Chapter 15

I awoke Monday, exercised, practiced my huku and yoga, showered, dressed, and drank my vitamins and protein. Then, I went to the lobby, got a luggage cart returned, and loaded our bags. Mom came out surprised, added her last two bags, and we left the hotel. Check-in was much easier than LAX, and we arrived at our gate early. The flight took off at 7 a.m. EST, and we arrived at LAX at 9:20 a.m. PST. The wonders of LAX and their baggage system, we didn’t get my clubs until 10:45 a.m. We stopped at the in-n-out drive-thru for lunch on the way home.

We ate lunch and then got bags out of the SUV and unpacked. Mom went to get the mail and said there was a notice to visit the post office for our additional mail. So, Mom went to the post office, and I finished unpacking and then brought my dirty clothes to the laundry. I started the first load when Mom returned with a plastic bin. We ignored it and did our domestic chores until dinner. Mom ordered pizza, and we played throw the mail in recycle. It seemed half of it was from UCLA or Arizona University. We had it separated by the end of dinner, and I took the plastic bin filled to the recycle trash can.

We were tired from the trip, so we hugged goodnight and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger than when it began and tingling all over my body. It felt different again this time, and I knew my body was repairing itself from performing the task Wednesday night too soon in my development, but I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke, exercised, practiced my huku, sensed the area, grabbed my walking staff, and took off running my route, keeping a steady speed and stride. When I reached my turnaround point, I increased my pace on the way home. After stretching, I showered, dressed, and went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and a protein drink. Then, I got out my laptop and signed into my Arizona University student testing center. The on-duty professor watched as I completed my four finals and certified them complete. I thanked him for his help and signed out.

Mom came out, and I told her I had finished my last four finals at Arizona University. With our problems, how does she want to handle getting a copy of my records for UCLA? Mom said she would call Mrs. Fergison today and get them overnighted to us and laughed. Then Mom asked why I wasn’t at the practice range, and I said I was taking two days off for R&R. I’ll start back Wednesday but take it easy for a week. I asked Mom if she heard about what I would receive for winning. She said David told her they’d send a package of goodies once the Amateur Foundation and the NCAA approve of them.

We ate lunch, and then Mr. Finkleman called and said I hate golf, laughing. Mom said to say thank you but no to interview requests. If necessary, blame it on Melissa Gilbert at ESPN laughing. The same goes for personal appearances unless it’s sponsors. Please email them to us with tournament requests, and we’ll check them out. Then, Mom asked Mr. Finkleman if he wanted TJ to give him golfing lessons, and he hung up laughing. Mom said she would go to the club to check on things and bring dinner home. Then, she would spend tomorrow reviewing last week’s activity, so I was on my own for the day and left.

I received a coded text, so I checked my email. It said we had to meet and requested a place and time. So, in reply to the email, I coded the message to say UCLA main library, third floor, at 11 a.m. tomorrow. I knew Sam Barton had a leak somewhere in his network and hoped to expose it tomorrow. Then I could visit my deceiving Professor Conners, who reminded me to check my bot email. So I went to the workshop, and the Chancellor and Professor Conners were quite the chat buddies with ten emails between them. Things were definitely heating up at UCLA, and it’s about to get hotter.

I flipped the dummy switch, locked up, and returned to my room. I grabbed my tablet and checked what programs I had. I needed a phone tagging program. I spent the rest of the afternoon building one. Then, I needed to pick up the largest Micro SD card the University bookstore carried tomorrow. Next, I needed to tag Sam Barton and whoever was following him phones and Professor Connors. Then, an idea came to me, and I worked on it until Mom said dinner was here. It was tag forwarding that I attached to my phone tag program. So, when I found they spoke to someone about me, I could tag that number in their phone. Then, I could follow the chain to the end. I had work to do before dinner and called it “Who’s Calling.”

I went to the kitchen, and Mom had Chinese takeout for dinner. While we ate, Mom said she called Mrs. Fergison, and your transcripts will be sent next day air tomorrow. I told her we wanted to be sure everything was correct before signing up for more classes. Mom said we should keep taking classes there as a backup if UCLA gets shitty. Nothing in our agreement says we can’t, and I agreed with Mom. I told her I was planning to go to UCLA tomorrow and visit my favorite Professor, and Mom laughed.

We watched CNN, and they had more information on the terrorists and the van. Authorities determined that six people were in the van at the time of the explosion. But they didn’t know who they were or their intended target yet. The reporter said authorities were holding back information probably to help solve the case. But it didn’t take a genius to figure out their intended target was the Canadian Open. It was the only major event in the Toronto area that week. And the road the van exploded on was the route to the tournament. In addition, the Pro/Am was scheduled for the next day, so it was a prime target for the terrorists. So, we will keep you informed on this developing story and turn off the TV.

Mom said my god, do you think she was right about their target. I said there was no way to confirm it without the authority’s input and confirmation. It’s pure speculation, and many theories about the incident will exist. Mom seemed to buy my explanation, and I was glad. I didn’t need her to get paranoid about my going to tournaments. We hugged goodnight and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger than when it began and tingling all over my body. It felt different again this time, but I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.

I awoke Wednesday and went to the gym, sensing the area on my way. I exercised, practiced my huku using the heavy bag, did a light workout on the weight machine, and then did my yoga routine. When finished, I showered, dressed, put on knives, camera and put the white noise box in my pocket. Then I went to the kitchen for breakfast, vitamins, and a protein drink, and then I called Lyft. I had the program finished on my tablet when I arrived at UCLA, and it included a delete option on the app for me to use.

