Power Play (14 page)

158

She jumped and spied two men standing behind her. “Oh! I’m Alex Galloway. I’m supposed to report for the Rebels’ development camp today and am trying to find the dressing room.”

“Sorry we startled you. So
you’re
the Galloway everyone’s making a fuss over. It’s nice to finally put a face to the name. I’m goaltender Pierre Germaine and this is Greise Faust.”

“I know,” Alex said with a laugh. “I’ve followed the Rebels for years, but never dreamed of someday playing alongside you.”

“Schön, Sie kennen zu lernen,
Miss Galloway,” Greise replied in German.

“In English, friend,” Pierre gently admonished him.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Galloway.”

Alex shook Greise’s hand.
“Schön, dass Sie auch zu treffen,
Mr. Faust.”

His eyes widened.
“Sie sprechen Deutsch?”

“Ja, ich spreche Deutsch, Französisch und Tschechisch”.

159

Greise turned back to Pierre. “She speaks German, French, and Czech.”

“I actually know four languages if one counts American Sign Language,” Alex said.

“Français aussi?”
Pierre asked.
“Oh merde…”

“Don’t worry, I won’t rat out you boys to people who don’t understand anything but English unless you want me to.”

“
Let’s find your dressing room. Nobody should cause any trouble since you're with me and Greise.”

“Merci,
Pierre.”

He smiled.
“De rien.
Welcome to the Rebels,
Mademoiselle.”

***

160

“We need to keep an eye on the girl,” Pierre said after he and Greise made sure Alex was safely inside a dressing room designated for her. “I have a feeling Walton, O’Freel, and Beaumont might pull something.”

“Better add Ivanka to the list. I heard he isn’t happy about her being on the team either.”

“That old grunt’s more likely to hit on her. I think she’s twenty, twenty-two; practically a child. He’s the last guy I’d want near
any
female, let alone one Alex’s age.”

“I totally agree
mein Freund.
We owe Talmadge the assurance that Galla stays safe.”

“Who?” Pierre asked, confused.

Greise jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Galla. We helped find her dressing room, remember?”

“Her name’s
Alex
.” Pierre placed a hand on his backup goalie’s shoulder. “We really need to find a better system for you to remember proper names, friend.”

***

161

Chapter 31

Alex’s hockey skates glided over the practice ice as she focused on controlling a puck, oblivious to all other surroundings. Her grace and near-flawless proficiency didn’t go unnoticed by someone watching her; it was almost as if she and the stick performed in sync.

“Talmadge was right about one thing,” a male voice said. “You really do know your way around a hockey puck.”

Her concentration snapped, Alex turned and stared at one of her new teammates. “Thank you…I think.”

“Sorry to cut into your concentration.” He offered a hand. “Reggie Hebert.”

Alex shook his hand. “Of course; you hit a 200-goal milestone before the Rebels were eliminated during first-round playoffs last season.”

“Wow, a girl who watches
and
plays hockey! I’m beyond impressed.”

162

“I can’t take all the credit; Troy helped with lots of other things. I expected to see mostly other rookies during camp.”

“Even the best of us vets could use additional practice,” Reggie said. “Hey, I know some of the other guys are giving you a hard time, but don’t work so hard to prove yourself. Coach Barry thinks you’re the best rookie he’s seen on ice.”

“He said that?” Alex asked.

“Yeah, I heard him singing your praises while he and GM Bright were talking.”

“Wow…I didn’t expect so many people to welcome me with open arms, considering–”

Reggie stopped her mid-sentence. “A few of us heard about your car filled with packing peanuts. Needless to say, Troy was pissed when Pierre told him on the phone.”

“Whoever did it probably got in on the front passenger side which has a broken lock. Between Troy running me ragged since I moved from New York and then getting drafted, I haven’t had much spare time to get the lock fixed.”

163

“I can guess right now it was Lenny, Marty, or Crazy Vince. To say none were jumping for joy about you being drafted to the Rebels is an understatement. They pulled a bunch of practical jokes on poor Johann Jokela last year when he came to us from Finland. Grown men picking on a teenage rookie, can you believe such shit?”

“That’s terrible!”

“Yeah, Davy and I took Jo under our wings like Troy, Pierre, and Greise are doing with you.”

“Troy’s overbearing even from Nova Scotia.”

“Be grateful the captain has your back. God knows what I’d done without his support three years ago when I joined the team.”

“You were harassed?”

“Yeah, things were tough in the beginning. Fans, the press, and even some of my own teammates derided me with racial slurs because I’m half Caribbean despite being born in Montreal. My dad’s French Canadian.”

164

Alex shook her head, appalled. “Some people can be so ignorant and closed-minded. What does skin color have to do with how well someone plays hockey?”

