When The Chips Are Down

by Aiden Vaughan

  “Well I am definitely in, Dad. This is all for real, right?”

  “Oh, yes, Son. I want you back in my life and I want to make up for the neglect and abuse you had to put with for so long. I’ll bring some pictures of the house tomorrow. Then after you are released from the hospital we will meet with an architect and get the plans drawn up!”

  “One thing, though, Dad. Where am I going to live for now? Mom does technically have custody of me.”

  “I’m not an expert on the law, Tim. But I am your biological father, and I am definitely going to reassert my rights to be your father again! Given what happened to you at the camp, it could be easily argued that Shirley is an unfit mother! In fact all the other inmates at the camp are going through that exact process. I saw it on the news. They are all being given a say in where they go next. I don’t see any reason why that wouldn’t be true for you, Tim. Have you talked to your mother yet?”

  “No, I told Grace that I am not quite ready to see her yet!”

  “We don’t see eye to eye any more, but I think Shirley is smart enough to let you do what you want now regarding who has custody and where you will be living. As far as where you would live for now, the upper area, where I am staying has a second bedroom. You can live there until the remodel is finished. What do you say, Son?”

  “I think I am going to be very happy that you have come back into my life, Dad!”

  Chapter 30

  DCC Settles Accounts

  (Friday Evening, Two Weeks Later)

  It was a beautiful Friday night in the Silicon Valley, and the banquet hall of Fung Lum’s Chinese Restaurant was filled with people from the DCC Chip Company and their guests. In the past two weeks, much change had taken place at the company. Junjie Liu was named acting CEO of the company and was directed to reorganize and re-energize the company. There were major executive positions to replace, and Mr. Liu was actively involved in recruiting qualified talent to replace his position, the chief of security, and the head of research and development.

  The banquet was being held to honor Jason, Daniel and the Silicon Valley Police for their work in solving the case. Another important reason was to offer restitution to those employees, police officers, and others who had been attacked or injured because of the hijackings and cover up of the defective chip line. There were about 150 people in attendance. It was a family affair, with the Hunters, Holmes, Ferreira’s (Eric’s aunt and uncle), Thorntons, and the families of the executives and most of the employees of the company all attending. Captain Antonio Garcia and his wife Marisol were there representing the Police Department.

  The guests were all seated at large round tables with lazy susans in the middle. Waiters efficiently brought out multiple courses of the restaurant’s classic entrees including appetizers like pot stickers, egg rolls, and lettuce cups, main courses like general’s chicken, sweet and sour pork, and Mongolian beef or chow meins and fried rice dishes. The dishes were placed on the susans to be served family style or quickly served individually in cups like sizzling rice or won-ton soup. Each diner had a small mound of long white rice by their plate and a cup of tea. The food was excellent and everyone ate enthusiastically.

  During the social hour prior to the sit down dinner, Jason and Daniel talked with Captain Garcia about the resolution of the DCC case. Garcia told them that Will Nguyen was recovering nicely from his concussion, and would be rejoining the detective division in another week. Dr. Ramanathan had been charged with two counts of conspiracy, but would probably be plea bargained out in exchange for his testimony against the two main conspirators, Urbano Santos and Chang Chao Ling. Ling and Santos were indicted on multiple counts of fraud, assault and battery, kidnapping, false imprisonment and theft for organizing and carrying out the assaults on company workers, the driver whose truck was hijacked, and the activities on that Monday when they held Jason, Daniel, and Eric hostage. An additional count of kidnapping and false imprisonment was brought against Santos for what he did to Justin Thorne at the warehouse. Santos’ nephews Ramon and Luis would most likely be spending at least six months in juvenile hall for their attack on Justin. The hearing for their case was next week.

  Daniel asked Captain Garcia what kind of sentences that Ling and Santos would be receiving. “If they choose to take their cases to open court, I am sure the district attorney will add charges of special circumstances for the way you, Jason, Justin, and Eric were treated, and for Santos’ attack on Will. That would mean a 40 or 50 year to life sentence if the counts are all served separately. Most likely they will plea bargain and get something in the twenty to thirty-five year range. Santos’ sentence will most likely be more severe than Ling’s because he was responsible for most of the physical violence.”

