Page 5

Every one of us could be an Ace

Remy

I was up early in the morning, like a kid on the first day of school. I showered and managed to get the beard trimmed, but my hair was still a disaster. There were no sounds coming from the workshop downstairs, but I made sure I was out of the building by eight thirty so she could work.

I called an Uber to get to the practice arena for the Austin Aces.

I hadn’t been there before, since when we played the Aces we practiced at their game arena.

This building wasn’t as sleek but the parking was better.

I’d need to rent a vehicle while I was here, since my truck was back in long-term parking at the Winnipeg airport.

I was early, wearing my workout clothes, but had no idea how to get into the building.

There weren’t many cars in the lot. I dropped my bag and leaned against the wall beside the door while I waited for someone to show up—preferably someone I knew.

I’d been part of the league for ten years now, so I was familiar with most of the regular players.

An SUV pulled in, and as I watched, Ethan Harrison stepped out. He was also a veteran player, and we’d run into each other enough that he should recognize me.

Once he was close enough, he cocked his head. “Remy? You playing here?”

I shrugged. “Last minute. Can you let me in?”

“Sure—I can show you where things are. How long have you been in town?”

“Arrived yesterday.”

His brows lifted. “Last minute is right.” He tapped his card on the scanner by the door and I followed him inside.

Like all practice facilities, the smell of sweat and dirty feet was detectable below the pungent notes of the products the staff used to keep the place clean. Ethan led me around a couple of corners till we reached the locker room. There were a few guys there, but we were among the first.

“Thanks.”

“No problem. Exercise rooms are that way, showers there, and that door leads to the ice.”

I found a stall with my gear in front of it, though there wasn’t a nameplate yet. I sat down and waited for the coaches and the rest of the team to arrive to start our first day tasks.

More guys entered the room. Some were comfortable, and settled in a stall under their name. Others, the younger-looking ones, stood around the edges of the room checking on what everyone else was doing.

Coach Mackenzie, commonly called Mack, pushed in through the door and looked around. Conversation died and everyone gave him their attention.

“We’re excited to have you all and hope to have a great training camp. Remember, the final roster isn’t set, so do your best and you could be on the ice on opening night.”

There were a few cheers, but for most of us this was a familiar spiel, and not totally honest. Guys with one-way contracts were unlikely to be sent down to the farm team, but there were probably some slots that the rookies could claim if they were good enough.

“We’re going to rotate you through medical, fitness and photos today, taking you by position. There will be team photos at the end for the group as a whole. Lunch is provided. Any questions?”

Some of those newbies were dying to ask but were afraid to look stupid in front of the others, so no one spoke up.

“Okay, forwards to medical down that way.” He pointed. “The guys who were here last year can show the way. Defense to fitness. Goalies to the ice for photos.”

I waited while most of the bodies left the room. One familiar face stopped to greet me. Larry Han, a forward I’d played with for a couple of years. As the only Asian on that team, he’d faced some flack, but he was a good guy as well as a player and I’d been happy to spend time with him.

“Remy!”

I stood up and we did that hug/backslap move. “Hanny. I forgot you were here.”

“Signed over the summer. I didn’t know you were playing for the Aces either.”

“I flew in yesterday—got a contract the day before.”

His eyes widened. “Wow. Glad to see you though. You got a place?”

“The team found one for me.”

“Hotel?”

I shook my head. “I’ve got a dog, so they found somewhere pet friendly.”

“Good thing. I was going to offer you my spare room, but no pets allowed, so…”

“I appreciate the offer anyway.”

He glanced over his shoulder. We were almost the last two in the room. “I gotta get going, but what’s your phone number? We’ll have to catch up.”

I was happy to give it to him. Seeing a friendly face had given me much better vibes about the team and finding my position on it. He headed for medical, and I followed the signs to the ice. Time to meet the other goalies.

Four guys were standing near the gate, watching the photo setup. There was a net at the end of the rink, with team jerseys and sticks piled up. I stepped onto a carpeted walkway that had been laid out over the ice and joined the others.

I recognized Keaton Constantine. We’d played against each other on occasion. Keats and I up-nodded. The other three guys were younger. I thought I recognized the largest guy as being the most recent draft pick by the Aces, a goalie taken later in the first round.

“They haven’t given us anything to do yet?” I asked. Heads shook in the negative all around.

For a few more minutes we watched the crew work on their cameras and lights and check out their tablets. I heard the gate again, and recognized the man coming out. Otts. Coach Oliver Trent. The guy in charge of my future on the Aces. I clenched my fists.

We’d been rivals since World Juniors, when I’d shut out his American team in the gold medal match.

I was drafted before Otts as a result of that series and beat him in the Calder Cup final.

