SAM PICKED THAT MOMENT TO SHOW UP. She shouldered through the crowd, her headscarf pulled low over her face. Her jacket was dusted with ash, as if she’d spent the night in a chimney. I wanted to yell at her for being gone so long, but my anger evaporated when I noticed her black eye and swollen lip. “What happened?” I asked. “Are you okay?” “Little scuffle,” she said. “No worries. Let’s watch the judging.”
