Page 18 of Rule Breaker

I tapped the bar one last time and got into position.

Axel faced off against Rochester’s Grant Healey for the puck. When Healey got possession, I knew this was going to be one hell of a game.

Kayden

Rochester had a kick-ass team, and that’s how the first period went. We got our asses kicked.

Their best forwards—Healey, Louis, and Rokick, were hungry as hell and all over us, every play. Thank fuck Maddox was as good a goalie now as he was in practice, otherwise, we’d be down 5-0. Healey’s faster than I anticipated, faster than last year, that’s for sure. He’s only gotten bigger and better. And he’s already scored the first goal of the game.

I couldn’t deny it, the shot was beautiful, bar down, over Maddox’s left shoulder. The shot was so fast that there was nothing Mad could have done to save it. Nothing that I could tell, anyway.

When Coach called for a line change, Maddox kept pacing, tapping his bar, and ignoring everyone else. He was probably spitting fire under that mask of his, and I didn’t dare go near him. As much as I was teasing him earlier, I knew that when the game started, there’s no fucking around. I wanted to win as much as him.

I skated towards the box and passed Julian and Finn. I wished I was on the same line as one of them. Silas was doing alright, but he barely spoke to me, and he hesitated on a few plays, which got me wondering. He’d been off for a year—no idea why—and it seemed like he was still finding his groove.

So far, we were down 1-0 and even though there was plenty of time left to play, the pressure kept ramping up. The hometown crowd roared for their team and booed anytime we so much as got close to Rochester’s net.

“Come on, Rowland! Lund! Let’s get numbers on the board!” Coach yelled.

Jace got control of the puck, flying down the ice with an aggression that surprised me. He blew past Rochester’s offense with speed and skill. And Axel wasn’t far behind. But Rochester’s defense wasn’t to be fucked with. Until Jace pivoted, surprising them. He passed to Axel, and Axel took it the rest of the way.

The shot was low, but a beaut, sneaking right through the five hole. When the buzzer sounded and the ref signaledgoal, everyone in our box popped up, yelling and screaming.

“Yes! Did you see that?” I shouted at Ethan. “Holy fuck, what a goal!”

“Axel delivered!”

I was happy for Axel, even if he did talk out of his ass half of the time. Most of all, I was happy for our team. At least some of the pressure was off Maddox. Not that he seemed bothered by the weight of anyone else’s opinion. Not what I’ve seen so far.

I looked across the ice as Julian skated by Maddox. Words were exchanged as Julian bent over, hands and stick resting on his knees, his mouth running a mile a minute. I loved to talk, but my teammate wasn’t far behind me.

But of course, I was too far away to know what Maddox was saying in return.

Then, I heard it. Julian’s laughter. So loud that it echoed over the din of the crowd. For a reason I couldn’t explain, the sound irritated me. What the hell were he and Maddox talking about?

So much for our goalie hating everyone. Turned out, it was only me.

CHAPTER 9

KAYDEN

Third period and Rochester was up 2-1.

We’ve lost momentum, a shift in energy. Frustration weighed us down, on the ice, in the box. Like Maddox, who skated back and forth, shaking his head.

Coach called for a line change and I was hungry to get back out there. Healey barreled down the ice, but I was ready for him. Him and his teammates.

The hits got aggressive, the crowd chanted louder, and the tension soared. An away game always hits hard. That win can make you feel like you’re gonna take on the world. That loss? It gets in your head. But if it stays there? Then you’re fucked.

Rochester doesn’t score on us, but we don’t score either. And it ends 2-1.

Our first loss of the season and it fucking hurt. We do the usual lineup after the game and shake hands with Rochester, but everyone on our team is skating like a zombie, their faces unreadable, their shoulders slumped.

“It’s nerves,” Dane muttered as we stepped off the rink. “It’ll settle. It’s one game. We got this.”

“I fucking hope so. We were so damn close.”

Everyone’s left the ice, or, so I thought. When I glanced back, my eyes caught on Maddox standing in his net, hands on the bar, head down, holding on. I’m tempted to go back out there, but I don’t need his backlash.

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