She looked as stunning in person as she did in the photos on my bedroom wall. Her hair was shorter, precision-cut in a bob following the sharp line of her jaw. She wore all white: slim-fitting pants and a leather blazer as spotless as her daughter’s skates.
I was only a few feet away from the woman I’d idolized for as long as I could remember. And she’d witnessed me wiping out like a total amateur, almost taking her champion children down with me.
Heath didn’t even seem to notice Sheila’s presence. He led me offthe ice and helped me sit down on a bench, then knelt to snap my blade guards back in place.
“What do you need?” he asked. “I can get you an ice pack. Or a medic, to check you out, make sure there’s no—”
“I’m fine,” I repeated. My hips felt stiff, a pulsing pain settling into the right socket. Movement should help. “Let me rest for a second, and we can get back out there.”
“I’m going to get the medic.”
He was gone before I could stop him. I knew it would make him feel better to do something, even though I was certain my pride was more bruised than my body.
The twins were at the boards now, heads bowed, consulting with Sheila. Probably talking about the ignorant girl who’d run into them because she didn’t know basic ice-sharing rules. I shut my eyes, determined to hold back the tears that threatened.
“Please tell me you did that on purpose.”
I looked up. It was the ponytailed guy I’d seen earlier. Close-up, he was so skinny he looked less like a nobleman and more like a freakishly tall Victorian urchin.
“What?” I said.
“Trying to take out the Lin Twins.” He plopped down next to me, a smirk twisting his pale face. “Please tell me you did it on purpose.”
“It was an accident. I wasn’t watching where I was going, and—”
“Too bad. You struck me as the type.”
“The ‘type’?” I couldn’t figure out whether he was making fun of me or not.
“The type who’ll do anything to win.” He stuck out his hand. “Ellis Dean.”
I took it. “Katarina Shaw.”
“Nice to meet you, Katarina Shaw.” He leaned closer, dropping his voice to a whisper. “Next time, aim for her toe pick. Then she’ll be the one eating ice.”
As if she’d somehow heard him from the other side of the rink, Isabella shot a glare in our direction. Ellis gave her a smile and a finger-waggling wave. She did not return either.
“Trust me,” he said through his teeth. “She deserves it.”
When Isabella’s glare settled on me, I didn’t bother with the pretense of a smile. I glared back, holding her gaze without blinking until my eyes started to burn.
Finally, she turned away, taking a sip from her Swarovski-encrusted water bottle.
My first victory over Bella Lin. I vowed it wouldn’t be my last.
Garrett Lin, now in his late thirties, lounges on a leather sofa at his home in San Francisco.
Garrett Lin(Sheila Lin’s Son): If you think I’m going to spill a bunch of dirt about my mother, how mean she was to me and my sister or whatever…forget it, all right? That isn’t why I agreed to do this.
A few candid Polaroids showing Sheila during her pregnancy are followed by a formal birth announcement. As infants the twins look identical, with black hair and gold swaddling.
Kirk Lockwood:Sheila was the most driven, focused person I’d ever met. Then she’s pregnant, with twins, at twenty-two years old? I was shocked.
Ellis Dean:Bella and Garrett were bornexactlynine months after the Sarajevo Games. Sheila refused to tell anyone who the father was, but it had to be an Olympic Village hookup.
Kirk Lockwood:All I know is, it wasn’t me. I’m proud to be both a gold medalist and a gold-star gay man.
Garrett Lin:I know my mother didn’t plan her pregnancy, but it’s almost like she did, right? We were a ready-made ice dance team, and she had us in skates as soon as we could stand.
