“If only I had a hunting knife,” Zarek mutters, turning yet another glare in the direction the team went.
“I don’t suppose any of you recorded it,” Alka asks.
“I did,” Declan says. “I’ll forward it.”
“Why did you record it?” Zarek asks, looking horrified.
“Because word against word is ambiguous. I think video proof will speak louder.”
I’m thankful for our friends. Now, to get my husband home and convince Ruby to come over so I can make them both forget this awful afternoon.
CHAPTER 33
ALKA
I’ve canceled practice for the rest of the week. If I have to look at Doherty again before I’ve calmed down, I probably will kick him from the team.
I’m currently sitting in my office rewatching the clip Declan sent me for maybe the hundredth time. Every time, I see something new. The embarrassment of my players. Harper’s frustration. Roux’s guilt. The other team trying to hide that they’re watching. Even they’re embarrassed.
And yeah, about a thousand phones out and recording.
Quin’s right. I need to talk to the dean before the school is tagged in 4,236 videos of this and they’re forced to address it. It’s fine. I have all the evidence of my case. Harper’s on standby to talk to the dean or whoever she needs to. I have a copy of Roux’s email confirmation of his application, proving that he applied before we met. I have the reservation confirmation dates of my stay on Kala as well as Roux’s.
I have all my ducks in a row.
If I’m honest, I’m sitting here rooted in my chair because I’m scared. I have no idea what’s going to happen when I speak to the dean. I don’t want to be fired. I don’t want any backlash to come onto Roux.
I want to take back the moment when I thought it was a good idea to be forthcoming with the team.
There’s a knock on my door, and my shoulders stiffen. “Yeah.”
The door cracks open, and Declan peeks in. When he sees I’m alone, he enters. “What’re you doing?”
I shake my head. “Wondering where to go from here.”
“I got the notification that practice is canceled for the week.”
“Yep.” I bob my head a little absently. “I have an email drafted that says it’s canceled next week as well. I’m done.”
“I thought you were letting Harper decide.”
“I did. She wants to cancel the entire season, but that punishes the whole team. I can see the argument both ways. This is serious. We’re serious. But punishing the masses for the actions of a few is one of the biggest things wrong with the society we live in today. I don’t want to be that person, but I also want them to understand that we’re serious and won’t be putting up with bullshit like what Jeff just pulled.”
“Can I give you my opinion?”
I raise my eyes to his and smirk. “Sure.”
“Cancel next week. Don’t say anything to any of them. Hell, I’d say neither you nor Harper should be reachable. Like, vanish entirely. You can both work in my office. When you come back, kick Doherty off the team. Then move on and see if the team follows.”
“You think that’s going to fix it?”
“I think they’re used to being coddled. They’re not used to consequences that mommy and daddy can’t erase for them. Just to be clear, youdohave that control, correct? You can remove them from the team?”
“Even if I strip away literally everything surrounding yesterday’s blow-out, the way he disrespected Harper alone is reason enough to remove him. He added onto it by disrespecting me. The fact that we have more than a dozen witnesses to his outburst is reason enough to remove him. Witnesses that includean entire team from another school. I spoke to their coach after the game. They suggested I kick them off the team, and they have no idea what’s going on. All of this corroborating the same story? No, there won’t be any arguments, reason for their outburst aside.”
“Good. Also, I’m sorry.”
I wave him off and sigh. “I’m tired. I never thought I’d dread going to work. Up until this moment, I’ve always loved my job.”
