All data destroyed.
. Voice recorder is a
"gimmick." Homemade.. Used antique iron handcuffs to restrain victim.
. Handcuffs are Darby irons. Scotland Yard. Checking with Houdini Museum in New Orleans for leads.
. Destroyed victim's watch at exactly 8:00 A.M.
. Cotton string holding chairs.
Generic. Too many sources to
trace.
. Squib for gunshot effect. Destroyed.
. Too many sources to trace.
. Fuse. Generic.
. Too many sources to trace.
. Responding officers reported
flash in air. No trace material
recovered.
. Was from flash cotton or
flash paper.
. Too many sources to
trace.
. Perp's shoes: size 10 Ecco.
. Silk fibers, dyed gray, processed to a matte finish.
. From quick-change janitor's
outfit.
. Unsub is possibly wearing brown wig.
. Red pignut hickory and Parmelia conspersa lichen, both found primarily in Central Park.
. Dirt impregnated with unusual
mineral oil. Sent to FBI for analysis.
. Tack-Pure oil for saddles
and leather.
. Black silk, 72 x 48'. Used as camouflage. Not traceable.
. Illusionists use this
frequently.
. Wears caps to cover up prints.. Magician's finger cups.
. Traces of latex, castor oil, makeup.
. Theatrical makeup.
. Traces of alginate.. Used in molding latex
"appliances."
. Murder weapon: white silk-knit rope with black silk core.
. Rope is a magic trick. Color
changing. Not traceable.
. Unusual knot.. Sent to FBI and Maritime
Museum-no information.
. Knots are from Houdini
routines, virtually
impossible to untie.
. Used disappearing ink on signin register.
East Village Crime Scene
. Victim Two: Tony Calvert.. Makeup artist, theater
company.
. No known enemies.
. No apparent connection
with first victim.. No apparent motive.
. Cause of death:
. Blunt-object trauma to head followed by postmortem dismemberment with crosscut saw.
. Perp escaped portraying woman in her 70S. Checking vicinity for discarded costume and other evidence.
. Nothing recovered.
. Watch smashed at 12:00 exactly.
. Pattern? Next victim
presumably at 4:00 P.M.
. Perp hid behind mirror. Not
traceable. Fingerprints sent to
FBI.
. No matches.
. Used cat toy ("feke") to lure victim into alley. Toy is untraceable.
. Additional mineral oil found, same as at first scene. Awaiting FBI report.
. Tack-Pure oil for saddles
and leather.
. Additional latex and makeup from finger cups.
. Additional alginate.
. Ecco shoes left behind.
. Dog hairs found in shoes, from three different breeds of dog. Manure too.
. Manure from horses, not dogs.
Hudson River and Related Crime Scenes
. Victim: Cheryl Marston.
. Attorney.
. Divorced but husband not a suspect.
. No motive.
. Perp gave name as "john." Had scars on neck and chest. Deformed hand confirmed.
. Perp did quick change to unbearded businessman in chinos and dress shirt, then biker in denim Harley shirt.
. Car is in Harlem River. Perp presumably escaped.
. Duct tape gag. Can't be traced.
. Squibs, same as before. Can't be traced.
. Chains and snap fixtures, generic, not traceable.
. Rope, generic, not traceable.
. Additional makeup, latex and Tack-Pure.
. Gym bag, made in China, not traceable. Containing:
. Traces of date rape drug flunitrazepam.
. Adhesive magician's wax, not traceable.
. Brass (1) shavings. Sent to FBI.
. Permanent ink, black.
. Navy-blue windbreaker found, no initials or laundry marks.
Containing:
. Press pass for CTN cable network, issued to Stanley Saferstein. (He's not suspect-NCIC, VICAP search
negative.)
. Plastic hotel key card, American Plastic Cards, Akron, Ohio. Model APC-42, negative on prints.
. CEO is searching for sales records.
. Dets. Bedding and Saul canvassing hotels.
. Restaurant check from Riverside Inn, Bedford Junction, NY, indicating four people ate lunch, table 12
Saturday, two weeks prior. Turkey, meatloaf, steak, daily special. Soft drinks.
Staff doesn't know who diners were. (Accomplices?)
. Alley where Conjurer was arrested.
. Picked the cuff locks.
. Saliva (picks hidden in mouth).
. No blood type determined.
. Small razor saw for getting out of restraints (also hidden in mouth).
. No indication of Officer Burke's whereabouts.
. Harlem River scene:
. No evidence, except skid marks in mud.
Profile as Illusionist
. Perp will use misdirection against victims and in eluding police.
. Physical misdirection (for distraction).
. Psychological (to eliminate suspicion).
. Escape at music school was similar to Vanished Man illusion routine. Too common to trace.
. Perp is primarily an illusionist.
. Talented at sleight of hand.
