Natalie Lindstrom
Encyclopedia
Natalie Lindstrom is the primary protagonist of a supernatural alternate-history detective series by Stephen Woodworth
. A "Violet" with the North American Afterlife Communications Corps, she is one of a small percentage of the population born with purple irises
and the ability to channel the dead, thereby allowing murder victims to testify against their killers.
Natalie is a "gaunt, pale young woman with a shaved head" and "twenty contact points tattooed on her scalp as a constellation of tiny bluish spots." These contact points correspond to the wires of a device called a SoulScan which monitors the presence of foreign spirits in the mind of a Violet; the device is also outfitted with a red Panic Button that emits a powerful electrical burst capable of evicting hostile spirits from a hijacked conduit. In public, Natalie wears an assortment of wigs and blue contact lens
es to hide her identity.
Before going to work for the NAACC, Natalie was trained from the age of five at the Iris Semple Conduit Academy in New Hampshire by the renowned Arthur McCord, a Violet involved in the investigations of Ted Bundy
and the Hillside Strangler
. By the time of Through Violet Eyes, Arthur has been in hiding for seven years (having, apparently, deserted the Academy after Natalie graduated), masquerading as a Violet-impersonating "medium" in Hollywood
, and protecting himself from the bombardment of spirits by taking cover in a Faraday cage
-style building. Natalie continues to maintain secretive contact with her former teacher.
At the age of nine, Natalie dislocated her shoulder during a soccer match; at twelve, she had her head shaved like Abdullah Kobayashi
and tattooed like Jun Kasai
by School specialist Dr. Krell. When she was 17, her boyfriend left the School to go to work at Quantico
, and insisted that she do everything necessary to avoid the same fate even if assigned. Natalie's mother, Nora Lindstrom, was also a Violet who was ultimately driven insane
by the onslaught of spirits; she was institutionalized while Natalie was still a teenager.
In the year prior to Through Violet Eyes, Natalie dated a fellow Violet named Evan Markham, who had in turn worked with FBI Special Agent
Daniel Atwater on the "Philly Ripper" case. After Natalie's relationship with Evan ended, Evan began dating another fellow Violet named Sondra Avebury. Natalie also successfully worked the "Aqueduct Killer" case in the interim.
Natalie is introduced during the murder trial
of Hector Muñoz, channeling the defendant's slain wife Rosa Muñoz. Soon after, she is approached by Agent Atwater and recruited into the investigation of a "Faceless Man" targeting Violets; the victims include Jeremy "Jem" Whitman, Gig Marshall, Avebury, Markham, Russell Travers, Sylvia Perez, and Laurie Gannon. Natalie joins Atwater, Special Agent in Charge Earl Clark, and LAPD Detective Yolena Garcia to track the serial killer
.
In the course of their investigation, Natalie and Atwater locate a bomb planted in the basement of the Iris Semple Conduit Academy, presumably by the same individual murdering Violets across the country. They are called back to California shortly after Arthur McCord is murdered in his Vine Street
storefront. Natalie is temporarily reassigned to the protective detail of Corps Security Agents Lipinski and Brace, but rejoins Atwater on the Faceless Man investigation following the murder of her former Arts Division teacher Lucinda Kamei.
While Atwater interrogates New York Post
reporter Sid Preston, Natalie's body is hijacked by a rogue soul that knows her defensive mantra. She is forced to go to an abandoned building and delivered to the Faceless Man, and only narrowly rescued by Serena Mfume, protégé of the religious cult mentored by Arthur McCord's brother, Simon McCord. Mfume joins the investigation, and Natalie soon discovers that Evan Markham is actually still alive.
Natalie, Atwater and Mfume determine that Sondra Avebury impersonated Evan during Russell Travers' deposition. By converting a closet at LAPD headquarters into a make-shift Faraday-cage, they trap Avebury, who claims that she helped Evan fake his death in order for Evan to find her killer, summon her, and allow her to kill the Faceless Man herself.
Natalie remains in San Francisco while Atwater travels to Seattle to apprehend Clement Everett Maddox, whose obsession with Violets makes him a prime suspect. Maddox is conducting his own research, attempting to use Violet souls by stealing touchstones from each of the murder victims to amplify electronic voice phenomenon
in an attempt to contact his dead wife Amy.
Clement is shot while fleeing, but Atwater has misgivings about the arrest. On the flight home, he and Mfume discover that Evan Markham is, in fact, the Faceless Man while Sondra Avebury is the rogue soul enabling Markham to kill his victims with a minimum of struggle; together, the two of them slowly developed the "Violet Killer" modus operandi
by appropriating details of famous serial killers (Jack the Ripper
's ritual disembowlment, the Zodiac Killer
's letters to the media; Jeffrey Dahmer
's collection of body parts).
Before Atwater can warn Natalie, she is kidnapped from her motel by Markham and driven to a remote location where Evan explains that he and Sondra have been killing Violets to spare their victims from the onslaught of disturbed spirits. Natalie manages to manipulate Evan into nearly releasing her; her escape fails, however, when Sondra takes over Evan's body. Sondra's attempt to kill Natalie is also interrupted when Mfume draws her out of Evan and into the Faraday cell at LAPD.
