Chapter Five: A Defeat Worth Sixty-One Percent

“He looked at you six times. Every other moment, he watched Bello.” “So?” “Next match, don't ask for the ball. Let him forget you until Serra raises his head.” “A winger who doesn't ask for it?” “You aren't a winger. You're what appears on the right when everyone believes the danger is left.” Seabridge faced third-tier Ironport in the League Cup midweek. First-team players rested. Serra passed his examination but was cleared for only forty-five minutes. Harold treated it as an irrelevant reserve test. In the tunnel, Veer stopped Lin. He did not restore his training access. He handed him a temporary bench credential. “Forty-five minutes,” Veer said. “If your answer still exists only on video, you return to the basement tomorrow.”