D. MacHale - SYLO

She gave me a flirty wink. I headed into the locker room.

The game was a good one, a real back-and-forth battle that kept the fans cheering until the final gun. I think it probably helped everyone to forget the mess we were in, at least for a couple of hours. The best thing I can say about my own performance was that unlike the first game, I didn’t embarrass myself. I guess that’s saying something. On the other hand, I didn’t make anybody proud, either. Coach tried working me into the offense early, but I couldn’t do any better than stumble for a few measly yards per carry. I guess the worst came when I was thrown a quick outlet pass in the flat. Our quarterback really put some heat on the ball. I wasn’t ready for it and the ball bounced off my hands—incomplete.

Normally during a game, you don’t really hear the crowd. It’s all just white noise and there’s too much to worry about on the field to even think about it. But the moment that ball bounced away, I heard a collective sigh of disappointment that meant everyone was thinking the exact same thing: “Pierce sucks.” It’s a horrible sound, one that most people never have to hear. But I heard it and it stung.

I have to admit, in that brief instant I wondered what would have happened if I had taken a small sample of the Ruby before the game. Would I have made that catch? Would that massive groan of disappointment and disapproval been turned into ecstatic cheers and the approval of my teammates? And Olivia? I shook the thought quickly. As tempting as the idea was, it was wrong. No, worse, it was dangerous.

As the game went on, I handled the ball less and less, which was probably for the best. The undeniable truth was that I wasn’t as fast or as strong as the other players. It wasn’t for lack of trying. I just didn’t have the physical ability.

Kent, on the other hand, played the game of his life. He kept up the steady cheerleading and pushed the defense to attack. I don’t know how many solo tackles he made, mostly after blasting through a couple of blockers to get to the ball carrier. He had two interceptions, one that he returned for a touchdown, and he caused a fumble that he recovered himself. That play ultimately led to the winning score. I was genuinely impressed…

…until I went over to him on the bench to give him some encouragement. I banged his shoulder pads and said, “Unbelievable, man. Great game!”

Then I saw his eyes. They were wild…just like Marty’s. Gary’s too. In that brief moment I realized the truth. Feit had lied to me. Marty Wiggins had taken the Ruby before he died. I must have been in denial to believe that his incredible performance had been natural. There was no doubt in my mind that he had been under the influence of Feit’s sea salts.

And now it was Kent’s turn.

The rest of the game passed in a blur. I couldn’t take my eyes off Kent, fearing that he might drop dead at any second. He played every play with the same speed and ferocity that he’d started the game with. The Ruby was indeed an amazing substance. When Kent fell on the fumble that gave us the ball for the last time, the crowd on our side went nuts.

I turned away and looked into the stands again because I knew he had to be there.

And he was. Feit was standing in the center of the bleachers, surrounded by a group of ecstatic fans who had no idea that Kent’s life was in danger. He stood out because he was the only one who wasn’t cheering.

He was looking straight at me. When we made eye contact, he pointed to Kent as if to say, “That could have been you.”

My mind was spinning wildly. What was I going to do with this information? Feit was pushing a wonder drug that helped people perform at superhuman levels…and could be deadly. It made our victory feel hollow because Kent was definitely the MVP of the game. If he hadn’t taken the stuff and played like a monster, we might not have won.

One other disturbing thought tickled the back of my brain: If Marty died after taking the Ruby, did this supposedly harmless ergo-whatever supplement have anything to do with the mysterious virus that SYLO was looking for? It wasn’t all that crazy to think that somehow they might all be connected. I wasn’t about to start running around telling people that the sky was falling though. I tried that once before and got nowhere. Nothing happened after we told the sheriff and the Coast Guard about the exploding shadow. Before pointing fingers I wanted to know more.

The game ended shortly after we scored the go-ahead touchdown. After the gun the crowd erupted with enthusiastic cheers for both teams in appreciation for the amazing game and the short vacation from the grim reality of the quarantine.

I showered quickly and was the first to blast out of the jubilant locker room. A crowd was waiting outside to congratulate the players on our first win, but nobody stopped me. I had been a non-factor in the game. I rounded the building to head for home and saw the one and only person who had stuck around to see me.

“Great game,” Mr. Feit said.

I was so shocked that I stood there with my mouth open.

Feit added, “Then again, you didn’t do much, but that was your choice.”

“Kent took the Ruby, didn’t he?” I said.

Feit’s answer was to smile.

“And Marty did too,” I added. “That’s what killed him.”

“Whoa,” Feit said. “We don’t know that. Did he take it? Yes. I told him to take only a few granules but he downed the whole vial. Hell, you can’t swallow an entire bottle of aspirin without getting sick.”

“You lied to me,” I said flatly.

“I didn’t want to scare you,” he said.

“Scare me!” I shouted. “You’re handing out drugs that are killing people and you’re worried about scaring me? You’re responsible for Marty’s death! Did Mr. Nelson take it too? And that carpenter, Gary. He nearly killed a friend of mine!”

“Hang on,” he cautioned. “Don’t go throwing around accusations. The Ruby is totally safe.”

“Tell that to Marty’s family,” I sneered. “And the SYLO people. Is that why they’re here? Is it the Ruby they’re looking for?”

“I don’t know what they’re looking for,” Feit said. “But it’s not my sea salts.”

“No? Is that a lie too?” I asked.

Feit walked slowly toward me. It took all of my willpower not to back off but I didn’t want to give the guy an inch.

“Look,” he said. “You saw what the Ruby can do. You felt it. Do you think Kent could have played like that without it? He took a small dose, the amount he was supposed to take, and what happened? You won your first game. He’s a hero, and the hero always gets the girl. That’s what it’s really about, isn’t it? That cutie with the jean shorts. Olivia, right? I’ll bet she’s outside that locker room right now waiting for Kent just so she can throw her arms around him and tell him how great he was. And you know what? That could have been you. I saw how she kissed you before the game. Don’t expect a repeat performance.”

He broke into a big smile and added, “Unless…”

Feit pulled a vial of the red crystals out of his pocket and held it up to me, shaking it temptingly.

“You can’t be serious,” I spat at him.

“It’s totally safe if you take it properly. Marty didn’t. But you’re smarter than that. What do you say? Don’t you want to be the one who gets the girl?”

I stood there, mesmerized, staring at the sparkling red substance. The dazzling glow that came from the crystals was almost…hypnotic. It was so tempting. Marty had overdosed; that much was obvious because Kent was fine. The Ruby could be used safely. What harm would it do? Nobody would know. I could finally compete. I could make that catch. Without it, I didn’t stand a chance. It would be so simple. Just a little bit and things would be so different.