Althena Book 2

46. Little Late

The whole next week, the boys are still clingy. Friday, everyone comes to see me and Conner again.

"WATCH."

Monte and granny laugh and nod at me from the front row.

Amber, Lila, and Kristen toss me high into the air. I do a toe touch then they catch me. Monte and granny clap. We take turns tossing each other into the air for a while. Then the boys take the ice. People pay attention to them and not us.

I wave at Conner, and he blows me a kiss. Then he gets slammed to the ice by a player on the other team. I freeze for a second. I hear whistles and the crowd is pissed. The refs escort the other player off the ice. Conner's not moving though. "CONNER." I try to climb the wall.

Monte grabs me from behind. "He's knocked out. Wait. You can heal him in a minute. Do not panic or try to run on the ice."

He sits up after a minute then lies back down. I grab Monte's arms and hold him.

"You're alright." He picks me up and carries me to the boys' bench. We don't have to get on the ice.

A couple of the guys on the team help Conner get into the dugout. "Woman, my head's going to explode again."

"Yea, I got it. You scared the hell out of me." I put my hands on his neck and push magic in until I can't anymore. "That better?"

"A lot better, baby. Thank you."

"Why did they do that?"

"They don't want me to play. I'm still playing though."

"Be careful, please."

"I will, babygirl. I love you."

"I love you too."

"Conner, you need to be cleared by the doctor before you can play."

"Nah, I'm good, coach."

"It's not a request and how are you good?"

"He knocked the wind out of me and shocked me. I'm fine."

The coach stares at him. "The doctor will be here in a minute. Then you can get back on the ice."

He winks at me. "Go cheer for me, babygirl."

"You sure you're ok?"

"I'm perfect. Thank you."

Monte leads me back over to the girls.

Lila pulls me in. "Is he ok?"

"Yea, he's going to play."

"Is that smart?"

Monte chuckles. "He's fine."

The boys talk to the coach in the dugout for a few minutes, then the starters go out. The crowd goes crazy when Conner takes the ice.

After 1 period, they're up 4-0. After 2 periods, they're up 9-0. Our boys are not letting up at all. Then my phone rings. It's Akley.

"Hi."

"We have a problem."

"What?"

"They stopped one of my shipments. The guard said they had to verify your signature."

"That shouldn't be a problem."

"It's been 24 hours. My ship is dead in the water."

"They will verify it. They all have a copy of my signature."

"You are not being helpful."

"I don't know what the f**k you want me to do. I'm a cheerleader in the middle of an ice hockey match. This isn't part of the deal."

"Figure out why your signature isn't clearing. Do you have your signature on file with the Oceanic Guard?"

"I have my signature on file with the guard and the police and everybody else."

"That's not the right guard."

"Well, how do I get my signature on file with the right one?"

"It will take extra time because this is the first time the Oceanic Guard is verifying it. I'm stopping future shipments until this gets cleared."

"How long will it take?"

"It can take up to a week. If you can import something else and get your signature on file with them, it will go faster."

"I can do that. I need some mud anyway."

"Mud?"

"Yes. Very specific kind of mud. I like it."

"Do that quickly. The longer this takes, the more likely they are to start snooping around my boat."

"I'll get it on Sunday."

"Get it tonight."

"That's not going to happen. I'm cheering right now."

"Let me make this clear. If that shipment is found. Your name is on it. If you want to wait until Sunday, go ahead." He hangs up.

I have no idea how to import something, and I'm not going to the Oceanic Guard right now. He's going to have to wait. I'll deny everything. I don't know what they're putting in my herbs. Asshole.

Monte puts his arm around me. "Who was that?"

"Monte. Don't."

"The way you ran out of there, I know who it was. What did they want?"

"My signature doesn't match right or something. I don't know what the f**k they want me to do. They watched me sign everything."

"They're impatient. Relax. Everything will be fine. Everything takes longer the first time."

"I hope you're right."

"I am. Any move you make right now will be insanely suspicious. You have to be patient and wait it out."

"Ok. I will."

"Now get back in there and cheer." He smacks my butt.

I laugh and run back in.

The boys kick some ass. They win 14-0. I fall asleep on Drogon waiting for Conner to come out.

The next morning, I sit with the boys at the table for breakfast. Mike pulls my hair into a ponytail. "You excited, baby?"

"Yes. I want to ride rides."