  After the dinner hour was nearly over, Elliot Brevard went up to the podium at the head table where the company executives were seated and rapped for attention. “Ladies and Gentlemen, DCC employees, guests, and family members, I would like to welcome you to this special banquet acknowledging our employees and the changes in our company. Please welcome our new CEO, Junjie Liu!” Everyone applauded loudly as Mr. Liu came up to the podium.

  “Thank you all for coming tonight. We are here tonight to acknowledge our hard working employees who make our company possible, and to honor a number of individuals who have sacrificed a lot in the past few month or helped our company in its time of crisis. As your new CEO, I want to make it very clear that we value our employees. Your hard work is what makes our product successful and competitive in the high tech industry. In the past few months, some of you were needlessly attacked because of the plotting of certain individuals who are no longer with the company, and are on their way to long jail sentences for what they did. Their actions have damaged the company’s reputation, but we will be able to correct that with new product lines made possible by your hard work. What we can’t repair is the physical or emotional damage done to some of our employees, but I strongly feel that we can make restitution to those people who suffered those attacks or were injured trying to prevent more criminal activity from occurring. In consultation with our parent company, we have decided to present cash awards to those individuals tonight. As I read your names our company treasurer will present each of you with a check.”

  There was thunderous applause after that. Each of the workers who was attacked, taped up and held prisoner in the first hijacking was given a check for $35,000. Manuel Salcito, the truck driver who was kidnapped, tied up, then left by the side of the road after his truck was hijacked, was also awarded $35,000. Justin Thorne was given a check for $35,000 to be used as a college fund. Eric Acosta was given a check for $35,000 because he was made a hostage and put in harm’s way. Mr. Liu then called Captain Antonio Garcia to the podium. “The Silicon Valley Police Department has been assisting our company to solve the mystery of the hijackings. Two weeks ago a number of officers put their lives on the line when the perpetrators of the crimes against DCC were trying to escape. While they have insisted to us that this is their job and their duty to protect us, we still would like to do something for our policemen. Therefore I am very pleased to present this check for $75,000 to the Silicon Valley Police Benevolent Fund.” There were loud cheers and applause as Mr. Liu presented the check to Captain Garcia.

  “I have two more presentations to make tonight,” Mr. Liu continued. “Jason Hunter and Daniel Holmes are just teenagers in our community, high school students who are learning to become our future leaders, and family friends of my two sons. But these two boys are much more than potential leaders — they are leaders right now! It was mainly due to their efforts, and especially the work of Jason Hunter, that the mystery of the chip thefts was solved, and the culprits responsible for the violence against our employees were brought to justice. In that last crazy day, Jason solved the mystery, confronted the wrong doers, and brought in the police. Daniel helped Jason with the case, and both boys were temporarily held hostage. Again due to their cleverness, they were able to esca
pe and eventually their detective work enabled them to figure out how to stop Urbano Santos, rescue their friend Eric, and bring the others responsible to justice. On behalf of the entire DCC community I want to thank both of you! And in recognition of your work and sacrifice, I am pleased to present Daniel Holmes with a check for $35,000 and Jason Hunter with a check for $50,000. Please come up to the front and receive your rewards.” The two boys received thunderous applause and a standing ovation.

  When the applause died down and the boys returned to their seats, Mr. Liu wrapped up the presentations. “This ends our awards ceremony for this evening. Your waiters are now bringing dessert and fresh tea. Please stay and visit as long as you like. I am honored by your presence and humbled by your confidence in me as your new CEO.” Again there was thunderous applause, and then the crowd began talking among themselves again.

  Daniel and Eric were ecstatic. “Do you realize that we now have the money for all of our band equipment?” Eric exclaimed. “We will be able to do things right, and get some quality stuff!”

