Free Blur (Blur Trilogy) by Steven James Page A

Daniel had never seen before was waiting for him outside the locker room. He wore an Ohio State windbreaker.
    “Hello, Daniel. M y name is Coach Evers. I was hoping we could talk for a few minutes.”

CHAPTER
SIXTEEN
    “You alright, son?”
    “I am.”
    “You took quite a hit.”
    “I’m good.”
    “Well,” Coach Evers said, “ yo u had a nice game out there.” He took some time to note the different things that’d impressed him about Daniel’s pla y and his awareness on the field. The compliments made Daniel a little uncomfortable, but he knew how important meeting this recruiter was and he simpl y thanked him.
    “Listen,” the scout said at last, “I wanted to ask yo u—I was . . . well, I’m curious. What were yo u looking at when yo u were sacked?”
    “What was I looking at?”
    “You were staring at a place on the field where there weren’t an y receivers. It was the onl y time during the game when I saw yo u do that. I was wondering what distracted yo u from the pla y. ”
    Daniel almost said, “I thought I saw someone else on the field,” but he realized how odd that might sound.
    Finall y, he just muttered, “It all happened prett y fast.”
    “Sure.” Coach Evers seemed to accept that. “I understand.” The y spoke for a few more minutes, and at last he promised to follow up during the week to see how Daniel was doing.
    He thanked the Ohio State scout, and after he’d left, Daniel hung around the locker room door for a little while, hoping that the Universit y of Minnesota scout would talk with him too, but no one came b y. The gu y must not have been too excited about Daniel’s performance tonight.
    There’s alwa ys the rest of the season. And there’s alwa ys next ye ar. You still have time to impress some scouts enough for a scholarship.
    But honestl y, colleges and scholarships and scouts weren’t the foremost things on his mind.
    And neither was the loss of the homecoming game, even though that was huge.
    No, it was seeing Emil y again, witnessing her pull that necklace right through her bloated nec k—t hat’s what troubled him the most.
    A silver chain necklace.
    A locket hanging in the middle.
    She’d been wearing that in the photos at the funeral, the ones that looked like the y were the most recent.
    You need to do something to make these hallucination s—o r whatever the y ar e—s top.
    But Daniel had no idea how to do that.
    Finall y, he headed down the hall, a little uncertain about the prospect of facing the students who would most likel y be congregated outside the school.
    Sta y on this. Seek the truth. Learn what happened.
    He thought of the lake. The place where her bod y was found. That’s where all these terrible things this last week had started.
    There hadn’t been a football game a week ago on the Frida y night Emil y disappeared. According to the news articles, two fishermen had found her bod y on the east side of Lake Algonquin just inside the inlet near Wind y Point two da ys later, on Sunda y afternoon.
    Over the ye ars, Daniel had been to that part of the lake a lot, mostl y fishing with his dad. It was known for its walle ye s, although a few muskies had been taken from there, including the fift y- one-incher hanging at the Antler Inn over on Highwa y G.
    Go out there, out to the lake tomorrow. Have a look around for yo urself. Ma yb e that’ll make the visions stop.
    He was debating that when he saw Nicole picking her wa y through the crowd of students who were milling around the parking lot.
    “Are yo u oka y, Daniel?” She didn’t tr y to hide the concern in her voice.
    “Yeah.”
    “You sure?”
    “I’m good.”
    “Reall y? Because I . . .”
    “I’m fine. Don’t worr y. ”
    That seemed to reassure her. “Alright, just . . .” Then she switched to another topi c—t heir last conversation. “I need to tell yo u . . . um . . . I’m reall y sorr y about earlier, yo u know, at school toda y. I wasn’t tr yi ng to . . .