Page 58 of Doc Defence

“That’s good.” Coach Morgan nodded.

“Yeah. I had a couple of bad days and drank my body weight in whisky, but I decided it’s not the way I want to go.” Frost was relieved though that he had asked Hel to remove the alcohol as he couldn’t lie and say there hadn’t been a couple of minutes in the middle of the night when he hadn’t been tempted.

“That is good to hear. I spent a few years at the bottom of a bottle. Stopping was the best thing I ever did for my life. It saved my marriage, it means my children still talk to me, and it saved my life,” Coach Morgan said seriously.

“I’m glad you managed to kick it.” Frost was surprised. The Coach was such a calm presence, he would never have imagined him needing to drown his sorrows.

“Me too, son. Now, what can I do for you? I assume you didn’t come all the way here to tell me about your whisky drinking.” The coach raised his eyebrows.

“No, Sir. My career as a player is done.” Frost felt a hitch in his throat when he said it.

“I know. Sorry, son,” Coach Morgan replied gravely.

Frost swallowed a couple of times before he could continue without his voice breaking. “When I go back to Canada, I’ve been offered a coaching job in the NHL.”

“Congratulations.” The older man’s lips pulled up in a small smile. “That’s great news.”

“The thing is, I’ve never coached before, and I can stay in Australia until the end of the season, and the documentary is paying me to be here.” Frost lifted his eyebrows.

“You want to coach the Wombats?” Coach Morgan caught on immediately.

“If you’ll have me. It would be a big help to me to get some experience to see if I want to do it in the NHL.” Frost smiled winningly, hoping the older man was going to say yes.

“And it’ll stop you trying to drown your sorrows?” Coach Morgan guessed.

Frost agreed with a laugh. “Yeah, that too. I’ve never sat around and done nothing. I don’t think I can start now. I’d like to shadow you and learn from you.”

“You realise it’s very different here to the NHL. We’re small fry,” Coach Morgan warned him.

“I understand. But the people management is important, and I think I could learn a lot from you.” Frost hoped he would agree.

The Coach observed him for a long moment before he smiled broadly. “Sure. That sounds good. I’ll email you my schedule. And you can come along. Is that okay?”

“That’s great. Thanks. I won’t keep you any longer, and I’ll see you at the next training session.” Frost grabbed his crutches and heaved himself to his feet.

“Great.” The Coach reached across his desk to shake Frost’s hand, who had to juggle his crutches to return the gesture.

Frost got himself stable again and hopped out of the office. He was on his way to the arena’s exit when his phone rang. He stopped abruptly and nearly dropped his crutches in his haste to grab his phone out of his pocket.

Seeing it was Hel, he grinned as he answered. “Hi.”

“G’day.” Her voice sounded tired but warm. “I’m pulling up now. Where shall I meet you?”

“I’m about to hobble out the front door, so anywhere there is good.” Frost pinned the phone between his ear and his shoulder and got a crutch back in each hand.

He pushed the door open with his shoulder, stumbling a little as he tried to manage the heavy door and both crutches.

Hel was sitting at the curb right in front of him, leaning over from the driver’s seat and peering out the passenger window. She waved when she saw him.

He took his hand off his crutch to wave back and had a small wobble. He saw her face crease with worry, so he put both hands back where they were supposed to be and instead headed for the car, going as fast as he could.

Hel leapt out of the car and dashed around to the passenger side to help him in.

“I can do it myself,” Frost grumbled.

“I know you can, but it’s easier if I help. So deal with it.” She met his eyes defiantly, and he saw the twinkle of humour in their hazel depths.

Frost put his hand on the roof to steady himself and handed her the crutches, muttering, “Yes, boss.”

---