Mark's day

Carly had been at a Collingwood Airbnb for three nights. Mark met her at Apex at 5 a.m. She didn't speak on the drive. Mark taped in the corner. Danny held mitts. Mark ran the new first-round script twice. Round three — Mark planted his lead foot and the canvas gave slightly under his stance, a small dip where the sub-floor had compressed under the heavy bag mount. He felt his left ankle roll, a sharp twist, and went down on one knee. Danny stopped the round. Mark iced the ankle. He tested it at round four, ran ten more pull-counters. The ankle held. By 10 a.m. the parents' forum had a thread titled 'Hayes ankle injury rumours — Voss camp asks for medical update.' Tom Vass texted Mark direct: 'Voss's team has a picture of you at the sink. They're shopping the angle.' Mark stood at the ropes and breathed. Carly was in the corner. Decision: Mark told Danny to lock the next four days — closed pad sessions, no parents, no windows, no phones in the gym. He told Carly, 'You see anyone, you tell me first.' She said, 'Yeah.'