Page 90 of I Blame the Rival

There’s a shake to Lacey’s voice and it rips at the stitches holding my bleeding heart together. A metallic taste fills my mouth as the events that happened four years ago pierce through the carefully constructed silence.

“He was going to kill her. He was going to kill her and somebody had to stop him.”

“Who are you talking about?”

“My father.” Gagging at the memory, I can barely keep the nausea down, “He pushed her down the stairs and the fall broke her tibia. Mom was going to be on bedrest for the next six months. She was going to be a sitting duck for the next six months.”

The drive home from the hospital was the longest ride of my life. Vector wouldn’t stop shaking, the anger trying to claw its way out of his skin.

We were the same size back then. Just a couple of skinny kids cursed with a volatile temper.

“Vector had a plan. He didn’t tell me what it was, he just said I needed to take care of mom and he would deal with Vincent. The next day he went to the gym for three hours. The next week he started counting his proteins.”

Lacey blows out a shaky breath, “He was trying to get bigger.”

“And stronger. Our dad wasn’t that big, but he was strong. Vector needed to put on at least fifty pounds to even stand a chance. He would have gotten there eventually but our father’s temper couldn’t wait that long.”

A strangled sound slips out of my mouth, “He ruined her recovery. Three months in, he re-fractured the injury. That’s why she limps. He fucking broke her already broken body.”

My shoulders hunch as I start to fall apart. The bathroom tiles swirl together as tears slink down my cheeks and Lacey pulls my shaking body closer.

“W-We didn’t think she was going to make it. The doctors had to put her in a medically induced coma for two weeks. By the time she came out, I had started planning her funeral arrangements.”

Lacey strokes my tear-stained face, her trembling fingers gently wiping away the scars of my past.

“Your brother took the drugs to get bigger faster.”

“I didn’t know about it at first. But then I did and I…” My gasping words trail off as a wave of self-loathing pours through me, “I agreed to keep quiet.”

Lacey takes my face in her hands. Her eyes are filled with a compassion I don’t deserve, her fingers stroking my cheek with a love I shouldn’t crave.

“You must have been so young.”

I was. But that doesn’t change the fact I chose silence over action.

“It doesn’t matter. I should have fought back. Pushed for another solution.”

She frowns, “Your brother made his own decision. There was nothing you could have done.”

And there it is. The moment of truth.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I block out the kindness radiating from the only person who ever cared enough to piece me back together.

“It didn’t stop after Vector kicked him out, Flower. He was taking them up until last year. Taber’s home opener was supposed to be the first game he was clean.”

Lacey freezes, her hands tensing on my face, “That can’t be true. Varsity athletes get tested for performance enhancers.”

A choked laugh slips out, “In Canada they only test the winning teams. The top competitors.”

“But that… that doesn’t make sense. Silverwood always makes it to the finals.”

I blink my eyes open, seeing the girl who stole my heart with a simple note.

The girl who goes to the rival school.

“Taber University has beaten Silverwood for the past six years. Every championship banner the Tigers brought home ensured Vector wouldn’t get tested for another year.”

Lacey stares at me in horror and the irony of the situation is not lost on me. She’s finally peeling back the layers and seeing the red stains hiding underneath.

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