Page 167 of Top Shelf

“We know he was at the party,” Ronan says, stating something we all know. We’ve been sleuthing through everyone’s socials, going through photos of that night, asking around to figure out where each team member was. But this is different.

That coin I found with her? It’s Isaac’s.

Ronan’s brows dip in a frown. “Did he say he was there?”

I shake my head.

No, but he said he lost it freshmanyear.

Lucian is stock-still, although his body vibrates with the rage he’s impressively controlling. Still, I notice the flex of his jaw and the way his eyes never leave Isaac.

Across the room, Isaac is still laughing, completely unaware.

“Are you telling me…” Lucian’s voice is quiet.Deadlyquiet. “...that he’s the one who hurt her?”

His question hangs in the air between us.

I can’t know for certain. And yet…I know.There is this feeling in my gut that won’t leave me alone. I also know what I found that night. I knowwhereI found it. And Isaac just admitted it was his.

Slowly, I nod.

Lucian closes his eyes. Just for a second. When he opens them again, the light that was there has gone out.

“Lucian,” Ronan says his name carefully, like he’s trying to defuse a bomb.

“Two minutes!” Coach calls.

The locker room erupts into motion. Players grab helmets, bumping sticks. Water bottles are set aside as the team gets ready to head out for the second period of the game.

This is our last shot at winning the Frozen Four. It’s everything we’ve spent years working toward, and yet none of it means a damn thing anymore. Not when there is so much more at stake.

Ronan swears under his breath.

“We do nothing until we can talk about this,” he hisses. “We don’t yet know anything for certain.”

Lucian whips his head around, and the look in his eyes could cut Ronan in half. “Fuck that shit. I know all I need to.”

The two of them stare at each other. Logic versus fury.

“Go time, boys,” Coach bellows. “Get your asses out there.”

With no more time to discuss this, we head back onto the ice.

Right before the whistle blows, Lucian looks over, and he smiles. Every hair on my arms stands up because it isn’t a happy smile. It’s the smile he wears before a fight. The smile he wore before putting Isaac through plexiglass. The smile that means somebody is about to get hurt.

Badly.

For the first time, I’m afraid of what Lucian is capable of.

39

WREN

The arena is packedwall-to-wall with screaming fans, every seat filled, every inch of the building vibrating with nervous energy. Blue and silver flood one side of the stands. Purple and gold dominate the other. The noise is relentless, bouncing off the glass and steel until it feels like the entire building is breathing.

It’s been a while since I’ve been inside the BSU arena where the final game of the season is taking place. Being back in Blackstone feels like coming home, and yet…I’m not as nostalgic to be back as I would have been six months ago. A part of me has moved on. Found a home in Valehurst.

Unlike last time the Kings played the Steelhawks, I’m wearing a purple jersey and standing on the Valehurst side of the rink. I stand near the Kings bench with the rest of the team’s staff, my arms folded tightly across my chest as I watch the clock tick down toward the start of the second period.