"Caught my left hand, didn't you?" She laughed. "But you didn't notice
my foot, pushing that white thing behind the table." "A bedpan," Rhyme said acerbically, irritated that he'd been tricked again but feeling he'd scored a point or two by mentioning the indelicate nature of the object she'd moved. "Really?" she asked, unfazed. 'Well, it's not just a bedpan; it's also a misdirection. Because when you were looking at it just now, I got this with my other hand. Oh, here," she said. "Is this important?" She handed a canister of Mace back to Sachs.
The policewoman frowned, looked down at her utility belt to see if anything else was missing and replaced the cylinder.
"So, that's physical misdirection. That's pretty easy. The second kind of misdirection is psychological. This is harder. Audiences aren't stupid. They know you're going to try to trick them. I mean, that's why they've come to the show in the first place, right? So we try to reduce or eliminate the audience's suspicion. The most important thing in psychological misdirection is to act naturally. You behave and say things that're consistent with what the audience expects. But underneath the surface you're getting away with..." Her voice faded as she realized how close she'd come to using the word that described the death of the young student that morning.
Kara continued, "As soon as you do something in an unnatural way, the
audience is on to you. Okay, I say I'm going to read your mind and I do this." Kara put her hands on Sachs's temples and closed her eyes for a moment. She stepped away and handed Sachs back the earring she'd just plucked
from the policewoman's left ear.
"I never felt a thing."
"But the audience'd know instantly how I did it-because touching someone while you're pretending to read minds, which most people don't believe in anyway, isn't natural. But if I say part of a trick is for me to whisper a word so that nobody else can hear." She leaned closer to Sachs's ear, with her right hand over her own mouth. "See, that's a natural gesture."
"You missed the other earring," Sachs said, laughing; she'd lifted a pro
tective hand to her ear when Kara had stepped close.
"But I vanished your necklace. It's gone."
Even Rhyme couldn't help but be impressed-and amused, watching Sachs touch her neck and chest, smiling but troubled to keep losing accessories. Sellitto laughed like a little kid and Mel Cooper gave up on the evidence to watch the show. The policewoman looked around her for the jewelry and then at Kara, who offered her empty right hand. "Vanished," she repeated.
"But," Rhyme said suspiciously, "I do notice that your left hand's in a fist behind your back. Which is, by the way, a rather unnatural gesture. So I assume the necklace is there."
"Ah, you're good," Kara said. Then laughed. "But not at catching moves,
I'm afraid." She opened her left hand and it too was empty.
Rhyme scowled.
"Keeping my left fist closed and out of sight? Well, that was the most important misdirection of all. I did that because I knew you'd spot it and it would focus your attention on my left hand. We call it 'forcing.' I forced you to think you'd figured out my method. And as soon as you did that your mind snapped shut and you stopped considering any other explanations for what had happened. And when you-and everybody else-were staring at my left hand that gave me the chance to slip the necklace into Amelia's pocket."
Sachs reached inside and pulled the chain out.
Cooper applauded. Rhyme gave a grudging but impressed grunt. Kara nodded toward the evidence board. "So, that's what he's going to do, this killer. Misdirection. You'll think you've figured out what he's up to
but that's part of his plan. Just like I did, he'll use your suspicions-and your intelligence-against you. In fact, he needs your suspicions and
my foot, pushing that white thing behind the table." "A bedpan," Rhyme said acerbically, irritated that he'd been tricked again but feeling he'd scored a point or two by mentioning the indelicate nature of the object she'd moved. "Really?" she asked, unfazed. 'Well, it's not just a bedpan; it's also a misdirection. Because when you were looking at it just now, I got this with my other hand. Oh, here," she said. "Is this important?" She handed a canister of Mace back to Sachs.
The policewoman frowned, looked down at her utility belt to see if anything else was missing and replaced the cylinder.
"So, that's physical misdirection. That's pretty easy. The second kind of misdirection is psychological. This is harder. Audiences aren't stupid. They know you're going to try to trick them. I mean, that's why they've come to the show in the first place, right? So we try to reduce or eliminate the audience's suspicion. The most important thing in psychological misdirection is to act naturally. You behave and say things that're consistent with what the audience expects. But underneath the surface you're getting away with..." Her voice faded as she realized how close she'd come to using the word that described the death of the young student that morning.
Kara continued, "As soon as you do something in an unnatural way, the
audience is on to you. Okay, I say I'm going to read your mind and I do this." Kara put her hands on Sachs's temples and closed her eyes for a moment. She stepped away and handed Sachs back the earring she'd just plucked
from the policewoman's left ear.
"I never felt a thing."
"But the audience'd know instantly how I did it-because touching someone while you're pretending to read minds, which most people don't believe in anyway, isn't natural. But if I say part of a trick is for me to whisper a word so that nobody else can hear." She leaned closer to Sachs's ear, with her right hand over her own mouth. "See, that's a natural gesture."
"You missed the other earring," Sachs said, laughing; she'd lifted a pro
tective hand to her ear when Kara had stepped close.
"But I vanished your necklace. It's gone."
Even Rhyme couldn't help but be impressed-and amused, watching Sachs touch her neck and chest, smiling but troubled to keep losing accessories. Sellitto laughed like a little kid and Mel Cooper gave up on the evidence to watch the show. The policewoman looked around her for the jewelry and then at Kara, who offered her empty right hand. "Vanished," she repeated.
"But," Rhyme said suspiciously, "I do notice that your left hand's in a fist behind your back. Which is, by the way, a rather unnatural gesture. So I assume the necklace is there."
"Ah, you're good," Kara said. Then laughed. "But not at catching moves,
I'm afraid." She opened her left hand and it too was empty.
Rhyme scowled.
"Keeping my left fist closed and out of sight? Well, that was the most important misdirection of all. I did that because I knew you'd spot it and it would focus your attention on my left hand. We call it 'forcing.' I forced you to think you'd figured out my method. And as soon as you did that your mind snapped shut and you stopped considering any other explanations for what had happened. And when you-and everybody else-were staring at my left hand that gave me the chance to slip the necklace into Amelia's pocket."
Sachs reached inside and pulled the chain out.
Cooper applauded. Rhyme gave a grudging but impressed grunt. Kara nodded toward the evidence board. "So, that's what he's going to do, this killer. Misdirection. You'll think you've figured out what he's up to
but that's part of his plan. Just like I did, he'll use your suspicions-and your intelligence-against you. In fact, he needs your suspicions and
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