  “I guess it pays sometimes to stumble into the wrong place at the wrong time!” Daniel said with a laugh. “Eric, our band is about to be born!” Daniel then asked Jason what he was going to do with his money.

  “I actually don’t need it,” Jason said. “You know I have whatever I want to do good works through my foundation. And our family is well off enough that I don’t lack for anything I really need. However, I do know of two people who really could use this money. I am going to give half to Cody Johnson and the other half to Teresa Barnwell. They both have had it rough, and they deserve a boost.”

  “Like I’ve said many times before, Jason, you never cease to amaze me!” Daniel replied.

  Richard Liu then came up to congratulate Jason and Daniel. “I second that, Daniel! But I include you in that thought, too. Remember that day over a month ago when I came over to Jason’s house to ask your help. I was so down, and immediately you made me feel better. I didn’t know whether you could actually help or not, I was grasping at straws out of desperation. But you guys stepped up to the plate and hit another homerun! Unbelievable! It’s a privilege to know you guys, it really is!”

  “Stop, Richard!” Daniel exclaimed. “Jason’s head is already swollen out of proportion. You are just going to make it worse!”

  “I know,” Richard replied, “but I had to say it. Thank you both! That’s the good news. The bad news for you is with all of that worry about Dad and DCC over, I can now fully concentrate on my basketball game. I plan to work hard on my game now until I can dominate on your driveway, Jason!”

  “All right, Richard!” Jason laughed. “That’s the spirit!”

  Chapter 31

  The End of Camp Chinquapin

  (The Next Month)

  It was now May. School was in full swing again, with a lot of the end of the year testing going on, and the seniors looking toward their graduation. All the excitement of the spring break Hunter & Holmes cases was a distant thought until one Monday, Jason and Daniel discovered messages on their cell phones from Captain Garcia. Garcia told them that he had received a copy of Lieutenant Lehman’s report on the Camp Chinquapin situation, and thought that they would like to know what was in it. Antonio invited them to stop by his office after school on Monday.

  When they arrived at police headquarters, Captain Garcia was in a meeting, so Jason and Daniel used the time to talk with Detective Will Nguyen to see how he was doing. “That concussion I received from Santos surprising me was really a bad one!” Nguyen said to the boys. “I spent several days in the hospital, and then continued to have dizzy spells for a while after. But now I feel I am back to normal. I am sure glad you were able to get the drop on Santos. Otherwise that could have turned into a really nasty hostage situation!”

  “We had two things going in our favor,” Jason explained. “The first was that he had just taken you out, so he was confident that the garage was empty. Second was that he had suitcases in both hands, so I was able to get two clean shots on him with the tire iron without him being able to hold up his arms in self defense. We didn’t even need our second line of attack, which was for Daniel to spray him with the fire extinguisher!”

  A few minutes later, Captain Garcia was done with his meeting and came over to where the boys and Will Nguyen were talking. “Hi, Jason, hi, Daniel.” he said shaking hands. “Come with me to my office, and I will show you Lieutenant Lehman’s report.” Since his promotion to Chief of Detectives, Garcia had been given a new spacious office with a nice view of the downtown area. There were a lot of framed pictures on the wall, including one of Captain Garcia receiving the check from the DCC company at the banquet.

  “Look, there you are receiving the check from Mr. Liu, Captain!” Daniel exclaimed.

  “And here’s the autographed picture from Eric for you and the SWAT team!” Jason added.

  “I should have a picture of you two on the wall, after all of the cases you have helped solve,” Captain Garcia said with a chuckle.

  “Really?” Jason replied. “You would put our pictures on the wall here?”

  “Why not?” Garcia replied. “We have already been involved on four cases together, and now I have the report for the Camp Chinquapin affair that is a fifth major case for Hunter & Holmes!”

  “We would be honored to send you a picture, Captain, then,” Daniel replied. “We’ll even sign it!”

  “That would be great, Daniel. Just be gentle with what you say,” Garcia replied.

