Page 4 of Drop Pass

2

Nikolay

My phone vibrated in my bag while I was changing into my practice gear, but my gut told me not to check it. I should have listened.

It was a message from Tiana, my younger sister. She was the next oldest at home. Yula and Samara, the twins, were the youngest at thirteen. Tiana, only sixteen, acted as their mother since Mama was usually gone working two jobs. Despite her efforts, they never seemed to have enough to make it to the next paycheck.

Part of me hated these messages because of the guilt. I should be back home taking care of my family. The burden shouldn’t be on Tiana, just a child herself. I wanted her to have the luxury of growing up slowly, being with friends, and studying for school. She shouldn’t have to worry about bills and rent.

I opened the message and read without giving anything away. The men on this team were sharks to blood when it came to emotions. They could sense any change in your demeanor or mindset I’ve spent my life being strong for my family, hiding my emotions so they wouldn’t worry. There was no way my team would ever see through my façade.

Tiana said Yula was sick and they needed money to take her to the hospital. I closed out of the message and opened my bank app on my phone. With a few familiar steps, I sent them enough to get through the next month or more without worrying. I’d have the hospital bills sent to my email so I could pay them before Mama even saw them.

This was the only benefit of me being here. In the NHL I make over four times what I made in Russia. Plus, being on the Fury came with opportunities for endorsements that I would never receive back home.

Leaving my family behind was terrifying, but since I grew up playing mostly in Europe, it wasn’t as shocking as I’d expected. I hated being so far from them. I should be the one taking Yula to the hospital. I wanted more information on her condition, but it would have to wait until after practice. Right now, my mind had to be here.

The team accepted me quicker than I expected. They’d brought me in to the Fury family and encouraged me to treat them as such. It was something I was still getting used to. On my past teams, things were more cutthroat, every man for himself. We were each trying to get to my current position. A spot on an NHL team.

Now that I was here, no one could take it from me.

The sacrifices were worth it.

I just hoped my sisters understood that. I never wanted them to feel neglected or forgotten. Everything I did was in their best interest.

“You okay, Kozlov?” Hartman, my captain, called out as he passed me on his skates.

I nodded. “Be right out.”

Most of the guys were already on the ice so I hurried to pull on my skates and practice jersey before joining them.

“Gather around guys.” Coach Rust spoke in a calm tone, but that was all it took to get us to listen. I paused near the bench and waited for him to give us the instructions for the day.

“I want each line to run drills today. Things have been sloppy, and with Petterson on the injured reserve list we need the third line to tighten things up.”

He dismissed us and we broke into our groups. Grant Fisher waited for me at the side of the ice and we met Noah Malkin and Reese Murray in the center. I gave them a solid nod while Fisher looked around. “Where’s McCann?”

I looked for the second defenseman in our line but didn’t see his number. I shrugged.

“Coach, have you seen McCann?” Murray called out.

Rust pointed over his shoulder toward the tunnel. “He has a meeting. He’ll be here in a minute.”

I groaned before they even had a chance to open their mouths. I knew what was coming and I didn’t have time to waste on speculation.

Malkin began skating backward, facing us. “Think he’s in trouble?”

“For what? He has less of a life than Niky.” Murray was smirking when I turned to glare at him. I hated that nickname. He knew that, which was why he continued to use it. Stupid American.

“Maybe he’s getting traded.” Fisher offered in a quiet voice.

That was enough to silence the rest of them. It was a decent possibility. None of us liked it when that happened, but it was a fact of life in our sport. Players could be traded through mid-February, so things could change with a single call.

McCann was a good player, though. Our line had been playing together for weeks now and we’d found our rhythm. Losing him now would set us back.

“What do you think, Kozlov?” Malkin asked.

I shrugged. “We’ll know once he gets out.”