"Franny, come on, let's get a move on." "I can't find my helmet." "Well, where did you put it?" "I don't know." "Colin, do you want a fruit bar or an apple in your lunch?" "Neither." "Colin, get off that computer now." "I am." "Forget about the bike helmet, Franny." "I'll drive everyone to school." "Let's go." "Out the door." "Okay, here." "Here, where's your bag?" "Okay." "Move, come on, pick up the pace." "There you go." "Let's go, guys." "Franny, here." "Colin, let's do this." "Honey..." "Let me just grab my stuff out of the back." "Come on, we gotta go..." "Whoa!" "Are you okay?" "I think so." "Get inside." "Colin!" "Colin!" "Where's your puffer?" "Get in the house, get in the house." "Okay, here." "Puff." "Inside!" "Get inside the house!" "Is this what you've stooped to now, Hmm?" "Poison pen letters under my door?" "Mr. Balagan, we're well within our rights..." "Said the Romans to the Jews." "No one is sending you into exile." "We're relocating you temporarily." "No." "Maybe..." "You just need help moving your stuff." "Mr. Balagan, when we extended to you our discounted rate on compassionate grounds..." "And where is your compassion now?" "It was with the understanding you'd vacate for any guest willing to pay full price." "You're throwing me out of my home." "I deserve to know who." "Who?" "I'm not at liberty to say." "Then I am not at liberty to comply." "Excuse me, we're looking for penthouse suite one?" "Oh, here are your VIPs." "Let me guess, lottery winners?" "No, reality TV stars!" "I weep for civilization." "Uh, we're looking for a Mr. Ba-balagen." "Bala- gan." "He is me." "Well, we-we need your help." "Why?" "We think that someone's trying to kill our family." "The kids are terrified." "Our son, Colin, he refuses to leave the house." "Mr. Balagan..." "Tears cloud the eyes of logic." "Come, we'll talk, away from these heartless trolls." "Please." "That's what's left of the car..." "Hmm." "And these are our children, this is Franny and Colin." "Is this the one who can't leave the house?" "Or won't." "It's been a week since the explosion." "And the police haven't been able to tell us much at all." "Except maybe it's related to other bombings by bikers." "Yeah, and we're not bikers." "Our neighbours aren't bikers." "We don't know any bikers." "If the police think it's bikers, believe me, that is what they will prove." "They did say the bomb was remotely detonated." "Really?" "That means something to you?" "Not yet." "My fee is $5,000 a day." "When I heard about you on the radio," "I just assumed you were free." "Free?" "Well, I'll tell you what," "I'll save your children from beeing bombed, and you can decide how much that's worth to you." "Okay." "Olive?" "What, the kids are scared to death." "Allan..." "When can I expect you to vacate your suite, Mr. Balagan?" "When Hugo gets a brain and you find a heart." "One hour." "I guess that leaves courage for the man who can't leave the hotel." "You two, go up to my suite." "It's penthouse one, and we will continue this there." "I'll just be a minute." "Alcina..." "Someone tried to kill our family." "I can go without seeing my hairdresser for a few months." "A few months?" "Try years." "Allan..." "I don't even know what we're paying him." "What does it matter?" "Our son's too terrified to leave the house." "Mr. Balagan, he's helped other people." "Maybe you're afraid what he's going to find?" "I'm afraid of more debt." "We'll find the money." "You always do, don't you?" "What is that supposed to mean?" "Ah..." "So?" "It's sad." "They are in a lot of money trouble, Mr. Balagan." "So am I." "The husband feels very small." "Also, he doesn't want to be here." "He's hiding something?" "And maybe her, too." "Okay." "Okay, good." "Good..." "This doesn't bother you, they have no money?" "How will they pay?" "They'll figure something out." "You're doing this for the boy." "Tell room service they haven't collected my breakfast tray." "A remote bomb means there was a someone with a detonator nearby, watching." "So, the good news is, you're not meant to be dead." "The