Numb3rs fic: "Down from the past" 1/1
Title: Down from the past.
Author: Keenir
Prompt: Ex | Backyard | Alcohol
question: does this count as ship? just so I know.
Character(s): Alan Eppes, Alice Chen, Don Eppes, Colby Granger, David Sinclair, Nikki Betancourt, Liz Warner, Callie’s dad.
Rating: PG-15
Warnings: Explosions, racial thoughts, historical events, memories.
Summary: It’s a smaller world than we thought, particularly when the sins of the parent are voiced through the child.
Disclaimer: Callie is the property of Mustangcandi. All canon characters are property of the writers of Numb3rs, but more specifically, to the show’s creators.
…I only own the OCs, but am willing to share them.
Author Notes: This was originally going to be an AU…”what if Nixon had not opted for a policy of Vietnamization?”…but it morphed into a non-AU. Hence the part 2 - that’s where the dovetailing is going to be, mostly.
~~~~~~~~~~
“It’s been a while,” Don said, walking from his car to the blast site.
Callie’s dad shrugged. “I called a few times to see if you were interested in the office poker games, but your dad said you were busy. Temple working out?”
Don nodded, looking around.
“One guy was injured. He was doing overtime running a wet-dry when the blast occurred, got hurt more from from falling off the cleaner than from the explosion.”
“What sort of blast we talking about?”
“Just enough alcohol to spray the fire to multiple surfaces, but there was something else in the mix to keep it from burning more than a few seconds after touchdown.”
Huh. “Any clues as to who set the detonator?” Don asked.
“The man himself, as it happens.”
“He waited to watch it go off?”
“Not exactly.”
“No?”
“No. He got everyone out of the building, and sat down just outside the front doors with his wrists tied until it went off.”
“And then?”
“And then he asked one of the office employees to call the police…and he kept sitting there.”
“Sounds to me like you’ve got everything under control,” Don said. “So why’d you call me?”
Callie’s dad said, “Because this is the second guy to do this in a week, and this one’s from out of state.”
“Well I’ll see what I can do.”
“Appreciate it. I’ll get both of them transferred over pronto.”
“Thanks.”
~~~
“That could’ve gone smoother,” Nikki said, wiping her face with one hand.
“Yeah,” Colby said now that both of them had left the first culprit in the room. “Think I gotta make a call.”
“To someone who speaks the language?” Nikki teased, since the culprit in there had given his English name and then rattled off something-or-other in another language.
“Course,” Colby said, the picture of innocence.
Nikki grinned and went to grab a bottle of water while he made the call.
Colby dialed.
“Alice Chen,” was the reply.
“Colby Granger,” he replied.
“What can I do for you?” Alice asked. “You’re not reneging on our date, are you?”
“No, Saturday’s fine.”
“Not sure I’ll be able to come, though,” she said. “My father’s in the hospital, and none of the doctors agree how long he has. But that’s not why you called, I know.”
“I’ll be over after work, then,” Colby said.
“And in the meanwhile?”
“Got a case. Two bombers, no fatalities from either of them. We’ve got them both in custody right now,” Colby said.
Alice knew that tone. “And you need a translator?”
“Actually I was gonna ask if you were free for lunch after I question him, but if you wouldn’t mind, okay.”
“Whenever I wonder why the Granger family line hasn’t died out, I wait for your calls, Col’,” and they both smiled at that. Then, “What language do you need?”
“For one of them, Chinese,” Colby said. “Wish I could be more specific, but he’s just giving us his name - Samuel Weng Jr.”
Alice sighed. “I’ll see if I can find someone to come over - before you ask, I can’t translate for you, not this time - not if you intend to make a case against him.”
“Problem?”
“Conflict of interests, is what the lawyers would call it. Sam’s my sister’s fiancée. Was there a little scar over his right eyebrow, and an off-red birthmark just in front of his right ear?”
“Yeah,” Colby said.
“That’s him. Is lunch still on the table?”
