Sherlock Sam and the Quantum Pair in Queenstown

by A. J. Low

  “While he was destroying the office, he kept saying he was sorry and that he had nothing against me,” Auntie Wendy said. “That he didn’t want to hurt me, and that he wished I hadn’t been here so he didn’t have to tie me up.”

  “What’s going on here? I thought you said the shootout happened at the old KTM tracks, Mike, not in your office?” a voice said from behind us.

  Officer Siva was standing in the doorway looking shocked at the mess in the office. He was in his regular police uniform.

  Dad quickly introduced everybody and explained that this was a completely separate incident. He also said Auntie Wendy was the only witness to the office trashing.

  Auntie Wendy told Officer Siva what she had said us, and Officer Siva turned to Uncle Saad, “Hmm. And the man looked exactly like you… Do you have a twin brother?”

  “I’m an only child, Deputy Superintendent,” Uncle Saad said. “I don’t have any siblings, let alone a twin brother. My family was very poor when I was growing up. I was already eating us out of house and home. I think my parents were really happy there was only one constantly hungry stomach in our house.” He laughed, rubbing his tummy.

  Wendy grinned and looked at me. I decided to ignore her. I was a growing boy, after all. Also, tummies are cool.

  “Do you have any other male relatives who could pass off as you?” Officer Siva asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Uncle Saad replied, frowning. “My father passed away a few years ago, and I know that all my cousins are female.”

  “Let me verify this,” Officer Siva said. “In the meantime, please check to see if anything was stolen. It might shed some light on the culprit’s motive.”

  Dad, Uncle Saad and Auntie Wendy started picking through the mess. Watson and Moran helped as well. Jimmy, Nazhar and Eliza search for anything that looked dangerous and left it to Mom to decide whether they could clean it up themselves or whether they should wait for Dad, Uncle Saad or Auntie Wendy.

  “Wendy, can you hand me a rubbish bin?” Dad asked.

  My sister Wendy and Auntie Wendy grabbed a bin each and started to bring it over to Dad before they stopped, looking at each other.

  “Sorry, I meant Wendy, my colleague, not Wendy, my daughter,” Dad said. He paused. “I guess I’ll have to differentiate you somehow.”

  He thought for a little while as Auntie Wendy brought him the bin. He snapped his fingers. “I know! You’re Tall Wendy” —he pointed at Tall Auntie Wendy— “and you’re Little Wendy,” he said, pointing at Wendy, my sister.

  “I’m not that little,” Little Wendy said, frowning.

  “And I’m not that tall,” Tall Auntie Wendy said, crossing her arms.

  Neither of them seemed too happy with their new nicknames.

  “It doesn’t look like anything’s been stolen,” Uncle Saad said. “Though I admit it’s difficult to tell if this smashed laptop is just missing its mouse, or if I just haven’t found it yet.”

  “I didn’t see the other Saad take anything, but I didn’t see everything he was doing,” Tall Auntie Wendy said. “Even though he said he didn’t want to hurt me, I was still pretty scared.”

  “Okay, Mr Saad, I’ve verified what you told me,” Officer Siva said, walking back into the office. “And I have no reason to doubt the Supper Club when they say you were with them during the break-in.”

  “So who’s my double then?” Uncle Saad asked.

  “Maybe a master of disguise?” I said.

  It occurred to me that we might need to contact Inspector Lestrade for this case—if anything, she was a master of disguise. As long as she didn’t need to remain inconspicuous that is.

  “Lim Ban Lim was a master of disguise,” Nazhar said, not looking at me. “But I’m sure Sherlock will discount that as irrelevant.”

  From his tone, it was clear that Nazhar was angry at me for dismissing his views about the existence of the supernatural, without even considering them. I knew I should apologise because a good detective would take every idea, no matter now impossible, and at least discuss it with his team. Plus, I knew I had hurt Nazhar’s feelings and a good friend would apologise.

  “I think most of this can be salvaged, honestly,” Dad said. “It’ll just be a pain to put everything

  back together.” He lifted two pieces of some kind of metallic chassis.

  “Aw, man,” Uncle Saad said. “My doppelgänger even broke the coffee machine. Sigh.”

