Chapter 152: Kayden is Missing
Rhys
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, PLEASE REMAIN CALM. DUE TO AN EMERGENCY INCIDENT IN THE NORTH SECTOR, TONIGHT’S GAME HAS BEEN CANCELED. PLEASE PROCEED TO THE NEAREST EXIT IMMEDIATELY. DO NOT RUN. FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS OF THE SECURITY STAFF."
"Canceled?" Miller breathed beside me, his voice barely audible over the rising, panicked roar of the crowd in the stands. "What the hell is happening? Does this mean we aren’t playing today?"
I simply nodded.
The adrenaline that had been pumping through my veins for the puck drop was now turning into a cold, sickening dread.
Coach Reddick clapped his hands yet again to gain our attention. "Everyone back to the locker room. Now! Let’s await an official announcement about the game while hoping to God no one gets hurt tonight."
Jaxson groaned loudly as he skated back through the tunnel and into the locker room. The second he was inside, he punched the closest wall with his gloved fist, the sound echoing through the room. "This hasn’t happened once! Not until we had to play the Westbridge Falcons! Could this be their way of telling us to back off?"
"By endangering the lives of their own fans who came to watch them?" Theo spoke up, his voice the only calm one in the room. He reached out and caught Jaxson’s wrist just as he was about to swing at the wall again. "Let’s stop fighting the masonry and find a way to relax so we can get through this safely."
"I’m going to go get the bus ready to transport everyone out of here," Elton, our manager, informed us as he hovered by the door. "In a few minutes, the newly hired bodyguards will be here to accompany everyone directly to the bus. Is that clear?"
We all nodded in response, but the room remained heavy with a suffocating silence. No one really knew what to say.
Coach Reddick let out a heavy, ragged groan and cast me another look—one filled with a mixture of pity and warning.
I tried to speak, to demand answers or ask what he knew, but he simply raised a hand, stopping me before a single word could leave my lips. He pulled his phone from his breast pocket and retreated to a far corner to make a private call.
I ran a frantic hand through my hair and sighed heavily. Suddenly, everyone started talking at once having different theories and complaints.
It was too much. I blocked them all out, my focus narrowing as I headed toward my locker.
I needed to tell Kayden what had happened, even though I was certain he’d already seen the breaking news.
Why would anyone stoop to this level just to win a game? I thought bitterly as I rummaged through my bag, searching for my phone. There was no logical reason to go to these lengths.
Hurting Kayden’s reputation had been low enough, but this? This was the absolute basement of human behavior.
Anyone could have been hurt. The children who came with their parents, the elderly fans who had supported hockey for decades—so many people could have been crushed in a stampede. Thankfully, the crowd control units seemed to be doing their jobs, but the "what-ifs" were screaming in my head.
"What is even happening?" I muttered under my breath, finally wrapping my fingers around my phone.
The screen lit up with several missed calls from Kayden, and a few more from Leo.
"Oh, he called," I thought, a small spark of relief hitting my chest. But while I was still debating who to call back first, Leo’s name flashed across the screen again.
I swiped to answer immediately. "Leo, I—"
"There’s a problem, Rhys. It’s Kayden."
At the mention of Kayden’s name, my vision seemed to sharpen, and I felt my breath hitch. I clenched my fist so hard my knuckles turned white, my heart hammering against my ribs as I waited for what was next.
"Wh—" My voice shook terribly, failing me.
The last thing I wanted to hear was that something else had happened to him. We had just texted minutes ago. I hadn’t seen him in person for days—not since he’d gone into hiding—but we had a plan. We were supposed to meet tonight.
If something happened to him now, I didn’t know how I’d come back from it.
"Kayden left the house, Rhys. He had been receiving some messages... I told him to tell you, but he didn’t. Instead, he just said he was going to go make everything right. While we were preparing to leave for the Langose Arena, he suddenly vanished. I’ve called him repeatedly, but he isn’t picking up. Same with my moms—they keep calling, but it goes straight to voicemail. I..." Leo groaned, his breath coming in heavy, panicked pants. "I don’t know what to do, Rhys."
I slumped against the hard metal of the locker, the air leaving my lungs.
This was not how I had envisioned our reunion. If not for the Westbridge Falcons and their sick games, he would be here right now, safely suited up with us. He wouldn’t be missing.
I grabbed a handful of my own hair and pulled angrily, the physical pain grounding me for a split second. I had failed to protect him like I promised. This was supposed to be simple—it wasn’t even a family crisis—and yet I couldn’t solve it.
I let out a loud groan followed by a scream so deafening that it sliced through the chatter of the locker room. Every head turned toward me in stunned silence.
Miller rushed over immediately, his eyes wide with concern. He didn’t say anything at first, glancing at the phone pressed to my ear and then back into my eyes. "What is happening, Rhys?" he demanded.
But I didn’t answer. I just stared blankly at him, my mind racing through a thousand dark scenarios. On the other end of the line, I could hear Leo still panicking, his voice overlapping with his mothers’ in the background.
"Rhys, come on, answer me!" Miller snapped his fingers sharply in front of my face.
I gasped, my eyes widening as the realization clicked into place. Whatever had just happened in the arena and Kayden’s disappearance weren’t separate events. They were connected.
I straightened up, my resolve hardening into something cold and dangerous.
I spoke back into the phone to Leo. "Where are you? I’m coming to you. You’ve seen the news about the game, right?"
"Is it a coincidence?" Leo asked, his voice trembling.
"Well, we’re going to find out very soon. Tell me exactly where you are."
Leo didn’t argue. He rattled off the name of the street.
"I’m on my way," I responded, ending the call. I immediately pulled up my messages and texted the investigator.
I need you to find someone for me. Now. It’s Kayden
As soon as the message was sent, I slammed my locker shut and looked at Miller. His face was a mask of pure confusion. "What the hell is going on?" he demanded again.
I clamped my hands onto his shoulders, leaning in close. "Come with me. We are going to make this right."
His brows furrowed, and he pointed at my phone. "That was Leo, right? What is happening that you aren’t telling me?"
I sat down on the bench, ignoring the burning stares from the rest of my teammates.
After my outburst, I knew they wanted an explanation, but there wasn’t a second to waste on a press conference.
I tore off my skates, fumbling with the laces in my haste, and threw on my sneakers. I ran a hand through my hair one last time, looking at Miller’s feet. "Change into something comfortable if you’re coming with me," I said, pointing at his skates.
He tried to protest, but I cut him off with a sharp look. "And no questions, please. Not yet. I’ll..." I paused, looking at the worried faces of the Northern Avalanche one last time. "I’ll tell you everything on the way."