He didn’t know what he thought—whether Josh hadn’t been able to face it when it came down to it or whether Mitchell had murdered Josh in the locker room—but even through his alarm, the crowd’s reaction caught his attention. The applause that had started at the first sight of one of the finalists suddenly dropped in volume, and Ryan was almost sure he could hear boos and whistles from one corner of the court. Then Josh came onto court and the place erupted, Ryan adding his own heartfelt applause to the general noise.As the players got ready, stripping off sweats and ensuring their bags were just so before going through the traditional coin toss with the attendant ritual and photographs, Ryan sat back and thought. For the first time, he realized that it might actually work to their advantage if Mitchell were to beat Josh. Josh was a popular player. It was clear from the reception Mitchell had just received that a significant proportion of the crowd had seen that incriminating photo.
