Page 1 of Dirty Ruck (Ruck Boys #5)

Chapter One

Chelsea

The roar of blood rushing through my ears was loud and rapid.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Underneath me the ground was cold and hard. I lay with my arm over Sadie, my head down, eyes closed.

I waited for the second shot to come. Braced myself for it.

Gradually, the pounding receded, the sound of my heartbeat replaced by shouting. Then the gradual realisation a second shot might not come.

"Sadie?" I opened my eyes and looked into her face.

She stared back at me, unmoving.

Shit.

She was… My heart started to sink. Not Sadie. She couldn't be gone.

Nonononono.

A moan slipped from between her lips. She blinked and grimaced. "I'm okay. I think."

Thank fuck.

"But the blood?" I saw it right before we hit the ground. Hadn’t I?

We were enjoying coffee and a chat, then the gun shot rang out. I'd dragged us both to the ground, hitting hard, but shielded somewhat by the heavy table.

"My shoulder hurts like a bitch," she groaned.

I raised my head and glanced around, before looking back at her. Her pale blue mohair jumper was flecked with blood. Everywhere but her shoulder, which was saturated.

Torn wool surrounded a wound that was little more than a nasty graze.

Thank fuck. Again.

"It's not too bad," I said. "You got lucky. We need to get you out of here and fix you up."

I got luckier. If she hadn't leaned forward when she did, I would have been the one with the bullet hole. Right through my heart. I tried not to think about it too hard. If I did, I might freak the fuck out.

"Are you two okay?" One of the café staff knelt beside us, expression concerned, gaze darting left and right.

"We're fine." I pushed myself up until I was sitting and grabbed a clean napkin from the table to press against Sadie's wound. "Did?—"

Before I could say more, Frost and Dallas pushed through the gathered crowds.

"Chelsea!" Frost's eyes were wide with fear and worry as he elbowed through to get to us.

"We're fine," I said. "How did you…"

"We weren't far away." Dallas crouched beside us. "Ramsey and Jay went after the asshole."

"They won't get far." Frost's expression was dark with fury. He looked ready to tear them apart with his bare hands.

I'd never seen him look so angry. Or angry at all. Any other time, the way his eyes flashed would have been hot. Right now, with my heart still racing, hands damp, I wanted to get out of here. I'd come way too close to dying today.

Sadie could have died.

"Who did this?" Dallas asked. "I should have been here to—" He shook his head. He looked ready to give up playing football and become my full-time bodyguard. He was already attached to me. If I was dead, he'd be devastated.

The other guys would be too, but if anything happened to me, he'd lose it. And vice versa.

I shook my head. "That's what I'd like to know. We need to get out of here. I want to get Sadie patched up properly."

"Sadie would like something for the pain," Sadie said. "I'll start with tequila."

"You can't have pain medication and alcohol," I told her. A fact she was well aware of, and we both knew it. Thankfully, she still had her sense of humour.

"Yes, Doctor Downer." She pouted playfully. She was smiling, but her eyes belied her pain. The glint of moisture suggested it was excruciating. She was trying very hard not to cry, or cry out.

She was tough, I had to give her that.

"Help me get her up," I said to the guys.

Dallas helped me to my feet, first before they reached down to draw her to hers.

She whimpered from the pain, but let us lead her to Frost's car, which was parked at an angle beside the curb. "Is this where you tell me I have to go to hospital?"

"My brother's place is closer," I said. "He'll have everything we need."

Right now, we'd be safer there than in a public place.

We were vulnerable already. Exposed for long enough for someone to take a shot at us.

It never should have happened. I wasn't going to let it happen again.

From now on, I'd be on my guard at every moment.

I had to, this was exactly what happened when I let it slip.

I owed it to myself and the people I cared about, to be more careful.

The guys helped Sadie into the back. I slipped in beside her, so I could keep the pressure on her wound.

She wasn't in danger of bleeding out, but the less blood she lost, the better.

Not to mention, she could clearly use the reassurance right now.

If I was honest, I'd say I needed some of that myself.

Dallas hovered near the back of the car. He frowned like he wanted to sit beside me, but there wasn't room in the back of Frost's vehicle.

Frowning deeper, he reluctantly slipped into the front passenger seat. Before he even fastened his seatbelt, he was watching out the window. If anyone approached, he’d be ready.

No one did, but we got a lot of curious looks. Of course we did. Even in Dusk Bay, people didn't get shot in broad daylight every day. Every second day, maybe, but not every day.

As we pulled away from the curb, I watched out the window myself. Someone tried to kill me, and I wanted to know why. Did someone want to get to my brother or someone else in my family? It wasn’t unheard of, but this… It felt personal. This was about me.

They wanted me dead.

If they tried once and failed, chances were they'd try again.

"Was this something to do with the new coach?" Sadie asked. "People at the Smashers dropping like flies. First the GM, then the head coach."

"Then almost me," I whispered. "I'm so sorry I dragged you into this. If I had any idea it'd happen…" I wouldn't have stepped foot outside of Storm's apartment, much less met her out in public.