explosion was only, uh... to frighten you." "The bomb was a warning." "This makes no sense." "Why would someone do this to us?" "Everyone has enemies." "If Colin misses any more school..." "His grades were already slipping thanks to his damn videogames..." "It's not because of the games, and at least online he has friends." "He needs friends in the real world..." "Mr. and Mrs. Davis... in order to help you, I will study you both." "Separately." "I'm an architect." "Freelance." "I specialize in green design." "Sustainable housing, office space." "You must be very busy these days." "Yeah, I wish." "I've been working so hard just to make ends meet, it sometimes feels like all I'm really doing is driving a wedge between me and Olivia, missing the kids growing up." "Do you own your house?" "No." "We've never been able to get approved for a mortgage." "Hmm, and what type of work do you do?" "It sounds a little silly." "I-I sell things online, any good stuff that I can find at garage sales or, um, flea markets." "It was your car that blew up, yes?" "No, it was Olivia's." "I was just about to drive the kids to school." "Just one car?" "Yeah, I had to drop the lease on mine last Christmas." "Tell me about your love life." "I'm not having an affair." "But..." "But sometimes, I think that Allan is." "Why?" "She goes out shopping, for hours." "It's not like we have any money." "Her computer is password protected." "So is mine." "End of the month comes, we have to pay bills, somehow, she's always got the cash." "Maybe she's finally found someone who can give her the things she needs." "Wouldn't really blame her." "Have you ever..." "Asked him directly?" "No." "It-it's just a gut feeling." "He works ridiculous hours, but he doesn't actually make much money." "Um, he never answers his cell." "Every day, he comes home freshly showered, but he..." "He had to give up his gym membership months ago." "Ah." "Thank you for your candor." "I will be in contact." "Well, we could..." "What a nice couple..." "Of liars." "Good, you found it." "Ah, excellent." "Sam, you must read this after I'm through." "It's one of my all-time favourites." "You've read it already?" "I read it every year." "So... the Davises." "Nice couple." "Couldn't be more miserable if they had smallpox." "Young kids, marriage in shards, and an exploding car." "I have three questions." "Is Allan Davis having an affair, is Olivia Davis having an affair, and what VIP is more important than me?" "Forget it, Balagan." "Arkady!" "Pippa..." "It's depressing, the brutes are winning." "Will this help?" "Just thought" "I'd bring you something nice for a change." "You bake." "Butter and sugar, hard to screw up." "Mm!" "Mm..." "Mm?" "No, not until you bring me some information about the Davises." "See ya, Pippa." "Bye, Sam." "Thank you for the book." "You can pay me later." "How are you?" "I'm okay." "Better." "Good." "I'm good, too." "A very interesting puzzle I'm working on." "Very interesting..." "I can't help you today." "That's not what I was going to say." "You sure you can't help?" "I would, but I'm meeting Jason." "Ja..." "Pippa..." "Why waste all this time with the police and their lies?" "Forget about my puzzle, we'll eat cookies and braid each other's hair, huh?" "Do you know how hard it is to set up a tit-for-tat relationship with a cop?" "What does he get, the tit or the tat?" "Why do you waste your time with that police officer?" "He's either corrupt or he's inept." "Probably both." "He likes me, and we can use that." "Enjoy the cookies." "You know, I'm partial to flourless chocolate cake, dark chocolate, if you..." "Feel so inspired." "No, I don't know who the VIP is, Arkady, don't even ask." "Danni..." "I'm devastated." "I was only coming to see what you had planned for your days off." "Huh, well, not moonlighting as Nancy Drew." "Who?" "Literary reference." "I understand." "It is one of your rare days off, and I should not expect you to want to help a a terrified family." "You get paid for solving your puzzles." "I'll give you half, less Alcina's tip." "Half of what?" "I