Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 109903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 550(@200wpm)___ 440(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 550(@200wpm)___ 440(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Neil thought about Matt's offer the entire ride to the stadium, but he didn't bring it up. Kevin wasn't the right person to start with, though Neil figured he'd agree if there was a court close enough. Nicky would be the easiest person to convince, maybe. Neil could only imagine how Aaron would react, but since none of them had family it might be worth a shot. Neil was a little leery of meeting Matt's mother, but after Thanksgiving he was curious to see how normal people spent holidays.
As normal as the Foxes could be, rather.
"Focus," Kevin said impatiently, so Neil pushed it all aside for later.
-
The southeastern district Christmas banquet was held at Breckenridge that year. Luckily it was scheduled late enough at night the Foxes could sleep off the previous night's end-of-semester party, but it still meant seven hours on the bus. With the season two weeks behind them and exams finally out of the way, Neil had nothing to think about except Riko and Andrew. Andrew had been gone for five weeks now, and none of them had heard from him. Not even Betsy knew how he was doing, since she'd relinquished him to Easthaven's care. Neil tried not to dwell on it, but that was an impossible task, and he knew the Foxes were going to hear about it tonight. Riko, no doubt, would have something awful to say.
The Foxes were among the last to show up at Breckenridge's court. Kevin had slept most of the drive, since he'd had as much liquor as he did coffee that morning, but he woke up half an hour out from campus. He was silent as the grave for the remainder of the drive, but Neil looked back at him when they pulled up to the Jackals' stadium. Kevin was staring out his window at the other buses, and his violent flinch said he'd spotted the Ravens' ride.
Wymack shooed his Foxes and their dates off the bus and locked it behind them. When he turned around again he snapped his fingers at Kevin to get his attention. "Look at me."
Kevin dragged his blank stare to Wymack, and Wymack gestured between Neil and Matt. "You see these two? If I look your way tonight and you're not within five feet of at least one of them, I won't let you play a single damn game this spring. Get me? They're your shields. Use them. Use me, if you have to. Now give me a 'yes, Coach'."
"Mm," Kevin managed.
"Don't worry," Matt said. "He can't do anything with so many witnesses."
"He got to Neil at the last banquet," Allison said.
Kevin looked at Neil. Neil met his stare without hesitation and didn't let his nerves show on his face. They gathered their clothes from the undercarriage and followed a security guard inside. Neil changed in one of the bathroom stalls and considered his reflection afterward. The others were out of sight in the main room, so Neil leaned close to the mirror. He slid one contact out of the way for a moment, needing to see the chilly blue of his real eyes, and took strength in that.
He'd told Andrew he would stand with Kevin no matter what. He didn't intend to break that promise. "Neil" might be an easily-spooked runaway, and "Nathaniel" was a hunted young man, but "Abram" was the one shielded from and untouched by his father's bloody business. Neil would pull on every murder he'd seen and every endless, desperate night, and he'd face Riko unflinching. It was the least he could do. It was all he could do.
The court was decorated for Christmas. Poinsettia followed the walls all the way around, and a massive tree stood in one corner. Neil assumed it was fake, because there was no way they could have gotten a tree that size through the door unless they'd brought it in pieces. Heavy blankets under the stand ensured it wouldn't scratch up the court floor, and small presents were piled under it. Neil wondered for a moment if they were fake as well or if they were the Jackals' gifts to each other, temporarily loaned out for decoration.
Whoever organized the seating chart was smart enough to keep the Foxes and Ravens away from each other this time. The Foxes sat down opposite the Wilkes-Meyers Hornets, and Neil ended up between Renee and Kevin. The Foxes and Hornets hadn't seen each other since late September. Neil half-expected aggression, since the Foxes had won that match, but with the season over the Hornets were laid-back and rowdy.
After all of the teams had arrived, Tetsuji Moriyama tapped on a cordless microphone to call them to attention. Someone cut the cheery Christmas music off and Tetsuji surveyed the collected teams with a stony expression.
"The season rankings have been decided," he said without preamble or inflection. It was old news by now—sportscasters and coaches had been adding up points all season—but everyone perked up to listen. "The following four teams have qualified to represent the southeastern district in spring championship games. I will list them in order of ranking, first to fourth. Edgar Allan, Palmetto State, Breckenridge, Belmonte."
He passed the microphone off to a more personable coach who offered enthusiastic congratulations and seasonal wishes. One of the Hornets didn't wait for him to be finished but leaned across the table and gestured at Kevin and Neil.
"How the hell did two of you beat Breckenridge?"
"It wasn't just two of us," Neil said.
The look she gave him said she wasn't impressed by that modesty. Neil shrugged and let it slide. He understood her skepticism, but he stood by his words.
Because Palmetto State and Breckenridge ended the season with the same twelve-two record, the ERC used their goals ratio as a tiebreaker. It was the same method they used in semifinals, which was why spring semis were considered a wild card round. The Foxes' points earned-lost ratio was simply better than the Jackals' was.
A large part of that could be accredited to their defense line, from their unyielding goalkeepers to their aggressive backliners, but the ratio also relied heavily on the strikers' performance. Somehow Neil and Kevin scored enough this season to one-up the Jackals. Neil didn't know how they'd done it but he didn't care. The Jackals came to Palmetto State in August with every intention of hurting both Seth and Kevin. Neil had loathed them ever since.