First and Only (11 page)

‘You must be Steve,’ said Randi
turning to greet Steve. ‘Psimon said you might be joining him.’

‘That’s right,’ said Steve
resisting the urge to cast an accusing glance at Psimon. He reached out to take
Randi’s hand and as he did so he looked into the man’s vaguely familiar face, a
friendly face with a mischievous twinkle in his shrewd eyes.

‘Please… take a seat, finish your
coffee,’ said Randi gesturing everyone towards the table. ‘I have to tell you
I’ve been looking forward to this afternoon… hoping you’d be able to make it.’

To Steve, Psimon seemed strangely
self-conscious and he wondered if he was having second thoughts about the
challenge.

‘I must admit to being more than
a little intrigued,’ said Randi, taking a seat at the table. ‘Your performance
over the phone was really quite impressive.’

Psimon smiled.

Randi nodded sagely, a small
smile on his lips and Steve did not need psychic abilities to know what that
smile meant... It was one thing to hoodwink someone over the phone but to do it
face to face, under carefully controlled conditions, was something else
entirely. Steve hoped that Psimon was not about to make a fool of himself.

‘Well,’ said Randi as the pause
in conversation began to stretch. ‘We’re just waiting for Lionel, the JREF
lawyer, to get here. Then we can begin.’ He turned to Jeff. ‘Is that the
protocol?’

‘That’s it,’ said Jeff. He pushed
the clipboard across the table as he too took a seat.

Randi took the clipboard and
scanned the first page, nodding as he quickly read it through. He turned to the
second page and shook his head as he laid it down. ‘Most interesting,’ he said
taking his glasses off to give them a quick polish. ‘Most unusual.’

Steve did his best not to seem
too intrigued.

Seated on the opposite side of
the table Jeff Wagg nodded in agreement with the JREF’s founder and picking up
on Steve’s curiosity he offered a brief explanation. ‘Normally people state the
psychic ability that they are going to attempt,’ he said.

‘And Psimon hasn’t told you?’
asked Steve, glancing at Psimon and back to the other two men.

‘Psimon gave us a choice of about
ten so-called psychic powers,’ said Randi, shaking his head and laughing softly
at Psimon’s audacity. ‘He invited us to choose one for the challenge.’

Steve turned to stare at Psimon
and the expression on his face could not have been clearer… ‘
Are you mad!
’

‘And which one did you choose?’
asked Steve wondering how they could get out of there before the embarrassment
began.

‘We call it the spoon-bender’s
nemesis,’ said Randi.

Steve ran his fingers across his
brow. He glanced at Psimon who gave him a small shrug that seemed to say… ‘
Don’t
look at me... I didn’t choose it!
’

Jeff reached into the top pocket
of his shirt and pulled out a small glass tube, maybe ten centimetres long,
sealed at either end with a red plastic stopper. Inside the tube was a metal
rod of almost the same length as the tube. Jeff handed the tube to Randi.

‘Bending spoons is one of the
easiest ‘psychic’ feats to explain,’ said Randi. ‘But there are still plenty of
believers out there.’ He held up the glass tube so that everyone could clearly
see it. ‘This challenge is simple,’ he went on. ‘To bend the metal rod without
touching it, using only the power of your mind.’ He gave the tube a little
shake. ‘The fact that it is enclosed in a sealed glass tube tends to put most people
off.’

Steve exchanged another loaded
glance with Psimon.

‘Ah, Lionel,’ said Randi suddenly
as a grey-haired man in a smart suit was led into the room by a younger member
of the JREF staff.

Randi got up from his chair and
introduced the foundation’s lawyer to Psimon and Steve.

‘And this is Tony,’ Randi went
on. ‘Rich normally videos the tests but he has another engagement this
afternoon so Tony will be recording the challenge for us today.’

With a brief nod of introduction
Tony turned on the video camera and moved to the corner of the room to get the
best angle for covering the challenge. As he did so Psimon caught Steve’s eye
and the meaning in his eyes could not have been clearer…

‘
He’s the one!
’

Trying not to make it too obvious
Steve gave Tony a more appraising glance. So this was the mole in the JREF
camp. He nodded his understanding to Psimon and sat back down on the couch.
There was no pulling out now… the game was afoot!

