I'm glad people seemed interested in this story. (I actually made it up years ago, but this is the first time I was brave enough to post it.)

So, I am following a format from my supernatural stories and alternating between the two brother's POV. (I hope this doesn't confuse anyone.)

Enjoy ...


Chapter 2

Charlie followed dad into the craftsman then headed straight for the couch. First class or not, that flight had been the longest eleven hours of his life. At least Amita had managed to sleep through most of it. Flopping face first into the cushions, he breathed in the smell of home. London had been great, especially the part of having so much alone time with his wife, but it would never compare to Pasadena.

"If you're that tired, maybe you should head up to bed." Alan's voiced called from somewhere nearby.

"I'm fine." Charlie said into the pillow.

"Well, I'm not," Amita sighed. "I'm am going to take a hot bath and go to bed."

"Not too hot." Charlie reminded her, turning his head to give her a knowing look.

She just smiled, their secret shining in his eyes, and nodded. As she slipped up the stairs, Charlie caught his father's gaze.

"Not too hot, huh?"

"She hasn't been feeling too well." Charlie replied dismissively. "Don't want her passing out in the tub."

"I see." Alan murmured and went to help Larry bring in the rest of their luggage.

Once he was out of sight, Charlie let out a sigh of relief. That was too close. But he had to quickly pull himself together, because at that moment Alan came back in followed by Larry and Don.

"Hey Charlie." Don grinned, setting a couple of bags down. "How was London."

"Great." He answered, getting too his feet.

His family was never very big on hugging, but after not seeing his brother for six months, they could make an exception. The embrace was brief, but strong. It was official, he was home.

"So," Charlie clapped his brother on the shoulder. "How's work been going? I heard you lost your replacement equation monkey to MIT."

"Yeah …" Don replied slowly. "That's actually why I'm here."

"Donnie," Alan scolded, "he's been home five minutes. Give him a chance to get settled."

"It's fine, Dad." Charlie assured him.

Actually, he was eager to get back in the saddle. Six months of nothing but teaching, even if it is in London, reminded him how much he enjoyed helping people. And, it turned out, Scotland Yard was not as open minded about using math as the FBI was. Go figure. But before Don could answer, the door swung open and Colby came in dragging a giant suitcase.

"Hey Charlie." He grunted, dropping the thing by the wall. "What did you pack in here? The tower of London?"

"No, that's in our other bag." Charlie laughed and gave his friend a quick hug.

"So did you ask him?" Colby questioned his boss.

"I was just about to." Don answered, before turning to Charlie and Larry. "Have either of you heard of Dr. Albert Twersky?"

Charlie thought for a moment. The name definitely sounded familiar. Wait, he had herd of Dr. Twersky. He was the founder of a group that had visited CalSci a few years ago to make sure their labs were safe.

"Yeah, I have." He told his brother. "He started a campaign to increase safety measures in research labs."

"Yes, that's right." Larry nodded. "That was after his wife died. I met him shortly after at a string theory conference."

"Yeah, well, he was killed tonight." Don stated.

"Oh dear." Larry murmured.

Charlie clasped his hand on his friend's shoulder in support. He remembered now, after Larry got back from his string theory conference a few years back. He had told him about meeting Dr. Twersky, about how jittery and nervous he seemed around people, but was so passionate about his work. Even though he had never got the chance to meet the man himself, he still felt the loss for the academic community.

"What happened?" Charlie wondered.

"Someone broke into his office and shot him." Colby answered. "We think whoever did it also stole his files and hard drive."

"Oh, that is not optimal." Larry murmured.

"Do you know what he was working on?" Don questioned.

"Albert was latest in a long line of brilliant scientists, going from the discovery of radium to nuclear warfare." Larry explained. "From what little he told me about his work, I think it is safe to assume that whatever he was developing now will have massive repercussions."

"That's what we were afraid of." Colby said grimly.

Suddenly, Charlie started wondering if it would better to send Amita back to London for a little while, maybe bring his dad with her. Then again, if Larry was right, he wasn't sure if there was anywhere that his family would be safe until they caught the killer and stopped them from using whatever they stole.