  It was Uncle Saad saying the word “doppelgänger” that finally gave me an explanation for what had happened at the old KTM tracks, but before I could say anything, Officer Siva’s phone rang.

  “Yes, this is Deputy Superintendent Siva,” he said. “What? Are you sure? Where?”

  After a couple of minutes more Officer Siva hung up his phone and said, “So, Queenstown is being really weird this morning. Apparently, some residents were out for a night-time stroll behind the public library when they suddenly saw themselves walking about. Naturally, they freaked out and ran away before they called the police.”

  “They saw themselves?” Wendy asked.

  “Is everyone getting doubled?” Jimmy asked.

  I was getting very excited that my theory was right, but I decided not to say anything until we saw whatever was happening behind the public library.

  “If we walk there, we’ll definitely hit 10,000 steps,” Dad said, looking at his Walk-Man.

  “Or we could take my minivan,” Officer Siva said with a small smile. “I’m parked right outside the building.”

  Dad grinned sheepishly.

  “Tall Wendy and I will stay here and clean up,” Uncle Saad said. Tall Auntie Wendy made a face when she heard her new nickname.

  We went down the lift and got into Officer Siva’s minivan. It was still quite dark as he drove us to the public library. My tummy rumbled, reminding me that it needed to be fed very soon. I had been too distracted by ghostly apparitions.

  Officer Siva parked his car in front of the Queenstown Public Library which Nazhar said was the oldest public library in Singapore. Everyone thought that was really cool.

  As we got out of the car, I hurried to catch up with Nazhar and said, “Hey, Nazhar, I just wanted to say that I didn’t mean to dismiss your ideas so quickly. I know that just because I don’t believe in something, it doesn’t mean that it’s automatically wrong.”

  “I know you don’t believe in ghosts, Sherlock,” Nazhar replied. We were trailing behind the rest of the Supper Club. “I know you don’t think it’s logical.”

  “It just doesn’t make any sense to me, Nazhar,” I said. “But I also know that just because I don’t understand something, doesn’t mean I get to be nasty about it when someone else believes in it.”

  Nazhar remained quiet for a moment then said, “History is filled with ghosts. So, to me, if ghosts are real then it’s almost as if the past is still alive.” He stopped. “I know that isn’t the most logical explanation.”

  I thought about it for a while, then said, “That actually makes sense.”

  Nazhar grinned at me.

  We quickly re-joined the rest of the Supper Club who were already exploring the area behind the public library. The denseness of the small forest there made it difficult to see anything, especially since it was still very dark. Officer Siva instructed all of us to stay in small groups as we carefully walked around using our torchlights to lead the way. The sounds of the forest, coupled with the lack of light, made it all very creepy, and every so often, someone would yelp. Usually Dad.

  At first, none of us saw anything of note, then, out of nowhere we saw a light! It was flickering right in the middle of a clearing in the forest. I could hear Jimmy gulp as he ducked behind Mom.

  Officer Siva turned to look at us and held up a hand, silently telling us to stay back. He started to walk towards the strange light. Even though we were terrified, none of us listened— fear would not hold us back!

  “Stop holding me back, dear,” Mom said to Dad, who imm
ediately dropped her arm and grinned sheepishly.

  Dad and Mom made sure we stayed a little behind Officer Siva. As we approached the lighted area, it became brighter and brighter.

  “I don’t think this is such a good idea, Sherlock,” Wendy said, peeking out from behind Dad.

  “I think that’s putting it lightly,” Eliza added, from behind Wendy.

  “Everyone get ready to run backwards,” Nazhar whispered.

  “Why would we run backwards, Master Nazhar?” Moran asked, tilting his head to one side.

  “So-long-as-I-do-not-have-to-carry-anyone,” Watson said.

  I shushed everyone.

  When we finally reached the source of the light, everyone stood stock still, amazed at the sight in front of us. It was almost as if we were looking into a big, flickering mirror, but one that seemed to ripple like when you throw a small pebble into a pond. Still, that wasn’t why we were astounded. What left us speechless was that we saw ourselves in the mirror. But not as we were right then. No, we were changed!

