Chapter 83: The Captain's Corner

Aveline’s POV

I spent the whole morning trying to avoid the big school crowd. My mind was spinning with too many dark thoughts. I could not think straight. I needed to find a quiet place to think about my next move. During our free period, I walked deep into the school library. Walking all the way to the back of the room where it was quiet and old books were kept in the empty library stacks.

Nobody ever came back here to study. It was empty. Suddenly, a tall figure stepped out from behind a row of wooden bookshelves and blocked my path.

It was Kieran.

He was looking down at me with deep concern. He seems to have noticed the frantic, panicked look in my eyes. He knew something was wrong with me.

“We need to talk right now,” Kieran said, his voice low and serious.

I did not say a single word back to him. Instead, I reached deep into my jacket pocket and pulled out the crumpled photo from my locker and shoved the paper directly into his broad chest.

Kieran caught the paper, looked down at it, and slowly unfolded it. As his eyes scanned the image of our hands locked under the dining table, his jaw tightened very hard. The bone in his face looked like it might snap from anger.

“It seems someone is very interested in blackmailing me,” I whispered to him, my voice tight and shaking. “I am in a very tight space right now, Kieran. The big championship qualifier game is tomorrow And i also want to get justice for my deceased brother, but I do not want to ruin you in the process. This is getting too dangerous for your future.”

I fully expected him to freak out. This photo could destroy his entire hockey life. But instead of panicking about his professional hockey future, Kieran just looked up from the paper and stared straight into my eyes.

“We just need to lure the person out,” Kieran said, his voice completely calm and steady. “In fact, let the whole world see the photo. I do not care what people say. Let them post it everywhere. I am not letting you face this dangerous situation alone anymore.”

His reckless protection made me feel completely furious. I stepped forward and pushed Kieran back by his shoulders with all my strength.

“Are you completely insane?” I snapped at him in a harsh whisper. I did not want anyone to hear us shouting.

“The professional NHL scouts are going to be at the arena tomorrow! If those scouts find out you are covering for a girl who is pretending to be her twin brother, your hockey career is over before it even starts! You will lose your entire life's work!”

Kieran did not step back from me at all. Instead, he reached out and grabbed my wrists firmly. He pulled my body close to his chest so I could not run away from the conversation.

“I don't care about the scouts, Aveline,” Kieran said, his eyes drilling into mine. “I care about you. I am concerned that if this photo goes public, Silas and Barrett will lose their leverage. They won't think about blackmailing or hurting you again for anything because the secret will already be out. The truth will protect you.”

I stared at him, my heart pounding against my ribs. I knew I had to tell him the complete truth about everything I found out on the USB drive. He needed to know the whole story. I needed to tell him what I discovered about the car crash and the secret files.

“Listen to me, Kieran,” I whispered, my breath coming very fast. “I found Asher's drive. The password was my name. Inside that file, there is a complete list of Crestwood players who are secretly involved in that illegal app. It is a massive circle of people. And I know Silas and Barrett were the ones who attacked my car last night. They want the password to the app. They are trying to kill me for it.”

Kieran adjusted his firm grip on my wrists, listening closely to every single word I said. His face went completely pale when I mentioned the attack again.

“Silas and Barrett are dangerous,” I said, looking right into his eyes. “They are the ones who ran me off the road. They are trying to get the app data. They want to control everything.”

“I will handle Silas and Barrett,” Kieran said, his voice dropping low. “They will not touch you again.”

“But that is not all,” I continued, my voice dropping even lower. “I looked at the handwriting on this photo. The handwriting is very vivid and specific. I recognise it, Kieran. I suspect Theo might be the one who dropped that photo in my locker.

But one thing is still not clear he wasn't at the hangout, I just know He was furious and humiliated but still. The writing matches his style perfectly. It is vivid. I just have to confront him today to find out if he did it.”

Kieran’s eyes became even darker when I mentioned Theo's name. “Theo would not go that far,” Kieran said, shaking his head. “He is a fool, but he is not a blackmailer.”

“He is desperate, Kieran,” I argued, pulling against his grip. “His love for Asher has turned into pure jealousy. He feels replaced by you. I see the way he looks at us. I am planning to confront him today to get the truth out of him before he does something worse. I need to know if he is behind this note.”

“No, you are not confronting him ” Kieran ordered, tightening his grip on my wrists again. “If Theo is the one behind this, you cannot just walk up to him while you are already a target.”

“I have to, Kieran!” I yelled in a whisper. “I have to stop this madness. I have to protect you from your own loyalty. You are willing to throw your whole life away for me, and I could not let you do that have you thought about your family and your mother?”

Kieran stared at me, his eyes wide. “What does my mother have to do with this, Aveline?”

“Think about her for one second, Kieran!” I said, my voice breaking slightly with emotion. “She has been staying with your father for years, enduring all of his toxic abuse just for you.

She did all of that so you could be successful in your career path without a single scandal. Enduring pain so you could play in the NHL.

Now you are just throwing all her sacrifices away for me? I won't allow it. I cannot let you destroy your family's name after everything she did for you.”

Kieran froze completely. My words hit him very hard. He looked like he had been struck by lightning. His grip on my wrists went completely loose, and his hands dropped slowly to his sides. He could not say a single word back to me. His mother's sacrifice was his biggest weakness.

“I have to go,” I said quietly.

I broke away from his hands, turned around, and left as fast as I could. Leaving him standing all alone. I knew I needed more help to solve this mystery. A real leverage against Silas and Barrett if I wanted to keep Kieran safe from their blackmail.

During the afternoon session before tomorrow's big game, I searched around the sports complex until I found Cassian standing alone behind the bleachers.

stepping right up to his space. “Cassian, I need your help right now,” I said directly, looking him straight in the eyes. “How would you feel about investigating everything from the past? I want to find out the real reason your brother Oliver got hurt and sabotaged before his big game.”

The moment the words left my mouth, Cassian’s lazy, cold demeanour disappeared instantly. His posture went completely rigid against the metal beams. The bored look left his face, and his eyes turned sharp and lethal.

“I am not ready to re-open old wounds, Asher,” Cassian said. His voice was freezing cold, like ice.

He did not give me a chance to argue or say anything else. Cassian turned on his heel and walked away from the bleachers, disappearing quickly.

I stood alone in the shadow of the bleachers, watching him leave. My teeth were clenched in frustration. Cassian was hiding something big or he was terrified of the past. I realised right then that I would have to pursue him much more to get what I wanted from him.

Next was to face Theo about the blackmail note, confronting him about his vivid handwriting, and then get ready for the qualifier game tomorrow. The clock was ticking fast, and I was running out of time to save us all.