Chapter 212: Her Warning

KNOX’S POV

The lobby of the Burlington Waterfront Hotel was loud with the sound of thirty hockey players dropping bags and shaking snow off their coats.

Ahead of us, the front desk clerks were hurrying to sort through team key envelopes.

Beside me, Bear and Jake stopped walking. The chatter right behind us died down.

Bear leaned down toward my ear. "Is that who I think it is?"

"Yeah," I said.

Jake whistled softly through his teeth. "What is she doing all the way in Vermont?"

I kept my eyes locked on Vanessa Orwell.

She stood beside the stone fireplace, smoothing the front of her camel coat. Her blonde hair fell straight over her shoulders, perfectly styled, and she looked like she belonged at an upscale Boston country club, not a snowy hotel lobby full of college hockey players.

I slipped the strap of my gear bag off my shoulder and handed it to Bear.

"Take my stuff upstairs," I said quietly. "Get our room keys."

Bear took the strap without arguing, but his forehead creased with worry. "Knox. Brennan is standing ten feet from the desk. Don’t cause a scene."

"I’m not going to cause a scene. Just take the bags."

Bear nodded once, grabbed Jake by the sleeve of his jacket, and pulled him toward the desk with the rest of the team.

I took a breath, kept my hands shoved deep into my jacket pockets, and walked across the slate floor toward the fireplace.

Vanessa watched me approach. Her lips curved into a slow, satisfied smile. "Knox," she said as I stopped three feet in front of her. "It’s good to see you."

"What are you doing in Vermont, Vanessa?" I asked, keeping my voice flat.

She let out a soft laugh and reached for a glass of gin and tonic resting on the small glass table next to her leather chair.

"Is that any way to greet your childhood friend?" she asked, taking a sip. "I drove three hours through a snowstorm just to see you."

"We aren’t friends," I said. "We haven’t spoken a single word since your little attempt at Emerald Pines. And you didn’t drive three hours through Vermont to watch a hockey game."

Her smile tightened just a fraction around the edges. She set her glass back down on the coaster. "I called your cell phone three times on your way up here," she said, lowering her voice so the players across the lobby couldn’t hear. "You declined every single one."

"Because I have nothing to say to you."

"Well, I have something to say to you," she said. She took a step closer, smelling like expensive jasmine perfume. "My father had dinner with Garrison on Friday night in Boston. He told me what happened."

I didn’t blink. "What happened with what?"

"Don’t play stupid, Knox. It doesn’t suit you." She crossed her arms over her coat. "Garrison canceled your black card. He froze your trust fund, cut your monthly living stipend, and took your name off the family box at TD Garden. You don’t have a dime left."

She looked past me, glancing around the hotel lobby with open disgust. She looked at the rubber mats by the door, the pile of team hockey bags, and the cheap paper cups of water by the desk.

"Look at this place," she whispered. "You’re riding a cramped bus with thirty boys. You’re staying in a standard double room. You’re living like a common walk-on with no family name."

"It’s a clean hotel," I said. "And those thirty boys are my team."

"Stop pretending this is acceptable!" Her voice snapped with irritation, the calm mask slipping away. "You’re Knox Sheridan. You’re supposed to be in the NHL next season. You’re supposed to have a penthouse on the harbor and run Boston. Instead, you’re throwing your entire future away over some girl from a bakery."

My jaw tightened. "Keep Nora’s name out of your mouth."

"Why should I?" Vanessa sneered, stepping closer. "Where is she, Knox? I noticed she didn’t get off that bus with you. She’s back on campus, isn’t she? Working some diner shift while you freeze in Vermont. She doesn’t belong in our world. She never did."

She reached out, touching the sleeve of my jacket, but I pulled my arm back before she could get a grip.

Her eyes narrowed, but she kept pushing.

"She’s using you, Knox," Vanessa insisted. "She’s playing house with you because she liked having a billionaire’s son walking her to class. But now that the money is gone? Now that your father won’t even take your calls? She’s going to get bored. As soon as she realizes you’re broke, she’ll walk right out the door."

A cold anger flared in my chest, but I didn’t raise my voice. I leaned in, stepping into her space until my shadow blocked the firelight from her face.

"You don’t know a single damn thing about Nora," I said, each word coming out slow and steady.

"Knox..."