  “Why Captain, we have nothing but the utmost respect for you!” Jason exclaimed. “Even when you give us the ‘don’t ever get in harm’s way again’ lecture!”

  “See what I mean!” Antonio said with a laugh.

  “But Captain, we learned our lesson long ago, so we always try to do things the proper way. It’s just that sometimes circumstances get out of control, or things happen that require action not procedure!” Daniel countered.

  “I can see I will never win this argument with the two of you. All I can say is I would feel really bad if I had to visit you guys in a hospital or worse yet at the morgue! Please be careful whatever you do.”

  “As we would for you, Captain, if something ever happened to you. So far we have been lucky and good has been able to conquer evil,” Jason replied. “Now tell us about the report, please!”

  Jason and Daniel sat down in chairs in front of his desk, while Antonio went behind the desk and picked up the report.

  “The more I read about this case, the more crazy and yet disturbing it is. You guys are old enough to understand that usually the criminal activities in a boarding school or overnight camp reported to us would be some form of sexual abuse case involving a counselor and a teenager. Lieutenant Lehman pored over the camp records he was able to obtain, and found only a couple of incidents at Camp Chinquapin in the last several years. In all cases the counselor was fired, and the teenager was released from the camp with a cash settlement. So in terms of that, the camp was straight and above board. What he says that makes no sense to him was the depths that they were willing to go to break down stubborn teenagers like Timothy Wilkinson and Cody Johnson.

  “The horrors that they were subjected to — constant beatings, restraints and gags, kangaroo courts, stakeouts, inedible food, torture sessions — their captivity was worse than a Nazi or Viet Cong prisoner of war camp! With the soldiers there was at least the pretense that the Geneva Convention was being followed.”

  “Captain, I will never forget how shocked I was when I first saw Timothy and Cody in that prison compound,” Jason said with a shudder. “How those two guys survived for so long in those conditions is a miracle! Ironically, it might have been more difficult for Cody or Tim to resist the guards efforts to break their will if they were less harsh with their prisoners!”

  “Lieutenant Lehman spent an extensive amount of time interviewing the two main camp authorities, Roland Thomason and Walter Gaither. They kept insisting that they had t
he absolute right to do what they did to those boys because their parents had signed off on what they kept referring to as Phase II permission. According to them they had to right to physically beat up, restrain, or use whatever force they deemed necessary to get these kids in line. They were adamant that for their program to succeed at the camp, everyone who entered had to submit totally and completely to their authority, and if they didn’t, well you saw the result!

  “Lieutenant Lehman asked them why it was necessary to go to such extreme lengths as physical torture to get a couple of teenagers to submit to that authority. ‘Wouldn’t it be easier to just release them, like you did with the kids that were sexually abused, refund the parent’s money, or offer a cash settlement?’ he asked. This was not even an option for Cody Johnson or Timothy Wilkinson, according to Roland Thomason. Walter Gaither was even more hard line, comparing the boys to bugs that needed swatting! There was even a case where a boy was actually killed by them, although they claim it was an accidental death. They paid out a settlement to the parents who according to Gaither were more interested in the amount of the settlement than why their son died! These people are incorrigible! Lehman finally concluded that he had truly seen the face of evil in those two men.

  “Lieutenant Lehman thought that Thomason and Gaither were actually going to force them to take this case to trial until the district attorney started using some psychology back on them. He would schedule a meeting to consider a plea bargain for certain counts of the indictment. When Gaither and Thomason insisted that they had done nothing wrong, the district attorney would get up and tell them some of the arguments he planned to use before the jury. ‘The Geneva Convention requires that all prisoners of war be given bedding and adequate clothing for the climate. You gave them no bedding whatsoever, no blanket or pillow, and only a pair of shorts to wear in a mountain climate.’ Or ‘Most civilized countries in the world have signed treaties banning torture as a method of interrogation or punishment for prisoners. Yet at Camp Chinquapin, these two teenagers were subjected to daily torture sessions, beatings and whippings. Are the gates of Camp Chinquapin the boundary line where civilization actually ends on Highway 42?’