Page 6 of Broken Player

I barely contained my rage as I slammed the garage door open before looking back over my shoulder. "You coming?" I asked Connor, grabbing one of the sets of keys hanging on the rack by the door.

Lifting the car door up, I lowered myself into the matte black McLaren Spider that was my favorite whenever I wanted to go fast. There was something about pressing the gas pedal into the floor and watching my surroundings blur as I flew past them that kept me in the moment, pulling me out of my thoughts.

The passenger side door slamming caught my attention as I looked over to find Connor in the seat next to me, his mirrored aviators in place. He didn't say anything, just looked at me expectantly. I pressed the button and waited for the garage doorto lift, tapping my fingers restlessly on the wheel. My thoughts were swirling, and my fury was still barely contained. I needed to destroy something.

Pressing on the gas pedal, I tore out of the garage and down the street, the tires squealing. We drove in silence until I tossed Connor my phone. "Put on something loud," I barked. I didn't mean to be such an asshole, but Connor didn't take it personally. It was why I liked hanging out with him. Right now, it was all I could do not to crash us into a pole to try and shut off my brain. My throat was dry, and I struggled to swallow around the huge lump that had settled there.

I'd known this day would come someday, but that didn't mean I'd been prepared for it. "Are you packing?" I asked, shooting a sideways glance at Connor.

"Always."

"Good." I didn't say anything else until I whipped my car into a deserted parking lot. There was a low unmarked building directly in front of us.

Connor chuckled darkly beside me. "Should I even ask what's got you so riled up this morning?"

I glared at him before lifting up the door and stepping out of the car, stretching out my body. I moved to the trunk and tried to ignore the blood pounding in my ears and adrenaline coursing through my veins. I reached in and pulled out my handgun, slamming the trunk shut.

Connor opened the glass door, and I strode in like I owned the place, nodding once at the guy behind the counter and moving through the lobby until we stood outside in the open-air range. Connor reached into his waistband, pulled his gun out, checked it over, and took his place beside me. We'd been here so many times before, we didn't need to talk. Even though I didn't show it, his presence calmed me.

Placing ear protection over my head, I unloaded clip after clip into anything I could find, the kickback of the gun causing my muscles to tighten. My focus was singular, blocking out every other thought and feeling until my breathing regulated, and my heart slowed down.

For the first time since I saw that goddamn picture, oxygen inflated my lungs. Shooting the fuck out everything in sight at the range had calmed me enough that I could once again shove my feelings down and block them out, throwing up a mask of indifference.

That was until my phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out, noting the unknown number with a Texas area code. My heart kicked up, pounding in my chest while I debated whether or not to answer. For a brief moment, I let myself hope that it's her. But I shut that shit down. She doesn't have my number, and even if she did, I made sure she wanted nothing to do with me when I took off without a word.

So whatever this was wouldn't be good. I knew it in my bones.

Resigned, I sighed before answering. "Hello?"

A deep gravelly voice spoke loudly in my ear, and I pulled the phone back a little, wincing. "Maddox?"

"That's me. Who's this?"

"I don't know if you remember me, but my name's Joel. Joel Stewart? I'm a cowboy on your dad's ranch."

Fuck, this wasnotmy day. "Hey, Joel. It's been a long time. What's up?"

The line stayed quiet so long I looked down at the screen to see if the call was still connected. "Joel?"

A long, low sigh sounded across the line, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. "Yeah, I'm here. Look, kid. I'm going behind your old man's back to make this call, but he hasn't given me much choice."

I stayed quiet, waiting for him to finish.

"It's been weeks since I've been able to buy feed, and when I try talking to Russell about it, he gets belligerent and tells me to fuck off. The animals are suffering, and I haven't been paid in months. If it were just about me, I'd walk away. But I can't let the animals suffer if there's something I can do."

Connor stepped up beside me, tucking his gun back into his waistband and pulling off his noise silencing headphones. He shot me a questioning glance. "What do you need from me, Joel?" I asked, pinching the bridge of my nose, sure I didn't want to hear the answer.

"I'd ask you to just send money, but I don't have access to the accounts. If you send money, Russell will drink or gamble it away, and we'll be back to square one."

"I don't think I can do what you're asking."

"Sorry, kid. But the only way to fix this is to come out here. I know it's not what you want."

I clenched my fist, preparing to throw it into the wooden beam in front of me. "If I come out there, a whole lotta shit's going to change, Joel. I can't be around my dad."

"I know. But the animals need you. Hell,Ineed you. Just get your ass out here, spend a day, and go back home. I'll do what I can to run interference."

Suddenly the anger left my body. All I felt was a paralyzing numbness, like I was empty, devoid of feeling. "Fine. I'll fly down tomorrow. You've got me for one day and one day only."

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