Page 135 of Play Book

“She could be having a heart attack,” he says. “Call 911!”

I grab my phone as he puts her on the ground.

“Fuck, she’s not breathing!” He starts administering CPR. “We can’t wait for an ambulance,” he says, suddenly standing up and lifting Bertie in his arms. “I’m going to take her!”

“Oh my God, Rage.” I watch in wide-eyed horror.

“Lock the door behind me!” he yells. “I’m going to call and get one of the other guys to come help you lock up! Don’t do anything until he gets here.”

“Is Bertie okay?” Ally whispers, coming to stand next to me.

“I don’t know,” I admit. “I hope so. I’m going to go lock the front. I’ll be right back. Why don’t you text your uncle and see how long he’s going to be?”

“Okay.”

I throw the deadbolt on the front door, and make sure the floor lock is engaged.

“Saylor!” I hear Ally’s screech and whirl around just in time to see Russell.

With an arm around Ally’s neck.

And a knife at her throat.

THIRTY-NINE

Canyon

The game goes into the longest shootout I’ve ever participated in, but we manage to get the win and end the regular season on a high note. The locker room is busy, the media swarming us almost as soon as we get off the ice. There’s a lot of excitement because we’re going to the playoffs for the first time in a decade, and this is also the first season with Harper as our owner.

“Canyon, how does it feel to have made the playoffs?” One of the regulars in the press corps approaches me with a friendly smile.

“Hey, Mike. It’s great. I mean, Ms. Barrowman put together a great group of players and a fantastic support team behind the scenes. We’re excited to see where this goes.”

“There was a lot of gossip when you were traded here, one of the league’s top scorers going to the worst team in the league—do you think your presence here helped turn things around?”

I shake my head. “Look, it’s a team and we all put forth a team effort. Did I help? I’d like to think so. But there are so many pieces to the puzzle. No one thing makes or breaks a team, in my opinion.”

“On a personal level, you’ve had a lot of family issues to deal with. Has it made it hard to focus on hockey?”

“Of course.” I nod. “My sister passed away, so there was a period of grieving, you know? We try to be tough guys, but we’re only human.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.” Mike gives me a look filled with genuine sympathy, which is nice.

“Thank you.”

“What are you most looking forward to in the playoffs?”

“Winning,” I say, clapping him on the shoulder. “Winning, my friend.”

I turn to a female reporter who’s been waiting. “Hey, Jan.”

“Hi, Canyon.” She grins. “Great game.”

“Thanks.”

“Despite everything going on, you finished with the most points on the team this season, and the second most points of your career. What do you attribute that success to?”

“Like I told Mike, it’s a team effort. I can’t do it on my own. Without the guys on my line, the rest of the team, Gabe between the pipes—I can’t do what I do at the level I do it.”

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