A Time to Blossom

Chapter 18

Single combat

“Hi, Craig, you’re a little late home today. Did you do extra work at the garage? I actually thought I saw you coming down the street half an hour ago but I must have been mistaken.”

“No, mum, that was me. I went next door to Mandy’s first though before coming home.”

“Oh, but I thought Tuesday nights were the nights Mandy went to her singing lessons straight from school. Has she had to miss them this week? I hope she isn’t ill. You should ask her to take you to her tutor, introduce you, see if he thinks it’s worth you having singing lessons. Nathan said you should, and he’s very talented at music so if he says you ought to, then perhaps you should consider it.”

“No, Mandy’s fine, mum. She was out at her lesson. That’s why I went there, specifically because she was out. I wanted to see the dress she’s going to the end of year ball in. I got Mrs Scott to show it to me.”

“But why? You could have asked Mandy. And why do you want to see the dress anyway?”

“I just wanted to see it. Check something out. Get Mrs Scott’s advice on something.”

“What do you need advice on? About dresses?”

“Don’t look at me like that, mum, I’ve not started cross-dressing. I’d look bloody stupid in a dress. And anyway, did I leave my phone at home today? I think I did. I couldn’t find it in my bag at school, but then I can’t remember picking it up this morning.”

“Yes, it’s on your bedside cabinet. It was ringing almost non-stop a while ago. Somebody is obviously trying to get in touch with you.”

“Yes, mum. That’s what phones are for…”

* * *

“Okay guys,” said Nathan as Bensinger Squad prepared to leave their dorm for dinner, “Everything has been prepared, double-checked, polished to perfection and checked again. I think we can all take a well-earned break. The golf tomorrow is going to run smoothly. It won’t harm for us to have a break, take time out to relax after dinner. You’ve earned it. Maybe some time on the games console before bed, perhaps even a film. What’s your preference?”

“I still need to get even with Shane on level four,” said Travis, eyeing up the games console. “He deliberately ran me off the road last time we played.”

Shane grinned. “No, I didn’t, Travis. You skidded. Went into the bend far too fast as we were escaping the police cars.”

“Err, no. You definitely nudged me off the road, Shane. Sacrificed me so the police caught me and you could get away.”

Nathan smiled and looked over to where Noah and Will were just putting on their jackets. “How about you two? Any preferences?”

“A film would be good, Nat,” said Noah.

“Yeah,” said Will, “I’ve just refreshed my drive with new downloads so there’s bound to be something we’d all like.”

Shane nodded. “I vote for a film too. It’ll be more relaxing than warring with Travis on Grand Theft Auto and in any case, we all know I’ll beat him again…”

Travis smirked. “Okay, I’ll also vote for the film, with both my votes, make it unanimous.  Just so Shane doesn’t get smeared all over the interstate…”

“You don’t get two votes, Travis,” said Will.

Travis laughed and pointed to his uniform tunic hanging on the back of his wardrobe door where he had left it after ironing earlier. “Two stripes, Will. Two votes. That’s so, isn’t it Nathan?”

Nathan smiled and threw a ball of screwed up paper from the admin desk at Travis. “Not quite, Travis…”

“We could have another go at calling Craig before we go for dinner, Nat,” said Will. “We have time, it’ll only take us five minutes to walk over to the dining room.”

Nathan glanced at Will, then down at his wrist, flicked over the face of his watch to read the GMT time zone on the second face. “It’ll soon be 11pm in England, Will.”

“He won’t mind, Nat. Let’s give it another go. I’ve got him on speed dial and the camera and screen are in stand-by mode. We could have him live in less than 30 seconds if he answers the phone.”

“Tuesday night is his cadet night, Nat,” said Noah. “He gets home about 10:30 from that, remember? He won’t be in bed yet.”

Nat relented. “Okay Will, we’ll have one last try tonight. Dial him up, Will. The rest of you head off over to the dining room, we’ll catch you up shortly.”

