TEN
❝Children see magic because they look for it.❞
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After intermission it was time for the final trick of the night, for which everyone had been waiting patiently. Excitement and nervousness filled Gen as the time got closer and closer.
Merritt walked on the stage, a large smile sprawled on his face as he was about to start the final act. Tonight the Five Horsemen were going to make some things right, by returning the rightful money of the people back to them. The money Arthur Tressler had stolen from them. The Horsemen were going make him pay for it.
Everything was ready, every piece on the chessboard was in the place it was checkmate. They had worked hard for this, and now there was no turning back.
"At the end of the intermission, we asked you to right your current bank balance, seal it an envelope." Merritt started looking at the audience. "Now it's time to get those envelope out. Everyone take them out."
The audience reached for the envelopes, curious to find what the horsemen were planning to do.
"Now everyone I need you to shout out all your names at once." Merritt motioned them to shout with his hands waving them in the air. The audience quickly and started shouting their names all at once.
"Clement? Frannick?" Merritt called out the names they had already decided on.
"Yeah, up here." Clement shouted from his seat as he stood up.
"Oh way up there." Merritt commented before continuing. "Dina Robertson?"
"That's me." A smiling women stood up.
"Okay names, names. Let's go." He motioned for them to continue.
"Josepha Hickey?" Merritt asked.
"That's me."
"Josepha, I want you to, uh, focus on your balance and count to ten out loud." Merritt said to her.
"One, two, three, four, five-"
"Stop," said Merritt. "Is the first digit five?"
"Yes." The woman nodded, surprise written on her face.
"Do it again, this time faster."
"One, two, three, four, five, six-"
"Stop. six, again."
"One, two-"
"Josepha is your bank balance 562 dollars as of today?" Merritt wondered, as the woman's face fell for a second.
"Yeah, that's what I got."
"You're wrong." Merritt said before moving to other woman. "Okay Dina." He put one of his hands on the side of his face, closing his eyes deep in thought. "1-4-7-7."
The audience looked expectantly at the woman to deny or confirm.
"Yeah." She nodded.
"You think it is, but in fact you too are wrong." Merritt stated making everyone confused.
"Clement, you do not have 6500 dollar in your account. In fact everybody stand up." He said motioning for everyone to stand up. "Put your envelopes to your forehead. Focus on your number."
Everyone did as they told and started focusing on their current bank balance.
"Oh, oh, this is. . .oh dear. Just as I feared. This is strange. You know I hate to say this, but you all are wrong." Merritt informed the audience. "Every last one you is dead wrong about what you think it is in your account."
"Okay you can sit down." Merritt said as he walked a little backwards on the stage as the other horsemen joined him on the stage. Daniel walked to Merritt and whispered something in his ear.
"Oh! Oh, yeah. I almost forgot. This evening would not be possible if it weren't for our great benefactor Arthur Tressler." Merritt motioned toward the blonde man sitting on the top.
"Big applause! Big applause!" said Daniel clapping his hands together as the crowd cheered for the white haired man.
"Art, actually, why don't you come up on stage for the finale?" Gen asked their benefactor as she clapped her hands together.
"Come on down, Art." Henley called out.
Arthur Tressler walked down to the stage and was approached by Henley.
"Now Art, did you fill out your envelope?" Henley asked as she guided him to the center of the stage and he shook his head.
"Well, no need we've done it for you." said Henley as Jack came walking on stage with a giant envelope in his hands.
"Now, Art" said Merritt. "I took a wild guess, north of 140, am I right?"
"That's a 140 million by the way." Merritt clarified as Gen pulled the paper out of the white envelope to show everyone Arthur's bank balance.
"I'm sorry Merritt. How could he be right about his balance when everyone else is wrong?" Gen asked tilting her head, as she looked at Merritt.
"I think possibly, because he too is wrong." Merritt answered the question. "Everybody, take out your paper. And using the flashlight under your seat, start to warm up that paper. I think your correct balance begins to appear."
The audience took out their torches and started to warm up their paper.
"Now, Art, don't worry, we have a flashlight for you." Merritt said as Jack came up with gigantic flashlight, making the crowd the laugh.
Jack turned on the light and it shone directly in Daniel's eyes. "Woah." Danny said shielding his eyes.
"What is going on there Daniel?" Merritt asked.
"Wait. This is weird. A second ago, it said $144,579,651. But now. . .Now it says $70,000 less."
"Now Josepha, can you stand up?" Merritt said turning to the woman.
"Yes."
"Now what, what is your new number?"
"$70,562 now in my account." She said in disbelief as everyone started cheering.
"Is it possible that Josepha's balance went up the exact amount that Art's went down?" Henley wondered out aloud.
"Hey. Check it out. It's happening again" said Jack holding the flashlight.
"Is it?"
"Wow. It is. Art's balance has gone down another 280K." Gen declared as she looked at the crowd.
"Dina Robertson?" Merritt called out. "What does your say?"
"281.477 dollars." She smiled and again the audience cheered loudly.
"We have a confession to make." Henley said looking at the audience.
"She is right. We lied about something." Jack said walking around the stage.
"Yes, none of you were chosen at random." Daniel added, as he stepped beside Gen.
"All of you have something in common." Merritt pointed out.
"Everyone in this room was a victim of the hard times that hit one of America's most treasured cities." Gen informed the audience.
"Some of you lost your houses, your cars." said Merritt.
"Your business."
"Your loved ones." Daniel added.
"But all of you were taken advantage of," Gen told everyone. "All of you were insured by the same company."
"Tressler insurance." All the five horsemen announced together and pointed toward Arthur Tressler.
"You were abandoned." Merritt shouted a serious atmosphere taking over.
"You were loopholed." Gen shouted.
"Thrown out of your settlements." Jack added.
"You were tricked." Henley shouted.
"This is all for show, right?" Arthur asked walking up to Gen looking angry.
"Oh yeah," said Gen covering her mic, as she smirked at him. "'All' meaning we're doing it onstage in front of a paying audience? Then, yes, it's for show."
"Whoa! Whoa! I've got $82,000 in my bank account!" A man suddenly shouted standing up from his seat "It says it right here on my cell phone! Everybody, look at your cell phones right now."
After that, phone rings could be heard from everywhere in the room. Everyone in the audience stood up and started cheering for the horsemen.
"Hey, did you do this?" Arthur asked Merritt angrily.
"How could we Art? We don't have your password." Jack said with shrug.
"We need access to information we could never get our hands on." Henley told him.
"Your security questions for instants." Gen said. "Like your mother's maiden name."
"Or the name of your first pet." Danny added.
"Where would we get that information, Art? You certainly would never tell us." Merritt smirked as he walked past him.
Arthur tried to grab Merritt but he didn't made it that far. His foot was slacked to the bottom of the stage.
"Hey, we left you the jet and the Rolls." Merritt assured him with a wicked grin.
Arthur turned around, and was met by angry faces as people screamed at him. Everyone shouted profanities at him and threw trash on the stage.
Gen could see Agent Rhodes running toward them. He weaved through the group of angry people with a gun in his hand.
"Stop! Nobody Move!" He shouted and Daniel gave him a little wave.
"Freeze!"
That was the one word they were waiting for.
"Quaterback!" A women from the crowd yelled and soon Dylan was chased by 12 different people and they tackled him to the ground.
"We are the Five Horsemen!" They all yelled in sync and grabbed their robes.
"Goodnight!"
Gen held on tight, the rope reeling her up to the roof. While the commotion was happening below, the ropes brought the horsemen to the roof of the stage.
The only problem now was getting out without getting caught.