Chapter 25

Early December

December looks to be bright and beautiful, nothing worth reporting as changing. The state play-offs final is the first weekend of December and my school is in it for the first time, ever. This is very good for the school. The Board of Governors is very pleased with Mr Hills because they see the change in school morale, the big reduction in parent complaints about bullying, and the improvement in the important sports activities all happening due to the new approach he brings to the management of the school. He’s doing the job of Principal well while still handling the duties of School Monitor and he sees no need to hire a replacement while he can do both. This cost saving is also viewed by the board with much favour. So it’s no wonder the monthly meeting on the first Wednesday of December sees him being asked to be the new permanent Principal. His appointment and acceptance is welcomed by the student body because he’s fair and is well liked.

With the state final on the weekend the football practice sessions on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are gruelling. Thursday is all play discussions and there’s no practice on Friday so we can relax before the big game on Saturday afternoon. That’s good because it means I can get away for fifth period to watch my business jet land at the airport. It’s a great sight and one well worth watching.

Rob and Dad organised a good flock of combat experienced pilots. Enough to operate all day long in rotation, with spares. We hire enough to run the plane and a couple of helicopters Bryce is after as well.

First Flight

It’s a great feeling when I stand in front of our hangar at the airport to watch this big deep blue plane fly in and land. I enjoy watching it taxi over. A few of the airport staff wander over for a closer look. The fact we arrived in a huge Hummer in the same colour and logo hints at a connection. The Hummer is parked beside the hangar and our logo is on the wall above the office entrance too. The logo of a scarlet dragon with a gold scroll stands out well against the deep blue, almost black, aircraft.

The plane stops and stairs are wheeled up to it. The ground crew are still locking the frame down while I run up the stairs. The door opens and a grinning pilot, Basil, steps aside to let me in while saying, “Hi, Boss. Do you like your new toy?”

“I’ll give you an answer after I’ve walked through and had a flight. But I gather, from your smile, you like playing with it.” He just smiles as he nods before we walk through the A318 checking the special fit out. The normal plan has eight rows of four 525 mm wide seats before the mid-wing doors for first or business class and thirteen rows of six to a row 450 mm wide economy seats after the space for the doors. This fit out has forty-eight 600 mm wide luxury seats in twelve rows behind the mid-wing doors with a bit more leg room while the front area sits thirty-two people in eight rows of 625 mm luxury seats at four to a row with much more leg room. The first row of seats can be turned around to make discussions groups with the next row. There are no overhead lockers and the seats are set higher off the floor to give more space underneath the seats for the people in the next row to stretch out their legs. Each pair of seats also has a small storage area between them with cup holders and connectors for earphones for the radio and television. Each seat has a pull down dual purpose TFT screen for use as a television or computer with the keyboards in the storage unit. I check out both sets of seats. They’re both very comfortable with lots of room and are OK to sleep in. There’s a little office area with everything you need in an office in place of the front galley which places it opposite the front toilet. The standard galley area in the rear and two rear toilets behind the last row of seats are as per the normal layout plan. Rob insisted on bullet resistant composites being used where possible which added five million to the cost, but well worth it for the peace of mind. The loss of the thirty seats is made up by the comfort of the eighty seats we do have.

Basil starts to give me the technical details of some of the other fit out aspects. All I understand is a section of the under floor storage has the computer gear for each seat to have a top quality computer with lots of digital storage space while less than half is used by a thousand films and thirty thousand songs. That should cut down on in-flight boredom.

We’re walking forward while Basil tells me about how well she flies. He thinks we’ll have very good handling in flight because the reduced passenger load means we’ll always be well underweight and thus more responsive and manoeuvrable. I simply agree as I’m happy he’s happy. We’re back at the front entrance when the rest of my family arrives.

