Fic: Old Foes, Chapter 1 (Numb3rs, Charlie Eppes / Colby Granger)
Title: Old Foes, Chapter 1
Fandom: Numb3rs
Pair: Charlie Eppes / Colby Granger
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Not mine, etc.
Feedback: Always Welcome
NUMB3RS Main List
“I got a pattern here….” Charlie scanned the map that was pinned to the wall.
“I’ll give him the message. Have a nice day.”
“What?”
“Did you say something?” David hung up.
“I’ve been talking for the last five minutes.”
“Sorry, I got a call. Don directed all his work calls to me, so the switchboard put that through too.
“Something new?”
“About the case? No. Some guy tried to get in touch with Don but he didn’t have his number.”
“What did he want?”
“Said he was an old buddy, he’s in town for couple weeks.”
“What’s his name?”
“Mitch Cala-something.”
“Calatori?”
“How did you know?”
“I went to the same high school, remember? And that guy was pretty hard to forget. He played with Don in the baseball team, he was his best buddy.”
“That’s nice.”
“He was also the King-Hii-Hoo of all Morons, and the most horrible example of what bad gene pool and bad parenting can lead to.”
“I think I’ll make a guess…. He wasn’t your friend.”
Charlie mimed applause. “Good work, give yourself a gold metal.”
“So what was he like?”
“You know those jocks who try to get everything they can from their years in high school, because that’s the last chance they have before real life yanks the rug from under their feet?”
“I think I know what you mean.”
“That guy made school absolute hell for me, day after day.”
“I thought he was Don’s buddy, didn’t he do anything?”
“Nope.” Charlie dumped his pen and started to gather his papers. “I have to get going, Liza has classes after one.”
“Liza?”
“The babysitter. I’ll call you when I got something.”
“Wait a minute. One more question.”
“Okay.”
“What happened to that Mitch-guy after school?”
“Well, I haven’t seen him since, but I ran into Ida couple years ago.”
“Ida?”
“His high school sweetheart, who was by the way looking very nicely preserved. They got married after graduation, Mitch had a leg injury and career as pro was out the window. Honestly he didn’t have that much of a chance for that even before the accident. He was always a pretty mediocre player.”
“So what does he do now?”
“According to her, he ended up in her fathers garage, started drinking and lost that job too. She left him after he was convicted of DUI.”
“Sounds like a nice fellow.”
“Anyway, if he calls again, don’t give him Don’s number. He’s got enough on his plate already.”
“Are Martin’s parents really that horrible?”
“They’re lovely people. Except that his mom is constantly talking about her work.”
“What does she do?”
“She’s a sex therapist. But it’s their wedding anniversary, so maybe she’ll be on her best behaviour.”
“Did Don start panicking yet?”
“Yep, last night. Martin’s mom told him that if they have any problems with their sexlife, she is more than happy to help.”
“I can understand how that could get him panicking…..”
“That wasn’t all. She said they could borrow appliances from her therapy room if they wanted to.”
“What kind of appliances?”
“Trust me, you don’t wanna know. But anyway, they’ve had a lot of fun checking the sights. There’s a really nice weather there.” Charlie grabbed his things and looked ready to leave. “I gotta get going, I’ll call you when I got something.”
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Colby left the serving bowl on the table and went to open the door. On the doorstep was a man he had never seen before.
“Can I help you?”
“I think I got the wrong house. I’m looking for people who used to live here, Eppes`s.”
“You got the right house.”
“Great, who’s home?”
“Who are you looking for?”
“Don.”
“He’s in San Diego, he’ll be back next week.” Colby crossed his arms across his chest. Something about the guy was definitely bothering him.
“His dad?”
“He died some time ago.”
“What about his mom?”
“She’s been dead for years. You’ve really been out of the loop, haven’t you?”
“What about that….. whatever that kids name was…. A lot of curly hair, didn’t know when to shut up, always carrying a notepad.”
“Charlie?”
Both of them turned to look at the man who was currently unloading his bags from the car. He pulled out the baby carrier and handed the baby over to Colby.
“She fell asleep on the way here.” Charlie turned to scan the man on the doorstep.
“Charlie? Right, I remember.”
“And I remember you.”
“Could somebody fill me in?” Colby intercepted.
“Mitch Calatori, he went to the same high school as Don and I.” Charlie went back to get his files from the car. “What going on with you? First you call the office and now you show up here.”
“How do you know about that?”
“I was there when you called.”
“At the FBI office?”
“I was working.”
“As a mop?”
“No. And how did even get to California? I thought crossing state lines was a parole violation.”
“Okay, I’m still clueless here.” Colby commented. “You came looking for Don, he’s not here. Anything else before you leave?”
“It’s not like he has anything to go back to.” Charlie grinned and looked unusually devilish. “So why are you looking for Don?”
The guy glanced at Colby. “Can we talk about somewhere more private?”
“Sure. I gotta these to the garage anyway.” Charlie dumped a tall pile of files to Mitch’s hands. “I’ll open the door for you.”
He bounced to the garage. Mitch was about to follow him when Colby landed a warning hand on his shoulder.
“We’ll remember to behave, wont we?”
Mitch gulped and nodded.
“Don’t forget the garage is within the earshot.”
Another nervous nod.
“And a little warning. Last time a guy dropped in to make trouble, he got into a lot of trouble. First time Charlie shot him. Second time the guy had a little accident and he died.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope. So be a good boy.”
TBC