Kane

“We need to take her to the ER,” I growl out, frustration and concern straining every syllable.

The second I’d walked into Blake’s apartment and saw a broken and beaten girl lying on his couch, my stomach had rolled. I still feel sick thinking about what kind of psychopath could hurt someone like that.

“I promised her I wouldn’t.” Blake leans with his back against the kitchen wall, arms crossed over his thick chest.

I place my palms on the kitchen counter, every muscle in my body tense, and let out a slow, even breath, trying to gain some semblance of patience.

“The girl is a mess. She needs-”

“The girl has a name.” Blake’s nostrils flare and he gives me a pointed look. “Maybe if you started calling her by it she’d become a person to you and not just an obligation you don’t want. She’s your sister, Kane.”

I grunt, knowing he’s right. I can’t ignore the mess she’s gotten herself into, not when her life is obviously at risk.

From the other room, I hear Kiley whimper. I catch a quick glance at her.

Fuck.

The girl probably weighs no more than a hundred pounds soaking wet, and her pixie-like face is all shades of blue, greens and browns. Whoever did this to her made sure not to leave an inch of her body unmarked.

“She needs an x-ray to make sure she doesn’t have any broken ribs, and she’s going to need at least a couple of stitches for the cut on her forehead, if not a CT scan to make sure she doesn’t have a head injury.”

“I already called Darryl Scallan. He’s coming over-”

“You called the team’s neurologist? Jesus, Blake, what’s wrong with you?”

“I’m trying to help her. Which is what you should be doing. She’s your family.”

“She’s a junkie. What she needs is-”

He gets in my face, grabbing my shirt and shoving me against the fridge. “Stop calling her that.”

I push him away. “You’re losing it, man. If this is about Sam-”

“It’s not about Sam. That’s your shit. It’s about that girl in there. She needs help.”

“Not arguing with you there.” She needs ninety days in rehab and a total life make-over. But I know from experience that you can’t make someone change. They have to want it. And even then, it’s a long and difficult road.

“Talk to her, Kane. She’s nothing like Sam. There are things you don’t know. I’ve had a guy looking into-”

“I know she gave you some sob story, and kudos to you for caring. But she’s better off in a hospital. Even if she doesn’t have any serious injuries, she has to dry out. I can’t have a junk-” I stop myself from saying the word when I see the fire in his eyes. Rubbing the back of my neck, I shake my head. “I’m just starting to make things work with Brynne. Christ, I’ve got a kid now. I can’t have some girl detoxing around them.”

“She can stay here.”

I raise my eyebrows at him. “Here?”

“Until she gets better, and we find the asshole who did this to her.”

I stare at him hard. “You’re going to make her one of your charity cases, aren’t you?”

“She’s not a charity case. She’s a person. A scared kid with nowhere else to go.”

“If she really wants to get clean, I can call Cloverwood. Sam went there once. It’s a nice facility.”

“She’s terrified, Kane. She won’t go anywhere. I can get her to talk. She needs to be around people who care about her.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “And you care about her?”

He takes a breath. “I care about you. So yeah, I do.”

I hold his gaze for a long moment, then finally sigh. “This is a mistake.”

He shrugs.

“Fine.” I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this. But what the hell else am I supposed to do?

Kiley’s an adult now. So even if they admitted her, she could leave at any time. Be back on the streets in a heartbeat.

“Did she tell you what she’s on?”

“I don’t think she’s using. At least, not lately.”

I snort. “If you’re going to do this, then you need to remember one thing. Always assume a junkie is using.”

“She’s not…” He drags his fingers through his hair and clamps his mouth shut.

“Look, I’ve got to get back to Brynne. She’ll be wondering what’s going on. And I need to deal with Coach.”

I’d almost forgotten about him. I rub my palms over my eyes.

“You finally told him?”

“Brynne did, last night.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah.”

Another small, pathetic whimper comes from the other room. Blake pushes off the wall and moves quickly toward the living room. I watch as he touches her forehead with the back of his hand, and my chest tightens when I see the emotion in his eyes.

I want to warn him not to get attached, but I have a sinking feeling in my gut he already is.

