Page 65 of Never Bet Against A Hockey Player

“I thought it would get better as he got older but it just got worse.” She gave me a sad smile. “Maybe when all of this is over, I can finally figure out what I want to do for myself.”

“We’ll figure it out together. You can try everything you’ve always wanted to try and find something that you’re passionate about.”

“I’d like to find something flexible so I can travel with you guys. I don’t always want to be stuck behind and waiting on you to come home our whole lives,” she said. “With Gavin it’s a bit different. But someday, he’ll be in college and have his own life. I want that, too.”

“We’ll make that happen,” I vowed. Hockey was a part of our lives. We would have away games and constant practices and games, but I also wanted to balance that with keeping her happy and cared for. It may take work, but we were all committed and willing to put in the work.

She picked up her fork again when her phone suddenly rang. August’s name flashed across the screen and she answered quickly.

“Hello?”

“Firecracker… Gavin didn’t get off the bus after school.”

“What?”

She shot to her feet so fast she almost toppled off the picnic table. I moved around quickly to steady her, frowning down at the phone.

“I pretended to be his uncle and called the school. They told me he was picked up early today.”

“Oh god,” she breathed out in horror.

I didn’t even bother cleaning up the table as I snagged the bags and grabbed my keys.

“Come on.” I wrapped my hand around hers and started running. “We’ll find him.”

Chapter

Eighteen

Dhara

“The school never would have released him unless it was Mom. She had to add me so I could pick him up. We’re the only two on his emergency contact list.” My panic was rising, chest tightening until it was painful and hard to breathe.

“Should we go by your house first?” Conrad asked. He was all business now. He’d swept me out of the farmer’s market and into the SUV, peeling out of the lot as he tore back into town.

Tears streamed down my face as I nodded. “Yeah. It’s at least worth a try.”

The truth was I was out of my depth. She’d never done anything like this before.

“Does he have a phone?” he asked. His voice was steady but the worry in his eyes gave away what he was trying to keep locked down. I appreciated that he was staying strong. I needed that right now.

“No. I tried to give him one, and she took it and sold it. When I tried again she kept it and forced me to pay for her lines and overages,” I admitted. Every time I told them something else she did I couldn’t shake the shame that crept in.

I was the one who allowed her to act that way. To use me.

“Fuck. I keep thinking she can’t get any worse and she always proves me wrong,” Conrad muttered.

I let out a humorless laugh. He wasn’t wrong. Every story I told about my mother sent them into a new spiral of frustration and anger on my behalf.

Even if Gavin had a phone, Mom would’ve told him not to tell me anything. He’d protect me just as fiercely as I protected him.

I directed Conrad toward the house, but her car wasn’t there yet.

“Park anywhere,” I ordered, already unbuckling. The second he stopped in the driveway, I threw the door open and ran inside.

I don’t know what I expected to find. There was no car outside. But maybe, on the off chance they’d been here, maybe I could find some clue about where she’d taken him.

The most fucked-up part was that I knew this was a test. This was my mother flexing the fact that she was in charge. That she could do as she pleased, keep me in line, and there was nothing I could do to stop her.