‘Okay,’ said Randi when everyone
was seated at the table.

He pushed the clipboard back to
Jeff who pulled a pen from his shirt pocket and offered it to Psimon.

‘If you could just read this
through,’ he said. ‘Everything should be as we discussed… One challenge, one
psychic ability of our choosing.’

Psimon took the clipboard and gave
the form a cursory once over as Jeff continued.

‘The rod is currently straight as
a die,’ said Jeff taking the tube back from Randi and holding it up for
everyone to see. ‘If at the end of fifteen minutes the rod remains straight
then the challenge will be deemed a fail.’

Psimon looked up from the
clipboard and gave Jeff an affirmative nod.

‘If, after fifteen minutes, the
rod has been bent, to the satisfaction of representatives from JREF, without
Psimon ever having touched it, then the challenge will be considered a success
and the million dollar prize will be transferred to the claimant’s account.’

Jeff paused for everyone to
absorb this summary of the agreed conditions.

‘As requested by today’s
claimant…’ he held out his hand to indicate Psimon. ‘In the event of a
successful challenge the results of the challenge will not be disclosed by JREF
for the period of five days from today. After which, representatives from JREF
will be invited to attend a press conference at the BBC studios in Manchester,
England; a press conference at which the claimant may or may not be present…’

Here Steve looked pointedly at
Psimon. In this, at least, he was the only person in the room to fully
appreciate the finer points of this clause.

While Jeff read out the
particulars of the protocol Randi watched Psimon with a penetrating gaze. He
had seen all manner of people turning up to attempt the million-dollar
challenge but he had never met anyone quite like Psimon. There was no bravado,
no apparent nervousness, no suggestion of excuses or misgivings creeping into
the procedure. Psimon just sat there holding the clipboard while Jeff read out
the particulars. Despite his absolute conviction about the truth of paranormal
phenomena Randi’s sense of anticipation had never been greater.

‘So, Psimon,’ said Jeff in
conclusion. ‘If you could just sign both copies of the protocol… here and
here…’

Psimon signed his name and handed
the clipboard back to Jeff.

‘And I will sign it on behalf of
JREF,’ said Jeff adding his name to the contract. ‘Then we can begin.’ Jeff
looked round at all those present to check that everyone was in agreement, then
he set the glass tube down on the table in front of Psimon and settled back in
his chair. ‘It is now two-fifty pm,’ he said. ‘Psimon, when you’re ready…’ Here
he looked at Psimon who gave him a simple nod. ‘…you have fifteen minutes.’

With that Jeff pressed the timer
on his watch and all eyes fell on the glass tube and the metal rod that lay
sealed within… the spoon bender’s nemesis.

Chapter 14

For a minute or so Psimon just sat there. No one was
looking at him; all eyes were on the small glass tube and the metal rod that
lay inside. He felt a faint shiver of nervousness, not uncertainty or doubt,
more like a kind of stage fright; a singer who was just about to give a public
performance, where before they had only ever sung alone. He found himself
wishing that his mum and dad were here. And although he did not believe in life
after death he could almost feel their presence beside him.

‘
Do what you have to do…
’

Well this was part of it. There
would be no going back from this. Psimon was about to give up his anonymity,
about to expose himself to the perilous vagaries of public opinion.

As the minutes went by and
nothing happened people began to glance up at him, their expressions betraying
a mixture of anticipation, doubt and sympathy. And yet interestingly to Psimon
there was no sense of condescension, no sense of judgement. At one point Psimon
caught Randi’s eye and the two men held each other’s gaze for a moment…

Another minute went by and the
camera, operated by Tony, began to focus more and more on Psimon. Lionel, the
JREF lawyer, had settled back in his chair clearly convinced that nothing was
going to happen and Randi’s face seemed to convey something akin to
disappointment.

He could put it off no longer.

Psimon took a breath.

From the small glass tube there
came the tiniest of sounds; the barely audible
tick
of a seal being
broken. Suddenly all eyes were glued to the table. There followed a collective
suspension of breath as the red plastic stopper began to ease its way out of
the tube.