"Nora knew my accounts were frozen on Wednesday noon," I said. "Before the deadline even passed. Do you know what she did?"

Vanessa blinked, caught off guard. "What?"

"She packed me lunch," I said. "She took me home to meet her mother. She sat next to me at a kitchen table and asked me if I was okay. She didn’t ask for a single dollar. She didn’t care about the black card, the penthouse, or the Sheridan name."

Vanessa stared at me, her mouth parting slightly in disbelief.

"Nora has more honesty, more loyalty, and more class in her little finger than you and your father will ever have," I said coldly. "She’s ten times the woman you’ll ever be."

The blood rushed to Vanessa’s cheeks, turning her pale skin bright red with embarrassment.

"You’re an idiot," she spat, her voice shaking with rage. "You think you’re being noble? You’re acting like a stubborn child. You’re throwing away millions of dollars."

"I didn’t get cut off, Vanessa," I said quietly. "I walked away. There’s a big difference. I’d rather sleep on ice and clean the rink floor myself than take another penny from Garrison Sheridan. And I sure as hell don’t need your father begging him on my behalf."

"You think this is just about money?" she sneered, taking a quick step backward.

"I don’t care what it’s about. We’re done talking."

"You really don’t get it, do you?" Vanessa laughed bitterly. "You think your father is just going to let you walk away and pretend you won? You think he doesn’t know how to hit you where it actually hurts?"

I stopped and looked back at her. "Say what you came to say and leave."

She pulled her designer purse onto her shoulder and straightened her spine, looking at me with pure venom.

"My father spoke to the Eastern Scouting Bureau this morning," she said smoothly. "Garrison made a few phone calls over the weekend. He reminded three NHL front offices who funds their regional charity programs and corporate suites."

A strange, cold sensation settled in my gut, but my expression didn’t change.

"Two regional scouts who were scheduled to watch you play at Gutterson Fieldhouse tonight just canceled their credentials," Vanessa whispered, smiling coldly. "He’s taking your draft stock away, Knox. If you don’t go back to Boston and apologize before Christmas, you won’t even hear your name called in the draft. You’ll be playing in some no-name minor league while everyone else moves on."

She smoothed the lapels of her camel coat and took a step toward the glass front doors.

"Have a great game tonight, captain," she said softly. "Let’s see how well you play when the people who matter stop showing up."

She turned around on her high-heeled boots and walked out through the revolving glass doors, disappearing into the cold afternoon wind.

I stood by the fireplace for a long moment, watching the snow blow across the circular driveway outside.

My hands were still in my pockets, but my fists were clenched tight.

I took one slow, deep breath to steady myself, turned around, and walked toward the elevators.

Bear and Jake were standing by the brass doors. The rest of the team had already gone upstairs.

Bear held out a plastic key card. "Room 412," Bear said, watching my face closely. "Everything okay?"

"Fine," I said, taking the card.

"What did she want?" Jake asked, tossing a sunflower seed into his mouth. "She looked like she wanted to murder somebody."

"Nothing that matters," I said.

The elevator bell dinged, and the brass doors slid open. We stepped inside, and Bear pressed the button for the fourth floor.

As the elevator started to rise, my phone vibrated in my pocket.

I pulled it out, expecting a text from Nora.

Instead, a notification popped up on the screen from Coach Brennan’s team email list.

Subject: Updated Scout Attendance List — Vermont Game 1.

I tapped the screen and opened the attached PDF.

Right under the list of attending NHL teams, two lines had been struck through with a red mark:

Boston Bruins — Regional Scout (CANCELED - PERSONAL CONFLICT)

Montreal Canadiens — Assistant Director of Amateur Scouting (CANCELED - RESCHEDULED)

Jake looked over my shoulder at the screen, and his face instantly went pale.

"Holy shit," Jake whispered, his voice completely deadpan. "The Bruins scout canceled? He told Coach last week he was coming up specifically to watch you against Vermont’s defense."

Bear leaned over and saw the red marks, his jaw dropping in disbelief.

"Knox..." Bear started.

"Put your phones away," I cut him off coldly.

I locked my phone and slid it back into my pocket as the elevator doors opened onto the fourth floor. "We have pre-skate in two hours," I said, stepping out into the carpeted hallway. "Let’s go get dressed."