don't know, Danni, but this is about a young, scared, terrified little boy who's afraid to leave his house." "You're kidding me, right?" "Why don't we get you to leave your house first?" "No." "You're unbelievable." "Yes." "Arkady and I have been over the transcript." "It's a bogus confession." "The guy you arrested is lying." "He didn't shoot Rosemary." "Yeah, he did." "Look, I did the interview myself." "He's dying of cancer." "I bet someone paid him to cop a plea." "You put him in jail for a month, he dies, and his kids and widow get a couple hundred thousand dollars." "And you know this because..." "Your questions couldn't have been any softer." "You know, what are you accusing me of?" "Incompetence, corruption?" "I didn't have to show you the transcript, Pippa." "I thought it would bring you some comfort." "Just when we start digging, a dying man suddenly confesses." "That doesn't make you wonder?" "Look, there's no grand conspiracy, Pippa." "Now, you got to let it go." "Rosemary was at the wrong place at the wrong time." "Convince me there is nothing more to my sister's death than random road rage." "Show me you guys aren't lazy, or... worse." "Hey!" "You're going to need one of these." "Hugo!" "Oh, you'd better change your workout regime." "You clearly aren't losing weight pushing that troly." "You're outta here, Balagan, as soon as that VIP arrives." "Danni, how are you?" "So, Sam does this all the time just for a chess game?" "Well, he doesn't always get a game." "Okay, well, I've been following her all day, and, uh..." "One moment, Danni." "Samuel." "I found out how Allan gets wet." "He's designing a waterpark?" "Nope." "That's funny..." "No, he's not designing anything." "I followed him from his house this morning." "He was wearing a suit, but he didn't go to an architect's office." "He washes trucks." "For bikers?" "No, for a- a rental company." "That's why he's been showering every day." "Somebody had chickens in thi o one." "I can smell them from here." "Sam, you've earned a cookie." "Keep watching." "Danni?" "Well, our sweet mom with the two lovely kids, she's not going to pta meetings." "She is up to no good." "She is breakin' the law." "Hmm." "So..." "Allan Davis was not having an affair." "He was just too proud to tell his wife he was washing trucks instead of working as an architect, yes?" "When I get mriried," "I will never lie to my wife like that." "Can we cryogenically freeze Sam so he stays like that forever?" "Cryo-freeze is quack science." "It's a total scam..." "Allan's not the only one who's lying, by the way." "Olivia's a booster." "Booster?" "Booster rocket, booster atat, what?" "A shoplifter." "Like, she steals the expensive stuff." "Uh, razor blades, rechargeable batteries?" "She goes from one drugstore to the next all day long, just filling her bag." "East 41st all the way to West 41st, all the way back down to Broadway..." "So she was lying about getting her stuff from flea markets?" "This boosting is it lucrative?" "Yeah, and if she was telling on someone she's turf, then maybe... the car bomb was an warning." "So it could be biker relateted." "How we find out?" "I... could reach back into my mess spent youth, and see if I still know someone in the game..." "You're forgetting out the children." "Ah, yes, Alcina, as ussual, you are absolutely correct." "I need you to uh-h..." "If you want me runing around asking after children, would loved to, but I would have to give up overtime and my grandaughter justs chip a tooth on another girl at the day care." "Right." "Well, I, uh, h, see a substantial tip in your future, Alcina." "It better be dental-care substantial." "Balagan..." "The VIP is here." "Ha ha!" "He's going to drool on your pillow and pee in your shower." "It's Jonas Etkin." "There he is." "Who?" "It's the Brooklyn bull." "Who?" "The reigning world chess champion." "What, that kid?" "He beat you?" "He never beat me, no." "We never played." "I never made it to that tournament." "He didn't beat me, no..." "But grandmaster Etkin beat the guy that beat grandmaster