Chapter Six: Who Said Lightning Never Strikes Twice?

"Well, they're certainly late. Aren't they?"

Alan Eppes looked at his watch, and then lifted his eyes to the clock on the wall.

"Yes, they are. I thought you'd be used to that by now."

"You never 'get used' to Charlie, Mr. Eppes."

Turning to look at the young woman in his dining room, Alan gave Amita Ramajuan a warm smile.

"No, I suppose not. And it's Alan. Please. But that's what I get for letting Don take my car to go pick him up. More likely than not, they stopped off at the office."

"Still, he has a cell phone, and if the lecture went over……."

Amita stopped herself as she realized just who she was about to vent to about Charlie.

"We really didn't raise him to be grotesquely inconsiderate, Amita. The trend evolved as he got older."

Looking somewhat embarrassed, Amita turned back to the lap top computer she had set up on the table.

"Sorry. Sometimes I forget the way his mind works."

Walking to the table, Alan took a seat across from the raven haired young woman.

"Being a genius is no excuse for neglecting a relationship."

For a minute Amita remained silent, staring at the computer screen and wondering how much Charlie had talked about their relationship….or lack thereof….with his father. Maybe that was a good sign. When she lifted her eyes from the screen, she gave Alan a pleasant smile.

"Speaking of which….shouldn't you call your date and let her know you'll be late?"

"Oh….OH. Yeah. I suppose that would be the polite thing to do."

Alan pulled himself back to his feet and walked into the kitchen. Plucking the cordless phone from the wall, he stepped back into the dining room and smiled broadly.

"Well, I guess he does come by it honestly after all."

Before Alan could hit the speed dial button for Donna's number, the phone rang.

Glancing at the number on the caller ID, Alan laughed.

"See, Amita. What did I say? Did I not tell you they'd be at the office?"

"Hello."

Still grinning and fully expecting a comedic exchange between father and son, Amita couldn't help but lift her eyes. But she didn't expect the expression of distress that was instantly written across Alan's face and she felt her heart rate increase as the possible implications of such a phone call flashed through her mind.

"David?"

"When?"

"Yes. He was. He took my car to pick up…..

"Are they….?"

"Where?"

There was an extended silence as Alan listened to whatever David had to say. From the look on his face, Amita suddenly knew neither Charlie nor Don would be coming back to the house tonight.

Jumping to her feet, she pulled her jacket from the back of the chair and dug her keys from her pocket.

Alan lifted his eyes and nodded at her, his brow furrowed intently as he listened to David speak.

"No. I've got a ride."

"Saint Joseph's in Burbank."

"Amita and I will meet you there."

When he hung up the phone, and stood next the table without speaking; Amita had to resist the urge to grab his shoulders and demand he tell her what had happened to Charlie. Somehow she knew better than to ask.

Alan had two sons, after all.

Sloughing off an inexpressible fear that she had never experienced before, she took the phone from his hand and tossed it on the table. Grabbing her umbrella from the hallway, she led Alan out the door to her car.

……………………………

David hung up the phone and turned his eyes to Colby's anxious face.

"Amita is with him. They're on their way."

Colby circled the desk and stopped in front of David.

"You're sure it's Charlie? They're absolutely sure?"

"Lieutenant Seymour said Charlie Eppes. I only know of one."

Pulling his jacket on, David headed for the elevator doors.

"No wallet, but the description was right on. It's Charlie."

"And Don?"

"Yeah. Alan said Don was driving. And the little girl said Charlie and another guy with short dark hair….That's all I know, Granger. I was on my way out the door when dispatch put the call through."

Colby by-passed the elevator and headed for the stairs.

"What about Megan?"

"I already called her. She and Larry were at that new sushi place on Sunset, so she's heading straight to Saint Josephs. She'll get there before we do."

Bounding down the stairs after Colby, David checked his watch.

It had been almost an hour since the 911 call had been made that had resulted in the rescue of three little girls and a renowned mathematician; who also happened to be a bureau consultant and a personal friend. The search and rescue teams on the scene were assuming that if 'the other guy' had been in that car with the Whitney family's nanny, they'd be pulling two bodies out of that river.

As they reached his copper sedan, Colby stopped and turned to David.

"They think Don's dead, don't they?"

David nodded solemnly and they both climbed into the car.

"Where are we going, then?"

"Where do you think?"

Colby started the car and headed for the Victory Boulevard Bridge.

………………………………

Authors Notes: Hey! So glad to see you all are enjoying this so much! Thanks for the encouraging comments and the helpful feedback! Short Chapter, I know...but I'm going to go figure out how to get Don out of the river now…..that's the plan anyway.

Chapter Seven: Rushing, Rising Rivulets