 

Incoming Video call

Craig:                    “Hi, Will, how are you? Perfect timing, I just got in ten minutes ago. Sorry I missed your calls earlier, I was at school then the garage and forgot to have my phone with me, and then right after that I had cadets. Can’t take my phone to cadets. I’d get beasted if it went off in the middle of a parade or training lecture.”

Will:                     “Hi Boots. I’ve got Nat with me, just putting you on the screen. See us both now?”

Craig:                   “Got you. Hi, Nat.”

Nat:                       “Hi Craig. We won’t keep you long, we have to be at dinner soon.”          

Craig:                    “And I’ve already heard a thousand times over I think about all your successes on the MillSkills Evaluation. You can’t be beaten now, right? Not with your score from the Patrol and Recce on Saturday? It would have been awesome to be there though when you crept into the Commandant’s office and told him he was captured.”

Nat:                       “That was good, Boots, but nowhere near as good as the look on the officer cadets’ faces at the command post when the Commandant let them brief him, heard tell how they were closing in on us, and then he waved us out of the minibus and said ‘I think I have what you’re looking for.’ But tonight, Will has something important to tell you. It seems it just can’t wait.”

Will:                      “Yes, this is officially a Board Meeting, Boots. I’ve got a formal announcement to make. Nat has landed us our first contract. The Three Rivers Telecom deal has come through. They’ve signed up and sent us a Purchase Order. I checked online this morning and we have actually got the down payment in the bank. So, we’re in business.”

Nat:                       “That’s right, Boots. $28,750 in the account. Two more stage payments of $50,000 each due 30 days after Will provides the initial report on current coverage and then the report on enhanced coverage if they re-site the towers Will proposes.”

Will:                      “They liked the pitch Nat had put to them. The prediction of coverage we put in our proposal for the test tower was spot on according to their engineers. So, they have agreed to go for the survey of 5 towers Nat bid them. It’s actually going to be easy. I’ve already run the model and drafted both reports. We’ll keep them waiting for the full contracted 60 days though. Don’t want to make it look too easy.”

Craig:                    “$128,750? Is that for real? And do they know we’re just a bunch of kids?”

Will:                      “Sure is, Boots. You only get 5% of that though, remember? Actually, not even that. You get 5% of the profits. There will be operating costs and other expenses to take out first. A new GPU card and some other stuff for me. Plus the fees that Nat has paid out already for the setting up of the company and accounts. He can claim those back, now.”

Craig:                   “Yeah, that sounds fair.”

Nat:                       “They don’t exactly know who we are, Craig. Not that we’re kids, anyway. I put the original pitch in via one of my pop’s accountants, then spoke to them on the phone. They know who I am but maybe not exactly how old we are. That’s not relevant, we can tell them once we have shown we can deliver the goods.  And the contract is good, all properly legal, signed off by an adult for us with Power of Attorney.  All the fees, plus the new hardware Will says he needs for the signal processing for the next stage of the work, if we get a follow-on contract, and I’m sure we will, that’s going to come to just over $23,000, Boots.”

Craig:                    “That still leaves over $100,000, Nat.”

Nat: “Yes, but we shouldn’t use that all up, Boots. I’m recommending to Will that we only take $25,000 out for ourselves and keep the other $75,000 as cash in the bank to cover future investments, running costs, taxes, stuff like that. We ought to be a cash rich company. Have money available to us so we can act fast if an opportunity comes up.”

Will:                      “I agree, Craig. Nat’s talking sense. We need to be lean, but agile and cash rich too. As a company. Not be greedy and pay ourselves too much. It’s not like we need the money.”             

Nat:                       “Are you okay with that, Boots? I know me and Will easily out-vote you, but we’d like your agreement with the way we plan to operate.”           

Craig:                    “Err, let me get this straight. You’re saying that Will’s already done the surveys and drafted the reports, so there isn’t actually a lot more work to do. So, in 90 days we stand to pocket $128,750?”           