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Officer Siva made us slowly back away from our other selves, but I took note of what “we” were all wearing: the other Sherlock was wearing a weird superhero costume of some sort (was he a chicken?!); Watson had on a Star Trek-like uniform; Moran was dressed like an Old West sheriff; Jimmy was dressed like a knight; Wendy was dressed like a Chinese peasant from ancient times; Eliza was wearing a thick jacket and pants and holding a torch; Nazhar was dressed like a ninja; Officer Siva had on a very bright suit and Mom and Dad were dressed in very fine evening wear.

  As we were backing away, our other selves slowly started to fade before vanishing completely. By this time, everyone was close to freaking out. Everyone but me.

  “Perhaps now would be a good time to make a strategic retreat, Master Sherlock?” Moran said.

  I saw Jimmy and Wendy nod vigorously in agreement.

  “I-refuse-to-carry-anyone-but-I-will-recordyourscreams-as-you-run-away,”Watson added.

  “No one is running anywhere,” Mom said, grabbing hold of Dad’s arm as he almost managed to zoom past her, pulling Wendy and Nazhar with him. “It’s dark and we don’t want to get lost.”

  We slowly started to back away, still keeping our torchlights trained at the so-called scene of the crime just in case anything else emerged from it.

  I could feel a grin stretch across my face.

  Officer Siva made us walk back to where he had parked his minivan and immediately pulled out his mobile phone.

  “Why are you smiling in that creepy way, Sherlock?” Eliza asked. We were standing under a bright street lamp. She was rubbing her arms and I could see goosebumps on her skin.

  “Perhaps-we-are-not-looking-at-the-realSherlock,” Watson said.

  Jimmy’s eyes grew big and he ducked behind Mom.

  Officer Siva, who had called the nearby police station and left instructions that the area was to be cordoned off, stepped forward and poked me in the tummy.

  “Ouch!” I said.

  “Feels like the real Sherlock,” Officer Siva said with a grin, patting his own tummy. Even Jimmy laughed.

  I gave him as dignified a glare as I could.

  “What are you thinking, Sam?” Dad asked. I knew that he must have his own theories as well. I could see Nazhar waiting expectantly for me to speak.

  “Alternate dimensions.”

  Everyone stared at me.

  “I think I’m going to need more coffee for this,” Mom said, rubbing her temples.

  “That’s actually a great idea, Kat,” Officer Siva replied. “Why don’t we head back to Mike’s office. Plus, I don’t like the idea of just hanging around in the open, unprotected. Especially after what we’ve just seen.”

  As we all bundled into Officer Siva’s minivan, I started to explain my theory. I felt it was an excellent theory, but everyone other than Dad looked vaguely confused.

  “So what you’re saying is that the Uncle Saad that Tall—I mean Auntie Wendy saw was not the real Uncle Saad?” my sister asked.

  “No, he was a real Uncle Saad, he just wasn’t our real Uncle Saad,” I replied. It was very clear to me; I didn’t understand why everyone else was having so much trouble understanding.

  “He was an Uncle Saad from an alternate dimension,” Nazhar said, nodding slowly. I could almost see the gears in his brain working. I really admired Nazhar’s ability to stay open to ideas that didn’t quite make sense to him at first, or that he didn’t really believe in.

  “But why would that Uncle Saad destroy the real—I mean, this other—I mean, our Uncle Saad’s office?” Wendy asked. She winced at her own confusion.

  “I-wonder-why-my-uniform-was-red,” Watson said. “That-is-never-a-good-colour-foraStar-Fleet-officer.”

  “What?” Eliza asked my robot.

  “He means the other Watson,” I said.

  “It’s almost like when we were at Comic-Con and cosplaying, Sherlock!” Jimmy added. “But it was Moran that was the Star Trek character then, not Watson, remember?”

  “Yes. So none of what we saw actually happened in our reality,” I concluded.

  My theory was getting stronger by the minute.

  We had arrived at Dad’s office and hurriedly made our way back to where we knew our Uncle Saad and Tall Auntie Wendy would still be cleaning up.

  Officer Siva called to get his people to set up hidden cameras at the two locations where the weird things had happened: near the railway tracks and in the forest behind the Queenstown Public Library. He asked Uncle Saad if they could somehow link up the feed to screens in the lab. Uncle Saad took the phone and started talking to whoever was on the line. He put the phone down and immediately started tapping on his tablet. Soon, the television screens that lined the walls of the office and weren’t broken turned themselves on.