The driver dropped me off close to the bookstore, and I bought a 1TB micro-SD card and two 8x11 yellow tablets with pens and then went to the library. I tagged a hot-looking cheerleader to test my app, then went to the third floor. I wrote Sam Barton’s instructions first. It said DO NOT TALK. Go down to the second floor and hide under the stairwell. YOU HAVE A TAIL. I’ll come down when it’s clear. DON’T TALK! Then I checked out the cheerleader’s phone. Her name was Mandi, and her fellow cheerleaders were naughty alright. Mandi had pictures of her and three friends nude sunbathing at a house with a pool. I tagged three of her most-called numbers to see if that part of the app worked. Then I checked her email, and she and her friends were fans of my Nike ad. They even knew I was going to attend UCLA.

That’s when I saw she was Chancellor White’s granddaughter. Her Facebook page showed Chancellor White and his wife with Mandi’s mom and her. The resemblance of grandmother, mom, and Mandi was all the proof I needed. So, I returned to her pictures and found the three nude sunbathing at the same house. It had to be Mandi’s house, so I also tagged her grandmother and mom’s phone numbers. Information was King, and I needed to know what the family was doing behind the scenes. I closed out the viewing and watched for Sam Barton.

When I saw him enter the third floor, I got up, slowly walked to the stairway door, and entered. When Mr. Barton entered, I held up the notepad and put a finger to my lips. Mr. Barton followed my instructions down the stairway when he read the notepad. I tagged his phone while waiting for his tail. Five minutes later, his tail entered, and I helped him down the stairs with a shove. Mr. Barton looked shocked, and I took the man’s picture and a picture of his driver’s license. After tagging his phone, I went to Mr. Barton, put my finger to my lips, and waved for him to follow me.

We went outside and sat on a bench, and I put the white noise box between us. I said Mr. Barton, you have a leak in your group. The tail on Lynda and me in Toronto told me that, and the terrorist attempted attack has Mom freaked out. So, here’s what you’re going to do. You’ll return to your group and tell them I’m out of the game. The tail and terrorist attacks made my mom so clingy that I wouldn’t be good to you. Then you find the traitor, and I deal with only you until you discover who sold me out. Keep the dinner invitations coming so Mom doesn’t get more suspicious.

Sam Barton said I intended to recommend the same thing when we met. My tail is a security guard at OFM, but I didn’t ask him to follow me. So, you are right. I have a leak in my group, and I need to find out who hired the guard to follow me. Mr. Barton laughed and said I was born to do this type of work. We’ll only work together until I’m satisfied and we’ve found the traitor. We said our goodbyes, and he said to expect another dinner invite this week and laughed, leaving.

Then I went to see my favorite Professor. She was happy to see me, and I tagged her phone. Then I told her my finals were done, and we were waiting for my transcripts. Hopefully, they are correct, and I can sign with UCLA shortly. I thought Professor Connors had to change her panties after I left. She was so excited. I called Lyft and examined the White family in more detail on the way home.

It turns out that Mrs. White was married before while in high school. She got pregnant at sixteen and married her 18-year-old husband, the star quarterback on the high school team. His parents were well-to-do and cared financially for her and the baby while hubby went to college. When her husband knocked up another girl in college, she divorced him, and his parents disowned him and left their estate to her. So, she has the money and power in the relationship and is also named Amanda or Mandi. Her daughter’s name is Miranda, and she is Mandi’s mom. She also got knocked up in high school at fifteen, and Miranda’s attorneys negotiated a settlement with the boyfriend’s parents, also well to do.

See a pattern here? Well, so did Amanda’s first husband, who became a renowned writer and wrote a book, “The Man Eater,” a best-seller, and made it into a movie. I found all this out when I googled Amanda’s maiden name, Carpenter. She changed back to her maiden name after the divorce. I’m sure Amanda’s first husband had something to do with the tie-in. I wondered if Amanda knew of her former husband’s notoriety and the book tied to her maiden name. Then I asked what happened to Mandi not following in her grandmother’s and mother’s footsteps. Was she on the hunt to outdo them or taking a different path? I suspected the former and was brought out of my thoughts when we arrived home.

I thanked the Lyft driver and bet he thought I was a computer nerd the way I was doing my research on the way home. I laughed going into the house, and luckily, Mom wasn’t home, or she would have grilled me to find out what was so funny. It was still early, so I went to my workshop and created a file in the cloud for the Whites and Carpenters. I will hack into Mr. and Mrs. White, Miranda, and Mandi Carpenter’s computers tomorrow. Something sinister was happening, and I needed to know, even if it was for entertainment. I flipped the dummy switch, locked up, and went to my room when I sensed Mom was nearby.

Mom called dinner was ready, so I went to the kitchen. She wanted to know about my day, so I fibbed a little and left a lot out. I told her about visiting the library and Professor Conners. I told Mom Professor Conners had a project she wanted me to complete once I signed up with UCLA. When I told Professor Conners it was only a few days away, she was so happy she probably had to change her panties. Mom laughed and took a soda, so I hoped she wouldn’t ask for an autograph, too. Mom spits her drink back into her glass and shakes her finger at me, laughing.

Then I asked Mom about her day, and she said everything was fine at the club. The clubhouse is now booked for six months on Saturdays. We’re considering opening Thursdays and Fridays twice a month. So, all is well with the clubhouse, and now I’m looking at doing some changes to the pro shop next and will need your help. We finished dinner, watched the local news, hugged goodnight, and went to bed. I fell asleep and was used to the thumping, but it was still stronger than when it began and tingling all over my body. It felt different again this time, but I never noticed when it stopped, and I drifted into a deep sleep.