Nat:                       “That’s right. Payment should be on time too. We have it staged. They don’t get what they really need, the second report, until after we get the first $50,000 payment. If they delay the final payment, we have a penalty clause built in.”

Will:“Plus we’ll increase the fees on follow up work.”

Craig:                    “So, by my reckoning, if we do what you say, pay off our costs and then keep most of the remaining money as our operating fund, I get 5% of $25,000? So that’s $1,250. For me. For not doing much at all?

Nat:                       “Apart from having the bright idea in the first place.”

Will:                      “And checking all the underlying math in my code.”         

Nat:                       “It’s fair, Boots, even if it doesn’t sound much. And technically you own 5% of the operating fund too.”

Craig:                    “No, I’m not suggesting it’s unfair, Nat. I’m happy with it. Honest! And it’s sensible to keep most of the money in the company. In case of a rainy day or taxes or something.”                                     

Will:                      “Okay, that’s settled then. We just wanted you to know what we’re planning, and hope you agree. And to let you know that you’ll get your share of the pay-out in about 90 days. We have to go now. It’s near dinner time for us.”      

Nat:                       “You happy, Boots?”      

Craig:                    “Of course I’m bloody happy. Now bugger off to dinner, you can’t be late. Good luck for the golf match tomorrow. Bye, Nat.”

* * *

“And now, from that report on the temporary closure of the waterfront down near 6th Street Bridge in preparation for the installation of new sculptures at Allegheny Landing Park, we turn, quite conveniently to the first of our special sports bulletins today from Lorna Delville. Viewers will know Lorna is usually our ‘Traffic Lady’, reporting on the traffic situation here in Pittsburgh, but today she’s also helping us cover a very important event over at the Allegheny Heights Country Club. Lorna, over to you, perhaps you can remind our viewers why today is such a special day for us here at KWT-TV”

“Thank you, Tim, and yes, today is a very special day for us. I’m sure everyone out there in Pittsburgh will recall how back last winter we were involved in a daring operation in the middle of the ‘Lakes Dump’ snow emergency to swoop down in our traffic reporting helicopter and whisk a new mother and her baby off to Magee Medical Center.”

“We sure do, Lorna. That was co-ordinated by the Deputy Governor’s son, young Nathan Bauer and his cadets from the Allegheny River Military College, wasn’t it?”

“You’ve got it in one, Tim. And that dramatic rescue mission, which incidentally led to an award for KWT-TV from the USA Broadcast Commission, also resulted in an acclaimed follow up ‘Lorna at large’ program where we spent a week at Allegheny River Military College, shadowing Nathan Bauer and the other students there, learning more about what must be one of the finest prep schools in America.”

“I surely do remember that program, Lorna. It was one of our highest rated broadcasts of the year, and of course, led directly to KWT-TV sponsoring, in association with American Airlines, a series of golf matches between Allegheny College and some of the leading schools throughout North America. I guess that’s where you are today…”

“That’s right, Tim. We’re just minutes away from the ‘tee-off’ of the first of those challenge matches. We’ll be reporting on that, and providing updates as the match progresses, on every half hourly sports bulletin for the rest of the afternoon.”

“And, I believe, you’ll personally be presenting the KWT-TV Challenge Cup to the winners, live on air, at around 7:30pm tonight. We’re all looking forward to that.”

“Thanks, Tim, so are we all. Now, as the teams stream out to the first tee, we’ll hand back to you in the studio for the weather and more local news before coming back to you in about 15 minutes for the first of our live updates. This is Lorna Delville, live here at Allegheny Heights Country Club, passing you back to Tim Matthey in the studio.”

* * *

“Okay guys,” said Nathan as he lined his team up just inside the conservatory overlooking the first tee. “Walk out tall and proud. Give a smile to the TV camera but don’t dwell on it, remember your media training. Shane, give a smile and a wave to Lorna Delville, the camera will be looking out for you in particular. Take up your positions behind Captain Davis ready for the formal introduction to Muskingum Senior High. They’ll follow us out from the terrace door, walk over and line up opposite us ready to shake hands. Remember, this will be far more intimidating for them. Be friendly, but there’s no need to put them too much at ease. We have the home advantage, let’s use it.”

