Queen of the track

XXVI

Chapter 26.

Gray

          I wasn't even half way through my beer before one of the guys standing in the group alerted the rest of us that AJ was now the next racer, against some guy called Reed Johnson.

We walk closer to the main crowd surrounding a small section of the dirt track, and I finally set my eyes on AJ, sitting behind the wheel of his car, the engine purring as the second car pulls up beside him.

"Who's that guy?" I ask Jas. "Does he go to Mountview?"

"No, he goes to Grover," she says, tucking a lock of black hair behind her ear to hear me better over all the noise. "But he and AJ have had a feud for years, every so often they get put against each other to race, and it almost always ends in a fight."

I'm starting think there's a common theme here.

I ask cautiously, "Who starts them? The fights."

"Reed."

Maybe not a common theme then.

A faint voice calls out over the buzzing crowd that seems to have grown, counting down to the start of the race. On 'go', both drivers hit the pedals and set off, cheers and whistles being drowned out by the roars of their engines. Both cars quickly picking up speed as they approach the first turn.

Dust trails behind as they drift the corner, AJ slightly in the lead which gives him a perfect opportunity to speed ahead, literally leaving this Reed guy in the dust.

Theres a ringing in my ears from the constant cheers of the crowd, and I can understand the hype. AJ was a good fucking driver, I sure as hell wouldn't want to race against him. I also wasn't betting on him though, some twisted part of me wanting Reed to win, just to teach AJ a lesson.

The more logical side of me knows that won't be the case.

As they approach the final turn, which seems to be a lot sharper than the rest, AJ slows before drifting, the back of his car going slightly off the track and into the more unsuitable dirt, but he quickly rights himself and speeds on down to the finish. Reed was a second behind him.

"Yeah!"

"That's what I'm talking about baby, come on!"

Redhead—whose name I learnt is Toby—and his friends all cheer exactly how I picture AJ's friends to be, making me raise an eyebrow.

"Thought you couldn't stand the guy." I question.

"We can't," Toby says with a grin, "but I'd still rather he win than Reed fucking Johnson."

"Fair enough."

AJ and Reed step out of their cars and seem to square off slightly, making the crowd go even more wild.

I tilt my head back to finish the last of my beer, and out the corner of my eye I see vivid movement behind us. When I look properly, I see Alex, her back to me, arguing with a guy twice her size.

Normally, I wouldn't intervene in a situation like this unless things seriously escalated—but his posture, the blazing anger in his eyes and the sharp movements of his hands as he talks...I'm not standing by to let this one escalate. I've seen his type before.