Chapter 21: Back in Action

Wearing an NYPD sweatsuit and with his ankle heavily bandaged, Mike hobbled out of the dressing room on crutches as the rest of the team warmed up for the second half. He settled awkwardly with his leg up on the bench, and the trainer formed another ice pack around the ankle. Carolyn and Alex, returning from the concession stand with popcorn and drinks, headed his way.

With furrowed brow, Carolyn eyed the damaged ankle. "How serious is it?"

"Too soon to tell," Mike said, shaking his head and reaching for a handful of the popcorn she was carrying. "But we're hoping that with ice and elevation, we can keep it from swelling too much. I'll need to have a doctor look at it tomorrow. But I guarantee you it's not going to keep me out long. We're too close to the championship now for me to miss out."

Carolyn shook her head. "I know that would be a terrible disappointment, but you have to do what's best for your health."

"If I can run at all, I'll play. Simple as that," Mike said, looking her in the eyes. Then he shifted his gaze to the court, as his teammates filled the net with practice shots. "I just wish I could run tonight."

Carolyn and Alex exchanged glances. "Men," Carolyn huffed. Ignoring her comment, Mike dug another hand into the popcorn tub. "Mmmmm. This stuff is pretty good," he said.

"That guy who hit you, he's been after you all night," Alex pointed out. "We noticed how he was trying to push you around."

"Shanahan? He was in my squad on the island. He's intense, hates to lose. He's not a great player, so he is extra physical, trying to even things up. But at least he doesn't play dirty."

"You don't call that collision dirty?" Alex asked incredulously.

"Nope. Alex, if he had really wanted to hurt me, he would have undercut me – hit me in the lower part of my legs while I was up in the air. That would have caused a dangerous fall. He'll do whatever he can to win, but he wouldn't deliberately try to hurt me. It was just an unlucky break that I landed funny on my ankle. The truth is I respect the guy. That desire to win is what champions are made of." Then Mike added with a smirk, "Of course, you need a little talent to go along with it, which we have and he doesn't."

Alex's eyes wandered back to the court and found Bobby just as he drove hard to the basket, leaped and laid the ball against the glass. As it dropped through the net, he turned away and gave a quick little fist jab into the air. Then he hustled to a spot about six feet from the basket, took a pass from a teammate and flicked a little jump shot into the net. Alex's eyes narrowed.

"Bobby sure seems fired up," she mused, taking a sip of her Coke without losing sight of her partner. He was at the free-throw line, and she watched him attempt two shots. The first bounced off the front of the rim, but the second rolled around and dropped through. Bobby nodded and flexed his right wrist. Alex noticed that the Ace bandage he had been wearing was gone, replaced by a tight wrapping of white tape. And suddenly she knew.

Whirling, she looked at Mike. "Bobby's going to play, isn't he?" she said, with equal parts anger and fear in her voice.

Mike stared right back at her. "He has to."

"What do you mean 'has to'? He has a concussion!"

"He'll be OK, Alex. Give him a chance. He won't do anything crazy. And he just might be the difference in winning or losing tonight."

"Mike, it's only a basketball game," Alex said, frustration dripping from her words. "He has no business risking his health."

"That's his decision. He wants to do this."

"You promised to help," Alex scolded. "Remember? Dinner for four?"

"I said I'd try to talk him out of wasting his effort on a cream puff. But everything's changed. With Kramer and me out, he's our best hope. If we lose this one, we lose our shot at the championship."

"It's not worth his health!"

"Trust me, Alex. This is about more than basketball. You may not understand, but you need to back his play on this, OK?"

Alex frowned but fell silent. She was his partner and wouldn't let him down, but she didn't have to like it. Mike allowed himself a little smile. "Hey, Carolyn, how about a sip of that Coke?"

A few minutes later, the partners were settled in the stands, and the second half began. Bobby immediately made his presence felt, slicing inside as Jimbo tossed up a jump shot from the right corner and corralling the rebound when it clanged off the rim. He flipped the ball back outside to Lester, who fed Teddy Gregg on the left wing for another shot. Again, the ball bounced off the rim, but Bobby had shifted his position and grabbed that rebound too. This time, when he came down with the ball, he went right back up and put it in off the glass. Tie game, 29-29.

The lead seesawed for most of the second half. Without Mike, 1PP wasn't hitting its outside shots. But Bobby had evened up the battle on the boards. Neither team seemed to be able to score from more than eight feet, but layups were in abundance, including one by Slim Barnett and three by Bobby in the last three minutes.

With the game tied at 55 and the clock winding down, Shanahan spun away from his man and drove the lane. Bobby saw him slip free and normally would have glided into position to take a charge. But remembering his promise, he charted a path to meet Shanahan closer to the basket instead. The Islander launched himself into the air and floated a shot toward the front of the rim. Bobby jumped as high as he could, and just before the ball reached the top of its arc, he swatted it away. Lester chased it down and fired to Gregg as he streaked to the other end of the floor for an uncontested basket that gave 1PP a 57-55 lead. The Islanders' point guard tried a half-court shot at the buzzer, but it fell short. 1PP had survived.

The players mobbed one another at center court, but they were careful not to rough up Bobby. Slim put an arm around his shoulders, and Frankie Lester patted him on the rear. Coach Hunter gave him a hug, and Mike grinned at him while safely hovering on his crutches a few feet from his exuberant teammates.

In the bleachers, the 1PP fans were going crazy too, and Carolyn and Alex joined in the clapping and cheering. Relief washed over Alex as she reassured herself that Bobby had made it safely through the game. Still, she couldn't help feeling annoyed. He shouldn't have taken the chance, she thought. This wasn't worth the risk, and he's going to get an earful from me about it.

Just then she felt a tap on her shoulder. "That was quite a second half your partner played, especially considering what he's been through this week," Ross said, smiling. "We needed a hero tonight, and he sure came through."