“For you, always,” Colby said, using a line he’d heard his dad use on his mom a lot.
“And that’s why there are still Grangers,” Alice said, satisfied.
~~~
Alice listened to the audio while attacking her salad. Once she’d swallowed, “Mostly he’s talking about honor and family obligations.”
“The usual stuff?” Nikki asked.
Alice just looked at her.
“What?”
What Alice thought was, The usual stuff for us slant-eyes or the usual stuff for all us coloreds?, and what she said was, “It’s nothing special for anybody, really - Italians, Polynesians, Chinese, Russians - we all value family and honor. Play the next bit again?” and continued on her salad. “Now he’s talking about the need for people who work together to stick together.”
“His body language suggested he was pretty passionate about it,” Liz said.
Alice nodded. “He’s repeating himself now, saying that last bit again and again.”
“Like he’s trying not to forget it?”
“Almost, but more like he’s making sure someone’s paying attention.”
“Who?” Don asked.
She shrugged. “Who else was arrested for this bombing?”
“Sam was the first bomber,” Liz said. “The bomb was set by a New Yorker by the name of Martin Smith - David’s talking with him now.”
Alice shrugged. “Wish I could help.”
“He was pretty insistant we know his mother’s name was Mary Shaunessey,” Nikki said.
Alice paused in mid-chew. “I know that name,” she said once she could. “My dad knew her.”
“Anything you can tell us,” Nikki said, “can only help Charlie.”
Just then, Don’s cell rang with news of another - identical - bombing.
~~~
Charlie was staring at the monitor, his mind trying various ways to attack this problem, and rejecting each method as insufficient. He looked up when David and Colby walked in. “Hey guys,” Charlie said.
“Hey. We think we have a solution, Charlie,” David said, taking a seat on the desk edge.
‘You just won’t like it,” Colby said, keeping on his feet.
“Why wouldn’t I like it?” Charlie said. “What’ve you got?”
“None of the three bombers have anything in common,” David said.
Charlie nodded. “I know. I’ve tried expanding the matrices to include if their friends knew each other and drew the bombers together that way, but…” and shook his head.
“Martin kept telling me his mother’s name,” David said. “So on a hunch -“
“You checked if their parents knew each other,” Charlie said.
David nodded.
“That explained Sam Weng’s insistence on family obligation,” Colby said.
“It turns out,” David said, “that Mary Shaunessey was a nurse stationed in Vietnam - at the same M*A*S*H unit where the Viet Cong launched an attack on the soldiers there for the night.
“There were only four survivors of that attack,” David said. “Paul Gold died ten years ago. The only remaining survivors are Mary Shaunessey, Samuel Weng Sr, and Arthur Chen.”
“We did a search,” Colby said, “to see if those names recurred anywhere. They did.”
“That’s a good thing,” Charlie said.
“That depends,” David said. “It was in an arrest report. Arrested for their roles in anti-war protests. The thing is, Gold, Shaunessey, Weng, and Chen weren’t arrested by themselves.”
“A fifth man?” Charlie asked, and only the look on their faces kept him from jokingly asking ‘again?’ “Who is it?”
“Alan Eppes,” Colby said, none too pleased.
“And,” David said, “we checked the buildings against your dad’s work records, Charlie - he had a hand in all three of them.”
“So this is...what?” Charlie asked. “Nonviolent revenge against my dad? And why?”
“That’s what Don’s going to find out,” Colby said.
~~~.
Don found his father exactly where he expected to: at home, though he’d thought Dad would be inside relaxing. Instead, Alan Eppes was out in the back, shovel in one hand, and eyeing the koi pond.
“Dad?” Don said.
“Yeah? Oh hey, Donny,” Alan said, turning to greet his son. “I’m trying to decide something, and it’s a humdinger of a problem.”
“You mean like Chuck’s face when he comes home and the koi aren’t here?” Don asked, trying to inject some levity into this.
