I stared him down. “Just a bad run.”
“Sure. Maybe you’re distracted.”
I clenched my jaw. If I opened my mouth, I’d say something I couldn’t unsay. Like how tired I was of the whispers. Of the weight. Of her in my god damn head.
I turned on my heel and walked out of the garage.
The air outside was cool but sharp. It carried the scent of spring — something faintly sweet, faintly cloying. I hated it.
I tugged the zip of my suit down and rounded the corner behind the paddock, away from the eyes, away from Ross’s constant scrutiny.
I should have been sharper. More focused. The car wasn’t the problem. I was.
Because instead of analysing brake balance and torque curves, I was picturing a woman pressed against a hotel wall, fire in her eyes and defiance in her voice.
She was in Japan. I hadn’t seen her, but I knew. She wouldn’t leave. Not without her story.
Mac was right — I wasn’t driving like myself. I was driving like a man with something to hide.
I closed my eyes, inhaled, exhaled. Tried to reset.
“You’re inside my head.”
I hadn’t meant to say it. Hadn’t meant to mean it.
But it was true.
And I had no idea how to get her out.
F1 Pulse Broadcast: Japanese Grand Prix, Post-Qualifying Coverage
MARTY: Well, that is the chequered flag on qualifying here at Suzuka, and what a turnaround for Aleksandr Volkov. Yesterday’s practice session looked like he was driving a tractor, not an Obsidian.
TARA: To be fair, the Obsidian does handle like a tractor until they turn the engine on.
JAMIE: I asked him about it in the paddock earlier and he said—and I quote—“It was acceptable.” Which, from Volkov, is basically Shakespearean emotion.
TARA: Still, P2 is a solid recovery. He didn’t put a foot wrong today, but that last lap from Luca Moretti? Stunning. Hawthorn have brought the upgrades they promised.
JAMIE: Moretti looked far too smug for someone who almost binned it at Spoon.
MARTY: That’s his natural state, Jamie. Smug and sideways.
TARA: Speaking of sideways—Sofia Vega. P7. I’m starting to think she’s actually driving a different car to Ben Walker, who is starting right at the back of the grid.
JAMIE: She overtook three cars in the first five minutes of FP2. I swear she would’ve overtaken the safety car if they’d let her.
MARTY: She’s becoming a fixture in the points predictions. The fans adore her. Half the paddock is terrified of her. I’d call that a successful rookie season so far.
TARA: She’s got that hungry energy, for sure.
JAMIE: I did ask if she was aiming for a podium this weekend. She laughed in my face and said: “Jamie, I’m always aiming for a podium.” God, I love her.
TARA: Meanwhile, Callum Drake. P15. Again. I know Obsidian don’t like talking about it, but that’s a pattern.
MARTY: It is starting to look like Callum and that car have a fundamental disagreement about which direction is forward.
JAMIE: Do you think Obsidian will keep him next year?