Otts had a Cup win and a Vezina, so he’d definitely surpassed me in the NHL, but he never got over those early victories of mine.

He’d been injured a few years ago and was forced to retire, so I hadn’t seen him in a long time.

But the expression on his face when he saw me?

He still didn’t like me. So why the hell was I here?

He nodded at us, then walked past till he could speak to someone in the camera crew. After a brief chat, he returned to us.

“They’re almost ready. You guys introduce yourselves?”

We exchanged looks and shook our heads.

“I know Remy,” Keats said.

Otts smiled politely. “Okay, I’ve talked to all of you except for…Remy, since he’s just arrived. Keaton Constantine, Jacques Laplante, Lars Nillson and Walter Jones.”

Laplante frowned. “And Remy?”

“Daniel Rempel.” I smiled at Laplante and held out my hand. “Nice to meet you.”

Laplante paused before gripping my hand and then quickly dropping it. I was not popular in the goalie sector here.

A signal from the camera crew, and Otts waved toward them. “They’re ready for you now.”

One by one we pulled on an Aces jersey and posed, by the net and in front of a screen for headshots.

Damn, I wished I’d had a chance to do something with my hair.

At least the beard was under control after a summer of neglect, but I preferred to be clean-shaven during the season.

We made small talk with each other while we waited for our turns.

Keats told me that the team’s regular starting goalie had retired quite recently because one of his kids was sick and he wanted to spend time with his family.

He was thirty-five, getting old for a hockey player.

Keats had been his backup and wasn’t sure if he was moving up to starter now.

He tipped his head at Laplante, who we’d already started to call Lappy, so presumably the team was grooming him to be a starter.

“What’s your role gonna be?” Keats asked.

I shrugged. I’d been a backup for the past three years, so I didn’t think they’d signed me to replace their starter. Maybe one of the other rookies was moving up.

Then we left the ice to get our medicals, waiting for the last of the forwards to finish up. I waved at Hanny again and nodded at a couple of other guys I’d played with over the years. After medical we had the joy of fitness testing and then returned to the ice for the group photos.

We’d all had individual and position group photos, so now we sprawled on the ice for a big team photo.

They would take another once the final roster was set, but right now it was a group of possibilities.

Everyone had hope. Some had more nerves than optimism, but for this moment in time, every one of us could be an Ace.

As we headed to the cafeteria for a meal, my phone rang. I checked and saw Benny’s name. There were some other messages, but I picked up the call to see what he needed first. He was talking before I had a chance to say Yo again, to rile him up.

“They just delivered your hellhound to wherever you’re staying.”

“What?”

“You’d better get your ass over there before he eats someone.”

He hung up before I could respond. Beast wouldn’t eat someone, but he would bite. He wasn’t trustworthy. It was a fear thing—he’d been feral and injured and in danger of dying when I spotted him by a dumpster. I still didn’t know why I’d decided to complicate my vacation by claiming him.

He was better, but still too likely to bite first and bark later. Shit . If the instructions about him hadn’t been passed on, if he bit someone, what kind of trouble could he be in? I didn’t know the rules about dog bites in Texas.

Hanny ran a hand through his black hair. His was long too. “Problem?”

“Yeah, I have to get back to where I’m staying ASAP.”

“Place flooded or something?”

“They’re delivering my dog. He’s not good with strangers.” I was already picturing Beast with his teeth sunk in someone’s hand and the shitload of trouble he could be in.

“Want a lift?”

I’d just opened the Uber app, but I had no time to wait if there wasn’t a car nearby. “You’re a lifesaver.”

I followed Hanny out of the building to his car. He had a Porsche, a newer model, and we were heading out of the lot in moments. He asked where to go, and I read out the address from the email.

“Pretty nice area,” he commented as he turned at the first light.

“Yeah. I’m staying in the ‘carriage house.’”

He shot me a glance. “What the hell?”

“That’s what they called it. It’s modern, so there haven’t been any horses there. The whole place looks as pretentious as shit.”

“Whose home is it?”

“I don’t know yet. Just got here yesterday. There’s a workshop on the main floor, and I met the woman who works there but I don’t think it’s her place.” I checked my phone to get an idea of how quickly we might arrive, my heel thumping on the floor of the car.

About fifteen minutes later he pulled up to the gates I now recognized. I didn’t hear any yelling, which was a good sign, so maybe Beast hadn’t wasn’t here yet.

Hanny whistled. He was staring at the property.

“I know. Even the carriage house is pretty nice. You can drop me here—if Beast has arrived, I’m not sure how much trouble he’s in.”

“No problem. Happy to help. Go take care of your dog and I’ll see you tomorrow.”