Defensive Zone (The Dartmouth Cobras #2) (58 page)

Perron cupped a smooth pass, feinted towards
Callahan, then sent a bullet of a pass to Carter. Carter caught his
own rebound and redirected the puck into the open net.

Tied. And that is how it's done.
Landon's blood sizzled in his veins. If the kid could put them back
into the game that easy, Landon would damn well keep them
there.

This is for you, Silver.
Nothing
else gets past me.

The third line gave him a chance to prove it.
Tired from a long shift, they fumbled and dragged their skates as
though slogging through sludge. Big bodies crashed the net. Landon
slapped a snap shot away from the top corner of the net. Cleared
his crease with a few shoves and threw himself over the goal line
as his own defense kicked the puck in the wrong direction. He
couldn't trap it. It skidded right onto Nelson's stick.

Springing up, Landon put his head in the path
of the bullet fast shot. A
clunk!
on his helmet.

He gloved the puck as it fell.

Ears ringing with the cheers from the crowd,
Landon grinned at his teammates as they surrounded him, thumping
his helmet and smacking his pads with their sticks.

"Now
that
was reel worthy!" Carter
gave him a one arm hug, then whooped loud enough to get the crowd
going again.

That
was what he was capable of. What
the team deserved from him. His goddamned best. Whatever was thrown
at him, whether it be the puck or something far more important, he
could handle it. Now he just had to make Silver believe it.

* * * *

The phone was on silent, but Silver felt it
buzzing in her purse. No way would she take her eyes off the game
long enough to answer—now that she'd stopped covering them every
time the puck came anywhere near Landon—but as soon as thing were
tied up, and he looked a little more solid, she touched Dean's arm
and told him she needed to . . . go.

He gave her a knowing smile before turning
back to watch the fight. Sebastian and Dominik both going at it now
with the Sabres' tough guys.

"This rivalry is going to be great for
ratings," Dean said to Mr. Bolleau just as she walked out.

Damn, why didn't I think of that?
She
rolled her eyes as she made her way down the hall, pulling out her
phone.
All this work on promoting the team and I just had to
tell them to turn the rink into the UFC!

Her urge to laugh dropped dead in her gut as
she checked her missed calls. All but one from her father. The last
from Anne.

She played Anne's message. "Silver, your
father needs to see you.
Please
. He's not doing well. The
doctors are saying . . . " Anne's words cut off with a sob. "I know
you hate me, but I hope you'll come anyway. You know I wouldn't
call if it wasn't important. He had a visitor and—you know he isn't
supposed to have any stress! Maybe he'll feel better, seeing you.
For once in your life, don't be selfish, he—"

Silver deleted the message and slammed her
phone into her purse. Who the hell did that woman think she was? As
if saying her father needed her wouldn't be enough? Just the
numerous calls, after a week without any, would have gotten her to
at least call back to see what was going on.

Screw her. Who cares what she thinks?
She hit the button to the elevator with the side of her fist and
leaned against the wall beside it. Her father had to be okay. If he
wasn't—damn it, she'd hung up on him! And she hadn't called or seen
him since. The updates she'd gotten from his doctor told her he was
doing well, but rather fragile Apparently the doctor fully
supported Anne's decision to keep
everyone
away from
him.

Except Anne of course.

Her palm itched with the need to grab a
lollypop or—she breathed out a laugh—her vial of icing sugar? She
delved back into her purse as the elevator doors opened, took out
the candy and the vial, and tossed it all into the nearby trash,
then ducked into the elevator just in time. Her purse seemed crazy
light, but that was okay. Peering inside, she bit back a smile when
she realized she'd accidentally tossed her two favorite shades of
lipstick out with the candy.

"So, no more drugs or candy. No more
alcohol." She ran her tongue over her teeth and cocked her head,
looking at her reflection in the gold wall. "Guess I'll just have
to shop to relieve stress. I'm going to need a few things."

Yeah, try to fit in a size 2 in another
month.

