Chapter 23 Mackenzie
It was only Max’s second time visiting Ransom, but he seemed totally at home.
He spent most of his time in the kitchen raiding the fridge or galloping around the house with our little sisters taking turns riding his back.
Something about having him here instantly made the place feel a little more like home to me too.
My parents were just as happy to see my brother as they were last time and they flooded him with questions about life at college and, of course, hockey.
He seemed to be enjoying Ryker but was typically modest about how brilliantly he’d been playing with the Raiders and kept changing the subject to the Devils, something both my dad and I were keen to avoid talking about.
For a moment during the game yesterday, I felt like maybe I was playing well, only for it all to come crashing down in the final few minutes. I wasn’t eager to reminisce about it.
In the afternoon, Max asked if I wanted to go to the lake for a skate, and I jumped at the opportunity. I’d never turned down the chance to play hockey with my brother before, but I also wanted to avoid any more hockey chat with my dad. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one.
Max breathed a sigh of relief as we drove away from the house. “Dad was seriously grilling me about my game yesterday. Apparently, two assists wasn’t good enough.”
It was easy to forget sometimes that my dad was hard on my brother too. His expectations when it came to Max were ridiculously high. Luckily for Max, he mostly lived up to them.
“At least he’s talking to you.”
“Yeah, I noticed he was still giving you the cold shoulder,” Max replied. “I thought he would have come around by now.”
“I’d hoped so too. The fact we’re still losing hasn’t helped. It’s only convinced him he’s right about me. I’ve let in far too many goals.”
My brother took a moment as he considered me.
“I’ve watched the game tapes, Kenzie. You’re not the only one on the team who’s made mistakes.
Yeah, you let in a few goals, but these were just your first two games.
You’ll get stronger and more confident over the next few weeks.
But the defense wasn’t working effectively to get the puck out of the zone, and the forwards missed plenty of opportunities too.
Reed said a lot of guys from the Devils graduated last year.
Sounds like you’re not the only one who needs to improve. ”
I stayed silent, and his fingers tapped against the wheel as he continued. “Even your friend Parker made mistakes in those games, and he’s a great player. He’s already committed to Ryker next year, right?”
“Parker’s not my friend.”
“You sure about that?”
“Positive.” I cleared my throat because I realized I’d answered a little too firmly. “I mean, he’s just been helping me train.”
Max shrugged, like it didn’t matter to him either way. I expected my brother would have a much stronger opinion on the topic if he knew Parker was the boy I’d kissed at our dad’s camp three years ago.
“I’m just saying,” he continued with a sigh, “you’re not solely to blame for these losses. It’s a team game.”
I nodded, mostly just to satisfy him. It was a little hard to agree when only one member of that team was currently on probation.
After a few minutes of quiet, Max finally changed the subject. “I saw you still haven’t unpacked your moving boxes.”
“I just haven’t had a chance yet.”
Max’s lips twisted as he glanced at me. “You’re still not feeling at home here?”
“No, it’s not that…”
He lifted an eyebrow.
“Seriously. I’ve just been crazy busy with hockey.”
He nodded. “Okay, well, you know I’m here if you ever need to talk, right?”
“Yeah, Max, I know.” I gave him a grateful smile. “But I really have been busy.”
“If you say so.”
When we arrived at the lake and got out of the car, I was instantly struck by how beautiful it was. The surface of the lake was frozen solid and there was still a dusting of white from recent snowfalls. Beyond it, tall pine trees reached up to a clear blue sky above.
The sound of laughter pulled my attention back down to the ice, and I noticed a group of people passing a puck back and forth.
A pond hockey rink had been set up, with snow pushed aside to create a large rectangle of clear, smooth ice.
At each end, slabs of wood lay on the ice as the goals.
It was perfect. If they played hockey in heaven, I imagined this is how they’d do it.
But then I looked closer at the people who were playing and was quickly brought back down to Earth. Parker was here. I also recognized his sister, Cammie, and two other guys who looked like his brothers, Reed and Grayson. There was also a cute brunette girl I’d never seen before.
I glared at Max. “The Darlings are here?”
“Reed’s the one who invited us,” Max said. “Didn’t I tell you?”
“No!”
