The equipment manager looked up from the pile of jerseys he was sorting, his expression shifting the second he recognized me.
“Oh.” His hands paused. “You just missed him.”
The words didn’t register.
“…What?”
“He left.”
A strange ringing filled my ears.
“No…” I laughed once, shaking my head. “No, that’s not possible.”
“He was just—”
“He came in for maybe two minutes,” the equipment manager explained, pointing toward the empty stall. “Dropped off his gear, grabbed his duffel bag and disappeared.”
I stared at Tristan’s locker.
“He didn’t stay for the celebration?” I asked quietly.
The man shook his head. “No.”
“What about the interviews?”
“Nope.”
“The team photos?”
“He skipped those too.”
I frowned. “Why?”
He shrugged apologetically.
“Didn’t say much. The coach tried stoppi
