“Hello, Mr. Gunnarsson. It’s Ben down at the guard station,” Ben says. So not a newbie.
“Hi, Ben. Is there a problem?”
“There’s someone here asking to see you. Says his name is Raymond Mackey. Do you want me to have someone escort him up?”
My stomach turns over. Raymond Mackey. Gray never told me her father’s name, but I’m a hundred percent sure this is him.
“Yeah,” I hear myself say. “Um…bring him up to the press room.”
“Everything okay?” Kelsier asks as I hang up the phone. He pulls up his hockey pants and sits down to put on his skates.
“I think Gray’s dad is here.”
His head snaps up again. “What? Are you sure?”
“Ben says Raymond Mackey is here to see me.”
Kelsier is quiet a moment. “And you’re sure he’s not just some guy here to talk to you about a sponsorship or something?” His eyes widen. “Wait, are you sure she’s not married? What if he’s her husband?”
I give him a ‘Don’t be ridiculous’ look, although now there’s a small doubt in my mind.
“What did you do to warrant a visit from her father then?” he asks.
I shake my head defensively. “Nothing.”
Well, mostly nothing. Yet…
“You want me to go with you?” he asks.
“No, I’ll be fine,” I say. “I’m sure he just wants to meet.”
“Good luck.”
I head out the door and take the stairs up a floor before I head into the press room. It’s still empty, so I sit down in the front row of seats to wait. It’s a few minutes before a guard named Pedro leads an older man into the room, and I stand.
“Thanks, Pedro,” I say, and he gives me a “No problem” as he leaves.
I turn to the other man. He looks to be in his mid-to-late fifties, about six feet tall, a little round around the middle, but still relatively fit for a man his age. The resemblance to Gray is subtle, but I see it now that I’m looking for it. He wears a baseball cap that has, “Grumpy Old Veteran” embroidered on the front.
I hold out a hand. “Mr. Mackey,” I say. “I take it you’re Gray’s father? It’s great to meet you.”
Raymond takes my hand and shakes it. If his grip was any harder I’d think he was trying to intimidate me, but it’s only firm and sure.
“Mr. Gunnarsson,” he says. “It’s good to meet you as well. I’m not sure when my daughter plans to introduce us, so I wanted to stop by briefly to meet you myself. I won’t keep you long.”
“Does…Gray know you’re here?”
He smiles as he lets go of my hand. “No, and let’s keep it that way ifyou don’t mind.”
I raise a brow. “You want me to lie to your daughter?” I ask. “This feels like a test that I’m screwed on either way.”
He chuckles. “No, not lie. Just…keep a secret for now.”
“That still feels like it’s going to bite me in the ass,” I insist.
He shrugs. “Fair enough. I’ll tell Gray I came to talk to you. How about you just don’t mention it for a few days until I have a chance to come clean?”
I give him a quick nod. “That I can do.”