“Nobody would blink an eye if I was on a baseball, football, or basketball team. You and I already have in common; neither is the typical Canadian, European, or whatever other kinds of white boys AHC fans are used to seeing with hockey sticks.”

“I was warned things wouldn’t be easy for me in the beginning.”

“Some dudes can’t handle you have much a gift for the game as they do, baby girl. Troy taught me how not to take all derisive comments and pranks to heart. ‘Reggie,’ he once told me, ‘People are going to have their opinions, whether positive or negative, and it won’t help you to think about them one way or the other. We are who we are, so enjoy your individuality.’ Now I’m giving you the same advice.”

“Thank you. It’s good to know someone who sympathizes with my struggles.”

A British accent interrupted them. “Any room for a second chap or did I stumble onto a private party?”

165

“Davy!” Reggie welcomed him. “Come on over, man. Have you met Alex Galloway?”

“Haven’t had the honor, but certainly heard plenty.” He shook hands with her. “Davy St. Cloud at your service, love.”

“Olympic silver medalist for Team Britain and tied with Troy for most goals scored by the Rebels last season,” she replied.

Davy grinned at Reggie. “Brilliance, beauty, and athleticism. We have a triple threat rookie in our presence, mate.”

“The captain has a gift for spotting the right kind of people,” Reggie said. “First he had you brought from England and then discovered this fine lady in Vancouver.”

“Vancouver?” Davy asked. “Did you by chance play for the Venus?”

Alex shook her head. “No, just portrayed a team member in the docudrama.”

166

“You were in
Vancouver Venus?”

“I played Natalie. It’s a small part, so you’d probably miss me if you blinked. Troy’s friend Andy Byers was the assistant director. He introduced us.”

Davy turned to Reggie. “We definitely have to see that movie, especially now that a cast member plays on our team.”

“Yeah, I remember some snide remark Marty made about Rebels management scraping bottom of the barrel by signing ‘some actress who gave Talmadge a boner’.”

Alex drew in a sharp breath.
“What?”

“Pay O’Freel no mind, love,” Davy said. “He and his mates Walton and Beaumont are a bit barmy anyway. Beaumont especially loves taking the piss out of Troy.”

“Davy got drafted because he and Troy faced off in the Olympics,” Reggie added. “Crazy Vince is the biggest dick of those three guys. Word has it he was up for captain until Halloran and GM Bright thought Troy made a better leader. Call me biased, but I agree with the bosses.”

167

“My God, it’s like high school all over again, only with grown men,” Alex said.

“Another word of advice, love,” Davy warned her. “Stay far away as possible from Jax Ivanka.”

“Why?”

“He’s still stuck in nineteenth-century Czechoslovakia with the mentality that women should stay home barefoot and pregnant.”

“Ivanka’s got his jockstrap in a wad about you being on the team,” Reggie said. “He’ll probably find some way to harass you until you quit.”

Their statements made Alex cringe. “Thanks for the heads up, guys, but that’s not going to happen. Are there any other decent people besides Troy, you two, and the goalies?”

Davy eagerly nodded. “Quite a few do, love; one is Byron Brady.”

168

“He’s better known on the team as Preacher,” Reggie said. “Before playing pro hockey, he was some kind of minister in North Carolina. A great Christian guy with a beautiful wife and kids; doesn’t screw around on Babs, drink or party like some of the others. I roomed with him on the road a few times. Preacher’s a down to earth and classy guy.”

“He’s a real go-getter on game day, but a good bloke once off the ice,” Davy agreed. “There should be more like him in our world. Preacher’s off for a maintenance day, so you won’t meet him until tomorrow morning.”

“Boris Furishnykov is our first alternate captain. English isn’t his first language, but he’s gradually improving. Be warned, though; Boris likes to tell a lot of corny jokes, but kids love him and Troy.”

“Johann’s a nice young lad whose mum raised him right. We keep an eye on him since O’Freel and his mates can’t behave themselves.”

“Yes, Reggie filled me in earlier,” Alex replied. “Is he here?”

169

“Nope, Jo’s been out since toward end of last season with a compound fracture to his arm. The lad’s waiting for clearance to play this season which should come any day, so don’t be surprised if he shows by end of the week.”

“Hey!” Pierre called after positioning himself in the goal net. “Are we doing some practice shots or are you kids going to stand around bullshitting all day?”

Alex waved to him. “Hi, Pierre! I’m ready anytime you are.”

“Better stay on your toes, Germaine,” Reggie teased him. “I hear this baby girl’s quite a shot!”

“Let me be the judge,” Pierre replied. “She can’t torture me any more than St. Cloud already has.”

***