Pinball
A huge crate was delivered to Major Case sometime in the overnight hours. It sat right in the middle of the room. There was nothing on it but the address. It didn't even have a return address on it. No one knew where it came from or what was inside.
Dan Ross found the bomb squad blocking his squad room door when he got to work on Monday morning. They would only let him peer at the crate from a distance. They could tell it was bigger than a breadbox and smaller than a house. Dan gave them a disgusted look, while they waited for more sophisticated equipment to scan it.
In the meantime anyone who stayed there outside in the hall had to wear full body armor or leave. He chose to head down one floor to a cramped former squad room to try to conduct business. It was wall to wall cop and the temporary phone system was a joke. If they hadn't had wireless internet for the entire building Major Case might just as well have gone home for the day.
Except crime tends to come up at all times of the year. Bobby got a table by the door to share with Alex and everyone else grabbed what seating they could when it became available. As the morning wore on, tempers got shorter from too close of proximity and Dan had to send people out on calls to keep the scene peaceful.
His cell rang and he flipped it open. "Ross." He said shortly into the phone.
"Hi, Dad. Am I catching you at a bad time?" David, his youngest asked in his yet to change childish voice.
"Yes, you are, but what's the matter? Shouldn't you be in class?" Dan counted to ten in the hopes of not making things tense with his son.
"I wanted to let you know I ordered something and had it delivered to you." David said. "I'm calling to let you know it'll be coming soon."
"What did you order?" Dan asked his senses tingling.
"I ordered Todd an old pinball game for his birthday. Mom said I should have it shipped to you at work so Todd doesn't find out."
"I see. How much did you pay for it?"
"About 300.00. Mom said it was a good price and to have it delivered to you. Its okay, isn't it? It was a really great deal……"
"Just a minute, David. Where did you order it from?"
"On the internet."
"Give me the website name." Dan gestured for Alex to let him use her laptop and she got up. He sat down typing in the site. It brought up his credit card number and the shipping address for Major Case. And the fact that David had not ordered a pinball game for Todd but an entire old fashioned pinball machine. All Six foot by two by 4 foot high and it had been delivered overnight. And unless he missed his guess, the bomb squad was preparing to take it outside and blow it up right this minute.
"It's fine, David. I'll keep an eye open for it for you, okay? I have to run." Dan said. "Love you, bye." He hung up the phone. "Call upstairs and tell them not to blow it up." He called to Bobby. He ran for the elevator, but it was full so he headed for the stairs. When he got upstairs the bombsquad was just removing their protective barriers. "Where is it? Did you blow it up?" Dan demanded slightly winded.
"They're taking it to a secure location and disposing of it now. It was some kind of electronic device….." A rattle shook the building. "That was it now, I think. No harm done." The sergeant said with a satisfied grin.
"Damn it!" Dan said.
"Is something wrong, Captain? We were just doing what protocol said to do."
"You did the right thing, Sergeant. Good work. Is it safe to go back inside?"
"We did a sweep it's clean. You can go back in."The satisfied sergeant gestured for his men to finish their job and leave.
Dan went back to the makeshift squad room. "We're back in business, folks. Let's get back to our desks."
"Captain, what was that all about?" Bobby asked ever curious.
Dan Ross shook his head and told the other man what was in the crate, leaving out much of Davids part in it. "I'll see you upstairs."
After he left the room, Alex sat down and pulled up the history on her computer. The name of the company was still there. She dialed the number and spoke to someone there then hung up. "That was the last one they had. Doesn't that just figure."
"What was the game called?" Bobby asked.
"The Last Starcarrier or something like that."
Bobby opened his cell phone. By now they were all alone in the room. Bobby spoke to someone over the phone and completed his call. "They'll deliver it tomorrow." He said.
"I'll tell the captain." Alex said.
"Let it be a surprise." Bobby said.
Two days later Dan received another call from David. "Hi, Dad. They delivered Todds present right on time. Thanks for helping me keep it a surprise."
"Y….you're welcome. Did he like it?"
"He likes it but I'm better at it than he is." David laughed. "Say, Dad, what do you want for your birthday?"
"No surprises, please." Dan said simply.
Complete