Page 82 of Baseball and Shifters

Lucas rises from his spot and slowly rolls his shoulders before cracking his neck. “No, man. You ruined your own life. All by yourself.”

The dean steps to the side and gestures toward the door.

“Now, Mr. Hopper,” he says, leaving no room for argument.

Trent mutters something under his breath, snatches his bag off the bench with an exaggerated huff, and stomps across the locker room like a sulky toddler, slamming the door behind him for good measure. Without a word, Coach Mace and Dean Harold file out behind him.

When the door closes behind them, the room releases a collective exhale.

Bas lets out a whistle. “Well, that’s one hell of a way to kick off the weekend.”

“Yeah, but we’re just getting started,” Derrick says, a puff of smoke rolling out of his nose. “This wasn’t justice, this was step one.”

I nod in agreement, my wolf still near the surface, ready to tear Trent’s throat out.

We gather our gear and file out of the locker room, the high from our win still pulsing through us only made sweeter by the loss Trent suffered after the game. When we step into the hall, Demi is already there, leaning casually against the wall decked out in Nightclaw gear as if he’s just some every day dude. It takes me a second to catch it but when I see that all four of our numbers are somewhere on his gear a warmth fills my chest.

He’s wearing Lucas’s sixty-four on his jersey and his hat sports my number, forty-six. He’s got a huge foam finger under his arm that I spy Bas’s number eleven on. When he turns to give Derrick a hug an involuntary laugh escapes me. Plastered across the ass of the shorts our Tribunal Leader is wearing is a massive number seven and the name ‘Assford’. I can barely breathe by the time he turns around and gives me a knowing smirk.

Derrick freezes, eyes locked on the back of his father’s shorts. “What the hell are you wearing?”

Demi shrugs, “School spirit, son. You think your mom would let me come without looking the part?”

Lucas lets out a bark of laughter. “Is that… did you seriously putAssfordon the back?”

Demi grins mischievously. “I mean it is my last name, I can do what I please with it.”

“Please tell me Mom did not see those shorts,” Derrick mutters, shaking his head and dragging a hand down his face.

“Oh, she saw them, alright,” Demi says with a laugh. “She’s the one who ironed all the letters on.”

That sends us into another round of laughs, the tension from the last few days briefly slips away. But it doesn’t last long. The moment the laughter subsides, Demi’s smile shifts into something a bit more serious.

“Come on,” he says, jerking his head towards the hallway that leads back upstairs to his box. “I do have something to share with you all. I didn’t want to tell you before the game and throw you off but I also didn’t want to tell Rachel without you boys there.”

We fall into step behind him, the mood-shift is sobering. Whatever Demi’s about to tell is serious. When we step into the VIP box, I'm pleased to see Rachel sitting on one of the couches between Helene and Maya, half eaten brownie in hand and a softsmile on her face. She looks up as we enter the room and her soft smile turns into a huge grin.

“You guys did so great out there!” she squeals as she flings herself out of her chair into the closest set of arms. She moves through our pack giving us all individual greetings and congratulating each of us on specific plays or saves we made.

Demi gives us a moment before pulling our group over to one side. “Let’s all sit down. I have something to share with you, Rachel.”

Her smile falls slightly as she sits down and we all take seats around her. Demi sits across from Rachel and leans forward, resting his arms on his knees, clasping his hands. His face is serious but there’s a softness in his eyes when he looks at Rachel.

“I’ve been looking into your mother, searching for her second mate,” he begins. “It took a little digging and a few called in favors, but I found something.”

He pauses making sure Rachel’s ready.

She nods slowly. “Okay.”

“Your mother, Kara, met her second mate while she was pregnant with you. He worked at the clinic where she had her prenatal care, he was an ultrasound technician.” He shifts slightly, frowning. “His name was Everett Linx. He was an owl shifter, based on his employment record. No criminal history, no significant prior history really. He was quiet, well-liked, and by all accounts head over heels in love with your mom from the second they touched. Then just a few weeks after they met, about a month before you were born, he disappeared. No forwarding address, he didn’t even quit his job or clean out his apartment. He just… vanished.”

“Vanished?” Rachel asks, leaning forward. “So, what does this mean?”

Demi sighs. “It means your mother didn’t reject her second mate. At least not by choice. Neither she nor Everett everregistered the bond with the Tribunal, but that wasn’t all that uncommon back then. What is uncommon is a disappearance like this not having a single police report attached to it. Not even a missing persons report.”

“My father,” Rachel says. “He made him disappear, didn’t he?”

“I can’t say for certain, yet,” Demi replies. “But the timing lines up. Everett disappears, your mom dies in childbirth, and your father left as the only survivor with full rights and control over you. There’s no evidence, but my gut says he’s likely involved.”

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