Chapter Three: Eighteen Catches and an Invoice from the Future

The Storm sprinted toward the line. Lin handed the ball to the official. Pain exploded inside his temple, like a red-hot needle entering behind his ear. [ZERO-POINT REACTION USE COMPLETE.] [FUTURE COLLECTION PROTOCOL INITIATED.] [SELECTING REALIZABLE TALENT…] [DEDUCTION: ABSOLUTE PITCH. EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY.] Lin stumbled. Absolute pitch? He had never been a musician and had never considered it a talent. When he was a child, his mother could press any piano key and he would name the note. When a teammate sang off-key, Lin felt the error like an itch. It had nothing to do with football. For an instant, he almost laughed. Then the stadium warning chime sounded, and he could not identify its note.