Chapter 228 She Smelled Secrets

Chapter 228 She Smelled Secrets
POV: Silver Preston
The figure skating meeting has been postponed.
An email comes through at 3:45 PM, fifteen minutes before it was scheduled to start. Emergency situation with facility scheduling. Rescheduled for tomorrow same time.
I should feel relieved. Instead I just feel suspended. Waiting for the inevitable.
I return to my dorm room with Maya and Riley, all of us still on edge about Eli's disappearance. Campus police did a preliminary check but found nothing concerning. His belongings are still in his room. No signs of distress. Just a college athlete who decided to leave campus for a few hours.
Except it has been six hours now. And still no word.
Americus is exactly where we left her, surrounded by even more printouts and three laptops running different programs. Her braids are tied back tight, the way she gets when she is deep in research mode.
"Meeting's postponed," I announce, dropping onto my bed.
"I know. I saw the email." She does not look up. "Which gives us more time to prepare your defense."
"I don't think I can defend myself against this. The internet's already decided I'm guilty."
"The internet is stupid. We deal in facts." She minimizes one window and pulls up another. "Speaking of facts, I found something interesting."
"About the screenshots?"
"About Eli." She turns her laptop around.
I sit up immediately.
"You found him?"
"Not exactly. But I found where he went." She pulls up what looks like a security camera feed. "I may have accessed Union Station's surveillance system."
"That's definitely illegal," Riley points out.
"So is harassment but here we are." Americus clicks through timestamps. "Here. 10:47 AM. That's Eli entering the station."
The grainy footage shows Eli walking through the main entrance, backpack over his shoulder. He looks tense. Purposeful. Not like someone running away. More like someone on a mission.
"Where did he go?" I lean closer.
"Track 3. Boston line." She pulls up the train schedule. "Departed at 11:15. Arrives in Boston at 2:30."
"Boston?" Maya frowns. "Why would he go to Boston?"
"That's what I wanted to know." Americus pulls up another window. "He made a purchase at 3:47 PM. Menton Restaurant. That's a high-end place near Boston Common."
"He went to Boston for lunch?" I try to process this. "That doesn't make sense."
"It does if he was meeting someone." She zooms in on the transaction. "Reservation for two. The bill was $347. That's not casual dining."
"Who would he be meeting?" Riley pulls out her own phone. "And why wouldn't he tell anyone?"
Americus's fingers fly across the keyboard, pulling up more information.
"I cross-referenced his calendar. He had this blocked off as 'important meeting' three days ago. Before all the Carroway stuff exploded."
Something shifts in my chest.
"He planned this? Before everything fell apart?"
"Looks like it." She pulls up another screen. "And here's where it gets interesting. I checked the restaurant's reservation system. The other person at the table was listed as Robert Brennan."
The name means nothing to me. But Maya's expression changes.
"Robert Brennan? As in Brennan Sports Management?" Maya grabs Americus's laptop. "He's one of the biggest agents in hockey. Represents half the NHL."
"Why would Eli be meeting with an agent?" My mind races. "He's not even drafted yet."
"Exactly. Which means this is either about the draft or about something else entirely." Americus pulls the laptop back. "I'm trying to find out more but Brennan's schedule is locked down tight."
"Maybe it's nothing," Riley suggests. "Maybe it's just an exploratory meeting. Getting advice about the draft process."
"At a $300 restaurant the day after his team confronted him about being distracted?" Americus's eyes are sharp. She smells secrets. "No. This is something bigger."
My phone buzzes. Finally, a text from Eli.
I'm okay. Had to take care of something. Will explain soon. Sorry for disappearing.
I show the others.
"That's it? That's all he's saying?" Maya looks incredulous. "He's been missing for six hours and that's the explanation?"
"At least he's alive," Riley says. "That's something."
But I feel uneasy. The vague message. The secret meeting. The expensive lunch with a major sports agent.
Something is happening. Something Eli does not want to share yet.
I type back: where are you? when are you coming back?
Three dots appear. Then disappear. Then finally a response.
Still in Boston. Catching the 8 PM train back. Can we talk when I get in?
what's going on?
I'll explain everything tonight. Promise.
I stare at the message. Another promise. More assurances that things will be explained eventually.
"He's being cagey," Americus observes. "Why would he need to be secretive about a meeting if it's legitimate?"
"Maybe it's draft related and he can't discuss it yet," Maya suggests. "There are probably confidentiality clauses."
"Or maybe he's making plans that involve Silver and doesn't want to get her hopes up before it's confirmed." Riley's voice is gentle. "Give him the benefit of the doubt."
But Americus is already digging deeper. Her fingers never stop moving across the keyboard. Pulling up articles. Cross-referencing information. Building a picture from fragments.
"Brennan Sports Management recently signed three college players to representation deals," she reads aloud. "All of them draft eligible. All of them projected for the second or third round."
"That's Eli's range," Maya says.
"Right. But here's the thing. Brennan doesn't usually take on clients before the draft. He waits to see where they land and then approaches them." Americus pulls up more information. "So why meet with Eli now? Months before the draft? Unless there's already a deal in place."