Using a SoulScan, Atwater ejects Sondra from Serena and releases Mfume, but Avebury commandeers Mfume's body again, using her to murder Atwater. Mfume manages to confine Sondra to the Faraday cell, while Atwater's soul confronts the soul of Alan Pelletier, the innocent man he accidentally killed years before. After reconciling with Pelletier, Atwater manages to find Natalie and occupy her body before skipping from her to Markham and stopping Evan from killing Natalie.
Natalie binds Markham before he can force Atwater's soul out of his body, then leaves Evan in the van; Markham is later arrested and sentenced to life in prison on suicide watch
. Several months later, Natalie travels to Washington D.C. to tender her retirement from the NAACC to Delbert Sinclair. She then announces her pregnancy
with Atwater's child to Mfume, asking Serena to act as the child's godmother.
Stephen Woodworth
Stephen Woodworth is an American speculative fiction author, and a native of Fullerton, California.- Publications :* "Scary Monsters" , in Writers of the Future VIII * "Relaxation" , in Plot #1...
. A "Violet" with the North American Afterlife Communications Corps, she is one of a small percentage of the population born with purple irises
Iris (anatomy)
The iris is a thin, circular structure in the eye, responsible for controlling the diameter and size of the pupils and thus the amount of light reaching the retina. "Eye color" is the color of the iris, which can be green, blue, or brown. In some cases it can be hazel , grey, violet, or even pink...
and the ability to channel the dead, thereby allowing murder victims to testify against their killers.
Natalie is a "gaunt, pale young woman with a shaved head" and "twenty contact points tattooed on her scalp as a constellation of tiny bluish spots." These contact points correspond to the wires of a device called a SoulScan which monitors the presence of foreign spirits in the mind of a Violet; the device is also outfitted with a red Panic Button that emits a powerful electrical burst capable of evicting hostile spirits from a hijacked conduit. In public, Natalie wears an assortment of wigs and blue contact lens
Contact lens
A contact lens, or simply contact, is a lens placed on the eye. They are considered medical devices and can be worn to correct vision, for cosmetic or therapeutic reasons. In 2004, it was estimated that 125 million people use contact lenses worldwide, including 28 to 38 million in the United...
es to hide her identity.
Before going to work for the NAACC, Natalie was trained from the age of five at the Iris Semple Conduit Academy in New Hampshire by the renowned Arthur McCord, a Violet involved in the investigations of Ted Bundy
Ted Bundy
Theodore Robert "Ted" Bundy was an American serial killer, rapist, kidnapper, and necrophile who assaulted and murdered numerous young women during the 1970s, and possibly earlier...
and the Hillside Strangler
Hillside Strangler
The Hillside Strangler is the media epithet for two men, cousins Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono, who were convicted of kidnapping, raping, torturing, and killing girls and women ranging in age from 12 to 28 years old during a four-month period from late 1977 to early 1978...
. By the time of Through Violet Eyes, Arthur has been in hiding for seven years (having, apparently, deserted the Academy after Natalie graduated), masquerading as a Violet-impersonating "medium" in Hollywood
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
Hollywood is a famous district in Los Angeles, California, United States situated west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema...
, and protecting himself from the bombardment of spirits by taking cover in a Faraday cage
Faraday cage
A Faraday cage or Faraday shield is an enclosure formed by conducting material or by a mesh of such material. Such an enclosure blocks out external static and non-static electric fields...
-style building. Natalie continues to maintain secretive contact with her former teacher.
At the age of nine, Natalie dislocated her shoulder during a soccer match; at twelve, she had her head shaved like Abdullah Kobayashi
Abdullah Kobayashi
, is a Japanese professional wrestler best known by his stage name Abdullah Kobayashi after Abdullah the Butcher, who was his trainer. He began his career in 1995 as one of the main wrestlers in Big Japan Pro Wrestling and has wrestled for Big Japan Pro Wrestling throughout most of his career....
and tattooed like Jun Kasai
Jun Kasai
is a Japanese professional wrestler, primarily competing for Big Japan Pro Wrestling. Dubbed the Crazy Monkey for his violent and oftentimes self-harmful style of hardcore wrestling, Kasai is considered a breakthrough talent in Japanese wrestling, able to work both hardcore and technical styles...
by School specialist Dr. Krell. When she was 17, her boyfriend left the School to go to work at Quantico
FBI Academy
The FBI Academy, located in Quantico, Virginia, is the training site for new Special Agents of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was first opened for use in 1972 on 385 acres of woodland. It is a relatively small government academy, housing three dormitory buildings and...
, and insisted that she do everything necessary to avoid the same fate even if assigned. Natalie's mother, Nora Lindstrom, was also a Violet who was ultimately driven insane
Insanity
Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity...
by the onslaught of spirits; she was institutionalized while Natalie was still a teenager.
"Through Violet Eyes"
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
Daniel Atwater on the "Philly Ripper" case. After Natalie's relationship with Evan ended, Evan began dating another fellow Violet named Sondra Avebury. Natalie also successfully worked the "Aqueduct Killer" case in the interim.