Wrinkling her nose, she smoothed her hands
over her flat stomach. Just over the last week, eating three meals
a day—
because of Dean—
had gained her a pound or two. But she
couldn't find it in her to care. Her body didn't belong to the
spotlight anymore. And for some reason, that made her feel damn
good.

Everything else though—well that scared her
to death. She had to talk to Landon.

Right after I talk to Daddy.
She
stepped off the elevator and into the parking garage. Her heels
scraped concrete all the way to her car.
Uck, or, better idea. I
could go home and crawl into bed. Hide under the covers for the
next year. Sounds like a lot more fun to me.

Only, hiding wasn't an option. She'd put off
dealing with her father, and speaking to Landon, long enough.

Welcome to adulthood, Silver.

No sending her regrets for the RSVP on that
one.

For the first half of the drive, a weight
seemed to have wrapped around her chest, like a big heavy chain
with the ends dangling over her limbs. She flicked on the radio and
quietly hummed along to a familiar dance tune. Another had her
singing along. Domino, by Jessie, came on. She turned it all the
way up and sang at the top of her lungs.

Things weren't all bad. She was in love with
two men who loved her back. Whatever happened, that wouldn't
change. She had to believe that.

She
did
believe that.

Anne met Silver at Daddy's front door and
clasped her hands, staring at her with bloodshot eyes as she drew
her inside. "I'm so glad you came. He keeps asking for you and . .
. ."

Please say Oriana.
Silver sighed when
Anne didn't say anything. "
And?
"

"And your mother."

Fuck.
"How bad is he, Anne?
Honestly?"

"You would know if you'd visited." Anne
blinked fast and her hands fluttered up to her throat. "Some days,
he's himself. The same strong man he's always been. Other days . .
. he rambles about the past. As though he's still there."

Nodding, Silver strode past Anne and up the
stairs. She didn't stop until she reached the foot of Daddy's bed.
And once there, couldn't take another step.

Her jaw locked. Her eyes stung. Pain welled
in her throat and she had to look away.

This man couldn't be her father.

Dry, yellowed flesh covered the sharp bones
of his face and sunk into hollow cheeks. His eyes were wet with
tears and drool slicked the edges of the mask covering his mouth.
His hands shook as he lifted them to remove the mask.

"My little doll." He gasped as though every
word took more oxygen than he could spare. "You came."

"I'm here, daddy." She stumbled forward,
hitting her knees on the floor by his side as she took his hand.
She choked on a sob and pressed her lips to his cold fingers. "I'm
sorry. I should have come sooner. I didn't know."

"It doesn't matter. You're here now." His
lips twisted into a painful looking smile. "So beautiful. So like
your mother. I had to see you—had to find a way to remember her
face. You are the only thing we had together that was worth
anything."

"But Oriana—"

"Isn't mine. I hoped I wouldn't have to tell
you, but she wants the team. She wants what should have been
Antoine's." His eyes narrowed and the tears fell. "It should have
been her, you know that? She should have gotten in the car with
your mother. Then we would still have him."

Her stomach turned. She shook her head. "You
don't know what you're saying—"

"Yes I do!" He rasped in a breath. "I do. She
tried to replace him, but she was nothing to me! It took me awhile
to see it. To see her for who she is. She's another man's daughter.
A man who always wanted what I had. We were friends once and we . .
. we did things, shared things. I let him use your mother. I used
his wife. And it destroyed both our marriages."

"Oriana looks just like Antoine. Like you."
Rubbing her free hand over her face, she leaned closer and spoke
fast. "Whatever you and mom did, it doesn't change that she's your
daughter."

"She's not." His face reddened and he yanked
his hand away. "Swear to me you won't let her take what's ours!"
His chest collapsed and his eyes widened. "Swear it!"

"Daddy, let me get your nurse." She wanted to
cover her ears as the machines attached to him started screaming.
"She can—"

"Silver, Silver, you're all I have." He
wheezed and reached around blindly. "Unless . . . ."

"Unless?"

"He claims to be my son. I don't believe it,
but if he is—"

He?
"Who, Daddy?"

