Unraveling

Alan glanced once again from one adult to another. "Missing? But I just saw him at lunch."

"You saw him at lunch?" Mr. Magnuson made a note on a data pad. "You're sure?"

"Yeah. He was laughing and talking with his friends," Alan explained with a nod. "Probably everyone at my table saw and heard him."

"So, that narrows down the field as to when he might have been taken," Mr. Magnuson said.

"I can narrow down the field even more," said Mrs. Belvedere. She pulled out a data pad of her own. "According to his teachers, he was present in his fifth and sixth period classes, but absent from his final class for the day. My records show that, at the end of sixth period, he was served with a request to see Dr. MacDonald during his seventh period class. I will have to call Dr. MacDonald's secretary or the headmaster himself to see if Lee made that meeting."

"So, we may not be dealing with a case of abduction, but instead a case of voluntarily leaving campus," Mr. Culp deduced.

"But where would he go?" Dr. Sugimoto asked, his voice showing his concern. "He doesn't have a car."

Mr. Magnuson looked at Alan again. "Do you know if he had any friends in the community?"

Alan shook his head. "None that I can think of," he replied. "We weren't talking much those last few days as roommates."

"Do you know who among his friends here might know?" Mrs. Belvedere asked.

A thoughtful frown creased Alan's brow as he considered her question. "Well, he's good friends with Steve Ulrich, and with Ralph Santiago." He glanced up. "I'd say ask Trey Mackenzie, but he's gone. Xavion Lewis was good friends with him last year; you might ask him."

"Thank you, Alan." Mrs. Belvedere put those names on her list and looked over to see Mr. Magnuson doing the same. "Perhaps Mr. Culp could track down Ralph Santiago and Xavion Lewis for us. Steven Ulrich, unfortunately, has already left, but if these two can't help us, we can phone him. The same would be true for Trey Mackenzie."

"Right." Mr. Magnuson rose and pulled a key card from his desk. "Let's go take a look at Lee's room. Perhaps Alan can tell if there's anything missing. David, please get Santiago and Lewis for us and bring them here. I'll talk with them when we return."

So, Steve is gone, Alan mused to himself as he followed the administrator, the security chief, and the worried father to Chetwood. I guess his parents must have been upset with what happened last week.

As they walked, Dr. Sugimoto dropped back to pace Alan. "It's Alan, right?"

"Yes, sir. That's my name."

The man hesitated for a moment, as if weighing his words, then he asked, "I'm a little hazy on the details as to why you no longer wanted to be my son's roommate. Could you fill me in?"

Alan huffed out a deep breath, and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, sir..." His voice trailed off as he, too, weighed what he was about to say. Don't want to hurt this guy, but I need to tell something close to the truth. "Well, sir," he began again, "Lee and I weren't seeing eye to eye on a couple of matters, and there was this other guy - my current roommate, Dom - who was having trouble with some habits of his roommate, Trey Mackenzie. Since Lee and Trey were good friends, and I didn't... indulge in those habits, Dom, Trey and I all thought it would be good for Trey and me to switch."

Dr. Sugimoto nodded as they entered the dorm's foyer. "I see. So why didn't Trey become my son's roommate?"

Boy, how do I put this? "Well, first of all, Lee didn't want me to move. Then, uh, Trey was expelled from school. The habit that was annoying Dom is against the rules here, and someone ratted Trey out. I talked it over with Mrs. Belvedere, and she agreed that, despite Lee's feelings, our differences were strong enough that I should be able to." Alan shrugged. "So I moved in with Dom and Lee got a room to himself."

Lee's father shook his head. "Lee told me none of this. But then, he has changed this past year and I wasn't sure why... until now."

Alan opened his mouth to ask why, but they had arrived at the dorm room. Mr. Magnuson let them in, and Alan looked around.

The room was clean and neat, almost Spartan in its lack of ornamentation. Alan and Dr. Sugimoto both moved out into the room, looking around, while Mr. Magnuson and Mrs. Belvedere watched.