“Something like that. But I really doubt you knew you’d find me like this when you got here, so that can’t be why you came home this early today.”
“I’m sorry, Dad, but I’m going to have to ask you some questions.”
“I’m going to guess this isn’t about Charlie walking in on me and Millie -”
Don held up a hand, to shield his eyes. “TMI, Dad.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“No, it’s about what you were doing during the Vietnam War - more of who you associated with, actually.”
Alan hesitated, letting the shovel handle drop to the ground, then used a toe to flip it over to a safe position. “Can I ask why?”
“We think you’re at risk,” Don said. “So far, it’s minor damage to some buildings you helped build, but there’s no guarantee it’ll stay small-scale. It’s being done by the sons of people you protested with…who later went to fight while you stayed behind.”
Very quietly, Alan said, “…not to worry…”
“I’m sorry, what?” Don asked. At the site of the third bombing, there had been a moment-long burn, and the arsonist self-tied at the door…this time with a note taped to his chest. The note read, No Stern. What are you involved with here, Dad?
“I was told not to worry,” Alan said. “I didn’t want to go - none of us did…but I figured we had a good chance of sticking together - Arthur was good at convincing people, he had a real gift.”
“Arthus? As in Arthur Chen?”
“Yeah. He’s okay, right? Nobody’s going after him?”
“He’s been in the hospital.”
“I know.”
“You know?” Don asked.
Alan nodded. “I visited him last week while you and Charlie were busy.”
“Well, I need -”
“Let’s go then,” Alan said, and they walked to through the house and, when they opened the front door -
She put down the hand that had been about to knock, and introduced herself: “Alice Chen.”
“Alice…” Alan said, trying to place the name. “Wait, you’re Arthur’s girl, aren’t you?”
Alice nodded. “Yes sir, I am.”
“Oh, well, ni hao and I’m not sure there’s anything here, but you’re welcome to make yourself comfortable.”
Thank you. “Shi shi, Mr. Eppes, but I’m not here for comfort.”
“Well, I hope your father gets better.”
“I’m sure he’d appreciate you coming by.”
Alan wasn’t sure what to say - ‘I’ll try’ sounded insufficient, while ‘I don’t think I can’ sounded rude.
Don said, “Agent Chen, your father’s not a suspect in this.”
“But Mary Shaunessey is, am I correct?” Alice asked.
“Yeah, so?”
“Take a guess who’s visiting my father right now.” Turning back to face the elder Eppes, “They both are asking for you, Mr Eppes.”
“Let’s take my car,” Alan said before Don could say anything. I’ve put this off long enough.
~~~
It was a fast drive to the hospital where everyone was prepped and ready to go, so in they went.
Don, Alan, Alice, and Charlie went to the entrance to the room, Alice and Don in front, guns on the ready.
Colby and David were outside in the hallway, with Liz and Nikki bracketing the window. Just in case the situation escalated, Ian was in position.
“He’s sleeping right now,” Mary Smith nee Shaunessey said soto voice, enough to be heard by the new arrivals at the door, not enough to wake Arthur from his slumber.
“Good to know,” Don said. “But right now, we need you to back away from him.”
Mary laughed, a sound which ended in coughs. “And have you determined who is at fault, Agent?”
“It’s faultless,” Alan said before Don or Alice could reply. “You and Sam told your kids what happened.”
So did my dad, Alice thought silently.
“They wanted to get my attention,” Alan said.
“One question,” Don said. “Why wait this long?”
“Arthur’s dying,” Mary said. “The past is the past only until we’re faced with the mortality of those who were wronged.”
“Wronged?” Charlie asked. “None of you had to go - you could have continued on your prior path of protesting.”
A mirthless chuckle which also ended in a cough. “Entirely right,” Mary said. “But we eventually decided that Vietnam was in our back yard,” Mary Shaunessey said. “And we didn’t want China’s lackeys running Vietnam any more than we wanted England’s lackeys running Ireland.”