All of my girls, Dad and his ladies, plus all but the minimum guards needed to stay at the hotel. I glance at Basil, and he grins while saying, “I’ll see if I can get approval for a short flight around the area, probably for about thirty minutes.” He hurries off to talk to Control. A little later the public address system tells us to take seats while one of the flight crew shuts the door as the stairs are removed. We’re fast to scatter to seats. All of the security people head to the back section to sit down, even while there are free seats in the front. A few minutes later we’re all belted in as the plane taxies out. And very soon we race down the runway to lift into the air. It’s a very smooth take off and the aircraft is nice to ride in.

We’re off for a short flight in a semi-circle around most of Frederick. Heading out to the east-north-east to circle around to come back from the south while not going anywhere near Washington. All enjoy the ride and the scenery below because we aren’t taken up high. The landing is as smooth as the take-off, thus showing how good a pilot Basil is.

After we return to the hangar Basil comes back to talk to me just as I reach a decision on a name for the plane. I say, “Basil, can you get hold of someone to paint the name on the aircraft? I want it in gold to match the scroll, in letters a metre high, and on each side just below the cockpit windows. One side is to be in English characters, ’Ryū,’ and the other side will be in Japanese kanji. Tora will write it out for them. It’s Japanese for dragon. This will be the dragon I ride on to Japan later this month.”

He smiles, “Ryū. I like the sound of that as the sound suits an Aussie.”

We exit the aircraft to leave the flight crew and hangar staff to look after her. I know she’s in good hands. Rob and Dad make a point of hiring quality people with combat experience so they’ll be secondary level guards in a real crisis instead of someone else to protect. Rob is also getting them all issued with federal carry licences to make them legally armed guards. The staff like the idea because it means they get more pay as well.

Back at the penthouse I email Bryce with the aircraft name and how good she is. I ask him to work out some rates to charge it out at if we let someone else use her. I also ask how he’s going with the helicopters. I send an email to Randy with the details of the aircraft, including the name, and tell him when I’m not using it REBS can use it. That’s the charity he set up for me, the Robyn Evans Benevolent Society. This is set up to do any good works for anyone and to have donations to it from the companies as a tax deduction. Randy has all of the paperwork done and he now needs some business cards made up since he’s a senior officer of it. Dad and Dee are also senior officers of it. This is to distance it from me. It’s already a registered charity in the USA, Canada, Australia, and Japan. Randy had some help from my Aussie people, but he did some fast work to get that all organised so quickly.

Football Final Minutes

The state high-school football final starts at one p.m. in the afternoon on the first Saturday in December. The venue is in Baltimore and it’s got full stands. If you’d asked me before the game I’d have said there was no way we’d get eighty-five thousand people to a game of ours, but that’s how many have bought tickets to watch this game. We’re a bit awed by it.

The team travels down the night before so we’ll be well rested for the game. We arrive on site about twelve fifteen to look over the field. Already spectators are entering the stadium. I hear a cheer, and I turn to see all of my girls walking across the field. The school cheerleaders aren’t here yet so I’m surprised the organisers let the girls in. The girls come over and I give them each a kiss, getting more cheers from the crowd. We go in to get ready as the girls start doing a few gymnastics routines to entertain the spectators while they fill up the stands.

At twelve forty in the afternoon we walk out to start our light warm up exercises. The other team is there as well. We saw them arrive, their smallest member is the same size as our fifth biggest and they all out-weigh us by seven to fifteen kilograms, they are all big with lots of muscles. We’re going to get pounded in every tackle. It’s a good thing we’ve been training for that for months, so we should stand up to it reasonably well and a lot better than in the past. Our advantage is speed and agility. Their fastest guy would be about ninth or tenth on our team.

We’re a bit concerned because we know they’re going to be watching Alec, Greg, and I closely. Alec has the most touchdowns for the state, I’m in third place, and Greg is in fifth place, with Bill in seventh place. Ours is the only team with more than one player in the top ten scorers list, and we’ve got four. I’m the leader on most yards gained with Alec, Barry, and Greg in the top ten too. Our offence is ranked as the state’s best.