“We’ve got that, Nathan,” chorused the team.

“Nat turned to Will and his team. “Ready guys?”

Will nodded. “Comms up and running, Nat, no dead spots. All the roaming observers have a backup radio on an alternate frequency. Me and Noah are running redundant computers for the score updates from the observers. Travis is supervising them out on the ground.”

“I’m not sure about that,” laughed one of the players. “A minute or two ago he was scavenging the dining room for any leftover pasties.”

Nat allowed the laughter to subside and then glanced at his watch. “Okay guys, here we go. Exactly on time. Heads up and step out…”

* * *

As the captain of the visiting team stepped forward onto the first tee ready to play his first shot, the KWT-TV camera cut to Lorna Delville and a live link with anchorman Tim Matthey back in the KWT-TV studio.

“Welcome back to Allegheny Heights, Tim. Now, I’m sure you all just saw the visiting team being welcomed by the Allegheny River players and then the formal ‘tee-off’ by Allegheny’s senior student, Captain of Cadets Jackson Davis. The visitors are from Muskingum Senior High, all the way over in Zanesville, Ohio. Their costs for travelling here were paid by our co-sponsers, America’s favorite airline, American. I’m sure you all recall that it was the wife and new born daughter of one of America’s senior pilots that we flew to hospital in the ‘Lakes Dump’ and to show their gratitude, AA are joining us to sponsor the KWT-TV Challenge Trophy.”

“Who could forget that amazing day, Lorna? Now, it seems you have a guest waiting with you. Care to introduce him?”

“That’s right, Tim. Here with me is Jackson Davis, son of Senator Davis and Captain of Cadets at Allegheny River Military College. A little earlier he was our host for lunch here at the Allegheny Heights Country Club, home to the college’s golf team. Captain Davis, I wonder if you could recount for the benefit of our viewers the conversation we had over lunch before you opened this tournament with that amazing shot straight down the centre of the fairway?”

Jackson smiled briefly at the camera then turned and focused his attention firmly on Lorna Delville “Thank you for the compliment, Miss Delville but please, no formality. I’m not in uniform today, this is sports afternoon, our chance to relax from the academic rigor of college. Just call me Jackson. And in any case, on behalf of the college, I should be thanking you all at KWT-TV for providing the magnificent trophy we’re competing for over the next few weeks.”  In the background, the Commandant nodded approvingly.

Jackson paused, turned to face the camera, spoke directly to it. “And we mustn’t forget American, America’s favorite airline, for their sponsorship too. It’s their generosity that has made it possible for Muskingum Senior High to travel here today and challenge us. We truly appreciate that.” Jackson turned once again, smiled at Lorna. “Now, Miss Delville, I believe you have a few questions for me about our players and their gallant opposition?”

* * *

In the Press Room, which was serving as Will’s control centre, Artilleryman (First Class) Hawke compared Noah’s spreadsheet with Will’s, confirmed that both showed exactly the same scores, then scribbled down the latest results on a slip of paper and then headed outside to mark them up on the leader board. At the door he almost collided with Cadet Walker who was inbound with written confirmation for Noah of the scores just being posted down at the twelfth hole.

“Sorry, Hawke, after you. Congratulations by the way on your Merit award, saw it posted in ‘Weekly Orders.’ Everybody says you did a great job on the Milskills Evaluation with your radio work.”

“Thanks. Can’t stop and chat though, got to get these scores up on the board. The tv crew are relying on the board. Using a shot of it in their sports bulletin updates every half hour. It’s looking good though, even if Muskingum are beginning to stage a fightback.”

“Yeah, sure. I’d best get on too. PFC Mason is glaring at me. Doesn’t like being kept waiting for his updates.”