“Or Germany’s in Israel,” Alan finished the analogy.
“Germany’s?” Don mouthed, then remembered what had been on the note left at the third bombing. The Stern Gang could’ve been running Israel, if things had gone differently, he considered.
“I’m beginning to think yours are the only children of our little band who never heard the story,” Mary said.
“I never even heard of you,” Don said.
“Alan, that hurt,” Mary said, frowning.
“I kept quiet because I didn’t go,” Alan said. “Nobody wanted to talk to me when the four of you returned - and I came to visit.”
“You didn’t visit me, though that’s understandable,” looking at Alan’s boys and doing the math in her head.
Alan shook his head. “Arthur and Sam.” ’Specially Sammy, with the shape he came back in. He spent most of the month after he came back, asleep, but I was there.
“For which he has our appreciation and thanks,” Arthur said, eyes cracked open, fighting to stay awake despite the snooze-inducing effects of the hospital drugs.
“I’m sorry,” Alan said, coming over to the bedside.
Watching, Charlie wasn’t sure which of the previously-mentioned offenses his father was apologizing for, or if there were others still swept under the rug of silence.
“I told you to stay behind, and you did,” Arthur said. “Why would I be angry?”
Having an all-too-clear idea of what Mary would have answered with, Alan said, “I should’ve gone with you guys.”
“You were engaged. The rest of us were not. Got our spouses when we got back. You had more to lose from my perspective.”
Alice said something in Mandarin to him.
“No,” Arthur disagreed, his voice more mild than weak. “You will not cover the costs, daughter. All of this was done for my behalf, so I shall shoulder the payments.”
“I’ll help,” Alan said. Really, it’s the least I can do.
“Will there be anything else, Agent Eppes?” Arthur asked.
“No, I think that about covers everything,” Don said.
“You have a good son, Alan. Perhaps if my daughters were not already engaged, we could set them up together.”
“Nice idea, Arthur,” Alan said, “but I think Donny’s fiancé would have a few words to say about that.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The end.
Author: Keenir
Prompt: Ex | Backyard | Alcohol
question: does this count as ship? just so I know.
Character(s): Alan Eppes, Alice Chen, Don Eppes, Colby Granger, David Sinclair, Nikki Betancourt, Liz Warner, Callie’s dad.
Rating: PG-15
Warnings: Explosions, racial thoughts, historical events, memories.
Summary: It’s a smaller world than we thought, particularly when the sins of the parent are voiced through the child.
Disclaimer: Callie is the property of Mustangcandi. All canon characters are property of the writers of Numb3rs, but more specifically, to the show’s creators.
…I only own the OCs, but am willing to share them.
Author Notes: This was originally going to be an AU…”what if Nixon had not opted for a policy of Vietnamization?”…but it morphed into a non-AU. Hence the part 2 - that’s where the dovetailing is going to be, mostly.
~~~~~~~~~~
“It’s been a while,” Don said, walking from his car to the blast site.
Callie’s dad shrugged. “I called a few times to see if you were interested in the office poker games, but your dad said you were busy. Temple working out?”
Don nodded, looking around.
“One guy was injured. He was doing overtime running a wet-dry when the blast occurred, got hurt more from from falling off the cleaner than from the explosion.”
“What sort of blast we talking about?”
“Just enough alcohol to spray the fire to multiple surfaces, but there was something else in the mix to keep it from burning more than a few seconds after touchdown.”
Huh. “Any clues as to who set the detonator?” Don asked.
“The man himself, as it happens.”
“He waited to watch it go off?”
“Not exactly.”
“No?”
“No. He got everyone out of the building, and sat down just outside the front doors with his wrists tied until it went off.”
“And then?”
“And then he asked one of the office employees to call the police…and he kept sitting there.”
“Sounds to me like you’ve got everything under control,” Don said. “So why’d you call me?”
Callie’s dad said, “Because this is the second guy to do this in a week, and this one’s from out of state.”
