My Comeback

POV: Noah Callahan

"Did you hear anything about who bought the franchise from Sterling?" my teammate Dylan asked as we walked down the carpeted hallway toward the boardroom, holding our paper coffee cups.

"Nobody knows anything solid, but the news said some massive technology company from overseas acquired the whole organization yesterday," I replied, adjusting the collar of my suit coat while stepping up to the double doors.

"Well, whoever it is, they called this emergency meeting with all the senior players and management staff, so we better just listen and keep our heads down," Dylan said, pushing the handle and leading the way inside the room where twelve other people were already sitting around the long conference table.

"Good morning, everyone, please take your seats so we can begin the meeting on time," the team general manager said, standing near the head of the table while looking down at a stack of folders.

I pulled out a chair on the right side of the room, sat down, and took a quick sip of my coffee while the rest of the players finished settling into their seats.

"As you all know, the Sterling family sold their entire stake in the team three days ago, and today I want to introduce you to the new founder and Chief Executive Officer of FrostTech Sports Group," the general manager announced, turning toward the office door.

The door clicked open, and a woman walked out with two assistants following close behind her, carrying tablets and black binders.

My hand froze around my paper cup, and my breath caught in my throat as I looked at her face, because standing right there at the head of the table was Ava.

She was not the tired, broken woman who had wept on the arena floor six years ago, but a calm, confident, and powerful billionaire who held herself with complete authority.

"Thank you, David," Ava said smoothly, her voice filling the room while she placed her tablet on the table and looked across the group of men sitting in front of her.

"Whoa, is that really Ava Bennett?" Dylan whispered beside me, his eyes wide as he leaned over, but I could not bring myself to say a single word back to him.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Ava began, resting her hands on the edge of the table while scanning the faces of every player, though her eyes passed right over me without stopping for even a fraction of a second.

"Six years ago, I founded FrostTech Sports Group overseas, and as of eight o'clock this morning, my company officially owns this entire hockey franchise, including all player contracts and stadium facilities," she explained, keeping her tone completely neutral and professional.

"What does this acquisition mean for our current roster and our upcoming season goals?" our chief coach asked, leaning forward in his chair to look at her.

"It means every single person in this building will be held to a much higher standard of performance," Ava answered calmly, pulling a black pen from her jacket pocket.

"We are going to review every department, every salary, and every player's physical metrics over the next forty-eight hours to determine who stays on this team and who gets traded," she continued, looking around the room while her assistants handed out white information packets to everyone at the table.

"Are there any immediate questions before we move on to individual player reviews?" Ava asked, looking down at her screen.

"Are our existing contracts still valid under this new ownership group?" Dylan asked, raising his hand slightly from his place at the table.

"Every contract signed under the previous owner is currently under secondary review by my legal team, Dylan, so if you perform well on the ice, you have nothing to worry about," Ava answered directly, addressing him by his first name.

I swallowed hard, cleared my throat, and forced myself to speak up, asking, "What about my contract extension that was put on hold last week?"

Ava slowly raised her head, turned her eyes toward me for the very first time since entering the room, and looked at me with total indifference, as if I were nothing more than a stranger asking for directions on the street.

"Mr. Callahan, according to your recent performance reports and injury history, we'll be discussing whether you're still worth your contract later this afternoon," she said coldly, using my last name without a single trace of emotion in her voice.

The entire boardroom fell dead silent, and several players looked back and forth between the two of us while I sat frozen in my seat, feeling the full weight of how completely our positions had flipped.

The woman who had once begged security guards just to speak with me for ten minutes now held my entire career and financial future in her hands, and she did not care about me at all.

"That will be all for the group introduction, so the rest of you can head down to the training facility while I meet with management," Ava stated, picking up her tablet and turning her back to the room.

As she turned around to speak with her assistant, her collar shifted slightly to the side, and my eyes caught a small glint of metal around her neck.

Tucked just underneath her jacket was the tiny silver chain necklace I had bought for her on her twenty-fourth birthday with my very first hockey paycheck, still hanging around her neck after all these years.