"He's taken his computer," Alan said. A quick glance at the bed, and, "His pillow, too."

Dr. Sugimoto opened one wardrobe door and found only a few jackets hanging up.

"That one was mine," Alan informed him. He gestured to the other chifforobe. "Here's where he had most of his clothes."

Lee's father nodded, and opened that wardrobe. There were several school uniforms hanging up, and some dress slacks and shirts, but not much more. "He has taken his letter jacket," Dr. Sugimoto declared. He began opening the drawers. "Most of his casual clothes are gone, too." He stopped when he came to the locked drawer. "I can't open this one."

"Allow me." Mr. Magnuson opened the drawer with his own thumb print, and Alan made a brief mental note of it. Dr. Sugimoto rummaged around inside.

"His watch and satellite phone are missing. I don't know what else he would have kept in here."

"Probably his music player. I remember he had one," Alan said.

Mr. Magnuson made notes on his data pad. "It looks less and less like we're dealing with an abduction. It seems that Lee has just left school on his own."

"I don't understand. Where would he go? Surely he knew that I was on my way."

"That, perhaps, is why he left," Mrs. Belvedere said. "He couldn't face you."

Alan had meandered into the bathroom, and noticed that most of Lee's personal care items were missing. A quick glance down, and he drew in a sharp breath. "Mr. Mag?"

"Yes, Alan?" The security chief was at the bathroom door in seconds.

"In the trash can," Alan said, pointing.

Mr. Magnuson reached down, picked up the trash can, and let out a low whistle. "I'll take this back to the office with me so I can handle it properly," he said, showing the syringe to Dr. Sugimoto.

Lee's father groaned. "I wasn't ready to believe it," he said sadly, shaking his head. "But there's the proof." He sighed heavily. "I should have just put him in public school and kept him home. Maybe then he wouldn't have turned to those... damned steroids."

"We'll find him, Dr. Sugimoto. Then you can work this out between you," Mr. Magnuson said. "Come along. David has probably found the two boys we need to talk to."

The door opened to find a small group of students loitering in the hallway. The news that Mr. Magnuson and Mrs. Belvedere had gone into Lee Sugimoto's room had spread like wildfire, and the other residents – being boys – came to see why.

"Okay, boys, I know you're curious, but there's nothing exciting going on," Mr. Mag said. "Go back to what you were doing. Paolo!"

The hall monitor, Paolo Martinelli, had been hurrying towards them when the security chief called his name. "C'mon, guys," he urged. "Back to your own business. Let Mr. Magnuson through." The small crowd began to disperse and Mr. Magnuson led the way back to the foyer.

As they stepped outside, Mrs. Belvedere stopped at the top of the stairs. "Alan."

Alan turned to face her. "Yes, ma'am?"

She speared him with a no-nonsense look, one that he'd seen before. "What Dr. Sugimoto said in there is to be treated as confidential. It was said without thinking, and it is a matter between the school and the Sugimotos. Do you understand?"

He wanted to protest; the whole situation was one that he ached to tell his friends. But if I tell my friends, they'll tell their friends, and pretty soon the news will get out. Dr. Sugimoto doesn't deserve that, even as much as I think Lee does. All right, Tracy, you know how to keep secrets. Keep this one. For Lee's dad. He took a deep breath and nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I won't discuss it with anyone."

Mrs. Belvedere's face softened. "Thank you, Alan. I'm sure that some of this situation will eventually be brought to light, but it will be at the time and place of our choosing. And thank you for your help." She glanced at her watch. "I must make some phone calls."

"Do you need me to...?"

She shook her head before he could finish the sentence. "No, I think you've done what you could. You're dismissed."

With that, she walked briskly off in the direction of the security office. Alan watched her for a few moments, then put his hands in his pockets as he headed back to his dorm. I'd better figure out what I am going to tell my friends.