“Well I’ll see what I can do.”
“Appreciate it. I’ll get both of them transferred over pronto.”
“Thanks.”
~~~
“That could’ve gone smoother,” Nikki said, wiping her face with one hand.
“Yeah,” Colby said now that both of them had left the first culprit in the room. “Think I gotta make a call.”
“To someone who speaks the language?” Nikki teased, since the culprit in there had given his English name and then rattled off something-or-other in another language.
“Course,” Colby said, the picture of innocence.
Nikki grinned and went to grab a bottle of water while he made the call.
Colby dialed.
“Alice Chen,” was the reply.
“Colby Granger,” he replied.
“What can I do for you?” Alice asked. “You’re not reneging on our date, are you?”
“No, Saturday’s fine.”
“Not sure I’ll be able to come, though,” she said. “My father’s in the hospital, and none of the doctors agree how long he has. But that’s not why you called, I know.”
“I’ll be over after work, then,” Colby said.
“And in the meanwhile?”
“Got a case. Two bombers, no fatalities from either of them. We’ve got them both in custody right now,” Colby said.
Alice knew that tone. “And you need a translator?”
“Actually I was gonna ask if you were free for lunch after I question him, but if you wouldn’t mind, okay.”
“Whenever I wonder why the Granger family line hasn’t died out, I wait for your calls, Col’,” and they both smiled at that. Then, “What language do you need?”
“For one of them, Chinese,” Colby said. “Wish I could be more specific, but he’s just giving us his name - Samuel Weng Jr.”
Alice sighed. “I’ll see if I can find someone to come over - before you ask, I can’t translate for you, not this time - not if you intend to make a case against him.”
“Problem?”
“Conflict of interests, is what the lawyers would call it. Sam’s my sister’s fiancée. Was there a little scar over his right eyebrow, and an off-red birthmark just in front of his right ear?”
“Yeah,” Colby said.
“That’s him. Is lunch still on the table?”
“For you, always,” Colby said, using a line he’d heard his dad use on his mom a lot.
“And that’s why there are still Grangers,” Alice said, satisfied.
~~~
Alice listened to the audio while attacking her salad. Once she’d swallowed, “Mostly he’s talking about honor and family obligations.”
“The usual stuff?” Nikki asked.
Alice just looked at her.
“What?”
What Alice thought was, The usual stuff for us slant-eyes or the usual stuff for all us coloreds?, and what she said was, “It’s nothing special for anybody, really - Italians, Polynesians, Chinese, Russians - we all value family and honor. Play the next bit again?” and continued on her salad. “Now he’s talking about the need for people who work together to stick together.”
“His body language suggested he was pretty passionate about it,” Liz said.
Alice nodded. “He’s repeating himself now, saying that last bit again and again.”
“Like he’s trying not to forget it?”
“Almost, but more like he’s making sure someone’s paying attention.”
“Who?” Don asked.
She shrugged. “Who else was arrested for this bombing?”
“Sam was the first bomber,” Liz said. “The bomb was set by a New Yorker by the name of Martin Smith - David’s talking with him now.”
Alice shrugged. “Wish I could help.”
“He was pretty insistant we know his mother’s name was Mary Shaunessey,” Nikki said.
Alice paused in mid-chew. “I know that name,” she said once she could. “My dad knew her.”
“Anything you can tell us,” Nikki said, “can only help Charlie.”
Just then, Don’s cell rang with news of another - identical - bombing.
~~~
Charlie was staring at the monitor, his mind trying various ways to attack this problem, and rejecting each method as insufficient. He looked up when David and Colby walked in. “Hey guys,” Charlie said.
“Hey. We think we have a solution, Charlie,” David said, taking a seat on the desk edge.
‘You just won’t like it,” Colby said, keeping on his feet.
“Why wouldn’t I like it?” Charlie said. “What’ve you got?”
“None of the three bombers have anything in common,” David said.
