An Unsolved Proof by David Cole

Author:David Cole
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Common Deer Press
Published: 2023-09-08T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

* * *

“You really reorganized his entire storeroom?” Jordan asked the next day as he and Justin played video games in his living room.

“The whole thing,” Justin replied. “And let me tell you, it was a mess. Apparently, Karl’s plan was to just randomly put boxes all over the room. They were on top of shelves, under tables, stacked against walls, everywhere. I still need to figure out a way to get everything on shelves and tables, but I’m getting there, at least.”

“You sure are putting in a lot of work at a job where you don’t get paid.”

“Tell me about it.”

Jordan paused the video game. “So why are you doing it? I mean, you could have just lazed around for a few weeks. Don’t you think Karl would still have cleared your record?”

“I guess,” Justin conceded, “but since I volunteered to be there, I might as well do a good job. I’m actually learning quite a bit about running a comic book store.”

“You are?”

“Yeah, just do everything the opposite of Karl,” Justin said, eliciting a laugh from his best friend.

“Besides not being very organized, what else is he doing wrong?” Jordan asked.

“Based on the inventory, his numbers are way off. I think people are walking away with a lot of free comics.”

“You think it’s all Kenny and Buzz?”

“No, but I’m almost positive they’re a big part of it. We’ve got to find some proof they’re shoplifting from the store.”

“I bet they’re doing the same thing every time,” Jordan said. “We just need to figure out what their pattern is.”

“Well, you know who knows more about patterns than anyone I’ve ever met, don’t you?” Justin asked.

“Catherine’s dad!”

“Exactly!”

Jordan called Catherine, who said her dad would be happy to help after dinner.

“That works out perfectly, because Trudy is coming over to work on our robotics project and I want to introduce her to you guys. I think she’d be a great addition to the Math Kids,” Catherine said.

There was silence on the phone.

“Jordan? You still there?” Catherine asked.

“Um, yeah, I’m still here.”

“So what do you think?”

“Think about what?” Jordan asked.

“About Trudy maybe joining the Math Kids.”

“Oh, that. Well, we can talk about it.”

“You don’t sound very enthusiastic about it,” Catherine said.

“Well, we haven’t even met her,” he said.

“Trust me, you’ll see what I mean,” Catherine said.

That evening, the four friends gathered around the kitchen table at Catherine’s house. Her dad placed a bowl of grapes and another bowl of nuts on the table for snacks, along with a pitcher of lemonade. Jordan dug into the bowl of grapes, stuffing several in his mouth.

“I thought you didn’t eat healthy foods,” Catherine teased him.

“Food is food,” Jordan shrugged. “Sure, some snacks are better than others, but a guy’s got to keep up his energy, you know?”

“Didn’t you come straight from dinner?” Justin asked.

“Yeah, but I used up most of that energy on the walk over here.”

Catherine’s dad laughed. “Okay, Catherine said you wanted to learn more about patterns.”

“Yeah, especially the ‘we figured out how you’re stealing the comics’ kind of pattern,” Justin said.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.