keep up the too-fast pace he had set early.
‘Oh my goodness, they’re so close,’ Lee exclaimed, looking back at Jasper. ‘Open up the banner, get it ready.’
The safety-pinned pillowcase was suspended between two poles like a scroll, and carefully – the pink tip of his tongue sticking out between his milk teeth – he unravelled it against his legs. It was upside down and back to front from here, but when he held it up . . .
The drone of the helicopter was loud now, the cameraman clearly visible from the open sides, the camera pointing out and towards the ice like a giant black eye. Lee could feel the vibrations through the air, making her bones hum, and for a moment, she was back there, in a different landscape, a different time: hot and red, brown faces and black hair, huge Chinooks and Apaches buzzing up and down the airspace, helmeted soldiers in the backs, anti-tank missiles pointed towards the ground, the buildings, the people . . .
The helicopter was all but overhead, the sound of the blades clashing and sluicing, so close now.
‘Mama!’ Jasper’s voice brought her back and she turned to see him pointing to the ice. Exactly as Aggie had predicted, Hoog had fallen back, his bright orange skins not what came to the eye first, nor even Langen’s red-and-black suit.
‘Oh my God, he’s winning!’ Lee screamed in disbelief, throwing her arms in the air and wishing she could jump. Sam’s cheeks were flooded with a deep port-coloured stain, his head dipped, his mouth open as he tried to breathe, but she could see a small smile at the very edges as his eyes met hers – theirs – telling them he was going to do this. He had the reserves, she could see it in the way he moved. He had the belief and the mental strength to outgun Langen on the final sprint.
‘Yes, Sam! Go on! Go on! You’re doing it! Keep going!’ she yelled, so hard her voice was immediately hoarse.
But something was wrong. Something else was already in motion, her head was already turning back, as she realized Jasper wasn’t cheering, the smile fading from her face as she realized what Jasper was pointing to. Not the skaters but—
She saw it in the last moment, same as Sam, as his eyes lifted off her and he saw – too late – the banner pole on the ice, right where his left foot was about to go. It had slid out from its precarious safety-pinned hold . . .
There wasn’t even time to scream, as the pole rolled beneath the blade and his leg shot out in front of him, sending him down hard on the ice and setting Langen free as he shot past without missing a beat. Everything went silent to Lee – the helicopter, Jasper’s cries – as she saw Sam roll to a stop across the ice, his body in an awkward position.
‘Sam!’ Jasper was clattering down the steps and onto the ice, skating over to him, crying. ‘Please don’t be dead! Please don’t be dead!’
‘Jasper, come back!’ she yelled, running awkwardly over the deck too. The chasing pack was only metres away now, sensing an opportunity. Second place was still up for grabs.
The helicopter was hovering, leaving Langen to lengthen his lead as Sam groaned, struggling to get up.
‘Sam, I’m sorry!’ Jasper sobbed, falling to his knees and clutching his arm. ‘I’m sorry, Sam!’
Lee was just stepping onto the ice as she saw Sam’s head whip up. ‘You idiot! What the fuck have you done?’
She stopped, stunned by the vitriol, as Jasper fell back onto his bottom, scrabbling to get away like a frightened rabbit. Sam’s eyes were bulging, his face puce with rage. Suddenly, he looked just like his father. ‘Look what you’ve done!’ he spat as the chasing pack of racers sped past, blades glinting like knives in the afternoon sun. Leaving him behind. He pulled his legs in and got up to his feet again, wincing with pain. And with a dip of his head and a furious yell of frustration, he set off again without another word.
‘Jasper,’ Lee cried, getting to him and falling to her knees, hugging him to her closely as they sat on the edge of the ice, Jasper sobbing and shaking uncontrollably as the skaters came past in a never-ending stream. And all the while, the helicopter hovered overhead like a mosquito in the sky, biting them both.
She saw the