The Hockey Star’s Remorse

Chapter 201

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The next night, I stood outside my former workplace, watching as a group of my female coworkers gathered to leave the office together. I had decided to wait for them, determined to take a step toward mending the strained relationships that had plagued my time at the firm.

As they made their way out of the building, deep in conversation, I took a deep breath and approached them. It was an intimidating moment, as I hadn’t interacted with them for quite some time, and I couldn’t help but feel anxious at how they might have perceived me at that point.

“Hi,” I greeted them tentatively, trying to sound as friendly as possible. “Would you all like to join me for dinner? My treat.”

“Evie!” Beth was the first to speak, though her voice came out a little strained. “Didn’t think we would see you again after you stormed into Erickson’s office.”

I shrugged. “You’re still colleagues to me, and besides, I wanted to catch up on a few things with you

Their reactions were still guarded, as I’m sure the drama surrounding my departure from the firm was still fresh

on their minds. After a brief moment of hesitation, Faith was the next one to speak.

“We’re not sure, Evie,” she replied cautiously, her eyes reflecting uncertainty. “But, well, we feel kinda bad about how you were almost blacklisted. It wasn’t right.”

“I understand your concerns,” I said with a warm smile. “But I’d really like to make amends and spend some time

with you all. It would mean a lot to me.”

After a bit more deliberation, they agreed to join me for dinner, and we made our way to a nearby restaurant.

The tension that had initially hung in the air seemed to loosen

It started with cautious conversation and the exchange of pleasantries. But it was Beth who broke the surface of our polite discourse by raising the issue that had been my whole motivation for the night.

“Evie,” she said, her tone sincere and filled with regret, “we feel terrible about what you went through. It wasn’t right, and we wish we could’ve done more.”

“I understand why you couldn’t,” I replied with a warm smile. “It was an awful time, and I appreciate your support now.”

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“We know that Mr. Erickson’s behavior has been a problem for a long time. His comments can be a little…inappropriate at times, and he’ll tell a lot of lewd jokes with the

uncomfortable,” said Faith. “We’ve been afraid to say anything because

well to criticism.”

more than just me, and it was

for being honest,” I told them, my voice sincere. “Your accounts are important in addressing the issue. I believe that the workplace should be safe for

believe.”

“I’m glad you’re bringing this to light. I didn’t think it was bad at first, but I saw one intern quit after that one week when he kept dragging her

one, though he

said, though the topic was starting to get painfully dark. “Not that I’m glad it happened, but at least there’s a pattern we can

“That’s not all.”

Sarah, who’s voice had lowered to a discrete level. She looked at the others, as if to gauge her next words on

pushed her out of the top spot and placed you at his “top

we heard about it later,” Beth finished. “Jasper

echoed in my mind. Just the mention of Linda sent a violent chill through me. It seemed that Mr. Erickson’s actions were not

at her mouth and pretended to hurl, eliciting a laugh from the group. “He was bragging to me about getting you fired. He mentioned something about

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Chapter 201

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on taking him

about people he

they said in

cards. They’d gone out of use since being

card and read over them as I went on. “If you could, I would like each of you to draft victim impact statements. They can be totally anonymous, and

“We’re willing to help, Evie, but we weren’t directly victimized by Mr. Erickson. We can’t write

“You can write up witness statements instead.

was the one who

took a moment to reflect on the information, and a plan began to form. It was clear that

appreciate your honesty and willingness to help,” I

well with me.

1. be.

gratitude for the evening we had spent together. It felt like I had gained a few more people on my side, which was a