Page 13 of Double Puck

Not Declan. Not Mason. Me. The Morrison that doesn’t matter.

The one they can live without.

The one who barely made it into this picture to begin with.

"Listen, Ms. Madden." Declan leans forward, captain voice engaged. "You trade Beck, you're not just moving a player. The Morrison brothers are the brand. Three of us, one roster. That's the whole story this franchise is built on."

"He's right." Josie straightens. "We just had the first sell-out in franchise history. The jerseys, the socials, the street party… everything we created is the three of them. You want to break up the main attraction right when the town finally cares? That's not the strategy we've been working towards these past few weeks."

My eyes drift from the argument to watch the women. Darcy's knuckles are white where she grips her tablet. Josie’s bright, warm posture has gone stiff, her shoulders practically screaming betrayal.

It’s like watching a friendship bracelet being pulled apart bead by bead.

"You're not trading my brother." Declan's tone deepens. "I signed a contract that insisted we're all here together."

"Your brother," Darcy says, "is a nine-million-dollar penalty magnet."

I lean back and start counting ceiling tiles.

"He just won us the biggest game in franchise history!" Josie's chair scrapes. "You want to trade the guy who set up the winning goal? The town will riot, Darcy."

"The town will survive. The franchise might not, if we keep paying for highlight reels instead of results."

"Wow." Declan laughs, looking sideways at me like I'm actually involved in this conversation. "You hear that, Beck? You're a highlight reel."

"Apparently I'm just furniture now."

I may as well have not spoken, though, because the argument continues on without me. Outside the glass, the ocean sparkles like even it has more of a say in my own damn life than I do.

"Some of us make decisions with our heads," Darcy says, her chin lifting, "instead of turning roster meetings into family therapy."

"Don't." Declan's on his feet now. "Don't you dare make this—"

"It's always about family with you people! That's exactly the problem!"

Mason's mug hits the table with a crack. Even he looks pissed. "Family?! You want to talk about family?!"

"Okay. Okay!" Colin surges up, palms out, sweating clean through his golf polo. "That's enough. Everyone, just listen."

Colin drags a hand down his flushed face, looking at all of us like we're a wave he can't outrun.

"Nobody's trading anybody today, alright? But let's not kid ourselves." He points at the window, at the gleaming rink below. "One sold-out game doesn't make the pressure from the league disappear. They're still breathing down my neck. Attendance is up, buzz is up, sure. But the hierarchy wants results. Fans. Points. Sustainability."

I watch Darcy’s face as Colin talks. For the first time all morning, she looks less like royalty and more like a woman who has just bet her own name on a losing hand.

Interesting.

Meanwhile, I'm sitting here watching my brothers argue my worth, my coach study his coffee, and a woman who can't even look at me decide whether I get to keep my life.

Story of my existence, right?

Everyone in a room, deciding what Beck can handle, what Beck's worth, where Beck goes next.

"So here's where I've landed." Colin exhales through his nose and straightens up. "I'm not trading a Morrison off one performance model. I don't care how many ways you ran it, Darcy. This town would burn the arena down and I'd have to explain that to the league."

Darcy's fingers tighten around her pen. It's the first crack in the marble I've seen all morning, and something ugly and warm blooms in my chest at the sight of it.

"So here's what we're doing instead," Colin continues. "I'm ordering a Full-Value Audit. The trade deadline ends in seven weeks, so we have time to assess the complete package before making any decisions. We look at Beck's on-ice performances, his leadership, team chemistry. Hell, we'll check the community influence and commercial value he offers." He points at Darcy. "And since you made the recommendation, I want you running it. Personally."