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CHAPTER 80 — THE REFEREE
publish date:
2026-10-30 14:43:06
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Until the Final Whistle CHAPTER 84 — THE TRANSFER
UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE---EVELYN---Lyle called me into his office on Monday morning.I had been at my desk for less than an hour when his assistant appeared in my doorway and told me the chairman wanted to see me. No explanation. No warning. Just a polite smile and a gesture toward the executive floor.I walked up the stairs with a knot already forming in my stomach. The last time Lyle had summoned me like this, it had been to tell me about my father's immunity deal. Before that, it had been the promotion. Both times the news had been life-changing. Both times I had walked out of his office a different person than the one who walked in.He was standing at the window when I entered. His back was to me. His hands were clasped behind him. The same pose my father used to use when he was about to deliver bad news."Close the door," he said.I closed it."Sit down."I sat.He turned and looked at me. His face was tired. The last few weeks had aged him. There were lines around his eyes t
Until the Final Whistle CHAPTER 83 — THE CONSEQUENCE
UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE---EVELYN---The call came two days later.I was in my office at the club when my phone buzzed. The detective's name on the screen. I answered on the second ring."Miss Ashford. I wanted to let you know the outcome of your father's questioning."I set down my pen and leaned back in my chair."Go ahead.""Your father was brought in yesterday afternoon. He was interviewed for three hours. He admitted to directing David Hale to approach Michael Cross. He admitted to orchestrating the plea deal. He admitted to using his visitor privileges to communicate instructions to someone outside the prison.""And?""And his cooperation agreement has been revoked. The reduced sentence has been withdrawn. He'll be re-sentenced at a hearing next month. The prosecution is asking for an additional five years."I sat there with the phone pressed against my ear and the whole office very quiet around me."Miss Ashford? Are you still there?""I'm here.""I'm sorry. I know this isn't
Until the Final Whistle CHAPTER 82 — THE REPORT
EVELYN---The police station was the same one I had walked into three weeks ago with the video in my pocket and my hands shaking.It felt different this time. I wasn't shaking. I wasn't scared. I was something else. Something colder. Something that had been building in my chest since the moment my father said the word yes.Luca parked and killed the engine and turned to look at me."You sure about this?" he asked."No.""Do you want to wait?""No.""Then let's go."We walked in together. The officer at the front desk recognised me and made a call. The detective who had taken my statement came down ten minutes later with a look on her face that told me she already knew why I was there."Miss Ashford," she said. "Captain Moretti.""I need to make another statement," I said. "About my father."She nodded slowly. She didn't look surprised. She just gestured for us to follow her.---The interview room was small and grey and smelled like old coffee. The detective set up the recorder and s
Until the Final Whistle CHAPTER 81 — THE VISIT
UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE---EVELYN---The prison visiting room was colder than I remembered.Luca drove me there the next morning without being asked. He didn't try to talk me out of it. He didn't ask if I was sure. He just drove and parked and walked beside me to the entrance and stood beside me while the officer checked my ID and made the call. The building was the same grey brick, the same reinforced windows, the same low fence stretching out into the distance. Nothing had changed since the last time I was here. Everything had changed."You don't have to come in," I said."I know.""But you're coming anyway.""I'm coming anyway."The officer led us through the security door and down the corridor. The same corridor as last time. The same smell of disinfectant and floor polish. The same guard by the door who looked at me once and then looked at the wall.My father was already sitting at the table.He looked up when we walked in. His face didn't change. He didn't smile. He didn't loo
Until the Final Whistle CHAPTER 80 — THE REFEREE
UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE---EVELYN---We met Rennick outside the dry cleaner's at eleven forty-five the next morning.He was standing on the corner with a newspaper under his arm and his glasses pushed up into his hair, looking like a man who had been waiting there for an hour and didn't mind."You brought backup," he said, nodding at Luca."He wouldn't let me come alone.""Good." Rennick folded the newspaper and tucked it under his arm. "Pierce is already inside. He came in through the back about ten minutes ago. No car. No driver. He walked here.""Walking means he doesn't want to be seen," Luca said."Walking means he's scared." Rennick looked at me. "Are you ready?""No.""Good. Scared is smart." He turned toward the door. "Let's go."---Alan Pierce was sitting at the desk when we walked in.He was smaller than I had expected. Thin. Grey. The kind of man who had spent his whole career trying to look authoritative on a football pitch and had never quite managed it off it. He was
Until the Final Whistle CHAPTER 79 — THE CALL TO NORTHGATE
UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE---EVELYN---Sarah made the calls from my office.She put the phone on speaker so I could hear. Lyle first. He listened to the whole thing without interrupting, asked two questions about timing and one about legal exposure, and then said, "Do it. Keep me informed," before hanging up.Northgate was harder.The producer, a woman named Helen who had spent the last three months living inside our story, was not happy. The final cut was locked. The release date was set. The marketing had already begun. She said the word "impossible" three times before Sarah interrupted her."Helen. Listen to me." Sarah's voice was calm but firm. "Michael Cross changed his plea this morning. He's pleading guilty and there will be no trial. That means the video will never be shown in open court. That means the story we made is already outdated. If you release it as it is, you're releasing a film that ends with a trial that never happened."There was a long silence on the other end of
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