High Ten

16Trophy Case

“Come on in,” said Brian.

“Good to see you,” replied Sam, walking into Brian's house. “Thanks for having me. You tired of driving over to Stamina?”

“Ha! We've spent a lot of time in your office. It's time you saw mine.”

“Beautiful neighborhood,” said Sam. “Have you lived here long?”

“I've been in the area for 30 years. But we had other houses before this one. It's too big for just me now, but there's no way I could sell it. Let me show you around.”

Brian showed Sam the first floor and the upstairs bedrooms where his daughters had returned over the holidays. Then they went to the kitchen and sat down.

“Want something to drink?” Brian asked.

“Sure,” replied Sam. “What do you have?”

“I have milk, OJ, and flavored seltzers if you're interested.”

“I'll try one,” said Sam.

“Be careful. Coach Chase got me on these – they take getting used to.”

Sam took a sip and gritted his teeth.

“Told you,” smiled Brian. “At least it's carbonated. I pretend they taste good.”

“Yeah,” agreed Sam, “those would take getting used to.”

“Before I show you the rest of the house, how's Stamina? Your email updates have been great.”

“Thanks,” replied Sam. “And your responses have helped. I'll need another notebook soon. Mine's half full.”

“That can be arranged. So what do you have to report?”

“Overall,” began Sam, “by being a ‘Selective Detective,' I've found evidence of improvement. Since we last met, we've distributed the Stamina gear and it was a hit. People are wearing the clothes and Dana ...