Neil didn't think Wymack stayed on the line long enough to get an answer, because he was off the phone when he came back a couple seconds later. He was carrying a towel and an armful of clothes, all of which he shoved at Neil.

"You're a sopping mess. Get out of my sight and clean up before I wring your neck."

Neil took everything down the hall to the bathroom and locked himself in. He kept the water tepid as he washed away the day's heat and sweat. The clothes Wymack leant him were ridiculously big on him, but at least they covered his scars. Neil bundled his dirty clothes into the wet towel and left the bathroom with them. He felt relaxed for the first time all day, but that faded at the sound of Wymack's angry voice. Neil crept down the hall toward the living room.

Andrew was standing silent in the middle of the room as Wymack went up one side of him and down the other. Judging by the impatient look on his face, Andrew was still sober. He was also facing the door, which meant he spotted Neil first.

"Have a nice stroll?" he asked, interrupting Wymack's tirade.

Neil returned his cold stare with a heated, "Fuck you."

Wymack snapped his fingers in front of Andrew's face, trying to get Andrew to look at him instead of Neil. "I don't know what the beef is between you two, but it ends here and now. Abby and I made it clear we wouldn't tolerate a repeat of last year, Andrew."

"This isn't a repeat." The edge in Andrew's voice said he'd already argued this point several times. "We only gave him crackers. You think he'd have made it back here on his own otherwise?"

"Don't 'only' me. What the fuck were you thinking?"

"What were you thinking, bringing him here?" Andrew returned.

Neil decided to cut in before Andrew shared any of his theories. "Coach, I need to talk to Andrew for a minute. Can we use your office?"

"No," Wymack said. "I don't trust you two not to kill each other, so you're staying right here until this is resolved."

That left only one option, but Neil hated losing his wild card so early in the game. He hoped Wymack couldn't speak German and switched languages to lay into Andrew. "What the hell is your problem? How can you threaten Nicky for coming onto me but condone drugging me out of my mind against my will? Why can't you just leave me alone?"

That wiped the irritation off Andrew's face. It was forever before Andrew answered in German. "That's unexpected. Did no one tell you I hate surprises?"

"What makes you think I care?"

"How many languages do you speak, runaway?"

Neil ignored that. "Tell me why you did that."

"I already did," Andrew said. "I'm still waiting for your answer."