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There was a beat of silence. “I don’t think you want to know, man.”
Another pause. Longer this time. Brody could tell that the last thing Craig Wyatt wanted to do was name names.
But he did. “Nicklaus did. And—” Wyatt took a breath. “I’m sorry, Brody, but…so did Sam Becker.”
13
THE GROUND BENEATH Brody’s feet swiftly disintegrated. He sagged forward, planting both hands on his thighs to steady himself. Sucked in a series of long breaths. Waited for his pulse to steady.
“Those are the only two Sheila knows about,” Wyatt was saying. “There could be more.”
Brody glanced up at Wyatt with anger. “You’re lying. Nicklaus maybe, but not Becker. He wouldn’t do that.”
“He did.”
No. Not Becker. Brody pictured Becker’s face, thinking back to the first day they’d met, how Sam Becker had taken Brody’s rookie self under his wing and helped him become the player he was today. Becker was his best friend on the team. He was a stand-up guy, a champion, a legend. Why would he throw his career away for some extra pocket money?
“He’s retiring at the end of the season,” Wyatt said, as if reading Brody’s mind. He shrugged. “Maybe he needed a bigger nest egg.”
Brody closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them, he saw the sympathy on Wyatt’s face. “I know you two are close,” Craig said quietly.
“You could be wrong about this. Sheila could have lied.” Brody knew he was grasping at straws, but anything was better than accepting that Becker had done this.
“It’s the truth,” Wyatt answered.
They stood there for a moment, neither one speaking, until Wyatt finally cleared his throat and said, “We should go back inside.”
“You go. I’ll be there in a minute.”
After Wyatt left, Brody adjusted his tie, wondering if he’d ever be able to breathe again. His head still spun from Craig’s words. And yet he couldn’t bring himself to believe it. Damn it, he needed to talk to Becker. Look his friend in the eye and demand the truth. Prove Wyatt wrong.
Then he looked up and realized he was going to be granted his wish sooner than he’d expected. Samuel T. Becker had just exited the arena.
Becker spotted him instantly, and made his way over. “You done already?”
“Haven’t even gone in yet.” He tried to mask his emotions as he studied his old friend. “Are you scheduled to be interviewed today?”
“Yep,” Becker said. “And as a reward, I get to take Mary shopping afterward. What fun for me.”
Brody smiled weakly.
“What the hell’s up with you?” Sam demanded, rolling his eyes. “Don’t tell me you’re still gaga over Presley’s daughter. I told you, man, you shouldn’t be seeing her.”
Yeah, he had told him, hadn’t he? And Brody now had to wonder exactly where the advice had stemmed from. Had Becker really been looking out for him, or had he wanted to keep him away from Hayden in case Presley decided to confide in his daughter? In case Brody learned the truth about Becker’s criminal actions. The thought made his blood run cold.
“Let’s not talk about Hayden,” he said stiffly.
“Okay. Whatcha want to talk about then?”
He released a slow breath. “How about you tell me why you let Presley bribe you?”
Becker’s jaw hardened. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
After a beat, Becker scowled. “I already told you, I wasn’t involved in that crap.”
“Someone else says otherwise.”
“Yeah, who?” Becker challenged.
Brody decided to take a gamble. He felt like a total ass, but still he said, “Presley.”
The lie stretched between them, and the myriad of emotions Brody saw on his friend’s face was disconcerting as hell. Becker’s expression went from shocked to angry. To guilty. And finally, betrayed.
And it was all Brody needed to know.
With a stiff nod, he brushed past his former mentor. “I’m needed inside.”
“Brody, come on.” Becker trailed after him, his voice laced with misery. “Come on, it wasn’t like that.”
Brody spun around. “Then you didn’t sell out the team?”
Becker hesitated a little too long.
“That’s what I thought.”
“I did it for Mary, okay?” Becker burst out, looking so anguished that Brody almost felt sorry for him. “You don’t know what it’s like living with a woman like her. Money, power, that’s all she talks about. She’s always needling me to be better, richer, more ambitious. And now that I’m retiring, she’s going nuts. She married me because of my career, because I was at the top of my game, a two-time cup winner, a goddamn champion.”