“It takes a village to score, not just one person. I can’t score without backup and vice versa.”
“And that is why we chose you over everyone else.” The team owner, Barry Krantz, smiles as he joins us. “I’ve had my eye on you two for a while, but I knew how important finishing college was for both of you so I was waiting. Injuries forced my hand a bit. Glad to see we our expectations were confirmed. And Kirkos is right. Urie is an excellent player, he just needed the right players to help him shine.”
Urie looks as awed as I feel right now. The fucking owner is here and he knows who we are and is glad he signed us. Fuck me.
“And where is this Daisy I’ve heard so much about? I’m told she’s an excellent cook.”
“Her friend is in town and had to get back to her hotel before curfew. Her coach is pretty strict about curfews for his athletes. She left early to get her there on time.”
Barry nods. “A little birdie also informed me she has a little problem with an ex-boyfriend?”
He knows about that?
Barry laughs, his brown eyes twinkling. “I know everything about my players. I’m a hands-on owner if you will. Now, tell me about this problem.”
“She used to date Joseph Ayers when they were in high school. She broke up with him when she found out he was cheating on her while she was home taking care of her dying grandmother. He didn’t take it well and beat the living shit out of her, telling her she was his.”
Shaw growls and Blaine’s expression turns angry.
“It gets worse,” I warn them. “The sheriff was his uncle and they all pressured her not to file charges and ruin asswipe’s chances at going to a Division I school. And Ayers threatened hergrandmother. Told her if she didn’t shut her mouth, he’d do the same thing he did to her grandmother as he did to her.”
“Joseph Ayers, the football player who declared for the draft?” Barry strokes his chin thoughtfully. “That’s a problem.”
“Collin and I are keeping our opinions to ourselves, but if he comes here starting problems, I will take out the trash.”
“Gloria, our head of PR, has been in touch with your agent about this. She said Daisy filed a restraining order against him?”
“He still thinks they’re together or some shit. He’s been calling and then when she filed the restraining order, he blew up her phone with threats. He even admitted in voicemail and texts what he did to her back in West Virginia.”
“That was stupid,” Blaine said. “He might deny text messages by saying his phone was hacked, but it’s hard to explain away your voice admitting to things.”
“How did she get a restraining order if he’s not in the state?” Shaw asks. “Don’t you need actual evidence of violence or something?”
“She still has the photos the hospital took of her injuries. They gave her a copy of them when the police wanted to sweep everything under the rug so those couldn’t disappear to. They were used to show what he did to her and with his continued harassment, the judge issued the order. Its only good here in the state of Minnesota, but she’s not going anywhere. Her lawyer sent everything from the aftermath of the restraining order to the police in Texas, but she doesn’t think it’ll do a lot. He’s a big deal down there.”
“Hmm…what kind of threats is he making now?” Myers, another player asks. I didn’t even see him come up. Fucker moves as stealthy as a ninja.
“He left hundreds of texts messages and over seventy voice mails explaining in detail just how he’s going to hurt her and he said this time, he’ll make sure she’s not around to screw uphis life. One of my friends who’s a football player checked with his friends down in Texas and Ayers is still there, still showing up for practice. That’s the only thing keeping my rage in check. Fucker comes here and I’m not sure I can do that.”
“Fucker comes here and we’ll show him just what we do with abusers,” Myers mutters. “What is it with people beating on people they claim they love?”
“Daisy is terrified of him. If you knew her before he started calling, you’d see the difference in her. She jumps now at every sound. I hate it.”
“Red is a feisty woman who tells you how it is and if she says jump, you jump. She’s a sweetheart, though, and her kindness is what defines her. She’s my bestie and seeing her scared…it’s rough.” Collin finally speaks, and his emotions shines through. “That girl is my family as much as Hutch is and I will protect her even if it means my place here is in jeopardy.”
“Same,” I agree. “I appreciate the opportunity to play here, but Daisy means more to me than hockey. I’ll protect her at all costs.”
It’s something I’ve come to understand over the last few days. She’s slowly become my life and I will protect her.
“I’d expect nothing less, but the Raptors are a family and we take care of our own.” Barry nods to Shaw. “Ask Chandler. We were here when his wife and son were taken hostage. We got them both back safely.”
“The police helped,” Shaw pointed out.
Barry doesn’t look impressed. “Baas and his team got Cora back. My point is, if she needs protection from what did you call him…asswipe?”
I nod.
“If asswipe comes to our town and causes problems, we’ll deal with it. Gloria knows and has been looking into how wecan help. Football is big business, but in Minnesota, hockey is a bigger business. We have the upper hand here.”
