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“Haven’s at the bar today,” Micah says, which surprises me.
“The Back Door is never open on Sundays.”
He shrugs. “I don’t think she’s doing business but she brought in a big screen and invited the staff to watch the game.”
I’m not unhappy about the news. I’d rather know she was here but Haven is hosting a watch party of my game. Definitely a close second to sitting in the stands. And now that I’m positive she’s watching today I’m even more determined to put on a good show.
“We ought to get back to the seats,” Gage says. He jerks his chin at me. “Good luck.”
“See you later.”
Micah lifts Dash’s tiny hand in a mock wave.
No sooner are they out of sight when I’m tapped for the final team huddle before we jog out to the field.
We’ve got a couple of rookies this season, along with a sprinkling of top tier veterans. It’s a good team. Hardworking and scrappy. I’m proud to be a part of it.
“Whose castle is this?” I ask in a booming voice.
“OUR CASTLE!” comes the unanimous chest-pounding answer.
“That’s right. Time to defend it, boys.”
With that, I lead them through the tunnel into the vivid mayhem of the stadium. The crowd was given green towels to wave and from here it looks like thousands of fluttering seaweed strands.
The loudspeaker overpowers all the other noise and calls us one by one.
“And number twenty-nine, our hometown quarterback CON-NER WISE-MAN!”
The roar is deafening.
Lights flash.
Camera lenses gape, each one looking like a gateway to the girl I love. She’s out there watching.
We score a touchdown on the first epic drive. A field goal follows. Miami answers back with a touchdown of their own. We trade triumphs until we’re tied with a minute remaining before the end of the first half.
I’m hell bent on scoring before the buzzer. The ball is ours. A snap and it’s in my hands. The Miami defensive line is effective. No matter which way I look I can’t find a hole. Every receiver is obstructed. Either I can throw the ball away or run with it. The tougher choice will be the one I take. It’s always the one least expected.
Then I see him. Dillon Pratt has broken free and runs toward the end zone. It’s easily a forty yard pass. He turns my way, holds his hands up to show he’s open.
I bend my arm back and fire.
The pass is a thing of beauty, spiraling above heads and chewing up yards as it hurtles to Dillon’s waiting hands.
I’m standing still, admiring the missile I just fired, when a freight train crashes into me from the right side. My eye was on the ball and I never saw the tackle coming.
There’s a fleeting sense of flying through the air, a glimpse of the cloudless sky above.
Then my head hits the ground with brutal force.
A switch flips off.
The darkness is complete.
Chapter24
Haven