Virgil cocked his head inquisitively at the snoring, lanky form lying in a lounger under a shady palm. Brains's glasses had been tucked safely away in his pocket, and an open pad of paper lay in his lap. Virgil spied and retrieved the old fashioned pencil that had rolled away from limp fingers; there was no eraser left in the blunt, well masticated end, and the point had broken off in the fall. He tucked the wayward instrument into the shirt pocket alongside the glasses, then turned to peer at the equations and sketches on the exposed page, turning his whole body so he could see them as from Brains's point-of-view. Shaking his head, he picked up the pad, and moved out into the sunlight with it.

"What's that?" Scott asked as he sauntered down to meet his younger brother.

Virgil turned, and put a finger to his lips, indicating with a jerk of his head the sleeping engineer. He tucked the pad under his arm and motioned for Scott to follow him out of earshot.

"Looks like Brains has been disobeying orders," Virgil murmured, glancing back at the prone form.

Scott lifted his chin so he could look over Virgil's shoulder. "What's it all about?"

"Hmm. Looks to me like he got some information on that new camera system, and he's trying to come up with a device to counter it. Maybe even a redesign of the camera fogger itself; I can't really tell." He pursed his lips. "At least he has neat penmanship."

Scott snorted a laugh, then gazed at his brother. "You going to mention this to Dad?"

Virgil shook his head slightly. "Nah. Brains is resting, which is what Dad ordered him to do. He's not in the lab, and not in the hangars. If working on something like this is relaxing for him, then Dad should respect that." He closed the pad to protect the page from possible damage, and returned it gently to Brains's lap. Then he joined Scott, who was walking back to the house. "I would like to know where he got the information. Some of his design made sense to me, but some of it was way over my head."

"Maybe we should ask if there is any way we can get our hands on the specs," Scott said. "Incognito, of course."

"Of course," Virgil said with a laugh as they entered the house.

They found both Jeff and John in Jeff's office. John looked up briefly, said, "Hey", then went back to the data pad he was poring over. Jeff's greeting was far longer, and ended with the question, "What brings you two here?"

"We were wondering if there was any way to get the specs for that new photography tech," Virgil said.

Jeff drew in a deep breath through his nose and let it out noisily. "Well, I've been trying, but none of the major companies are looking for a partner, especially one for whom photography is a minor concern. I've tried to couch it in terms of space photography, tie it in with the aerospace division, but my vice presidents don't think that's going to work."

"What about Dr. Sugimoto?" Scott said. "He might be interested in a partner."

"We're working on that," John said, not looking up from his data pad. "But we can't find him at the moment."

Jeff rolled his eyes and shook his head. John had many loves, and business, particularly Tracy Industries business, was one of them. It was up there after astronomy and space flight. Jeff was glad that one son showed promise in this area, but he hoped that the others would show an interest, too. He didn't want to make John bury his first love because he was the only one equipped to handle the conglomerate. He leaned back in his chair. "I have some of my legal team checking into the intellectual property laws and how they might apply in this case. Of course, they won't be able to actually do anything until they talk to Dr. Sugimoto, but they can get a head start on the actual legal precedents that might be involved."

"You think he could actually win a lawsuit?" Virgil asked, flinging himself down on the sofa.

"I'm not sure, but if he's willing to work with us, we'll be willing to work with him." Jeff tapped a stylus on his chin. "We'll have to see what applications we could find for it in our divisions, of course. Might be something useful in examining exteriors of spacecraft while in flight... we'll just have to wait and see."

"Is all this," Scott made a sweeping motion with his hand, "because of Alan's problems with Lee? An attempt to maybe change Lee's mind about us, about Alan? Or is it just a way to get our hands on the technology so we can counteract it?"

The other three men looked up at him for a moment, then Jeff shook his head. "No, Scott. I'll admit we need a way to counteract that new photographic system, but there are other ways for us to get the information we need. This, however, is probably the most forthright of those methods, and it would have other benefits for all involved." He sighed. "We can't change Lee's mind about us or about Alan; yet we can make sure he knows all sides of our character, not just the 'rich and famous' part. But I don't want him or his father to feel beholden to us personally. That's why I'm pursuing this on a corporate level."

