Page 77 of Hard to Break

“Millions of dollars in contracts?” Atlas asks. “Sponsorships? Bragging rights?”

“No. I mean, yeah, but more than that.” Rookie clears his throat. “It’s our own belief in ourselves, you know?”

He expects us to laugh, but no one does.

“Nah, I think he’s right,” Jay decides.

I relent. “So, the big question:Mighty DucksorLittle Giants?”

An hour later, eight of us are taking up seats in Clay’s home theater. The room in his new house was completely converted to provide terraced seating with chairs and three huge sectional sofas.

I’m leaning on my side on one, Jay taking up the other end.

We’re a few minutes into the movie when my phone rings. The guys protest and throw popcorn at me as I step outside and answer. “Hey, Princess. Where are you?”

“Hi. I just got back to the condo. Mom and I went to talk.Thank you for getting her on board.”

Her words have my spirits lifting. “I’m glad it worked.” Dropping by the Senator’s office was one of the easiest things I’ve ever done.

Not the getting in the door part, but the rest of it. I’ve wanted to tell to her exactly how incredible her daughter is, how she’s blind if she doesn’t see Brooke needs her, for a long time.

“See you in a couple hours?” I say. “We’re all at Clay’s watchingLittle Giants.”

She chuckles.“You picked Devon Sawa over Joshua Jackson?”

“No way. Rick Moranis over Emilio Estevez. You jealous?”

“That you’re watching that movie? Yeah. I think I might need a rewatch.”

“You’re going to drag your fancy ass over here to watch kids’ movies? I’ll believe that when I see it.”

Half an hour later, the theater door swings wide. Brooke’s standing there with Nova and Chloe and Sierra, their arms full of pillows and bags of snacks. The girls pile in, and we have to shift as they take up seats around us.

I pull Brooke between my legs. Chloe takes a chair on the other side of Jay.

“Are you crying?” Brooke asks her brother, kicking him lightly.

“You know I’m a sucker for the underdog,” he says.

With everyone here, it feels like home—like family.

This is what it’s all for.

We’ve got to face Boston in a couple of days.

But there’s one more battle first.

22

BROOKE

The grand ballroom of the Four Seasons Hotel Denver glitters. Crystal chandeliers cast a warm glow over tables draped in pristine white linen, each place setting adorned with gleaming silverware and delicate china. The room buzzes with the quiet murmur of the legal world's elite, attorneys in impeccable suits, and politicians with plastered-on smiles.

I stand at the back of the room, my heart pounding. Caroline is beside me.

“You ready?” she whispers.

I nod, unable to trust my voice. We've been planning this moment, but now that it's here, I feel a flutter of doubt. What if we're wrong? What if no one believes us?

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