Chapter 26

I am done with fiddling around with this thing! I am ready to finish it! Here is Chapter 26 CHAPTER 26 Kate was speeding through the streets of Salt Lake. It was now 5:15- less than two hours to go until game time. Jon had gotten extremely quiet. “You okay over there, Jon?” “How do we do this, Kate? What do I do?” “First, you show up, then we see what happens!” “What is that? Some kind of Zen kind of attitude?” “It’s one of Napoleon’s battle plans. First, you show up, then, you see what happens.” “Meaning?” “You can’t anticipate everything about tonight, Jon. There are way too many variables. It’s like seeing a math problem with no numbers in it and only letter variables from A-Z. We will hope that as the night goes on, numbers will start to fill in those variable spots and then we will be able to solve the equation. Until then-“ “-we show up and see what happens. Right.” Jon sunk in his seat. “Kill me now, Kate.” “After the past few days, do you really mean that?” Jon glared at her. “Forget I said anything. Let’s just get there.” “Dammit!” Kate slammed her palm against the dashboard. The traffic on the freeway was backed up at a dead stop a mile before their exit. “Can we not get a break at all?” “I wonder if there’s something going on tonight?” Jon smirked. “While I had planned for a lot of things, I had not planned for this.” “It’s 5:30. I still have time to get there.” Kate shook her head. “You really are not much of a jock, are you?” “No, I’m not, but I thought we had established that.” “You can’t just show up and walk on the court. You have a pre-game meeting, you get dressed, and ready for the game. Just like in your precious drama, you have to prepare for the performance. You probably should have been there about a half hour ago.” “Then, you should’ve found me sooner and laid on the guilt trip about an hour ago.” Jon grinned. Kate leaned over and opened the car door. “Go. Get out of the car and get to the school. We’re at a dead stop, you can make it on foot faster than by driving.” Kate pointed to the side of the road. “Go down that hill and cut across the business parking lots and it will probably only take you about 15 minutes to get there. I’ll meet you there.” “Kate, what if I need you? What if something happens?” “Got your gun?” Jon motioned to his gym bag. “Always.” “Use it if you need it. Now, go on. Don’t run otherwise you might tire yourself out. A nice brisk walk might help, though.” Jon got out of the car, grabbing his gym bag. “You’ll be there?” “Wouldn’t miss it!” Jon shut the door and climbed over the barricade to start his descent down the hill and to the school. Kate sighed deeply. “Good luck, Jon.” Jon was breathing heavily as he got to the Harmon’s grocery store parking lot. He looked at his watch. It was 5:50. All he had left to do was get across the large parking lot, cross 2 streets and he was at the school. But the parking lot was already packed with people getting out of their cars and making their way over to the school. Cars were not moving in the traffic lanes- either on the road or in the parking lot lanes. Since he was already a little tired, he decided that walking briskly would be best. Aleisha Madsen had parked in the Harmon’s lot, ready to walk across to the school, and saw Jon darting between 2 parked cars. “Jon! “ she called, but he didn’t hear her. She grabbed her purse, locked the doors, dropped her keys in the purse and ran after him. As she got closer, she reached through the mass of people separating them and grabbed his bag. “Jon!” Protecting his bag, and his gun, Mills twirled and stopped himself before he physically hit her in any way. He had also stopped walking. “Aleisha!” he sheepishly looked down at his hand, shaped to give a karate chop. “How are you?” Crowds of people parted and reconverged around the couple. “I was going to ask the same thing. I have had a couple of interesting talks with your new boss, Kate.” Aleisha locked eyes with him. Jon felt his heart plummet to his stomach. “Oh, really? What about?” “You. Where you were. Where you may have gone. What the hell is up with you. All of it.” “I’m so so-“ “Don’t tell me you’re sorry! I have everybody and their dog telling me that they are sorry and I don’t want to hear it anymore! Jon,” she grabbed his hand, “I like you. I hope you know that. This week has been one of the strangest that I have ever experienced, but it doesn’t change how I feel about you. I know that this basketball game has something to do with the weird week that you have had, and I just hope, that after the game is over, you can tell me what is going on. I know that Kate is not lying to me, necessarily, but I know that she’s not telling me everything as well. Please, just don’t tell me you’re sorry, just trust me and tell me what has been going on this week later tonight.” Jon thought for a minute and started slowly nodding. “Let the game finish, and I will.” Aleisha pulled him toward her and kissed him. “Good enough! Let’s get you to the game!” Aleisha kept Jon’s hand tightly