. Also knows protean (quick change) magic. Will use breakaway clothes, nylon and silk, bald cap, finger
cups and other latex appliances. Could be any age, gender or race.
. Calvert's death = Selbit's Cutting a Woman in Half routine.
. Proficient at lock picking (possibly lock "scrubbing").
. Knows escapism techniques.
. Experience with animal illusions.
. Used mentalism to get information on victim.
. Used sleight of hand to drug her.
. Tried to kill third victim with Houdini escape. Water Torture Cell.
. Ventriloquism.
Chapter Twenty-two
Harry Houdini was renowned for his escapism but in fact there were many great escapists who preceded him and many who were his contemporaries. What set Houdini apart from all the others was a simple addition to his act: the challenge. A major part of his show involved an invitation to anyone in the town where he was appearing to challenge Houdini to escape from a device or location that the challenger himself provided-maybe a local policeman's own handcuffs or a cell in the town lock-up.
It was this competitive, man-versus-man element of performing that made Houdini great. He thrived on these challenges.
And so do I, Malerick now thought, walking into his apartment after his escape from the Harlem River and a bit of reconnaissance work. But he was still badly shaken up by the events that afternoon. When he'd been performing regularly, before the fire, there was often an element of danger in the routines. Real danger. His mentor had beaten into him that if there was no risk how could you possibly hope to engage your audience? There was no sin worse to Malerick than boring those who'd come to be entertained by you. But what a series of challenges this particular act had turned out to be; the police were far better than he'd expected. How had they anticipated that he'd target the woman at the riding academy? And where he was going to drown her? Trapping him in the crafts fair then finding him in the Mazda, chasing him again-getting so close that he'd had to send the car into the river and get away in a very narrow escape. Challenges were one
thing-but he was now feeling paranoid. He wanted to do more preparation for his next routine but he decided to stay in his apartment until the last minute.
Besides, there was something else that he needed to do now. Something for himself-not for his revered audience. He drew the shades of his apartment and placed a candle on the mantelpiece, next to a small inlaid wooden box. He struck a match and lit the candle. Then sat on the rough cloth of the cheap sofa. He controlled his breathing. Inhaled slowly, exhaled.
Slowly, slowly, slowly....
Concentrating on the flame, drifting into a meditation.
Throughout its history the art of magic has been divided into two
schools. First, there are the sleight-of-hand artists, the prestidigitators, the jugglers, the illusionists-people who entertain their audiences with dexterity and physical skill.
The second school of magic is far more controversial: the practice of the occult. Even in this scientific era some practitioners contend that they actually possess supernatural powers to read minds and move objects mentally, predict the future and communicate with spirits.
For thousands of years charlatan seers and mediums have grown rich claiming to be able to summon the spirits of the deceased for their distraught loved ones. Before the government began cracking down on such scams it was legitimate magicians who'd protect the gullible by publicly revealing the methods behind the supposedly occult effects. (Even today the brilliant magician James Randi spends much of his time debunking fakes.) Harry Houdini himself devoted much of his life and fortune to challenging fake mediums. Yet, ironically, one of the reasons he took up this cause was out of his desperate search for a legitimate medium who could contact the spirit of his mother, whose death he never completely recovered from.
Malerick now stared at the candle, the flame. Watching, praying for the spirit of his soul mate to appear and caress the yellow cone of illumination, to send him a sign. He used the candle for this medium of communication because it was fire that had taken his love away from him, fire that had changed Malerick's life forever.
Wait, did it flicker? Yes, maybe no. He couldn't tell.
Both schools of magic vied within him. As a talented illusionist, Maler
ick knew, of course, that his routines were nothing more than applied physics, chemistry and psychology. But still there was that one splinter of doubt in his mind that perhaps magic actually did hold the key to the su
pernatural: God as illusionist, vanishing our failing bodies then palming the souls of those we loved, transforming them and returning them to us, His sad and hopeful audience.
This was not unthinkable, Malerick told himself. HeAnd then the candle flickered! Yes, he saw it.
The flame moved a millimeter closer to the inlaid box. Very possibly it
was a sign that the soul of his dead beloved was hovering near, summoned not by mechanics but by the fiber of connection that magic might reveal if only he could stay receptive.
"Are you there?" he whispered. "Are you?"
Breathing so very slowly, afraid that his exhalation would reach the can
dle and make it shiver; Malerick wanted proof positive that he was not alone.
Finally the candle burned itself out and Malerick sat for a long time in his
meditative state, watching gray smoke curl toward the ceiling then vanish. A glance at his watch. He could wait no longer. He gathered his costumes and props, assembled them and dressed carefully. Applied his makeup. The mirror told him that he was "in role."
He walked to the front lobby. A glance out the window. The street was
empty. Then outside into the spring evening for a routine that would be, yes,
even more challenging than the prior ones.
Fire and illusion are soul mates.
