Page 44 of Game Day

"Welcome to the Garden of the Gods.” Miles grins as he gets out of the limo.

The massive park is filled with rock formations the color of pottery ascending toward the sky.

I stare up at the huge red rock jutting overheard.

Jay follows my gaze. "Seems pretty tall. Not sure our contracts cover climbing."

"It's nothing," Atlas says.

"Speak for yourself." Rookie grins. Atlas has four inches on any of us.

"Only thing your pretty head needs to worry about right now is the Champions Challenge," says Miles with a flourish. "It's like an escape room, but we're outdoors. The prize is this." He opens a case next to him.

It’s the championship trophy.

“How the hell did you get your hands on that?”

The team has had it for the past few months, but it’s supposed to be housed in a safe location. This—a national park with zero guards and a few hundred tourists and infinite places to bury it—hardly seems right.

“Call it a favor. A wedding gift for our fearless leader.” He nods toward me. “Winner gets to keep it for an entire month. Use it for whatever you like.”

“So, a doorstop?” Jay drawls. “It’s not even a cup. You can’t eat cereal out of it.”

Miles frowns. “It’s the damned trophy, man. Show some respect.”

He explains the rules and we break into teams.

“What happens to the losing team?” I drawl.

“Losing team has to take a naked ice bath.”

“That’s it?”

“In front of everyone,” he decides.

All the guys cringe.

We do our share of icing for physical therapy, but doing it when you’re not hurting sucks.

Not that I know where we’re getting an ice bath around here anyway.

We start with a scavenger hunt where we have to track down random items: a certain plant, a bird, something with a Kodiaks logo that none of us brought.

Rookie and I team up. Figure he’s young and has good knees.

At one point, we cross paths with Miles, who’s eating popcorn. “Something salty,” he says through a mouthful.

My intuition about my teammate pays off when there’s a climbing race at the end.

Rookie and I win. He leaps into the air, getting high enough that I wonder why he doesn’t get more dunks in games.

“How are we supposed to split this?” Rookie asks, nodding to the trophy.

A half dozen tourists pass us, one whispering to another and pointing in our direction.

"There’s a camp ground reserved for us." Miles points down one of the dirt paths.

"We the only ones staying there?" Jay asks once they’ve passed.

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