clutched in hers as they made the way to the gym. They passed the Trager Sports Channel van as they made their way. Jon noted that Natalie was not there, but that there was a thin man with glasses in the van turning dials and speaking to his headset. “I haven’t seen him yet, Natalie, but I’m keeping my eyes open for him.” Jon took Aleisha by the player’s entrance. He opened the door and held the door open for Aleisha, but there was a large tarp in front of the door. Jon and Aleisha walked in and shut the door. Jon, while still holding her hand, guided Aleisha around the tarp and found that it was actually the background for Natalie’s camera. Jon quickly turned his head. But it was too late. Natalie had already seen him. “Mr. Page! I am so glad to see you!” Jon smiled crookedly. “Hey. Good to see you, too!” “I never knew that you were such a ladies man!” Aleisha chided. “Normally I’m not,” Jon shot back. He started scanning the bleachers, which were already filling up. “Are you ready for your on-camera interview? Is that why you’re here?” Natalie asked. “Not yet. I actually need to talk to her,” Jon motioned to Aleisha, “go in there,” Jon motioned to the locker room, “and then I will gladly talk to you!”” Jon started walking Aleisha toward the bleachers “Sounds good. Just make sure that you don’t forget about me, Mr. Page!” “Mr. Page?” Aleisha asked. “I couldn’t if I tried!” Jon yelled over his shoulder. Then, to Aleisha, “Please don’t even ask about the Mr. Page thing. I don’t even understand it fully.” Jon saw Greg in the crowd. “Greg!” he yelled. Greg looked around and finally saw Jon. He heaved a visible sigh of relief and threw his hands out to his side, pantomiming a look of exasperation. Jon put up his forefinger, as if to say one moment, then pointed to Aleisha and then back to Greg. Greg nodded. “Do you know Greg Taylor?” Jon asked Aleisha. “Doesn’t everyone?” “Good point. He’s up there on the third row,” Jon pointed to him. “Please go sit next to him for the game. Then, immediately after the game, I will promise that Stan & I will be there.” Aleisha fixed her gaze on Jon again. “You’d better be.” She kissed him again. “Good luck.” “Thanks!” Jon let go of Aleisha’s hand and headed to the locker room while she maneuvered her way up to sit next to Greg. As Jon walked by Natalie again, she called to him, “Don’t forget!” “I won’t! In fact, I’m counting on it!” he called back. Jon opened the door and walked into the locker room. Jon’s heart started pounding as he entered the hallway. Now this is just silly, he told himself. There is no way that anything could happen right now- there are way too many witnesses, he told himself. Coach Malone’s voice echoed through the hallway. Jon could tell that he was barking orders that wouldn’t mean much of anything- a bunch of ‘go out there and win one for the gipper’ routines- “If we play our best out there, nothing can stop us!” “There is no I in team” Jon was sick of them just thinking about them. Jon took a deep breath as he rounded the corner into the locker room. The team’s backs were to him as Jon entered. Coach was in the middle of them so all attention was in the middle of the circle and not at all on Jon. He walked slowly to his assigned locker and started dialing the combination on his lock. Coach stopped his speech. He let the silence linger in the air while Jon opened his locker. The opening of the door echoed in the thick, steamy air. “Mr. Mills, how nice of you to join us today.” Coach started walking toward Jon and the group slowly parted for him. Hobbs and Bernard had wicked grins on their faces while Stan had a look of genuine relief mixed with concern. “Coach,” Jon acknowledged him but put his gym bag in the locker and sat on the bench, all without looking at Malone. “Mr. Mills, would you care to tell us where you have been? Why did you miss your teammate’s funeral yesterday?” Jon was changing socks. “No, I wouldn’t care to tell you.” “I tried to get hold of you last night to ask for an early morning practice with you. You were not answering your phone. I even stopped by your house this morning to try to find you and make sure you were okay. Why were you not at home?” “Would you care to tell me why you feel it is any of your goddamned business?” “You were supposed to be here almost an hour and a half ago! Why could you not be bothered to show up?” “Because I have absolutely no respect for you, Coach. I told you that I would play in the game and I am here to do what I said I would do.” Jon caught Stan smirk ever so slightly at that. “I have already replaced you, Mr. Mills. You will not be playing in this game!” “I think that you will find that I will in fact be playing in this game,” Jon took off his shirt. “I have replaced you and Moss with 2 players from other students that I have in other classes. It’s over, Mr. Mills! I will not put up with your shit anymore!” Jon stood up. “Oh, you will be putting up with my shit for at least another 3 hours, Coach. I will be playing in tonight’s game.” He pulled a