Page 125 of Puck Struck
"I'll be there. For all of it."
"The surgery's scheduled for next week. Tuesday morning." His thumb traces over my knuckles. "Both me and Ethan, same time. It'll be about eight hours. It's worth it. Ethan's worth it. We'll make it work." He squeezes my hand. "Besides, I've got something to recover for now."
"What's that?"
"You. Us. Whatever this becomes." His smile is real, completely unguarded. "I love you, Cam. All of you. Your past, your strength, your stubborn refusal to give up. All of it."
"I love you too. And just so you know, I'm not going anywhere. I’ll be by your side through everything.”
Outside, I can hear reporters still chatting, phones ringing, the world reacting to my confession. But in here, in this quiet room with Logan's hand in mine, everything feels possible.
The truth is out. The threats are gone. The future is ours.
And for the first time in my life, I'm not afraid of what tomorrow might bring.
THIRTY-THREE
logan
I can’t believeit’s only been two weeks.
Two weeks since Cam almost died in a parking garage. Two weeks since he faced the world and owned his story like the fucking warrior he is. Two weeks since James got hauled away in handcuffs and William Keating watched his career implode.
And tomorrow, I donate part of my liver to save my nephew's life.
The past days have been a blur of medical appointments, pre-surgical prep, and meetings with Dr. Raja that left my head spinning. The orthopedic specialist laid it out pretty clearly. My shoulder is fucked six ways from Sunday, and the liver donation surgery is going to make it worse before it gets better.
But Ethan's liver function has been declining faster than expected, so there is no alternative. No choice. Not that there ever was. I love the kid like he’s my own. So here we are. Ready or not.
The media circus finally died down. Cam's press conference was a masterpiece. He turned what could have been a career-ending scandal into a story about survival and determination. The response was mostly positive, with a fewpredictable assholes trying to make it into something dirty and sordid.
Sports Illustratedran a feature called "The Cost of Dreams" about young athletes who overcome poverty to make it to the pros. Cam was on the cover, looking fierce and unbroken. Then ESPN did a segment on how his honesty was changing conversations about athlete backgrounds and adversity.
According to the news outlets, clients of William Keating have been dropping like flies in the past week. The NHL ethics investigation is ongoing, but it doesn’t matter. His reputation is destroyed. Ryan’s been checking on Cam every day, still carrying guilt about his family's role in everything. Without his dad hanging over his shoulder, he’s not a bad guy. And I hear from Carter that he’s changed his attitude in a big way, no longer the dickhead everybody loved to hate.
James is sitting in county lockup awaiting trial on attempted murder charges. Mike says the DA is confident about conviction, given the evidence and Ryan's testimony. James isn't getting out anytime soon. I hope he fucking rots in prison.
Which brings me to now. Monday night. Surgery at six AM tomorrow.
Cam is here with me. Ever since he was released from the hospital, he’s been staying with us. Since his mobility was an issue early on, I wanted to make sure he had someone to care for him. Namely, me.
He carefully eases onto my bed, wincing slightly. "You should be resting," I say to him.
"I am resting. Here. With you." He settles against my good side, his head on my shoulder. "How are you feeling? Really?"
I consider lying, giving him some bullshit line about being fine. But we're past that now. We don’t hide things from each otheranymore.
"Terrified," I say, heaving a deep sigh. "Not about the surgery itself, but about the recovery. Dr. Raja was pretty clear that this is going to suck. Months of limited mobility, pain management complications, the risk of my shoulder never healing properly."
"And?"
"And what if I can't be there for Ethan while he's recovering? What if I'm so fucked up from my own surgery that I can't help him when he needs me?"
Cam carefully shifts, propping himself up on his elbow to look at me. "Logan, you're giving him part of your liver. You're literally giving him life. That's being there for him."
"But after?—"
"After, you'll heal. Both of you will heal. And I'll be there to help with whatever you need."
