“MAYBE she wants you,” Alec said.
“We'd better go in.”
Alec turned the iceboat toward shore. He stopped it at the edge of the park, near Marylou and the boys.
“Hi!” he greeted Marylou.
Marylou's eyes were bright and shining. “Hi!” she said.
“This is Alec Daws,” said Rusty to Marylou. “He built that iceboat himself!”
Marylou laughed, and put out her hand. She was wearing woolen mittens. “Nice to meet you,” she said. “I suppose, since you own such a beautiful iceboat, the boys bother you a lot!”
Alec shook his head. “Not very much,” he said. “Matter of fact, today is the first day Rusty has known about it. By the way, have you ever ridden on one?”
“Never!” Marylou's brown eyes widened with interest. “But if you'll invite me —”
“I'm inviting you!” said Alec. “Hop on!”
Marylou got into the rear seat. Alec strapped her in, then shoved the iceboat away from shore. He got in the front seat, adjusted the sail, and in a moment they were skimming swiftly over the ice.
“I think she's ruined it for us,” said Perry quietly. “We might as well go home.”
“Let's wait,” said Joby. “She might get scared or something.”
Rusty chuckled. “You don't know my sister!” he said.
They waited. Seven minutes later Alec and Marylou returned. Marylou's face was flushed with excitement.
“What fun!” she cried. “I think I'd like to go out again sometime.”
“Okay. Tomorrow,” said Alec. He turned to the boys. “Stick around. I'll take the iceboat back to the boathouse.”
On their way home, Alec told them that he had scheduled a basketball game for the next week at Bay Town. Bay Town had lost only twice so far this season and would be strong competition.
“A week after that will be the big one,” Alec went on. “Culbert was runner-up last year in the eastern division. That takes in some of the teams we've already played. Beat them, and we know we have something!”
“I wish I could be around to see a game,” said Marylou. She looked at Rusty. “Mother wrote to me that you were doing marvelously.”
“Marvelously is right,” said Alec, smiling. “Matter of fact, I have to slow him down now and then. He wants to rush things too fast.”
Bay Town was as strong that following Saturday as Alec had said it would be. Their center was taller than Perry, a slim, blond boy who jumped, dribbled, and passed with equal skill. After the first quarter ended, Rusty could tell that the blond boy was practically Bay Town's team. Without him, they'd be nothing.
The score was Bay Town — 11; Lakers — 4.
“Perry, you, Joby and Bud cover him on defense,” advised Alec. “Try to keep him from scoring. That'll be our only chance.”
The boys clung to the tall Bay Town center like leeches in the second quarter. They held him to two baskets. The Lakers scored seventeen points. The score, at the end of the first half: Bay Town — 15; Lakers — 21.
In the second half the Bay Towners were a confused bunch of boys. The blond center tried steadily to get away from his guards, but had little luck. Perry fouled him twice. Ted, twice. Other than that, the center scored very few points. And the Lakers were dumping them.
Rusty played his share of the game. From the corner he sank three set shots. He was fouled three times. He sank two of his free throws, for a total of eight points.
He had played a good game. He wished Marylou was here to see him.
The Lakers carried home the win, 4 to 36.
It was a shocking loss to Bay Town. A fine team like theirs losing to a bunch of boys who had never played under a coach's guidance before this year? Impossible!
But it had happened!
“Alec said we did great,” Rusty wrote to Marylou that night. “Alec has me play the corner so I don't get hurt. But I scored eight points, anyway…”