Chapter Two: The Exit Leads to the Stands

She needed evidence. She also needed help. At 6:12, she cornered Old Ma in the duty office and knocked a bottle from his lips. “Are you insane?” he demanded, looking at the soaked rota. “At 7:12, Haichuan will score off the underside of the bar. In the eighty-seventh minute, it'll be 3–3. At zero, the lights die and we return to now.” He touched her forehead. “Go home.” “We can't. Exit Thirteen leads to the food concourse.” “Electronic wayfinding. Standard lockdown setup.” He picked up another bottle. “Being broke is no reason to work yourself into hallucinations.” She knocked that one away too. He summoned Security, and she escaped toward the stands to await the twelfth-minute goal. This time, the shot missed the post.