S is for Shoot Them with Your Numbers, Charlie
Don went to Charlie for help with a case of drug peddling by students. Too many schools involved, and he needed Charlie's input to give him the next few schools to be targeted by the ring leaders.
Three days ago before Charlie was hurt.
Don knocked on Charlie's door in CalSci and went in.
"Oops! Sorry! But I did knock."
Amita and Charlie were in a tight embrace, and from Don's point of view, it looked like they were having a passionate kiss.
Amita quickly turned, but Charlie held on to her, "Don't worry about Don. He's family, and he knows what's going on."
"Yea, but sorry to break you two up. Hey next time lock the door. The next person butting in won't be family, I can tell you that."
"Alright, Charlie, Don's right, and I need to go. See you tomorrow?" Amita gave Charlie a quick kiss and gave Don a small wave, picked up her bag and went towards the door.
"Sorry Amita." Don said again, now feeling bad that he broke up their kiss.
"No worry Don. Our fault, we should have locked the door before we locked our lips."
"Ha,ha,ha." Don started to laugh.
Amita smiled and went off.
Charlie stood there, wondering if he should laugh too.
"Charlie, when are you two getting hitched? It's about time. Don't wait too long." Don said seriously. Then he added, "It's about time I had a niece or nephew."
"I know what you're doing, Don."
"Yea? Dad hasn't said anything to you? You know he wants grandchildren."
"Same old, same old. OK what do you want? Must be something big since you came barging in."
"Hey! OK alright. This is urgent. We have a series of drug smuggling. First, it started off with small time peddling in schools involving schoolchildren. Then it went a bit bigger, cache of drugs was found in the lockers."
"Goodness, using kids. This is bad, Don."
"Yes, some five schools were involved when the Principals did a spot check on the students' lockers."
"Can they do that?"
"Yes, since the drugs were found inside a student's locker and in another school. Two were high on drugs, and in another school, some parents complained that their kids were approached by bigger kids to buy drugs, pills, and they went to the police too. That's why the Principals were allowed to do spot check on the students' lockers."
"OK, what do you need?"
"We need to know which schools are the most probable to be hit by these suppliers. We have suspects but we don't have proof. We need something to go on, and we want to catch them in action."
"Give me all the data you have, and let me have a go at it."
"OK, here's the files I brought. Hey Charlie about that Hog address, I have no time to get into that. Can we put that aside for the moment," Don through in. "Anyway, it's been 23 years. Whatever he did would be insignificant by now. You're your own man, a Professor. You don't need to let what those dorks did matter anymore.
Don was hopeful that Charlie would agree and let sleeping dogs lie.
"I
heard Dad say you are still searching. For what purpose Charlie?
Let
bygones be bygone. I know you were the brunt of their stupid jokes.
They were just very jealous of you. I told you to ignore them," Don
continued. "Why are you bringing it up now?"
Don got it all wrong. He thought he was looking for Hog for himself, 'no, no, Don you don't understand.'
"No, Don I am not looking for them. I was looking for someone in their group, just one guy who was with them. I need to have a talk with him," Charlie said.
"Anyway, once I get the address from you, that's it. Just want to ask him something, and hopefully, that will be the last contact I'm going to have. I can't be bothered by all these petty things. There are many more things for me to do than waste my time on these insignificant things."
Don got surprised by Charlie's outburst, "Ok, then I'll leave you to these urgent things, alright? We'll see about Hog's address later."
"Yea,yea….I'll get back to you on this soon."
"Thanks Charl, I know I can count on you."
Don was ready to go out of the door when Charlie who was reading the file, asked, "Hey Don these people are quite young. What are you going to do. Go with guns blazing at them?"
"No
Charlie, we will be shooting them with your numbers,"
Don
said referring to Charlie's childhood version of cops and robbers.
Don had the silver six shooter, and Charlie had the numbers. You had
to be really creative when you wanted to play with a genius. Don said
"Bang, Bang." And Charlie said, "Zero, Zero."
Don continued, "When those kids find out we used math to catch them, they'll die writhing on the floor with ones, twos, threes, fours or maybe with some fourteens and seventeens which were considered unlucky by the Chinese." Don said with a laugh as he turned and looked at Charlie from the door.
"Funny, just you wait. I'll get you some zeros and throw them at you as rotten eggs, or maybe with an unlucky thirteen, you'll fall flat on your face.
"Ha, ha…no way, thirteen is lucky in Chinese Math boy. Don't you know? Didn't any of Val Eng rub off you?" Don queried still laughing."
He continued, "Well, throw all your zeros. Betcha I'll catch each one of them, are you game?
"Yea, great. When you are free, we will have a game, a real one then. Call your team, and I'll have Dad, Amita and Larry.
"A deal. I'll have my team and also Lt. Walker."
"OK, I'll call Oswald to even the numbers."
Don, with his thumbs up, "Yea, yea but first give me your deadly numbers to deal with these bad guys first."
"OK, I'll give you a call as soon as I can."
"Thanks Charlie, see ya."
Charlie was quick. He snatched a rubber ball from his table and ran to the door, "Hey Don!" As soon as Don turned around, he threw the ball at him, hoping to get a hit.
Don was quick and good with his reflexes. He stretched out his hand and caught the ball with a wince.
"Wow, Don, you still have your touch, good one there."
"You throw good too Charlie. Here it comes." Don threw back the ball to Charlie, and Charlie threw it again much to the amusement of the small crowd gathering to watch their favorite cutesy professor throwing ball with his equally cute and handsome FBI brother.
"Here Prof, throw it here." One of the students called out, and Charlie threw the ball accordingly to the sound. He caught it and called out again, "Hey brother FeeBee here, catch."
Don caught the ball and laughed at the student, "Hey as much as I would like to play ball, I need to go back and catch crooks."
The student stuck thumbs up, collected his books from the ground and dispersed with the other students.
"You have a good eye, Charlie." Don said handing the ball back to him.
"I throw according to the numbers, and it will not go wrong. I see where you stand and from that point I did a quick mental calculation, and threw the ball towards the point of your presence. Throwing to Amos is no problem, I can see that he was much nearer than you and then I minus …."
"Charlie, Charlie, alright…. I get you."
"I remember one time you did some real math mental calculation that got someone astounded, bet you during that time, he must have gone home to compare your answer.
"Which time? There were so many."
"Well, there was one especially that I remember as if it was yesterday," Don said, deliberately not telling Charlie which incident he was talking about. He knew that would drive Charlie crazy.
Don
remembered that one time during their school break , Barty and his
gang very meanly teased Charlie'
"See
Nerdy Eppesy is scared to come near." He had the group with him
laughing. He called loudly, "Hey Nerdy Eppes, yes you, what is
345678 times 999 divided by 123 …'
And Charlie socked it to them and gave them the answer much to the pleasure of the crowd looking on for they knew about Barty and his bullying ways. Some whistled and some even clapped.
Don , then pulled Charlie away
from the scene. Barty at that moment was fuming for he was humiliated
by Charlie who gave the answer and Don standing up to him.
The
rest were history and Don himself had gotten bashed by Barty and his
gang not once but a few times until Don had found 'something' on
Barty and the beatings stopped. That seemed not so long ago but it
was more than 23 years ago.
He came back to the present just to hear Charlie said.
"Really?"
"Yep, now I have to go. See you when you get some answers for me. Not today though. Come tomorrow if you have it. Thanks Charlie, and yes I can still get get all your zeros, but no cheating and no ambushing." Don walked away leaving a puzzled Charlie.
'Ambush?' Charlie thought to himself.
Tbc.