Charlie nodded. “I know. I’ve tried expanding the matrices to include if their friends knew each other and drew the bombers together that way, but…” and shook his head.
“Martin kept telling me his mother’s name,” David said. “So on a hunch -“
“You checked if their parents knew each other,” Charlie said.
David nodded.
“That explained Sam Weng’s insistence on family obligation,” Colby said.
“It turns out,” David said, “that Mary Shaunessey was a nurse stationed in Vietnam - at the same M*A*S*H unit where the Viet Cong launched an attack on the soldiers there for the night.
“There were only four survivors of that attack,” David said. “Paul Gold died ten years ago. The only remaining survivors are Mary Shaunessey, Samuel Weng Sr, and Arthur Chen.”
“We did a search,” Colby said, “to see if those names recurred anywhere. They did.”
“That’s a good thing,” Charlie said.
“That depends,” David said. “It was in an arrest report. Arrested for their roles in anti-war protests. The thing is, Gold, Shaunessey, Weng, and Chen weren’t arrested by themselves.”
“A fifth man?” Charlie asked, and only the look on their faces kept him from jokingly asking ‘again?’ “Who is it?”
“Alan Eppes,” Colby said, none too pleased.
“And,” David said, “we checked the buildings against your dad’s work records, Charlie - he had a hand in all three of them.”
“So this is...what?” Charlie asked. “Nonviolent revenge against my dad? And why?”
“That’s what Don’s going to find out,” Colby said.
~~~.
Don found his father exactly where he expected to: at home, though he’d thought Dad would be inside relaxing. Instead, Alan Eppes was out in the back, shovel in one hand, and eyeing the koi pond.
“Dad?” Don said.
“Yeah? Oh hey, Donny,” Alan said, turning to greet his son. “I’m trying to decide something, and it’s a humdinger of a problem.”
“You mean like Chuck’s face when he comes home and the koi aren’t here?” Don asked, trying to inject some levity into this.
“Something like that. But I really doubt you knew you’d find me like this when you got here, so that can’t be why you came home this early today.”
“I’m sorry, Dad, but I’m going to have to ask you some questions.”
“I’m going to guess this isn’t about Charlie walking in on me and Millie -”
Don held up a hand, to shield his eyes. “TMI, Dad.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“No, it’s about what you were doing during the Vietnam War - more of who you associated with, actually.”
Alan hesitated, letting the shovel handle drop to the ground, then used a toe to flip it over to a safe position. “Can I ask why?”
“We think you’re at risk,” Don said. “So far, it’s minor damage to some buildings you helped build, but there’s no guarantee it’ll stay small-scale. It’s being done by the sons of people you protested with…who later went to fight while you stayed behind.”
Very quietly, Alan said, “…not to worry…”
“I’m sorry, what?” Don asked. At the site of the third bombing, there had been a moment-long burn, and the arsonist self-tied at the door…this time with a note taped to his chest. The note read, No Stern. What are you involved with here, Dad?
“I was told not to worry,” Alan said. “I didn’t want to go - none of us did…but I figured we had a good chance of sticking together - Arthur was good at convincing people, he had a real gift.”
“Arthus? As in Arthur Chen?”
“Yeah. He’s okay, right? Nobody’s going after him?”
“He’s been in the hospital.”
“I know.”
“You know?” Don asked.
Alan nodded. “I visited him last week while you and Charlie were busy.”
“Well, I need -”
“Let’s go then,” Alan said, and they walked to through the house and, when they opened the front door -
She put down the hand that had been about to knock, and introduced herself: “Alice Chen.”
“Alice…” Alan said, trying to place the name. “Wait, you’re Arthur’s girl, aren’t you?”
Alice nodded. “Yes sir, I am.”
“Oh, well, ni hao and I’m not sure there’s anything here, but you’re welcome to make yourself comfortable.”
Thank you. “Shi shi, Mr. Eppes, but I’m not here for comfort.”
“Well, I hope your father gets better.”
