13. Trick

The first gunshot sends a wave of fear through me. I’m no stranger to dodging bullets, so the moment the gun is discharged, I know exactly what it is. I throw my body overtop of Heidi, tucking her against my chest and protecting her head as the volley continues.

The headstone we’re hiding behind explodes. Chunks of stone fly into the air around us like mini projectiles, and I curl tighter around her as they land.

Lifting my head slightly, I try to pinpoint where the attack is coming from. A group of men, all wearing long, dark coats, all pointing guns in our direction, are running towards us from the top of the hill.

Fucking Pioneers.

It has to be.

I envelop Heidi, ignoring the way her little whimpers and yelps of fear turn my gut into a knot of anxiety.

When the bullets stop, I know we only have a few seconds to run before they start firing again. We have to be quick and make every second count before they reload.

It feels as if it takes an eternity, but in reality, it’s only a matter of seconds before the cemetery falls silent once again.

I don’t hesitate, surging to my feet. I’m not gentle as I tug Heidi up, my hand locking around hers.

I glimpse the wild, terrified look in her eyes, but there isn’t time to comfort her. If we’re going to survive this, we have to run.

Dragging her through the maze of headstones, I move at a brutal pace as the gunfire restarts. She stumbles, barely keeping up with my long strides, but I don’t slow as bullets whiz around us.

My ears are ringing and my heart is thudding in my chest. The irony that I might die in a graveyard is not lost on me. The universe sure as fuck has a warped sense of humour.

“Keep moving,” I rasp as Heidi stumbles, almost falling over her feet.

She doesn’t answer, but her ragged breaths are answer enough.

My bike is parked up where I left it, but as we approach that direction, I see other men in dark coats coming towards us.

Fuck.

Getting trapped is a death sentence, but I’m not sure we can reach my bike before them. My decision here is going to determine whether we live or die, and that’s terrifying. Once again, I’m surrounded by death.

In a split second, I make my decision. I turn in a different direction, one that leads away from our attackers. I know there is a fence that surrounds the cemetery, but if we can scale it, we may be able to escape into the housing estate behind.

It’s our only chance.

I ignore everything except for the small hand gripping mine so tightly that my bones ache.

As we pass a headstone, I glimpse an old woman ducked down behind it, trying to protect herself from the hail of bullets raining down around us.

I want to help her, but it’s not her these men are after. I change direction, leading the bullets away from her, hoping like hell she survives this. I don’t need anyone else’s death on my hands.

My lungs are on fire as we cut across the grass until I can see the fence, can taste freedom.

We’re going to make it.

As soon as we’re close, I interlace my fingers together, creating a step to hoist Heidi over the fence. Her fingers grip the top of it as she scrambles over, dropping onto the grass on the other side.

A quick glance behind me costs precious seconds, but I use it to pinpoint where our enemies are coming from. I can’t count exactly how many are out there, but at a guess, it’s at least seven or eight.

“Trick!”

The panic in her voice has me spinning around. She looks terrified, so I don’t waste any time. I heave myself up, flipping my body over the top of the fence, and drop onto the grass next to her.

I grab her hand again, and we take off at a sprint. Ahead of us is a row of garages, single-storey, with rusty-looking doors. I pull her down the side of them and into a narrow alley that opens out onto the street.

Terraced houses run either side of the road, each one looking identical to its neighbour, the only differences are the doors on the front. Cars are crammed into every space, making the road narrow, but it is perfect for us to hide.

We rush across the street, using the cars on the other side as cover until another alley opens up between the houses.

My brain is in overdrive, my senses alert to any danger as we run out onto another street. I have no idea where we are or where we’re going, but I just keep moving.

We need to hide, find somewhere to hold up until we can come up with a plan. We are not fucking dying in the street. If those dogs want to come after us, let them, but we will be the ones walking away.

Heidi stumbles, the movement almost dragging me down with her as she falls against a car, her face pale.

“We need to keep moving,” I tell her. She nods, as if she agrees, but she doesn’t move. “Heidi.”

“Just need… a second.” She’s breathless, bent over slightly as if trying to draw more air into her lungs. As much as I want to give it to her, we don’t have a second. We need to keep moving if we’re going to survive this.

Just as I’m about to say this, I notice a red stain peeking out from under her jacket. I grab the edge of the leather, ripping it aside to see the blood just above her hip.

Sticky panic floods my veins, making my heart pound so fast, it’s dizzying. I reach for the hem of her sweater, shoving it up. There’re more layers beneath. How much material does one person need on their body?

As I push up the last one, I see bright red blood covering her skin, thick and shiny.