"What kind of deal?" I ask.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out." She switches to another screen. "But something feels off. The timing. The secrecy. The expensive lunch right after walking out on his team."
"Maybe we're reading too much into this," Riley says. "Maybe it really is just a preliminary meeting and Eli's being careful about jinxing things."
"Or maybe there's more to it." Americus pulls up Eli's recent search history. "Don't judge me. But I may have accessed his browsing data."
"That's a massive invasion of privacy," Maya says.
"Harassment is also bad. Moving on." Americus scrolls through the history. "Look at this. He's been researching European hockey leagues. Specifically teams in Sweden and Finland."
"We already knew about the Swedish offer," I say. "He turned it down."
"Did he though?" Americus pulls up an email thread. "Because this correspondence from two days ago suggests he's still in communication with the team. Asking about contract details. Start dates. Housing options."
My stomach drops.
"He said he turned them down."
"He said he told them he was declining. But this email chain suggests he's still negotiating." Her expression is serious. "Which means either he lied about declining, or he's reconsidering."
"Why would he reconsider?" Maya asks. "He said he wanted the NHL draft."
"Unless something changed. Like his team turning against him. Or his girlfriend's scandal affecting his prospects." Americus looks at me. "Or both."
I feel cold.
"You think he's planning to take the European offer?"
"I think he's keeping his options open. And not telling you about it." She closes the laptop. "Which is suspicious."
"Or he's trying to protect her from worrying about decisions that aren't final yet," Riley counters. "You're making him sound shady when he's probably just being cautious."
"Cautious people don't sneak off to Boston for secret meetings with sports agents." Americus is not backing down. "And they don't research European contracts while telling their girlfriend they're committed to staying close."
My phone buzzes again.
Eli: I know you're probably worried. I'm sorry. I should have told you I had this meeting. Just wanted to get through it first before explaining.
So he is acknowledging the meeting existed. That is something.
what kind of meeting?
Career stuff. Draft planning. I'll tell you everything tonight.
Career stuff. Draft planning. Vague enough to not technically be lying but specific enough to sound legitimate.
I want to trust him. Want to believe this is just what it looks like. A college athlete taking an important meeting about his future.
But Americus's research has planted doubt. The European team correspondence. The expensive lunch. The secrecy.
"I'm going to keep digging," Americus says. "See if I can find out what Brennan and Eli actually discussed."
"How are you going to do that?" Maya asks.
"Better you don't know." She is already typing again. "But I'll find something. There's always a trail."
I watch her work, feeling uneasy. Part of me wants to know the truth. Wants to understand what Eli is planning and why he is not being fully honest about it.
But another part is scared of what Americus might find. Because if Eli is lying, if he is making plans that involve leaving without telling me, it will confirm every fear I have about people abandoning me.
"Maybe we should just wait," Riley suggests. "Let Eli explain when he gets back. Give him a chance to be honest before we assume the worst."
"Or we find out the truth now so Silver knows what she's dealing with." Americus does not look up. "I'd rather know my roommate's boyfriend is a liar before he breaks her heart than after."
"You don't know he's lying," Maya protests.
"I know he's hiding something. That's close enough." Americus pulls up another program. "And I'm going to find out what."
My phone buzzes with a message from Jordan: hey, heard eli turned up. everything okay?
Word travels fast on campus. Of course people already know he has resurfaced.
he's in boston. coming back tonight. says he'll explain everything.
you believe him?
I look at Americus, still typing furiously. At the evidence of Eli's secret meeting and European team correspondence. At the pattern of secrecy that does not match his promises of transparency.
I don't know, I type back. I want to.
But wanting to believe someone and actually believing them are different things.
Americus makes a sound of triumph.
"Got something."
Everyone turns to her.
"Brennan Sports Management just filed paperwork with the Players' Association. Representation agreement for Eli Hayes, forward, Yale University." She turns the laptop around. "Dated today. Signed three hours ago."
"So Eli signed with an agent," Maya says. "That's normal for draft-eligible players, right?"
"It is. But there's more." Americus pulls up another document. "There's a clause here about international placement. Specifically mentioning consultation with European teams regarding contract offers."
"What does that mean?" I ask quietly.
"It means Eli's agent is actively working with European teams on his behalf. Which you only do if you're seriously considering overseas options." Americus looks at me. "He didn't turn down Sweden. He's still pursuing it. And he hasn't told you."
The room falls silent.
I stare at the documents on the screen. Official paperwork. Legal agreements. Proof that Eli is planning something he has not shared with me.
"There could be an innocent explanation," Riley tries. "Maybe he's just exploring all options before deciding."
"Or maybe he's already decided and is waiting for the right time to tell her." Americus's voice is flat. "Either way, he lied. About being transparent. About making decisions together. About all of it."
My phone buzzes. Eli again.
train's boarding early. should be back by 7:30. meet me at my dorm?
I stare at the message. At the casual tone. Like he has not just signed with an agent and been negotiating European contracts without telling me.
okay, I type back.
Because what else can I say?
But the doubt is already there. The suspicion that Americus has planted with evidence and logic.
And I am starting to think she might be right.