The 3 Thieves - Learncards

Effect: A story is told about 3 thieves (Jacks,) who break into a house (deck,) and are followed by a detective (King.) After cutting the deck, a spectator looks in and sees that the thieves are all being guarded by detectives.

Preparation:

At the bottom of the deck, put a King, a Jack and another King, so that the Jack is in-between the two Kings.

1) Have 3 Jacks ready, and 1 King. Start telling the story. “There were three thieves who wanted to break into this house. One entered the house from the front door (Place a Jack on top of the deck.) One thief entered through the back door (put a Jack on the bottom), and one broke in through a window (put last Jack anywhere in the center.)

2) Then say: “A police detective (show them the King) saw this and entered the front of the house, calling for back-up (put the King on top of the deck.)

3) At this time, you will have a King, then a Jack on top, and a King, Jack, King, Jack order on the bottom. Now say “There was a scuffle between the thieves and the cops.” Cut the deck several times, making sure not to mess up the order of the cards.

4) Now, somewhere in the deck, there is an order of Jack, King, Jack, King, Jack, King. Each cop has arrested a thief.

5) Search through the deck and show the spectator that the police caught the thieves in the act.

Tip: Remember that the one Jack you put in the center of the deck will not be used at the end, it is just a decoy.