Page 65 of The Players We Hate
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “But if he is, we’ve got to cut him loose before it spreads.”
“And who else do you think is involved?”
I hesitated, then let it out. “Wren Perry.”
The name landed heavily. Even through the line, I could hear Reed’s breath catch.
“She’s been around too much lately,” I said. “At practices, in the halls, talking to Cruz, always watching. It’s like she’s digging, and the timing’s too perfect.”
“You think she’s watching Gavin?”
“I think she’s watching all of us.”
There was a beat of silence before Reed asked, “Has she told you anything?”
“No.” My jaw tightened as I stared at the floor. “She barely looks at me. Keeps her distance. Can’t blame her for it either. It’ll be on me to break the silence, if that’s ever gonna change.”
Reed already knew the truth. He knew I was the one who’d walked away, and that she hadn’t exactly chased me. After she went with me to Braysen, he’d done some digging on her. He came back saying he couldn’t find anything solid, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t connected in some way.
“You think it’s political?” Reed asked.
“I don’t know.” I let the silence stretch before I answered. “Word’s gotten around about her brother losing his scholarship. It barely hit the news or the local blogs before it got snuffed out, but it’s out there. And now she’s here, in our space, with access.”
“You want me to see what I can find on them?”
“Start with Gavin. Class schedule. Who he spends time with and if he’s talking to anyone unusual. Anything that doesn’t line up. If it circles back to Wren, then yeah, I want to know.”
Reed’s tone didn’t waver. “You realize you’re asking me to tail the governor’s daughter, right?”
“I’m asking you to help me protect my team. If someone’s already gotten to one of our guys, we can’t sit back. Not this late in the season. Especially not with what’s on the line.”
There was a pause before Reed answered. “Alright. I’ll keep it clean and quiet. No names unless I’m sure. No digital trail.”
“Thanks.” I blew out my breath. “Just let me know as soon as you find anything.”
“I will.”
The line clicked off.
I stood there with the phone still warm in my hand, the hallway closing in. I should’ve felt better, like I’d finally taken a step instead of just waiting for the bottom to drop. But it sat heavy.
I didn’t want to believe Wren was mixed up in any of it. Didn’t want to think the girl who once kissed me like she had nothing left could be the one to lie to my face. Stand with my team, clipboard in hand, and hide a knife behind her back.
Still, my gut said this wasn’t just about Gavin’s knee. It was bigger. And if I didn’t figure it out fast, it wouldn’t just cost us a game—it’d cost us everything.
Chapter Nineteen
Wren
The spreadsheet stared back at me, nothing but cells and silence, my blinking cursor stuck in column G like it was waiting for me to screw up.
I let out a slow breath and flexed my fingers before reaching for the highlighter. One last note in the margin of the report in front of me. Red for inconsistencies. Blue for review. Yellow for possible violations.
I’d color-coded the whole thing, like a proper compliance intern.
Not that anyone really knew I was one.
Technically, my internship hadn’t even been announced. No press release, no welcome email, not even a memo to the athletes. Just a quiet nod from the board and a warning from the assistant AD to “keep a low profile until we figure out how to present this.”