‘Fuck me!’ breathed Tony quietly
as he adjusted the camera’s zoom to make sure he did not miss a thing.

Then everyone jumped as, with a
small pop, the plastic stopper came free. Hardly able to believe his eyes Steve
looked up at Psimon who was calmly gazing down at the table. Then Steve’s eyes
were drawn down once more as the metal rod began to move.

The rod slid clear of the tube
and lay, unmoving on the table. The JREF lawyer was no longer lounging back in
his chair. Like everyone else he was sitting forward, straining to catch any
movement, no matter how small. Then, without anyone touching it, without anyone
coming near to touching it, the metal rod began to bend.

Steve’s heart was pounding in his
chest. Once more he looked up from the astonishing scene unfolding before them
only to find Psimon staring directly at him. He was not even looking at the
rod. Psimon was doing the impossible and he was not even looking at it! And
then it occurred to Steve…

‘
This is easy for him…
’ he
thought. ‘
He’s doing the impossible and it’s easy…
’

Psimon just held his gaze. And
now, for the first time, Steve understood the expression that lurked behind
Psimon’s eyes. That knowing, self-assured expression that made him seem so much
older than his years.

‘God,’ thought Steve with sudden
understanding. ‘
He’s never told anyone… What kind of person does it take to
live with something like this… and to never tell a soul? He must be the loneliest
person alive.
’

For a few seconds more the two
men just looked at each other. Then slowly they became aware of people talking
excitedly and Psimon lowered his eyes. The James Randi million dollar psychic
challenge had been accomplished and the world would never be the same again.

In the hubbub of excitement that
followed Steve found himself becoming increasingly annoyed and protective of
Psimon…

 ‘How did he do it?’

‘Would he take another test?’

‘Could he really perform all ten
of the psychic abilities he listed?’

‘Was there any way he could
extend his stay in Fort Lauderdale?’

But as the pressure increased it
was James Randi who came to their rescue.

‘Enough,’ he had said with quiet
authority. ‘That’s enough…’

‘But Randi,’ said the JREF
lawyer.

‘No,’ said Randi.

‘But we can’t just…’ began Tony.

‘Gentlemen, please,’ said Randi
more firmly, ushering his colleagues to the far end of the room. He turned to
Psimon and Steve. ‘A moment, please,’ he said with a wry smile.

Psimon nodded and sat back down
at the table. Steve remained standing. ‘What do you think is the problem?’ he
asked quietly.

Psimon looked down the room to
where the members of the JREF staff were talking in hushed, and occasionally
heated, voices. Every now and then one of them would glance up at the two
British men before returning to the huddle.

‘They’re trying to decide if they
can honour the contract,’ replied Psimon.

‘You mean they’re not going to
pay up!’

‘No,’ said Psimon. ‘The money
isn’t the problem.’

‘Then what is it?’ asked Steve.

‘Keeping a lid on this for the
next five days,’ explained Psimon.

‘That’s what they agreed to,’
said Steve with annoyance.

‘Easily done, when you don’t
believe it will happen,’ said Psimon.

Steve’s derisive snort told
exactly what he thought of people who reneged on a deal.

Finally Randi broke from the
group and returned to Steve and Psimon who stood to meet him.

‘Please accept my apologies
gentlemen,’ he said as he approached. ‘It would seem that the extraordinary
events of the day almost got the better of us.’

He stepped up to Psimon and
reached out to take his hand holding it gently in both of his.

‘I’ve spent a good many years
inviting people to prove the existence of paranormal phenomena. I never
believed they would,’ he said.

Psimon gave a small apologetic
smile.

‘It is my deepest privilege that
you came here to prove me wrong, and I am profoundly honoured… thank you.’

‘You’re welcome,’ said Psimon
shyly.

Randi nodded. The smile and the
twinkle had returned to his eyes. He turned to the members of his staff. ‘Tony,
if you could put the disk from the camera in a sealed envelope and pass it to
Jeff, he will place it in the company safe.’

A disgruntled Tony seemed
suddenly protective of the camera but he nodded his agreement as he left the
room.

‘Jeff, I wonder if you could
check out flights to the UK. I understand there’s a press conference being held
at the BBC that we wouldn’t want to miss.’