Jordan closed his eyes.
That answer restored something.
Not complete trust.
Something.
“Okay.”
The report also showed Malik had argued with Ray Fenwick.
Not about money.
About player meal reimbursements.
Several players from low-income families had not received travel meal money on time.
Malik had confronted the booster office because two teammates were skipping dinner on road trips.
Jordan read that section three times.
That sounded like Malik.
Not the heroic version.
The annoying version.
The version who would argue with an adult because somebody else was too embarrassed.
Denise smiled when Jordan showed her.
“He got suspended from middle school once for arguing about cafeteria debt.”
“What?”
“He told a lunch lady she couldn't throw a kid’s tray away.”
Jordan laughed.
“He was twelve.”
“Did he win?”
“No.”
“Obviously.”
They laughed.
For the first time, the investigation gave Jordan a new memory he had never lived.
Not of Malik as victim.
Of Malik being difficult for a reason.
Jordan liked that better.
The report did not prove Ray Fenwick stole the exact four thousand dollars.
It found financial irregularities exceeding fourteen thousand over three years.
Cash withdrawals.
Missing receipts.
Reimbursements without support.
Fenwick’s hardware store had received booster payments for materials never located.
Enough to show the booster system was unreliable.
Not enough to convict a dead man.
The district refused to declare Fenwick the thief.
Some people wanted that.
Denise did not.
“Do not fix one false accusation by creating another.”
Jordan stared.
“You think he did it.”
“Yes.”
“Then?”
“Thinking is not proof.”
He sighed.
“You sound like a lawyer.”
“I sound like somebody whose son got destroyed by people who thought suspicion was proof.”
That ended the argument.
Pine Valley created a scholarship in Malik’s name.
Denise almost rejected it.
Then she read the proposal.
It was not for football stars.
That had been Coach Brennan’s idea.
The Malik Shepard Opportunity Fund would provide small emergency grants to student athletes for things families often could not afford quickly.
Cleats.
Travel meals.
Physical therapy copays.
Testing fees.
Transportation.
Trade certification.
College application fees.
Exactly the kinds of things Malik had complained about.
Denise approved.
One condition.
No requirement that recipients tell their “inspiring story” at donor banquets.
Coach Brennan laughed.
“Agreed.”
The first student received $280 for wrestling shoes and tournament travel.
Nobody photographed him.
Perfect.
Jordan’s relationship with football became complicated.
Before the ceremony, he had been one of Pine Valley’s best linebackers.
Not Malik’s position.
Malik had been a running back.
Jordan wore 51.
His own number.
After the jersey retirement, people started calling him “Little 32.”
He hated it immediately.
A local reporter wrote:
Shepard’s Brother Carrying Legacy Forward.
Jordan threw the newspaper away.
At practice, a teammate joked:
“You should switch to 32.”
Jordan stopped.
Coach Brennan heard.
“No.”
Everyone looked.
The coach continued:
“Thirty-two is retired.”
The teammate shrugged.
“For him, though.”
Brennan looked at Jordan.
“Especially for him.”
Jordan’s shoulders relaxed.
After practice, Brennan explained.