"Do you have any leads?" He asked.

"One," Don replied. "We think Twersky's son might have seen something, but he won't say much."

"I wasn't aware Albert had children." Larry frowned. "Granted, the man had just lost his wife, so family must have been a touchy subject, but he never mentioned any."

"Well, the kid says he's his son." Don shrugged and turned to Charlie. "I was hoping for might try talking to him."

Charlie blinked at his brother in surprise.

"Me? Why me?"

The agents shared a look and Colby picked up a large roll of paper. He gripped one end, letting the rest drop to reveal a poster … of him! He recognized the picture as a promo shot for one of the magazines he did after his book came out, and the quote 'everything is numbers' was one he had said often enough, but why in the world would someone want a poster of a mathmatician?

"Oh wow." Alan exclaimed, coming back in the room. "I didn't know they made those."

"Neither did I." Charlie gaped.

Reaching out, he took the poster from Colby's hands to get a closer look. It had the look and feel of a store bought poster … but it was him! He was still trying to wrap his brain around this, when his robe clad wife came down the stairs.

"Charlie, have you sen my- oh!" She smiled and gave her brother-in-law a hug. "Hi Don, Colby. I'm sorry I didn't know you were here."

"They came about a case." Charlie mumbled, looking back at the poster in his hands.

"What's that?" She asked, peering over his shoulder.

"A poster of me."

"It belongs to a boy named Ari." Don explained. "His father was killed tonight."

"Albert Twersky." Larry added.

"Twersky?" Amita paused. "Wasn't he the one with the crusade for safety?"

"Okay," Colby interjected, "what is this safety thing you guys keep talking about?"

Still trying to get over the fact someone made a poster of HIM, Charlie let Larry take over the explanation on that one.

"Four years ago, Albert's wife, Emmy, died after being exposed to dangerous chemicals. The incident was caused by lax safety measures and Albert made it his mission in life to make sure that what happened to her never happened to anyone else."

"He traveled all over the country, visiting labs and research facilities." Amita added. "He made sure new protocols were put in place to prevent other accidents."

"Did he make any enemies doing this?" Don asked.

"No," Charlie shook his head, handing the poster back to Colby. "Most places were more then willing to install the preventive measures, as much to protect their scientists as themselves. The lawsuit that resulted from Emmy Twersky's death alone cost the lab she worked at millions."

"Explains his apartment." Colby muttered.

He handed the poster over to Alan, who was studying it curiously.

"You know, this reminds me of when Don was twelve and got a poster of Wayne Gretzky. Charlie thought it was so cool that he wanted one too. But when we went to the store, he demanded that we buy him Albert Einstein."

"Yeah, but they actually sold posters of Einstein." Charlie pointed out.

"And apparently they sell posters of you too." Alan pointed out.

Uncomfortable at the thought, Charlie sent Don a pleading look. For once, his older brother seemed to have pity on him a changed the subject … kinda.

"Well, the kid who owns this is our only witness, and I was hoping you could talk to him."

"Sure."

Anything to get that poster out of his dad's hands before he got any ideas about making copies.

"You might want to come too, Larry." Don added. "He probably knows your work as well."

Soon, the four of them were exiting the elevator and entering the bull pen. Charlie looked around, wondering where the kid was. He spotted him in one of the conference rooms sitting with Liz. Ari shoulders were slumped in a way that made him look almost tiny. His gaze was downcast as he pushed a can of coke back and forth between his small hands. Even from the distance, he could see a tear trickle down the boy's cheek before he quickly wiped it away, and suddenly Charlie wasn't sure he could do this. He knew how crippling loss could be, how broken he was when his mom died, but at least he still had family and friends to support him. Now that Albert was gone, Ari was alone in the world. But then he caught the look on his brother's face, and knew that he was wrong. He had an entire FBI team in his corner, and they were going to get justice for his murdered father.


This might be a stupid question, but does anyone feel sorry for the killer(s) when Don amd his team get hold of them?

Again, let you know what you think and I will get started on the next chapter ... of something ... let me know if you want it to be this one. (It may be the "ABC" story or one of my others. Not sure yet.)