Natalie is introduced during the murder trial
Trial (law)
In law, a trial is when parties to a dispute come together to present information in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court...
of Hector Muñoz, channeling the defendant's slain wife Rosa Muñoz. Soon after, she is approached by Agent Atwater and recruited into the investigation of a "Faceless Man" targeting Violets; the victims include Jeremy "Jem" Whitman, Gig Marshall, Avebury, Markham, Russell Travers, Sylvia Perez, and Laurie Gannon. Natalie joins Atwater, Special Agent in Charge Earl Clark, and LAPD Detective Yolena Garcia to track the serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
.
In the course of their investigation, Natalie and Atwater locate a bomb planted in the basement of the Iris Semple Conduit Academy, presumably by the same individual murdering Violets across the country. They are called back to California shortly after Arthur McCord is murdered in his Vine Street
Vine Street
Vine is a street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California that runs north-south from Melrose Avenue up past Hollywood Boulevard. The intersection of Hollywood and Vine was once a symbol of Hollywood itself...
storefront. Natalie is temporarily reassigned to the protective detail of Corps Security Agents Lipinski and Brace, but rejoins Atwater on the Faceless Man investigation following the murder of her former Arts Division teacher Lucinda Kamei.
While Atwater interrogates New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
reporter Sid Preston, Natalie's body is hijacked by a rogue soul that knows her defensive mantra. She is forced to go to an abandoned building and delivered to the Faceless Man, and only narrowly rescued by Serena Mfume, protégé of the religious cult mentored by Arthur McCord's brother, Simon McCord. Mfume joins the investigation, and Natalie soon discovers that Evan Markham is actually still alive.
Natalie, Atwater and Mfume determine that Sondra Avebury impersonated Evan during Russell Travers' deposition. By converting a closet at LAPD headquarters into a make-shift Faraday-cage, they trap Avebury, who claims that she helped Evan fake his death in order for Evan to find her killer, summon her, and allow her to kill the Faceless Man herself.
Natalie remains in San Francisco while Atwater travels to Seattle to apprehend Clement Everett Maddox, whose obsession with Violets makes him a prime suspect. Maddox is conducting his own research, attempting to use Violet souls by stealing touchstones from each of the murder victims to amplify electronic voice phenomenon
Electronic voice phenomenon
Electronic voice phenomena are electronically generated noises that resemble speech, but are not the result of intentional voice recordings or renderings. Common sources of EVP include static, stray radio transmissions, and background noise...
in an attempt to contact his dead wife Amy.
Clement is shot while fleeing, but Atwater has misgivings about the arrest. On the flight home, he and Mfume discover that Evan Markham is, in fact, the Faceless Man while Sondra Avebury is the rogue soul enabling Markham to kill his victims with a minimum of struggle; together, the two of them slowly developed the "Violet Killer" modus operandi
Modus operandi
Modus operandi is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as "mode of operation". The term is used to describe someone's habits or manner of working, their method of operating or functioning...
by appropriating details of famous serial killers (Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper
"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...
's ritual disembowlment, the Zodiac Killer
Zodiac Killer
The Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who operated in Northern California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The killer's identity remains unknown. The Zodiac murdered victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Lake Berryessa and San Francisco between December 1968 and October 1969. Four men and three women...
's letters to the media; Jeffrey Dahmer
Jeffrey Dahmer
Jeffrey Lionel Dahmer was an American serial killer and sex offender. Dahmer murdered 17 men and boys between 1978 and 1991, with the majority of the murders occurring between 1987 and 1991. His murders involved rape, dismemberment, necrophilia and cannibalism...
's collection of body parts).
Before Atwater can warn Natalie, she is kidnapped from her motel by Markham and driven to a remote location where Evan explains that he and Sondra have been killing Violets to spare their victims from the onslaught of disturbed spirits. Natalie manages to manipulate Evan into nearly releasing her; her escape fails, however, when Sondra takes over Evan's body. Sondra's attempt to kill Natalie is also interrupted when Mfume draws her out of Evan and into the Faraday cell at LAPD.
Using a SoulScan, Atwater ejects Sondra from Serena and releases Mfume, but Avebury commandeers Mfume's body again, using her to murder Atwater. Mfume manages to confine Sondra to the Faraday cell, while Atwater's soul confronts the soul of Alan Pelletier, the innocent man he accidentally killed years before. After reconciling with Pelletier, Atwater manages to find Natalie and occupy her body before skipping from her to Markham and stopping Evan from killing Natalie.
Natalie binds Markham before he can force Atwater's soul out of his body, then leaves Evan in the van; Markham is later arrested and sentenced to life in prison on suicide watch
Suicide watch
Suicide watch is an intensive monitoring process used to ensure that an individual does not die by suicide. Usually the term is used in reference to inmates in a prison, hospital, psychiatric hospital, or military bases...
. Several months later, Natalie travels to Washington D.C. to tender her retirement from the NAACC to Delbert Sinclair. She then announces her pregnancy
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
with Atwater's child to Mfume, asking Serena to act as the child's godmother.