Chapter 3

The walk to Fine Hall was long, but Charlie was anxious to show his friends the sights. "Larry, there is one thing you absolutely must see," he said. "It's on the way, so don't worry." He led them into a grassy courtyard and said, "May I direct your attention to the Mather Sundial." He pointed in the direction of a twenty foot tall column, set in the middle of an octagonal base of four steps, and topped by a statue of a pelican.

Amita laughed as Larry rushed to the massive column. Charlie put his arm around her waist and they walked at a more leisurely pace. "Charles," Larry said, "this is absolutely wonderful. It's a replica of the Turnbull Sundial in Oxford, is it not?"

"Yes it is. Sir William Mather, of Manchester, England gave it to Princeton University in 1907 as a symbol of the connection between Oxford University and Princeton." To Amita, he said, "The original was built in 1551, and is in the quad of Corpus Christi College in Oxford. I had the opportunity to see it the last time I visited Oxford. This is a very good copy, though."

Amita watched as the two sundial fanatics enjoyed themselves, grinning like little boys as they discussed the features of the twenty four different sundials arranged around the face of the column. She walked around the base, reading the inscription:

"Loyalty is e'er the same
Whether it win or lose the game
True as the dial to the sun
Although it be not shined upon.''

As Larry continued to wander, looking and touching the sundials, she noticed Charlie easing himself down to sit on the steps. She sat beside him and said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Just a little tired. I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Oh, Charles," Larry called, "did you see this one?"

Charlie turned but didn't get up. "Yes, Larry, I've seen them all."

At his friend's tone, Larry tore his eyes from the sundial and looked at Charlie. "Charles? You're looking a touch peaked."

"I'm okay. Just tired. Enjoy the sundial."

"We should probably get going. We can come back here later. We'll be here all week," Larry said. He stood in front of Charlie and offered his hand to help him up.

"Thanks, Larry," Charlie said as he took Larry's hand and stood slowly. "We're a little over halfway to Fine."

Amita fought to suppress a grin. "That could be a description of you, Charlie. You look like you're halfway to fine."

He raised his eyebrows at her and gave her a wry look. "And you're way too clever for your own good."

She slipped her arm around his waist and leaned into him. "I'm just taking advantage of you in your weakened state."

"Very unsporting of you," Charlie murmured as he nuzzled her hair.

As they walked along Washington Road, Charlie continued pointing out the sights.

Larry shook his head in amazement. "This campus, Charles, is an amazing amalgamation of so many different architectural styles. They have a school of architecture, don't they? This very campus must be an incredible resource for those students."

"I imagine it is," Charlie said. "There's Fine Hall over there. Home of the Applied and Computational Mathematics program, and host of our conference this week." He stretched and rubbed his stomach. "And I can only hope that Marshall Penfield is on sabbatical."

As they walked into Fine Hall, Amita nudged Charlie. "Looks like you're not going to get your wish."

Charlie closed his eyes and sighed dramatically. "I can only hope he doesn't notice us."

"Eppsie!" Marshall called from across the room.

"I'm batting 0 for 2," Charlie muttered, pasting a smile on his face. "Marshall! How wonderful to see you," he lied.

Marshall left the group he had been entertaining and hurried to greet the group from Cal Sci. "Larry! Amita! I'm so glad you made it. What do you think of our campus?"

"Oh, it is absolutely wonderful," Larry gushed. "We just came from the Mather Sundial."

Charlie leaned over and whispered in Amita's ear. "Be right back. I've got to go to the little boys' room. Hold this for me?" He handed her his computer bag.

She nodded. "Okay. We'll wait here for you."

"Excuse me," Charlie said to the group. "I'll be back in a minute."

They watched Charlie leave, and Marshall said, "Is he all right?"

Amita bit her lip and nodded. "I think last night's supper is giving him a hard time."

Marshall grimaced in sympathy. "What did he eat?"

"Six White Castle cheeseburgers," Larry said.

"Ouch," Marshall said. "Well, I am looking forward to his presentation. I do hope he feels better. In spite of what he thinks, I do admire him as a mathematician, and seeing him working so passionately on that case for the FBI gave me a whole new appreciation for his genius."

"I'll let him know you said that," Amita said.

"Please don't. I have too much fun just bugging the hell out of him." He took a step closer to Amita. "Speaking of which, would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"

Amita laughed and stepped back. "I think I'll be spending the whole week with Charlie and Larry. Two men in my life are quite enough right now."

"I understand. Say, do you think you'd at least be able to make it to my presentation? I'm speaking on Zermolo's Axiom of Choice."

Larry said, "We wouldn't dream of missing it."

"Thanks. I promise it will be a unique take on the subject. Listen, since my department is hosting this little shindig, I'd better go do something productive. It was great seeing you again. And, seriously, tell Charlie I hope he feels better."

"I will. It was great seeing you again, Marshall," Amita said.

A few minutes later, Charlie returned, carrying a can of ginger ale. "Amazingly, I found this in the hospitality lounge. They must be planning on hosting a few hung-over mathematicians." He took his briefcase from Amita. "Sorry I had to run. Where's Marshall?"

"Off finding something productive to do," Larry said. "He did say he hopes you feel better."

"That was nice of him," Charlie said. "He probably feels bad kicking me when I'm down."

"Come on," Amita took Charlie's arm. "Let's go sit down." They walked into the auditorium, and found seats near the front. Charlie took out his computer and called up his presentation. Amita looked over his shoulder. "Oh, Charlie. You're going high tech today? No white board?"

Charlie chuckled. "Have you ever known me not to use a white board? Never fear. Today's presentation is mixed media." He took a sip of his ginger ale and stared at the screen until Amita nudged him. "Hmm? What?"

"Larry and I are going to wander around for a bit. Maybe find that hospitality lounge you mentioned. Is that okay with you? We'll be back in time for your presentation."

"Well," Charlie said, smiling, "I hope so."

"Do you need anything?"

"A new digestive tract would be nice. But other than that, I'm set." He took another sip of ginger ale and went back to reviewing his presentation.

Author's Note: When I was doing research on Princeton, I found out about the Mather Sundial. Since our boys, Larry & Charlie are both members of the North American Sundial Society, I couldn't resist. Here's a link that shows the Mather Sundial: http://tigernet.