Balagan." "Arkady!" "What's up, man?" "Jonas, what brings you here?" "A big tournie in California." "I thought I'd come by a few days early to adjust my, uh, body clock, as they say." "Hmm..." "In my hotel." "Well, I heard you weren't going anywhere." "You're the guy who's taking Arkady's suite?" "Nah, no Biggie." "Just, uh, give me a couch and a shower, let Arkady stay where he is." "Uh..." "I'm sorry," "I cannot deal with this at all." "You have no idea how big a fan I am." "Uh..." "Sam." "Sam Besht." "My FIDE rating is 2230." "I've gone up five points since I started working with Mr. Balagan, so if you need a sparring partner, or, uh..." "If I can even afford it." "How much do you charge for a game?" "Dude, I don't need any more cash." "Just, uh, let me catch up on some z's, and, uh, we'll hook it up." "Okay?" "Okay, yeah, yeah." "All right, man." "Later, Arkady." "Grandmaster Jonas, very nice to meet you..." "I can't believe it." "Arkady Balagan and Jonas Etkin in the same hotel." "What are the odds?" "It's not a coincidence." "It's an ambush." "Excuse me, Mr. Balagan." "Have a seat." "No time." "I followed the father and little girl to the school." "The boy, Colin, he never left the house." "The girl, Franny, she say goodbye to the father..." ""Bye, dad!"" "And lock up her bike." ""Goodbye, sweetie." "Have a good day!", and he rode away on his bike." "Then, round-faced boy with curly hair..." "Still the baby fat, so cute..." "He says, "hey, where's your weirdo brother?" "Still too afraid to come to school?"" "So Colin is being bullied?" ""Hey, nobody sit with Franny at lunch, her table might blow up!" "Haw-haw-haw..."" "I get the point..." "Anything else?" "Franny is tough." "She stand up for her brother." "She use her elbow like this..." "Is there anything that points to who bombed the Davis's car?" "A nanny told me a boy she took care of, he used to be friends with Colin." "The nanny says" "Colin got too interested in his videogames, and the boys are not friends anymore." "Then the boy and his new friends start to bully Colin." "I don't know, maybe these bullies planted the bomb." "Good book?" "Yes." "I like telenovelas." "Oh." "I bet you do." "So, you used to be friends with Colin?" "No." "My mom made me hang out with him." "Is this the thug that was bothering you?" "Yeah." "He's a total neanderthal." "It's pronounced neander- tall." "Hey, I'm in your brain." "Exactly." "So get it right." "What do you have there?" "It's a remote radio detonator for an improvised explosives device." "Sodium chlorate mixed with sugar, triggered by a matched coding system to prevent accidental detonation." "I found the design on the interweb." "So, he blew up the car?" "Does he look that smart to you?" "No, he doesn't." "Doesn't what?" "Etkin." "No spectators." "Private, unofficial." "I'm busy." "Kasparov said you wouldn't play me." "Kasparov said that?" "Mm-Hmm." "Anticipate annihilation." "Hey." "Hey." "Now, I'm giving this to you, Pippa, the victim's sister, not the journalist." "It doesn't go on your blog." "Okay." "You didn't get it from me." "Autopsy report's on top." "Autopsy?" "You said you wanted to see everything." "Yeah." "I gave her the autopsy." "That should throw her off for a while." "You know, it sucks you missed my world championship." "It doesn't feel like I earned my title." "What a waste." "I'm sure you had spent hours studying my games." "I don't play your game." "I play mine, so, uh..." "See if you can keep up." "Hey, Suz!" "Danni?" "Hey, I like your hair." "Like, it's really long." "Thanks." "Geez, I'm a little hurt, you know." "It's been a long time, and you didn't invite me to the baby shower?" "Are you fencing kids' stuff now?" "Yeah, online." "They buy more crap than their parents." "Whoa, they've got credit cards now?" "Are you kidding me?" "Prepaid cards from grandma." "Birthdays, Christmas." "It's the gift that keeps on givin'." "You ever seen this woman?" "Her name is Olivia Davis." "Nope." "You sure?" "I saw her boosting stuff yesterday." "If she was doing it on your turf, what would you do to her?" "What