"How will our people explain the sudden interest in him and his invention?"

"Tracy Industries is always on the lookout for new, innovative technology," John said, laying aside his data pad. "The film taken of International Rescue clued us in to this particular innovation and we want to make sure of its true provenance before investigating it further."

Virgil and Scott glanced at each other then Virgil asked, "Provenance?"

"Origin."

"Oh. Why didn't you just say 'origin' in the first place?"

John rolled his eyes, muttered something foreign, unintelligible and probably profane, then picked up his data pad again. Jeff chuckled. He took up the thread of conversation.

"From what research we've been able to do – Gordon's been a big help on this; keeps him from getting bored he says – the companies who are handling this have not been creating a lot of buzz about it; at least, not until now."

"Why do you think that is?" Virgil asked.

"Dr. Sugimoto." Jeff's stylus now beat a light tattoo on his desk top. "Until they can cement their claim to the technology, they don't want to make a splash. It's almost a race to the patent office. Once we discover what kind of documentation he has to prove his claim, then the international authorities will have to investigate further. They tend to frown at intellectual property theft." He shrugged. "But... we have to find the man, and make contact."

Virgil and Scott glanced at each other, and a question passed silently between them. With a half shrug and movement of his head, Scott motioned toward the office door and, by extension, the outside. Virgil looked in that direction, as if staring through the walls to the pool area, then he sighed. "Uh, Dad?"

"Yes, son?"

"It seems that Brains has some sort of inside info on this. Don't know where he got it, but – from what I could understand from his notes – he was working on a possible countermeasure..."

Virgil got no farther because Jeff had flung the stylus down on the desk, and was on his feet. "Where is he? I told him he was off-duty..."

"Dad!" Scott called. Jeff stopped on his way out the door. "Don't go after him. The only reason we know about it is that we found his sketches. They were lying on his lap... out by the pool, where he's taking a nap. A nap so solid that he didn't stir when Virge picked up his sketch pad or when he put it back. So his body's off-duty but his mind... you know he can't switch it off. He's got to do something – like Gordon when he's in Five. He'd go crazy from boredom if he couldn't at least think about a problem."

Jeff thought for a moment, then huffed out a frustrated breath. He turned around, and returned to his desk, all but flinging himself into his seat. Picking up his stylus again, he absently turned it around and around in his fingers. At last he said, "You're right, of course. Trying to keep Hiram from thinking and planning is like trying to keep him from stuttering – next to impossible. As long as he's getting the physical rest he needs, I'll back off. But I wish he'd just find a good book to read!"

Even John joined in on the laughter that followed. "You know what happened the last time you recommended a 'good book' to him, Dad," Virgil said. "He kept going on and on about how unreal it all was and how the Nautilus would never work, and..."

"Okay, okay," Jeff said testily, putting up his hands. "I was wrong to suggest Jules Verne. But there's got to be something out there that he could read and enjoy."

"No fiction that I can think of, Dad," John said, shaking his head. "He has very little ability to 'suspend his disbelief'."

"Yeah, Dad. Just remember who it was that read the standard fairy tales to Fermat."

Jeff groaned. "And I never should have let Gordon do that. The questions that boy asked afterwards..."

Just then, the vidphone rang, the strains of "Rule, Brittania!" sounding out.

"Oops, it's Penny!" Scott said quickly, with a grin on his face. "C'mon, guys. We'd better scram."

John and Virgil both extricated themselves from their seats, and quickly followed Scott out. John turned to his father at the door and said, "Later, Dad."

"Later, John." Once the room was cleared of his former tax deductions, Jeff reached over and, smiling, answered Penelope's call.

"Hello there, Penny!" he said jovially. "Nice of you to call! Though it's..." he glanced at his watch, "11 p.m. over there. You don't usually call this late, if you can help it."