Noah took the slip of paper Walker handed him and cross referenced it to his spreadsheet. It tallied with the report radioed in a few minutes earlier. Satisfied, Noah passed the slip to Will for a second check and then stared at Walker. “Off you go, Private, make sure you aren’t late with the next hardcopy check.”

Will looked up and grinned, joined in with the teasing. “Still here, Private? You won’t beat the radio waves just by standing there. PFC Mason, do you think we made a mistake by appointing Private Walker? Maybe we should have looked for a Private Sprinter…”  Walker rolled his eyes, poured himself a quick drink from the jugs of iced water on the table by the door, and set off back across the course again towards his next reporting point, hole fifteen.

* * *

“We return now to Allegheny Heights Country Club where our very own Traffic Lady, Lorna Delville, is standing by with a thrilling update on the golf match between our very own Allegheny River Military College and Ohio’s Muskingum Senior High for the WKT-TV Challenge Trophy. Lorna, I gather that since our last update at the top of the hour there has been a dramatic turn around in fortune out there on that beautiful golf course?”

“Welcome back Tim, and yes, the last half hour here has seen a significant swing in the run of play. After Allegheny Military College got off to a great start, led by a strong performance from Lieutenant Governor Bauer’s son, Nathan Bauer, and his partner Shane Lundgren, backed by an equally good performance from their second pairing, we’ve seen that lead pulled back by Muskingum. A disastrous run of bad luck by Allegheny’s third pairing of Cadet Sergeant Laquois and Lieutenant Deacon, both of whom managed to find the bunker on the ninth hole, gave Muskingum a chance to show why they are currently lying third in the New England Schools’ League. The overall score is now almost even, with Muskingum definitely in the ascendant and looking likely to take the lead in the next few minutes. Back to you in the studio, Tim.”

“Dramatic events indeed, Lorna. Well folks, does this look like the beginning of the end for Allegheny or can they too stage a come back and win the day? Join us again after the break for another update from Lorna DelvIlle out at Allegheny Heights.”

* * *

 Shane putted his final ball on the 18th hole, cleanly sinking it from a distance of just over 30 feet for a par score, and wandered over to where Nathan was shaking hands with their counterparts from Muskingum Senior High.

“Congratulations guys, that was a close run round,” Nathan was saying. “Just three strokes separating us after 18 holes is a real achievement.”

“Just a shame it’s three strokes in your favor,” smiled Miles Herrington, captain of the Muskingum team. “Still, I hear that our second and third pairs are doing well, and we have real depth in the team too.”

Nathan nodded and placed a hand on Miles’ shoulder, gently steering him and his partner, Dwayne Ogubayu, towards Shane. “Yes, I think I need to go and rally the team,” he smiled. “Shane here will walk you back to the terrace and see to it that you have anything you need. Don’t hesitate to ask any of our cadets or the club staff for anything you want.”

Shane nodded and led the way. “We’ve got some snacks and drinks waiting on the terrace, and from there you can see the leader board and the first few holes. The fourth pairing are out on the fifth hole already and they’ll be coming into view again as they reach hole seven. If you want, after a drink, we can take a buggy out and watch their progress.”

Nathan wasted no time in cutting across the course to the Press Room where he found Jackson standing over Noah and Will.

“Latest just in, Nat,” said Will. “Connor dropped a short putt on the sixteenth, went two over par. Sergeant Laquois missed a shot he shouldn’t have too. It’s let Muskingum draw level.”

“What about when the handicaps are factored in?” asked Nathan.

“Not good, Nat” replied Will. “That’s accounted for in column G. Muskingum have the advantage there, especially with their last pairing. In total, we need to pull back five shots over the remaining twelve holes.”

“That’s possible, isn’t it?” asked Jackson. “You’ve all trained hard, and this course is familiar to our squad. Everybody still out there has had plenty of practice here. They know the terrain.”

