Quote Originally Posted by nikvoodoo View Post
Are you discounting Tommy being shot and the blood splatter getting into Saul? Or are you just saying you don't believe the bullet carried the virus?

In order for Saul to have been shot and have the wound be under his collar bone, Saul would have to be facing Burt with Tommy between them (and Tommy had his back to Burt). There are two shots fired as j0be pointed out. So there are a few ways this sequence could have gone down:
  • Shot 1 hits Tommy and goes through him and into Saul, the blood splatter gets near or into Saul's wound. Shot 2 could go anywhere at this point in this scenario and it wouldn't matter.
  • Shot 1 hits Saul, and shot 2 hits Tommy and any resulting blood splatter could get near or into Saul's wound.
  • Neither shot hits Tommy who plays possum knowing he's being shot at. One hits Saul, and the others misses both entirely.
  • Shot 1 hits Tommy but no exit wound, so the second shot hitting Saul results in no contact with Tommy's blood.


I think that's about it in terms of scenarios that result from two shots one of which has to hit Saul. The hallways don't seem to be capable of producing a ricochet so that idea is eliminated too.

The biggest issue of all though: Do you believe Burt misses at close range even when drunk? Remember, he took out three or four Mallers at close range, has picked off a couple at a distance during this fight. Is it possible? Sure it is. But I'm hanging my hat on what I described as scenario #1 I listed above.
Way to think that out man!

Yarri was discounting the virus being transmitted IF it was a "Through and Through" due to the heat (even though a shell casing isn't what enters the body) I was discounting the "TaT" all together.

I'm still sticking with one hit one miss theory then. IF Burt hit Tommy, then it wasn't a good hit because he got up and died later (fall, wound or fire???). I'm going to put great stock into Saul's line about Burt's marksmanship and also in KC's writing. I don't think the line was there if Saul was the victim of a "through and through."
What I do know about ballistics is that there are tons of factors that come into play and the most important is type round used. It'd actually be a freak accident for a "TaT" to maintain enough velocity to do damage to 2 bodies. Possible? sure. Probable? hmm...

Do I belive Burt missed at close range even though he hit other targets? Sure do. sure do, sure do!
It's one thing to shoot at people you really WANT to hit, but Tommy was a kid and he was one of them. That may have contributed to Burt's losing his "Zen" focus for that split second. Hench why he needed 2 shot and Tommy was already moving by the time the second one came.
I'm not even going to go into the possibility that Burt could have been more intoxicated at that moment than he was minutes before.