"Hullo, Jeff," Penelope said, a small smile crossing her features. "I'm glad to speak with you, but it's really Kyrano and Onaha I must reach. Are they available?"

Jeff blinked a couple of times before replying, "Uh, yeah. Sure. Let me get them." He reached over to press a switch on the intracomplex communication system. "Kyrano? Onaha?"

Kyrano's pleasant, puzzled face appeared on the comm screen. "Yes, Mr. Tracy?"

"Lady Penelope for you on line one."

Kyrano's expression went from puzzled to worried in a blink. "Thank you, Mr. Tracy. I will attend to her ladyship's call at once."

The picture cut off and Jeff turned back to Penelope. "Anything you can tell me about, Pen?"

She sighed. "I can't give you any details yet, Jeff. Not until I've spoken with Kyrano and Onaha. But I can tell you this much: Tin-Tin is with me at Foxleyheath right now and there's been an... incident at her school."

"Hey, Fermat," Qaeshon said the two boys, along with A.J., walked back to the dorms. "Thanks for playing that game of pinball with me. I really needed the distraction."

"Y-You're welcome," Fermat replied, grinning. "But the only r-reason you won is 'cause I've got this c-cast on."

"Riiiiight," Qaeshon drawled, nodding sagely. "Keep telling yourself that. Uh-huh."

"I've got a long way to go just to be a challenge at all – to either of you!" A.J. said ruefully. "Still, it was fun."

"And that's what m-matters," Fermat replied firmly.

The three of them sauntered up the walk along the front of the dorms. Day had darkened into night, and the lamps along the walkway were on, their tall poles and beveled glass evoking the days when it was gas, not electricity, that powered them. A breeze disturbed the fallen oak leaves, which scuttled across the access road, scraping sharp edges along the tarmac. Fermat tripped over a buckle in the cement, one caused by a tree root that had cracked the slab. Qaeshon and A.J. caught him, righting him, and he murmured a sheepish thanks. None of them felt particularly inclined to do their homework, though – with it being Monday – they had quite a lot.

As they passed the darkened space between Chetwood and Birchwood, the trio was startled by loud laughter ringing out, two or three voices mixed. The boys stopped in their tracks; peering into the shadows to see who or what was there. In a moment, three older boys walked out into the light: Devdan, Will Shultz and a senior that none of them knew.

"Greetings!" Dev said merrily. "I hope we have not startled you."

"Nah," Fermat said, waving his good hand dismissively. "We're g-good."

"And here I thought we'd made you jump," Will said, grinning. "Have to be careful after dark, you know. Can't let the bogeyman get you."

Fermat glanced at Qaeshon, who was looking off into the distance, an undecipherable look on his face. Fermat started to turn back and scowl at Will, but Kay's eyes grew wide, and he snagged the casted arm with a firm hand. "We gotta go talk to Mr. Mag, right now!" he cried. He tugged, turning around. "Come on! Now! It's important! You, too, A. J.! Let's go!"

The two younger roommates exchanged looks, and A.J. shrugged. "See you later, D-Dev!" Fermat called as he hurried off, trying to catch up with a rapidly moving Qaeshon.

"What's this all about?" A.J. asked as he caught up with Kay and made the older boy slow.

"I remembered what was so screwy about Pierce," Qaeshon said. He turned to Fermat. "Think about it, Brain. Think! What were those losers saying... doing when you chased them off? Think, Brain!"

Fermat's brows knit together and he slowed to a walk as he thought back to that night. Qaeshon jogged facing him, his back to their destination. A.J. walked beside his roommate, watching Fermat's expression, his own face serious.

"Oh!" The eyes behind the thick glasses went wide. "You're right, K-Kay. Damn! You're r-right! Pierce... that laugh... he was one of the guys who m-messed with you!"

"Hallelujah! The light dawns!" Qaeshon turned around and beckoned to his friends. "Come on! We've got to tell Mr. Mag. There's no time to waste!"

Fermat nodded, and the trio picked up the pace as they headed towards the security office.