More than ever, I was ready to claim my new life on the track, with my daughter, with the man who had shown up when it mattered most.
I pushed the door open and stepped out, bruised and brave and ready to skate.
I kissed Alex quickly and fiercely before heading for the locker room, heart still pounding.
I was ready for them to be mad. For eye rolls. For someone to tell me I’d almost missed my first bout.
Instead, the second I walked in, the room exploded.
“There she is!”
“You made it!”
“Hell yes!”
Belle barreled into me so hard she nearly knocked me over, wrapping me in a sweaty, glorious hug. “You scared the shit out of us,” she said, laughing into my shoulder. “Don’t ever do that again.”
I dropped into a chair and started pulling on my skates, hands finally steady now that I was here.
Mel clapped her hands. “Alright, listen up. Before we head out, we’ve got one more thing.”
I looked up as she grinned at me.
“For our last name . . . Eleanor Tremaine.”
The room quieted, all eyes on me.
“With that dramatic entrance, the missing skate, and your very own Prince Charming,” Mel continued, “you will now be known as . . . Slayerella.”
The team erupted.
Helmet taps. Whoops. Hands on my shoulders and back and my helmet as they swarmed me.
“Slayerella,” I repeated with a laugh. “I like it. I didn’t see it coming, but I like it.”
And for the first time, fully geared up and surrounded by my people, it felt like the name fit.
The doors to the track opened, and a wave of sound rushed in: music, cheers, the electric hum of anticipation. We lined up in the narrow tunnel, wheels rolling in place, pads creaking, hearts pounding. The announcer’s voice boomed through the speakers, calling out names one by one.
Each skater rolled out into the light, greeted by applause and whistles and the roar of the crowd. I watched them go, one after another, the noise growing, my own pulse keeping time with it.
Then I heard it.
“Slayerella!”
For a second, I forgot how to breathe.
I pushed forward, skating out into the open, into the glare of the lights and the sound of people cheering. It felt surreal, like stepping into a version of my life I’d never dared to imagine for myself.
The crowd was a blur of faces and movement, but my eyes found them instantly.
Ava was on her feet, waving both arms. Leo was practically bouncing out of his seat. Becca was clapping and shouting. And Alex was smiling at me like I was the bravest, most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.
There are moments in your life that feel like the foundation of who you will become, quiet bricks laid beneath everything that comes after. This was one of those moments.
The whistle blew, sharp and bright, and suddenly everything was in motion.
Bodies surged forward. Wheels clattered. The pack tightened, and I felt the familiar rush of adrenaline as I took my place in the wall. Mel shot forward as jammer, a flash of speed and determination, and I moved without thinking, bracing, shifting, locking arms with Belle and Robin as we created a barrier in front of her.