kind of stuff she stealing?" "Uh, razor blades, batteries, baby formula." "How does she work?" "Shoves it in her bag." "I wouldn't do anything." "Chick's obviously an amateur." "Dumbass'll get caught sooner than later." "Want to come in for a grilled cheese?" "Yeah." "With an iron?" "Yes." "She makes grilled cheese with an iron?" "Yeah." "There were four of us, we were living in this cheap motel with no kitchen." "Skeevy sue kept us alive for, like, a month on grilled cheese." "Can you teach me how to do that?" "No way..." "Hi." "Um, excuse me?" "No one disturbs this match." "Grandmaster Etkin was very clear." "Oh, was he?" "They're playing?" "In there?" "Right now?" "Oh, my God." "Oh, my God." "This... they..." "I can't believe I'm missing this." "What is wrong with you?" "Danni, this is probably the most thrilling sports match-up in the world." "Huh." "Hi." "I am giving up two days off for Mr. Balagan." "If I have to put you through that door in order to open it, I will." "Whoa, what the hell's that?" "It's a note from Sam." "Addressed to me." "Uh, how do I know you're not cheating?" "The same way you know" "I'm not going to throw you out that window." "Etiquette." ""Mother's shoplifting not the cause." ""Father still clean." "What now?"" "A young family." "Someone put a bomb under their car." "I'm trying to figure out why." "So it's true?" "You're like Ace Ventura, chess detective?" "I don't know who that is, but he sounds ridiculous." "I solve people puzzles." "Huh." "Maybe I'll do that, too, when I retire." "I'm going to count to one." "One!" "These are two of the top five chess players in the universe..." "Mom..." "I told you not to call me when I'm working." "Please, just a quick shot." "I won't even look at the game." "I just want to see them sitting at the table." "Remote detonation?" "No one died?" "No, but now their son, Colin, won't leave the house." "He just stays at home playing videogames." "Which ones?" "Adventure something." ""Adventure quest worlds." It's huge." "I'll take your word for it." "What if it was like a murder-suicide?" "Like the father is so depressed that he's washing trucks, he just decides to put a bomb under the car and end it all?" "No more chicken crap, no more pain." "Adult motivation is beyond your reach, Jonas." "What if it was like a mistake?" "They bombed the wrong house?" "A criminal that incompetent would have to be a special brand of idiot." "The city streets here are divided down the middle." "East and West, and if a bomber were told "2310, 21st Avenue West..."" "If he was a moron, he'd hit 2310 East instead." "Precisely." "So I was right, it was a mistake." "Excellent, well done." "So now, tell me, who planted the bomb, and why?" "Thought so." "Mom, phone!" "I'm in the bathroom!" "Hello?" "Hello." "May I speak with your mother or father, please?" "Dad's out, my mom's in the bathroom." "This must be Colin." "Sorry, who's this?" "My name is" "Arkady Balagan." "I'm helping you and your parents." "Oh." "I understand you haven't left the house since the bomb." "Would you?" "I think that the bomb that blew up your car was placed at the wrong house." "W-what do you mean?" "We are working on the theory that it was actually meant for 2310 21st Avenue West, not East." "Why do you think that?" "Because it looks as if no one has any reason to hurt your family, Colin." "Really?" "I know everything outside feels like it's out of control, and inside feels safe, but we're going to fix that." "Colin, take that first step out the door." "It's not going to get any easier." "I'll tell my mom you called." "Yes?" "Can I help you?" "Um, hi there, ma'am." "Uh, do you have a moment to answer a few questions?" "What questions?" "Well, I'm working for grandmaster Arkady Balagan..." "Maybe you've heard of him?" "No, sorry." "I'm very busy right now..." "Wait, please..." ""Sam requests a word."" "Send him in." "Whatevs." "So?" "What do you got?" "Okay, okay..." "Yup, yup." "Good, good, good..." "Oh, my God..." "Sam." "The other house." "Yes, right." "Uh, well, I think it might be the place we're looking for." "The woman there, she had two black eyes and, uh, a bandage across her nose." "Looked like someone beat her up." "So the bomb was meant for her?" "Tell me more about the house." "Uh, it was pretty nice compared to the davises." "Maybe drug money?" "How old is she?" "Older than Danni. 