainly have my pick.
[MALE VOICE 2]: Do I have to give my name? No? Okay, then yeah, I got something to say about Violet. I wouldn’t be alive today if it wasn’t for her. Bro, I’m not even kidding you. I had a loaded gun in my hand, ready to put into my mouth. I accidentally sat on the remote and the TV came on. All of a sudden, there’s an angel on-screen. When you’re about to blow your brains out and an angel appears right in front of you, even if she’s just a girl wearing wings, that’s deep. I put down the gun and watched the rest of her show. The next day, I got her book. A week after that, I got rid of the gun.
[FEMALE VOICE 1]: My brother was really into the escape stuff she did, only he wasn’t so good at it. He dislocated his shoulder like four times trying to get out of a straitjacket. The first time he tried her routine with the fishing nets in our swimming pool, he almost drowned—the dumbass didn’t realize you have to train yourself to hold your breath underwater for … well, way longer than he could. When he got up to two minutes holding his breath, he tried it again, but the net got caught in a drain. This time he did drown. Yeah, that sucked. He was so obsessed with Violet, sometimes I kinda think my brother would still be alive today if it weren’t for her. Then again, he was also high at the time, so a lot of bad choices factored into his death … No, I still think she’s awesome. I can’t help it. Does that make me a terrible person?
[MALE VOICE 3]: Are we still questioning whether VV had supernatural powers? Because duh! Ever hear the phrase “hiding in plain sight”? Being a stage magician is, like, the most brilliant way to hide your real magic powers! She even tried to teach the rest of us how to do it, writing not one but two books and spending years touring the planet for them! Somebody once said, If humans could fly, they’d consider it exercise and never do it.’ Same scenario here. Violet wanted everyone to fly, and everyone chose to Netflix and chill instead. Not me, though. I attended dozens of her motivational seminars, and I know both of her books by heart. I’ve been practicing every day, and I’m gonna meet her on that higher dimension … Yeah, of course that’s where she is. Why would she hang around on this lower dimension with us losers? Nobody wanted to fly with her, so she flew away alone. Wait for me, Violet—I’ll be there soon!
[FEMALE VOICE 2]: I saw her just last week. We were both at the same hot spring, and in my head, I was all, “Hey, isn’t that the magician lady from the nineties?” I didn’t, like, talk to her, because I thought it would be rude to bother someone who went to the trouble of faking their own death—or disappearance, or whatever. My momma raised me better than that … Oh yeah, I don’t mind saying where, this was in Iceland … Believe me or don’t believe me, but I know the woman I saw was Violet Volk … How sure am I? At least thirty-seven percent.