Racing for Freedom - By Bec Botefuhr Page 0,52
mine a few times and it gives me some comfort. By the time we do our burnouts in prep for the race, I’m sweating and trembling. God, I can’t believe I’m finally here. All the years of racing, all the years of pain and heartache and here I am. My dream is finally close enough to reach. I close my eyes, smiling at the memory of the first time Slade and I raced our cars together at the old beach tracks.
“You know I’m going to let you win, Dashy.” Slade smiles.
“That’s not fair Slade Devaroe. You can’t do that. It’s not a fair race if you let me win.”
“I know, but the look on your face when you lose.”
I’m sixteen and feisty as all hell. I throw my hands on my hips and snap, “Or perhaps you’re just too scared I might actually beat you.”
He grins and points to himself. “Me, lose? I don’t think so.”
“Scared of a girl, Slade?”
“Never.”
“Then race me for real, don’t let me win.”
He scrunches up his face, and then breaks out into a breathtaking grin. “Alright, fine, I’ll give you all I’ve got.”
I smile at him. “You know, you’d let me win in a big race just to stop my hurt, wouldn’t you?”
He laughs and wraps an arm around me. “What can I say, I’m a sucker for those eyes.”
I giggle. “Let’s do this for real Slade, me and you, just us and the road.”
“Alright Dashy, you’re on.”
A tear pricks my eye and burns as I remember that day. Slade won, of course, and I made a big deal of it even though I was hurt. He never bragged or shoved it in my face though, he held me for hours after telling me it was such a close win even though I’d been behind him by a fair stretch.
“Slade Devaroe and Dasha Jewel, the race that will determine one of their futures.”
The loud voice snaps me back to reality. Jesus, I need to focus. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and then open them and lay them on the road ahead. I can do this. I have to put my love for Slade aside, I have to focus. I have to be the best I can be. When the lights show and begin to flick through, I ready my car. Remember what Slade taught you, remember those corners. When the light turns green, I surge forward. Adrenalin has my heart thumping so loudly I can hear it in my ears, even above the roar of my car.
I glide ahead with ease, taking the first turn at full speed. Pride swells in my chest and I keep going, picking up speed. Slade’s car is right beside mine. At a point, he surges ahead and I begin to panic. No, keep calm Dash, keep calm and keep focus. I surge around the next corner, gaining speed over Slade. I accelerate, picking up the speed until I’m zooming so fast the people beside me seem like no more than blobs of colour.
By the third lap, I’m easing into second, then first, then back again. It’s a damn close race and I honestly don’t know who’ll go over that finish line first. By the fourth lap however, Slade seems to be slowing down and taking the corners far more harshly. I feel my stomach twist again as I glance quickly at his car in my rear view mirror. Is something wrong? Or is he just backing off so he can zoom past me at the finish?
When we hit the final lap, I can hardly breathe. I’m so excited and nervous. I’m in the lead and I’m taking the corners better than any race I’ve ever had. Focusing on the finish line, I don’t notice that my world is changing behind me. I take the last two corners and when I soar over that finish line, my squeals of victory quickly turn into screams as I see the car to my left flipping across the grass. I know that car, and my blood runs cold as it smashes against the side rails and burst into flames.
I don’t even feel myself open my door, all I know is I’m running across the grass and I can’t hear anything but the sirens blaring in my ears. People are screaming and being held back by security. My vision blurs as I get closer and closer to the car. Oh god, please, let him be ok. When my numb legs finally