The game starts on time and it’s a gruelling match. We get the ball and race them for the goal line. As per our plan every time they hit me hard I take a short break, and I’m often hit hard at the line just to stop me running deep. However, I do manage to get away and down the field for some first downs along with three touchdowns.

It’s a high scoring game because we run the ball fast to score quickly while they just push us down field when they’ve got the ball. We score, they score, we score, they score, and so on. Midway through the fourth quarter all of our players are feeling the pounding and we’re all very tired and sore from the pounding we received.

Each year, for over a decade, this team has taken ours out just by pounding us into the ground then running over us for a big win. This year it’s a much closer game. We’re down by two points at forty-nine to forty-seven as we missed our last two extra points by not being able to hold them back. They’ve just scored again and we’ve run the ball back to our twenty-five yard mark. Not enough time left on the clock for our normal style of drive and everyone knows it. Our only chance to win is a long pass play. We’ve already shown them every special play, trick, and variation in our bag. That’s all that’s kept the game this close. The crowd is very excited because this is the close fought match they expected to see, but it’s also a lot more gruelling than anyone expected. Their coach is upset we’re still up and moving, while they’re starting to wear down too.

We take one of our last two timeouts to discuss the play. Coach has already told us to do what we think we can do because he’s run out of tricks and it’s up to what we’ve got left in us to give the game. We gather around to discuss options. Greg figures we’ve got time for three plays, but we’ll need two to get to their end zone. One to get us into their half and another one or two to finish with. Everyone is stuffed. We agree on a game plan for the next three plays. We break and line up, ready to play.

Spectacular Sport

The press box is very full for this high-school match with two of the top regional sports announcers in the state on hand while they cooperate to call the game. This is very unusual because they’re from rival networks. Roger speaks into the microphone to television land, “No one knows why, but there’s a lot more interest in this state high-school final than has been shown in the previous several years all together. All season the networks have been enjoying the laughs from watching the plays made by the new player, Adams, ’The Wimp.’ Not much is known about him, apart from his incredible speed, agility, and his refusal to take a tackle. Much discussion has followed his short career so far.”

Chad takes the other side, just on general principle, “Well, you know I’ve always been a bit worried about that. Have you seen him off the field? I have. He’s tall, solid, well-muscled, and very smart. I spoke with him off the record in the locker room after his last game. His size and build says he can take a hit. He’s an Aussie, and we all know how crazy they are about things physical. I just wonder what it’s about. He moves like a big cat. In fact, I’ve heard his cheerleaders say they all call him Tiger because of the way he moves like one: lithe, supple, and quick. So far the game has been very interesting with the gruelling slogging by both sides and now they’re both worn out. And that reminds me, we’ve already seen Adams hit hard a dozen or more times today, yet he’s always back in the line when needed. Two points down and on what’s sure to be their last drive. Will they make it count? The next few minutes of game time will tell us the answer to the question.”

“Yes, only a few more minutes to go then it’s all over for another year for both teams. But this game has turned out to be a lot better than anyone expected. Speed and agility against brute force, and only two points difference. So far this year Adams and his team have managed to pull a few last minute wins. Can they pull a rabbit out of the hat now?”

“They’re lining up, time to go back to the game. There’s the snap. Both of the receivers are taking off fast, Adams has avoided being blocked at the line, but he’s the only one. He’s through the second line. They’ve got good protection on Dixon, the quarterback, he’s got plenty of time to make his pass. Adams is through the second line of defenders, but he can’t beat the third, not with the second line bearing down on him from behind. What’s this? He’s turned back to run back through the defenders chasing after him. They’re trying to stop and turn. Oh, lovely. There’s a new play for the book. He’s in the clear and the ball’s flying to him while he runs toward the line of scrimmage. Dead on the numbers for a clean catch. Adams spins again and is off down the field. He dodges through the confused defenders and he’s going fast. He’s to the fifty, the forty, and they’re closing in on him. As expected he’s taking a knee at the thirty-five yard mark. The whistle blows to end the play and they call for a timeout to stop the clock. That wasn’t needed. Was that intentional or are they just too tired to stop. Two defenders ran straight over Adams, and penalty flags are down all over the place.”

