The news of the Whitman and Murphy family alliance was everywhere. Ashton and Betty were trending nonstop, with Betty’s achievements plastered all over social media, turning her into some kind of role model for young women.

But buried beneath all the headlines, there was a weird local news story that caught my attention—a guy had been rushed to the hospital after getting a billiard ball stuck somewhere it definitely didn’t belong.

Curious, I clicked on it. And there he was: ...