I blinked back tears that threatened to trickle down my cheeks. This was exactly why I didn't want anything to do with the mafia shit , as the guys called it, that went on in this city.

The deeper people became involved, the greater the chance of things like this happening. Getting involved made you enemies. Enemies that wouldn't hesitate to end you, if you didn't end them first.

It was an ongoing cycle of violence I'd wanted no part of. But now, in spite of everything, I'd been dragged back into it. Whether I liked it or not.

"Of course you didn't," she said. "No one would go anywhere if they thought someone was going to take a pot shot at them." She winced again.

"I wouldn't have suggested we get together," I agreed. "After this, you should stay away from me. At least until we know what's going on and we’ve dealt with it."

She looked less worried than she should. And less inclined to lay blame on me.

"How do you know it was you they were aiming at?" she asked. "I've done my share of shady shit. That was going to catch up with me at some point."

"If that's the case, they're a terrible shot," I said dryly.

"Unless it was a warning," she said.

"Warning against what?" I asked. "What are you involved in, exactly?"

I wouldn't be surprised if she was into something I wasn't aware of.

She didn't tell me all of her secrets and I didn't tell her all of mine.

We shared most of it, but some things were better kept to ourselves.

Not to mention, someone might have hired her to carry out something she couldn't discuss.

If that was the case, I wouldn't push. She'd tell me when she was allowed to. If she was.

She shrugged her uninjured shoulder. "Nothing I can think of that warrants being shot at, but some people are especially sensitive. Maybe I put too much ice in someone's drink. Or not enough."

"This would be an extreme response to something like that," I said. People had killed for less, though.

"Just a little." She nodded slowly. "It could have been worse."

"It could have been much worse." I was convinced she was dead and I was next. I'd lain on that hard ground while the time ticked away, listening for more gunshots. Waiting to feel that moment of impact before a bullet entered my body.

The guys must have reached the shooter, or scared them away before they could take another shot. That, or they thought they'd done the job they were there to do and left.

Then, of course, Sadie could have been much more badly injured. The bullet could have lodged in her shoulder, or torn it apart. She could have lost the use of it. Worse, the bullet could have passed through a vital organ.

I was grateful it was as slight as it was. Yes, it clearly hurt like hell, but she'd recover.

"Are you two all right back there?" Frost asked over his shoulder. "We're almost to Ice’s place."

"We're fine," I replied. "Just a little shaken up." My heart rate was almost back to normal, but my hands were still damp with sweat. I swapped them around every couple of minutes to keep the napkin in place, while wiping the other on my leggings.

"Us too," Frost said. "Dallas, you should let Storm and Atlas know what went down."

Ever since they'd dealt with Coach Stanley, they'd been asked to deal with several other things. None of which I asked the details of. They always returned looking grim, but they didn't seem to hate each other anymore, so that was a bonus.

Wasn't it?

"I already did," Dallas said. "I sent off a text to the group chat. They'll meet us at Ice's. Ramsey and Jay too. Along with the asshole who tried to hurt Chelsea.”

Keeping one hand in place, I pushed the other into my pocket and pulled out my phone. Like Dallas said, the guys caught the gunman, but didn't give any more details. I considered calling them to ask, but I'd find out soon enough.

"Soon to be late asshole," Frost growled. "He's going to regret the day he was born."

Between him and my brother, they'd make sure of that. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost. I mean, he did try to kill me. Sympathy can only go so far.

"Can I stab them in the shoulder?" Sadie asked. "Just so they know how it feels."

Frost flashed her a brief grin. "I'm sure we can accommodate that."

"Excellent." She returned the grin. "I look forward to it."

"It didn't know you were so bloodthirsty," I told her. She wasn't a pacifist by any means, but she usually stayed out of this kind of shit. All she wanted, usually, was to live her life. This was a side of her I hadn't seen often.

"Only when people shoot me," she said unapologetically. "To be honest, I'm surprised with myself, but here we are. I feel how I feel. You're not going to judge me for it, are you?"

"Not at all," I said. "I'll leave the infliction of pain to you and Frost. And my brother."

"And me," Dallas said. "I want to hurt them too." He seemed more than a little disturbed at his own words, but he didn't try to take them back.

I knew he was still struggling with killing India, and his feelings about that. He'd enjoyed it, but was troubled by how much. Frost seemed to have embraced his inner darkness much more comfortably.

"Maybe you should wait and find out their reasoning before you plan where you're going to stick knives and screwdrivers," I said.

"I hadn't thought of a screwdriver," Frost said thoughtfully. "Now you mention it, I have a few ideas."

"Leave some for me," Sadie said.

I pressed my lips together and forced myself to silence. I wasn't going to judge any of them for wanting vengeance, but me? I just wanted answers.

Dusk Bay wasn't the sort of place where people shot at others for no reason. They didn't just pick up a gun and aim at me for shits and giggles. Chances were, they were paid. I wanted to know who paid them and why. Those were the people I wanted to get at.

Before they came for me again.