I still couldn’t quite believe what had happened last week after the Legend of Football presentations.

A group of us had raced off to the library straight after the presentation assembly. We hadn’t heard a thing from Bryce, who had shoved his mobile phone into our hands moments before the end of lunch that day. Then he’d headed off to, we assumed, the library. Outside the hall there were parents, students and teachers milling about everywhere. There was a great-looking afternoon tea for everyone, with visitors and kids alike tucking in.

We got to the library door just as Miss Javros was heading out, key in hand, about to lock up.

‘My goodness, you’re keen. It’s Friday afternoon, school’s over, there’s food galore downstairs, and you arrive on my doorstep,’ she said.

‘You’re right, Miss Javros. What was I thinking?’ Bubba said, glancing at the library exit. Bubba had appeared a bit anxious about leaving all that food behind.

‘Could we just make a little pile of soccer books to borrow?’ Luci asked. ‘You know how Travis always gets the best books out at the start of every Legend sport? We just didn’t want to miss out on the really great soccer books you’ve got, Miss Javros.’

Miss Javros looked at Luci, then the rest of us, and smiled. ‘Against my better judgement, I’ll say “yes”. Leave your selections on the desk and I’ll process them first thing Monday morning. Only two each, mind. Leave a slip of paper with your name on each pile.’ She headed off, then turned around. ‘Becky,’ she said, ‘you are responsible for pulling the door shut. It should lock automatically. Five minutes only, okay?’

‘Got it, Miss Javros,’ Becky said.

On her way, Miss Javros flicked the lights out. ‘Just in case you forget to.’

Luci, Becky and I filed in.

Bubba was still torn between the food downstairs and finding Bryce. ‘I think I’ve reached a turning point in my life,’ he explained, as he walked past me to the sports end of the library.

I looked at him oddly.

‘I’ve relegated food to second place.’ Bubba shook his head slowly, not quite believing his own decision.

We knew something was going on straight away. Miss Javros must have skipped checking this end of the library before she left. Perhaps she had just come back to lock up and get her books and stuff.

It wasn’t messy so much as strange. The bottom shelf of the sports section was supposed to hold the boxes of school publications, with a separate box for each year going back to 1975. In each cardboard box were the school magazines, along with folders of notices and anything else that was special about that year. Students would often check them out for old Legend scores and results. Four of the boxes had been pulled out and stacked neatly to one side. All of the others up to the year 1991 were just lying in a pile on the floor, leaving half of the shelf bare.

‘Bryce!’ I whispered. No answer. ‘Bryce!’

Nothing.

‘Why are those four over there stacked so neatly?’ Becky said, thinking aloud.

‘It’s probably something to do with those numbers on that piece of paper Miss Javros had, remember? The ones she found at the back of these shelves,’ Bubba said, kneeling in front of the bottom shelf and looking hard at the wood behind it.

‘The dates on the boxes and the numbers! Maybe you’re right, Bubba.’ Luci was excited. ‘What were the numbers? C’mon, can anyone remember?’

‘Luci, you’ve got to be kidding,’ I said.

‘No worries, Luci. Eight – seven – nine – one; I remembered that because, well, I dunno, I just remembered it, and, yeah –’ Bubba was looking embarrassed.

‘No, Bubbaman, go on. You’re doing brilliantly,’ said Luci.

‘I am? Okay. The next numbers were five – eight – nine – one.’

‘Yeah Bubba, keep going,’ I encouraged him.

‘Then two – nine – nine – one.’ We all looked over at Becky, who had crawled over to the four boxes stacked neatly by a large chair. It was Becky who had called out the last four numbers.

‘Hey, Beck.’ Now Bubba was looking impressed.

They both recited the last one together. ‘Nine – nine – nine – one.’

‘Look, the numbers are the years on these four boxes, but backwards.’ Becky said. ‘I reckon Bryce realised this. That was his discovery. He’s pulled each of these boxes out and stacked them.’

‘And?’ Luci asked.

‘Quick, shove all the boxes back. In their correct order.’

I looked around thinking someone was coming, but the library was quiet.

We put all the boxes back.

‘Okay. Now, let’s take out each of the four boxes, just like Bryce would have done.’

I bent down and tried to copy exactly what I thought Bryce had done. I pulled out the 1978 box, then the 1985 one, the 1992 one and finally the one from 1999.

‘Very neat,’ commented Luci. ‘Exactly seven years between each one.’

‘So, what would he have done now?’ I asked.

‘Well, I would have put my hand into the space to feel around and see if there was some sort of catch.’ The voice came from nowhere.

We all jumped. Becky screamed.

‘So can you get on with it? Someone?’

The voice was coming from behind the bookshelf.

I was the first one to find my own voice.

‘Bryce?’

‘Of course!’

‘But, why didn’t you–?’

‘Never mind that now. Shove your hand in and feel around near the bottom of the first space. There’s a little bit that feels sort of looser than the rest. Pull it towards you.’

Luci and Becky were muttering angrily, but Bubba put his head down and tried to locate the catch in the 1978 folder’s space, his nose almost to the ground in front of the shelves.

A moment later there was a little click. To our absolute amazement, a wooden panel started to slide to the right.