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ball.
    It slid down the middle . . . and kept going . . . and then veered to the left right before it hit the pins.
    Bam! Four pins went down.
    â€œI did it!” I cried, and Emma gave me another high five.
    I knew it was only four pins, but at least it wasn’t a gutter ball. Jessi shook her head.
    â€œIt’s a good thing you’re a better soccer player than a bowler,” she said.
    I laughed. “No kidding!”

CHAPTER SIX

    The next morning Dad dropped me off early at the Santa Flora field for our game against the Roses. Santa Flora was only one town away from Kentville, so it wasn’t far. It looked like a pretty normal school field except that there were rosebushes planted all around the parking lot, which was really pretty.
    I walked to the Kicks side of the field, where some of the girls were already warming up. Coach Flores approached me.
    â€œDevin, Grace, and Megan are both out today with a stomach bug,” she informed me. “But we’ve got plenty of players, so we should be fine.”
    I couldn’t answer her right away, because I was kind of freaking out inside. Fine? Grace was our strongest midfielder, and Megan, who was also in eighth grade, was asolid striker. Now we’d have a forward line without Megan or Zoe. Not good.
    â€œOkay,” I said finally. “So, what are you going to do, Coach?”
    â€œI thought I’d start you, Brianna, and Maya as forwards,” Coach Flores replied. “Maya’s a great midfielder, but I think she’ll do well in the forward position.”
    I couldn’t really argue with that; Maya was another eighth grader and I didn’t know her that well, but she was definitely solid on the midfield. Still, I didn’t feel like it was our strongest front line.
    â€œCoach, could we put Jessi as a forward too?” I asked.
    Coach Flores raised an eyebrow. “You mean four forwards? I wouldn’t normally recommend that, Devin.”
    â€œI just think we need to beef up our front line,” I said. “It’s worth a try, isn’t it? I mean, we’ve tried stuff before that has worked.”
    Coach Flores nodded. “They say the best way to learn is by doing, right? Let’s give it a try.”
    By now most of the team had showed up, and Coach explained the new formation. When she finished, I yelled out, “Sock swap!” All of us gathered in a circle, took off one of the colorful, crazy socks we were wearing, and handed it to the person on our left. Then we put on our socks and our cleats and were ready to go. Coach Flores led us in some warm-ups and drills. Before long, spectators began to fill the stands, and the Santa Flora Roses showed up in their red-and-white uniforms.
    I wasn’t too worried about the Roses. They’d had almost as many losses as we had, although theirs had been spread out a little more over the season. But we still had to win this game to stay in the running for the play-offs.
    We had retreated to the sidelines to get ready for the start, when Jessi poked my arm.
    â€œCody and Steven are up there,” she told me in a loud whisper. “Just don’t point this time!”
    I followed her gaze and saw Cody and Steven in the stands with some of the other players from the boys’ team. Steven saw me and waved, and I smiled and waved back.
    â€œWhat are you doing?” Jessi hissed.
    â€œI’m waving, not pointing,” I protested, but then I quickly turned away from the stands. Waving at Steven was not a good way to get focused before a game.
    Frida ran up. “So what’s my motivation today?”
    â€œI’ve got one,” Jessi offered. “You’re a military operative guarding a top secret base, and inside the soccer ball is a secret spy camera. If the ball gets into the goal, your enemy will learn all the details of your secret base.”
    Frida made a really serious face. “Military. Got