40s?" "This bandage, how was it positioned?" "Just across her nose." "Yes, but was it symmetrical?" "Y-yeah, I guess so." "Uh, Jonas, so how did you lose the Knight?" "So then it is most likely plastic surgery, Samuel." "It's not an assault." "Disposable income, age to fight." "You stick with her, find out what else she's up to." "So far, we have nothing." "Sam!" "Cici weston was on a shopping spree, buying whatever she wanted, maxing out her credit cards." "I saw her use at least seven." "Is she trying to buy happiness, or did she really need that 23rd pair of shoes?" "Case of the mysterious car bomb, day three." "Recorded by the grandmaster's personal assistant," "Samuel Besht." "Time to pounce." "Ms. weston?" "What are you doing back here?" "Who are you?" "I'm Sam, Sam Besht." "I work for grandmaster Balagan, the chess genius." "Look, we know you're in trouble, just talk to us." "We can make it end..." "Stay away from me!" "I'm sorry." "You touched me." "It's no problem." "Demerol, Vicodin, Percocet?" "No, thanks." "Look, I appreciate your concern, but you and your..." "master are mistaken." "I don't have any enemies." "What about your family?" "Husband?" "My daughter lives in Barcelona, and my husband died two years ago." "Honestly, I live a very boring life." "You're the most exciting thing that's happened all week." "She doesn't drink, she doesn't gamble." "She likes tennis and Katherine Heigl movies." "Neighbours say" "Cici Weston is completely average, and compared to her friends, she doesn't even have that much money." "Great, so we got, um, nothing." "What happened to your face?" "Bag of boots." ""No leads at 2310 West."" "Stalemate?" "No, there are no stalemates in life, because, unlike chess, hidden pieces always come into play." "Sounds easier." "I could use an extra Knight right now." "Jonas, you have no idea." ""Go back to the first house and rattle the shoplifter."" "Why are we taking orders from a grown man and a teenager playing a board game?" "I-it's not a game." "It's strategic combat." "It's a death match of two minds..." "Oh, yeah, keep talking, I'm getting horny." "Come in, have a seat." "Don't worry about the mess." "Um, Colin, this is Danni." "She works with that chess guy we told you about." "So you proved that the other house was the real target?" "Where's your daughter?" "Uh, Franny rode to a friend's." "Um... maybe Colin could go play in his room for a minute..." "Just give us a chance to talk." "Drugstores, batteries, that kind of thing?" "Colin, go to your room." "But, mom, I just got to level eight." "Now." "But the battery's on critical." "If I unplug now, I'll lose all my coins..." "Go to your r-room!" "Allan!" "What happened?" "I got jumped by a couple of teenagers." "Oh, my..." "Easy, I think I cracked a rib." "You're bleeding, come on..." "I'm okay." "We'll get you some ice." "Come on, honey." "Do we need to take you to the hospital?" "Thank you for coming, Ms. Weston." "Please." "If you can figure out who blew up my car," "I'll be thanking you." "Yes." "Thank you two for coming as well." "Where are the children?" "The lovely children..." "Colin's more terrified than ever, so the neighbors are watching him and Franny." "I see." "So, where do we stand?" "Both your houses have had cars blown up, but there were two different bombs." "One was a detonator." "The other was a petrol-soaked rag in the fuel tank." "And Allan was jumped and beaten..." "Cracked rib." "By two attackers, who, let us assume, were the same ones who blew up the car in the first place." "You did not recognize them?" "No." "Two teenagers." "They both had hoodies pulled down over their faces." "But you're clear about what they said, yes?" ""You have 24 hours to pay,"" "and then I think they said," "" par deux."" ""Par