“It’s possible,” said Nat, “But it won’t be easy. “Riley and Connor look to be heading to draw, or perhaps lose by just a shot. Shane and I won, by three, so on aggregate that’s still leaving us two, maybe three, ahead over the first two pairs, but Laquois and Deacon look as though they are going to take a bit of a beating and then everything will be down to D’Olivera and Sumner. They look as though they’ll have to claw back quite a deficit.”

“Best get out there and encourage them,” said Jackson, striding towards the door. “I’ll head over to spur on Deacon and Laquois, you do the same thing with D’Olivera. I’ll join you as soon as the third pair finish, let you know how the score stands.”

Will raised an eyebrow as Jackson left. “He doesn’t know how the handicaps work, does he?”

“He doesn’t need to, Will. And anyway, I’m sure you’ll have the final target score relayed to me long before Jackson reaches us. I guess this is where we see if your and Noah’s statistics play out.”

Noah smiled. “Some good play wouldn’t hurt, on top of the stats, Nat, but it’s not a lost cause.”

* * *

“Tim, welcome back. You join us at critical moment here at Allegheny Heights with the KWT-TV Challenge Trophy’s first match hanging in the balance by the slenderest of margins. Last time you were here, Muskingum Senior High had pulled ahead and looked to be about to storm to an easy victory.”

“Do I sense something’s changed, Lorna? Are Allegheny making a fight of it? They certainly seemed to get off to a good start early on.”

“That’s right, Tim. On their last two holes, Allegheny’s pairing of cadets Laquois and Deacon both managed to put their earlier troubles behind them and go on to pull back a few shots on their opponents, Muskingum’s James Snyder and Zach Crawford. That’s left everything to play for between the final pairing.”

“It sure sounds like a real see-saw of a game, Lorna. I wish we could all be there with you in that glorious sunshine.  I see you also managed to corner Allegheny’s head cadet, Senator Davis’s son, again for a comment. And is that Nathan Bauer with you too?”

“Sure is, Tim. Everyone is out here following the progress of this last pairing, I’m told there’s hardly a soul back in the club house. Just hold a second, whilst we get the microphone switched over. There we go. Now, Captain Jackson, what are your thoughts right now as we head towards the closing stage?  Things were definitely looking very dicey just a quarter hour ago.”

“Well, we’re not out of the woods yet, Lorna. Muskingum are still in the lead and there’s a lot of hard work to be done if we’re to come back to take the win. But I’m pretty confident my guys will give their everything. I know it’s the taking part that counts, not the winning, but we have something of a tradition of not losing here at Allegheny. That’ll be uppermost in the minds of all our team and why we had no doubts at all about issuing our challenge to the top three placed teams in the Schools’ League. Playing against anyone but the best just wouldn’t be appropriate. We have Pittsburgh’s honor to uphold alongside our own.”

“That’s quite a sentiment, Captain Jackson, and if that cheer from the crowd has anything to go by, one that’s pretty much echoed by everyone there behind you.”

“Thank you, Mister Matthey, we aim to do our very best for this great city and all KWT-TV’s viewers. Now, in the interests of equality, maybe you’d like to have a quick word with Muskingum’s team captain, Miles Herrington.”

Jackson stepped back quickly, disconnecting his microphone and handing it to the TV crew’s sound man as Nathan ushered Miles Herrington forward, introducing him to Lorna Delville and then smartly stepping aside as the cameraman and sound recordist closed in like circling sharks.

“Tim, I’m joined now by Miles Herman, captain of Muskingum Senior High’s team. Miles, what does it feel like to come here today and play on this superb course?”

* * *

“Hi, Ratty Boys, you two must be the only ones not out on the course. Now, where round here can I find something to eat? Kyle invited me over here as his dinner guest for tonight’s victory celebrations but I came straight from school and I’m starving.”

“Hi Lee,” smiled Will, lifting one side of his radio head set and turning to look over his shoulder at the newcomer to the room. “Shane’s just passed the message to the kitchens to have a few more pasties brought out on to the terrace, you should be able to intercept one of those going by if you go through that door over there and follow the corridor. Is Kyle here too then?”

