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“I WILL NOT BE AFRAID OF TEN THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE, THAT HAVE SET THEMSELVES AGAINST ME ROUND ABOUT.” —PSALMS 3:6

K endall insisted that the ambulance take Reggie to Glendale because they had a better medical facility than Stoney Creek. He paced back and forth across the waiting room in much the same manner he had on the sidelines of the football game. Every few minutes he stole a glance at Jarilyn, who was sitting in one of the chairs. The lines around her eyes and mouth seemed to grow deeper with each passing moment. The more he looked at her, the angrier he became. Oh how he’d like to get his hands on Coach Howard—to finish what he’d started earlier when he’d charged across the field. It was one thing for Ben to come after him, but to injure his star player—now that was unthinkable. Reggie was one of his. His prodigy. He’d taken him under his wing, watched him excel, and then there was Jarilyn. Kendall knew how much she and Reggie had been counting on a scholarship. Now with one bad hit, all of those hopes could be gone.

“Are you Reggie’s mother?” The voice jerked Kendall back to reality. He looked at the woman standing in front of Jarilyn. At first he thought the woman was a nurse, and then he realized she was the doctor.

“Yes, I’m Reggie’s mother,” Jarilyn said.

The doctor cleared her throat. “Reggie has suffered a shoulder separation, but he’ll be all right. It’s just going to take some time to heal.”

“How much time?” Kendall asked, looking at Jarilyn. They were both wanting to know the same thing. When could Reggie play again?

“Well, some of that’ll depend on Reggie. I’d say two months at best and four at worst.”

Jarilyn was the first to find her voice. “Will he be able to finish playing this season?”

The doctor shook her head. “I wouldn’t recommend it. If Reggie were to get hit again in the shoulder,” she looked from Kendall to Jarilyn, “his injury could become permanent.”

Jarilyn’s body swayed to one side. Kendall rushed to her side and put his arm around her shoulder. “It’ll be all right. We’ll figure this thing out.”

Mrs. Fletcher reached in the dryer and grabbed an armful of clothes and dropped them into the basket to be folded. She could hear the sound of Emma’s music over the hum of the washing machine. The shrill ringing of the phone sent her rushing into the living room. Maybe this was the call they’d been waiting for, the call that would let them know if Stoney Creek would be allowed to participate in the division playoffs. After Friday night’s fiasco with Dover, things weren’t looking promising. The Alabama High School Activities Association would reach a decision today.

Kendall wasn’t even going to answer it. He was waiting for her to get it. She reached for the receiver, all the while her eyes were on Kendall. He was sitting at the desk with his forehead in his hand. Even from an angle, she could tell that his jaw was tight.

She picked up the receiver and felt a momentary letdown when she realized it was a sales call. “No. Thank you. I’m not interested.” The sour taste of panic rose in her throat and she saw an image of J. W. the night he died. He sat in that same spot with his forehead in his hand just before he told her that he was going to clean his guns.

“Kendall, you look so tired. It may be a while before we hear anything. Why don’t you go and lay down?”

“No, I won’t be able to rest until I hear something. I’m too worried about what’s going to happen with the team. We’ve worked so hard and come so far. It just seems so unfair to have it all end now.”

“What’s the doctor saying about Reggie? Will he be able to play?”

Kendall ran a hand through his hair. “It doesn’t look like it.” He took a deep breath. “At this point, it might not even matter.” He shook his head. “I’ve coached most of these guys since their freshman year, and now they’re seniors. This is their chance at the state championship.”

“Kendall, I know you’re upset, but it is just a game.”

“Well, it’s not to my boys. It could mean scholarships and college educations.”

Gail studied her son’s face for a moment. “Are you sure this is about those boys or is it about you?”

Kendall looked startled. Gail’s voice became soft. “Honey, I know what kind of pressure you’re under to win, and I also know what it feels like to live in a fishbowl.”

“Do you? Does anybody really know how I feel?”

“Are you sure this is just about football?”

Kendall stood. “Well of course it’s about football. What else is there?”

The phone rang again and Kendall’s eyes met his mother’s. She went to answer it.

“Hello?”

She handed him the phone. “It’s Walter. He said the association reached their decision.”

Gail held her breath as she watched Kendall’s expression. Then she saw the smile break out over his face. A few minutes later he hung up the phone and grabbed her and began dancing around the room.

“Well Mama, Walter did it again. I don’t know how he managed it, but somehow he did. It looks like Stoney Creek’ll be playing in the division playoffs.”