“I’m sure he’d appreciate you coming by.”
Alan wasn’t sure what to say - ‘I’ll try’ sounded insufficient, while ‘I don’t think I can’ sounded rude.
Don said, “Agent Chen, your father’s not a suspect in this.”
“But Mary Shaunessey is, am I correct?” Alice asked.
“Yeah, so?”
“Take a guess who’s visiting my father right now.” Turning back to face the elder Eppes, “They both are asking for you, Mr Eppes.”
“Let’s take my car,” Alan said before Don could say anything. I’ve put this off long enough.
~~~
It was a fast drive to the hospital where everyone was prepped and ready to go, so in they went.
Don, Alan, Alice, and Charlie went to the entrance to the room, Alice and Don in front, guns on the ready.
Colby and David were outside in the hallway, with Liz and Nikki bracketing the window. Just in case the situation escalated, Ian was in position.
“He’s sleeping right now,” Mary Smith nee Shaunessey said soto voice, enough to be heard by the new arrivals at the door, not enough to wake Arthur from his slumber.
“Good to know,” Don said. “But right now, we need you to back away from him.”
Mary laughed, a sound which ended in coughs. “And have you determined who is at fault, Agent?”
“It’s faultless,” Alan said before Don or Alice could reply. “You and Sam told your kids what happened.”
So did my dad, Alice thought silently.
“They wanted to get my attention,” Alan said.
“One question,” Don said. “Why wait this long?”
“Arthur’s dying,” Mary said. “The past is the past only until we’re faced with the mortality of those who were wronged.”
“Wronged?” Charlie asked. “None of you had to go - you could have continued on your prior path of protesting.”
A mirthless chuckle which also ended in a cough. “Entirely right,” Mary said. “But we eventually decided that Vietnam was in our back yard,” Mary Shaunessey said. “And we didn’t want China’s lackeys running Vietnam any more than we wanted England’s lackeys running Ireland.”
“Or Germany’s in Israel,” Alan finished the analogy.
“Germany’s?” Don mouthed, then remembered what had been on the note left at the third bombing. The Stern Gang could’ve been running Israel, if things had gone differently, he considered.
“I’m beginning to think yours are the only children of our little band who never heard the story,” Mary said.
“I never even heard of you,” Don said.
“Alan, that hurt,” Mary said, frowning.
“I kept quiet because I didn’t go,” Alan said. “Nobody wanted to talk to me when the four of you returned - and I came to visit.”
“You didn’t visit me, though that’s understandable,” looking at Alan’s boys and doing the math in her head.
Alan shook his head. “Arthur and Sam.” ’Specially Sammy, with the shape he came back in. He spent most of the month after he came back, asleep, but I was there.
“For which he has our appreciation and thanks,” Arthur said, eyes cracked open, fighting to stay awake despite the snooze-inducing effects of the hospital drugs.
“I’m sorry,” Alan said, coming over to the bedside.
Watching, Charlie wasn’t sure which of the previously-mentioned offenses his father was apologizing for, or if there were others still swept under the rug of silence.
“I told you to stay behind, and you did,” Arthur said. “Why would I be angry?”
Having an all-too-clear idea of what Mary would have answered with, Alan said, “I should’ve gone with you guys.”
“You were engaged. The rest of us were not. Got our spouses when we got back. You had more to lose from my perspective.”
Alice said something in Mandarin to him.
“No,” Arthur disagreed, his voice more mild than weak. “You will not cover the costs, daughter. All of this was done for my behalf, so I shall shoulder the payments.”
“I’ll help,” Alan said. Really, it’s the least I can do.
“Will there be anything else, Agent Eppes?” Arthur asked.
“No, I think that about covers everything,” Don said.
“You have a good son, Alan. Perhaps if my daughters were not already engaged, we could set them up together.”
“Nice idea, Arthur,” Alan said, “but I think Donny’s fiancé would have a few words to say about that.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The end.