Page 55 of Wicked Games

“Go on.”

Most of the team is done and gone by the time I get into the locker room. To clarify—a different one than where I fucked Margo earlier. The arena is down the street from the school. A different building entirely.

A quick, hot shower warms my bones. But I can’t shake the feeling that pressure is creeping up on me. My uncle, my mom. They’re prying.

Liam waits for me by my cubby. His gaze drops to my torso, and his eyes widen. Not much can surprise him, but… “Holy fucking shit. What the hell happened?”

I glance down at the bruises from my uncle.

“Nothing good.”

He just looks at me, and I force myself to hold his gaze. My friends don’t reallyknow. I don’t think I’ve ever openly admitted what my uncle does for sport. But they do know that as soon as Eli’s parents offered me the room in their basement, I jumped at it.

And on the topic of my conversation with Coach, I’m not about to tell Liam about college. About the prestigious route my uncle and mother have laid out for me. Liam seems to think it’s iffy he’ll even make it that far, unless he gets a scholarship. Which is totally possible—he plays hockey well enough to play on the college level. A division one school would be lucky to have him.

Coach is all about the sport. No time for lust or mind games. No time for drinking, partying, girls.

No fighting.

“How’s Marg—I mean, Amelie?” Liam snickers.

I shake my head. “I’m not touching Amelie. She’s fucking delusional.”

“You may not be touching her, but she sure as hell wants you to.”

I roll my eyes, grabbing my bag. We walk out together. “That’s the problem. She’s got an issue with Theo and wants me to save her from it.”

Liam shakes his head. “Not gonna comment on that.”

“And you? No girls you’re chasing?”

“Nope. I’m free as a bird!”

He’s a lying bastard. All of us are. It’s the glue that holds us together. That and undying loyalty. I might want to punch Liam’s face in sometimes, but I’d kill for him. I know he’d do the same for me.

“You seem… off.”

“Maybe I am.” I shrug on my coat and follow him to the parking lot.

“You’re not going to tell me?”

We get to my car. His is in the shop—it’s always in the shop—so Theo and I have been taking turns giving him rides. He lives in the middle of nowhere, which isn’t terrible. I don’t mind the drive. It gives me time to think.

But I’ve been thinking too much, holding on to things I should really get off my chest. It’s no wonder Liam’s picked up on something no one else has.

“I found something,” I tell him once we’re on the road. “A note.”

“A note,” Liam repeats. “What did it say?”

“Just shut up and fucking listen, would you?”

I haven’t told anyone this. I’ve scarcely been able to think about it, let alone bring it up in conversation. I learned early on that secrets only remain such if they’re held with one person.

“After Margo went missing, I broke into her room at the Bryans’ house. I was going to take a picture of the family because it piqued my curiosity, you know? After I told them that Margo’s mom was responsible for giving their daughter drugs. But…”

“Isn’t that what happened?” Liam eyes me. “You did tell them that, which is why Margo ran away from you.”

“Amber didn’t leave town like I told her to,” I admit. “I was going to take the photo of the Bryans—including their daughter—and I was going to ask her if she recognized any of them.”

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