“I agree, Chad, that late hit wasn’t needed at all. Adams made the first down and then some. A good forty yard play. He didn’t deserve to be hit like that. Here it comes, a fifteen yard penalty, so they move down to the twenty yard line. I expect they’ll decline so they can keep the field wide open. No, they’ve accepted it and are moving down while two players help Adams get up. Damn, is that a big grin on his face? Yes it is! He gets hit very hard and he’s grinning. Dixon is calling for a timeout and the referee is making the call to give it to him. Their coach is indicating for a thirty second one and the referee is calling it a thirty second timeout.”

“Despite the hard hit Adams seem to be moving OK and looks to be discussing plays with Dixon while they walk. The defence is with the coach for the timeout. I don’t think the other coach realises it’s a thirty-second timeout. The referee has told the coach the timeout is over and the defence looks confused about what to do while their coach looks as if he didn’t get to finish his talk. Good strategy to call for a short timeout.”

“That’s an interesting line up there Chad. Adams is back about ten yards from the line of scrimmage. And the rest of the team is close to the ball. What do you think they’re going to do?”

“This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this team line up like this, but it’s been a while. You forget Adams has drop kicked four field goals during the year. This is a bit far, but I don’t think he’d be setting up to do it if he didn’t think he could make it. If he does the three points will see them win, if they can hold the game for the remaining minutes. Look, the defence has picked up on it too and are shifting to flood the kick.”

“Well, there’s the snap, but Adams is in motion too, what’s going on? Now that’s a new play. Dixon has flipped the ball back to Adams who’s running straight at the apex of the pocket, Dixon is ahead of him. Look at that. Dixon’s opened a hole in the line and Adams is through it in a flash. He’s off and running. But with the three hardest tacklers in a direct line between him and the goal, I don’t expect a score.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that, Roger. Adams called the play. He must have known what to expect when he got through. So he must have something planned to make this a touchdown for them, somehow.”

“Well, that’s it. Westland is in front of Adams and he’s the hardest hitter in the competition. No one gets by him, no one.”

“Until now. Did you see that? Adams hit him and just knocked him aside at the ten yard line. He’s heading for the goal line with only Smith and James to beat. Well, well, well. I bet you never expected to see that!”

“No, I didn’t, Chad. Adams just raced straight into Smith and James, knocking Smith flat on his back at the five yard line and he’s pushing James ahead of him while he powers over the line for the touchdown. The Wimp just took out the three hardest hitters in the state. What’s he doing now? Adams has tossed the ball to an official and called out to him. Now he’s racing back to where Westland is still on the ground. What the heck does all that funny sign language with his hand mean?”

“He wants a medic, that’s what it means, I know it. That’s Special Forces combat sign language! He’s calling for a medic. How the hell does he know that, and so well? Look to the side, there’s a person running on with a large medical kit.”

“It looks like we sit and wait for a while. But that last play was totally unexpected.”

“Oh, I don’t know, Roger. I think one very wily Aussie just took the whole state football league for a ride in one of the longest play set ups we’ll ever see. The way he went through them shows he can do it and has probably been able to do it from day one. That’s one crafty player down there. One very crafty player.”

Unexpected Outcome

I work hard at projecting the image I’m about to go for a field goal as I wait for the snap. Everything worked well in the last play, too well. We expected another play, but the penalty means we don’t need it. The snap, and I start running. Greg takes the ball and flips it back to me while I run forward. He turns and charges for the apex of the pocket. Yes, as we thought, they thinned out the centre to put more power on the sides. He better be able to punch through as I can see the sides collapsing. He’s through and I’ve a hole to go through. What a look I get when I go by.