The door opened and the nurse rushed in.

Daddy held up his hand. "If he is—"

"You have to go." The nurse waved Silver away
from the bed. "Don't worry, this has happened before. The doctor
will be here shortly."

"Let me finish!" Daddy fell back and gagged.
His body convulsed.

The nurse injected something in his IV. She
checked her father's pulse.

Silver covered her mouth with her hand.

"Hey." The nurse came to her and put her hand
on Silver's shoulder. "It's not as bad as it looks. He gets like
this when he's overexcited. It's not pretty, but he's not going
anywhere. I'm sorry you had to see him like this."

"So he's not . . . ." Silver hugged herself
and stared at her father. He looked dead. But the heart monitor
showed his pulse, a steady rhythm, never slowing though it had sped
up for a bit. "The doctor hasn't said how much time he has?"

"No. But the heart attacks seemed to have
affected his mind. He has episodes, but his body is strong
considering. You could come back tomorrow and he'll look much
better."

"He's lost so much weight!"

"Well . . . ." The nurse winced. "That's
because he refused to eat until your mother came to see him. I put
in an IV, but it's hardly enough to keep a man of his size in top
shape."

"Maybe I should stay." She didn't want to.
Not if she had to hear him talking about Oriana like that. But she
would if it would help. "Maybe, if he sees me when he wakes up,
he'll eat."

"I would agree, but he curses you out about
as often as he asks for you." The nurse's look was apologetic. "The
only person that keeps him calm is Anne. I think the only reason
she called you is because his last visitor upset him."

"Who was his last visitor?"

"A young man, he's still downstairs if you'd
like to speak to him." The nurse patted her shoulder. "After that,
I think you should go home. There's nothing else you can do for
your father tonight."

Silver nodded and stood. She backed out of
the room, a photo of her parents catching her eye somehow just the
thing she needed to take that last step. They looked happy. She
knew it was fake, she was old enough to see their marriage for what
it had been, a man who wanted to own a beautiful woman and a woman
who wanted a man who could give her an easy life. But there must
have been a time where they'd had more. Where they'd had something
real.

At least, she hoped so. Her father must have
loved her mother in some way if he still asked for her.

The house seemed bigger than she remembered
as she walked down the long staircase. So empty. She tried to
recall laughter and joy within these walls, but the closest she
came was when it was just her and Oriana, playing when their father
wasn't around. When he was home they'd had to be quiet. She
couldn't remember much from back when Antoine was alive. Maybe a
couple of times before he headed out with his sports bag, when she
ran to the door to wish him luck and he'd ruffled her hair.

He'd called her a little doll too.

Movement to her side brought her back to the
present and she stopped on the bottom step. For a split second, she
saw Antoine and her blood ran cold.

Ford smirked. "You look like you've seen a
ghost."

Shitshitshit.
She shook her head and
grabbed the railing. "No fucking way. No. You fucking fraud! Get
the fuck out of my father's house! Get out!"

"
Our
father's house, sis." He lifted
his tumbler of what looked like brandy in mock cheers. "And soon to
be mine. I
am
the boy after all and he's got some old
fashioned ideas. Soon as the DNA tests come in, I get everything.
The house. The money." He took a gulp of liquor and laughed. "And
the team."

"Like hell you will." She trembled as she
strode towards him and slapped the glass out of his hand. It
exploded against the floor. "That's why he's so messed up. You came
here and made your bullshit claim and—"

"It's not bullshit. My dad finally told me
everything. Why do you think I gave up on Jami? I didn't need
her."

"You pathetic piece of shit. Do you seriously
think you can con your way into my family?"

"I don't need to. And you know it, don't
you?" He shook his head. "You saw it when you came down here. Face
it, Silver. You're going to have to share."

"With my sister."

"Anthony says she isn't his. He doesn't have
to give her fuck all."

"She looks just as much like our brother as
you do."
I did not just say that.
She pressed her eyes shut.
Trying to erase the image. Trying to deny what she'd seen. But she
couldn't. "None of this matters. Daddy gave the team to me."