Page 117 of Puck with Karma
I sabotaged everything, just like I did my relationship with Abby.
Everything I’ve ever wanted, I now have. My father is not my agent anymore, and I got off the team. I have money, and I can do whatever the hell I want.
Except for the fact that my chest is tight, and all I want to do is everything that I lost. And now, it looks like it will be over for me. I already know that I won’t want to go down to the farm. That’s where they usually pick their players when they’re looking for fresh talent. I am past my rookie days.
Despite everything, I love hockey.
I love the game.
I love that first breath of cold air hitting my lungs when you enter the rink.
The phone rings again. I hesitate to answer when I see that it is my father calling.
“Xander.” His voice sounds as cold as ever, making me brace for the worst. “I got the news.”
I don’t ask how or why he would even care considering he’s not my agent anymore.
“It travels fast.”
I aim to sound amused, but it falls flat. I take a deep breath in and brace myself for what it’s sure to be a lecture. The only positive is that he’s not in control of my money, so he can’t hold that over my head anymore.
“They’ve been trying to get rid of you for a while,” my father sighs, surprising me with his initial reaction.
I nod even though he can’t see it. “I know.”
“Someone found some pictures of you and Mallory from when you were kids. They’re all over the junk news now.”
“Pictures of me and Mallory?” I snort. “I didn’t even know such things existed.”
Dad starts laughing, something that doesn’t happen often.
“There were three. And they’re just being circulated, like you were in love from a young age, and now Karlsberg stole her from you. Someone also commented that you’d been saying you’re close with someone else within the organization. I suspect Cole Samson.”
“Jesus Christ.” I close my eyes and try to think. I sure hope Abby won’t see any of that garbage out there and take it the wrong way.
Now that I am on the other end of this mess, it is ironic that I am expecting Abby to give me the benefit of the doubt, when I didn’t do any of that when it came to her. Karma, as some would say.
“How’s your head?” he changes the subject.
“It’s been worse,” I chuckle. “They had to reset my nose, so there’s that. I’m medicated. And numb.” In more ways than one, but I don’t mention that part.
“You should come home for a while.” Dad clears his voice nervously. That’s something I never experienced from him. “Your mother will like that.”
“Yeah, uh, maybe I will.”
“Airport is closed,” he continues. “Nine feet of snow. But it won’t take them that long to clear everything. We’re trained professionals here.”
Suddenly, there’s commotion from his end of the line.
“Janie, stop running through the house like that,” he booms at my sister, making me smile. “You’re gonna break something!” It’s like she’s little.
“Mallory is next door,” I hear her yelling. That gets my attention for sure.
“How did Mallory get home?”
“She caught the last flight out,” dad grumbles. “She asked Janie to pick her up from the airport, but I told her parents, sothey went to get her. I wasn’t going to let my baby drive out in this mess.”
I bring my phone down from my ear to check on the time. I am shocked when I see that it’s been close to eight hours since I walked into Karlsberg’s building earlier. So much has happened since then. There’s also a text from a surprising sender.