basketball jersey over his head and straightened it out. “Let’s have a chat, shall we?” Jon motioned to the hallway, meaning to take this into Coach’s office. “We’ll chat right here, Mills!” Jon took a breath. “Okay, then. You want to do it here, we’ll do it here.” Jon took another breath and stepped into the Coach’s personal space. “Regulations state that you must submit your final team roster 2 days before each game. It has already been submitted. Moss and I were on it. Due to the extreme issue which befell Moss, since you have already substituted a player in the past week, me, you do not get any more. I will be playing. We will be down one player. The only way in which you could get 2 “new recruits” would be to play them as Moss and Page. We have many TV cameras out there. If you try anything like this and kick me off the team, I will go and speak openly about everything, Coach.” Coach Malone was beet red. “You can’t do that! You signed a non-disclosure agreement!” “Actually, I did no such thing. I signed nothing. You needed a player, I took over. You need me, Coach. This is national television and a huge spotlight for the school. If we win, you will be given your choice of assignments for next year, all over the country. Hell, you’ll probably get that even if we just show up and play. As I walked in here, Natalie from SportsTime wants to interview me. I told her that I would be back and that I would not forget the interview. If you want me to stay quiet about all the shit, and I mean all, Coach, including the okayed upon hazing of new players, the creepy way that you kept looking for me last night, and the strip club violations, then you will put me in as a starter and I can be in the game whenever I want to be.” Coach was fuming, but silent. Jon let the silence linger. Not one player dared make a move or a sound. Stan’s eyes darted from Jon to Coach and back again. Coach stepped toward Jon, making the space between them infinitesimal. When he finally spoke, even though the team was gathered around, Coach’s voice was so filled with rage, yet so soft, that only Jon could hear it. “There is no way in which I don’t hate you right now,” he hissed. Jon stood his ground. “Nor I you, Coach.” Coach stared into Jon’s eyes for a full five seconds before Coach turned, and walked back to his office. Jon continued getting ready while the locker room got back to a normal noise level. Stan came up and sat down beside Jon. “You okay?” Jon considered for a moment if he should play it off as a joke or not. Deciding that he needed to level with his friend, he told him the truth. “Not at all. But I’m here.” Jon slowly took a deep breath, “I guess you know about yesterday?” Stan nodded. “Yup. Greg and I went to headquarters and we sat in on a meeting with everyone. They were extremely worried about you, Jon.” “I know. This whole thing is so screwed, it’s not even funny. Spencer is dead, Moss is dead, I am sure that Coach was looking for me so that he could kill me. If you’re not careful, you may be on that list as well. But I am here, and I am here for you.” Stan let the silence rule as Jon contemplated the small tiles in the locker room floor. “Can I do anything for you?” Jon nodded, almost imperceptibly. “Yes. Go tell Natalie that I will be out in about 10 minutes, let Kate know to watch Coach very carefully as I don’t think I made him feel all warm and squishy inside just now, and...” Jon finally looked back up and looked at Stan for the first time during this conversation, “help us win this whole fucking thing.” Stan smiled. “That’s the Jonathan Mills I know. You got it!” Stan patted his friend on the shoulder and hurried out of the locker room. Jon finished getting dressed. With the silent room, he closed his locker gently and walked over by the showers. He leaned against the wall as he looked at the spot where, just a little more than a day ago he had held Nicolas Moss in his arms as Nick died. Jon let out a huge sigh, “Shit.” He squatted and touched his fingers to the tile floor and ran them back and forth several times. “I’m so, so sorry, Nick.” After he stopped moving his hand, he still stayed near the ground, just staring at nothing in particular. After several minutes, Jon stood back up and walked over to Nick’s locker. The door was slightly ajar. He opened it and glanced inside. Hanging from the hook inside the door, Jon saw Nick’s medallion again. With a soft backhand, the door opened fully, bounced, and closed this time. Lightly punching the locker door with his fist, he listened to the rattling it made. Jon slowly started to punch it harder and harder, listening to the echoing in the locker room. He was starting to notice the noise of the crowd which had been slowly rising as he had been alone in the locker room. Mills stopped punching the locker and then silently listened to the crowd before kicking the locker hard by its base. “Let’s kick this pig,” he muttered as he grabbed his duffel bag and headed out of the locker room into the continually growing roar of the crowd.