Heidi tries to push my hands away, but I don’t allow her, ignoring her protests. I need to see how bad the wound is.

My throat is tight, choked as I use her top to wipe her skin. The whimper she lets out threatens to unravel my nerves, but I ignore it, searching instead for the source of the bleeding.

Ragged flesh just above her hip seems to be where she was hit. To my relief, it looks as if it nicked the very edge of her side, more of a flesh wound than a serious injury, but I’m still choked with fear.

I let go of her sweater, scanning the street as I grab her hand and press it against the wound forcefully.

She cries out, her back bowing to escape the pain, but I don’t let her, holding her hand in place.

“I know it hurts, babe, but you need to press hard while we run.”

The shaky breath she forces out through her barely parted lips almost breaks me, but we have to keep going. I grab her other hand, and while I slow my pace slightly to consider her injury, I keep us moving. The men behind us aren’t going to care that she’s hurt, nor are they going to stop chasing us.

I drag her into another alleyway, but this time, I don’t follow it onto the next street. Instead, I lead her between the houses, looking for somewhere we can hide.

At the end of the row is a patch of scrubland and more garages. Keeping hold of Heidi, my gaze splitting between the doors and our surroundings, I test each of them until one opens.

Fucking yes.

It creaks and groans as it goes up over our heads. There are a few old boxes piled in the corner and rows of shelves along the back wall.

There is no way out other than the up-and-over door, but it will have to do. Heidi can’t keep running, and we’re a target on the street.

I pull Heidi behind me, shoving the door down until we are consumed by the darkness. The only light comes from around the garage door, where it doesn’t meet flush against the brickwork. It takes my eyes a moment to adjust, but when they do, I pull her over to the boxes, slipping in behind them.

Carefully, I lower her onto the concrete, leaning her back against the dirty wall. She’s breathing heavily, but that is more likely shock at being hurt and the forced cardio we just had to do.

“You hurt anywhere else?” Fear makes my words sharp.

“One bullet wound isn’t enough?” The quirk of her lips tells me she’s joking and, fuck, I wish I had it in me to laugh, but nothing about this is funny.

How did those fucking pricks know I was here?Fucking Pioneer cunts.

I pull my phone out my pocket, thrilled to see it has survived, and fire off a message to Howler, telling him we’re in trouble before I pull up the maps app and send him a screenshot of our location.

A response comes in less than thirty seconds telling us to hold tight, that help is on the way.

My shoulders loosen and I switch on the flashlight on my phone, facing it upwards so it provides light in the small dark space.

Heidi’s face is pale, but through her heavy gaze, I see determination and strength. I fucking admire that so much. Heidi is a fighter. I didn’t realise how much of one until I learned about her past, but knowing the things I know now, I am in awe of her strength and resilience.

Her wound doesn’t worry me, but the bleeding does. I need to slow it down until someone can stitch her up. Her hand isn’t going to cut it.

Shrugging out of my kutte, I drag my hoodie over my head and then my T-shirt. Balling it up, I clutch it with one hand while I pull hers away from her side.

“Is it bad?” she rasps, her teeth clamped together.

“I only got a quick look at it, but it looked like it grazed your side.”

She blinks rapidly, as if dizzy. “It’s only a graze? It hurts like fuck.”

The hint of panic in her words hits me in the chest like a wrecking ball. I don’t want her afraid. She shouldn’t be dodging bullets while visiting her child’s grave. Today was meant to be healing for her, and instead, it has added more trauma.

“The doc should be able to stitch it.”

“Should doesn’t fill me with good feelings, Trick.”

Despite the seriousness of the situation, my lips kick up at the corners. “Okay, the doc will be able to stitch you up. Does that help?”

She glares at me. “Running from armed maniacs might be all in a day’s work for you, but that was my first time almost getting killed.”

The smile fades from my face and my words are harsh. “No one is going to kill you.”

“I don’t think they got your memo on that.” She shifts slightly, using her hands to move herself back against the wall. I don’t miss the way she winces, and I wish I could take this pain for her.

When she settles, I hand her my T-shirt, guiding both that and her hand to her side. “We need to keep pressure on it.”

“I can’t,” she complains. “It fucking hurts so bad.”

“I know, but I don’t want you to lose too much blood.”

“I thought you said it was just a graze.”

“It is.”

Grudgingly, she lifts her sweater and puts it against her side, squeezing her eyes shut in pain. She’s probably not pressing as hard as she should, so I use my hand to show her.

The breath she sucks in between her teeth makes my belly swirl uncomfortably, but there is no time for niceties with this. It might only be a flesh wound, but it could turn serious.

