Rhys
"He didn’t leave with his phone, Leo. What the hell am I supposed to do? It’s been twelve hours and I have no idea where he could be." I groaned, the sound coming out raw and desperate as I paced the length of the floor in front of Leo’s desk.
Kayden had been gone since that night and had never returned. He didn’t call; he didn’t co back ho.
He just vanished, hiding in God knows where, leaving nothing but a deafening silence behind him and I was on the verge of going insane because I had no idea where he could be.
"Calm down, Rhys. We are going to find him," Leo assured , but his voice lacked the frantic edge that was currently shredding my nerves.
I had already begun the plan to bring him back to the team. I had contacted the investigator Coach recomnded, and the man had started working on the case imdiately.
I had made a point to ignore the toxic sludge of hate comnts flooding social dia. I had even refused to pick up my grandfather’s calls or return his texts because I didn’t care about his agendas.
All I wanted was for Kayden to return. I just wanted to see him, to feel him, and to know for a certainty that he was fine.
"But..." I started again, checking my phone for the tenth ti in a minute. I was looking for anything—a text from an unknown number, a ping from the investigator—but I got nothing.
"Has he ever done sothing like this?"
Leo gave a look that was as sharp as a scalpel. Unlike , he looked totally unfazed by Kayden’s disappearance, maintaining a detachnt that made wonder if he knew exactly where Kayden was and was simply choosing to keep in the dark.
The only thing he seed genuinely concerned about was the origin of that video.
"Leo," I growled, marching toward him and grabbing the collar of his coat. "If you know where he is hiding, I need you to tell . Now. I can’t focus on practice, and we have gas coming up in a day. I—"
Leo let out a short, annoyed groan, reached up, and yanked my hands off his coat with surprising force. He straightened his collar with deliberate, slow movents before standing up to face .
"Rhys, stop. High-functioning hysterics won’t bring him back any faster," Leo said, his voice dropping into that flat tone he used when he was done with soone’s nonsense.
"We have to keep this between us, or you’ll alert the board. Stop being paranoid. The probability that Kayden has co to physical harm is low. He is simply offshore, emotionally speaking."
I rolled my eyes in annoyance and threw my hands up. "Is there sothing you are not telling ? Sothing I am supposed to know that you are hiding?"
"There are many things that I am hiding from you and would never tell you, regardless of how much pressure you apply, but this is not one of them," he said, clearing his throat. "I have no idea where he is, but I am reasonably certain he is fine."
"He has no phone, Leo! Nothing with him. How the hell can you be certain about his welfare?"
Leo slamd his hand on the table, the sharp crack of palm against wood finally breaking his composure. "Because he is Kayden, and surviving is what he does best!" he yelled, then imdiately lowered his voice back to a cold, steady level. "Kayden is fine. What we should focus on right now is the ’why’ and the ’who.’ Why was the video released now? Who benefits? We should be clearing his reputation. I am confident that if we provide a logical solution to the problem, he will erge from his hiding spot on his own."
I gave Leo a questioning look, still suspicious that he was holding back, but I didn’t persist. Finding the perpetrators who released the footage was the only logical priority.
"The investigator already has a lead, but it’s not clear yet. I need to know if Kayden ever told you anything about the Westbridge Falcons. Did you two ever discuss them?"
Leo shook his head.
"What do you an he didn’t tell you? Aren’t you two supposed to be best friends? You’re supposed to know everything."
Leo scoffed, and before I could react, he lunged forward, grabbing by the collar of my jersey and shoving hard against the wall.
I didn’t know where he got the strength—he was significantly smaller than I was—but the impact of my back against the wall was enough to make the room shake for a second.
"Listen to ," Leo hissed, his eyes cold. "Just because Kayden and I are like brothers doesn’t an he catalogs every trauma for my benefit. Especially not when it involves bullying. n like Kayden don’t offer up their sha as dinner conversation."
"What are you saying?"
"It ans that Kayden hides his pain from more often than not because he knows I would worry. He never told the specifics of what happened while he was there, but one night, months ago, he showed up at my house covered in bruises and crying. Even when he was barely conscious and refusing to speak, there was one na he whispered over and over."
"Whose na?" I demanded.
"I didn’t catch the surna at the ti, but the first na is vivid. Julius."
"Julius?" I asked, and he nodded.
I shut my eyes for a mont, clenching my fists so tight I felt the sting of my nails against my palms.
The na Julius resounded over and over in my head until the mory clicked. Julius Gerald. The son of the coach and the CEO of the Westbridge Falcons.
I knew the na because we’d had a brief encounter once—he’d introduced himself with that smug, entitled air, but I hadn’t bothered to respond.
"You know who Julius is?"
I nodded slowly. "He is Westbridge Center."
Leo finally let go of my collar. "What is the move, Rhys?"
"We wait for the investigator to finalize the data. And in the anti, I’m going to whoop that boy’s ass on the ice."
"No," Leo countered imdiately. "You cannot cause a scene on the ice. Gratuitous violence only confirms the ’bully’ narrative they’ve attached to the team. That puts Kayden at further risk, and you know it."
I chuckled, a dark, humorless sound, but said nothing to him.
I pulled out my phone and texted the investigator: I need good news in two days. Please.
Then I turned back to Leo. "Find out where kayden is for . And when you do, tell him that I..." I paused, the weight of the secret pressing against my chest.
"There is no reason to maintain the pretense in front of ," Leo said flatly.
I froze. "What do you an, Leo?"
"I heard both of you. In the locker room. Discussing how to ’pretend’ to be distant in front of the others. Your acting skills are subpar, for the record."
"You were spying on us?"
Leo shrugged, his expression returning to its usual pragmatic mask. "I prefer the term ’environntal monitoring.’ It was for your own protection."
I groaned and turned toward the door. "Expected. After all, you are Leo. Anyways," I continued, smacking my lips together as I reached for the handle. "If Kayden contacts you, tell him I missed him. And tell him I will do everything in my power to clear his na."
I opened the door and walked out of Leo’s office, the cold determination in my chest finally beginning to outweigh the fear.
No matter what it takes, I will clear Kayden’s na.
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