Only three to go, but the worst three to take on, Westland, Smith, and James. The three hardest hitters in the state and the top three for tackles made with errors caused. I can feel the hits already, but we need this touchdown. Here he comes. I best get my head down, arm in tight, shoulder up. That crack-crack didn’t sound good. He’s down, but that bloody well hurt, I’ll be sore for a week. Shit, here’s the next two. I best lean forward and give it all I’ve got left. It’s now or never!

Hitting them hard I watch one go down hard. I don’t know which one. My face is buried in the chest of the other while I push him ahead of me in my quest for the goal line. There’s that beautiful whistle, I made it. Stopping, I look around for the official. Spotting him I toss him the ball as I tell him to send for the trainers because Westland is hurt bad. He just stares at me. Turning, I race for where Westland is lying on the ground.

I arrive to hear him moaning, “Oh, fuck I hurt.”

“Shut up, Westland. Keep still! Breathe slow and shallow. It’ll hurt less.” He nods and his breathing slows. I’d hit his left side so I pull up his jumper there. That bubble shouldn’t be there. Looking up I spot Rob at our bench and signal for our duty medic, Rob waves and speaks into his radio. “Sorry, mate, I didn’t mean to damage you, just push you away. But you are a big and heavy fellow. Take it easy and wait for the medics. I’m certain you’ve got a broken rib or two, so no movement is what’s needed.” He nods again and he winces with the pain of breathing.

Marcus, a medical technician from Vampire, races on with his huge kit. If he was any more qualified he’d be a doctor. Instead of trying to get good medics of our own my contract with Vampire now includes them supplying field medics for us on a twenty-four hour rotation. This is good for us both because they rotate the work through their whole team to give them a break from waiting at the helicopter for a call and they get good bonuses while with us. While I’m happy to have the quality care that much closer; the shooting incident at school was too close a call for me. Marcus checks and is quick to confirm Westland has a flail, maybe two; he needs an x-ray to be sure. Marcus calls for the ambulance and sends for the cart to take Westland off the field to the car park. They’re soon gone from the field. Marcus will stay with him until the ambulance paramedics take him away to the hospital. Then Marcus will return to us.

Our special team setting up for the extra point doesn’t need me so I go over to the opposition coach. He gives me a nasty look, “You horrid, little, sneaky bastard. How long have you been able to do that? I should have listened to my wife when she said to watch you very closely and not to believe what we were seeing on the news. She’s an Aussie, too.”

I grin, “I knew, before the season started, we’d meet your team. Each year it’s your team that knocks my school out by sheer muscle power. So I’ve been setting you up, from the first game, for that one special play when you least expect it and we need it the most.”

Coach Hall shakes his head, “Well, it worked. Time will be up before we can do anything. What do you want, now you’ve won?”

“Westland, who’s his best mate on the team?”

Turning Hall picks up a fluffy ball and throws it at a player while saying, “That’ll be Lester, William Lester, that is.” The player hit by the ball turns, picks up the ball, and comes over to the coach. “Lester, this is Adams, the guy that just spent all season setting us up to lose. He wants a word with you about Westland.” The player smiles as he looks at me.

I’ve got the close attention of them both when I say, “Westland has broken ribs with one or two flails, loose sections of ribs floating about. He’s out of football for the next several months for sure, probably a bit longer. Is he a senior or junior?”

“He’s a senior. And if he’s out of football for all of next season he just lost his scholarship offer from Notre Dame. He wants to teach high-school history as his long term career. But no scholarship, no college for him. His dad has a good job, but not one good enough to put him through college except at the local community college as a part-time student. The Notre Dame scout is here to finalise their contract after the game, Westy told me about it.”

“Do you know the scout and can you point him out?”

Coach Hall says, “I can see him standing over there looking at us.”

“Best wave him over.” I turn and sign for one of my people to get me Randy, I need him so often we came up with a special sign for him.

Hall introduces the man, “Benny Collins, meet Al Adams, the dirty player who just won our state championship.”