“I could have sworn I did.” He shrugged. “Anyway, it looks like you’re not the only girl who’s playing. Their sister’s here, and that’s Grayson’s girlfriend.”
He nodded across the ice to where the brunette was skating next to one of the boys, who I assumed was Grayson.
She didn’t possess the natural ease of Cammie or the boys on the ice, and every so often her arm would snap out to grab hold of Grayson to steady herself.
The hockey stick in her hand looked completely foreign to her.
“Has she ever played before?”
Max chuckled. “Yeah, but Paige would rather be writing about hockey than playing it. Come on.”
I felt nervous as I followed my brother over to the group.
I’d laughed the first time I’d heard the Darling Devils nickname, but seeing all three boys together, I could understand why everyone at Ransom High talked about Reed and Grayson with such awe and admiration.
Their towering size and striking good looks were an intimidating combination.
I also knew how skilled they were at hockey, and with Parker and my brother here, I was in the presence of some seriously talented players.
Unlike me, Max was totally at ease around the older Darling brothers after spending the last few months at college with them, and he gave Paige a warm hug too. But I was surprised when my brother bumped fists with Parker. When did they become so friendly?
All I got from Parker was a cursory nod.
It was the first time I’d seen him since the game yesterday, so I wasn’t sure how he’d be feeling about the way the loss unfolded, especially in those final few minutes.
I still wasn’t sure how to feel myself. My dad had pretty much placed the blame entirely on Parker, but I knew Max was right. The whole team could’ve done better.
Our reasons for losing weren’t really what was bothering me right now anyway. I couldn’t stop thinking about the way Parker had rushed to my defense. And why he now seemed to be avoiding me.
“Guys, this is my sister, Kenzie,” Max said, introducing me to the group with a broad smile. “The Ransom Devils’ new secret weapon.”
I shook my head. “If I’m the secret weapon, the team’s doomed.”
Reed skated over to shake my hand. “I’m Reed, and this is Grayson and Paige. I’m guessing you know Cammie and Parker. We’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Well, whatever Max has said, just know my brother likes to exaggerate.”
“It wasn’t from Max,” Grayson muttered.
I frowned at him, but Paige quickly butted in. “It’s so good to finally meet you,” she said, pulling me into a tight hug. “I got so excited when I heard there was a girl playing for the Devils. We’re all coming back for the homecoming game against the Saints. Will you be playing?”
We had a bye this coming week, and the game against the Saints was the following Friday. It gave me a little extra time to work on my skills before I played again, but that would be game number three for me.
“Yeah, I should be playing.”
“Should?”
“I’m on probation. I could get cut at any time.”
Paige crossed her arms, and her sunny expression was replaced with a frown. “Do all the new players go on probation, or just the girls?”
“Uh, I think it’s just daughters of the coach.”
“Our dad’s a little overprotective when it comes to Kenzie,” Max explained. “He’ll come around.”
Yeah, right.
“Are we going to play, or what?” Parker asked.
He’d been hanging back from the group, skating back and forth with a puck on the end of his stick. He didn’t even look up as he spoke. I was somewhat relieved for the interruption though. Maybe playing a little casual pond hockey would take my mind off my failures in more competitive games.
We broke into two teams. Max and I joined up with Cammie, who seemed eager to face off against her brothers, while the Darling boys teamed up with Paige.
At first, four on three appeared slightly unfair, but it turned out to be quite even.
Paige was not a strong hockey player, and Grayson kept getting distracted as he made sure she was okay.
I was a little out of my comfort zone without my goalie gear, but my brother was in his element. Cammie was also an incredible skater, and surprisingly lethal with a stick. She was fast and nimble, if slightly abusive when it came to her older brothers.
“My grandma can defend better than you!” she yelled at Grayson, after she’d just darted around him to score.
“My grandma is your grandma.” The deadpan look on his face was a little frightening, but Cammie just shrugged. Meanwhile, Paige was struggling not to laugh. I personally would have thought twice about laughing at a guy who was glaring like that, but Paige’s eyes were shining brightly.
“It’s not funny, Pidge,” he grumbled.
“It kind of is,” she replied.
“Stop going easy on us,” Cammie demanded as she skated back to the center of the makeshift rink.
“Yeah,” Max teased. “Did the Darling Devils come to play or not?”