Chapter 43

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I arrive at the gym at 2:15. The bleachers are already more than half full, but I manage to snag a seat in the front row. Baltimore, the visiting team, is warming up on the track, their coach blowing the whistle to signal stops. Each time the whistle blows, the team collectively grinds to a halt, skates digging loudly into the blue sport court floor.

Forty-five minutes later, the game starts. Melanie is the starting jammer for New York, exploding forward on her toe stops at the first whistle, through the pack to lead-jammer status. I am so close this time that I can almost feel the heat from the track. Spectators call out for Lady Justice, their voices getting lost in the fray with the rest of her fans. But I get to leave with her, I think triumphantly.