He veers sideways just as we pull next to each other, andcrashes into the side of my car.
The world tilts. My heart stops. Reality suspends as a terriblescreechandtearingnoise sounds through the air. Weightlessness lifts my stomach as my carflips… then crashes back down onto the track with a sickeningcrunchthat jars my body from head to toe,and slides. And slides. And keeps fucking sliding, until I slam into the kerb with enough force to knock the wind out of me.
My seatbelt nearly fails me, and my head slams so hard against the headrest I see stars. Through blurry eyes, I see smoke beginning to pour from the front of the car.I have to get out. A horrible ringing sounds in my ears.Get out, get out, get out.
Corner marshal cars swarm me from all sides. A fire extinguisher is aimed and deployed at the front of my absolutelywreckedfucking car—it seems almost funny, since the pouring rain should take care of it.
Another marshal wrenches open the door, unbuckles me, and shouts, “Can you move?”
He’s asking me if anything’s so broken that moving would be a greater risk than staying in place. I’m banged up and I’ll have a fuck ton of bruises, but I don’tthinkI broke any bones.
“Yeah.” I’m half in shock as I accept his help out of the car. My head pounds, my ears keep ringing, but I don’t know if it’s a concussion or depression that has me so discombobulated.
All I know is that I’ve just lost my best chance at a podium this season. And it was because I got put on a pair of tyres even more reckless than I am.
Chapter Forty-Five
Victoria
The team is thrown into chaos. The race is, as well—everything gets screwed up while safety cars come out to clean up the mess of Asher’s car.
I lose the ability to breathe as I watch track marshals drag him out of the steaming, charred pile of metal that once passed for a halfway decent car. My heart stutters, skips three beats… then breaks out into a flurry as Asher straightens on his own.
I’d kill to be out on the track with him. Ihaveto see that he’s okay up close. I have to make sure that he’s not hurt—
“Sit. Down,” Ilya tells me pointedly when I take a step away from the pit wall. “Nobody goes anywhere until we get this goddamnnightmarefigured out.” He looks at Declan. “Status?”
“He’s not finishing the race,” Declan says grimly. “Not with the state of his car. Eliomightbe able to push in the top 15 if he takes advantage of the safety cars.”
“Victoria—switch places with Stanley,” Ilya commands, motioning at Elio’s engineer. “Get Elio as far as he can go. Asher’s out.”
His last words ring with finality.Asher’s out. He’s not getting the upgrade package before Montreal, and there’s no telling what state he’s in—whether he’ll be able to get top 10inMontreal.
“Miss Linden.” Ilya’s voice is harsh. “Get in Elio’s ear.Now.”
My hands tremble. I can’tfocuson anything but Asher. “I don’t think I can—”
“You can, because I am telling you to.Right. Now.”
His tone tells me that if I don’t comply, I’m done. And if I’m done, who’s going to help Asher?
I take a deep breath. Reach for cool, calculated composure that mostly eludes me. Click around on my tablet to redirect my algorithm to Elio, and accept the headset from Stanley.
Ilya’s breaking a lot of protocol and tradition in giving an intern this much power—somewhere in the back of my mind, I know that’s a good sign. It means that he respects and trusts me. But I can’t find anything good in this situation, especially as Asher’s taken out of sight, presumably to medical. Safety cars flood the track, slowing every F1 car down as the debris is swept to the side.
I clear my throat and bite back the sting in my eyes as I don the headset. “Elio, this is Victoria reporting as your stand-in engineer. So sorry for the change.”
There’s a surprised pause. Then, Elio’s voice flits out, slow and cautious. “Glad to have you with me. What’s the plan, boss?”
Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry.“Let’s start with your vitals…”
Somehow, I manage to guide Elio through the rest of the race.
By a stroke of luck and fantastic driving, he finishes in P14.
The win tastes foul in my mouth. Not only did I contribute to Asher’s crash by selecting the wrong tyres… I then jumped ship to Elio. I was ordered to, but it’s still not a good look.
Asher will understand. He has to. He’s grown so much in the last few months—I’ll talk everything over with him, and we’ll be fine.We have to be.