Damn it, Blake.

She might be my sister, but the man is my best friend, and I know that she can only bring one thing to his life – trouble.

She whimpers in her sleep. A gleam of sweat covers her forehead, and I wince again when I take in the bruises on her face.

Blake cleaned the dried blood off her forehead and bandaged it, but a fresh dot of red has seeped through. Lucky for her, it doesn’t look like she broke anything. Anything other than her spirit.

The girl is an empty shell of a person. Broken in ways I can’t even begin to imagine. Maybe if she’d come to me years ago, before she’d gotten messed up in whatever shit she’s doing, I could have helped her. But she’s fallen so far down the rabbit hole, I can’t see how she’ll be able to escape.

“You said you found her down by the parking garage?”

Blake pulls the blanket higher over her shoulder, then straightens and looks at me. “Said she was trying to get to you.”

“Then why the hell didn’t she come to the lobby?”

“She did.” He gives me a hard stare, and I know the truth. They would have turned her away on her appearance alone.

“I’ll talk with Miika at the front desk.”

“Doesn’t matter now. She’s here. And I’m not letting her out of my sight until whoever did this to her is behind bars.”

I shake my head, not understanding his possessiveness towards her, and feeling guilty that it’s him and not me fighting to save her from the cursed world that’s already consumed her.

But then, if it was Brynne lying there instead of Kiley, I know I’d be on the verge of murder. Difference is, Brynne would never put herself in a position where her life was in danger.

“We’ve got a practice in less than an hour,” I say.

“I’m not leaving her.”

I grunt and shake my head at him. “You’re an idiot, you know that?”

He shrugs.

“Fine. I’ll be back later to check on her.” And you, I want to say.

My thoughts are a chaotic mess as I leave Blake’s apartment.

“Shit,” I mutter, when I glance at my phone. I won’t be able to talk to Brynne if I want to make it to the practice on time. I’d think about missing it, too, but after last night’s call with Coach, I need to go. I’m not looking forward to the conversation. But it has to happen.

I try calling Brynne’s cell a few times on my way down to the parking garage, and again as I’m driving to the arena. But it goes straight to voicemail. On my last attempt, as I’m getting out of my car, I leave a message.

“Not sure why you’re not answering your damn phone-” I swallow and try to get rid of the frustration in my voice. “I’m sorry about this morning. I’ll tell you everything when I get home tonight. I…”

“Hey, loser,” Sebastian smacks me on the back, making me almost drop my phone.

I glare at him, and finish my message. “We’ll talk later.”

“You look like shit. Hope you’re not catching whatever Blake’s got.”

“Blake?”

“I just talked to him. He said he’s got the flu or something.”

“Right,” I mutter, hating the lies that have piled up between us. He’s going to freak out when I finally tell him about Brynne.

I’m about to say something, when I see Coach pull up in his dark green Jaguar. He slams the door when he gets out of his car, and points a finger at me. Fire blazes in his dark eyes.

“My office, Madden. After practice.” I’ve heard that tone before, but never towards me.

When he walks away, Sebastian raises his eyebrows and whistles. “Shit. He’s pissed.”

“What’d you do, Madden?” Tyler Slade says, coming up behind us and slapping me a little too hard on the back. “The way Coach was glaring at you, I’d think you were screwing his daughter.”

Sebastian punches him hard in the arm. “Don’t be a jackass. Coach would have you traded just talking about Brynne like that.”

Tyler gives me a knowing look, his lips twisting up in a viscous grin. And I know he knows.

“Yeah. I’d hate to see what he’d do to the man who actually had the balls to fuck her.”

Sebastian glances between the two of us, frowning.

“See you two asshats on the rink,” Tyler says, picking up his pace, and leaving Sebastian looking like he doesn’t know who to hit next, Tyler or me.

“You want to tell me something?”

I wince. “It’s…”

“Jesus, Kane. Please tell me you’re not that much of an idiot.”

“Apparently, I am,” I mutter.

Sebastian shakes his head, giving me a look of disgust. “Your funeral.”

Maybe. But if Brynne is mine in the end, then whatever Coach has in store for me will be worth it.