deux?"" "Mean anything to anyone?" "Par deux." "Hmm..." "What does par deux mean?" "What do you think?" "Par deux, it's French." ""By two."" "Two houses, two cars." "Two bombs, two teens." "Take your pick." "Yes, but why?" "Maybe that lady ripped off the wrong drugstore owner." "Maybe, but what connects the two houses?" "Here, take these stolen batteries and send them to the people that I sold them to online." "When you sell things online, you ship packages to your clients, but sometimes, you receive also, yes?" "Sure, I get returns from customers sometimes." "Then perhaps the bomber didn't get the wrong address, the postman did." "Excuse me?" "Or maybe the wrong address was written on the package." "Either way, a hypothesis..." "Something was delivered to your house in the East that should have gone to Ms. Weston's in the West." "What?" "You're all involved." "Are you accusing me?" "We're the victims." "Olivia..." "Did you accidentally receive something of great value?" "Something you did not want to return?" "After all, you and Allan are broke." "Absolutely not." "Huh." "They were delivered something of yours by mistake, you wanted it back, they refused, so you blew up their car, and then they got even by destroying yours." "You set my car on fire?" "No!" "You sent two teenagers to beat up my husband?" "I'm not going to sit here and listen to this." "We're paying you, and you call us thieves?" "She is not having an affair, but  she is a thief." "He is not having an affair, but he's lying to you about his job." "Are you happy now?" "I don't care if you lie to each other, but I cannot help your son if you're not honest with me." "Allan, what is he talking about?" "Never mind that." "What are you stealing?" "N-never mind what?" "Okay, well..." "We're going to talk." "Come with me." "What is going on?" "Huh..." "So..." "You're losing here, and you're losing out there." "Losing?" "Are we playing the same game?" "Late game castle." "Bam." "What?" "What if the rook and king were reversed?" "What if the package was meant for the davises but ended up at Ms. Weston's?" "Well, Cici was racking up the cards." "Jewellery, shoes, designer threads..." "What will you do with your windfall?" "Nose job." "She's got cash." "Why-why steal someone else's?" "You think rich people don't steal?" "You ever read the business section?" "But why was Allan beaten?" "How'd it go down?" "He was jumped." "Two teenagers, said something about..." "having to pay  "par deux"." ""Par deux..."" "Pardeux?" "What's so funny?" "Pardeux is the name of Tom Hanks's character in that movie, "Mazes and monsters."" "I'm not familiar." "It's a classic, man." "It's all about the dangers of fantasy role-playing games." "You said Colin played adventure quest worlds on his computer, right?" "Yes." "It's the biggest online RPG right now." "RPG, "rocket-propelled grenade"?" "What?" "Role-playing game." "What do you know, guess who one of the top players is." "Pardeux?" ""You have 24 hours to pay Pardeux."" "No comma." "What?" "The teens who beat him up weren't calling Allan "Pardeux."" "They were referring to the person who must be paid, and that's Pardeux." "Sam, bring me Colin Davis." "But he won't leave the house." "How am I supposed to get two agoraphobes to meet?" "He's not agoraphobic." "He's just scared." "Tell him I know how to make this all go away." "Do you?" "Not yet." "We'll be right outside, buddy, and if he acts weird, you scream." "So you left your house today." "Yeah." "My parents took away my computer." "Still, you've made that first step." "Cookie?" "Not cookies!" "Cookie." "Cookie..." "Good." "Dad says you don't leave the hotel." "How long have you been in here?" "A while." "I wonder if you could explain to me your attraction to that game you play." "Yeah?" "What do you want to know?" "I want to know what you like about it." "It's better than real life." "You get rewarded for being smart, and for doing the right thing." "At school, that's what gets my face beat in." "I understand." "So, what was it that Ms. Weston received that belonged to