“Sure is, bud. I think he brought his whole football team with him. They moved their training forward an hour so he could get here and offer support, especially to Shane. How’d he do?”

“Shane was up first, Lee, alongside Nathan,” said Will. They set a three stroke lead. He’s finished playing now but he’s been non-stop busy ever since making sure all the arrangements go to plan. He’s in charge of hospitality and making the Muskingum players feel at home. It’s not looking certain for the victory celebrations though.”

Lee ginned, wiggled his hips, sang a few lines of a song.

“We can beat them, for ever and ever

Oh we can be Heroes, just for one day”

Noah smiled as Lee patted him on the shoulder and disappeared in search of a pasty and Kyle.

* * *

“Lorna, I hear that we have had an amazing result over there at Allegheny Heights in our KWT-TV Challenge Trophy golf match. Would you care to share the excitement with our viewers?”

“Tim, the atmosphere here is unbelievable. Allegheny College have staged a remarkable fight back in the last half hour and literally just seconds ago managed to draw level on the very last hole. We’re holding our breath now whilst the two team captains, Nathan Bauer for Allegheny River Military College and Miles Herrington for Muskingum Senior High, and I must apologise to Miles for getting his name wrong earlier, but we’re so caught up in the excitement today, discuss whether to play a further hole or use the count back to determine the winners.”

“Lorna, I’m sure we all understand settling this by playing another hole, but for the benefit of any of our viewers who might not know, could you tell us what a ‘count back’ is?”

Nat stepped confidently forward, oblivious to the many faces looking at him, concentrating solely on the opposing team captain. “Well, Miles, how do you want to settle this? Bare statistics, or single combat? Just me and you, fighting it out for our teams. For our schools? Unless you want to settle for a tie.”

“Statistics, Nat,” whispered Will, squeezing to the front of the crowd with a print-out in his hand. “We come out ahead on a nine-hole countback.” His voice went unheard.

Miles smiled. “I assume by ‘single combat’ you mean another hole played, Nathan. Though with you being a Military College, I can’t be sure…”

Nathan let just a flicker of a smile cross his face.

“Why not share the match?” said Miles. “Keep the game tied? We can always come back and beat you next year when you join the league.”

Nathan smiled, stepped forward and shook Miles’s hand before adroitly turning him towards Lorna and the KWT-TV camera crew. “We have a result for you, Lorna, but you and your viewers are going to have to come back next year to hear it. For today, we’re sharing the game. Muskingum Senior High have made us work hard for this result and we can’t send them home empty-handed. Please everyone, join me in a round of applause for our challengers…”

* * *

As dusk began to fall several hours later, Shane led the Muskingum team towards the lakeside cabins where they would be staying overnight before beginning their trip home the following morning. Preparing to return to college after co-hosting the Challenge Trophy dinner, Jackson paused by the front of the club with Nathan as he waited for a valet to bring his car to the door.

 “That was a pretty good call, Nathan. It looked real magnanimous, giving Muskingum the opportunity to keep the tie when the statistics would have given us a win. But how did you know Herrington wouldn’t call your bluff, opt to play an extra hole?”

“I didn’t, Jackson, not for sure, but ultimately it was just a question of who would lose their nerve first. As we were coming from behind for the last holes, even if he hadn’t done the math, he would have had the gut feeling that a count-back would favor us. And if it came to a play-off between the two of us, I’d already shown I could beat him once. I didn’t think he’d relish the thought of standing alone on the tee in front of nearly three hundred people with a camera crew inches from his face. Suggesting we let the tie stand was a good way out for him.”

“And after PFC Brookes had finished explaining to Miss Delville how the count-back works, everyone knows that we really won,” said Jackson. “That’s the story that’s going to be heard and remembered out there. The college has made its mark Nathan, and it’s definitely a good impression. Skill and tenacity in equal measure, underlined by great sportsmanship. Now, here’s my car. I’ll see you tomorrow back at college. Give my compliments to PFC Lundgren and your support team, the backroom effort was faultless too.”