Hal–Stice from the bleachers (p. 679)
Hal passed Stice off the backhand down the line and the ball looked sure to land fair, and then at the last possible second it veered out, an abrupt tight curve out of bounds as if some freak gust came out of nowhere and blew it out, and Stice looked more surprised than Hal did. The punter’s brother’s face registered nothing as he stood at the ad corner, adjusting something on his strings.
Context
The swerves Stice described at supper, now witnessed live from the bleachers: Hal's clean pass veers out "at the last possible second… as if some freak gust came out of nowhere," and the beneficiary looks more surprised than the victim. Two readings on record, per the plan. Ours: first courtside wraith-physics narrated in real time, "out of nowhere" as its tell. Carlisle's, recorded not adopted: meteorology, by way of "Derivative Sport in Tornado Alley."