Acts of Violet(86)

CAMERON FRANK [STUDIO]: Uri Geller is an illusionist and self-proclaimed psychic. He gained fame for television performances involving telepathy and telekinesis—bending spoons with his mind, making watches stop or run faster, describing hidden drawings, that sort of thing. While many magicians have used their influence to debunk fraud in the paranormal community, particularly mediums and pseudopsychics, Geller was an anomaly in his steadfast assertions that his abilities were genuine and not stage trickery. This drew scrutiny and criticism from magicians, scientists, and skeptics, who proposed methods Geller could have employed in tricking his audience. Oh, and did I mention Geller also claimed to be a psychic spy for the CIA? There’s that, too.

CHECKMATE: Earlier this year, newly declassified files revealed Uri Geller participated in CIA experiments to determine whether his paranormal abilities were genuine. These included remote viewing tests in which he was placed in a sealed and monitored room and asked to replicate drawings made in a neighboring room. The published results showed a surprising level of accuracy in many instances.

While this does not fully corroborate all of Geller’s claims, particularly the more outlandish ones, it does offer some compelling data.

CAMERON FRANK: So how does Violet Volk fit into all this? Was she also part of secret experiments? She never made claims of having paranormal abilities, but many believed she was the real deal when it came to telekinesis.

CHECKMATE: She was the real deal. And she was enlisted in multiple operations.

CAMERON FRANK: But it had to be behind the scenes because she was so recognizable … Right?

CHECKMATE: [long pause]

CAMERON FRANK: Hello?

CHECKMATE: I’m still here … While I’m unable to share any details of the clandestine work she did, I will say one thing. Twenty-five years ago, we had disguises so advanced they could make anybody—anybody—utterly unrecognizable. Imagine the technology we’ve been able to apply since then.

CAMERON FRANK: The implication here that Violet Volk was a spy, psychic or otherwise, is—no offense, but it’s ludicrous. She was putting on nightly shows in Vegas, flying all over …

CAMERON FRANK [STUDIO]: And that’s when I thought of what Benjamin said about Violet’s mysterious business trips. How they left her changed, haunted somehow. Basic logic dictates they could’ve actually been international corporate gigs or private hiking retreats, like the ones referenced by John Arno. Basic logic goes nowhere near the vicinity of espionage.

The thing is, Violet Volk has a way of defying basic logic.

CHECKMATE: Yes, Violet traveled a lot, even during her residency in Las Vegas. She was a tremendous asset to us, though we made a mistake in overscheduling her. It should have been easier once her obligations with the Kintana were concluded. We needed to ensure the contract wouldn’t be renewed, so unfortunately, some extreme measures were taken to increase the theater insurance premiums so drastically, it wouldn’t be financially feasible for the Kintana to continue working with Volk. And to damage her reputation just enough that she’d want to step away from the limelight. All of which would give her more bandwidth to participate in our operations.

CAMERON FRANK: Wait, so you’re saying your people were responsible for those accidents? The accidents that left one assistant, Dominic Puglisi, dead?

CHECKMATE: Collateral damage, I’m afraid.

CAMERON FRANK [STUDIO]: My stomach turned at this response. It’s a hideous thought, that people’s lives meant so little in the greater scheme of sabotaging Violet’s career. It makes me want to doubt Checkmate’s claims that much more.

CAMERON FRANK: Huh. Okay, so you got Violet out of Vegas and away from stage magic. How did that work out for you?

CHECKMATE: At first, we were able to find a compromise in which she could reinvent herself as a motivational speaker, still incorporating some magic but not so much that it would be as draining as the grandiose Las Vegas production.

It worked well for a couple of years, but by the time Ms. Volk published her second book, she was becoming more stubborn and difficult to handle. She was adamant about returning to the stage for full-scale magic shows, and she expressed increasing hostility toward us. We became concerned that she would jeopardize field missions or leak confidential information.

CAMERON FRANK: It sounds like more extreme measures were called for. Who took them this time, you or Violet?

CHECKMATE: The way she disappeared had the hallmarks of one of our operations. I wasn’t privy to its conception but did learn the details of its execution. Unfortunately, there was an incident that caused my immediate termination, so I never learned the outcome.

CAMERON [STUDIO]: His word choices here make me cringe. Execution. Termination. I’ve been quick to dismiss the idea, but is it possible Violet Volk truly could’ve met with foul play? And at the hands of the CIA? This goes beyond tinfoil hat territory, into … I don’t know, tinfoil body armor.

CAMERON FRANK: Here’s something I don’t understand. If Violet’s disappearance was the result of one of your secret missions, why have it take place in the middle of such a highly publicized and well-attended event?

CHECKMATE: Because it’s so incongruous. Who would believe a world-famous entertainer would be taken in the middle of her own performance to be silenced by the government? And to “get disappeared” while doing a disappearing act? How ludicrous! Who could ever make such an accusation and be taken seriously?