Page 9 of Head Over Skates

Zamboni drivers.

There are two regular drivers here. Joe, who’s been here forever, and the new girl. Emily. I hadn’t seen her before six months ago.

I click around the blog, looking for the earliest post. Five months ago. Just after Emily started.

Coincidence? Possibly.

But who else is in the arena that early? Only a handful of people.

“You okay, bro?” Griffin nudges my shoulder. “You look a little pale.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I shouldn’t have gone online, that’s all.”

He looks at my phone screen. “You still worked up over that blog? I just thought it was funny. If I’d known you’d get bent out of shape, I wouldn’t have shown it to you.”

“Nah, you’re right. It’s just a dumb thing. Hey, do you know that girl Zamboni driver?”

Smooth transition, Owen.

“Emily? Yeah, she’s hot, but kind of keeps to herself. I see her at The Crowned Loon sometimes.”

“You do? Does she take a camera? Takes pictures of the team?”

“Uh, not that I’m aware of. But everyone takes pictures of the players on their phones. Why?”

“Oh nothing. As team captain, I want to make sure Sawyer watches himself.”

“Yeah, he’s a wild card lately. But take it easy on him. He’s going through some stuff.”

He pats my back and leaves to wrap his stick.

I make a mental note to talk to Sawyer someday soon. Find out what’s happening with him. He’s not the bleeding heart, talk it out kind of guy, but if I can meet him where he's at… See where he’s coming from. It’s not just about the game or the championship title. He’s my friend. At least I hope he is enough to let me help him before he spirals out of control.

I take five minutes to myself before the game to meditate in silence. It’s not easy to find a quiet spot, but there’s a supply closet near the equipment manager’s office I discovered a while ago. It’s my little refuge.

I’m feeling pretty good by the time I get out onto the ice. Sawyer, Hendrix, and I are the starting forwards. The crowd always goes wild when we take the ice before the puck drop.The Killers. Fans love to shout it.

Kil-lers. Kil-lers!

But I hear something else tonight. I can’t make it out at first. But when I look up into the stands, I see a big banner held up by some female fans.

And what they’re chanting is the same as what is written in bold letters on the banner.

PREENING PUCKS.

Big, red lipstick imprints are painted all around the lettering. Sawyer is eating this up, skating in a big circle, blowing kisses atthe fans. The cheering gets louder. I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I’m thinking bad. That little blogger has single-handedly made a mockery of us. I glance over to Coach Knight to gauge his reaction, but something else catches my notice.

From the corner of my eye, that powder blue beanie snags my attention, and I turn to it as if I’m drawn in like a magnet. Or rather, the woman wearing it is drawing me in. That dark blonde hair feathering out on the side of her face. That tiny little form, sitting on top of the Zamboni. That devilish curl of her lips as she takes in the chaos of her handiwork. And a camera with a lens bigger than her whole arm pressed against her eye.

That witchy little alley cat. I suspected it all night, but now I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt. Blue beanie girl is theBlades After Darkblogger.

I am going to Take. Her. Down.

Phase one of my plan is to find incriminating evidence. I’m not sure how, but just knowing the truth allows my mind to focus on the game.

During the first intermission, she’s resurfacing the ice. The perfect time to go through her camera to see if any of the images match the ones on the blog. But Coach Knight has us in the locker room almost the entire eighteen minutes, going over an emergency strategy. We’re down by a goal. Priorities.

But during the second intermission, Joe’s running the resurfacer. He’s got this cute kid riding along with him while the songI Wanna Drive a Zamboniplays over the speakers. The kid is beaming. Waving at the crowd like he just won the Stanley Cup. He reminds me of Cyrus a little bit. I wonder if my brother would like a ride whenever he gets to come to a game.IfShannon allows it.

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