Hour of Need (Scarlet Falls #1)(47)

“We’ll be there,” Corey said. He and Josh walked back to the rink.

Grant followed Victor away from the ice and down a corridor. They passed the locker rooms and entered a small, dusty office. A brawny bald man scanned a grid on a clipboard. He looked up as they entered.

“Major Barrett, this is Zack Stuart, the hockey coach.” Victor gestured between them, then gave Zack a brief rundown of the fight.

Zack shook his head and tucked his clipboard under his arm. “Maybe an hour of power skating drills will drain off some of that hostility.”

Grant laughed. “I like to run new recruits long distances with heavy packs to keep them out of trouble.”

“Excuse me while I go do my best to wear them out.” Zack grabbed a jacket off a peg and left.

“Are you sure you don’t want to coach hockey?” Victor asked. “Our coach has his hands full. His assistant coach quit last month to play for a minor league team.”

“I’ll pass, but thanks,” Grant said.

Victor moved behind the desk. “We’re all sorry about Kate.”

“You worked closely with her?”

“Yes. She was in charge of beginners through preliminary level competitors. I handle the advanced skaters.” Church crossed his arms over a lean chest.

“Were you a competitive figure skater too?”

“I was a national champion, but that was a long time ago,” Victor said.

Grant scanned the half dozen trophies lined up on a row of shelves behind Victor’s head. “Have you been coaching here long?”

“Almost seven years.” Victor’s gaze followed Grant’s. He pointed to a golden trophy. “Kate’s had several preliminary skaters place in a local competition last season. She was thrilled. Building a good team takes time. This year will be my year. I have the best skaters I’ve ever coached.” Pride filled his voice. He cleared his throat, as if suddenly realizing, again, that Kate was gone.

Grant understood. He had moments of happiness with Carson and Faith, laughs that burst out of his chest before he remembered he should be sad because Lee and Kate were dead. All positive emotions felt inappropriate and selfish.

A few seconds of awkward silence followed.

Clearing his throat, Victor turned to a shelving unit behind him. He lifted a nearly empty cardboard box and, turning, transferred it to the desk. “Here are Kate’s things.”

Grant took the box from him. “This is it?”

“That’s what was in her desk and locker.” Victor shrugged. “I don’t keep much here either. A lot of people come and go here at all hours. Things tend to go missing.”

“Well, thanks.” Grant hefted the box. Like Lee’s, Kate’s personal effects seemed too light given that she’d worked here for eight years.

“No one’s going to forget her,” Victor said as if he could read Grant’s mind. “The kids are devastated by her death, especially the girls she coached.”

“Thank you.” Grant turned toward the door, a connection in his mind stopping him. “Do you know anything about the Hamilton case? The girls all skate here, right?” He’d watched the clip on the news. The media had speculated on a connection with Lee and Kate’s murder. Lee’s public life was short on dirt, and the press had focused on the more controversial bullying story. Grant had spent some time on the computer learning about the case.

“Sure. Everyone here does, but we aren’t allowed to discuss it.” Victor’s friendly demeanor vanished. “There’s still a civil case pending. Plus, the whole thing was a nightmare.”

“Any time a kid dies it’s horrible,” Grant said. “Did you coach Lindsay?”

Victor nodded. His gaze dropped to the desktop. “I’ll just say one thing. She was a nice kid.”

“You coach the two accused girls too?”

“Yes, which is why I can’t say anything.” Victor’s sigh was full of regret and maybe a touch of anger.

Grant waited, sensing something was coming.

Victor’s eyes rose to meet Grant’s. “You just met their fathers.”

“Really?”

The bullying case had been summed up, but the accused girls hadn’t been mentioned by name because they were minors. Grant didn’t know why the news came as a shock. The arena had been named. He’d known the girls involved skated here. But Corey and Josh seemed too normal to have children who would torment another girl into taking her life. Maybe the police hadn’t found any evidence because there wasn’t any. Maybe the case was blown out of proportion.

But given the murder and break-in, it seemed unlikely.

“I’ve said too much.” Victor rounded the desk and escorted him to the hall. “Good luck, Major.”

Grant held out a hand. “Thanks for getting Kate’s things together for me.”

Exiting the office, Grant headed for the main room. He passed the rink. Corey’s daughter had come off the ice and was talking to her father. Beyond them stood Josh and his daughter. Grant saw them all with fresh eyes. The teens looked more spoiled and arrogant than pretty now, and Grant didn’t know what to think of their fathers. The hockey team surged onto the ice and flowed into a warm-up skate, blocking Grant’s view. Uneasy, both with the foursome and his own reaction, he turned away. According to the police, the case was unsubstantiated by solid evidence. He shouldn’t judge, but deep breathing didn’t dispel his growing need to break something. Like those young hockey players, he needed a hard run to burn off his tension.