The Penalty Box (Vancouver Wolves Hockey #3)(93)

“She set me up. She deliberately set me up to take the fall for this. Has anyone asked her about this?”

Mark glanced at me. “Trust me, they are asking. She’s scared about something. She won’t talk, but it’s obvious she wasn’t the brains behind this scenario.”

“Who was?”

“We’re not sure.”

I watched as the car drove up my street. I wondered how all of this would affect my hockey career with the Wolves, but I didn’t care. I first needed to see Charlie.

The car pulled up in front of my house. The place looked dark and lonely. Charlie’s car was missing.

“I have to go.”

He nodded towards the house. “She went to bat for you, Mica. That one’s a keeper.”

I already knew that. “Thanks for the ride.”

I got out of the car and sprinted to the front door.





*



The moment I got inside, I knew something was wrong. The house was pitch dark. Charlie wasn’t home. Even weirder, the dogs didn’t come out to greet me.

“Charlie? Sniper?”

A whimper sounded from the laundry room. I opened the door. Sasha bounded out past me, but no Sniper. I flicked on the light. Sniper lay on the tile floor.

“What are you doing in here?” Charlie never locked the dogs in small spaces. Part of Sniper’s duty was to protect the house. We always let him move freely around the house. Charlie would never lock the dogs up without food or water.

Sniper lifted his head and tried to scramble to his feet. He looked woozy, almost drugged. I felt a sinking sensation in my body. I knew something was wrong.

“Charlie?” I yelled. “Charlie!”

I moved to the bedroom. Dresser drawers were open, clothes were missing. So were most of her toiletries.

What the actual fuck. For a second, I thought she had left me, but I instantly dismissed that notion. That was not Charlie. If she left me, she would do it to my face, and she would never leave Sniper behind.

I was without a phone. I dug through my sock drawer, but my phone from Andrusha was gone too.

Sniper slowly moved to his water dish and drank the entire bowl.

I crouched down beside him. “Where’s Charlie? What happened to her?”

Sniper whined.

“Where’s Charlie?” I asked him again.

As if he understood, he moved to the front door and looked back at me. Seriously?

I opened the door. He wasn’t moving too quickly, but his nose was to the ground. He led me down the driveway, to the sidewalk. He slowly walked along the sidewalk and stopped at the end of Andrew’s driveway.

No fucking way.

I debated my options. Should I call the cops? I didn’t even have a working phone. Plus, only hours before, I’d been arrested for the disappearance of one woman. I didn’t exactly want to report another one missing. I moved closer. There was no movement in the windows. I walked around the side of the house and, hands over my face, peered in the garage’s window. There sat Charlie’s vehicle.

I’m going to fucking kill him.

I worked to get my emotions under control. I needed to play this smart and safe, and I needed to get into the house.

I thought about my strategy before I rang the doorbell.

I heard footsteps, and then Andrew opened the door. He wore a button-down shirt and an apron.

“Hey, Mica.”

“Hey, Andrew. How’s it going?”

“Not bad. You?”

I shoved my hands in my pockets, trying to appear casual. “Have you talked to Charlie lately?”

He frowned and shook his head. “No, why?”

I looked over my shoulder and winced. “Well, I was in some trouble and I couldn’t get a hold of her. When I came back tonight, she was gone.”

Surprise registered on his face. “What do you mean, gone?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “She packed up all her shit, and her car is gone. My phone is dead. I can’t even call her.”

“That doesn’t sound like her.”

“I think she left me.”

“Are you sure?”

I lied, needing to get him to relax. “We were having some big issues before. To be honest, I’m not surprised.”

“That’s too bad.”

I put my most hopeful look on my face. “You mind if I use your phone? Like I said, my phone is dead. I plugged it in and everything, but the cops did something to it. I think they busted it.”

He looked uncertain.

“It’ll be quick. I just need to call my agent and let her know I’m out.”

He held the door open. “Yeah, why not?”

“Thanks, man.”

I followed Andrew into the kitchen. He handed me his cell phone.

I dialed Andrusha’s number.

“Who is this?” he answered in Russian.

“Hey, Krista,” I said. “I just got out of jail. You have a moment?”

“Talk.” Andrusha knew something was up.

I feigned my end of the conversation to give him as many details as possible. “My phone is dead, so I’m borrowing my neighbor’s cell.”

“Where is this?”

“No, not far, just a couple doors down.”

“Where is Charlie?”