you, Colin?" "What are you talking about?" "Why did you blow up her car?" "I didn't." "Colin..." "You talk of virtue and intelligence, yap-yap-yap, blah-blah-blah-blah, and yet, you sit there lying to me." "You left your house." "Take another step, tell me the truth." "Why did you blow up Ms. Weston's car?" "I didn't." "I have an alibi." "I was at home." "Ask my mom." "Ask that lady who you sent over." "My friend, Danni." "She did say not everyone was at home with you." "Where are you going, Franny?" "I'm not supposed to talk to strangers." "You're not going to Cici Weston's house, are you?" "Nope." "You're not going to put that in the gas tank, are you?" "Nope." "You're not going to blow up Cici's car, are you?" "Nope." "Cookie?" "I want to talk to my lawyer." "I'm not a police officer." "You don't need a lawyer, Franny." "Why did you blow up Ms. Weston's car?" "Colin said it would make things better." "How?" "By leaving a message." "What kind of message?" "This one." "Wait, you didn't leave it?" "Obviously." "Why not?" "Because there was a car on fire?" ""Give me back the cards, or else..."" "What cards?" "I hear you've got my cards." "I don't know what you're talking about..." "I might've used a couple or... ten." "I didn't mean to hurt anyone." "Okay." "Wait here." "Wow." "So, what are these, Colin?" "Prepaid credit cards." "Prepaid?" "They come loaded with cash." "You can spend them anywhere." "Can't do anything online without a credit card." "And so, this Pardeux, he recruits kids to sell these?" "Yeah, through the game." "The first time I got the cards, it was just 10 of 'em, worth 200 bucks like these, and I sold them for 100 bucks and sent all the money back to Pardeux." "And are the cards stolen or fake?" "I don't know." "And you agreed to sell more of them, yes?" "Yeah, but they never came in the mail, and Pardeux thinks I'm holding out on him, so he blew up our car, and... beat up my dad." "Wait, I'm sorry." "You sent all this money back to Pardeux?" "So, what's in it for you?" "Coins." "Coins?" "It's like cash in the game." "It's almost impossible to score adventure coins in the game." "So you get paid in fake coins?" "They're not fake." "You use it to buy better armor, bigger weapons, and awesome spells." "And how did you send the real money you made from the cards back to Pardeux?" "I went to a cheque-cashing place and wired it." "To where?" "Luxembourg." "Luxembourg?" "It's next to France." "Yes." "So this Pardeux, he could be anyerere now." "Well, if he was messaging Colin online, then there's a way to find his IP address and use that to find him." "Can you do that?" "No." "So, IP addresses and European banks accounts?" "This sounds like a job tedious enough for the police." "We'll make the call." "Thank you." "Thank you so much." "Colin..." "You told the truth." "That was very brave." "You know..." "It's scary when you go outside, but then you just... get used to it." "I'll take that under consideration." "Well, the fraud squad owes you big time." "Officers are paying a visit to..." ""Bloodmistress" and Isisagoth" right now." "The two teenagers who beat up Allan?" "Yeah, gamers." "They had a huge jump in coins after the Davises' car blew up." "And what about your own defective detective work?" "Rosemary's case." "It's the only case." "Well, if anything comes up, Pippa will let you know." "I'm sure she will." "I'll let you get back to your game." "What's going on?" "I called the game." "No, no, no, no, the interruptions are over." "We reset the positions." "I'm sure they're locked in your head as they are in mine." "Dude, your head's not in the game." "How am I supposed to beat you if you're too distracted?" "So we play tomorrow." "Dude, I jet tomorrow." "Pity." "You know, you could, uh, come to the tourney with me if you want." "Run away, little boy." "I'll be here when you're ready." "Hmm..." "Mm." "Thanks for your help." "So, what are you going to do with your cut?" "You know, I can see why you do this." "It's kind of fun." "Ah-hah!" "So I guess you don't want your money." "I didn't say that."