I pull my hoodie back on, slipping back into my kutte before I glance toward the garage door, listening in case our attackers are close, but I don’t hear any noise. It allows me to relax a little.

I’m not carrying a gun. It’s rare we do. The sentence for being caught with firearms is steep, and although we do use them, it’s only on certain occasions. I have several knives on me, though, which means getting up close and personal with our attackers. That is riskier and could leave Heidi exposed without help, but that’s the choice in front of us.

After a while of silence, I glance in her direction and my heart leaps into my throat. Her head is tipped to the side, her eyes closed, and even just from the light of my phone torch, I can see she is too pale.

I move quickly, cupping her face and lifting it towards me. My blood thunders through my veins until her eyes flutter open.

“Fuck,” I gasp out the word as she focuses her heavy eyes on me.

“Sorry. I couldn’t keep my eyes open. Running for your life really takes it out of you.”

I let go of her face as she sits a little straighter, still holding my T-shirt against her side. I don’t see any blood coming through it, which eases some of the tension in my body.

“It’s fine. I was worried you’d passed out.”

“This isn’t dramatic enough without me fainting?”

Voices outside the garage have both of us falling silent, but I place a finger to my lips anyway before I turn, blocking Heidi with my body.

Fuck, I thought we’d have more time before we were found.

I pull one of my knives out, flicking it open before shooting a glance back at Heidi. Her eyes are wide and nervous, but she holds out her hand towards me and mouths the word ‘knife’ at me.

While I don’t want her to have to fight, I also want her to protect herself should I fall. I grab another knife from under my kutte and hand it to her.

She clutches it tightly, and I turn my torch off before carefully standing. Slowly, I walk towards the garage door, ready to attack anyone who may come in. Through the gap in the side of the door, I try to see outside, but it’s only big enough to see movement.

The voices get closer, but I can’t hear what is being said. I lick my lips, my mouth drier than the desert as I wait.

“Trick?” Someone shouts my name, and it sends a ripple of tension through me. “Howler sent us.”

It takes my brain a moment to understand, and a moment beyond that to realise who said it.

The voice is familiar and surprising.

Kane fucking Fraser.

I cross the garage in silence, heading over to where Heidi is hiding, careful not to make a sound. Picking up my phone, I make sure the ringer is off before I fire off a text to Howler.

I don’t look at Heidi, scared that if I do, I’ll crack. It takes less than a breath for his response to come back, telling me he sent the Fraser brothers to help.

That knot in the back of my neck loosens as I pocket my phone and walk over to the door. In one smooth motion, I shove it up and over, flooding the space with light. Standing on the other side, guns held loose in their hands, are two of the three Fraser brothers. Lucas, as always, seems the more serious, but his big brother, Kane, is grinning like a lunatic.

“Thanks for the invite,” Kane says. “Chasing down those little rats is the most fun I’ve had in a long time.”

“They’re dead?”

“Obviously,” he drawls.

“We need to go,” Lucas says, his gaze flicking around, checking for targets.

“Hold on. Heidi is injured.”

I head back into the garage, dropping down in front of Heidi. Her skin is pallid and looks even worse with the natural light swarming the place. There is a thin sheen of sweat covering her as she peers up at me.

The trust shining in her eyes isn’t deserved, but I take it anyway as I press a kiss to her forehead. “I’m gonna get you out of here.”

I bend down, sweeping her into my arms and ignoring her protests as she clings to my neck.

Neither Lucas nor Kane say anything as I walk back to them. Standing at either end of the alley are several of their men, all suited as if they’re going for a day at the office rather than on a murder spree.

I don’t care what they look like, only that they’re here.

“Thanks for the save,” I say.

“We want those Pioneer bastards dead just as much as you,” Lucas tells me.

I can’t blame him for that. It’s clear he loves his wife, and Desmond Richardson and his Pioneers remain a threat to her the longer they are allowed to keep living. That is the only reason the Fraser crime family syndicate is helping us—they have a vested interest in seeing those fuckers die.

But as grateful as I am to see them, it doesn’t mean I trust them. I don’t trust anyone outside of my club.

Heidi whimpers against my neck, bringing my attention back to her. “Fuck, I know you said it’s only a graze, but it hurts so bad.”

“I’m sorry, babe. I wish I could take the pain for you.”

“You kept me safe and that’s all that matters. I was so scared.”

“I’ve got you,” I say, following the Fraser brothers.

“I know,” she agrees, “but Trick, I also have you.”

And for some reason, those words hit me harder than if I’d been shot.