"I doubled the guards. You'll have 10 with you. Maybe I should add more." Drogon sits down still reading his paper.

Cyrus nods. "You know the signal to give the guard if something isn't right?"

"I always just look at them. That gets their attention."

"Someone should go. She doesn't even know the signals."

I roll my eyes. We are never getting out of this clingy phase. "Boys, I will be with the girls. I'm going to ride rides with them today. If you want to go, I don't care. It doesn't bother me at all. I would actually feel safer if you're there. But you need to know, I will be with the girls and not you. As long as you're ok with that, you can ride rides and do stuff too."

"Really?" Conner jumps up.

"Of course. It's an amusement park. I'm sure you'll have fun."

"I'M GOING." He runs out.

"DO NOT TAKE MY HELICOPTER."

"WOMAN, HURRY UP." He runs back in.

"We're not leaving for 45 minutes. They're not here yet. Go put on shorts. People don't go to parks in suits, Conner."

"Ok." He runs up the steps.

Drogon puts his paper down. "You really don't care if we go? You haven't had much space."

"I don't care. You could all use a day to ride rides too, and I'm sure the place will be busy. It'll be safer. But I will be with the girls."

Monte runs in through the open front door. "I got this." He hooks a little rose pin to my t-shirt. "It transmits your location and if you spin the rose in a circle. It emails me telling me you need help."

"Put my email on that too."

"Sure." Monte gets out his phone. "I was in a hurry. Type your email in the recipient spot." They all put their emails in.

Conner comes back and puts his in. "Spin it and let's see if it works."

It's a pretty pin. Like a little flower. I reach up with 1 hand and spin the little flower part. Their phones all make noise.

"Wow, that's actually a good location map too." Mike walks off staring at his phone.

"You turned it on. Now it's transmitting your location. Spin it back the other way to turn it off. You'll kill the battery if you leave it on all day. Save it for if you need it."

I spin it the other way until it clicks.

"It's off. That is nice." Cyrus stands up. "I'm going to put some shorts on. Conner needs someone to drag around all day."

"Where you going?"

"Amusement park." Drogon sits his coffee down. "You can go. We should probably get Clayton too. She's going with the girls' club. She will be ignoring us."

Monte nods. "We can make sure nothing is suspicious."

I rub my eyes. "You boys are going to make me need a drink at 8 am. You can go, but you have to try to have fun. It's a park. Relax. Don't work the whole time. And yea, Clayton would probably like to come. He likes spending time with you guys."

"I WOULD KNOCK BUT THE DOORS OPEN."

"COME IN."

Mrs. Kayode comes in smiling. "I'm a little early. I wanted to get here first, so the kids don't get wound up before we go."

Conner runs in on his phone. "LET'S GET THE LINE SKIP PASSES."

Monte nods at Kayode. "You're a little late."

I rub my face. "I told them they can go, but I'm with the girls' club and will be ignoring them."

"It's probably safer with them anyway. They can keep an eye on stuff."

Drogon nods and stands up. "I'm not wearing a suit for this. Someone call Clayton."

Cyrus comes back in. "I got it. Go change."

Lila runs in. "I'M READY." She turns my ponytail into a messy bun. Then takes it out. I guess she didn't like it.

Then Drogon comes in and braids it.

The rest of the girls show up about the same time that Clayton gets here.

Conner drags him around telling him the plan.

"You good?" Lila pokes me.

"They make me want to drink first thing in the morning some days."

"Yea, they need to back off."

Kayote puts a pass around everyone's neck. "Who wants to ride rides?"

Me, Lila, and Saray raise our hands.

"You 3 are a group and the 4 of you are in the other group."

Ami shakes her head. "I want to ride some rides. But not all day. Maybe some later."

"You can switch groups during the day. That's fine. The passes will give you 2 meals. You'll need to eat around 12 and again at 5. You have to have 4 hours between meals. You can also get drinks with the passes. They'll scan your pass and that will pay for your stuff. You can get drinks as much as you want. What am I forgetting?"

"Guards, go and clear the area. Royal 1 and 2 will be inbound."

"Yes, sir."

"Food, drinks... Shows. All shows are included. Everyone will get a t-shirt, but I'll get them at the end of the day. If you want snacks, you'll have to buy them. The food plans don't cover snacks. Also, you have to buy your own pictures. Let's head to the helicopter."