The rest of the Foxes stayed behind, waving at the cameras and crowds. They'd lost, but they were buoyed by Kevin's assessment and their fans' unflagging support. Finally Wymack got them all into the locker room. Renee was waiting in the foyer, but Andrew was nowhere in sight. Neil assumed he was puking in the bathroom.

Wymack locked the door behind them, buying them a minute or two before the press came looking for comments, and faced them. "When I told you this June you'd be facing Edgar Allan on your court you said there was no way you could do it. But you faced them tonight and you didn't let them push you around. You took six points from the first-ranked team in the nation. You should be pretty fucking proud of yourselves right now."

"Proud of that mess?" Aaron asked, tired and annoyed. "We were destroyed."

"I'm just glad it's over," Nicky said. "They're terrifying."

"I'm proud," Allison said, earning a startled look from Nicky and a half-smile from Wymack. She turned a condescending sneer on Aaron, looking more like herself than she had since Seth died. "This is only your second season with us. I wouldn't expect you to understand what a game like this means."

Dan nodded. "Allison's right. Losing hurts, but it's not a total loss. Last year we wouldn't have managed a single point against them. This is the strongest we've ever been, and we can only get better from here. Kevin already said it: when we meet the Ravens in semifinals we're going to knock them down a peg or two."

"Well said," Wymack said. "Kevin, Neil?"

"Twenty-six miles?" Neil guessed.

"I've got something better in mind. Starting next week everyone's finally back in their proper spots. If you two can run a full game against Edgar Allan, you're ready to take on the rest of the season alone. Everyone else: thank you for your patience and cooperation while Kevin and Neil adjusted. Renee especially—you've been a damned good sport this year. Welcome back to goal."

Dan's wild whoop drowned out Renee's more modest response. Matt gave Renee a triumphant hug, and Allison clapped a hand on Renee's shoulder in a quiet but fierce show of support. Neil wasn't sure he and Kevin wouldn't let the others down in the upcoming weeks, but he couldn't lean on his teammates forever. They'd spent half the season with a screwed-up lineup. He and Kevin had been playing longer stretches each week in preparation for tonight's game. Now it was time for them to take the offense line back and run with it.