Their second match of the season was an away game, for which the team was grateful. Seth's absence was noticeable enough at practices; the first home game without him would be awkward and distracting. Neil didn't think Allison was ready for that yet.

Wymack needed them at the court by twelve-thirty on Friday so they could get on the road on time. He signed them out of their late morning classes, but it didn't save Neil from his Spanish and math lessons. After calculus he dropped his bag off at the dorm and met his teammates. Dan did a headcount in the hall to make sure they were all present, and then they split up between two cars for the short drive to the stadium.

Since Saturday's trip to Columbia, Neil had been riding to the stadium with the cousins. There was more room in Matt's truck than there was in Andrew's backseat, but Andrew had given Neil an explicit order Saturday night: stay in Kevin's line of sight and keep Kevin interested in his potential. Neil could have argued that there was nothing to gain from sitting behind Kevin in a car, except now Dan and Matt trusted him to somehow bring the team together. They were right when they said Andrew was the key. Neil had to stay on his good side until he figured out the right leverage, so he swallowed his discomfort and did as he was told.

He had a new reason to be uncomfortable when they pulled into the stadium parking lot. Abby had been out all week taking care of Allison, but her car was here now. That meant Allison was waiting for them in the locker room.

On Saturday morning Neil insulted Riko on national television. Kevin warned them Riko would retaliate the same day. The Foxes should have stayed together out of sight, but Allison and Seth went bar-hopping downtown with friends. Neil saw Seth right before they all split up. He remembered telling the upperclassmen goodbye before following Andrew south to Columbia. Four hours later Seth was dead.

It could be tragic coincidence and convenient timing. It could be Riko's handiwork. The latter was absurd, but the former was impossible. Allison knew Seth's bad habits. She knew Seth liked mixing drinks with his prescription pills. Neil saw Allison dig through Seth's pockets in search of the bottle. She'd come up empty and kissed Seth's irritation away. Somehow he overdosed anyway, and Andrew was convinced Riko was behind it.

Neil hadn't been directly responsible for someone's death in years, though he knew how many people died in his mother's quest to keep them safe. Neil never wanted to be his father, but he didn't want to turn into his mother, either. They were different kinds of heartless and Neil, for all his problems connecting with other people, didn't want to be a monster. The way this season was starting, though, maybe it was inevitable he'd turn into his parents.

Neil needed more time to figure out which theory he sided with, but it didn't matter what he thought. If Allison connected the dots and blamed Seth's death on Neil there'd be no dealing with her this year. Neil had to patch things up with her somehow, but he didn't know where to start. He'd never been good at winning people over. Someone like Allison wasn't likely to be his first success.