Page 44 of Breakaway
MORGAN: Oh and FYI, it wasn’t my uncle. He didn’t even know about it.
Her texts came in one after another, not giving him a chance to reply to one before she sent another.
“Anderson!” Ben’s cheerful voice came from the direction of the locker rooms.
“Ben?” Travis stared at him, confused. He had really believed that Morris had had him sent back down, but between Morgan’s texts and Ben standing in front of him, it appeared it was not due to Morris after all. But he wouldn’t put anything past him. The guy had a strong dislike for him, that was for sure.
“You too, huh?” Ben said, with a playful grin.
“Yeah,” Travis looked from Ben back to his phone. “I’m surprised to see you here.”
“I would’ve texted you before I left, but my phone died. I think I dropped it that last night I got drunk. At least I had one day in Hershey, and only had half the travel time back here.”
“That sounds about right.” Travis’s mind had been fixed on Morgan. He hadn’t even thought to let his roommate know he was leaving Pittsburgh.
“My agent said that with the Renegades having a few days off, they figured keeping us in the game was better for our conditioning. Plus, Dubois was taken off of IR. They expect him to be in the line-up again.” He shrugged. “No reason for us to be there if Patrick is back in. So here we are. The life of a two-way contract.”
“Huh.” It did make sense.
“My agent didn’t tell me any of that.” Knowing all the details sure would’ve saved him some worry.
Ben shook his head. “You need a new agent.”
“Yeah, tell me about it.” He snorted. “I’ll catch you in a few. I need to text Morgan real quick.”
Ben nodded before hurrying off.
TRAVIS: Ben is here too. Said the team just thought continuing to play was better for us than the extended time off. And that Dubois was back in the lineup.
MORGAN: Makes sense.
Her text was short, but he was sure she had the same unasked question as him—how long was he here for?
TRAVIS: I have to run. I’ll call you after morning skate.
TRAVIS: I really miss you.
MORGAN: I miss you too.
So this all was typical hockey moves, nothing devious on Morris’s part. The Renegades had called him up once, now he needed to make sure they called him up again.
TRAVIS SLID DOWN THE bench next to JJ. He looked around the packed arena and breathed in the atmosphere. This was what he loved—hockey. It wasn’t exactly Renegades hockey, but nonetheless, it was still heart-pumping hockey.
Coach called Travis’s name, and he hopped over the wall, anxious to get back into the game. He joined the rush up the ice towards the Falcon’s net.
A slapshot attempt at goal to the Falcon’s net was denied by the goalie, Miller, who immediately covered the puck, stopping play. Travis skated around the net, right into the path of Springfield player McDonald, who immediately caught him in the face with his glove. Travis floundered backwards, and in the process of trying to regain his balance, he fell into Springfield’s Bennett, who shoved him in retaliation.
Ben and Hunter Murphy quickly joined the scrum, coming to his aid.
Travis grabbed one guy, while his teammates took care of the others. Gloves were scattered on the ice, and fists were flying until the refs quickly separated everyone.
The crowd cheered, as McDonald was escorted into the Springfield penalty box.
Travis’s heart was racing and his blood was pumping. Returning to the bench with his teammates, he attempted to catch his breath. The guys tapped his pads in recognition, and someone commented “Great shift, Anderson!”
He glanced up towards the rafters at the private box where the scouts sat. One way or another, he was not only going to be known for his scoring ability, but he’d also be known for his size and grit.
Next shift out, Teddy Samuelsson took the face-off, passing the puck to him. Travis rushed down the boards, narrowly avoiding a few Springfield guys on his way to their net. After passing the puck to Carter King, Springfield’s Bennett stepped up on King. Travis checked Bennett, making a clear path for King to get the puck through the five-hole. SCORE!