  “Okay, so once your officers turn on the cameras, the feeds should be sent to these two television screens,” Uncle Saad explained. “They can call me when they’re setting up in case I need to walk them through the process again, but it’s relatively simple. Everything can be connected these days if you have Wi-Fi.”

  That made me think of Watson.

  Officer Siva nodded.

  “Wow. So the first thing you guys fixed was the coffee machine, huh,” Dad commented, looking around. A lot of the mess that we had previously seen had been removed and the office was looking much tidier than it had been before we left. I saw Dad sneak another glance in his drawer just to make sure that his Red Vines were still there.

  “Yes. The important stuff,” Tall Auntie Wendy replied, handing my mom a cup of piping hot coffee. Mom accepted it gratefully.

  Uncle Saad gave Dad and Officer Siva mugs of coffee as well, and he also found packets of chocolate milk and cookies for the rest of us. I was eternally grateful. It was hard to explain dense scientific theories while starving. Moran also pulled out piping hot scones with jam and butter for everyone. I guess he didn’t bring out the tea set because everyone already had coffee and chocolate milk. Uncle Saad and Tall Auntie Wendy were amazed and asked to examine Moran later. I could hear Uncle Saad muttering to himself about how Moran managed to keep the scones warm, but the butter cold in the same compartment.

  “Okay, Sam,” Mom said, sipping her coffee. “Let’s hear your theory.”

  “So you guys have heard me talk about the multiverse before, right?” I said.

  “Yes-you-said-that-you-were-sure-that-all-versions-of-Sherlock-Sam-would-love-deepfriedchicken-wings,” Watson said.

  I decided to ignore my robot.

  “The theory of the multiverse states that there are multiple universes,” I said.

  “We got that from the fact that it’s called the multi-verse, Samuel,” Eliza said with a grin. Wendy laughed, then covered her mouth with her hands at my narrowed eyes.

  “Well, yes. But what that means essentially is that there are many parallel universes that exist—”

  “Parallel to each other?�
� Nazhar asked, trying not to smile. Eliza snickered.

  “The point is all these parallel universes differ from each other in sometimes small but other times huge ways! Which is why even though we saw ourselves, we didn’t look like ourselves!” I concluded.

  “So what are you trying to say, Son?” Dad asked. “That you think that incursions are happening? That people from alternate realities are crossing into other universes?”

  “Possibly, Dad,” I replied. “Maybe the apparition of Lim Ban Lim that we saw was from another dimension where life is still 50 years behind ours. Plus, that would definitely explain the alternate versions of ourselves we saw in that creepy mirror.”

  “That’s a possibility,” Dad said, nodding slowly. “Another theory could be that the parallel universes are starting to bleed into each other. Right, Son? And since it’s happening in multiple points during such a short time frame, a bleed might make more sense.”

  I nodded. I knew Dad would take me seriously and understand.

  “Bleed?!” Jimmy exclaimed. “Like when you get a cut?”

  “That’s exactly it, Jimmy!” I replied, excitedly. “There’s been a cut or a tear in the space-time continuum. And there must be more than one opening since we’ve encountered anomalies at more than one location. Other universes must be coming through to our universe at these points. It must have been how the other version of Uncle Saad came through to our universe!”

  “But if there’s a cut, why can’t we just put a plaster on it, Sherlock?” Jimmy asked.

  “That’s actually a genius way of putting it and is a really good idea, Jimmy,” Uncle Saad replied. “But I think the problem is, we don’t know what’s causing the cuts or rips in space and time.”

  “Are you saying you believe this boy’s theory, Saad?” Tall Auntie Wendy asked. “You really think I encountered your doppelgänger from another universe?”

  “It makes sense, doesn’t it? And from what I understand, Sherlock is something of a genius himself,” Uncle Saad replied. “Mike, what do you think?”

  Dad had his thinking face on. He was silent for a moment longer, and then he nodded. “It’s possible. Sam’s theories are always based on facts. But my questions would be how did it happen and why is it happening in Queenstown and nowhere else.” He paused then looked up at his two colleagues. “We’re exploring a lot of new tech and theories here. But I don’t think there’s anything that’s being done in our lab that would cause this.”