The puck dropped again, but the game had become secondary to the ghosts haunting the ice.
Kane won the face-off and immediately drove toward me, stick high, eyes blazing with something far beyond competition. He pinned me against the boards with controlled brutality, his helmet inches from mine.
“You want to know who Lila really was?” he snarled, voice low enough that only I could hear. “She wasn’t just my sister. She was the best player on that team at seventeen. Faster than half the boys, smarter than all of them. She fought for her spot the same way you did—took illegal hits, ignored the whispers, showed up every single day. Championship final. She was about to score the game-winner. Then one of her own teammates—someone who was supposed to protect her—came in from behind. Elbow to th
