Strength ~Jack Wilder FanFic~

Chapter 8

*Edited*

"At the intermission, we asked you to write down your current bank balance, and seal it in an envelope." Merritt says, starting up the final trick of the night. I quickly jump away from my intense staring contest with Jack and get the paper with the list of names and balances on it that we had set up for the trick. "Now it's time to take those envelopes out. Everyone take 'em out." Merritt instructs the audience, "Now, everybody, shout out your name. All at once. Go." The audience gets loud, shouting their names as I speak into the mic that was connected to Merritt's ear piece.

"Ok, Clement Frannick, Dina Roberson-" I begin listing audience members.

"Clement? Frannick?" Merritt calls out into the audience.

 "Yeah! Up here!" A man, Clement, calls back.

 "Oh. Way up there." Merritt says with a slight attitude, mostly directed at me for giving him an audience seated so far away. "Okay. Dina? Robertson?" He calls, moving onto the next one.

"That's me!" She calls back, standing.

"Okay. Names. Names. Let's go." He calls into the audience again, waiting for me to give him someone else.

"Josepha Hickey." I tell him as the audience's shouting gets loud again.

"Josepha Hickey?" Merritt calls out.

"That's me!" She answers, also standing.

"Josepha, I want you to focus on your balance, and count from one to 10 out loud." He explains to her as I look up her balance and tell it to him.

"One, two, three, four, five..." She begins to count.

"Stop." Merritt instructs her. "Is the first digit 5?"

"Yes." She confirms.

 "Do it again. This time, faster."

"One, two, three, four, five, six..."

"Stop. Six. Again."

"One, two..." She begins to count for the third time.

"Josepha, is your bank balance $562 as of today?" Merritt asks her, repeating the number I had previously told him.

"Yeah. That's what I got." She says, making the audience applause Merritt's "mentalism."

"Unfortunately, you're wrong." He tells her, the audience gasping in confusion. "Okay, Dina," Merritt says, moving on.

"She has $1,477" I tell him.

"1, 4, 7, - 7." Merritt "guesses" once I tell him the number.

"Yeah." Dina confirms.

"You think it is. But in fact, you, too, are wrong." He explains once again. "Uh, Clement..."

"$6,500" I tell him quickly.

"You do not have $6,500 in your account." He tells Clement, "In fact, everybody stand up. Everybody. Yeah. Put your envelopes to your forehead. Focus on your number. Ooh! Oh." He says, raising his hands to his head, "This is... Oh, dear. Just as I feared. Oh, this is strange. You know, I hate to say this, but you're all wrong." He says, the audience gasping in confusion. "Every last one of you is dead wrong about what you think is in your account. - Okay, you can sit down now." He finishes, letting the audience sit as Henley and Atlas join him on the stage, Henley whispering something in his ear as she comes up to him.

"Oh! Oh, yeah. I almost forgot." Merritt says, "This evening would not be possible if it weren't for our great benefactor Arthur Tressler. Big applause! Big applause!" He says, making the audience clap for Arthur.